Natasha Todorovic
Company: Spiral Dynamics
Education: Marianopolis College - Heriot Watt School of Business, University of Edinburgh
Santa Barbara, CA, USA
Biography
Natasha Todorovic-Cowan knows change—because she’s lived it.
Born in a country that no longer exists, she lived in three different countries before age seven. Her industry vanished overnight. She’s been through not one, but two acquisitions. Change isn't just something she studies—it’s in her DNA.
With over 25 years of global experience, Natasha helps leaders and their teams confront the forces of change head-on using her proprietary SPIRAL DYNAMICS® Culture, Leadership, and Change Readiness diagnostics—tools built on seven decades of research and real-world application.
She has delivered more than 200 SPIRAL DYNAMICS® certification programs in 14 countries and five continents, with clients from over 50 different countries, guiding organizations of every size through the complexities of transformation. Her work reveals the invisible dynamics that drive behavior, resistance, and results—so leaders can become change-ready, resilient, and powerfully effective in uncertain times.
Passion
Natasha is passionate about uncovering the hidden drivers behind why people think and act the way they do — and what gets in the way.
For nearly 20 years, she’s researched topics like authoritarianism, team dynamics, and social attitudes, uncovering how hidden biases make us “people blind.” These distortions fuel conflict, stress, and missed opportunities.
What drives her work is helping people see one another more clearly — so teams perform better, leaders rise, relationships mend, and organizations unlock untapped potential.
That transformation — from friction to flow — is what keeps her doing this work.
Best Story
They said it was “impossible” but we did it!
Imagine you’re sitting on a board with 14 other directors. You are divided into 4 factions. Three owners are at war with multimillion dollar lawsuits against one another and no end in sight. You have a CEO role you cannot fill (no one wants that career compromiser on their resume).
To top it off, you have a new acquisition with the usual integration challenges.
The company is lurching like a ship in a storm without a rudder. You dread the meetings. No one trusts anyone else. Things can go off the rails easily, catapulting you into a bleak future and downward spiral. This was the situation we walked into...
Origin Story
“Never again will change catch me by surprise.”
That was the vow I made—through tears—parked in the middle of the day, in the middle of the week on what used to be one of the busiest streets in Montreal’s thriving fashion district.
Just weeks earlier, I had my dream job: running a division of a dynamic manufacturing company in the heart of a high-energy, eight-building fashion hub. The sidewalks buzzed with creativity, cars double and triple-parked as buyers rushed in and out with contracts, samples, and the pulse of what would be next. We were trendsetters—forecasting what people would wear 18 months ahead of time.
And then, in just three weeks, it was gone.
NAFTA hit like a silent tsunami. The five factors - the financial pillars holding up our industry - crumbled. Our suppliers vanished. Competitors disappeared. I watched months of work and inventory sold off at pennies on the dollar. Chabanel Street—a place once brimming with motion—became a ghost town.
That day, I realized that it’s not just products or industries that vanish when change strikes—it’s livelihoods, dreams, friendships, entire communities. And the worst part? No one saw it coming.
From that moment forward, I dedicated my life to understanding the deeper patterns of change—what drives it, how it spreads, and why some leaders navigate it while others are blindsided.
Today, I bring those insights—honed through over 25 years and more than 200 SPIRAL DYNAMICS® programs across five continents—to the leaders and teams who can’t afford to be caught off guard.
Because the next wave of change is already on the horizon.
The question is: Will you be ready?
Example talks
From Crystal Balls to Data-Driven Insights: Predicting Change, Embracing Culture, and Assessing Readiness
ACMP Conference (Association of Change Management Professionals):
Join me as I shed light on the unseen; I’ll share how we measure change readiness and how we look at the people who make change work. 🔍
🚢 Embarking on a change initiative sometimes is like navigating uncharted waters when it comes to the humans reacting to change. While progress might seem intangible at times, the unseen aspects are critical (so they don't bite you when you most need things to work). That's where measurement becomes a game-changer. 📐
How do you find a path forward?
