We believe systems don’t change themselves. People do.
Developing Capacity Coaching is a Leadership Infrastructure and Systems Advisory firm that helps organizations navigating high-stakes change strengthen the leadership capacity and organizational conditions required to move consequential work forward.
Our work is grounded in a simple conviction: sustainable change requires developing the people responsible for leading it while strengthening the organizational conditions around them.
Change asks more of an organization than strategy alone can provide.
Institutions can have a clear strategy, committed leaders, and significant resources and still struggle to move.
Because change is ultimately carried by people.
Leaders have to make high stakes decisions. Teams have to coordinate across differences. Accountability has to hold. Organizations have to adapt without losing direction. And progress has to continue even as pressure, leadership, and conditions change.
DCC exists to strengthen the Leadership Infrastructure that helps institutions do that.
We help organizations become:
STEADY.
ALIGNED.
ACCOUNTABLE.
How we think about leadership and change shapes how we work.
LEADERSHIP IS DISTRIBUTED.
High stakes change cannot depend on one exceptional leader. Organizations need leadership capacity across the people responsible for carrying the work.
PEOPLE AND SYSTEMS ARE CONNECTED.
Leadership behavior is shaped by relationships, structures, decisions, accountability, and the organizational conditions surrounding it.
CAPACITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY BELONG TOGETHER.
Developing people does not mean lowering expectations. Strong institutions build capacity while maintaining responsibility for results.
CHANGE SHOULD BE VISIBLE.
A strong experience is not enough. The work should contribute to meaningful shifts in how leaders and organizations operate.
ORGANIZATIONS NEED TO HOLD UNDER PRESSURE.
Leadership Infrastructure matters most when conditions become difficult, expectations change, and the institution is being asked to carry something consequential.
Built to work across leaders, organizations, and systems.
Since 2017
DCC has partnered with leaders and institutions where the stakes are high and the work requires more than a one-size-fits-all leadership solution.
Our work spans Executive Advisory, Leadership Labs and Accelerators, proprietary diagnostics, and customized organizational consulting approaches designed around the organizational challenge.
We work across levels of leadership and organizational systems to strengthen alignment, accountability, decision-making, leadership capacity, and the conditions required to turn strategy into sustained action.
Our work is designed around what the institution is trying to carry—not around a predetermined program.
Meet the Senior Team
Built for the work.
DCC brings together professionals with expertise appropriate to the needs of each engagement.
Our team contributes experience across leadership development, organizational change, systems change, research and evaluation, facilitation, coaching, strategy, and other disciplines required by the work.
This model allows DCC to bring the right combination of expertise to complex institutional engagements while maintaining a consistent approach to quality, partnership, and impact.
Meet the Program & Insights Team and Coaches
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Coach Affiliate
Rhyan’s experience spans financial analysis, relationship management, business development, human capital management, and workforce analytics. He has worked in several industries including: commercial banking, hedge funds, technology start-ups, and industrial supplies. Rhyan is passionate about disrupting social inequities that impact Black males and the restoration of father-child relationships that have been impacted by systemic racial injustices.
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Coach Affiliate
Elaine Townsend Utin - a proud Peruvian-American - is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of LatinxEd. In this non-profit capacity, Elaine leads state-wide efforts to invest in Latinx leadership to expand educational equity and opportunity in North Carolina. Elaine specializes in conscious leadership development, coaching, and positive racial-ethnic identity formation.
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Coach Affiliate
Dr. Ball has fifteen years of experience serving elementary youth in Washington D.C. As an award-winning educator, she utilizes affirmative-based pedagogical approaches for a multitude of diverse communities. As an active public scholar, she often explores the intersection of antiracist policy, research, and practice in her presentations and publications. Dr. Ball recently completed her doctorate degree in Educational Policy and Leadership and earned the 2022 American University Outstanding Scholarship at the Graduate Level Award. Presently, Dr. Ball serves as an Instructional Coach in the district, an Adjunct Professor at American University School of Education and a Contributing Writer with Philly’s 7th Ward. As a practitioner, she is a disrupter of Imposter syndrome, advocate for holistic wellness and consultant for advancing conscious leadership for equity.
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Coach Affiliate
O.B. Amaechi is a social architect with over 15 years of experience in school leadership, teaching, mentoring students, and coaching adults. He is the author of The Intentional 5: VERGE - Confessions of a Disciplined Thought, a self-help book and companion e-course built on 5 guiding principles (Vulnerability, Experiences, Relationships, Gratitude, and Evaluation) with a focus on introspection and the intentionality of our choices.
