Cynthia Strickland never fit the mold. She's not about to start now.
I'm a strategist, speaker, and unapologetic career pivot architect who helps high-achieving women rewrite the scripts they never agreed to and redefine success on their own terms. With over three decades of experience spanning technology, consulting, entrepreneurship, DEI, and leadership development, I bring tactical clarity and lived wisdom to professionals ready to realign their careers with who they've become, not just what they've achieved.
Professional Journey: From NASA to Now
My career began at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where I learned that innovation requires both technical precision and creative problem-solving. From there, I navigated Fortune 500 companies including Electronic Data Systems (EDS), where I led multi-million-dollar IT programs and earned multiple industry awards while learning to code-switch between technical expertise and corporate leadership.
My pivot into consulting wasn't just a career change—it was a masterclass in strategic reinvention. Through C&S Consulting, I've guided corporate and nonprofit clients through cultural transformation, creating environments where authentic leadership can thrive. My DEI consulting work has impacted over 30,000+ employees across numerous industries, translating complex organizational dynamics into actionable strategies for inclusion and belonging.
Current Impact & Leadership
As an adjunct professor at Georgetown University's School of Continuing Studies, I teach DEI and Courageous Leadership, helping emerging leaders navigate the intersection of identity and influence. I've guided more than 100 professionals through successful career transitions, each pivot teaching me something new about resilience, strategy, and the courage required to choose alignment over applause.
My entrepreneurial ventures—including building a successful franchise operation and founding a real estate investment firm—weren't side hustles. They were laboratories for testing everything I teach about strategic risk-taking, authentic leadership, and building wealth while building community.
Speaking & Recognition

Featured Speaker: SAP Technology Panels, Girls in Tech Catalyst, Women in Staffing Summit
Industry Awards: Multiple recognitions for IT program leadership and innovation
Thought Leadership: Regular contributor on career strategy, workplace belonging, and authentic leadership

Educational Foundation

Certificate in Strategic Diversity and Inclusion Management (Georgetown University)
MA in Sports Management (University of San Francisco)
BS in Education (University of Southern California)
Executive Leadership Training across multiple institutions

Each degree taught me something different: Education showed me how to translate complex ideas; Sports Management revealed the psychology of high performance; DEI certification gave me language for systemic change. But the real education came from three decades of being the "only" in rooms where others didn't expect me—and learning to thrive anyway.
Community & Purpose
California native, born and raised in Los Angeles, now based in Atlanta. Youngest of four siblings and proud "Cool Auntie" to 20+ nieces and nephews who are my why. I serve as a calming force amid chaos while being a quiet riot—steadying rooms, then challenging their foundations, without raising my voice.
Community engagement isn't separate from my professional work—it's the foundation:

AIDS/Lifecycle 10 rider and fundraiser (San Francisco to Los Angeles)
Volunteer for community food delivery programs
Advocate for domestic violence survivors via Ms. Molly Foundation
Board Member, Institute for Transformational Leadership Network (Georgetown affiliate)

Philosophy in Practice
I believe clarity is a form of power, and confidence is a practice. After three decades of pivoting through technology, consulting, academia, and entrepreneurship, I've learned that the goal was never to master one path—it was to master the art of pivoting with purpose.
My storytelling—equal parts strategy, soul, and straight talk—resonates with anyone ready to rewrite their checklist and reclaim their clarity. Whether I'm teaching at Georgetown, consulting with Fortune 500 companies, or mentoring emerging leaders, the message is consistent: It's never too late to begin again, and you don't have to do it their way to do it well.
The Edge That Never Left
Deep down, I'm still that little Black girl from the other side of the tracks, bouncing a basketball down the street, underestimated by everyone. That edge never left. They never saw me coming—not on the court, not in NASA labs, not in corporate meetings, not in boardrooms, and certainly not on the page.
Off Path, On Purpose is my way of handing over the pen, because the goal was never to be the main character in someone else's narrative. It was to help others write their own.
When not writing, coaching, or consulting, I'm mentoring future leaders, swinging golf clubs, or walking my Australian Labradoodle, Dolomite, while listening to music—because I believe there's a song for every moment of life.
My story started as mine. Now, it's a roadmap for anyone ready to choose clarity over convention and pivot with purpose.