With his quick wit, probing questioning skills and productive thinking techniques Dan helps clients engage their whole brain, and find productive solutions to their challenges. Whether facilitating a training workshop, a new product ideation, a strategic planning session, or just a plain old meeting, Dan brings his positive energy and passion to the task. He is known for delivering high content sessions in a relaxed and entertaining style. Underlying Dan’s passion for productive thinking is a deep commitment to helping people learn and achieve useful outcomes.

Dan is a member of the Creative Education Foundation and on the faculty of the Creative Problem Solving Institute. He is also a certified practitioner of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

In 1984 he founded the Artists and Models Affair in Buffalo, NY - a major social event/fund raiser to this day. He also founded two night clubs in the late '80s - drawing thousands downtown, long before the Chippewa Street rebirth. He has since gone on to create results-oriented marketing and advocacy programs for the Creative Education Foundation, Art On Wheels, Burchfield-Penney Art Center, The Park School of Buffalo and the Ere Niagara Tobacco Free Coalition. His passion is to lead people and organizations through change to successful outcomes.

Although she had worked for the firm on a part-time basis for almost 15 years, she had put her BA in theater and history from Hartwick College into service working for Girl Scouts. Now she is heading up the creative and online services for New Directions, as well as designing and implementing “traditional” research projects. She has been a leader at CPSI since 2011 and has also presented workshops at Florida Creativity Weekend and Mindcamp.

A keynote speaker on company innovation and creativity, Gregg’s business novel Jack’s Notebook features on reading lists, including, University of California Berkeley’s, Cambridge’s Judge Business School, and City University of London in the UK. Always a pioneer, his Emmy-award winning team at Warner Cable’s QUBE earned a cable ACE Award for innovation. As former board member of the Creative Education Foundation in the USA from 2003-2007, Gregg has trained scores of professionals in Creative Problem Solving (CPS) at their CPSI conference. He continues this work through KILN, a firm he co-founded in 2010 to create IdeaKeg, a unique subscription service for company teams to generate breakthrough thinking. KILN provides innovation culture assessments, ideation services, meeting facilitation & qualitative research to clients in North America and Europe.

Prior to this, she served as the Event/Marketing Manager for the City of Orlando, specializing in executing Mayor Buddy Dyer’s signature events. For five years previously, she was the Assistant Athletics Director of Marketing and Promotions for the University of Central Florida. She graduated from ucf in 1987 with a bachelor of arts in journalism: advertising/pr.

Elizabeth Huggins mobilizes the performance of brands and the thinking productivity of teams in strategic planning, change, creativity and innovation initiatives. Clients say she goes beyond traditional strategist, facilitator and trainer, more a catalyst, injecting the training and planning process with thought-provoking, mind changing stimulus, content, context, energy and pace. Creativity, Innovation, Change Leadership and Digital are all part of her high-energy package. In addition to being a Creative Problem Solving Facilitator she is one of the few Canadians to hold advanced certification in diagnosing thinking strategy through the KAI Inventory and Theory © which is used in business, education and the military throughout the world. And she holds a Masters Certificate in Sustainable Change Management from the Schulich School of Business in Toronto. Experiencing Elizabeth in action is a journey of passion - passion for strategy, creativity, unexpected connections, nature's wisdom (Biomimicry) and strategic play.

Karen has over 20 years experience as a moderator and group facilitator. breakthrough with innovative and strategic problem solving, effective communication and teambuilding. Her career has brought her vast experience in the consumer products industries. She has also worked in financial services, pharmaceuticals, publishing, technology/manufacturing and telecommunications.

Karen is versed in both the Osborne-Parnes Creative Problem Solving model (CPS) and George Prince and Bill Gordon’s Synectics Creative Problem Solving Methodology. She holds a Bachelors of Science in Marketing from Fairfield University. She completed formal training in the theory and practice of fundamental techniques of focus group moderating at RIVA Moderator Training School. Additionally, she is trained in personality type theory and is qualified to administer the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.

She is known for her big humor, great skill and her “eat, play, love” attitude. As a strategist and brainstormer, Julia Roberts served amazing clients for over 20 years – ranging from American Express to Avon, Burger King to HBO, from Quaker Oats to Heinz Foods, from Warner Bros. to Johnson & Johnson. Since 2005, Julia has worked as a creativity coach, facilitator and trainer. She holds her MSc certificate in Creativity from SUNY/BSC.

I love seeing the change in people when they realize they actually can think more creatively—or do things differently. As someone who loves variety, I’ve found the perfect professional fit. I have been privileged to work with many different people and learn about lots of industries. Our company specializes in innovating with customers, so I also regularly train and lead customers in creative thinking. I have been fortunate to speak and/or facilitate in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America, as well as across the US. Prior to joining ITG, I spent 13 years in marketing for Gatorade, Hasbro Toys, Calgon Sunbeam, Fruit of the Loom, Quaker Rice Cakes, and Kibbles ‘n Bits.