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Coach Affiliate
Regine Laforest-Sharif (she/her) is an experienced change agent passionate about matters ranging from Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) to crisis response and prevention. Her powerhouse work ethic and vision promise both quality service and effective outcomes across disciplines. As a first-generation Haitian American, Regine is fluent in French and proficient in Haitian Creole. She volunteers her time for several organizations including JHU’s Black Faculty & Staff Association, Children and Families Global Development Fund Inc. and the Children of Haiti Enhancement Foundation, and many more. Regine has been a proud member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. for over 30 years, and is a two-time graduate of SUNY, Buffalo State College, obtaining both a B.A. in Sociology and an M.S. in Student Personnel Administration. Regine currently serves as the Director of Student Affairs for the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing where she is spearheading monumental changes that will positively impact student life, crisis response, record keeping, and more.
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Chasity Wells-Armstrong served as the first Black mayor of the city of Kankakee, IL. With over 20 years of experience affecting organizational and community change through advocacy and public policy, she worked to advance equity in the community and civic engagement on the city’s boards, committees, and commissions. She is a seasoned facilitator, moderator, and advocate, championing issues such as violence prevention, mental/behavioral health treatment, education, and climate resilience. Chasity is the founder of Catalyst Coaching & Transformation.
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Inbal Sansani is an executive coach for professional women. A former lawyer and humanitarian aid worker, Inbal has extensive experience resolving conflict, managing negotiations, and holding space for difficult emotions. Inbal graduated summa cum laude from Duke University with a B.A. in ‘War, Gender & Religion in the Middle East’; earned a Master of Philosophy in Ethnic and Racial Studies from Trinity College, Dublin; and graduated cum laude with a Juris Doctor from American University
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Tara is an artist, author and educator from Chicago. In 2023, Tara launched the Liberated Arts Movement, an organization that promotes wellness through the arts. Tara has won city and region-wide playwriting competitions, published two children’s books, an inspirational journal and a collection of original poetry. As a visual artist, she's been featured in and curated over 15 exhibits. Additionally, Tara has been the recipient of several creative endowments like Ford Philanthropy Fellowship, Black Girl Ventures and Hyde Park Art Center’s Artists Run Chicago Grant. Tara’s intention is that through her artistry others feel empowered to let their light shine.
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Sherri is an equity-focused, innovative educational leader with extensive experience working in K-12 and adult education with a special dedication to justice-impacted learners. Her expertise includes inviting others to co-create learning spaces centered on inquiry, inclusivity, and advancing opportunities for individual and community growth.
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Wendy is the visionary, Founder, and Executive Leadership Coach for Coaching Women of Color. With over two decades of experience in the nonprofit educational sector, her expertise in leadership includes tackling imposter syndrome, effective team management, cultivating executive presence, adeptly navigating difficult conversations, and addressing microaggressions in the workplace. She's a certified DiSC facilitator, a graduate of the Accomplishment Coaches Training Program, and a proud alumna of Columbia University Business School's Program for Developing Leaders for Non-Profit Professionals
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Clarybel has over 20 years in higher ed administration and has provided consulting services for a variety of institutions, corporations and associations. She is an expert in strategy, leadership development, organizational culture, implementation of diversity and inclusion initiatives.
Clarybel earned a B.A. in Sociology from Syracuse University, M.A. in Higher Ed Admin from University of South Carolina and a Ed.D in Org Leadership and Communications from Northeastern University. She is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. and The Links.
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Nedaa has professionally taught for 12 years as a high school classroom teacher in Chicago Public Schools and Boston charter schools. She is the founder and former executive director at Prairie Academy, serves as an advisor on The Justice Coalition, and is a founding board member on The Sanctuary Garden - a nonprofit, divorce resource center for women in Illinois. She is expected to graduate from Harvard Graduate School of Education with her master’s in education and nonprofit leadership in May 2024.
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Anthony is the current Sr. Volunteer Programs Manager and Organizational Culture for Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE). He facilitates various efforts to encourage corporate and community volunteers to empower students’ entrepreneurial mindsets. He also leads initiatives to strengthen the organization’s culture, diversity, and inclusion mission.
Anthony is a former high school English teacher. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a B.A. in English and Secondary Education.
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Jordy is a systems-level educational leader focused on transformation through interrogating practices, precedents, and policies, in order to cultivate more inclusive and affirming learning environments. Currently, as Director of DEI in the Oceanside Unified School District. He drives systems-level change and leads district DEI efforts, social emotional learning and culturally proficient teaching and learning.
Jordy holds a B.A. from The Ohio State University and a Ed.L.D. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
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Dr. Nicole Caridad Ralston is devoted to creating spaces where those who have been pushed to the margins can be centered, seen and heard. As a multiracial Latina, and daughter of Cuban refugees, her dedication to equity and inclusion is personal. She has over 15 years of leadership experience in both higher education and the non-profit sector. In her most recent career as the Senior Director of Education and Programming at Beloved Community she built out a diverse team of racial equity consultants while centering shared voice & shared power, led the team in visioning and strategy, and developed the content, curriculum, and facilitation services for the consulting firm. In her higher education career, she built an office devoted to first-year retention, advised university community engagement initiatives, built social justice education programs, taught courses, and led the undocumented student support committee. Her doctoral research focused on how women of color in higher education navigated their identities in their leadership roles. Additionally, she is an adjunct professor at The University of New Orleans graduate school where she teaches, “Diversity in Higher Education”.
