
Welcome to a community where collaboration is celebrated as a tool used to share knowledge, build community, maximize resources, develop talent, save money, & get things done efficiently.
The Collaboration Starter Kit provides insights, reflections, & suggested actions steps to build foundational skills needed for effective collaboration.
Collaboration helps cross-functional teams to solve problems & meet goals.

Ignite a Collaboration Culture
Collaboration audit can help you increase your networks and working groups without increasing your budget or derailing your mission. let us help you maximize your talent and your resources.

Talent Development
Providing opportunities for your staff to work in cross-functional teams increases their knowledge and capacity. It can be FREE professional development, build organizational pride, and increase engagement.

Role Clarity
Often teams are overwhelmed because they are working outside of the scope of their positions. collaboration can bring the right people into the conversation or working group to increase efficiency and respect for specilizations and expertise contributed by all stakeholders.

Positive Workplace Culture
Collaboration can improve the environment because people do more of the things they are good at doing which can make them happier and more successful. This is a Win for the employee, a win for the team, and a win for the organization.

Feature & Benefit
Exploring the strengths, talents, funds, and other resources available to the organization can help leadership identify gaps and Opportunities. Collaboration can provide creative solutions to enhance operations and resource decisions.
The Collaboration Starter Kit is digital professional development tool that names and defines five foundational skills necessary for effective collaboration. The tool offer insights, reflection prompts, and suggested actions that when applied can help employees ignite a collaboration culture at work.
We offer professional development, mentorship programming, leadership coaching, collaboration audits, motivational speaking, implementation strategy calls, and digital professional development tools for purchase.
I recommend team members purchase the Collaboration Starter Kit. In addition, the professional development journey can include an implementation call for one or more team members to discuss their reflections on the Collaboration Starter Kit and create a few action steps to continue the momentum. Leaders can support learning and cultivating a positive workplace environment by scheduling a strategy session and providing professional development for their teams.
Yes. We can schedule professional development, leadership coaching, lunch & learns, mentorship coaching, and organizational collaboration audits by phone or in person. We can also schedule sessions in the evening, during lunch, or on weekends.
Leaders can benefit from an intensive strategy call to discuss the current landscape in their organization and receive coaching on options to reimagine how they operate and maximize talent within the organization. A leader can purchase Collaboration Starter Kits for team members and hire our company to facilitate professional development sessions.
Strategic & Tactical Leader
“Kim is one of the most talented leaders and educators I have worked with in my 40 years of higher education experience. Not many people can be strategic and tactical thinkers. Not many can create and successfully execute a plan. Kim is equally adept at being attentive to tasks and people..." - Mike Segawa, Former Vice President for Student Affairs, Pitzer College and University of Puget Sound

Innovative & Solutions Centered Leader
"Kim has the unique ability to break things down into the salient parts and determine what matters and what doesn’t when working towards a resolution. She is excellent at setting priorities within solution findings, but maintains the flexibility to change the priorities as things evolve or new information is discovered." - Jim Fitzsimmons, Former Fitness Center Director, University of Nevada, Reno

Talent Development
"Dean Thomas’s innate understanding of strategy and organizational development as well as her commitment to team growth and development were paramount to my development as an employee and a team leader…She created professional development opportunities when there were none, advocated for fairness and equity when no one else would and prioritized safety when others didn’t." - Kim Woods, JD, Former Assistant Dean of a University Conduct Office and Former Prosecuting Attorney


I am a native Alabamian who earned a bachelor’s degree in English at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Alabama School of Law. Prior to working in higher education, I worked as a staff attorney for the Office of Hearings and Appeals for the Department of Health and Human Services and as a prosecutor in Hillsborough County, Florida. My work history also includes about thirteen years as a stay-at-home parent. I am the Founder and owner of Sister in the Shadow Consulting, LLC, and the storyteller behind the blog SisterInTheShadow. I enjoy writing, traveling, music, laughing out loud, and hanging out with my family and our sweet Yorkie, Swaggy.
I am passionate about encouraging leaders and teams to address communication gaps within their organization and establishing community norms and practices that support the strengths, voices, and contributions of all employees.
A collaboration culture, not mere cooperation, can increaSe production, reduce the negative impacts of employee burnout, and help smart people solve problems and accomplish the mention of the organization more efficiently.
I would love to partner with you to unlock your/your team's collaboration potential!
Change and risk management to support organizational resiliency
Community-builder and developer of partnerships and networks
Experienced in developing staff and emerging leaders
