A little context.

I work at the intersection of public media, storytelling, and leadership. My focus is on how cultural institutions grow audiences, build trust, and create meaningful ways for people to discover music and culture across industries.

I am a big-picture thinker by nature. I tend to look at the whole system rather than individual parts, and I spend a lot of time thinking about how content, platforms, partnerships, and community relationships work together to shape audience experience. I am especially interested in cross-industry collaboration as a way to introduce new discovery, expand relevance, and help people connect with culture in unexpected ways.

I currently serve as Chief Engagement and Content Officer at Classical KING, where I lead engagement, content strategy, and partnerships for a public media organization serving the Pacific Northwest. My work includes audience development, digital platforms, and collaborative projects that bring classical music and public media into conversation with sports, civic life, and cultural organizations beyond traditional spaces.

Before moving into executive leadership, I spent more than fifteen years working in live concert production and venue operations, producing hundreds of performances for organizations including The Walt Disney Company and the USC Thornton School of Music. Those years continue to shape how I lead today and ground my work in operational reality and deep respect for the people who make creative work possible.

I tend to think a few steps ahead, which has taught me that leadership is not about speed, but about helping others understand where we are going and why. I focus on building strong teams, creating clarity, and setting conditions where people can do their best work. My approach is adaptive and appreciative. I learn quickly, recalibrate when needed, and name what is working while supporting growth with care. I believe meaningful change happens when clarity, trust, and shared purpose are held together.

I am also a musician. As a professionally trained saxophonist with roots in jazz and pop, I have performed with ensembles across the West Coast. Creative practice continues to inform how I think about leadership, collaboration, and audience experience, from sound and performance to visual work, including my ongoing sketch series Lines by Michelle.

I write and speak to help leaders, creatives, and institutions make sense of change, especially during periods of growth, transition, and reinvention. This site is a place for reflection, ideas in progress, and thoughtful conversation about the future of public media, cultural leadership, and audience connection.