How we carry the work matters.
Our values shape our approach.
HUMANITY
We honor the dignity, lived experience, and potential of people, recognizing that sustainable systems change must work for the humans within the system.
INTEGRITY
We align what we say, decide, and do—especially when the choices are difficult or the stakes are high.
STEWARDSHIP
We take responsibility for what has been entrusted to us—people, relationships, resources, institutions, and the impact our choices create.
COURAGE
We are willing to name what is true, challenge what is not working, and make the choices necessary for meaningful change.
GROWTH
We believe people and systems can develop. We remain open to learning, reflection, adaptation, and building the capacity required to become better and sustain change.
DCC’s work is grounded in proprietary thinking, diagnostic tools, and frameworks developed through years of work with leaders, organizations, and systems.
Our body of work includes 14 Key Principles for Systems Change Leadership™, SCLI-14™, SCLI-Org™, Exercising Conscious Leadership™, AYA Executive Coaching™: Exercising Conscious Leadership During Challenge, Complexity, and Change and other DCC-developed tools that help us understand leadership capacity, organizational conditions, and what needs to be strengthened to sustain change.
A distinct body of thinking supports the work.
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Chicago Urban League: Wealth & Opportunity Summit - Supply Chain Readiness
Chicago Office Of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection: Sustaining Team Resilience Amidst Organizational Change
Division of Student Affairs & University Housing - Fall Keynote: Conscious Leadership for Turbulent Times
Mayors-Only- Mayors Innovation Project: Anchors for Mayors, Navigating Complex Leadership Challenges of Being Newly Elected
National YWCA - Organize Your Butterflies Podcast, Operating in Your Full Potential
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Certifications
Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB)
Chicago Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE)
Illinois Business Enterprise Program (BEP)
Professional Credentials
Gallup® Strengths Coach
Immunity-to-Change™ Coaching Methodology
Trusted across complex institutional environments.
The DCC team has worked alongside leaders and organizations carrying significant responsibility and complexity across public systems, philanthropy and social impact, private-sector environments, higher education, and high stakes cross-institutional initiatives.
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Association of Colleges and University Housing Officers - International
Beloved Community
The Harlem Children’s Zone
New Leaders
The Adaptive Leadership Network
Waterford
IMAN Central: Chicago: Green Re-Entry
Community Coalition
Deans for Impact
J-PAL North America, Poverty Action Lab
Benevolence Farm
Institute for Educational Advancement
Starting Bloc
LatinxEd
Women’s Leadership Summit
I am Well
Alliance for a Better Community
Ampersand
uAspire
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Women’s Dignity of Choice
Cook County Juvenile Probation & Court Services
Washington Employment Securities Department
Adult Redeploy Illinois
Center for Disease Control (CDC)
Mayors Innovation Project
Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans
State of Nevada Department of Education
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Great Lakes Academy
Western Michigan University
American University AUx Experience Program
UNC Chapel Hill, Gillings School of Public Health
Chicago Public Schools: Peirce Elementary School
University of Connecticut: Women of Color Resource Group
Stevens Cooperative School
Harvard Law School
Kankakee School District
Progressive Leadership Academy
Woodrow Wilson High School, Washington DC
Winsor School
American University School of Education
Western Kern Children’s Cabinet
Lost Hills Union School District
The Harlem Children’s Zone: Promise Academy Charter High Schools
Uncommon Schools: Boston
Uncommon Schools: Troy
St. Louis Public Schools
Winston Salem/Forsyth County Public Schools
Harvard Graduate School of Education: Doctor of Education Leadership Program
Harvard Graduate School of Education: School Leadership Program
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Prospect Hill Charter School
Neighborhood House Charter School
Washington University at St. Louis: Department of Residence Life
North Carolina State University
Boston Public Schools
The New York City Department of Education
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Microsoft Woman of Cloud Marketing ERG Leadership Team
GSD&M
7till8
We Are Robyn, Inc.
General Assembly
AchieveMission
Minds at Work
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The Moriah Group
Aspen Institute Young Leaders Fellowship Program
Nellie Mae Foundation
School Systems Leaders Fellowship
Moonshot edVentures
LatinxEd Fellowship
Grid110
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I am Well
Ampersand
Kitchen Table App
Quilt
Ankura Consulting
Bounteous
The work begins with understanding what your institution is carrying.
If your organization is navigating significant change, DCC can help you understand what may be shaping its ability to move and what needs to become stronger.