You're in the middle of something big.
If you’re here, you’ve worked hard to get where you are, and you care about what comes next. Maybe you're navigating a career change, stepping into senior leadership, or feeling tension between your professional goals and everything else you care about — your family, your health, your personal pursuits.
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Sketchpad™ partners with goal-driven professionals and organizations through coaching and targeted skill-building.​​​​ The result? Careers built with courage, leaders who rise to the challenge, and organizations that keep their best people growing.
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​Ready to move forward with bold strokes?
For Individuals
Is this you?
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You're ready for a role change or got laid off, and need help figuring out what you want and how to get there.
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You're an ambitious parent and professional, but feel like you're struggling with both — and you need strategies that actually work.
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You spent years chasing a goal, got there, and realized it doesn't fit anymore. Now you're trying to figure out what does fit without starting over.
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You're a senior leader facing something hard — team conflict, a restructure, a performance issue — and you want a strategic thought partner to help you think it through.
What I offer:
1:1 coaching for high-stakes decisions and complex transitions. We'll clarify where you're headed, build your strategy, and ensure you move forward with accountability. You'll get leadership assessments, tested frameworks, and an ICF-certified coach who's led teams, built leaders, and navigated the transitions you're facing.
For Organizations
Your high-achievers need more than skills training.
They need judgment, people skills, and confidence working in the gray zone.
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What I offer:
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Team and cohort coaching (including Boards, employee resource groups, and leadership off-sites)
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Leadership development workshops and assessments
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Speaking engagements ​
These are customized offerings, never off-the-shelf.
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Sampling of prior workshop topics:
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Building judgment when there's no playbook
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Giving feedback that changes behavior
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Time management and prioritization for high-demand roles
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Coaching to elevate performance
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Creating conditions for innovation
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Strategic decision-making under pressure
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Managing up: influencing without authority
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CREDENTIALS
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Certified Executive & Leadership Coach
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Former BigLaw Attorney (McDermott)
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Former Head of Global L&D at Ronald McDonald House
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8x LearningElite Honoree
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Chief Learning Officer Business Partnership Award
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J.D., University of Iowa | B.S. Finance, Iowa State
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Hi, I'm Zoya.
Former BigLaw litigator. Award-winning L&D leader. ICF-certified coach. Mom.
As the child of immigrants, I was taught that there's a right way to do things — that if I just thought and planned and worked hard enough, I'd get the outcome I wanted. I believed that for a long time.
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I achieved my lifelong dream of becoming an attorney — and then realized it wasn't my calling.
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I pivoted to learning & development and spent 8 years at Sidley Austin building award-winning programs I cared about.
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I became a mom to a son with autism, which completely changed how I think about success.
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In 2020, I joined the Ronald McDonald House, where I launched the Global L&D function in the middle of the pandemic.
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I've learned that plans don't always work out the way you expect. Sometimes, the most important work is figuring out how to move forward with conviction when the path looks nothing like what you planned for.
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I became a coach because I know what it's like when your identity is built on having the answers, and suddenly, you don't. I work with career changers, rising leaders, and working parents navigating the gap between where they are and where they want to be.
If you're in the middle of something big and could use a thought partner who gets it, let's talk.