Though Spark! is a proven, well-regarded consultancy, Shannon says she doesn’t like the word “consultant.” Her approach is both more down-to-earth and more audacious than conventional consulting.

With her distinctively accessible, honest, encouraging style, Shannon helps leaders gain personal insights that enable them to better understand others. This awareness empowers them to create a cooperative “we” that stokes motivation and drives change.

But Shannon delivers much more than mindset transformation. She and her Spark! team deliver real, quantifiable results. Clients see improved engagement, productivity, and profitability.

Shannon acknowledges that effectively implementing big ideas is the most challenging part of the work she does with Spark!. But, she declares, “That doesn’t scare us; that actually invigorates us. That’s the spark. Let’s go—let’s get it done!”

Visionary, tactician, navigator, cheerleader: Shannon McGuire plays all these roles in everything she undertakes. She’s able to see the big possibilities and every detail required to bring them to life. She recognizes human potential in everyone and knows how to activate it.

Cristina makes things happen—literally. In her role as Spark!’s COO, she listens to the latest vision, transforms it into “steps A through Z,” and then identifies how each of those steps will get accomplished. “I'm a very tactical person,” says Cristina. “I take on projects and take off with them.”

Energetic and insightful, Cristina defines herself as an “achiever.” She’s helped many sizeable, complex organizations during her career: government agencies, large counties, and public service authorities. She has brought her exceptional strategic and planning skills to community development, behavioral health initiatives, emergency management planning, and more.

One strength that Cristina wants to help everyone build is resilience. Having lived through and overcome her fair share of adversities, she knows that resilience is key to transforming individual lives and building healthy, thriving communities.

“I love having the opportunity to make an impact in people's lives and communities,” says Cristina. “At Spark!, I get to do that every day.” She appreciates the multilayered benefits that Spark! delivers. Yes, the company helps clients to bring about positive change in their communities, but Cristina notes that also, “Through the coursework we do, through the trainings we have, we're able to help people directly.”

Combine all those qualities, and you’re describing Brianna Woolsey.

“My number-one strength is my sense of responsibility,” she says. “So when I say I'm going to do something, I mean it. When I agree to something, I get it done.”

Beyond her excellent job qualifications, though, Brianna is a perfect fit for the Spark! team. She possesses a discernible sense of joy and a heart for helping others. For thirteen years, she has worked serving youth who have experienced trauma. She has a strong sense of purpose to help others better their lives.

When Brianna learned about Spark!, she loved the “mission and the infectious energy of the team to collaborate and solve problems.” When she learned that the company was “taking on great projects that positively impact people at the community level,” Brianna thought to herself, “‘Yes, that's what I want to do.’”

Born and raised in Boise, Brianna enjoys spending time outdoors and finds peace in the mountains among the pine trees and fresh air. Her top priority is quality time with her husband and son, where she has had to learn to be less structured and more spontaneous.

Brianna observes, “Spark! is the real deal. We get to build relationships as humans, with the understanding that everyone’s experiences are valuable. Everyone's showing up as their authentic selves, and when you do that, amazing things can be accomplished.”

Christine made her way to Spark! after her educational and career pursuits took her across the country and around the world.

Hailing from Stillwater, Minnesota, Christine attended St. Lawrence University in upstate New York, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in global studies, environmental studies, and public health. She’s studied in China and Kenya, held an internship in Tanzania, backpacked in Alaska for fifty days, and canoed in Canada for twenty-two days. Christine has worked with the Montana Conservation Corps, the University of Maine, and most recently, the Riverstone International School in Boise.

Highly analytical and eager to learn, Christine’s personality and attitude harmonize beautifully with the Spark! ideology. “I've always been drawn to the human approach—making one-on-one connections with another person and understanding who they are and where they come from and their story, rather than just who they are on the outside.”

Christine’s interests include: traveling and exploring new places, biking, trail running, skiing, reading, and painting. She describes herself as “very passionate about the intersection between the outdoors, human interaction, and public health.”

Christine lends a hand on all Spark! projects, performing “any kind of support the team needs.” That might be meeting notes, calendar management, or GIS mapping. She’s always ready to lend a hand and grow along the way.

Jackie had always assumed that she’d stay in the Sacramento area where she grew up. But then in 2017, her curious nature led her and her husband to take a weekend road trip to check out Idaho. In almost no time, the two of them had sold their California home and become Idaho residents.

Within a couple of years of moving, their son was born. As of this writing, he’s three years old, and Jackie describes him as “a nonstop little Energizer Bunny.”

Jackie earned her degree in web design and interactive media and then spent several years serving the real estate industry, doing photography, design, and marketing for brokers. She enjoys creating work that satisfies preferences and solves problems. An introvert who’s “good at being extroverted,” Jackie will always rise to the challenge of high-pressure situations when they pop up.

In addition to the “fun vibe” at Spark! that she says is unlike anywhere else she’s ever worked, Jackie appreciates how collaborative the team is. “Everyone’s here to help where they can,” she says.

Jackie has long been interested in psychology and motivation, so she was especially intrigued when she learned how Spark! helps leaders and others increase their self-awareness and identify how they work best. When she connected with Spark! and found out more about it, she thought to herself, “This is such a good fit.”

Adrian is Spark!’s talented tech wizard, but he’s also much more than that.

Yes, he’s great at creating computer systems that enable projects to run efficiently and effectively. And yes, he’s wonderful at assessing existing systems and identifying ways to improve them.

But Adrian, who admits that he’s “more social than the average IT guy,” can also step into other roles as necessary. He’s been known to facilitate surveys and work with groups of people to identify improvements they want in their neighborhood.

Adrian is always eager to do whatever it takes to help make a real positive difference for communities. His can-do spirit always shines through.

“I’m kind of a jack of all trades,” says Adrian. He’s been working to improve communities for over a decade, first at United Way of Treasure Valley and then at Boise Co-Op. During those years, Adrian worked as a systems administrator, a project coordinator, and an IT lead. Before that, he worked as an electronics technician and a loan consultant, positions that helped him develop his technical know-how and people skills.

At Spark!, Adrian hunts down problems, visualizes solutions, and brings those solutions to life. He’s proficient at evaluating big-picture plans and identifying all the smaller elements needed to make them work. He consistently finds ways to make everything run more easily and productively.