Our team members and certified consultants bring a diverse set of experiences to their engagements and share a passion for growth, creativity, and strategic thinking.

Kaihan Krippendorff is the CEO of KAI Method, author of three business strategy books – “The Way of Innovation,” “The Art of the Advantage,” and “Hide a Dagger Behind a Smile”. He served as a consultant and manager at McKinsey & Company. Prior to McKinsey, Kaihan held various senior positions in the banking, retail, consulting, and non-profit sectors. He earned his MBA from Columbia Business School and London Business School, his BSE in Finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, and his BSE in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering.

Kaihan lectures regularly at Wharton Business School and MIT Sloan. He works with several large corporations including Wal-Mart, Microsoft, and Johnson & Johnson.

His research interests include strategic innovation, creativity, cognition, decision-making, and Eastern philosophy. He is fluent in English with conversational command of Spanish and German.


Douglas Muir is the Chief Operating Officer of Kai Method. He is a former captain with a U.S. airline and is an authority in business strategy for small to mid-size companies, having successfully built several multi-million dollar enterprises from the ground up.

He speaks internationally on topics of entrepreneurship, innovation, and business growth. He has been published and quoted in numerous publications including Business Week and The Scotsman Guide, a prestigious magazine for the banking, mortgage, and investor industry. He was recently featured in Kaihan Krippendorff's business tactics book, "Hide a Dagger Behind a Smile" about how he infiltrated the insurance industry and locked out his competition.

Within Kai Method, Douglas focuses on the unique challenges of strategy execution. His research interests include innovative mind-sets and entrepreneurial behavior.

Helmut Albrecht is a Principal with Kai Method as well as a sales and marketing executive and change agent with extensive business development capabilities. Recently, as VP Customer Solutions for a component-driven organization, he further consolidated their systems division, introduced key performance management initiatives to the engineering organization, and achieved 20% revenue growth. In his position as National Sales Manager, Digital Solutions for Kodak Canada, he led the integration of the digital print business, creating a sales funnel greater than $100 million (Canadian) and reducing order-to-delivery time by 60% within 12 months. As National Accounts Manager for Heidelberg USA, Helmut realigned the national accounts pool, creating short-term sales opportunities of $40 million.

Numerous successful executive roles in Germany, Canada, and the United States have provided Helmut with a full understanding of the international business culture as well a command of the English and German languages. He earned a degree as Diplom Ingenieur (FH) from the Armed Forces University in Munich.

Benjamin Bewick is an Executive Consultant with KaiMethod. Ben’s areas of expertise include strategy, economic analysis, data analysis, and financial analysis.  Recently Ben has focused on combining strategy with data analysis in strategic analytics.  Ben has worked with clients in the technology, media, telecommunications, biotechnology, consumer products, and transportation industries on strategy.  He has conducted analysis in areas such as consumer behavior, market entry, mergers & acquisitions, and company valuations.  He has worked with expert economists at Berkeley, Princeton, and Stanford, including 3 former heads of the US Department of Justice antitrust division.  He has managed more than $3 billion in corporate debt for Fortune 500 companies and institutional investors. Companies such as Coca Cola, Seagate Technology, Wells Fargo, and Fortune Brands, Inc. have furthered their businesses by using Ben’s strategic, economic, and financial expertise.

Ben has a B.A. in Economics and History from the University of Pennsylvania and was a member of the 1991 National Championship crew team.

Cynthia Dow is an Executive Consultant with Kai Method, co-leading our coaching practice. Cynthia has 15 years of client service, people management, public speaking, and advisory experience in consumer-packaged goods, manufacturing, and professional services companies. Most recently, she spent six years at Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages, as the Vice President and Assistant General Counsel responsible for corporate compliance, labor, and employment for 19,000+ employees, science and technology, procurement, and white-space innovation. Prior to Cadbury, Cynthia was the Vice President and General Counsel of a telecommunications component manufacturer, a trial and labor and employment attorney at multi-national firm Baker Botts LLP, and a law clerk to a federal district judge.

