Karen Watson is an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and experienced Global HR Executive who has coached C-Suite leaders in Fortune 100 and mid-sized companies across the pharmaceutical, financial services, aerospace, and healthcare industries. She started her career as a respiratory therapist and progressed through the leadership ranks of healthcare delivery to hospital administration, Global HR Vice President, and now, Leadership Development Consultant. Karen brings a myriad of expertise as a Hermann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI) certified practitioner and consultant who works with leaders and organizations to create inclusive, high-performance cultures that yield extraordinary employee engagement and business results. She led the human capital strategy for several large-scale business transformations, managed global teams, assisted post-merger integrations, and orchestrated numerous leadership transitions.
Before becoming a consultant and coach, Karen was a Sr. Business Partner and the Head of HR for the Retail Investment Group at Vanguard leading two monumental business transformations involving 3,000 employees that resulted in dramatic improvements in operational efficiency. Prior to Vanguard, she was HR Vice President at Johnson & Johnson and CSL Behring and achieved noteworthy results in HR leadership positions with Wyeth, Pfizer, and Commerce Bank.
She is known for her strong outcomes-orientation that engages and inspires high-performance and inclusive team cultures. Her extensive experience in business transformations, leadership transitions / new leader installation, culture, change, talent development, and succession planning aid in her coaching that causes clients to explore their needs and aspirations on a deeper level, navigate barriers, consider different perspectives, and expand possibilities to achieve their goals.
Karen completed Georgetown University’s prestigious leadership coaching program in 2019, earned an M. S. in Administration from West Chester University, and a B. S. in Respiratory Therapy from York College of Pennsylvania.
