Our Team
The Transition Strategists team is led by founder, CEO and visionary, Elizabeth Ledoux. She created the Transition Roadmap Developer™ (TRD) after witnessing too many owners fail to realize one of the most meaningful achievements of their lives: putting their successful companies in the hands of successors who are prepared to lead. She and the Guides of TTS have fine-tuned the TRD so that 100 percent of the owners who have completed their Roadmaps have moved on to the post-ownership Next Adventures they desired.
Elizabeth Ledoux
Founder & Head Strategist
Elizabeth is a petroleum engineer by training and an entrepreneur, author, and speaker by experience. She has founded several companies and has been recognized by The Harvard Business School for her work linking the growth and development of the entrepreneur to company success.
Elizabeth founded what is now The Transition Strategists more than twenty years ago to create smooth and effective succession strategies for private and family businesses. Her tools, methods, and values-based approach deliver win-win results for businesses going through transitions, whether it be succession, growth, or sale. She is a thought leader who, for 30-plus years, has worked with companies and leaders in both the US and abroad to resolve issues and maximize opportunities related to transition planning.
Elizabeth believes in guiding individuals to do what they love. Her passion is to help both companies and individuals clearly identify and reach their destinations without sacrificing personal fulfillment or relationships.
Elizabeth is the co-author of the award-winning It’s A Journey: The MUST-HAVE Roadmap to Successful Succession Planning, as well as Accelerate Your Entrepreneurial Flight and Understanding the Growth Mindset of the Entrepreneur. She frequently speaks to organizations and business owners about challenges and opportunities in private and family business transitions, business and individual growth, and the business succession journey.
She serves as Chair for TIGER 21 in Denver, Colorado and was Chair for 14 years of the Women Presidents’ Organization Denver chapter.
Deborah Davis, MS, PCC
Strategist & Transition Guide
Debbie brings 17 years of experience in the energy industry, multi-faceted coaching experience, and a passion for entrepreneurship to her role as a Transition Strategists Guide. As a people-first person, she also has an intuitive ability to support owners as they navigate their business transitions.
Debbie has worked with individuals, business leaders, and their teams to improve relationships, communication, collaboration, and productivity. She uses her expertise to lead teams through ERP implementation, corporate restructuring, process improvement, and succession planning. In addition to her Executive Coaching Certification and master’s degree from the University of Texas at Dallas, Debbie is a certified Strengths Strategy Coach, Strengths for Optimal Performance Facilitator, Executive Coach with CDR Assessment Group, and Leading Out of Drama® Provider. She is certified in the GiANT 5 Voices™ System and is a member and chapter chair of the International Coach Federation. Debbie works with clients across the globe from her home base of Norman, Oklahoma.
Marcy McNeal
Strategist & Transition Guide
Marcy thrives on inspiring individuals to achieve life changing breakthroughs. She is a seasoned, engaging trainer, facilitator, and coach with 24 years of experience in leading workshops and multi-day training courses, both in-person and virtually.
After leading two non-profit organizations for a decade, Marcy leveraged her experience to help more than 350 non-profits raise over $400MM by establishing and maximizing sustainable funding, enhancing organizational development, and cultivating healthy cultures. She is passionate about helping businesses transition successfully because she recognizes the critical role they play in keeping their communities healthy.
Marcy received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from Colorado State University. She is a certified social and emotional intelligence coach through the Institute for Social and Emotional Intelligence, with additional training and experience in psychological safety, team effectiveness, communication, and leadership development. Marcy considers herself a Colorado native, though she currently works with clients from her home in Florida.
Caio Campello
Strategist & Transition Guide
For nearly 25 years, Caio has helped individuals and businesses resolve disputes as an attorney, arbitrator, mediator, and negotiator. In every situation, he works to find equitable solutions that benefit all parties and is driven to achieve that outcome when relationships among family members are at stake.
