Meet the Founder
I'm Cathy Abshire, founder of Sound Leadership Consulting.
I work with managers, supervisors, and program directors who are skilled professionals navigating the complex challenges that come with leadership. From difficult staff situations and team dynamics that quietly impact performance to balancing organizational expectations while maintaining quality services, leadership often requires a different set of skills than the ones that brought you into the role.
With more than 30 years of experience in leadership and management, I've sat where you're sitting. I understand the pressures of productivity demands, staffing shortages, competing priorities, and the responsibility of knowing that your team's success directly affects the day-to-day outcomes.
Throughout my career, I've seen firsthand that supervisors, managers, and program leaders are often the driving force behind successful programs and strong organizational cultures. Yet these roles frequently receive the least amount of support. That's why I founded Sound Leadership Consulting.
Most of my clients reach out when something has shifted. They need a trusted thought partner who understands their environment, shares their commitment to excellence, and can help them navigate challenges with practical solutions and greater confidence.
Background & Expertise
Experience That Informs How I Coach
Cathy Abshire brings more than four decades of experience in leadership, management, coaching, and staff development across healthcare, rehabilitation, government, nonprofit, and community-based organizations.
Throughout her career, Cathy has held supervisory and director-level roles where she led teams, developed professionals, managed organizational change, and navigated the everyday challenges that come with leading people. Her experience spans organizations including the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded Community Health Centers, NYU Langone Hospital, Goodwill Industries, and SARAH Foundation.
While much of Cathy's professional experience has been in healthcare and rehabilitation, the leadership challenges she has encountered are universal: having difficult conversations, setting clear expectations, managing conflict, developing staff, balancing competing priorities, and helping people perform at their best.
That real-world experience shapes her coaching approach. Cathy works with supervisors, managers, and emerging leaders who want practical support as they navigate the people side of leadership.
She holds a master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling and academic training in Speech Pathology and Audiology. She is a Certified Executive Coach and Certified DISC Trainer.
Her work focuses on helping leaders build confidence, communicate more effectively, strengthen their teams, manage challenging situations, and lead through workplace change with greater clarity and intention.