Experienced operators and trusted advisors in complex situations.
J. Todd Phillips is an experienced operator and advisor to boards and executive teams navigating complex, high-impact situations. He has built his career leading through transformation, stabilizing performance, aligning stakeholders, and delivering sustainable results across organizations of scale.
Known for calm, steady leadership and clear-eyed judgment, J. Todd challenges assumptions, brings clarity in uncertainty, and drives decisive action when it matters most. His approach is direct and inclusive, combining high standards with deep respect for people and culture. He builds trust quickly, develops strong leaders, and creates the conditions for teams to perform at their best.
Equally effective in the boardroom and in execution, J. Todd sets direction and ensures execution. After two decades in senior leadership roles, he founded Parson Partners to help organizations navigate complexity and deliver on their most critical priorities.
Outside of his professional work, J. Todd is a dedicated family man. Proudly known as “Pahp” by many, he enjoys coaching youth sports, woodworking, golf, travel, cooking, and finding hands-on ways to build, fix, and create.
Nicole DeFalco works at the intersection of strategy and execution. Organizations engage her when strategy is not translating into expected results, whether due to gaps in direction, leadership, or execution. She helps bridge that divide, aligning leaders and organizations to deliver sustained, measurable growth.
As a leadership strategist and executive coach, Nicole partners with senior leaders to strengthen performance at both the individual and organizational level. She designs and delivers customized leadership development experiences that drive meaningful behavior change and translate directly into business outcomes.
Nicole brings experience across Fortune 500 companies, high-growth firms, non-profits, and entrepreneurial ventures. Her approach integrates learning science with real-world application, enabling leaders to operate more effectively in complex, evolving environments.
Her background includes senior leadership roles in sales, learning design, and business development. She holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a BS in Communication Studies from Northwestern University.
John helps leaders simplify, make, and communicate challenging decisions under conditions of uncertainty. He loves to study new industries and has a knack for generating creative ways to think about problems or opportunities. John sees industries, businesses, and teams as complex systems that operate under a common set of human-led rules and principles. His motto is: "Think straight. Talk straight.", and by understanding the root causes of a systems-challenges, John can cut through noise and create clarity (not chaos).
John has little interest telling his clients what to do – they are the experts, and he believes clients are well equipped to handle their challenges and make decisions independently. Instead, John is interested to share how he thinks about challenges, given his extensive experience and the context of their situation, so that he can work with clients to simplify, make, and communicate better decisions.
When he’s not with his clients, you can find John working a pizza oven, writing original songs for a future record, or going for a swim in Lake Michigan with his amazing wife and two children.
Valencia is the rock, the anchor, the glue that holds us all together. She is a stickler for details, only accepts excellence, pushes for perfection in everything she does. She is undoubtedly tough but the warmth and positivity she brings to every interaction reminds all of what's truly important.
Prior to joining the Parson Partners team, Valencia spent 16 years working with one of the nation's leading orthopedic surgeons. Her deep healthcare industry knowledge fits perfectly within the Parson Partners family and her energy and passion for learning inspire us all.