As a Transition Guide, Caio supports business owners as they navigate the challenges and opportunities related to the succession planning process. He believes that a win-win mindset optimizes the probability of preventing disputes, improving communication, and implementing thoughtful and pragmatic solutions.
He holds certifications from Harvard and Pepperdine Universities in negotiation and mediation, respectively, as well as an International Dispute Resolution LLM degree from University of London. From São Paulo, Caio works with clients in Brazil, Portugal, and the United States.
Beth Sneed Sparks, J.D.
Strategist & Transition Guide
Beth has worn many hats in her career: successor manager of a multi-generation family business, managing director of a family charitable foundation, attorney, and consultant. She’s held executive positions in sales, HR, risk management and operations, while simultaneously managing a family business.
In addition to her extensive management experience, Beth has a heart for transition planning; one that she inherited from her father, an estate planning attorney, and acquired by necessity when he died unexpectedly without a transition plan. Beth shares her personal and professional insights with our clients about what doesn’t work in transitions and how to find solutions that do.
Beth earned both her undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Oklahoma.
Kayla (Kernick) Leth
Strategist & Transition Guide
As a business owner, senior-level executive, consultant, certified coach, facilitator, and now transition guide, Kayla is passionate about developing teams and driving positive change. She’s proven her ability to help individuals and organizations increase productivity, overcome challenges, and achieve sustainable growth.
Kayla has an extensive background in marketing, customer experience, and business and brand development in a wide variety of industries. In addition to her professional experience, Kayla draws upon both her academic and DiSC® training to identify the root of financial and interpersonal problems and craft innovative strategic plans to resolve them.
She holds an Executive Master of Business Administration degree from Royal Roads University and a specialized Certificate in International Business and Innovation from Grenoble Ecole de Management.
Andrea Carpenter
Big 6 Program Facilitator
Andrea calls herself a Curator of Purposeful Experiences because she works at the intersection of design, strategy, facilitation, and connection. Her passion is to help those in moments of transition by bringing humanity and data together. She designs experiences to help people on journeys from ‘here’ to ‘there.’
She orchestrates memorable events and online meetings, including The Transition Strategists Big 6 Program. Her background as a user experience designer and strategist helps her bring a design-thinking approach to her work. She can’t wait to continue helping business owners pass their businesses on to the next generation, empowering their successors to be the best they can be.
Michelle Weakland
Business Development Director
Michelle works closely with our Transition Strategists to help make the transition from prospect to client as seamless as possible. She has over 16 years of experience in helping family businesses and start-ups build high-quality relationships with their customers: C-suite executives, athletes, health professionals, and individual entrepreneurs.
Michelle’s enthusiasm for providing new and existing clients a superb experience stems from her genuine interest in people and her respect for business owners who want to transition their companies in a way that honors their relationships.
In addition to her career experience, Michelle has a degree in business management from the University of Northern Colorado.
Dawn Dorsch
Director of Operations and Client Services
Ashley Parsons
Project Coordinator
Drawing on her passion for people and processes and experience in marketing and administration, Ashley supports our Guides by generating, coordinating, tracking, and delivering client projects.
She has mastered skills related to process improvement, project management, and communication. These combined with her natural empathy, attention to detail and emotional intelligence put into action our commitment to put people first, explore new possibilities and focus on what’s most important.
Ashley received a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Communication Studies from the University of Alabama.
Micah Taylor
Strategist and Pathfinder Guide
Micah left corporate America in 2014 to join The Transition Strategists where she helps people identify obstacles that limit their growth and acts as a dynamic force to support and encourage their growth.
Micah graduated with a BAS degree in psychology from Dallas Baptist University. She is a proud Texan who loves spending quality time with her family and friends and living her personal life mission to have a positive impact on everyone she meets.
The Rest of Our Team
The Transition Strategist maintains a roster of talented individuals that it draws upon to customize its services to each project. Their high-caliber skills and deep subject-matter experience enable our team to develop and execute strategies that are tailored to each client’s unique needs, situation, and business landscape.
