Senior Advisors

Dawn Holden Woods

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Dawn Holden Woods is and Senior Advisor to Econsult Solutions and the President of Generative Consulting Partners, a management consulting firm designed to help social sector partners design authentic, people-centered solutions to help individuals and organizations reach their full potential.

Dawn is committed to co-creating effective operational and leadership development programs for individuals and teams and serves as a trusted advisor for private foundations, social impact organizations, and governmental agencies looking to support nonprofit partners. She helps organizations through concrete technical assistance ranging from, executive coaching, nonprofit board development, establishing strategies to comply with contract regulatory requirements, to systematizing accounting and fundraising best practices to enable leaders to build stronger relationships with key constituents and funders to grow and sustain their organizations.

Prior to founding Generative Consulting Partners, Dawn served as the Chief Social Services Officer of Public Health Management Corporation where she was responsible for managing a $100M portfolio including a team of 1,000 employees and the Chief Executive Officer of Turning Points for Children. She has a track record for leading transformational growth—her leadership and vision radically changed Turning Points for Children from a small enterprise valued at $10M to a complex organization with five business lines totaling over $60M.

Dawn’s disciplined approach to this work stems from over 20 years of experience in nonprofit and for-profit sectors. She has served as both a CEO and CFO roles, gaining a high level of expertise in strategy, execution, and fundraising. Dawn brings a unique blend of business practicality and a “people first” approach to her work. Each business solution Dawn provides is tailored specifically to the exclusive environment and business goals of her clients.

Dawn currently sits on a diverse range of boards including The Committee of Seventy, Center for Health Care Strategies, Evident Change, and the National Nurse-Led Care Consortium.

Dawn received her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Lincoln University and her master’s degree in public administration from the University of Pennsylvania.  She has been the recipient of many awards including 40 under 40 and Minority Business leader in 2020.

J. Patrick Killian

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Patrick Killian is a Senior Advisor at Econsult Solutions. Mr. Killian has devoted 50 years to public and government service on the local, state and federal levels. A graduate of Scranton Preparatory School and the University of Scranton with a degree in Political Science, Killian pursued his Masters degree in American History, prior to being called to active duty with the United States Navy where he served with Fighter Squadron 84 deployed on the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Upon release from active duty, he was appointed Director of Personnel for Lackawanna County government . In this capacity, he supervised all hiring and promotions for the County Commissioners, managed the countywide payroll, negotiated all contracts with employee bargaining units, and administered the federal Comprehensive employment Training act.

After two year as Director, he assumed the position of county Public Information Officer for the Commissioners authoring all county press releases and serving as spokesman for both print and electronic media outlets.  Mr. Killian also produced a weekly public service radio show “Courthouse comments” which was carried on 7 area radio stations. Upon leaving the county in 1976 to join the first campaign of the late U.S. Senator John Heinz, as Press Secretary, Killian began a 14-year tenure as Executive Assistant and chief political advisor to Senator Heinz. In this capacity, he supervised the Senator’s state offices and oversaw constituent services in addition to serving as the Senator’s liaison with both the General Assembly and the Governor’s office. He also served as principal contact with both statewide and national labor organizations on behalf of the Senator. He is proud of the fact that when he managed the Senator’s final campaign, it resulted in the largest margin of victory in Pennsylvania’s history.

In 1991, he assumed the post of Director of Commerce for Delaware County, PA where he served for 29 years until his retirement in 2021. In this position, his responsibilities included the overall direction of all business attraction, retention, and development efforts, as well as concurrently serving as the Executive Director of the following county entities: Economic Development Oversight Board, Redevelopment Authority, Industrial Development Authority, Area Loan Organization, CRIZ Authority, and both ED and Secretary Treasurer of the Industrial Development Corporation.

During his tenure, he participated in, directed, and negotiated over $2.5 billion in projects in the county including: The redevelopment of Baldwin Towers in Eddystone (which was named the best private partnership in the country by the Council on Urban Economic Development), the construction of Hog Island Road in Tinicum to ensure access of the UPS airport facility, the construction Harrah’s Casino and Subaru stadium in Chester, the redevelopment of the Monroe refinery in Trainer, the siting of the SAP North and South American headquarters in Newtown Square and the repurposing of the Marcus Hook refinery to a gas export facility. He has received numerous honors over the years, including being named a Veteran of Influence in the business community by the Philadelphia Business Journal, Developer of the year from the Pennsylvania Econoimic Developmnet Association, Project of the year by the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, as well as a resolutions of recognition for service by the U.S. Senate, PA General Assembly and Delaware County Council. Listed in Who’s Who in America, he has served as President of the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association and 10 year Board Chairman of The Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union, a $1 billion Delaware County financial institution. He sits of the pastoral Council of Annunciation church in Havertown.