🎖 From harnessing qualitative feedback to leveraging data-driven insights, we'll uncover the metrics that leverage the invisible to drive visible transformational success. 🌟
Ready to measure the immeasurable and unlock the full potential of your people? ⚡
Featured on These Podcasts
Dov Baron, Leadership & Loyalty
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/natasha-todorovic-cowan-spiral-dynamics-of-leadership/id272512829?i=1000459505183
One this episode we go FullMonty on: • What is Spiral Dynamics? • How it can be applied into any system • What can happen to leadership in applying this system • Why no one cares about your content anymore • The 4 levels of leadership…where are you? • When it comes to implementing change; the astounding level of failure and why • Judgement Vs Evaluation how to know the difference • Maturity (it’s not what you think) • We even talk about the #MeToo movement • Are you a Kangaroo or a Wombat? • What happens when her company got hijacked • Love, romance and influence And so much more...
AM&AA Interview: M&A Access Middle Market News
https://www.amaaonline.com/ma-access-august-12/
This week’s M&A Access features Natasha Todorovic-Cowan, CEO, National Values Center Consulting. Todorovic-Cowan discusses how unraveling the people side of organizational problems leads to more successful deals. She also dives into how her research on leadership has led to a 50–300% increase in clients’ leadership capacities and more.
Ivan Palomino Growth Hacking Culture
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-failed-initiatives-to-sustainable-transformation/id1610439533?i=1000715554269
Every leader I know wants change—until they’re in the middle of it.
And that’s because real change is rarely smooth, rarely fast, and almost never goes according to plan. I’ve been through enough transformations to know this truth intimately: we often believe change fails in the execution, when in reality, it fails far earlier—at the point of diagnosis.
This is one of the many truths that came to light in a recent conversation I had with Dr Natasha Todorovic-Cowan, MBA, author of Making Change Work and a recognized expert on organizational transformation and human systems. What I appreciated about Natasha wasn’t just her depth of expertise—but the clarity with which she brought together science, psychology, and human behavior to explain why so many change initiatives collapse ...
Doug Morneau, Real Marketing Real Fast
http://www.dougmorneau.com/podcasts/57/
In this episode, Dr. Natasha Todorovic-Cowan shares powerful insights on how to truly prepare your business — and your people — for change. Whether you’re a leader, team member, or marketer, successful change starts with understanding people: what drives them, what’s blocking them, and how they’re experiencing the journey.
Natasha explains why most change efforts fail — and how to avoid becoming another statistic. You’ll learn how to spot what your team or customer is really stuck on (vs. what they think it is), why timing is everything, and how to deliver results with heart. She challenges us to see more in others than they see in themselves — and act before it’s too late.
This is an eye-opening conversation for anyone navigating transformation.
Featured Video
Featured Book
I am willing to travel
More than 100 miles
When it comes to payments
Everything is negotiable
Topics
Best Story
They said it was “impossible” but we did it!
Imagine you’re sitting on a board with 14 other directors. You are divided into 4 factions. Three owners are at war with multimillion dollar lawsuits against one another and no end in sight. You have a CEO role you cannot fill (no one wants that career compromiser on their resume).
To top it off, you have a new acquisition with the usual integration challenges.
The company is lurching like a ship in a storm without a rudder. You dread the meetings. No one trusts anyone else. Things can go off the rails easily, catapulting you into a bleak future and downward spiral. This was the situation we walked into...
Origin Story
“Never again will change catch me by surprise.”
That was the vow I made—through tears—parked in the middle of the day, in the middle of the week on what used to be one of the busiest streets in Montreal’s thriving fashion district.
Just weeks earlier, I had my dream job: running a division of a dynamic manufacturing company in the heart of a high-energy, eight-building fashion hub. The sidewalks buzzed with creativity, cars double and triple-parked as buyers rushed in and out with contracts, samples, and the pulse of what would be next. We were trendsetters—forecasting what people would wear 18 months ahead of time.
And then, in just three weeks, it was gone.
