So proud of my team as they help to train eight new employees. With most of the world struggling to find talent, we quietly spent months identifying, wooing and on-boarding this amazing group. They are sure to bring many fresh ideas and perspectives to our company and to the candidates they work with. They are new in the roles of Project Managers, Guides and a Bookkeeper. WELCOME TO EA!
Jeff Kipp, Nikki Mendelsohn, Nadia Schroth, Trudy Maposa, Lisa Taylor, Irene Meyerhoefer, Michele Barksdale, Margaux Murphy on a bright sunny spring day in Cleveland
EA provides the peer experience out-of-town candidates, new hires and their families rely on in order to see how their current lifestyle can blend into the Greater Cleveland/Akron region. We asked each to introduce themselves and know you will enjoy getting to know them:
Michele Barksdale
I have lived in Solon for almost 15 years with my husband, Ed, of 30 years. We have 4 adult children who are in post graduate school or professional careers. Prior to moving to Cleveland, we were in Pittsburgh for 13 years and Cincinnati for 2 years. I am originally from Cambridge, Massachusetts. In my previous life, I worked for Fidelity Investments in Boston and Cincinnati as a stock broker/retirement manager. I have been extensively involved in the Solon community since arriving: room parent, team mom, Academic Booster member, Athletic Booster member, various PTA positions including PTA president and most recently elected to the Solon School Board. I am a board member of Solon Benevolent Fund and WomenSafe (shelter for domestic violence victims ), co-President of the Alliance of Black Families of Solon and a member of The Links Inc and The Girlfriends. I love to read, bowl and line dance. My family and I are members of The Olivet Institutional Baptist Church. My husband is Chief of Pediatric Surgery at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital.
Jeff Kipp
From a young age, I fixated on the image and reputation of Cleveland. I was a suburban kid who wondered about the “big city” but had limited experiences with it. That mindset stayed with me, and I have had the incredible fortune to remain engaged in city issues professionally for the past 25 years. After spending more than two decades in the non-profit community development sector, I founded Civic Push Consulting in 2019, and continue to provide ongoing leadership and capacity support to local nonprofits in the areas of marketing, communications, and economic development. I am an advocate for urban neighborhoods and have led numerous citywide efforts to promote the livability of Cleveland’s neighborhoods while working to attract new residents and visitors. I have had the privilege to represent Cleveland before local, regional, national and international audiences and have made it my personal and professional mission to contribute to the revitalization of our region’s urban core. My family and I live in the city, but venture all over NEO to visit with loved ones and fully experience the region. I’m a city guy at heart, but you might still bump into me in Solon, Medina, Mayfield, Concord or Avon…or wherever fun people and fun places are. Tricia and I have been married for 17 years and we are on our second home in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood. Our two teenage daughters keep us busy and entertained at the same time. I truly enjoy sports, music and Cleveland’s dining scene, but must admit nothing beats spending time with neighbors, friends and family. I am a proud graduate of the University of Dayton (BA) and Cleveland State University (MSW). I am also an alumnus of Neighborhood Leadership Cleveland and have facilitated that same program. Most recently, I have been engaged as a founding board member of The Land, a nonprofit news organization reporting on Cleveland’s neighborhoods, and began my term as Board President in 2022.
Trudy Maposa
I currently live in Aurora with my husband and three teenage children aged 17, 15 and 13. My husband Kuda is a Finance Executive at Progressive and his job has moved us around quite a bit in the 18 years we’ve been married. We’ve lived in Philadelphia, Seattle, Los Angeles, Mauritius, San Antonio and now Cleveland. One of the things I love to do is cook, I’m a self-taught cook and I love trying cuisines from all over the world. I also enjoy traveling and networking with women from all over the world to hear and learn from their life stories. I’m excited and honored to be part of the Executive Arrangements team.
Nikki Mendelsohn
I’m the quintessential Cleveland boomerang, having grown up on the east side of Cuyahoga County, moving away for college and to start a career, and returning home in my late 20’s to help support my dad’s growing company. Just before I started 4th grade, we moved from Cleveland Heights to the house my parents still live in in Pepper Pike. I graduated from Orange High School and went to the School of Visual Arts in New York City. In 2002, I moved to Los Angeles, where I worked in the entertainment business, and then onto Austin, Texas, working in the commercial and residential design-build industry. I moved back to Cleveland in 2006 to help my dad grow his business, promising him two winters… but I couldn’t leave! There’s always something to do here; from attending a game (we have three major league sports teams), checking out a great independent bookstore and restaurant in a cute little neighborhood, or soaking in some culture at University Circle. Since moving home, I met and married my husband Aaron, a data privacy and information security attorney; had two children; and earned an MBA from Case Western Reserve University. When I’m not championing Cleveland or doing nonprofit work, I’m (hopefully) exploring the world with my family or devouring a book (ideally, both!). Our family now lives in Moreland Hills with our pooches, George and Alfie.
