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GSD

My recent personality test indicated I am a high D on the DISC assessment, which aligns perfectly with my desire to serve as a Chief of Staff. The Dominant D style profile is the most assertive and demanding of the 4 DISC profile types, including I-style, S-style, and C-style profiles, making up 9% of the … Continued
Ilana Frenkel Kearns

Ilana Frenkel Kearns

3 Min Read

My recent personality test indicated I am a high D on the DISC assessment, which aligns perfectly with my desire to serve as a Chief of Staff. The Dominant D style profile is the most assertive and demanding of the 4 DISC profile types, including I-style, S-style, and C-style profiles, making up 9% of the worldwide population.  D’s are passionate and tremendously loyal. D-styles tend to be quite competitive, results-oriented and highly focused on getting things done (or GSD) while operating on two speeds: Zero and full-throttle.

I am in good company, notable high D personalities include Captain Kirk of Star Trek, Venus Williams, Simon Cowell, Kanye West, Madonna, David Letterman, and most notable of all, President Donald Trump!

Here’s what I learned about myself:

I am goal-oriented and driven by results and the team member who will try to keep the others on task. I am deadline conscious and thrive in an environment with variety and change; I am at my best when many projects are underway at once. I am self-confident, self-reliant, and willing to pay the price for success. I can be seen as a high-risk taker with a view that “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” I am often considered daring, bold, and gutsy… which explains my need to get certified in Scuba Diving and love scaling canyon walls. I have an inherent dislike for losing or failing and work hard to drive results. True Story – while working at Cox Automotive, they were rolling a new intranet site, and the line of business I supported was NOT scheduled for Wave One. As a result, I volunteered to design our intranet site and quickly learned Jive Software and completed our intranet site in time for the first wave rollout. 

Outside of work, I love endurance sports and an avid runner; I consistently place in the top 5% for my age group in road race distances ranging from 5K to Half Marathons. True Story – I ran my fastest 5K in September with my shoulder and hip out of alignment. I was so pissed off that morning and wanted to prove a point, so I ran a sub 24 Minute 5K. I reasoned that discomfort is temporary; surely, I could handle the pain for almost 24 minutes to reach my goal. And I did. 

I am decisive and work best with decisive managers; after the decision is made, I work hard for a successful outcome.

I drive value for organizations by:

Thinking Big ( I wanted to transform Marketing at Cox Automotive and launch a community/magazine to align with Cox Automotive Services, Dealers, vendors, OEMs, B2B marketing for the Automotive Industry is hard – what matter way to do it than by creating a community in which we all live, work and play? The idea played perfectly with Cox Enterprises Journalism roots!

Deadline Conscious

Ability to handle many activities

Tenacious

Accomplish goals through people

Challenge-oriented

Competitive

Make decisions with the bottom line in mind

Spontaneity

I am now searching for my Professional Soulmate and next gig as a Chief of Staff. Have you seen him or her? Can you help me make a connection?

Author(s)

  • Ilana Frenkel Kearns

    Strategic Business Operations and Communications Leader Connecting the Dots to Drive Process Improvement and Organizational Success | Chief of Staff

    #goatmatters

    With over a decade serving alongside top executives at global Fortune 500 and privately held companies as their trusted business partner and advisor, I provide strategic support for all operational efforts to relieve them of administrative functions, allow them to focus on strategic and tactical responsibilities, and achieve key business outcomes. The following are highlights of the value I’ve brought to organizations: Developed and lead and partnered with C-level executives to design and execute company-wide strategic initiatives, including working with department leaders to define, manage, and track their priorities. On-dollar projects, including new space build-outs, flagship events, and multiple-day offsite events to create team cohesion. Researched, prepared, and coordinated corporate communications and marketing programs to build awareness, and collaborated closely with internal and external partners to drive unmatched results. Guided companies towards increasingly sophisticated and effective use of technology, including effective remote work at the onset of COVID-19. Collaborated to produce and write articles, blogs, social media posts, and communications to build both professional and personal brands, increased partnerships, and boost revenue. Served as a Community Relations Strategy Leader for a multi-million-dollar corporation building relationships with 10+ unique nonprofits across the city of Atlanta and galvanizing volunteerism, sustainability, and people-driven community service. Reach out and connect with me here on LinkedIn so we can discuss the challenges you face with managing daily operations. I’d love to show you how I can lend my expertise to help solve them. Strategic Planning | Risk Management and Mitigation | Cross-Functional Leadership | Stakeholder Engagement | Corporate Communications | Project Management | Meeting and Event Management| Policy and Procedure Management | Collaborative Leadership | Workplace Culture | Resource Optimization | Conflict Resolution | Transparent Communications | Business Case Writing | Corporate Social Responsibility | Inclusion and Diversity