She received her J.D. from Columbia Law School, and her B.A. in Government from Cornell University. She is licensed to practice law in New York and Texas. Her research interests include human behavior and innovation. She is an avid cook, triathlete, yoga practitioner and photographer.

Nadia Laurinci is an Executive Consultant with KaiMethod and focuses on serving start-ups, venture capital firms, and private equity firms. Prior to joining KaiMethod, Nadia served as a financial advisor at Goldman Sachs and as a quantitative analyst at Citigroup in New York. While at Goldman Sachs, Nadia worked with high net worth individuals to structure opportunistic derivative solutions across equities, currencies, commodities, and interest rates and managed over $2 billion worth of trade executions for private clients across the U.S. and Europe. She is the founder and manager of Elevation Labs LLC, a marketing and technological innovation company focused on creating viral and mobile marketing solutions for medium-size businesses.

Apart from finance and entrepreneurship, Nadia has a passion for innovation and competitive strategy. She is fluent in German, Spanish, Slovak, Czech, and English and given her multi-national background and her work experience in the U.S. and across Europe brings a truly international perspective to business. Nadia is a summa cum laude graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania where she concentrated in finance and marketing.

F. Glenn Richardson is an Executive Consultant with Kai Method, and has over 25 years of experience working with various government agencies and corporate-sector businesses. His areas of expertise include strategic and business planning, human resources management, change enablement, financial management, and information technology resource planning and strategy. He has assisted numerous organizations with critical decisions regarding strategy, training and development, internal processes, policy development and implementation strategies, and identification and implementation of best business practices. He is a former partner in the Public Sector Practice of Deloitte LLP, and a former Partner at Arthur Andersen LLP where he led the Strategy, Finance, and Economics Knowledge Team. His military assignments included the U.S. Army Special Operations Command; U.S. Army, Europe; service in Operation Desert Storm; and, The Joint Staff. Glenn earned a MasterÕs of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the U.S. Naval War College, a MasterÕs of Business Administration in Finance from Syracuse University, and undergraduate degrees in Business Management and Economics from North Carolina State University.

Susan Drumm, J.D., CCPC Susan is one of Kai Method’s most senior Certified Consultants. She has over 15 years experience in coaching and consulting for senior executives and their teams.

As an Associate Partner for The Trium Group, a leading organizational consulting firm, Susan developed and facilitated leadership development programs for senior executives with numerous Fortune 50 clients. Earlier in her career, Susan worked for NBC / GE as a Master Black Belt in the Six Sigma Quality program where she facilitated organization-wide change efforts to align NBC strategies and processes. She was promoted to Director of Business Development and Marketing where she developed and led strategic multi-media deals by harnessing the best talent and resources across NBC’s various divisions. Susan was also a Senior Consultant at the Boston Consulting Group, leading engagements on strategy development and organizational re-design for clients in the pharmaceutical, retail, and financial services industries.

She graduated cum laude with a J.D. from Harvard Law School and holds a B.S. in Industrial Management from Carnegie Mellon University and an M.A. in Drama from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Susan received her accreditation through ICF (International Coaching Federation) and is trained as an executive coach through CTI (Coaches Training Institute).

A former film, TV, and theater actress, Susan has a passion for understanding the “human” side of business, particularly how shifting mental frames and beliefs can unlock new innovation. Susan lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Itza Manuela Acosta is a Certified Consultant with Kai Method, based in Toronto, Canada. She has a decade of experience in marketing including the creation and development of marketing departments, definition of commercial strategies, and positioning and launching of new business opportunities. One of the earliest members of the Kai Method team, Itza now leads the development of their Toronto business. Itza earned a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and has a Master’s in Marketing from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Cali, Colombia. She is fluent in Spanish and English. Her research interests include entrepreneurship, creativity, and spirituality applied to business.

Shauna Atwood is a director of seminars at the Kai Method. Since graduating from Lynchburg College she has worked with a variety of companies in project management, customer service, marketing and computer technology roles. In each of her roles, she has collaborated directly with senior level management, spearheaded several IT projects, and developed communication, PR and marketing skills.
In her last role, Shauna managed a team of twenty software engineers, as well as acted as customer liaison. She also aided in the development of the company's website, virtual administrator, and various marketing materials. She specializes in communications, office management and marketing.

