Born from the C-Suite.
Forged in Iron.
CraftXecs® is a collective of executives shaped by the heat and pressure of high-stakes leadership. After decades of guiding organizations through growth and change, we created CraftXecs® to offer leaders the guidance and clarity required during transformation.
Complexity is what you face. Clarity is what we create.
CraftXecs® helps C-suite executives clarify what is getting in the way, strengthen alignment, and navigate high-stakes change with greater confidence.
What to Expect When You Work With Us
When the stakes are high, there is little room for vague advice, junior handoffs, or consultants who create more work than they take on.
CraftXecs® gives C-suite executives direct access to seasoned advisors who help identify what is really getting in the way, clarify what needs to happen next, and stay involved through execution.
You can expect:
- Direct Executive-Level Counsel: When facing critical decisions, work directly with seasoned C-suite advisors, with no junior handoffs. Get candid perspective, the right questions, and practical advice.
- Clarity On What Is Really Getting In The Way: When the problem is not obvious, we surface blind spots, separate symptoms from root causes, and clarify what needs attention first.
- Support That Extends Beyond Advice: You should not leave with more work than you started with. We stay involved to turn priorities into action and help deliver what was agreed.
- Measurable Progress: Establish a baseline before the work begins, define the outcomes that matter, and measure progress against them over time.
Our Team
CraftXecs® brings together seasoned C-suite advisors who have led through growth, transformation, workforce challenges, and complex organizational change.
Our team draws on decades of executive and people leadership experience across technology, financial services, telecommunications, the public sector, and more.
Meet the people who bring that experience and perspective to CraftXecs engagements.
Leadership & Core Consultants
President & CEO, Executive Coach, Business & Workforce Transformation Consultant
Karen Craft (Brownrigg)
Karen Craft (formerly Brownrigg), CHRL, CEC is a bilingual HR executive and certified executive coach with over three decades of experience who knows what it means to have her clients’ backs. Her experience spans a range of industries, including time spent with Rogers Communications, the Bank of Canada, and the Ottawa Police Service.
Karen Craft (Brownrigg), CHRL, CEC is a bilingual HR executive and certified executive coach with over three decades of experience who knows what it means to have her clients’ backs. Her experience spans a range of industries, including time spent with Rogers Communications, the Bank of Canada, and the Ottawa Police Service.
Karen founded CraftXecs™ in 2025 after spending the previous 10 years as Founder & CEO of iHR Advisory Services™. Karen is widely known as the “phone a friend” senior executives use whenever they have a question or challenge and need outside perspective they can trust.
During her time spent as an emergency services phone operator, Karen was told that her calming voice and demeanour were critical during times of chaos. Business Executives still tell Karen today that while her credentials and the quality of her work are outstanding, what sets her apart is the sense of calm and steadiness she brings amid complexity.
Karen is widely considered one of the top HR practitioners in Ottawa, thanks to her deep expertise in executive coaching and helping executives navigate complex people dynamics that can escalate if handled improperly. She is regularly featured in the Ottawa Business Journal, where she shares her deep expertise in change management, medical accommodations, employee and labour relations, conflict resolution, talent management, and more.
In her personal life, Karen’s passions include running and paddleboarding. Her greatest joys include travelling with her husband, Scott, and enjoying quality time with her dog, Arthur. She remains optimistic that Arthur will one day learn to sit still on the paddleboard.
Executive Coach, and Business & Workforce Transformation Consultant
Sharon McLaughlin
Sharon McLaughlin, ACC, CCMP, CHRP is an HR executive, ICF certified coach, and a Change
Management Professional with over 30 years of experience leading HR advisory services and transformational change initiatives in complex and dynamic environments.
Sharon McLaughlin, ACC, CCMP, CHRP is an HR executive, ICF certified coach, and a Change Management professional with over 30 years of experience leading HR advisory services and transformational change initiatives in complex and dynamic environments.
With a diverse skillset that encompasses HR strategy, talent development, leading operational teams and guiding transformational change, Sharon’s career in municipal government has been marked by her innovative approach to human resources and employee experience.
In her personal life, Sharon enjoys walking in the beautiful Gatineau Hills, where she calls home, and has recently discovered a love for pickleball. She also attempts gardening, though some years prove more challenging than others – often resulting in little more than feeding the local deer population.
Workplace Investigations and Leadership Development Consultant
Renee Fullerton
Renée is an experienced, bilingual, and solution-focused HR executive who specializes in workplace investigations. She brings decades of extensive experience working in both strategic HR and people leadership roles in unionized and non-unionized environments.
Renée Fullerton is an experienced, bilingual, and solution-focused HR executive who specializes in workplace investigations. She joined iHR Advisory Services® in 2022, after decades of extensive experience working in both strategic HR and people leadership roles in unionized and non-unionized environments.
Prior to joining iHR, Renée led the HR function for two provincial gaming sites, as well as a not-for-profit organization. She was also a critical HR leader within a Federal Crown Corporation within the financial services industry. Renée’s extensive experience in employee and labour relations has seen her appear before key regulatory bodies and arbitration hearings in both provincial and federal contexts.
She has been a member of the Human Resource Professional Association for over 20 years, and has led workplace investigations in areas such as harassment and/or violence in the workplace, information security breaches, human rights complaints, policy breaches, and more.
