VMCL stands for Vision, Mission, Capacity, Learning. VMCL is a model for designing, leading, and managing organizations that takes into account the complexity of the real world. In short, VMCL allows organizational leaders and managers to understand and influence their organization based how it really is (e.g., nonlinear, adaptive, distributed network, competing demands for attention and resources, complex) rather than how we wish it was (eg, hierarchical, linear, static, simple). Learn more…

 

Dr. Derek Cabrera is an internationally recognized expert in complex systems and systems thinking. As a scientist and entrepreneur, he is the Founder and President of ThinkWorks and Faculty of the Cabrera Research Lab. He holds a PhD from, was a post doctoral fellow, and served as faculty at Cornell University, where he taught the graduate-level course on systems thinking.

A dynamic and engaging speaker, Dr. Cabrera has presented nationally and internationally on a variety of topics, including his revolutionary VMCL Method for effective leadership, management, and design of organizations. Dr. Cabrera also holds a US Patent (US Pat. 8075314) for the DSRP Method, which is the theoretical basis for the VMCL Model, DSRP Diagrams (a powerful idea mapping technique) and DSRPBlocks (a tactile idea modeling tool he invented to aid in teaching advanced critical and creative thinking skills to business and educational leaders worldwide). He is the author of numerous books, book chapters, peer-reviewed journals articles, and white papers. His research has been profiled in refereed journals, trade magazines, and popular publications.

Prior to his current appointments, Derek worked for more than a decade both nationally and internationally as a mountain-climbing guide with Outward Bound and other organizations. As an avid adventure traveler and arm-chair anthropologist, he has led high-altitude climbing expeditions to the world’s most remote mountain regions and visited tribal communities around the world.

Dr. Laura Colosi is a renowned educator, evaluator, and expert in research methods. She currently holds a senior faculty appointment at Cornell University and is COO of ThinkWorks. With more than fifteen years of research and
teaching experience, Laura has both a Masters in Public Administration and a PhD in Policy Analysis and Management from Cornell University.

As a speaker at the national and international scale, Dr. Colosi has led workshops and keynotes on many topics including VMCL, assessing corporate performance, program evaluation, and educational reform. In her current role at ThinkWorks, she provides on-going consultative work and professional development to businesses, non-profits, government agencies, and universities all over the country. Dr. Colosi has also held appointments or conducted research at the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, and the U.S. Department of Justice. Her work has been published widely in academic journals, and she has recently coauthored three books with Dr.
Derek Cabrera.