The Team

Lee J. Colan, Ph.D. is President of The L Group, Inc., a Dallas, Texas-based consulting firm. He is a high-energy executive advisor, author and leadership expert.

He has built a track record of successfully managing the challenges of rapid organizational change. Lee possesses an in-depth understanding of business, people and organizations. He blends this understanding with his corporate management experience to help leaders and companies grow.

From emerging companies to the Fortune 500, many organizations have experienced the positive impact of Lee’s practical approach, including:

Amedisyst American Heart Association - National Centert AmeriSource Bergen Specialty Groupt AT&T Wireless Servicest Crosstex Energy Servicest CVS/Pharmacyt Fossilt Foxworth-Galbraith Lumber Co.t International Papert Jiffy Lube Association of Franchiseest Jo-Ann Storest Johnson Controlst KPMGt Pegasus Solutionst Pier 1 Importst Safety-Kleent Senior Living Propertiest Texas Instrumentst TRANEt The Venetian Resort, Hotel & Casinot Voluntary Hospitals of America (VHA)t Yum! Brands

Prior to starting The L Group in 1999, Lee worked in various leadership roles with American Airlines, Sandoz (Novartis) and FoxMeyer (McKesson). He also held consulting positions with two premier firms: Booz, Allen & Hamilton and William Mercer. His last corporate post was as Vice President for Physician Reliance Network, one of the fastest growing NASDAQ companies at the time.

In addition to 22 years of hands-on industry and consulting experience, Lee earned Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from George Washington University after graduating from Florida State University.

Lee has authored seven books, including two best sellers. His practical advice has appeared in a wide variety of on-line and print publications including theFinancial Times, Networld, Healthweek, Wholesale Drug Magazine, Dallas Morning News and Stores.

Lee’s passion and enthusiasm create turbo-charged presentations and workshops that are energizing and engaging. He delivers practical, powerful tools participants can put to work right away.

Julie Davis-Colan is an innovative business consultant who has 20 years of experience in sales and marketing to Fortune 100 companies. Julie has the ability to turn vision and marketplace opportunity into a profitable reality. She has built a track record of effectively creating and selling unique marketing initiatives to business partners including multi-million dollar corporate sponsorships, business-to-business and direct-to-consumer sales. Her clients included companies such as Home Depot, Westinghouse, Dean Foods and Coca-Cola Foods.

Prior to consulting, Julie conceptualized and managed several profitable business units and led successful turn-arounds at the American Heart Association’s National Center. The American Heart Association was recognized by the Harvard Business School as one of the best managed non-profit organizations in the United States.

Julie’s areas of expertise include business planning, revenue enhancement strategies, national sales, strategic partnerships and new product development in emerging markets.

Additionally, Julie is a compelling speaker and engaging trainer. Her passion for leadership and life create an infectious energy for audiences.

Julie earned her Master's degree in Preventive Medicine from The Ohio State University, College of Medicine, after earning her Bachelor’s degree from Florida State University.

Lori-Lynn Baker is the Sales and Marketing Director for The L Group. Her positive energy and enthusiasm are a perfect reflection of the company's values. She brings more than 25 years of sales and marketing experience to help the company help as many people as possible achieve the success they deserve.

Lori-Lynn is a graduate of Florida State University, where she studied business with a marketing focus. She spearheaded national advertising and marketing campaigns in both Florida and Texas. Lori-Lynn has owned and operated an advertising agency focused on the automotive and health care industries amongst many other sectors.

Lori-Lynn has worked in various corporate capacities with New City Communications, , KVIL Broadcasting, Infinity, Dallas Cowboy Broadcasting, Gannett, Summit Broadcasting and TDI National/International. Her work in the not-for-profit sector includes positions with The Dallas Women's Foundation, Baylor Hospital Foundation and Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. She is a current member of Meeting Planners International.

Expert Partners

Expert Partners compliment The L Group’s core expertise as appropriate. We provide a single point of contact to manage the various aspects of your project, while leveraging our partners who are:

• “best of breed” experts that are specifically matched to your project needs and
• rigorously selected and respected experts with an average of 25 years experience each.

Below are the profiles of some of our featured Expert Partners.

