I mentored 100s of people throughout my career and one who makes me really proud is a young enlisted soldier who was new to intelligence. He learned a tracking model from me and established a process in his team that empowered them to be in front of activity and not reacting to activity. They predicted innovations of countries because he took the lead on the model I provided. Then several years later, he worked for again at another command. Now he's an executive at a private corporation changing the world with AI expertise.

I didn’t join the Navy because I had my career mapped out. I joined because I wanted to see more of the world.

After growing up in North Dakota, spending a summer in California, and studying abroad in college, I knew I wanted to spread my wings. An unexpected conversation with an Army recruiter planted the idea of military service. I ultimately chose the Navy – a decision that opened the door to more than 25 years in defense and shaped the work I do today.

In large, complex organizations, I learned that good ideas don’t move forward on their own. People need to understand the mission, recognize how decisions happen, build relationships, and work across organizational boundaries. I sought mentors throughout my career, including people outside my analytical field. Those relationships expanded my understanding of government operations and taught me to look beyond my own responsibilities.

I also mentored and coached hundreds of people, many of whom went on to leadership roles in corporations, nonprofits, government, and their own businesses. Developing people wasn’t separate from accomplishing the mission. It was simply part of how I led.

My passion for this work deepened when I trained to teach in the Defense Intelligence Agency’s premier analyst training program and pursued my doctorate in leadership and organizational culture. Having experienced numerous reorganizations, I wanted to understand why some succeeded while others struggled. My studies challenged me to think more deeply about culture, collaboration, psychological safety, and the ways people can create change without controlling every decision.

That intersection – people, strategy, and influence – became the foundation of my work.

My move into consulting began with someone looking at my résumé and saying, “Karalee, you need to work for yourself. You’ve got all this expertise!” A small training contract with a nonprofit became my first engagement. Over the following years, I combined consulting with nonprofit board leadership, grant work, and policy development, applying my government experience in a different environment.

But I wanted to offer more than another leadership assessment or training program. My focus came into sharper view when a friend invited me to deliver a workshop on strategic thinking and decision-making. It brought together what I most wanted people to understand: you don’t have to control the whole organization to make a meaningful difference within it.

Today, through Insight Leadership Consulting, I speak and facilitate workshops on strategic thinking, decision-making, influence, personal value, and organizational culture. I connect mission and vision to the practical work of collaboration, action planning, and follow-through.

My approach combines experience inside a large bureaucracy with doctoral study, coaching, and hands-on nonprofit leadership. Participants examine their own work, identify where they can influence outcomes, and develop practical steps for moving ideas forward.

My career began with a desire to expand my own world. Today, I equip others to expand what they believe about themselves and learn how to support the goals inside organizations.