Renée lives in Ottawa with her husband Richard, with whom she has two adult children who are out making their own marks on the world. When she’s not at the office, you’re likely to find Renée reading a good suspense novel, playing the piano, or exploring the countryside with Richard on his Harley.
Executive Coach, and Business & Workforce Transformation Consultant
Natasha Lemire-Blair
Natasha Lemire-Blair, MBA, CEC, CAE is an executive leader and coach with more than 25 years of senior experience guiding organizations, leaders, and teams through complexity and change. Known for her strategic insight and steady presence, Natasha brings calm assurance and confidence to those around her during challenging times.
Natasha Lemire-Blair, MBA, CEC, CAE, is an executive leader and coach with more than 25 years of senior experience guiding organizations, leaders, and teams through complexity and change. Known for her strategic insight and steady presence, Natasha brings calm assurance and confidence to those around her during challenging times.
Spending her career at the intersection of strategy, operations, and people, Natasha’s clients benefit from her ability to sit comfortably at the C-suite and Board table while also rolling up her sleeves to address real-time challenges. Her career has consistently intersected with HR strategy, from policy and compliance to people development and organizational culture. She also brings expertise in stakeholder engagement, advocacy, intellectual property and licensing, communications and marketing, professional development, digital transformation, real estate and large-scale event management.
As a Certified Executive Coach (CEC), Natasha partners with leaders to expand perspective, unlock potential, and sharpen the skills required to thrive in dynamic environments. She creates a confidential and supportive space where clients can deepen self-awareness, clarify goals, and move forward with confidence and purpose.
Natasha holds an MBA from Queen’s University and is a Certified Association Executive (CAE). She is a member of the International Coaching Federation and actively mentors emerging leaders. She also contributes extensively on boards and committees, providing governance leadership and strategic advice to strengthen organizations and people alike.
Life isn’t all strategy sessions and transformations. Natasha calls Toronto home, where she enjoys life with her family and cats. She is a cold-water swimmer, outdoor enthusiast, and budding watercolour artist, convinced that splashes, whether in the lake or on the canvas, always count as creativity.
Conflict & Dispute Resolution Coach, and Business & Workforce Transformation Consultant
Chantal Vallerand
Chantal is an Ottawa-based mediator and a negotiation and mediation coach. In addition to her mediation work, she has held senior management roles in the private, public, and NGO sectors, including both unionized and non-unionized environments. In these roles, she developed and implemented organizational strategic plans, which sparked a strong interest in alternative dispute resolution (ADR).
Chantal is an Ottawa-based mediator and a negotiation and mediation coach. In addition to her mediation work, she has held senior management roles in the private, public, and NGO sectors, including both unionized and non-unionized environments. In these roles, she developed and implemented organizational strategic plans, which sparked a strong interest in alternative dispute resolution (ADR).
Chantal earned an Executive Certificate in Conflict Resolution from the University of Windsor, Faculty of Law. She has also completed ADR, Advanced ADR, and Applied ADR Workshops conducted by the Stitt Feld Handy Group, along with Community Mediation Training through Community Conflict Resolution Ottawa (CCRO), where she is currently a volunteer mediator on their roster.
Earlier in her career, Chantal spent 15 years working for advertising agencies, leading strategic communications for various national and local organizations, and developing award-winning campaigns.
Fluently bilingual in French and English, Chantal holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Ottawa and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Laurentian University.
HR Consultant
Sophie Dupuis
Sophie is a bilingual HR leader that has spent her career supporting teams and businesses of all sizes. Her experience working across industries such as banking, oil and gas, and professional services gives her a unique perspective on what people and workplaces need to succeed.
Sophie is a bilingual HR leader that has spent her career supporting teams and businesses of all sizes. Her experience working across industries such as banking, oil and gas, and professional services gives her a unique perspective on what people and workplaces need to succeed.
Her background covers all areas of HR, including talent acquisition and engagement, policy development, compensation, performance management, employee relations, coaching, organizational design, and culture.
Sophie’s approach is to focus on practical solutions while keeping the bigger strategy in mind. Clients have often said that she is very approachable, remains calm under all circumstances, is deeply caring and quickly builds trusting relationships.
Outside of work, Sophie enjoys spending time with her husband and adult children. She keeps active with hiking, camping, cooking, and working out.
Associate Consultants
Associate Consultant
Jon Brandt
Jon Brandt, MBA, CEC, ACC, CFRE, is an executive leader and coach with 30 years of experience within organizations, directing and supporting change and growth. Jon creates an environment of trust and safety, using a balance of challenge and humour to prompt transformation.
With more than 30 years of work, primarily within the non-profit sector, Jon brings extensive knowledge and experience in managing departments in both Canada and the U.S.
Jon’s work has ranged from multi-million dollar organizations to one person start-ups, and so he understands both the challenges of leading significant teams and of having sole responsibility within an organization.
He is passionate about spurring individuals and organizations to strategic action.
Executive Coaching Areas of Focus:
- Focused on leadership transformation
- Committed to cultural and contextual sensitivity
- Known for ‘adversarial collaboration’ – asking the hard questions to get to the best possible outcome
- Believes coaching conversations should be both challenging and engaging, with a bit of humour thrown in
Bring An Experienced C-Suite Ally Into The Conversation
When the path forward is not obvious, CraftXecs® gives C-suite executives seasoned counsel from advisors who have walked in their shoes.
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