An avid, but poor golfer, Mr. Killian enjoys reading history and has an extensive collection of political buttons from every presidential campaign since 1844 with an emphasis on Theodore Roosevelt. Mr. Killian and his wife reside in Havertown and are the parents of three daughters: Molly, Mara, and Hannah, and have two grandsons, Jackson and Charlie.

 

 

Sylvie Gallier Howard

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Sylvie Gallier Howard is a Senior Advisor at Econsult Solutions and Founder & CEO of Equitable Cities Consulting, a practice focused on expanding the field and impact of inclusive, equitable economic development. Sylvie Gallier Howard has extensive experience leading organizations and diverse teams in the non-profit, private, and public sectors. In her most recent tenure as Acting Commerce Director and as a cabinet member of Philadelphia’s City government, she spearheaded economic development planning and implementation processes for the City in areas of inclusive growth, workforce development, equitable entrepreneurship and recovery. Just weeks after the COVID-19 shut-downs and the successive civil unrest, she oversaw the creation of two distinct emergency grant programs to support small, Black and brown businesses. Other notable accomplishments include serving as co-lead for the city’s bid for Amazon’s HQ2, spearheading the development of a public-private partnership to develop the region’s global identity and overseeing the City’s first comprehensive incentive analysis. She also initiated the launch of Kiva City Philadelphia, a zero-interest micro-business loan program, and was part of a small team that led the City’s successful effort to become the first World Heritage City in the U.S.

Prior to joining government, Sylvie spent her career in the non-profit sector and running her own small business. For six years, Sylvie was the Principal and Founder of Clementine Consulting, providing guidance to non-profits and social enterprises working in areas such as education, social justice, economic development and immigration. Sylvie has also served as the Executive Director of two community-based non-profits in Philadelphia: The Northwest Fund and The Empowerment Group. At the Empowerment Group, Sylvie started Philadelphia’s first bilingual Spanish-English entrepreneurship training program.

Sylvie serves on the board of directors of the Fund for the School District of Philadelphia and Independence Charter School. She has a B.A. in International relations from Barnard College of Columbia University and an M.A. in Sociology from Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO) in Ecuador – a graduate school started by the United Nations Development Program to promote development in Latin America. Sylvie is fluent in Spanish and French.

Since starting Equitable Cities Consulting in January 2021, Sylvie has worked on projects related to digital equity and tech workforce development, global best practices for embedding workforce development into innovation districts in New South Wales, building workforce development pipelines between schools and employers for the US Navy supply chain, and building a course for the Federal Reserve Bank targeting small cities cohorts to develop equitable small business recovery strategies embedded in racial equity. Sylvie is currently supporting the equitable economic development of focused urban revitalization projects in Trenton and Baltimore and is co-authoring a global toolkit for Mayors to achieve a just and equitable transition as they enact climate change actions.

William A. Smith

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William A. Smith has worked in the financial services industry for more than 40 years. At Citizens Bank of Philadelphia, his management responsibilities included the growth of community and economic development and CRA compliance initiatives for the Eastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Southern New Jersey regions. He provided technical and financial assistance to the Philadelphia region’s communities and organizations in financial structuring with emphasis on housing and economic development projects for low- and moderate-income persons and business ventures. Mr. Smith’s previous responsibilities included management oversight for more than $750 million in community development programs and initiatives.

Mr. Smith serves on a number of boards, committees, and initiatives which focus on holistic approaches to quality of life enhancement and previously held positions in real estate finance, consumer lending, bank card, commercial lending and retail business areas of the bank. He joined the former Girard Bank in 1972.

His professional, civic, and cultural affiliations include chairman of the Advisory Board of the Local Initiatives Support Coalition (LISC) in Philadelphia, past president of the Board of the Philadelphia Dance Company, past president, Philadelphia Urban Bankers Association, Board Member of Entrepreneur Works, Board of Trustees Green Tree School, member of the Committee of Seventy, member of the Community Trust Board, West Philadelphia Empowerment Zone, member of the Ivy League Foundation Board of Directors, member of the Board of Directors of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, an Executive Committee member of the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition Board, LaSalle University’s President’s Advisory Council, Esperanza Board of Directors, PIDC New Markets Tax Credit Advisory Board, and a 50-year member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Smith was recently appointed by the Esperanza Board of Directors and the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority.

A native Philadelphian, Mr. Smith is a graduate of LaSalle University, The United States Army Command and General Staff College, and the American Banking Association School of Real Estate Finance. As a member of the United States Army Reserve for over 20 years before retirement, he held leadership positions at the company and battalion command levels achieving the rank of Lt. Colonel. He also served as a brigade staff officer with the 157th Separate Infantry Brigade (Mechanized) and as staff officer instructor with 2072nd USAR School. Smith is a member of the American Legion and the Military Officers Association of America.

A resident of Glenside, Montgomery County, PA, Mr. Smith is married to Vanessa Thomas Smith and a proud parent of a daughter, Katrina, and son, Jonathan.

