Executive and Administrative Assistant Trainers and Speakers

Meet Our Elite Trainers/Speakers

Joan Burge, founder and CEO, has spent a great deal of time selecting a few individuals who are highly qualified to teach Office Dynamics’ educational courses which are specifically designed for all levels of administrative professionals.

This elite group has worked in the administrative profession and are experts at classroom facilitation, and group dynamics. Our trainers/speakers have presented multiple administrative-specific workshops, seminars, keynote speeches, and onsite training. They are adept at blending training techniques with professional speaking skills thus increasing learner engagement and information retention.

Joan Burge has personally trained and coached each trainer to ensure all Office Dynamics’ curriculum are taught to the company’s high standards of excellence. We personally align the right speaker with your organization and audience for the best possible outcome.

Office Dynamics’ trainers/speakers deliver solutions with high-energy and high-impact and have a proven track record with companies such as AT&T, Boeing, Eli Lilly, Humana, Intel, Kraft Foods, Prudential, McDonalds, Plante & Moran, and Sunoco.

Call 800-STAR-139 today and let us help you shine!

Debbie Gross

Debbie Gross, former CEA, has well over 30 years of experience in the administrative field. She joined Cisco Systems in March 1991 as the executive assistant to John Chambers, then Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations. As the company grew from $1.2 billion in annual revenues to over $46 billion, her responsibilities grew together with Chambers. In 1995, when Chambers became President and CEO, Debbie Gross assumed the lead role leading Cisco’s global 1000+-person administrative team.

She is considered a leader focused on initiatives that promote administrative excellence including processes and policy improvements.  Debbie is a member of the California UCSC Extended Campus Board for Administrative Curriculum Development and is a Guest Lecturer for programs there.

In 2016 Debbie was the recipient of the Colleen Barrett Award for Administrative Excellence, the highest award given by the Admin Awards of Silicon Valley.  In addition, she is a keynote speaker and trainer focused on Administrative Professionalism and has participated in events around the world.

She is one of the original founders of the SVCA (Silicon Valley Catalysts Association) which is an organization of Executive Assistants who support CEO’s in the Silicon Valley.

She was born and raised in Jackson, Miss.   Loves golfing, mountain biking and karaoke singing on the weekends.

Kathy Tosoian

Kathy is a Star Achievement Series® Certified Trainer and has been with Office Dynamics International since 1997. Kathy is also certified in more than 20 customized workshops written by Joan Burge, founder and CEO, Office Dynamics International and is certified to teach Office Dynamics’ World Class Assistant™ high-end certificate program for administrative and executive assistants. She is one of Office Dynamics International top speakers and repeatedly receives top-ratings from our clients.

Kathy combines her love for people and her passion for excellence to help professional men and women develop their confidence, people skills, and communication abilities. As a motivational speaker, she inspires, motivates, entertains, and educates her audience. Kathy knows how to create a learning environment with her insight, compassion, and enthusiasm.

Customer service, communications, networking, business etiquette, presentation skills, time management, attitude, goal setting, and relationship building are among Kathy’s specialty topics. As a facilitator of the Star Achievement Series®, Kathy truly focuses on developing high standards for administrative assistants, helping them to reach their highest potential and achieve new levels of professionalism.

Kathy earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Education from Michigan State University and a Master’s Degree in Counseling from Oakland University. Kathy resides in Michigan with her husband.

“Kathy Tosoian instructed the World Class Assistant training at our organization. It was great training and I have heard nothing but praise about it. EVERYONE thought it was valuable, pertinent, and well worth their time.  I was so pleased with the level of engagement Kathy had with our group.  She was an excellent instructor and so personable! We felt like we had known her a long time.  She was awesome and can’t wait for the next session.”

Lisa Olsen

Lisa advocates continuous learning and encourages administrative professionals to expand their potential, take initiative and practice being “relationship engineers.” She has a passion for bringing out the best in others. Lisa has been associated with the Office Dynamics team for over ten years where she is a certified trainer and speaker. She is the Co-Founder of a part-time training and speaking business, Admin to Admin which allows her to share her passion for continuous personal and professional development.

Her successful career as a senior executive assistant spans over 20 years. Currently, she is the Executive Coordinator for the Sacramento Region at Dignity Health and supports the Senior Vice President of Operations, the Regional Community Board and leads the administrative team.

She also taught at the junior college level for 5 years in the Administrative Certificate Program. She served as a member of the Advisory Council for the Administrative Professionals Conference (APC) and has enjoyed sharing her presentations at the IAAP International Conference, Executive Secretary Live Conference, many business Womens’ Conferences, and the Office Dynamics International Conference. Lisa also enjoys her involvement with the Especially for Youth program sponsored by Brigham Young University where she has been a faculty member for 10 years.

She enjoys a great book, piecing a quilt, watching a movie that requires mountains of Kleenex, spending time with her family and working on her next book. Her bucket list is full of exciting things she hopes to do to strengthen her mind, body, and soul.

“Lisa was amazing in many ways.  Her speech was energized, informative and she left us with a great motivating message that we can use in our life and on the job. She was also a pleasure to work with pre-meeting.  She took our suggested topic of “What is your story” made it her own and ran with it!  Loved everything about working with Lisa. The experience could not have been better.” — Andrea

Julie Reed

Julie is an experienced administrative professional with a demonstrated history of building strategic partnerships and providing proactive support.  Over the past 20 years, she has navigated her own career up a spiral staircase — as a travel agent, HR staffing assistant, and administrative assistant.  In her most recent assignment as the Executive Administrative Assistant and Office Manager for the President and CEO of Huntington Bank, she implemented the Star Achievement Series^® for the administrative staff, a cultural movement that changed the perception of the role at Huntington, “gaining the participants a seat at the table, and not to just take the notes!”  Julie values everyday leadership and is passionate about developing her team, colleagues and industry partners, through one on one mentoring and coaching.  As a certified Star Trainer in Levels I, II and III, Julie brings creativity, gamification, improv and one-click technology tips, into the classroom to engage and inspire.  A champion for her career of choice, Julie empowers her peers to …. “Keep Yourself in the Equation”!

Julie has been married to Jon for 33 years.  They have four grown daughters and two granddaughters.  They enjoy active and adventurous travel.

Julie encourages all of us to support Dress for Success and their mission “to help men and women thrive in work and in life.”

Connect with Julie and other Star enthusiasts via her LinkedIn Group, Star Constellation.

Sue Robach

Sue Robach is a management trainer and consultant with expertise in the areas of leadership, human relations, organizational and interpersonal communication, decision-making, problem-solving, team building, sales training, and continuous improvement. Sue was previously a corporate trainer and communications manager for a global automotive manufacturer and former Director of Communications for the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.

Sue is also an accomplished executive coach and provides 360-degree assessments, training/performance needs analysis, personal development assessments, behavioral-based interviewing, and employment law overviews/refreshers. She provides customized learning solutions for teams working with real-world situations in leadership, problem-solving, teamwork, customer service and process improvement. Sue possesses a Masters Degree in Leadership from Madonna University, Livonia, Michigan.