Our Team.

Karen Benoy Preston is an accomplished executive and team coach who helps senior leaders and their organizations align purpose and core values to unlock authentic fulfillment and high performance. Drawing on a background in business management, entrepreneurship, and nonprofit leadership, she blends strategic insight with deep coaching expertise to create lasting impact for leaders, teams, and cultures. Karen holds EMCC EIA, ITCA accreditations and ICF PCC certification. She is certified in LCP, Enneagram (iEQ9), Energy Leadership (ELI), Hogan Assessments, and Emotional Intelligence.

D. Marlene Thomas (PCC) is President and CEO of Thomas Management Consulting (TMC), a woman-owned firm providing strategic consulting and executive coaching to federal, state, and private sector organizations. A former Senior Executive Service leader with more than 25 years’ experience managing complex systems, she specializes in leadership and executive development, career transition, and team effectiveness. 

Daniela Aneva (MCC, EIA, EISA, ACTC) is an executive coach, supervisor, and mentor with nearly 25 years of global leadership experience, including senior roles as COO and VP. Recognized as one of North America’s “40 under 40 Leaders,” she holds master’s degrees in Human Resource Management and Psychology and integrates methods such as CBT, Schema Therapy, and EMDR into her practice. 

Esther Zirbel is a first-generation high school graduate who went on to earn five degrees, including an award-winning PhD in astrophysics from Yale. As a young professor, she discovered a passion for teaching and learning, which led her to transition first into training teachers and then into coaching professors. She founded Padme Learning—“Padme” meaning Lotus in Sanskrit—dedicated to helping individuals grow into their best selves and thrive personally and professionally. Her innovative work in teaching, mentoring, and coaching has earned international recognition, including the 2025 Coach of the Year Award for Professors and Educators.

Inga Bielinska (ACTC, MCC, ESIA) is a certified team coach, mentor coach, business trainer, and accredited coaching supervisor who partners with senior leaders, executives, and high-level experts navigating complex change, cultural dynamics, and strategic communication challenges. She supports C-suite and senior professionals stepping into expanded leadership roles, leading distributed teams, and addressing high-stakes conflict, while working with leadership teams to align around vision, mission, and core processes—building clarity, cohesion, and collaboration across systems.

Gabriele Fodor (PDSL, ICP-ACC-ATF, TCA) is a coach and mediator with a strong international perspective and a professional foundation in global logistics, where she continues to consult across multiple industries worldwide. She works with individuals and teams as a leadership and team coach, helping them navigate change, adopt agile ways of working, improve collaboration, and focus on delivering lasting value. Grounded in systems thinking and enriched by her cross-cultural experience, she brings real-world presence and insight to her practice. 

Judy Wolf is an executive and team coach, and a coach supervisor, holding accreditations from both the EMCC (ESIA, ITCA-SP, EIA-SP) and ICF (MCC, ACTC). She's passionate about partnering with heart-centered, service-driven leaders, teams, and organizations to help them bring their purpose and vision to life – and about co-creating a thoughtful, reflective space for professional coaches to unpack their client cases, identify patterns, and discover growth opportunities.