MWI’s Executive Team is comprised of a passionate group of individuals who are dedicated to their objective of delivering high-impact, best-quality, and innovative solutions to MWI’s clients. Their mentorship and guidance has continued to build on their experience and has given rise to talented and motivated teams.

 

Melissa

Melissa D. Whitaker

CEO and Founder
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Melissa D. Whitaker is passionate about helping people in life and in busi- ness. Her motto is "Whatever you can conceive and believe, you can achieve." Family is extremely important to Melissa, and is her ultimate driver in life. She especially wants her daughters to know that they can achieve anything they put their mind to.

Melissa is a sales & management expert, business consultant, international speaker and health coach. She is the co-author of the best-selling books "Pushing to the Front" and "Beat the Curve," with the legendary Brian Tracy (CEO, Best Selling Author, has consulted more than 1,000 companies, and given talks for 5 million people throughout US, Canada and 55 other countries) and the Founder/CEO of Melissa Whitaker International where she helps executives and their teams achieve alignment and drive profitable sales in an authentic way.

Through her proprietary program called MWI Total Sales Transformation System™ Melissa has helped thousands of companies achieve double digit % increases in their business within the first year of working with her and her team. The transformation process creates long term sustainable growth through creating clarity, finding ideal clients, increasing sales, accountability, mindset and faith. Melissa is passionate about making sure people feel seen, heard and understood in her programs in the corporate world and as Entrepreneurs. Her high-performance, customized training consultations and proven selling system help you drive performance, generate new prospects, improve negotiation skills and ultimately win more sales.

Prior to founding Melissa Whitaker International (MWI), Melissa was the Director of Professional Development & Managed Print Services for a $40 million dollar technology company and a Global Relationship Manager / Business Analyst for a $54.3 billion dollar international organization. She has over 20 years of experience and success in sales, sales management, leadership, business development, and professional development with leading organizations - Impact Networking, Toshiba America Business Solutions & Chicago Office Technology Group (COTG/GISX/XEROX).

Melissa loves to travel, enjoys all outdoor activities and is very active in her church. She is happily married to her husband of eighteen years, has two amazing young daughters, and has three wonderful dogs . Melissa is also active in her community and sponsors Compassion International and Foundation for His Ministry.

 

Strategic Team Members

 

Melanie Perry, MA, PCC

Melanie Perry, MA, PCC

Melanie Perry has 20 years of combined experience in Leadership Training & Facilitation, Human Capital Consulting, and Executive Coaching. As the CEO of Perry Coaching & Consulting she works with mid-market CEOs, as well as Senior Leaders and High Potentials at Fortune 500 organizations to develop, lead and facilitate training and coaching programs. She works with Melissa Whitaker International on strategic engagements to help further their mission.

A sample of clients include: Medtronic, Astellas, Walgreens, Verizon, Daiichi-Sankyo, Medline and Limited Brands. Her experience spans the following industries: retail, healthcare, hospitality, legal services, manufacturing, professional services and the financial sector.

Her commitment to helping driven, visionary leaders began at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management and was sharpened with senior executives at Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Target Corporation, Deloitte Consulting, and Medtronic, where she was consistently recognized for key initiatives and building culture.

Sample Facilitation and Speaking Engagements:

  • Speaking to 500+ clients of CIO at Medtronic on the history, mission and business overview
  • Facilitated National Sales Training for Walgreens that received 5/5 Rating
  • Launching iPad Sales Training for Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy
  • On-going Global Emerging Leaders Emotional Intelligence Training at Astellas Pharma

Melanie holds an MA in Human Resources from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resources from Michigan State University where she was a Division 1 Soccer player. She is a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation (ICF) and a certified Leadership Circle practitioner.

On weekends, you can find Melanie exploring book stores, parks and orchards with her daughter. At home, she enjoys cooking gourmet meals with her husband when he's not traveling internationally for work. Seeking moments of awe has always been important: marathon in Hawaii, sky diving in New Zealand, surfing in Sydney, sand boarding in Peru, cooking in India, hiking in Kazakhstan, prayer in Abu Dhabi and contemplation outside Nelson Mandela'sformer prison cell.

