President

Nicole Ghosten |    

Nicole has a passion for the Talent Development field. She has held a wide range of positions in the Talent Development field such as Human Resources Generalist and Training Systems Lead. She is currently an Organizational Change Management Lead for a large manufacturing company in Atlanta. She is a certified change management practitioner through PROSCI.

Nicole has a Bachelor of Science degree from Georgia State University in Human Resources Management. She has a Paralegal Certificate from Clayton State University. Nicole recently received her M.A. in Law from Regent University Law school. While in law school her concentration of studies was in Non-Profit Management.

Nicole enjoys spending time with her family and friends and volunteering for local non-profits in the metro Atlanta area.

President-Elect

Jeffrey Alejandro |    

Jeffery Alejandro has 25 years of experience in leadership, training, talent development, learning strategies/solutions, and performance management. Throughout his career, he has worked with over 200 organizations in a wide variety of industries such as finance, healthcare, manufacturing, law, education, sports, defense, technology, etc. His professional mission is to provide tailored, practical learning solutions to strengthen organizations’ teams. His personal mission is to empower those he encounters with knowledge and kindness. He is a firm believer that empowering and investing in people will pay great dividends. Jeffery earned his Doctorate in Leadership and Master of Arts in Adult Education from East Carolina University. He earned his Bachelor’s of Art in Communication (Public Relations and Broadcasting) from the University of North Carolina-Pembroke. He has certifications in the areas of instructional technology, program planning, leadership, and conflict resolution.

VP Membership

Provita Mungin |     

Provita has been a Talent Development professional for twenty-five years. She's held many roles in the learning space including Trainer, Faciliator, Internal Performance Consultant, Curriculum Developer, Training & Development Manager and LMS Administrator. She is currently an Organizational Development Manager

VP Strategic Partnerships

Michael Sanford |          

VP Technology

Kelly Tracy |      

Kelly has over 15 years of experience in teaching and training, from language instruction and higher education to freelance and nonprofit training and development. She holds an M.A. in Applied Linguistics and English as a Second Language from Georgia State University and recently received her APTD certification. Kelly lives in Peachtree Corners with her husband and two sons, and she enjoys pottery, gardening, embroidery, and hiking. 

VP Community Relations

Daphne Evans |     

Daphne has seven years of experience in Learning and Development with duties in training, facilitation, onboarding specialist, and learning consultant. She joined ATD Greater Atlanta chapter in 2019 and in 2021 began volunteering with the VP of Community Relations.

Prior to becoming a Learning and Development professional, Daphne was in insurance sales where she owned an insurance agency in Chicago, Illinois for over 15 years. Daphne has always had a passion for helping people. Be it educating and helping families design insurance programs to meet their family’s needs or helping others achieve their personal or professional development goals brings her joy.

She enjoys traveling with her husband, gardening, cycling, community volunteering, and reading in her spare time.

VP Marketing and Communications

Atiya Hasan |   

Bookkeeper

 Stephanie Smith |      

Stephanie is an experienced learning and development leader with a strong focus on innovative approaches to learner-centric training solutions including simulations, role-playing, microlearning, responsive and computer-based training, and engaging instructor-led sessions using a variety of multimedia and mobile technologies. She has created learning experiences for role-based onboarding, nationwide product launches, operational processes and guest experience initiatives for sales, service, operations, and HR teams.

Stephanie started her professional career as a high school mathematics teacher and transitioned into corporate instructional design. She has worked at multiple Fortune 500 companies and other large organizations supporting various training departments, including UPS, Asbury Automotive Group, and Cox Automotive. She is currently a Sales Enablement Curriculum Manager at Cardlytics.

Most recently, Stephanie decided to use her passion for numbers and start a bookkeeping business, AIO Bookkeeping, LLC. She works with coaches, consultants, and other small business owners to better understand where their money is coming from, where it goes, and help identify ways to improve profitability. By doing this, she helps these busy business owners get back to spend in their zone of genius instead of in their books.

She holds a Master of Education in Learning, Design & Technology, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and a Bachelor of Science in Education for Mathematics Education from the University of Georgia. She is also a QuickBooks Online Certified ProAdvisor through Intuit.

Chapter Administrator

Glenda Hinz |  

In 1978, Glenda began providing secretarial services from her home office under the name Hinz Word Processing. Today, she provides much more than word processing in a professional, solutions-oriented business environment as HINZtime Virtual Assistance. Although she has worked extensively for small businesses, associations and educational organizations, her skills and services are adaptable to any industry, in any location worldwide. Glenda provides exceptional secretarial and organizational skills, with relentless attention to detail, accuracy and confident efficiency. She has worked with several ATD chapters over the past 25 years.

