About Us Our Team | Our Team |
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Team members are listed in alphabetical order by first name. Scroll down to read professional biographies. For email addresses and phone numbers, go to the Contact Us page. Amy Barrett - Consultant Autumn Woish – Consultant Cynthia Coleman - Consultant Jeffrey Appell – Vice President of Services Joel Mulder - Consultant Kelyan Diskin - Consultant Keith Heller – Principal Kimberley J. Kupferman, PMP – Consulting Services Manager Marcelo Tomada – Senior Consultant, Technical Services Mary Pustejovsky – Senior Consultant Maura Sullivan – Consultant Meaghan Kolyszko – Sales Director Sandi Reinardy – Technology Service Development Lead / Senior Consultant Smita Vadakekalam, PMP – Consulting Services Manager Stacey Streseman - Technical Services Consultant Stacy Buslon – Senior Consultant and Sales Associate Tricia Fitzgerald – Service Development Lead / Senior Consultant
Team Biographies Below are the biographies of our team members. For a condensed list of our staff, please visit the About Us page. For phone numbers and emails, visit Contact Us.
“I enjoy consulting for Heller because it combines my love of technology and of helping people,” says Amy. “I’m thankful that I’ve worked in roles like those of my clients as it helps me understand the challenges they may be dealing with on a daily basis. I’d never presume to know what a client is going through, but I do try and put myself in their shoes.” Amy also enjoys the feeling of contributing to the greater good that working for, and then with, nonprofits provides.
Since joining Heller Consulting Amy has worked for a number of clients including: UC Berkeley College of Engineering; Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco; Baystate Health Foundation, Springfield MA; Stevenson School, Pebble Beach; On Lok Senior Services, San Francisco; Santa Barbara Symphony; World Resources Institute, Washington DC; California State University – East Bay; Archbishop Mitty High School, San Jose; Sovereign Order of Malta, San Francisco; Direct Relief International, Santa Barbara; Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth; Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence, Mountain View; St John’s Healthcare Foundation, Oxnard. Amy enjoys working for Heller Consulting because, “We have an excellent sense of teamwork and a transparent structure that makes everyone feel valuable. Our collective knowledge is phenomenal and we’re only too happy to share it with one another.” After further reflection she adds, “And the cakes at the staff meetings totally rock.” In her free time Amy enjoys dancing tango, exploring the San Francisco Bay Area, and observing US politics. “I received my BA in American Studies from Lancaster University, and I am still baffled that the Electoral College system hasn’t been replaced yet,” she says. Top of page
Kim’s passion is solving problems at the heart of an organization – their database. “If a database isn't structured to communicate effectively, support for the organization dwindles as donors stop giving because they feel neglected or ignored,” she says. Kim’s work has an immediate effect on an organization's ability to reach out to its constituents and communicate its message. By sharing her database expertise, Kim empowers her clients to do their jobs better. Since joining Heller Consulting, Kim has found that her extensive background in many aspects of fundraising allows her to serve her clients in many different capacities. After spending several years working one-on-one with clients, Kim now uses her widespread experience to guide both projects and other consultants on the Heller team. Kim has worked with many diverse organizations including: Allina Health Systems, Multiple Planned Parenthood affiliates, Prostate Cancer Foundation, National Center for Lesbian Rights, California State University - East Bay, Santa Barbara Foundation, INTEGRIS Foundations, California Lutheran University, Salvation Army - Los Angeles, Santa Barbara Symphony, PetSmart Charities, Inc., Sutter Health, National Brain Tumor Society, USENIX, Stand for Children, Adventist Health Systems.
