Rita B Allen Associates

I was faced with a tremendous challenge this year to implement a Management Development Program for our Senior Management and Middle Management Teams. Rita was more than up for the challenge and hit a grand slam with 4 individual sessions over the year assisting with the transformation to a more proactive and strategic leadership team. Rita tailored a very in-depth program to an extremely diverse group and not only provided them with a total package of management skills, but helped me create a much more team oriented environment. I so enjoyed working with her on each session, streamlining what would be valuable to my group, what they would really take away from the program and doing it in a way that was fun and meaningful. After each session I conducted evaluations from the managers and the feedback was always glowing. Rita not only won over the group, but helped me create a better relationship with them as well. I highly recommend her to meet any career or employee development challenge at any level.

I was looking for a “problem solver” to help me handle some difficult employee relations and communication issues. Rita came highly recommended to me and I am so glad she was. Rita’s communication style was extremely effective in tackling our issue. She put my staff at ease to get to the heart of the problem and then integrated that feedback into a clear, well thought-out action plan. I’ve found her follow-up to be outstanding!! Rita truly made a connection with me and my team and cares to see our long-term commitment to that action plan continue. One of the many benefits I’ve realized through working with Rita has been my increased sense of confidence. We didn’t set out to work on that…but through this process she’s naturally helped me gain a proper perspective on these difficult employee relations issues and thus has greatly increased my confidence!!

We have used Rita's career counseling services multiple times with great results. The employees truly appreciated the support they received as they were making their career transitions. Rita tailored her approach to meet each individual's unique needs and schedule requirements, as well as keeping Human Resources informed in the process. By focusing on identifying their skills, interests, competencies, values and priorities and then creating an action plan allowing them to reach their maximum potential, she creates a strong foundation for the individual to develop their own personal and professional plan.

I have worked in the Human Capital industry for some time and have had the opportunity to assess, select and collaborate with several outplacement/career coaching firms on behalf of my clients. So when it came time for me to select a coach for myself, I chose Rita for several reasons: 1- Reputation – I’d known that Rita was first-rate and highly respected by colleagues in her field. I also knew that she was a leader in the human capital world. 2- Skill – Rita’s been in the industry for some time and her skills are well honed. But in particular I’ve found her strengths around helping me develop and exploit my network, and devising and executing my marketing plan have been exceptional. 3- Extensive network – Rita’s reputation and contacts, particularly in the human resources field, are extraordinary. Working with Rita Allen has been a positive experience for me. She’s been a great fit– the consummate professional. She is always responsive, insightful, and keenly focused.

“Rita has many winning attributes which are all enhanced by her trifocal lens of observing, listening and advising. I have found her to have an action coaching style which is both challenging and supportive in the way it assisted me to expand my comfort zone. I have found her to have constructive intent, integrity, positive energy, authenticity, clarity and a sense of humor. I think Rita mirrors the word professionalism!”

“Rita Allen’s depth of experience, knowledge and contacts enables her to empower and educate women and men to achieve their professional goals. Sometimes it can get a bit fuzzy trying to figure out what steps to take to determine what would make life more fulfilling, and still meet financial needs. I have found that Rita possesses an impressive ability to help people discover and clarify their unique interests and strengths. She then serves as a compass to direct their exciting journey to both personal and professional work/life balance. Her honesty, integrity and personable style provide an environment and comfort level that facilitates successful collaboration.”

“Rita helped me reshape my thinking and perspective to navigate my career in a different direction. We worked on assessing my interests, skills, talents and short and long term goals. Based upon this assessment Rita developed an individualized career plan for me to explore positions outside of the industry I had been in and taught me winning strategies to present and sell my transferable skills and experience. Throughout my career transition process she was extremely supportive and kept me motivated to find a position that excited and interested me. It was easy to develop a great rapport with Rita and her services are highly personalized to meet your unique goals.”

"Rita Allen is an exceptional Career Counselor! She is very dedicated to the individuals she coaches and adds a special personal touch to the work she does. Rita takes the extra time to really know her clients and listen to them. She is able to help her clients clarify what their interests and strengths are and how to best target careers that capture that. She is then able to help her clients with both resume and personal presentation, creating a very impressive package that is highly professional and gets results! Rita will help you identify your goals and then achieve them. When you work with Rita you can expect success. She is a class act and has my highest recommendation!"

"I have worked with Rita for the past 12 years. She is an experienced professional with a wealth of career counseling and coaching skills. You can count on her to give you honest and direct feedback. She develops long and lasting relationships. Rita has been very supportive of my career development, she is absolutely someone I can trust to give me sound career guidance and direction. I look forward to continue working with her."

“Rita Allen has provided me with expert advice and guidance on both a personal and professional level. Six years ago Rita coordinated an interview for me to meet with a company that she thought was a perfect match for my personality and level of expertise. She was right - I started in the new position two weeks later! It was a great fit. I consider Rita to be a true strategic partner when guiding individuals and organizations through career choices. What makes Rita special is she counsels and advises people through their career and is able to match the right person for the right job at the right organization.”

I read an article Rita Allen had written ("Marketing Yourself is a Core Competency" / Boston Women's Business) and thought she would be the perfect person to help a friend of mine who was thinking of changing careers. Then I read the article again and realized she might be able to help ME! Having been in my field for 25 years and in my own business for the past 15, I still liked what I did but was wondering if there were other interesting challenges out there that I should be considering. I was lucky enough to be able to work with Rita Allen and she is simply, in a word, great. In our meetings, Rita never pushed me in any particular direction but - unlike too many "professionals" - she was always perfectly willing to offer direct insight, thoughtful feedback and an objective perspective. She let me know when I was being realistic .. and when I was not. I found her to be an excellent sounding board on questions I had been struggling with for far too long. (This is the kind of insight it can be very difficult to get from even the most caring family & friends. But coming from an objective and seasoned professional like Rita, it can make all the difference. It did for me!) Rita gave me solid resources and tools, practical ideas and the honest encouragement to go for what really mattered to me. I respect, admire and like Rita Allen and would highly recommend her and her services!