Business Development Director

Cornelius "Neil" Dowdell |   

Managing Partner, The Best Workplace & The Nelius Strategy

People say Cornelius is relatable, strategic and open-minded.

What is The Best Workplace to you?
“Being my authentic self in a workplace where I feel and know I belong. It’s not about my physical appearance, level of expertise or background – but about my value-add contributions striving for the same goals and beyond as a team.”With every client he serves, Cornelius Dowdell’s strives to align all programs with the corporation’s business goals and strategies. His passion is to educate large corporations and small startups on the importance of investing in human capital. As an HR consultant, facilitator and talent strategist, he has a proven track record of creating an environment for personal and professional growth, aligned with continuous learning, and fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace for all talent.
Building genuine relationships that are inviting and meaningful are important to Cornelius, also known as Neil, in and out of the office. The emotional connection to experiences and the people that are part of them make Neil happiest. Some might say his love language is food (he even owns a spice company called Nelius Spices), and while he does enjoy delicious dishes, to him, they aren’t special without soul at the root.

Past President

David Brill |          

David Brill is the Director of Talent Development at Genuine Auto Parts company. Twenty years experience in L&D has taught him one important lesson: Focus on solutions that align with business strategy and drive operational goals.

David has hosted several ATD Atlanta events over the years. He served as a mentor in the 2021 ATD Atlanta Mentorship Program.

David and his wife share three wonderful children. They all report to their benevolent poodle overlord. Every day, David endeavors to be true to his family motto..."suck less."

Senior Advisor 

Melissa Collier |      

Melissa is a business transformation leader who is passionate about building people – their skills, their confidence and their professional presence. Over the past 25+ years, Melissa’s own career has led her from corporate trainer to learning leader and to her current role of change management director for Georgia Pacific’s Consumer Products Digital Core program.

Melissa partners with organization leaders to uncover performance and skills gaps and develops strategies that ultimately improve team effectiveness.

Melissa is passionate about mentoring, especially for those just starting out in their careers and those who are preparing to lead for the first time. She believes that everyone has something special to impact those around them and she works to link people to purpose. Melissa’s ultimate wish is that she will inspire others to discover that the world is filled with endless possibilities… if only we are open to pursue them.

Melissa holds a Master of Education in Adult Learning from the University of Arkansas and a Bachelor of Science in Management from the University of Phoenix. She is a certified change practitioner (CCP) through Prosci and certified as a 360 Feedback Coach through Developmental Dimensions International (DDI).

Melissa and her family reside in Fayetteville, Georgia where she commits to her community via volunteerism with organizations like Growing Leaders (board member from 2019-2021), Pathbuilders, Women in Technology (WIT) and Association for Talent Development (ATD) - Atlanta Chapter.

Senior Advisor 

Jonathan Burman |  

Jonathan Burman’s career is rooted in Organizational Psychology and Talent Development. With more than 30 years of experience in Organizational Development, Leadership, Human Resources, and Talent Management, he has worked with such firms as DuPont, Dropbox, Goldman Sacks, Merck Pharmaceuticals, Nemours, Children’s Health, Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Johnson & Johnson. In addition to co-founding The Best Workplace LP, he is also a Performance Consultant and Instructor for Emory University’s Continuing Education Department. Most recently he was the VP of Talent Acquisition & Development for Mondi … a global paper, packaging, and managed forestry company headquartered in Vienna, Austria.

He received his Masters Degree in I/O psychology from LaSalle University, is a Lean/Six Sigma Black Belt, Project Management Professional, ProSci Change Management consultant, and Certified Master Coach. He was an adjunct professor at Rosemont College and has written numerous articles and many presentations about psychology and talent management.

For his entire career Jonathan has been focused on creating fulfilling and productive work cultures through leadership alignment and accountability. He has created and facilitated hundreds of employee training programs in such areas as leadership, change management, positive psychology, motivation, employee engagement, succession planning, interviewing, performance development and coaching.

As an executive coach Jonathan has worked with many leaders in Fortune 500 companies to increase leadership capability and productivity. He also works with many non-profit organizations in the mental health sector and is active in child-advocacy groups and volunteers for youth mentoring programs.

Senior Advisor

Nora Cloonan |             

Nora began volunteering with ATD in 2017. She has a master’s degree from the University of Georgia in Instructional Design and Development. She believes being an Instructional Designer is the perfect career for her because she loves being creative and learning about new things. So, every project is a new learning experience that she gets to create! In her spare time, Nora loves to travel, photograph and experience the history of the places she visits. She is also an avid reader. Nora enjoys sharing her journeys with her husband, John.

Nora would like to encourage all members of ATD to volunteer with the chapter. She believes the best engagement experiences come while volunteering. There are opportunities available at all levels! Visit the Volunteer page to learn more.