Our Roots
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taproot ventures’ seeds were planted throughout our founder Laura Mansfield’s 30-year career as an entrepreneur, executive leader contractor and business owner.
Again and again, she studied and observed the importance of strong, safe, resilient and inclusive cultures. Her awareness grew into a passion to understand what it takes to grow and evolve cultures in organizations both big and small.
Distilled and refined over years of collaboration with Laura’s trusted friend and work partner Tressa Yonekawa Bundren, eight tenets emerged -- Inclusion and Belonging, Patience and Allowing, Active Listening, Trust, True Humility, Integrity, Right Action and Vulnerability.
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When you ask Laura and Tressa, they say that taproot venture’s plan was hatched when they were at the Monkey Temple in India in 2009. At the very least, the seeds were sown.
What began as two women’s intuition in 2009 has today evolved into a meaningful organization that develops exquisite organizations and professionals through human-centered leadership. With our entire team, taproot ventures continue to believe that success is about putting people at the center of decision making and building connected, resilient teams.
Over time, research and science has proven what taproot ventures has known for many years: Businesses rooted in people, purpose, and passion can not only make the world a better place but can be profitable in the process.
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We center Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) to guide us in all areas of our work. It is an ongoing, living, and emergent commitment.
Our teachings are rooted in compassion, listening, collaboration - honoring the feminine in all of us.
We turn towards nature as we seek to understand how to live in a more connected way in the world.
Our Guiding Principles
Core Team
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Laura Mansfield (She/Her)
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Stephanie Cocumelli (She/Her)
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Bobby Bashki (He/Him)
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
Vulnerability. Without it, I believe, it’s impossible to successfully lead a team or a company. Vulnerability transforms places and people. It is vital to cultivate belonging, trust, and right action.
Why We Do What We Do:
I am of the belief that now more than ever taproot is needed in the world. To provide safe spaces, cultivate potent conversations, and provide tools and insight. Our work can transform both companies AND people, I’ve seen it.
A Little About Me:
I have worked in culture and inclusion for 20+ years – as a business owner, entrepreneur, and consultant. My passion for this work runs deep and wide. I am here to be a catalyst for transformation. taproot ventures is one of my vehicles – holding space for that change
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
So difficult to choose, as each one of the taproot tenets is both meaningful and impactful in my life and work. Today I choose, RIGHT ACTION, Finding the answer with the highest good for all involved. So much of our work is around helping our clients find the right answer, through opening up conversation, inquisitiveness, and curiosity. Assisting companies to find their collective right action places belonging in the center of importance.
Why We Do What We Do:
Our commitment to assisting teams and companies to choose belonging for all involved could not be more needed, and thankfully, wanted within the workplace today. Personally, the gratification of seeing a company’s culture grow and morph into a healthier, more inclusive version of itself is so rewarding.
A Little About Me:
Throughout my career, I have developed and implemented strategies to grow companies successfully, including brands such as Williams-Sonoma, Nike, Barnes&Noble, and TOMS. My common thread throughout has been the importance of growth through the culture of team. As co-owner of taproot, forging the space between business growth and its relationship with healthy culture drives my passion for this work.
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
My favorite tenet is right action. Most senior leaders have great intentions, and few are truly aware of their impact on the people they serve. Taproot ventures Cultural Health Index helps uncover how different stakeholders within a company view the culture, from the lens of our 8 tenets. The outcome is a roadmap that prescribes actions to take, both internally and with our help, to improve the health of a company—from struggling to thriving. A true commitment to Right Action makes all the difference and goes beyond the “check the box” DEI and Belonging initiatives.
Why We Do What We Do:
It’s all about H2H (human-to-human). As long as humans walk this planet, we need to do our part to work better together. I am all about bridging divides by respectfully helping leaders uncover their blind spots, own their part and commit to the change that can impact humanity in positive ways. I do this one person at a time. The impact, the ripple, when each of us does our part is phenomenal!