"I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better." ~ Maya Angelou

We are excited at MWI to include Melanie and her organization as a Strategic Team Member.

 

Marie-Genevieve Pawlak

Marie-Genevieve Pawlak

Marie-Genevieve Pawlak became one of MWI's Strategic Team Members in 2019.

Marie-Genevieve Pawlak is an experienced leadership and team strategist leveraging her global background and over 20 years of corporate operations and executive experience, working for top companies and organizations in higher education, non-profits, and manufacturing industries, to guide you through creating a succession and team plan that matters. She has also worked as a financial literacy speaker at many colleges and universities across the country. Living and working in Japan for four years as an International Relations Specialist; she worked with Japanese companies trying to break into western markets. During her time in Japan, she learned about marketing, team building and Japanese coaching initiatives for international companies. Her clients experience a dramatic improvement in key performance indicators by creating strategic communication plans and cultivating trust through cross-cultural leadership and team development.

A graduate of Lewis University's Executive Coaching Program, Marie also holds a Master's in organizational leadership. She is a volunteer and member of The Taproot Foundation, a 501-nonprofit organization that engages design, marketing, IT, strategic management, human resources professionals and executives in pro bono service projects to build the infrastructure of other nonprofit organizations.

Marie is a Strategist and Managing Principal of Planning101 Group and is also a contributor to Forbes Magazine and Trainingindustry.com. In addition to strategic execution work, Marie speaks and trains on Team leadership, Succession planning at all levels, productive meeting, and organizational health. Her lively speaking style and unique ability to engage and motivate her audience to action have earned her the reputation as an "action" speaker. Marie's mission is to inspire individuals to inspire their teams to build better workplaces. She doesn't see herself as an expert in leadership and organizational health, but a lifelong student. She has traveled the lived across the globe and currently resides in a suburb of Chicago with her very supportive husband and dog.

We are excited at MWI to include Marie-Genevieve and her organization as a Strategic Team Member.

 

Jeff Bishop

Jeff Bishop

Jeff Bishop became one of MWI's Strategic Team Members in 2019.

Over the past 30 years, he has been leading corporate sales organizations and consulting with companies that were growing but who now seem stuck, he has learned the secret sauce that allows salespeople to excel, sales teams to work in harmony to hit goals out of the park, and organizations to grow faster.

He earned his sales experience in various sales and marketing leadership positions at IBM, Entex Information Services, and Winstar. Then, as Founder and President of Effective Directions, Inc. a sales coaching and consulting practice, his creative, resourceful, and strategic ideas as well as his innovative facilitations skills have helped numerous companies rise above.

But when it comes to helping people change - coaching and motivating them to reach their goals - that is where he stands out from other sales coaches. Like others, he has earned the designation of Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coach Federation. Unlike others, he has taken it further and is in the process of earning his Master Coach Certification (MCC).

Some of his results have been.

  • Increased sales by 38% to $16M over a two-year period for an emerging pharmaceutical firm by educating, coaching and mentoring a sales team of 6 sales professionals.
  • Grew revenue 27% with margins improving by 11% for a $20M manufacturer by providing sales consulting and coaching services including creating a comprehensive sales infrastructure, organizing the sales team and coaching the sales team of 10 (both inside and outside sales professionals).
  • Improved overall sales by 32% to $18M for a technology firm by educating, training and enhancing the skill set of 11 sales professionals over an 18-month period.

We are excited at MWI to include Jeff as a Strategic Team Member.

Health & Wellness Division

 

Julianne Butschli

Julianne Butschli

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Chef Julianne Butschli is the owner of Crafty Kitchen and she became one of MWI's Strategic Team Members in 2022.

Crafty Kitchen, LLC is a Personal Chef & Catering Organization serving Southeast Wisconsin customized meals for events and all occasions. Please visit her website for all of the food services they provide. Crafty Kitchen ... Where Creativity Meets Cuisine.

https://www.craftykitchen4u.com

Julianne has become a valued MWI Strategic Team Member in our Health & Wellness Division. She provides healthy meals and options for our MWI Events, caters our training classes, and offers personalized services for our clients' healthy lifestyles.