Mary Brandon

Mary A. Brandon

Career Summary

My career experience is as a vocational rehabilitation and life change coach.  I have consistently found that people are natural creators who already have what they need, they just need help getting some things out of the way.  Over the course of my career, I have designed programs that help my clients do just that.

Career Performance

§  Coached in business, non-profit, educational, recovery and rehabilitation environments for more than twenty years, assisting staff and students with effective vocational programming and coaching to make measurable life change.

§  Authored Making Change, and co-authored Finding Power, Passion and Joy Being at Work, a Unique Coaching System for Becoming Your Own Mentor and Leader.  The concepts for writing these books were a product of educating persons in transition.  Making Change utilizes the Stages of Change, corresponding interventions, and Motivational Interviewing techniques in a step by step process to be used with individuals, or in small workshop groups.

§  Extensive experience addressing and communicating with individuals from all age groups and perspectives.  From 16-20 something’s, to seasoned corporate management, to those seeking recovery from profound life change, my customer service satisfaction ratings have been consistently excellent and noted as “life changing.”

§  Familiarity with addiction issues in the widest perspective, substance abuse training and experience working with persons with co-occurring disorders and a variety of other disabilities with a high degree of experience with the importance of mental health.  Ability to solicit change with measurable successful outcomes.

§  Wellness coach for a nationally recognized chain, assisting others to improve their health and overall wellness by providing individual and group coaching.

§  Certified Master Hypnotherapist and Neuro-Linguistic Practitioner.  Use and adaption of these techniques have assisted clients to reach goals of weight loss, stress reduction, continuing an exercise program and smoking cessation.

§  Coursework and completion of Motivational Interviewing training by a board certified instructor.

§  Developed and presented workshops and trainings.  My accomplishments in project management have focused on program design and re-design, implementation, and maintenance for preserving and enhancing human capital. 

§  In addition to authoring two books, and gaining experience working with co-authors, editors, artists, endorsers, and publishers, I have used these skills to create manuals, processes, procedures, creative and informational reports, articles for social media, sales, and marketing materials.

§  More than twenty years experience in small business operations, responsible for marketing, public relations, scheduling, training, budgeting, accounting, etc.

Skills

• Presentation, communication and recruitment.  Ability to present issues to community organizations and individuals to solicit motivation, commitment and action.
•  Writing, and editing skills.  Developed and composed tools such as resume’s, proposals, grants, business plans, cover letters, marketing, and sales tools. In addition, co-authored a published workbook on employment selection and maintenance, and authored a systematic process curriculum, based on research, on how to cope with change and consciously manage the change process.
• Research and development skills.  Developed the “Work Health Assessment” tool, “The Needs Profile Interview”, and corresponding interventions addressing core issues related to work success
• Assisting others to identify key patterns, evaluate issues, create and execute a plan through to successful completion.  Instruction in Change and Motivational Coaching.  Worked extensively with individuals on characteristics that impact self sufficiency outcomes.
• Recruitment, placement, employee training, outplacement, cultural acclimation, succession planning and contract negotiation as a business manager and coach to others accomplishing these tasks.
• Assessment Evaluation.  Certified to administer, interpret, make recommendations, train others for certification of the “Career Directions,” “Achiever” and “Scoreboard” assessments
•  Computer and technology skills; virtual office, power point, data collection and report construction, MS Office

Work History

1991-present   Aspect Consulting Inc.       Coach Consultant Developed and authored Finding Power, Passion and Joy Being at Work, A Unique Coaching System for Becoming Your Own Mentor and Leader ã2005, authored Making Change ©2006-2014.  Contractual Consultation to: EarthWalk/Changing Woman  Detroit, MI 1996- present, Community Care Services, Taylor, MI 1992-1995, Being@Work, Gross Pte Shores MI 2001-2006, Development Centers, Detroit, MI 2006-2012 State of Michigan, Vocational Rehabilitation Services 1992-present.

1986-1991  Wayne/Westland Community Schools-Special Projects, Tinkham Center, Westland, MI  Program Developer, Program Manager, Designed and implemented programs for adult learners

Nutri-Systems Metro-Detroit area, MI Coach Assisted adult customers in weight loss programming individually, and in small groups

1983-1986   Life Centers Inc.       Work Life Coach, Program Developer, Wayne and Oakland Co.  Provided all phases of work life programming for transitional adults.

Education

1   EarthWalk-Changing Woman  Healer Counselor, through Masters Training 

2   National Board of Professional &  Ethical Standards

3   Basic through Masters & NLP Certifications, PhD Hypnotherapy- pending Stout University, Wisconsin

4  Certification of Disability Management Specialists, (formerly, Certification of Insurance Rehabilitation Specialist). Retired status               

    Michigan Department of Career Development       Michigan Rehabilitation Services Organization of the Year Award, 1993

    Eastern Michigan University        Bachelor of Science, major: Psychology minor: Philosophy