Nancy Parsons

About Nancy Parsons

Nancy is one of today’s foremost experts in combining the science of assessments with the art of developing people. She is CEO and President of CDR Companies, LLC, which she co-founded in 1998 with Kimberly R. Leveridge, Ph.D. Together, they developed the groundbreaking CDR 3-Dimensional Assessment Suite®, translated into five languages and used globally to measure leadership character traits, inherent risk factors for derailment, and drivers and rewards. They also launched the 360 Leader Scan™, a multi-rater feedback tool, in is the visionary behind CDR-U Coach, now known as True Talent Coach™—an award-winning AI-style digital coaching platform that personalizes development for every user. It won the 2021 Gold Stevie Award for Best New Product and was recognized by the 2022 Houston Business Journal Innovation Awards. In 2022, a STEM Fit Review was added to help organizations identify hidden STEM talent for upskilling and career planning. True Talent Coach is now used for scalable coaching, succession planning, talent analytics, and more.Nancy was named the 2019 MEECO International Thought Leader of Distinction in Executive Coaching and a 2022 Women Who Mean Business honoree by the Houston Business Journal. She was also a speaker at the World Business and Executive Coach Summit (WBECS) in 2020.She is a #1 Amazon Bestselling Author of Women Are Creating the Glass Ceiling and Have the Power to End It. In June 2025, she released her latest eBook, Everyone Has Personality Risks – What Are Yours, a practical, complimentary guide that helps leaders uncover and manage hidden personality risks that derail success.Nancy has coached senior executives globally, trained thousands of executive coaches, and spoken at top HR, talent, and women’s leadership conferences. She has authored more than 70 articles and launched the philanthropic program “Vets Coaching Vets” in 2016 to help veterans succeed in the civilian workforce.For fun, Nancy authored her first children’s book in 2025: What Speedo Thinks, a heartwarming story told through the voice of her beloved American Water Spaniel.

Experience

1. President

   Cdr Companies

   Oct 1998 — Present

   Since 1998, when I co-founded CDR Assessment Group, Inc, I have served as President. We provide unmatched assessments and consulting services for global clients to accelerate and transform their leadership development and talent management success. I provide coaching services for C-Suite executives and key leaders from global organizations across all sectors. In my capacity as President, I serve in a general management capacity for the firm as well as lead strategy and business development.Our firm specializes in cutting-edge psychological assessments that we use for executive coaching, Authentic Leadership Workshops (customized), strategic team development, succession planning, talent capability analysis and selection screening. We certify internal and external executive coaches to use our premier CDR 3-D Suite. We have a global team of exceptional skilled certified CDR Executive Coaches & Consultants who provide services for our clients. The CDR 3-D Suite accurately measures a leader\'s: character traits, risks for derailment; and drivers & reward needs. The Suite is available in five languages (Spanish, French, Italian, German & English.) We also offer the 360° Leader Scan multi-rater tool. CDR is a WBENC (WBEA) nationally certified women owned & operated corporation.My background in leadership development and talent management is diverse with over 30 years expertise in: executive coaching, leadership development, personality and motivational assessments, training, succession planning, OD, performance management, quality, career development, and HR management (labor & employee relations, benefits, personnel policies, EEO/Diversity, employment, compensation, communications, etc.)

Education

• Neumann University

  Human Resources, Management

  1979 — 1982

• The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth

  Executive Education

  2007 — 2007

• Eckerd College

  Management, Management, Human Resources

  1983 — 1986

Skills

• Leadership Development
• Organizational Development
• Performance Management
• Succession Planning
• Executive Coaching
• Training
• Leadership
• Human Resources
• Strategy
• Organizational Effectiveness
• Talent Management
• Recruiting
• Team Building
• Management Consulting
• Change Management
• Consulting
• Employee Engagement
• Career Development
• Culture Change
• Psychological Assessment
• Dynamic Speaker
• Performance Motivation
• Executive Development