Meet Roger
“Life is not easy. We need not look far to find challenges and adversity. But it is not our challenges that define us. What ultimately defines us and determines our success and fulfillment is our ability to make choices. You and I have the power to choose—our thoughts, attitudes, and actions in the face of the various circumstances of our lives. And by our choices we determine our destiny, the quality and outcomes of our lives.” Roger K. Allen, Ph.D.
Human Development Institute
My career has taken some interesting twists and turns. After graduating with my Ph.D. in counseling psychology from the University of Minnesota, I co-founded (along with my father, the late C. Kay Allen) The Human Development Institute.
For the next ten years, other members of the clinical staff and I provided many thousands of hours of individual, marriage and family therapy. But I have to say that what I loved most and became best known for was creating in-depth, experiential programs in personal development.
We created one program entitled “Making Things Happen” that we taught hundreds of times in several cities around the U.S. MTH and follow up programs were known for their life-changing breakthroughs and impact on thousands of people. And even today, I look back on the many students who came through those programs with admiration, gratitude, and fondness. I love hearing from them and staying in touch with many of them.
Leading a team
However, I have to confess that the depth of this work eventually took an emotional toll on me. I was ready for a change and, because I also had a background in the field of organizational behavior, I decided to make a transition.
In fact, the very week I made that decision I received a call from a company president inviting me to join him in his quest to change the culture of his company. Almost instantly, I became a Director of Human Resources leading a team of 13 professionals and sitting on the executive team of this successful electronics company.
This role was the perfect transition into management consulting and leadership development, in part because I learned so much about leading teams. I wasn’t an expert in HR but my team members were. My job was to empower them to do their best work.
The Center for Organizational Design
And then I met a new business partner, Preston C. Pond, and the two of us co-founded The Center for Organizational Design to help leaders create and sustain high performance organizations.
Through the Center, we helped companies improve their leadership, clarify their business strategy, streamline their design (processes, structure and systems) and create a culture in which employees could “feel and act like partners in the business.” I led projects with small and large companies like AT&T Capital, Coach Leatherware, The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (several radio stations), Honeywell, Merck Pharmaceuticals, Proctor & Gamble, The US Forest Service, and many others.
My favorite part of this work was leadership team development which brought together my background in psychology, training in the soft skills, and knowledge of organizational theory and change.
Mentoring Others
During my years with the Center, we created a complete suite of consulting and training programs and eventually certified over 1500 consultants from around the world to use our methodologies and leadership and team development programs.
Personal and Relationship Development
Which brings me to today. I have officially retired from my clinical and consulting practices. Nevertheless, I can’t stop working. More importantly, I can’t stop learning and growing, particularly in personal and relationship development. I have a natural curiosity and innate desire to continue my journey of becoming, of finding meaning and fulfillment, as well as success in my life.
I’d be delighted if you would join me in this journey.
