It’s time for a leadership revolution.
I’m Susan, CEO Advisor, Leadership Coach, Pattern-Recognition Expert, and USA Today Best-Selling Author
My mission is to help extraordinary leaders uncover and transform the patterns that hold them back so they can fully realize their vision.
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I work with billionaire CEOs, high-profile political figures, Fortune 100 teams, successful entrepreneurs, and rising star executives, along with brands like…
I wrote a USA Today Best-Selling Book, The Leader’s Playlist…
…about how to use music to transform your leadership effectiveness.
I’ve spoken at companies such as:
And, my podcast The Enlightened Executive ranks in the top 1.5% of podcasts globally.
But I didn’t start there…
Growing up, I had a knack for recognizing patterns.
This superpower opened the door to Harvard Law School… If it sounds a little ‘out there,’ stick with me.
When preparing for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), I began by taking eight practice tests.
With each test, I noticed patterns start to emerge—from the question formulation to the order of the test from question to question. By applying my observations to the actual LSAT, I only missed two questions with no other preparation, resulting in a nearly perfect score.
After Harvard, I continued into a successful corporate career working with companies like The Boston Consulting Group, General Electric and NBC, but eventually, I felt a push in a new direction.
At 30, I made a radical change that shifted my perspective of the world.
I didn’t know what lay ahead of me, but I followed my gut (despite people telling me I was crazy). I chose to pursue a Master’s degree in acting from the London School of Music and Dramatic Art.
During my training, I learned fundamental lessons about authenticity, being present, connecting with others, and dealing with one’s inner critic—tools that extend beyond acting.
They gave me a unique take on how to be an effective leader and how I could help leaders make a meaningful difference in the world.
This knowledge led me to the work I do with companies and leaders one-on-one and through my firm Meritage Leadership.
But a difficult personal time catalyzed more growth along the way.
Despite all my training, development, and education, I could not fully process the loss of a meaningful personal relationship.
I had mostly moved forward but had lingering feelings and reactions that didn’t serve me or align with my goals despite applying the different therapeutic modalities I knew
Then, I went back to my superpower – pattern recognition.
I used the tools I had, including the Enneagram, to identify themes and patterns holding me back while researching new ways to powerfully disrupt my thinking.
Enter: music.
Think of music as a brain hack that helps prime the brain to form new neural pathways faster.
I had one playlist running my thoughts driving unwanted experiences, and to transform my thoughts and actions I developed a new, more powerful playlist to forge ahead.
Unsurprisingly, I’ve discovered everyone can benefit from uncovering what playlist is running their lives and building new tracks to transform their leadership.
With that, The Leader’s Playlist was born.
My most radical decisions and development has helped me become a visionary leader and advisor ready to support others in making their own gutsy (but crucial) decisions.
Let me share a little about the leaders I work with…
They are Visionary
And they are ready to tap into their vision to capitalize on new opportunities.
They Foster Innovation
And they engage support to successfully usher their teams through change as well.
They are Growth-Oriented
And they are interested in enhancing their development and that of their teams.
They are Mission-Driven
And they want to harness their leadership to make a positive impact on the world.
They are Passionate
And they invest in innovative environments that require high-performing teams.
They Create Extraordinary Results
And they are interested in driving results in an increasingly disruptive marketplace.
What People Say About My Work
Her tools, methodology, and insights have and will continue to drive significant changes in how we run our firm and engage the rest of our staff. What made Susan stand out was the trust she was able to create. This is the gold standard of leadership insights. ”
Divesh Makan
Managing Partner, ICONIQ Capital
“When I inherited a large, new team at Oracle, I brought in Susan and her team to establish the onboarding strategy. I was filling the large shoes of a former GM who was well respected—which can typically be a difficult situation!
Susan drove success in our business by helping us learn our working styles through the Enneagram assessment process and by guiding us to develop strong models for understanding and collaboration. Our engagement with Susan was an essential part of our turnaround strategy for the business. ”
Rob Tarkoff
EVP & GM, Oracle Corporation
“Susan helped me to create strategies for staying focused amidst ever-shifting priorities and challenges.
With her help I was able to get a different perspective on my responsibilities, my team and my goals.
Susan really helped me get my leadership and my team to a new level.”
Nick Rockwell
CTO, Conde Nast
“Susan Drumm is intuitive and a quick study when it comes to reading a team and their dynamics.
She helped take a team I inherited that was full of dysfunction and pull them together into cohesive group. She not only provided me with individual coaching, but combined it with group work that my team found extremely helpful.”
J. Harper
SVP of Global Clinical Affairs & CTO, KCI Inc (now 3M)
“Going public was a really stressful moment that completely altered my professional goals and impacted my personal life. I was skeptical of coaching but working with Susan was a big net positive for me.
She has been immensely helpful in getting me to a much better place both mentally and physically. I would recommend Susan to any entrepreneur or CEO who is in a very stressful situation, feels alone, or is going through career changes. ”
Adam Foroughi
CEO AppLovin
“Susan Drumm has the rare ability to balance absolute candor, supportive encouragement and incredible listening skills to her clients.
Her persistence, and high IQ and EQ approach, provides context to what is a very rewarding process.”
J. Johnson
COO, Managing Partner, Capricorn Investment Group
“We've found our coaching with Susan productive. The curated nature of the process really engaged our executive team and had everyone interested in both their personal assessments and in the team profile.
Enneagram types have now entered our daily language as a team, which is helping us think about what drives each other and what triggers each other in addition to what we need to get done!”
Elliot Noss
CEO, Tucows
Does this sound like you? Let’s work together.
Here’s how:
Enlightened Leadership™ Coaching
Unlock your leadership effectiveness with my Enlightened Leadership framework through identifying the patterns that limit your growth and creating new pathways for success.
Organizational Coaching and Team Development
Supercharge your organization’s performance with a customized leadership development program that fuels your strategic goals into producing real results.
Digital Programs
Break through the old patterns that limit your effectiveness with my marquee program: The Leaders Playlist Masterclass.