KAY PLANTES

Kay Plantes is a proven board member and consultant with deep expertise in strategy, branding and organizational scaling. She has broad experience across multiple industries and sectors and is an expert in business model innovation. She started her career as an Assistant Professor of Economics at University of Wisconsin Madison, quickly moved into leading economic development policy for the State of Wisconsin, then served as Director of Marketing and Business Development for a global medical equipment public company. She started her strategy consulting company in 1989 following the birth of her daughter.

Dr. Plantes also has a diverse background in types of boards she has served on, including privately held for-profits, family business, and non-profits. She completed 9 nine years of board service recently with The Joint Commission, a global organization for healthcare quality improvement. Here she chaired the Finance Committee and served on the Audit & Compliance and Human Resources Committees. Current boards include Finfrock, a regional design-build construction leader, Automation Nth, a manufacturing automation leader for the biotech sector, and Vehicles for Change San Diego, a social enterprise that trains prison-impacted individuals to be auto mechanics.

Dr. Plantes holds a B.S. from The Pennsylvania State University College of Business and a Ph.D. in Economics from The Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Dr. Plantes loves being in nature, from hiking to running to biking. Her one daughter resides in NYC where she works as a creative director for an experiential marketing agency. Reading, friendships, dinner parties for friends, and travel also fill her days. Kay is married to Nick Ecos, a retired biotech executive.