Powering Canoe Collaboration

Powering Canoe Collaboration

HOW I WORK: COLLABORATION STRATEGY

When executive teams get together, a lot gets said—and very little actually changes.I help leadership teams use meetings, offsites, and working sessions to do what those moments are meant to do: make decisions, surface real tensions, and move work forward.Most teams don’t need more meetings or more process. They need better-designed conversations—ones that turn discussion into clarity, clarity into commitment, and commitment into follow‑through.My work blends facilitation in the room with Chief‑of‑Staff–level thinking behind the scenes. I focus on what has to happen during the session—and what has to change after it—for progress to stick.

Facilitation for Executive Teams
Executives don't experience facilitation as "service." They experience it as:

  • Meetings that finally produce decisions

  • Hard conversations that don't damage trust

  • Alignment that shows up as action, not just agreement

I design and facilitate:

  • Executive team meetings

  • Strategy and planning sessions

  • Leadership offsites

  • Decision-making workshops

  • Conflict and alignment conversations

I facilitate for outcomes. What that looks like:

  • For profit focus, not your typical non-profit, touchy-feely facilitated session

  • Designing agendas backward from executive goals for the sessions

  • Surfacing unspoken tensions that are slowing execution, and creating drama

  • Naming decision ownership clearly and neutrally

  • Closing sessions with commitments that can actually be followed through

  • The same topics keep resurfacing without resolution

  • Decisions get made but reopened weeks later

  • Strong personalities dominate outcomes

  • Silence is mistaken for agreement

  • Meetings feel productive but nothing changes

Typical engagements:

  • Half‑day or full‑day offsites

  • Multi‑session decision or alignment work

  • Ongoing facilitation support during periods of change or launch

Fractional Chief-of-Staff SupportOften, facilitation surfaces a deeper issue: the team doesn’t have the systems needed to sustain clarity and momentum.Fractional Chief-of-Staff support builds the infrastructure behind good meetings

I help executive teams:

  • Clarify decision rights and escalation paths

  • Establish an effective operating cadence

  • Improve executive meeting design and rhythm

  • Create follow-through systems that prevent decision drift

  • Translate strategy into clear priorities and ownership

When fractional support makes sense:

  • The founder or CEO is a bottleneck for decisions

  • Leadership meetings feel heavy or inefficient

  • Priorities shift faster than execution can keep up

  • The team is growing or changing quickly

  • There’s no clear owner for “the work between the work”

Who this is for:

  • CEOs and founders

  • Executive leadership teams

  • Senior leaders navigating growth or change

Especially when the team is:

  • Smart, capable, and slightly stuck

  • Tired of revisiting the same conversations

  • Ready to name what’s actually getting in the way

Navigating organizational success

Hi, I'm Christa, Founder of Canoe Collaboration. I specialize in helping organizations tackle complex challenges through Facilitated Sessions and Fractional Chief-of-Staff services. With over 15 years of experience in operations management and key roles in corporate strategy and in-house facilitation, I know that the key to success lies in effective leadership and fostering collaboration.As your Fractional Chief of Staff, I work alongside your executive team, providing high-level strategy and leadership to ensure your goals are met. I’ll help optimize your operations, streamline processes, and create an environment of collaboration that drives growth—without the need for a full-time staff member.In addition to strategic leadership, I’m a skilled facilitator who thrives in guiding organizations through challenging conversations. Whether it’s leading difficult discussions, aligning teams, or helping you navigate change, I create collaborative spaces that allow for open dialogue and actionable solutions that stick. I've developed my experience in corporate America, leading very focused facilitated sessions.The Canoe Collaboration Difference
At Canoe Collaboration, I bring a unique blend of strategic leadership and facilitation expertise to help your business achieve sustainable success. My ability to connect people, ideas, and solutions, combined with my deep understanding of what makes organizations work (and what doesn't), will help move your business upstream.

Certifications & Methodologies

Christa has certifications in Project Management, Facilitation and Change Management:Project Management:
Certified Scrum MasterFacilitation:
IAF Endorsed FacilitatorToP Training in Graphic Facilitation, ToP Facilitation Methods, ToP Strategic Planning, ToP Environmental ScanningToP Training Certified Facilitator (in-progress)DePaul Continuing Education Certification in Organizational FacilitationFoCuSeD Business Facilitation Graduate (Conducted by Gary Rush)Adherence to the Values and Code of Ethics of the IAF (International Association of Facilitators)Statement of Values and Code of EthicsChange Management:
Acuity Institute Change Management Certification

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