NAFTA hit like a silent tsunami. The five factors - the financial pillars holding up our industry - crumbled. Our suppliers vanished. Competitors disappeared. I watched months of work and inventory sold off at pennies on the dollar. Chabanel Street—a place once brimming with motion—became a ghost town.
That day, I realized that it’s not just products or industries that vanish when change strikes—it’s livelihoods, dreams, friendships, entire communities. And the worst part? No one saw it coming.
From that moment forward, I dedicated my life to understanding the deeper patterns of change—what drives it, how it spreads, and why some leaders navigate it while others are blindsided.
Today, I bring those insights—honed through over 25 years and more than 200 SPIRAL DYNAMICS® programs across five continents—to the leaders and teams who can’t afford to be caught off guard.
Because the next wave of change is already on the horizon.
The question is: Will you be ready?
Example talks
From Crystal Balls to Data-Driven Insights: Predicting Change, Embracing Culture, and Assessing Readiness
ACMP Conference (Association of Change Management Professionals):
Join me as I shed light on the unseen; I’ll share how we measure change readiness and how we look at the people who make change work. 🔍
🚢 Embarking on a change initiative sometimes is like navigating uncharted waters when it comes to the humans reacting to change. While progress might seem intangible at times, the unseen aspects are critical (so they don't bite you when you most need things to work). That's where measurement becomes a game-changer. 📐
How do you find a path forward?
🎖 From harnessing qualitative feedback to leveraging data-driven insights, we'll uncover the metrics that leverage the invisible to drive visible transformational success. 🌟
Ready to measure the immeasurable and unlock the full potential of your people? ⚡
Featured on These Podcasts
Dov Baron, Leadership & Loyalty
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/natasha-todorovic-cowan-spiral-dynamics-of-leadership/id272512829?i=1000459505183
One this episode we go FullMonty on: • What is Spiral Dynamics? • How it can be applied into any system • What can happen to leadership in applying this system • Why no one cares about your content anymore • The 4 levels of leadership…where are you? • When it comes to implementing change; the astounding level of failure and why • Judgement Vs Evaluation how to know the difference • Maturity (it’s not what you think) • We even talk about the #MeToo movement • Are you a Kangaroo or a Wombat? • What happens when her company got hijacked • Love, romance and influence And so much more...
AM&AA Interview: M&A Access Middle Market News
https://www.amaaonline.com/ma-access-august-12/
This week’s M&A Access features Natasha Todorovic-Cowan, CEO, National Values Center Consulting. Todorovic-Cowan discusses how unraveling the people side of organizational problems leads to more successful deals. She also dives into how her research on leadership has led to a 50–300% increase in clients’ leadership capacities and more.
Ivan Palomino Growth Hacking Culture
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-failed-initiatives-to-sustainable-transformation/id1610439533?i=1000715554269
Every leader I know wants change—until they’re in the middle of it.
And that’s because real change is rarely smooth, rarely fast, and almost never goes according to plan. I’ve been through enough transformations to know this truth intimately: we often believe change fails in the execution, when in reality, it fails far earlier—at the point of diagnosis.
This is one of the many truths that came to light in a recent conversation I had with Dr Natasha Todorovic-Cowan, MBA, author of Making Change Work and a recognized expert on organizational transformation and human systems. What I appreciated about Natasha wasn’t just her depth of expertise—but the clarity with which she brought together science, psychology, and human behavior to explain why so many change initiatives collapse ...
Doug Morneau, Real Marketing Real Fast
http://www.dougmorneau.com/podcasts/57/
In this episode, Dr. Natasha Todorovic-Cowan shares powerful insights on how to truly prepare your business — and your people — for change. Whether you’re a leader, team member, or marketer, successful change starts with understanding people: what drives them, what’s blocking them, and how they’re experiencing the journey.
Natasha explains why most change efforts fail — and how to avoid becoming another statistic. You’ll learn how to spot what your team or customer is really stuck on (vs. what they think it is), why timing is everything, and how to deliver results with heart. She challenges us to see more in others than they see in themselves — and act before it’s too late.
This is an eye-opening conversation for anyone navigating transformation.