OUR TEAM

Jan Molino
President & CEO
Board and Executive Coach

   

Jan founded Aspire Ascend following 16 years in retained executive search where she specialized in recruiting C-suite executives, and advising boards around leadership assessment and succession for a wide variety of organizations, placing over 300 executives in the C-suite and the boardroom.

Jan works with executive leaders to establish goals/measurements to build a comprehensive gender equity strategy.    She also works closely with Boards to build and increase gender equity in the boardroom; enhance recruitment and retention and provide role models at the top of the organization. Additionally, Jan works 1:1 with individual females executives on Board development and preparation for paid board seats.  

Her consulting to both for-profit and non-profit organizations has resulted in the development of numerous programs to sponsor, encourage and support executive women in leadership roles.   Jan’s strength and expertise in bringing influential women and professionals together is complemented by a powerful network she utilizes to assist women in achieving their goals as well as her reputation as a keynote speaker on gender equity and women in the boardroom.

Recognized as a thought leader on becoming a board member, CEO success, gender diversity, and networking, Jan speaks on issues that impact women as leaders in the C-Suite and the boardroom. She is often featured in numerous broadcast outlets including Forbes, Vunela, Thrive Global, Medium, as well as others.

Jan currently is a member of the DC Chamber of Commerce, 50/50 Women on Boards, Montgomery County Commission For Women, International Women's Forum Global and DC Chapter, and was awarded the 2021 Women Who Mean Business Award from the Washington Biz Journal.  She is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University.

Janelle Brittain
Executive and Board Coach

Janelle Brittain brings extensive care and useful insight to current challenges. She has the ability to walk in the shoes of each executive bringing practical insights into what it takes for each individual to make the necessary changes for growth.
Janelle spent her earlier career in healthcare management and marketing, followed by success in high-tech sales.

 She is the founder of the Dynamic Performance Institute, a management and leadership development firm serving companies of all sizes in the United States and worldwide. Janelle has authored six published books on performance management, team building, and healthcare management. 

She has served on numerous corporate boards and as a consultant to other boards for more than 20 years. She is frequently quoted in business publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Investors Business Daily, The Chicago Tribune, The LA Times and Crain’s Chicago Business.

Janelle earned her Executive Master's of Business Administration from Florida Atlantic University. She also has communications management certifications from The East-West Communications Institute and The Chinese Center for International Training. Janelle has trained in the Communications, Education & Research Graduate Program of the University of Chicago and is a Certified Speaking Professional.

Gail Zoppo
Director, Social Media

Gail Zoppo manages Aspire Ascend's social media content across all platforms. She brings nearly three decades of experience in integrated communications, journalism and media/public relations to the table. Gail has represented corporations, small businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies. 

As a communications strategist, media relations coordinator and content creator, Gail specializes in diversity and inclusion; human relations; supplier diversity; international and domestic business; global human rights; and gender equality.

Founder of Zoppo Communications, Gail provides organizational development insight, branding guidance, and culturally competent content services. She also collaborates with strategic business and media partners to increase her clients’ capacity.

She is a former managing editor of DiversityInc, editor of Executive Female, and contributing editor of BusinessWeek. Currently, she serves as media relations consultant for the American Conference on Diversity, a 67-year-old social justice organization based in New Brunswick, NJ. She was named a “Diversity Thought Leader Leading the Way” by Diversity Best Practices and a “2015 Most Influential Twitter User” by MyCentralJersey.com, and has been interviewed for print articles and radio programs. She has also appeared on CNN and "Good Day NY."

Gail earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Rutgers University. She also offers pro bono services to nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping the underrepresented.

Howard Glassroth
Board and Communications Advisor

Howard Glassroth is a recognized expert in planning and executing strategic communications, crisis, reputation management, and marketing programs across a broad range of industries. He is President of The Glassroth Company, a communications firm he founded after more than twenty-five years as a corporate marketing and communications executive. Utilizing his unique combination of corporate, non-profit and consulting experience, he focuses on assisting executive leadership and boards with the challenges of establishing, growing and protecting their organization’s public profile and enhancing stakeholder loyalty.  

In his thirty plus years of professional life, he has developed and led critical communications and branding programs for Fortune 100 corporations, while overseeing multimillion dollar P&L initiatives, and critical communications for mergers, acquisitions and legislation.  Howard brings expertise in external relations inclusive of communications, marketing, community and public affairs, product launches, speech-writing, social media strategies as well as strategic planning and executive leadership.

Howard’s credentials include roles as internal communications, marketing and external affairs officer as well as outside consultant across multiple business sectors, including:  healthcare, nonprofits, financial services, and the energy sector.  He began his career as a journalist, running news operations for network-affiliated television stations in major U.S. markets and as a producer for ABC News.

Howard has served as a volunteer and board member for numerous non-profit organizations involved in civic, business and cultural activities.      

A graduate of Queens College (City University of New York – CUNY), he earned an MBA in Marketing from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University and completed post-graduate work in finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. 

Tracy McMillan
Diversity and Talent Solutions Advisor

Tracy McMillan is the CEO & Managing Partner of Broadview Talent Partners, a national Strategic Talent Acquisition & Retention Solutions firm based in Fairfield, CT with offices in Washington, DC.  For more than 20 years, Broadview Talent Partners has provided executive search, retention solutions and leadership advisory services to a wide variety of clients within the affordable housing, nonprofit, and middle market organizations.  Tracy has considerable experience leading and advising organizations on matters including executive search, leadership assessment, succession planning, talent management, executive compensation and retention strategies.

His career includes roles inside organizations and as an external consultant.  He has served as Vice President, Global Talent Acquisition for the National Basketball Association, and has over 15 years in top 10 global executive search firms as well as The McMillan Group (TMG), Inc., his own retained executive search firm.

Tracy began his executive search career with Carrington & Carrington, Ltd. in Chicago, IL, with increased responsibilities culminating in his rise to Managing Consultant in less than two years. He left to join LaMonte Owens, Inc. as Senior Vice President.

Tracy began his career as a CPA in the Audit, Accounting, Consulting and Finance arena in roles of increasing responsibility with both PricewaterhouseCoopers in Philadelphia and Kraft Foods in suburban Chicago. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of Virginia where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce and Accounting.

Throughout his career he has served on and/or held leadership positions on non-profit and association boards, including the Jefferson Scholarship Foundation, Ridley at the University of Virginia Alumni Association Board of Directors, Business of Sports School Advisory Board and National INROADS Alumni Association.