Dr. Cheryl A. Gardner

With 20 years of experience providing consulting services, Cheryl Gardner focuses on market research, organizational and program assessment, and management development and training. She is innovative in her selection of approaches and has conducted numerous projects requiring careful planning, coordination and effective communication. Known for quick turnaround while maintaining the highest standards, she establishes productive, long-term client relationships.

Before founding Meridian Solutions, Dr. Gardner served as Vice President of Symbiont, a consulting and systems-integration firm, where she directed the management consulting practice and was responsible for corporate administration. She also taught marketing and international marketing at George Washington University and Georgetown University as an adjunct professor, has provided management seminars and workshops to a variety of government and private industry audiences, and facilitated many retreats.

She holds a Doctorate in Business Administration from George Washington University, an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California, and a B.A. in Economics from Smith College.


Associates

The principal consultant draws on a small staff of associates and a network of affilitated consultants with proven expertise. Following are profiles of the associates.


Nancy L. Cohen

Ms. Cohen served in a variety of research positions during more than 26 years with the District of Columbia Courts. Among others positions, she served as a Senior Research Associate and as the Chief of Research in the Social Services Division. She designed and executed research that evaluated policy impact, and operations and program effectiveness. She conducted research work measurement studies; created and implemented predictive instruments; and mounted many surveys. While with the DC Courts, she also served as the Employee Relations Manager, designing and administering the Court's Employee Assistance Program.

From the University of Indiana, Bloomington, Ms. Cohen earned a B.S. in Education and an M.S. in College Administration.

Judith A. Hammer

Ms. Hammer has enjoyed a distinguished career in training and counseling. As Director of Technical Training for the North Slope Borough of Alaska, she initiated a technical training program for North Slope Borough natives. For the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, as the Training Director for the Mid-East, she was responsible for the design, coordination, and administration of the training function. As the Director of Compliance at MetLife headquarters, she oversaw the development of materials and implementation of training for company compliance initiatives. She successfully transferred career skills into more recent work in evaluation, research, and development, working on a variety of projects in support of online survey development and implementation, telephone surveys, focus groups, and program evaluation.

From the University of Maryland, College Park, Ms. Hammer holds an M.B.A. in Organization Behavior and Information Systems, an M.A. in Counseling and Student Personnel Services, and a B.A. in Psychology.

Lynn Hutcheson

Lynn Hutcheson has extensive management experience in a variety of fast-paced, time-critical environments.  She has been a hands-on operations and product marketing manager for several technology companies including Control Data, General Electric and SPRINT and furniture manufacturer and distributor Baker, Knapp & Tubbs.  From 1990 to 1995 she worked as a management consultant providing research and analysis, project management, and marketing communications to a select client list.  She has skills and experience in inventory control, financial management, accounting, customer service, and customer satisfaction.

She received an MBA from the University of Hawaii, and an undergraduate degree in History from Vassar College.

Diane Pratt

Diane Pratt specializes in government and public relations. For over a decade as a consultant, she has facilitated relations and built consensus between diverse public and private sector entities. Clients benefit from her technical expertise and working relationships with key community, government, institutional and corporate leaders. She works independently and in conjunction with professional teams to coordinate community and media outreach, local, regional, and federal government affairs and strategic planning. Ms. Pratt also provides economic development consulting, providing technical assistance to non-profit community development organizations nationwide.

She earned a B.A. in Economics from Barat College and an M.A. in city and regional planning from the University of North Carolina.