Mary comes to Heller with a diverse background, having started her career in a biology laboratory at MIT before changing careers to the nonprofit world. While at Brown University completing a biology degree, she explored computer science and found that she really enjoyed programming. At Catholic Charities in Boston, she was integral to a complex lockbox implementation system for their fundraising database. She managed a database with many users across multiple sites, giving her a breadth of experience. Her clients include The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, The Hill School, and the National Brain Tumor Society. Mary is also a Salesforce.com Certified Administrator. In her spare time she can be found dancing Lindy Hop, Balboa, and Charleston, teaching dance, or traveling to dance competitions all over the United States. She is also the founder and president of the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild and is an avid quilter. Top of page
Meaghan Kolyszko – Sales Director
When asked what’s different about selling Heller Consulting’s services compared to her previous employers, Meaghan doesn’t hesitate: “It’s the amount of repeat business and referrals I receive from customers,” she says. “I joined Heller Consulting because they demonstrated tremendous growth while still maintaining an excellent reputation in the nonprofit community.” Meaghan finds working with the nonprofit community the most rewarding aspect of her job. When she’s not singing the praises of Heller Consulting’s team, Meaghan enjoys playing golf in her home state of Arizona and spending time with her two young children.
Smita Vadakekalam, PMP - Consulting Services Manager
Stacey Streseman - Senior Technical Consultant
Tricia Fitzgerald - Service Development Lead / Senior Consultant
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Amy joined Heller Consulting after six years working in school advancement and alumni relations - taking on roles of increasing responsibility, ultimately managing Raiser's Edge databases and the implementation of Raiser's Edge and NetCommunity for multiple organizations. “I remember the gratification of launching a NetCommunity site and watching as hundreds of alums signed up who hadn’t been in touch with the school since they left,” says Amy. “Some of them hadn’t contacted the school in over 65 years!”
Autumn came to Heller consulting with over six years of nonprofit fundraising and Raiser’s Edge experience. She is well-versed in individual giving, alumni relations and database administration and has worked for non-profits such as the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation, the Asian Art Museum, and Schools of the Sacred Heart, San Francisco. She holds an A.B. in History of Art and Architecture from Brown University and enjoys helping non-profits achieve their missions through the effective use of technology. Autumn has also received her Salesforce.com Certified Administrator certification since joining Heller. 
Cynthia came to Heller with over seven years of nonprofit and Raiser’s Edge experience. Cynthia has had a soft spot for nonprofits since she took her first job selling tickets at the Texas State Aquarium. “I loved working there; after I graduated from high school I moved from Visitor Services into the Marketing Department,” she says. Cynthia continued her nonprofit career throughout college working at The Houston Museum of Natural Science and The Children’s Museum of Houston. 
Jeffrey manages the firm's nationwide consulting team, ensuring that each client receives the highest level of service and that the full resources of the firm are effectively leveraged in every project. In this role, Jeffrey is responsible for leading business development, expanding consulting services, and project management. Jeffrey's success can be directly relayed to his experience and dedication to helping non-profit organizations use technology to streamline their processes and meet and exceed their goals. 
Joel has over ten years of experience in the development field. He first began working as a telefundraiser while still a student at the University of Minnesota. Starting on this path, Joel worked his way up, moving from data entry to managing Raiser's Edge® databases, and eventually acting as Development Operations Manager for Allina Health Systems in Minneapolis. Working in this facility, Joel implemented unified business practices and coding systems across Allina’s twelve development departments and ten Raiser's Edge® databases. Since joining the Heller Consulting team in 2008, Joel has worked with clients such as Mayo Health System, Ronald McDonald House Charities, McCormick Foundation, Midwest Eye-Banks, Lions Club International Foundation, Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, Inc., and many others. 
Before establishing Heller Consulting in 1996, Keith Heller managed information and operations in the development office of The Exploratorium in San Francisco. Talented with both technology and nonprofit operations, Keith developed services for organizations using the Raiser's Edge® software and has personally worked with over a hundred organizations, large and small. Keith has a BA degree from Carleton College in Minnesota, and frequently speaks at local, regional and national conferences for nonprofit professionals.
Kelyan brings over a decade of experience in the non-profit sector, providing her with a broad base of knowledge in fundraising and operations. She is a certified Salesforce.com administrator. Prior to Heller Consulting, Kelyan worked at organizations such as Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Golden Gate University, and Sinclair Community College where she had responsibility for the performance and maintenance of the alumni/development database and advancement systems. At the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Kelyan managed an organization wide conversion to Raiser’s Edge®, a project that involved the integration of multiple departments and systems, along with extensive customizations to the system to meet the organization’s business needs.