Bill boasts a varied work background within The Hershey Company. Beginning as a Librarian, he progressed through a number of positions including a New Business Development Manager, Senior Trainer and now as a Learning & Development Consultant. All of these positions have been served by his energy and passion. Bill has also assisted community and civic charitable organizations with creating opportunities. During the last twenty-five years, Bill has facilitated over 1000 ideation sessions. Those sessions have included but not limited to facilitation of: creative problem solving, new product ideation, product/process improvements, strategic planning, and product naming sessions. Besides developing and delivering training programs, Bill assists and facilitates the development of teams and team problem solving. He also coaches individuals on career, and job-related skills and behaviors.

(www.daemen.edu/ELC ). The program’s vision is to create a supply of and demand for mindful leaders with a heightened sense of awareness of themselves as inspirational guides, as builders of engaged, diverse teams and are active contributors to the social systems of organizations and communities.

With Leadership Buffalo (LB’92) chaired the initiative to transform Leadership Buffalo into a values-based organization (Service – Diversity – Inclusion – Openness to Change).

A CEF/CPSI Distinguished Leader John is currently on the CPSI 2013 planning team.

Certifications include the Kirton-Adaption-Innovation Inventory, Foresight and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Leadership Practices Inventory.

Doctorate in Education at the University at Buffalo (1989) in Learning and Instruction -emphasis on leadership education.

He is affectionately known as "The Grand One" to his two grandchildren, Quinnlyn and Judah.

As an 18-year Disney veteran, Jay currently partners with key cross-segment company teams to develop and inform on the strategic goals of how Disney’s core franchise brands, like Disney Princesses, Mickey Mouse and Cars will develop across Parks world-wide over the next 5- to 10-years.

Jay also has a rich history in the creativity community, as his previous job in ideation and innovation thinking at Walt Disney Parks developed his deep skills as a practitioner in facilitation thinking and design in creative problem solving.

He’s a Canadian living the sunny Southern California Dream with a huge debt, a rented house (real estate is too expensive!) three great kids and an exciting place to work where magic is made every day!

Clare is a trained Creative Problem Solving facilitator and is facile in thinkx Productive Thinking. She has applied Polarity Management to understanding consumer challenges, the development of a Community Narrative Panel/Consumer Storytelling, Sequence Mapping (a consumer-product interaction data capture process) and Consumer Labs (a way to co-create with consumers). Clare has a B.S. in Food Science from Rutgers University and is an active member of the Society of Sensory Professionals and the Creative Education Foundation. She is a long-time leader at CPSI and a participant in the Polarity Management Mastery program for individuals who have a demonstrated commitment to and skill for applying PM in a wide array of settings.

She facilitates groups, consults with individuals, and offers workshops in communication skills, creative thinking, systems thinking and other skills involved in individual and organizational effectiveness. She works with a wide range of clients including business, government, higher education, arts organizations, nonprofits, and foundations. She has attended CPSI since 1991, serving on the leadership team since completing FCL in 1996. She uses Creative Problem Solving, de Bono’s Lateral Thinking, thinkx’s Productive Thinking model, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator™, and Johnson’s Polarity Management® in her training, facilitation, and coaching applications. She is a graduate of the Polarity Management Mastery program, a recipient of CEF’s Distinguished Leader Award, and a frequent presenter at conferences, including CREA, Mindcamp and Florida Creativity. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Geneva Foundation, a transitional living program for 16-19 year olds in State foster care. She lives in Oak Park, IL.

As a facilitator and trainer, Sharon designs and delivers innovation programs across the US and internationally. She has applied the creative process to new product development, new business opportunities, and strategic planning.

She has over 25 years experience in marketing research at American Express, Wunderman and various research suppliers where she has been responsible for the design and management of qualitative and quantitative research in the US and internationally. She has traveled to over 25 countries managing qualitative research.

Sharon has a MS in Creativity and Change Leadership from Buffalo State. She has had two articles published “Curiosity: May kill the cat but it will breathe life into your creativity” and “Curiosity unlocks innovation.” She is a frequent presenter at innovation conferences, including MindCamp, CREA, CPSI, ACA, and E2E. Her undergraduate degree is in Psychology & Anthropology from Penn.

Now he spends his days in awe and wonder at the joy of great people, intellectual pursuits, and heartfelt occurrences designed to elevate and elate the human condition. In addition he runs his own consultancy, Forward Motion Facilitation LLC, to help a broad range of organizations and people to "Shine Brighter".

She has worked with a variety of clients across the globe as both an independent consultant and an organizational development associate at International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. She offers her clients dynamic approaches to collaboration, creative ideation and problem solving, change leadership, and organizational development. She embraces a wide variety of approaches aimed at nurturing and developing creative collaboration and is certified in several assessment tools including MBTI, Foursight, HBDI, Lominger Voices & Choices, PDI Profiler (360 feedback), Korn-Ferry Decision Styles, and several EQ assessments as well as the Strong Interest Inventory for career counseling. Mimi earned a B.S. in Food Science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and an M.S. in Sensory Science from the University of Minnesota-St. Paul. Mimi lives on the Jersey Shore with her husband Paul and three children.

