Since joining Building Champions in 2002, Raymond has been applying his more than 30 years of leadership, corporate strategy and planning experience as an executive coach with a practice ranging from self-funded start-ups to Fortune 500 companies (e.g., Genworth, Cisco). In addition to his one-on-one coaching, he serves a variety of his clients through team coaching and board development.
Raymond started his career in marketing and business development and enjoyed several years with a national engineering services company. Later, he co-founded and served as CEO of a national design engineering firm. In 1986, his company (Santa Barbara Applied Research, Inc.) was awarded the Small Business Administration Award for Excellence.
Through the mid 1980’s to the late 90’s, Raymond wore several “hats.” He served as a business professor and then the first Executive-in-Residence at George Fox University where he taught in both the undergraduate and graduate business programs. In 1997, he was the recipient of the Burlington Northern/George Fox University's Outstanding Teacher Award.
Raymond continued his entrepreneurial bent by co-founding, developing and selling several companies, with one being sold to a publicly traded company. He also provided corporate strategic planning, organizational restructuring and leadership development consulting to companies such as Epson®, United Grocer's, UCLA School of Dentistry, Ford®, Key Bank®, U.S. Department of Defense and Aetna® Retirement Services.
Raymond continues to serves as a member of several boards as both a director and an investor. In 1994 he co-authored the book Confessions of Empowering Organizations (AQP: 1994), which documented the most innovative workplace practices in over 90 Pacific Northwest companies.
Raymond shares his experiences through an active public speaking schedule where he talks on topics including coaching and mentorship, creativity, management and leadership development, spirituality in business and corporate strategy. He is a graduate of California State University, Los Angeles, where he received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees. In 1998 he was the recipient of the University's Distinguished Alumnus Award from the School of Arts and Letters. Beginning in 2011, Raymond began teaching a course on Coaching for the George Fox University Seminary.
Due to a major family member’s commitment (and commencing check writing made payable to the University of Oregon), Raymond has recently become a raving Duck fan. And on another personal note….when no one is around, Raymond enjoys redlining his Honda s2000.
Read Raymond’s blog: Coach to the Contrary
