Dr. Danyale L. Hawkins is Director of Transformation and Organizational Effectiveness at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation (Battle Creek, Michigan) and an expert on leader-follower relational dynamics during rapid disruptive change. As Director, Dr. Hawkins supports the foundation’s transformation efforts to build a change management center of excellence by managing various change projects using the latest change methodology and best practices. She focuses on the “people” side of change, business processes, systems, technology, and organizational structure. In this role, she partners with change practitioners and organizational stakeholders to drive quick adoption of change that impacts employees, plus she provides agile coaching to leaders in support of networked organizational best practices.

Dr. Hawkins has more than 17 years of professional experience as an executive, strategic business consultant and Global Change Leader. She previously held the position of Director of Management Consulting at GovStrive LLC in Arlington, Virginia. There, she focused on change management and employee engagement. Before joining GovStrive, she was the Director of Change Management in Global Strategy, Planning, and Design at United Airlines in Chicago; Principal, Change Management Specialist at Amtrak; manager of Federal Strategic Change and Human Capital at Accenture Consulting; and manager of Federal Strategic Change and Human Capital at Deloitte Consulting LLP. During her career, Dr. Hawkins has managed complex multimillion-dollar portfolios and built change leadership capacity to steer organizational shifts and drive transformational agendas. Her leadership approach is about building thoughtful strategies that bring employees through cultural change, inspire leaders in their advocacy, and nurture environments that foster greater innovation.

Dr. Hawkins holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing from Boston College; a Master’s Degree in Organizational Leadership with a concentration in Organizational Communications from Northeastern University; and a Doctorate of Education (Ed.D) in Organizational Leadership and Followership from Northeastern University. Recognized as an Emerging Scholar by the International Leadership Association (ILA) in 2022, her Doctoral research was identified as “Wisdom in Times of Crisis.” Dr. Hawkins is certified in Change Management Leadership from Cornell University. She holds certifications in Organizational Change Management (ADKAR Model) and Enterprise Change Management (ECM) through Prosci, Inc. She is also certified in Personal and Executive Coaching through The Coaching and Positive Psychology (CaPP) Institute.

When all work is done, Dr. Hawkins embraces her inner “interior designer” by watching all things HGTV. Other hobbies include oil painting, cooking, and making time to explore new global cultures and experiences through travel. A New Jersey native, Dr. Hawkins permanently resides in Washington, D.C.