Kim has devoted her entire career to non-profit organizations. After graduating from Tulane University, she managed the door-to-door canvass for the Fund for Public Interest Research in Santa Cruz, CA, organizing and fundraising at the grassroots level. After FFPIR, she worked for Planned Parenthood: Shasta-Diablo, where she discovered a passion for databases, particularly the Raiser’s Edge®. During her tenure at PPSD, Kim coordinated events, wrote grants, managed the direct mail program, and administered the database --ultimately leading a cleanup and streamlining effort. Discovering a love of development operations led her to the Graduate Theological Union, where she oversaw all operations within fundraising, including events and direct mail.
Marcelo brings to the Heller team extensive university advancement services experience, and a reputation for innovation and technical skills. For four years Marcelo was the go-to database and process resource for the fundraising staff in the Grants and Development, Annual Giving, Government Relations, and Alumni Relations offices of Metropolitan State University Foundation in Saint Paul, Minnesota. A native of Argentina, Marcelo speaks fluent English and Spanish, has a bachelor's degree in Computer Information Systems and he is currently working on a Master of Science in Information Systems at DePaul University in Chicago. Marcelo's clients have included American Dental Association Foundation, Alaska Wilderness League, Children’s Home + Aid, University of Wisconsin Foundation, Mission Healthcare Foundation and others.
Maura has over 10 years experience in fundraising operations and database administration including gift and membership processing, direct mail segmentation, mailing lists, and reporting, Since joining Heller Consulting in 2001, she has worked with over 50 clients, performing database hygiene, process streamlining, finance reconciliation and conversions from a wide variety of databases to Raisers Edge. She recently returned to us after a 3 year hiatus as a key member of the fundraising team at Golden Gate University, where she was involved in data analysis for phone-a-thon, direct mail, major gifts, prospect management and prospect research. She implemented NetCommunity and Researcher’s Edge, automated the regular transfer of alumni records from the Registrar’s database to Raisers Edge, and designed and maintained Crystal Reports. Her motto is “Work smarter, not harder.”
Meaghan joined Heller Consulting in 2007 after working in sales for a variety of industries including recruiting, pharmaceutical and software. Most recently Meaghan worked for Blackbaud where she helped new customers determine if Raiser’s Edge® would be a good investment for their organization. 
Sandi brings a strong foundation in fundraising operations to her work managing the firm’s technical projects, which aim to help organizations increase the functionality or efficiency of their databases. She combines experience as the development database manager at City Year – a large, multi-site organization sharing one database – with strong technical skill to help organizations define and implement system customization projects that meet the needs of fundraisers. Sandi has a BA from Loyola University Chicago and an MS from Boston University and her clients include Teach for America, Northwestern Memorial Foundation, the Lincoln Park Zoo and The American Dental Association.
Smita manages our consulting team on both our Raiser's Edge and Common Ground projects. 
Stacey has worked with the back-end of databases for most of her career. As an IT consultant in the Chicago area, she worked on a large application development project, as well as several programming projects for government offices and corporations. As a Programmer/Analyst for a university, she was on the implementation team for a new client-server system from an old mainframe system. Now at Heller, she is converting data from several different types of database applications to Raiser’s Edge and to On-Demand environments, like Salesforce.
As one of our Senior Consultants, Stacy has been serving our clients since 2000. Prior to joining our firm, she was responsible for development operations at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Stacy obtained her BA from University of California at Davis, and is a frequent speaker at Heller seminars on various fundraising technology topics. Stacy has extensive experience in the issues surrounding gift entry and acknowledgment, special events tracking, major donor cultivation and reporting of all types. Her clients include: Seattle Art Museum, Branson School, Loma Linda University, Guide Dogs for the Blind, Overlake Hospital Foundation and many others. Stacy has also received her Salesforce.com Certified Administrator certification since joining Heller. 
Tricia has been working in development since 1996, serving as Database Administrator for the Alzheimer's Association of the Greater Bay Area and in Philanthropy Technical Support for On Lok, Inc. and Catholic Healthcare West before joining Heller Consulting in 2001. Tricia enjoys helping nonprofits find ways to streamline their operations and improve reporting and financial reconciliation, bringing to her projects over 12 years of hands-on Raiser’s Edge® experience. She