Pamela Harper

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Pamela M. Harper is a Senior Adviser of Econsult Solutions. With over 30 years of experience, her areas of expertise include compliance, regulatory and public affairs within the financial and transportation industry sectors. Currently, she is a Member of Griesing Law where she focuses on providing strategic advice to clients, including privately held as well as publicly traded companies and non-profit institutions, on corporate governance, compliance, ESG, and regulatory-related matters.

Ms. Harper has held multiple positions across a wide range of industries including asset management and information technology. In addition, she has extensive consulting experience, having served as a Managing Director for PA Consulting, headquartered in the U.K., where she advised clients, on strategic, public policy, and foreign investment-related matters.

Within the public sector, she was appointed as the Deputy Director of Aviation for the Philadelphia Airport System where she oversaw government and regulatory affairs as well as marketing and air service development.

Ms. Harper has served on a number of non-profit boards, including as Vice-Chair of the Airport Advisory Board, the Arthur Ross Gallery, International House of Philadelphia, the Center for Architecture+Design, First Person Arts, and International House of Philadelphia, among others.

Ms. Harper is certified by the Compliance Certification Board and is a member of the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics Professionals in addition to the National Society of Compliance Professionals.

Ms. Harper received her MBA from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School, her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and her A.B. from Princeton University.

Stephen Tang

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Stephen Tang is a Senior Advisor and former President & CEO of OraSure Technologies, Inc. from 2018 to 2022. During this period the company delivered record revenue growth and the largest expansion of innovative products, employees, and facilities in its 35-year history. OraSure is empowering the global community to improve health and wellness by providing access to accurate essential information. OraSure is a leader in point-of-care diagnostic tests for HIV, HCV, Ebola, drugs of abuse, and COVID-19; specimen collection devices; and microbiome laboratory and analytical services. Together with its wholly-owned subsidiaries DNA Genotek, Diversigen, and Novosanis, OraSure provides its customers with value-added, end-to-end solutions that encompass tools, diagnostics and services. Dr. Tang previously served as OraSure’s Chairman of the Board of Directors (2016-2018) and was first elected to the Board in 2011.

Prior to April 2018, Dr. Tang served as President & CEO of the University City Science Center, the nation’s first and largest urban research park in Philadelphia, from 2008 to 2018. During that decade, Dr. Tang initiated, led, and implemented a strategic plan designed to transform the Science Center from a traditional real-estate focused research park to an innovation and workforce development powerhouse. From 2005-2008, he was a senior executive with Olympus America, including leading their Life Science Group of businesses. Prior to that, he was an energy technology entrepreneur and a senior executive at two leading global management consulting firms.

Dr. Tang was re-appointed to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) in 2016 and served as NACIE co-chair through 2018. Previously, Dr. Tang served on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Innovation Advisory Board, 2011-2012.

Along with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, he co-chaired the Team Pennsylvania Foundation in 2015-2018, which bridges the gap between government and the private sector.  He also served as Chairman of the Board of the Committee of Seventy (and was the first person of color to do so in the organization’s 111-year history) in 2014-2016.

Dr. Tang has served several multiyear stints on advisory and fiduciary boards for the College of William and Mary in Virginia, Lehigh University, Seton Hall University, Thomas Jefferson University, Temple University, University of the Sciences, Harrisburg University, Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and Life Science Pennsylvania.

He has received numerous honors and awards, including the 2021 7th Annual Globy Award for Corporate Leadership from Global Philadelphia Association, 2021 Lehigh Valley Business’ Healthcare Power 30 List member, 2021 Pennsylvania Healthcare Power 100 from City & State Pennsylvania, 2021 Spirit of Innovation Award (on behalf of OraSure) from the National Museum of Industrial History, 2018 Leadership Award from the Association of University Research Parks, the 2018 Dennis Clark Solas Award from the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians, Philadelphia Magazine’s 2017 100 Most Influential Philadelphians (#28), City & State Pennsylvania’s 2017 50 Over Fifty, Philadelphia Business Journal’s 2017 Power 100, Rad-Girls.com’s 2016 Rad Guy of the Year, and was one of Philadelphia Business Journal’s 2015 Most Admired Chief Executive Officers.

Dr. Tang earned a Ph.D. and MS in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University, an M.B.A. from Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.S. in Chemistry from the College of William and Mary. He also has been awarded honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees from Philadelphia University (now Thomas Jefferson University) and Philadelphia’s Wagner Free Institute of Science.

Steve was born in Madison, Wisconsin, raised in Wilmington, Delaware and Beaumont, Texas, where he attended public schools. He is married to Jill Chernekoff, an executive leadership development coach and former Emmy Award-winning Philadelphia television reporter and news anchor. He is the father three adult children and one grandchild. Steve and Jill make their home in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania.