Vision and direction

The phrase “doing well by doing good” has popped up in varying forms through the years; each time kindling a desire to find a way to do just that in the cask team. By combing 25 years + in business marketing and strategy roles with 18+ years developing local non-profit entities cask have been able to adapt all the good (and bad) we have seen in strategy development to find a means of connecting our experience with those in need of guidance.

First and foremost cask is a firm focused on helping businesses and organizations unleash their best, most authentic selves. A single day with cask allows for strategic direction to be envisioned and alchemized into actionable business plans and metrics. For many of our partners this is enough to jump start their journey. It is a service offered to local non-profit partners in addition to the engagements we enjoy with our core corporate client base. For those in need of more support with deployment, scalable modules are available in monthly increments.

History

The common theme when strategy deployment goes well is what Peter Drucker described as “the ability to align an organizations strengths in order to make it’s weaknesses irrelevant”.

When the principle players at cask saw strategic initiatives go wrong in prior roles there was often a disconnect between planning and execution. Whether conducted at too high a level internally or too superficially by an external firm the end result was inevitably a grouping of loosely defined, over valued profit pools leading to at best aspirational goals and timelines. Coupled with either a lack of self awareness (or third party lack of familiarity) the disconnect is amplified.

Along the way we have been fortunate enough to stumble across many mentors and guides who have shaped this approach to creating value. In founding cask our goal is to build a sustainable business our adopted home of North East Ohio and help bring to life a more philanthropic approach to marketing and strategy.

cask employs a wide range of tools focused on ensuring 360 stakeholder engagement, strengths based appreciative inquiry and enterprise wide accountability driven by visual management and shared attainment metrics.

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Why “cask”?

We love the analogy and marriage of science and art that goes into maturing anything in cask form. We also value the opportunity we’ve have had to pull bits and pieces from various mediums as part of life long learning which we view as akin to the fermenting and fomenting that takes place in a cask.

Continuous improvement, perseverance and the ability to take what is good and make it better over time is at the heart of the cask model.

But leaving aside the endless potential for romantic analogies and images that abound from a naturally sourced, traditionally made, recycled multi-use tool used to mature and dwell to infuse flavor over time… cask is simply derived from our original founder’s kids names; callum & skye!

Team

Activities & Affiliations

Board of Trustees, The Gathering Place

Executive Coach/Leadership Coach

Amanda Jonnala

Amanda Jonnala is a life coach, executive coach, leadership coach, and career coach.  She works one-on-one with clients to help with transformations. Her passion is using the power of coaching to remove blockers and optimize the client’s lives and careers. Amanda approaches her coaching and training work through a holistic lens, looking at the whole person and/or organization to find optimization and harmony.

Amanda is a certified coach and implements techniques she has mastered throughout her career as a professional recruiter and leader, as well as in her personal life as an elite athlete. She brings radical honesty and softness to her approach. 

Stragey and Ledership Consultant

Daniel Cohn

Daniel Cohn is Founder and Principal Consultant at Vitric Advisors. He also serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, with the Mt. Sinai Health Foundation. In 2019, Dan launched the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition, a regional public-private partnership aimed at ending childhood lead exposure. Dan also co-created and co-directed the Greater Cleveland COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, a $20 million collective impact initiative that pooled public and private resources to address the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, Dan served as interim executive director of First Year Cleveland—Northeast Ohio's public-private partnership aimed at reducing infant mortality—during its strategic transition toward a focus on upstream and community-based strategies that improve the lives of Black women and families. Before joining Mt. Sinai in 2015, Dan served as Assistant Director of Cornell University's Center for Engaged Learning + Research, evaluating and managing programs that engaged faculty in translating their academic interests toward meeting community needs. He was a Fellow with the Congressional Hunger Center in the early 2010s, during which time he helped launch a national “food as medicine” advocacy initiative. He was later stationed at the USDA Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships working on First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let's Move! campaign and on economic development outreach in the rural South. Dan’s academic background is in public health, ethics, and urban affairs, and he is exploring further studies in human-technology interaction. 

Executive Coach

Dave Brunelle

My wife, Carole, and I have been married for over 33 years now.  We have eight kids. Yes, eight kids, (three birth and five adopted) three two sons-in-law, seven grandchildren, three motorcycles, and one dog.

I grew up in a one traffic light Norman Rockwell-esq small town.  My adult life has been spent in service to others and in two primary domains; public safety and non-profit faith-based work in communities.  I was in public safety for 15 years, some of it in Emergency Management but most of it as a Firefighter-Paramedic and as a special rescue team technician and trainer.  For the last 19 years, I’ve been a pastor at a church that a team and I planted in the Cleveland area.

Over those 30 plus years I've always enjoyed helping people and organizations move forward.  That's why I got into coaching and I’ve helped ordinary folks, leaders, executives, boards, and teams do just that; move forward, in significant ways.  I'm a naturally curious person but I also have a fierce competitive streak.  I leverage that curiosity and drive to win towards being the best coach I can be for my clients.  Clients find me to be a champion for them and their goals.  I stand with them in uncertainty and walk with them through adversity.  I help them fight for clarity on the questions that matter most and find courage to act on the answers that come. I can help you live and lead courageously.

Strategy and Development consultant

Leigh Janczak

Leigh is a highly accomplished fundraising professional with nearly 25 years of dedicated experience in advancing philanthropic initiatives across various sectors of the nonprofit community including, in part, higher education and healthcare.  Leigh’s tenure includes positions at renowned healthcare institutions such as Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where she spearheaded fundraising efforts and demonstrated exceptional leadership in building and guiding high-performing teams.

Throughout her career, Leigh has honed her skills in relationship-building, donor engagement, and strategic planning, earning her a reputation as a results-driven professional.  Her ability to navigate the complex landscape of fundraising, coupled with a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced in various segments of the market, sets her apart as a sought-after expert in her field.   Her commitment to excellence, coupled with her profound understanding of the intersection of philanthropy and nonprofit organizations, positions her as a valuable asset to any organization seeking to elevate its fundraising endeavors.

Financial consultant

Sybille Schomerus

Sybille is a former lawyer with a master’s degree from the University of Freiburg, Germany, where she studied law and worked as an attorney in labor and family law until 2008 when she and her family moved to Cleveland. She started working for Policy Matters Ohio, a nonprofit organization, in 2010 and has been their Administrative Director since 2020. Having worked in the nonprofit sector for over ten years, Sybille has gained extensive experience in administrative and financial nonprofit management. She is also head of the International Women’s Group of Cleveland, a vast network of international women from all over the world who have relocated to the Cleveland area and has served on several nonprofit boards and was a member of the former Human Relations Task Force for the city of Shaker Heights.

Financial compliance

Jim Wojtila

Jim Wojtila is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Mar-Bal, Inc., the leading integrated compounder and molder of BMC Thermoset composite products. He is a key member of the Executive Leadership Team; confidant and key advisor to the company’s shareholders while leading the Finance and IT Departments for the company. He is also responsible for treasury, debt, asset and risk management, and the economic strategy for the company. Jim’s financial acumen continues to ready Mar-Bal for future growth and expansion. Before joining Mar-Bal in 2011, Mr. Wojtila held similar roles with several other manufacturing

companies and he began his career in public accounting with Ciuni and Panichi, Inc. He is a graduate of John Carroll University with a major in Accounting and is a non-practicing C.P.A. He was selected twice as a Finalist for CFO of the Year by Crain’s Magazine (2008 and 2013) which honors Northeast Ohio’s top fiscal officers for outstanding financial leadership, asset management, and strategic vision. Mr. Wojtila is the proud father of three adult children and soon to be a grandfather. He has been an active supporter with his children in roles of coach, scout leader, booster club officer, and volunteer. He has been an active leader in Music Ministry and Men’s Fellowship in his church.

Intern

Jan Hendrik Schomerus

Jan Hendrik is a recent graduate of Depaul University. Having worked for a variety of different companies and organizations he continues to work on expanding his versatility in order to be an asset in any field he may encounter. Currently he predominantly focuses on digital outreach through the usage of different mediums such as newsletters, email templates and web design.