A Little About Me:
Born in India and grew up globally. From Jamaica to Washington DC, I’ve always felt like a “misfit.” I’ve gone from feeling like I don’t belong anywhere, to truly belonging everywhere. As a husband and dad to three teen kids, I am constantly challenged to be my best self. I fall and then I get up to continue the journey. Professionally, I’ve had two careers – Marketing Research and Leadership Development.
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Amanda Eck (She/Her)
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Chaz Pringle (He/Him)
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Birdie Wright (She/Her)
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
My favorite tenet is Active Listening because listening to others is the source of all connections whether that be personal or professional.
Why We Do What We Do:
I’m passionate about human-centered leadership because I believe all employees should have a voice. I strongly advocate that healthy company culture, in turn, brings business success. I love being a part of a passionate team that affects positive change.
A Little About Me:
I am based in Orange County and my background is in digital marketing and project management. My industry experience ranges from additive manufacturing to management consulting.
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
"Vulnerability" is my favorite taproot tenet. I resonate with the vulnerability tenet because it's through this lens I've been able to connect with people from different cultures, ethnicities, and walks of life. I believe vulnerability is a bridge that connects our souls as Humans- we are spiritual beings, having a human experience.
Why We Do What We Do:
I choose to do this work with the taproot collective because now is the time to make a difference in the workplace, in the world, and in your direct community.
A Little About Me:
I’m a Los Angeles-based creative consultant who helps fashion and hospitality brands expand their digital presence, hone their aesthetic, assess supply chain needs, and revamp operations. My expansive career has given me a global perspective that combines hospitality management, fashion merchandising, and real-world wisdom. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising from LIM, a certificate in Crowdfunding from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Brand Management certification from the London School of Business. My education and professional background have created a consultant who combines theory, well-worn experience, and innovative thinking to help brands and businesses reach those who need them.
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
My favorite tenet of taproot is vulnerability. I believe we are able to access a deeper innate consciousness within human evolution through expressing our internal experiences externally. It's within the pause, that our hardest lessons have the ability to transform into our greatest teachings. For me, vulnerability is the link to human connection and a reminder that we are not alone in this life experience.
Why We Do What We Do:
I am involved in the work that I do because I believe in the power of human connection and loving every bit of the work you do.
A Little About Me:
I am currently living in the Pacific Northwest and have been teaching yoga, leading meditations, and facilitating workshops for healing for over seven years. There's nothing I love more than to be barefoot outdoors and reconnect with nature and all that it provides for me. I feel grateful and very blessed to be a part of a collective that is committed to transparency and true change.
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Tressa Yonekawa Bundren (She/Her)
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Favorite Tenet & Why:
As these tenets became clear over the 25+ years I've worked with leadership, they are each so interwoven and necessary, I have to say I can't imagine one without the others so if I have to pick just one, It's BELONGING because this is where the facets of each tenet have built the foundation for a healthy system of creating and supporting the psychological safety and connection of belonging in everything we do.
Why We Do What We Do:
Personally, I don't have a choice. This is my life's work. The people, places, outcomes, and connections I've made over these decades of devotion to communication, connection, lifecycle, and leadership skills continue to embolden new findings, new pathways, and new outcomes in ways that catapult leadership and teams to exactly where they want to go in life and work. I can't imagine where my skills and gifts would better serve people, the planet, or myself and my family.
A Little About Me:
I am an inclusive leadership and healthy culture strategist and have specialized in neuro-cognitive leadership behavior and connection skills for over 25 years. I specialize in critical leadership dynamics and have a lifelong curiosity about connection and communication. As a medical staffing corporation founder, mediator, leadership consultant, older child foster-adoption advocate, autism educator, and published international author, I've been fortunate to be mentored by some of the most highly regarded experts in the world. My only job is to share what I know works best so we can all be leaders at every level.
Get in touch
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