As a consultant, facilitator, trainer and executive and team coach, Doug applies his talents and experience to individual, group, and organizational development and transformation around the world and across industries.

Doug earned a B.A in Interpersonal Communications from Ohio University and a M.S. in Creativity and Change Leadership from Buffalo State College. He received his certification as an executive coach from the College of Executive Coaching in Ventura, CA. and served on their faculty. Doug is on the adjunct faculty of the International Center for Studies in Creativity and Innovation at Buffalo State College.

Doug has been a member of the Creative Education Foundation since 1979, and they honored him with a Distinguished Leader Award in 1997. He has served as a volunteer leader at the Creative Problem Solving Institute, Buffalo, NY since 1983.

He has facilitated programs worldwide including programs in Singapore, Italy, Australia, England, India, South Africa and the US.

A sampling of organizations to benefit from his training and facilitation include: International Flavor & Fragrances, Kraft, Verizon, SC Johnson, Discover and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Russ is a contributing author to a number of creative leadership related materials including FourSight: Your Presenter’s Manual and Foursight: Your Innovation Station. In addition, Russ is an adjunct faculty at the Center for Studies in Creativity where he teaches graduate courses in facilitating creative process.

Russ holds a Master of Science in Creativity from the State University of New York at Buffalo and is a graduate of the Second City Conservatory specializing in improvisation. He is also a co-founder of the Creative Youth Leadership Academy (www.creativeyouthleadership.org) which helps train young people to adopt and apply a creative toolset.

For the last 15 years, Sarah has worked in partnership with academic researchers and top innovation consultants to promote “creative literacy” with a range of training tools and models that support cognitive diversity and creative problem solving. The FourSight assessment is now available in seven languages, and has served as a platform for promoting innovation at Nike, Disney, HP, IBM, Kraft, BBC and the Canadian Government. Sarah is coauthor of Creativity Unbound—An Introduction to Creative Process (5^th ed.), as well as Facilitation — A Door to Creative Leadership (4^th ed.). In 2012, she developed Your 2-Minute Thinking Tip video series to share creativity skills through social media and was awarded the Firestien Family Creative Achievement Award for her graduate work at the International Center for Studies in Creativity.

He is an energizing facilitator of deliberate creativity, team training and Creative Problem Solving. A specialist in coaching for success, Ian provides the tools to optimize your creative thinking skills and facilitates diverse groups through their unique challenges.

Ian holds a Graduate Certificate in Creativity, Innovation and Change Leadership from the State University of New York at Buffalo; a certificate in Human Resources from the University of Toronto, Rotman School of Business; and a Bachelor’s Degree in Neuroscience, Biology and Music. He is also an accomplished facilitator of FourSight, a thinking profile assessment that helps deliver breakthrough innovative thinking.

World traveller, accomplished toastmaster, vinyl record manipulator, rock climber, bicycle aficionado, ambassador, volunteer, social advocate, outdoor enthusiast and dog lover - Ian accelerates individual and team performance by bringing a flexible and well-rounded approach to deliberate creativity.

Laura is a master facilitator, coach and trainer who works with organizations across North America, Central America and Europe to enhance teamwork and leadership, facilitate creativity and innovation, and help manage change and transition. Laura holds a Master of Science degree in Creativity and Innovation from the International Center for Studies in Creativity at Buffalo State College, SUNY. She is now an adjunct faculty member of the International Center for Studies in Creativity where se teaches a course at the Master’s program level. She is one of the founders of CREA Conference and President of CREA Italia.. Laura has coauthored the book Creativity Rising. Creative Thinking and Creative problem Solving in the 21st Century, published by ICSC Press in April 2012.

He works with organizations throughout North America, Central America, South America, and Europe to facilitate creativity and innovation. He is a master facilitator, executive coach and learning consultant specialized in leadership development, team cohesiveness, emotional intelligence, change management, and organizational growth, with a specific focus in the area of creativity and innovation. Tim holds a Master of Science degree in Creativity and Innovation from the International Center for Studies in Creativity at Buffalo State College where he is also an adjunct faculty member. He also conducts leadership development workshops and coaching for professional staff. He is one of the founding members of CREA and designs and coordinates the annual CREA conference in Italy.

Bob has a solid track record of satisfied clients in the areas of innovation, HR development, leadership training, and building high-performance teams. The author of numerous articles and books, his most recent book, coauthored with Jonathan Vehar, is *More Lightning, Less Thunder: How to Energize Innovation Teams*, which details a path toward increased personal creativity, emotional intelligence and team contribution. Bob is a lifetime member of CEF and has been delighting participants at CPSI for the last 15 years. As comfortable driving productive meetings in the boardroom as he is driving a tractor, Bob lives on his tree farm in the Adirondack Mountains of northern New York.