Jill Hellman is a Special Advisor to Kai Method and one of our most experience Certified Consultants. She has over 15 years of experience working in the area of innovation, from idea generation to diffusion. She has held numerous leadership roles in U.S. Fortune 500 companies, including serving as the Director of Strategy at AutoNation, Inc., a $19B company known for innovation in automotive retailing. As a consultant, she has addressed audiences in Scotland, London, Guatemala, and Dubai for companies such as Microsoft, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Pfizer, and is a guest speaker for numerous senior executive groups.

She currently serves as Chief Innovator for The Innovation Network, a groundbreaking program being launched by the Leland C. and Mary M. Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship at Cornell UniversityÕs School of Hotel Administration..

She is active in the community, having served on the boards of nonprofits such as Gilda’s Club, an organization named after Gilda Radner for families touched by cancer. Jill received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Florida Atlantic University. She received her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Her research interests include the diffusion of innovation and adult learning theory. She is an avid runner.

Paula Hidalgo is a Certified Consultant with Kai Method with deep experience in learning and development. Before joining Kai Method, Paula held several positions at Pearson, an international multi-media company. Most recently she was the VP of Design and Development in the Curriculum Group. Before assuming that position, Paula was the Director of Design and Development for K-12 programs. Prior to this, Paula was a consultant with McKinsey & Company. She has served as an education researcher on a variety of large-scale educational initiatives at the University of California, Los Angeles, while completing her doctorate program. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Education, a Master’s degree in Psychology, and a Ph. D. in Applied Linguistics. Her research interests range from adult learning theory to applied linguistics. She has taught and is fluent in five languages.


Jenny Sarang is a Certified Consultant with Kai Method based in India. She is an American who has been living and working in India for 18 years in the fields of training, finance, business development, and corporate affairs in the financial services, consultancy, and manufacturing businesses. For the last ten years, she has been conducting developmental and operational training programs. She has managed small and large teams in GE for nine years. Jenny started her consultancy, called Elevate Learning Solutions, in September, 2006.

Jenny was with GE for nearly ten years in three different GE Businesses. In her last role, she was the Operations Leader of the Business Leadership Skills division of GE Corporate India. She is also a certified GE Crotonville faculty member in Facilitation, Influencing, Hiring, Coaching, WorkoutTM Change Acceleration Process, Advanced Leadership, and Building Essential Leadership Skills. She is a certified assessor for MBTI Steps I and II as well as DiSC.

Jenny is a graduate in Business Finance from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and holds a Post-Graduate Degree in Management Studies from Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi. As an American residing in India, Jenny brings a cross-cultural blend of Indian, American, and international perspective and experiences. Her research interests include the intersection between corporate and national cultures, and leadership development.

AnaMaria Rivera AnaMaria is a Certified Consultant with the Kai Method. She has over 20 years of management and consulting experience including three years as the President of a 1,500-person corporation. She was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. where she focused on helping companies solve strategic and organizational problems.

She is an International Professor at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, teaching in the Specialization in Finance and Specialization in Marketing Programs. AnaMaria earned her BS in Industrial Engineering from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, and her MBA from Harvard Business School. She is fluent in English and Spanish.

Brad Hoover Brad is a Special Advisor to the Kai Method. He is currently a partner with General Catalyst Partners, a top-tier venture capital firm, focusing on investments in early and growth stage technology businesses. His background includes a career in management consulting with McKinsey & Co., where he collected experience in growth, market entry, innovation, and sales strategy for Fortune 500 clients. At the former Arthur Andersen, Brad led the development of an intranet application used by Goldman Sachs and others to execute corporate mergers and acquisitions.

Brad also started an architectural services firm during his undergraduate tenure at Cornell University, where he graduated with a B.S. in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering. In his limited spare time, Brad enjoys activities including cycling, downhill skiing, and aviation.