Irene Meyerhoefer
Having spent most of my life in the Cleveland area, I am excited to be part of the Executive Arrangements team! I grew up in Euclid and then studied accounting at John Carroll University. Upon graduation, I worked for Price Waterhouse (now PwC) and Geon Corporation (now Avient Corporation). I then left the corporate world to raise my children. My husband, Trent, and I lived in Cleveland Heights and Pittsburgh before returning to the region, living in Shaker Heights for over 20 years. Our two children are proud graduates of the Shaker Heights public schools, with our son a software engineer in Boston after graduating from George Washington University and our daughter completing her senior year this spring at Boston University. Our 13 year old Bishon, Sammie rounds out our family. I was an active volunteer within the schools and the community during their school years and remain so today. Currently, I volunteer with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland (which provides free legal services for the vulnerable and low income) and Meals on Wheels. I enjoy reading, belong to a book group that I love and am an avid gardener.
Margaux Murphy
I was born and raised in Chardon, Ohio, about 40 minutes east of Cleveland. Although I was raised in the country, my grandparents frequently took my siblings and me on tours through Cleveland’s downtown neighborhoods. We were shown where our families spread their roots as immigrants, the sausage shop my great-grandfather owned on the near west side and the St. Colman’s Church where my grandfather went to school. This tour would bring us back to the east side where my grandmother was raised near Neff & E. 185th, the area she refered to as “the country” I enjoyed learning about my family’s past in Cleveland, and it’s how I developed my love and appreciation for the city. I have a love of plants that I attribute to my parents who had many flower and vegetable gardens. I worked as a floral designer for many years, owning and operating a flower shop in Tremont, an historic neighborhood on Cleveland’s near west side. As a former Irish dancer and performer in Irish theater I have been involved with Cleveland’s Irish community for many years. After a brief stint in the Los Angeles area, we returned to Cleveland with our three daughters and call University Heights home.
Nadia Schroth
Shaker Heights has been home for my family since 2017. We moved here from Toronto, Canada where we spent 7 years. Prior to that, we lived in Charlotte, San Francisco and Winston-Salem, NC. I grew up in Northeast Tennessee and attended college and law school in North Carolina. My husband, Stephen, works at KeyBank. We have 2 daughters who attend Hathaway Brown (where I am co-President of the Parents Association). Our family includes a Goldendoodle named Duncan. I enjoy walking our dog, reading and spending time with friends.
Lisa Taylor
My family and I moved to the Cleveland area in 2019 from downtown Chicago. The move was transformational for us and one of the best life decisions we have ever made. A job opportunity for my husband brought us to Greater Cleveland. I have a son in preschool and a daughter in elementary school within the Orange City Schools District. They are involved in an array of activities ranging from theatre to science to sports. Our Exotic Shorthair cat, Sterling, keeps us entertained at home. We reside in Orange Village on the east side of Cleveland and frequent Pinecrest, Eton, and many restaurants in our neighborhood and beyond. When not exploring our local area, we delight in discovering the world-class museums and cultural institutions in University Circle and along the lakefront. I’ve lived in variety of cities, and was born and raised in Canton, Ohio (home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame). My education and career have granted me the time to live in cities such as Ithaca, NY, Bloomington, IN, New York City, Oxford, England, and Austin, TX. I’m a graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration and hold a Juris Doctorate degree from Indiana University. Compared to other cities I’ve resided in, going through the acclimation process in Cleveland was seamless. Clevelanders are very welcoming and are genuinely interested in helping new residents become part of the fabric of the community right from the start. There is no waiting period to be a Clevelander. Locals could not be more accepting and welcoming to those that choose to live here. For fun, I enjoy exploring new and interesting restaurants and hotels. Modern design sparks my curiosity. In my free time, I enjoy volunteering with the Executive Board of the Orange Schools PTA, serve on the Orange Community Education & Recreation Commission Board, and act as Chair of the Cornell Alumni Admissions Ambassador Network for Cleveland. Our family is very happy to have found our home, along a with strong sense of community, in Cleveland!
If your company would like every advantage to landing that next recruit in this hyper competitive market, let us share how Executive Arrangements can provide the wrap around services that vividly show the entire family how this relocation can work for them and you in turn have your first choice candidate! 216.23.9311