Norman Bodek is one of The L Group’s select Expert Partners. Vancouver, Washington, publishing, training, and consulting company. He discovered and published the works of the truly great Japanese manufacturing geniuses: Dr. Shigeo Shingo and Taiichi Ohno, the inventors of the Toyota Production System now called JIT and Lean manufacturing and many others. From his numerous trips to Japan he introduced to the western world the Kaizen Blitz, SMED, TPM, QFD, Hoshin Kanri, Poka-Yoke, Visual Factory and other new manufacturing methodologies that have helped companies improve their quality, and productivity. In 1988 he initiated the Shingo Prize for Manufacturing Excellence with Professor Vern Buehler at Utah State University.

Most recently he co-authored a book with Bunji Tozawa titled The Idea Generator - Quick and Easy Kaizen. The Quick and Easy Kaizen system recognizes that every worker has hidden creative talent locked inside. This system becomes a powerful tool for management to bring forth lots and lots of small but significant improvement ideas from all their employees.

This quote from Norman captures the value of his work, “Every person at work should be empowered and involved in the improvement process through their own creative ideas to make their work easier, more interesting, build their problem solving skills, while at the same time improving communications throughout the organization, improving customer service, improving quality, improving safety, improving productivity and bringing new excitement and joy into the workplace. Not tapping into employees’ ideas is like sitting on top of a gold mine and feeling poor.”

Through newsletters, books and 50 industrial study missions to Japan Norman discovered, brought over, had translated and popularized many of the Japanese quality tools, techniques, and technologies that transformed American industry in the mid 1980's and 1990's.

Norman has been a frequent instructor and speaker on customer service, productivity, quality and process improvement for organizations including the American Management Association, President Reagan's Productivity Conference, Institute of Industrial Engineers, American Society for Quality, as well as at hundreds of conferences, seminars, and in plant training events.

Norman, holds a BA from New York University, has written numerous articles and editorials on manufacturing, productivity, quality, and customer service.

Donald H. Brush is one of The L Group’s select Expert Partners.  He is co-founder and President of The Renova Corporation, a Dallas-based management consulting firm, founded in 1985, with offices and affiliated partnerships in Canada and Europe.

Dr. Brush was formerly on the tenured faculty of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he taught the management of science and technology, and The University of Texas at Dallas where he was Director of the Under­graduate Management Program.  During his academic career, he had over 50 publications and professional presentations in human resource management.  His research, sponsored by such companies as General Electric, IBM, and Pfizer, in the area of identifying and developing management talent in scientists and engineers has been acclaimed in the Wall Street Journal and Business Week Magazine.

Dr. Brush's areas of specialty include Strategic Vision Planning, Change Management, Teamwork & Empowerment, and Process Improvement.  His clients have included such corporations as Nortel, Universal Studios, GTE, Pier 1 Imports, Lucent Technologies, and Texas Instruments.  In 1991 he received the First Award in Quality Achievement in Brussels for the TQM work he did in Europe.   He consults extensively in the U.S. and on international projects in Canada, South America and Europe. 

Recent projects have included leading the integration of the Elizabeth Arden and Mario Tricoci Salons merger; the reorganization of Commercial Property and Casualty at the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies; and facilitating a major culture change at Sabre (Global Infrastructure).

Dr. Brush is on the Board of Directors of Aperian (NASDAQ APRN), is a Director of the Hogan Quality Institute and the Texas Quality Consortium and on the Editorial Board of the Journal for Corporate Education.

Dr. Sandy Gluckman is one of The L Group’s select Expert Partners.  She is an internationally recognized business strategist and leadership coach. She is widely acclaimed for her unique application of the ‘whole brain’ concept for enhancing the performance of individuals and organizations.  She is greatly sought after as a keynote speaker and talk show guest/discussant.

For the past 30 years Sandy has assisted leadership of some of the largest multinational corporations breathe life into their strategies by:

• Cascading and communicating strategy using whole brain tools
• Branding internally and externally
• Creating a significant material increase in positive employee engagement 
• Increasing sales and brand equity through a whole brain approach called live, face-to-face advertising and marketing
• Proudly measuring the results.

Dr. Gluckman’s clients include: AmerisourceBergen Specialty Group, British Airways, Alliance Data Systems, Cadbury-Schweppes, Coca Cola, Microsoft, Miller Breweries, BMW, Nokia, Toyota, Nissan, Kimberly Clark, Proctor and Gamble, Saatchi & Saatchi, and Volkswagen.