Gary Cormier
Executive/Leadership Coach-Former Harvard HR Leader-Organizational Advisor
Studied at London School of Theology
Worked at Advanced Cyber Security
FREE INTRODUCTORY CALL - 20 Minutes What I would like to learn from you: • Your current role • What prompted you to consider coaching • The leadership challenge or opportunity you're facing • What you'd like to be different six months from now • Whether my background and coaching approach fit what you need There is no obligation to continue.
Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.
Gary's Offerings
Custom hourly · $325/hr
Get help with Change Management, Conflict Resolution, and Emotional Intelligence.
Gary’s Leadership Coaching Qualifications
Coaches professionally
Experience level: Executive
I would bring to this work more than four decades of experience in human resources, organizational development, leadership consulting, and executive coaching. My career has included senior HR leadership and consulting roles, including more than a decade leading HR consulting work at Harvard University, as well as advising executives and leadership teams across biotechnology, healthcare, higher education, technology, professional services, and other organizations. Throughout my career, I have coached leaders through promotions, organizational change, difficult employee situations, team challenges, executive transitions, career decisions, and significant leadership-development opportunities.
Gary can help with:
Change Management
Conflict Resolution
Emotional Intelligence
About Gary
Executive & Leadership Coach | Former Harvard HR Leader | Helping Managers, Directors & Executives Lead at the Next Level I help successful leaders make the transition from being highly capable individual contributors and functional experts to becoming influential, strategic leaders who get results through others. My coaching draws on more than four decades of experience in human resources, organizational development, leadership consulting, and executive coaching - including more than a decade leading HR consulting work at Harvard University. I have advised executives, managers, scientists, technical leaders, and leadership teams across higher education, biotechnology, healthcare, technology, professional services, and other organizations. My approach combines thoughtful coaching with practical leadership tools. My clients leave our conversations not only with greater insight, but with specific actions they can immediately apply in their organizations.
Why do I coach?
I believe great coaching should create both insight and forward movement. My role isn't simply to listen or give advice. It's to help clients step back from the immediate demands of their jobs, see situations differently, challenge assumptions, recognize patterns, and decide how they want to lead. Sometimes that means asking a difficult question - or introducing a framework or tool - or helping someone rehearse an important conversation – or think through a consequential decision. And sometimes the most useful question is: "What are you doing today that someone at the next level would no longer be doing?" My goal is for every coaching conversation to produce greater clarity, increased capability, and something meaningful the client can put into practice.
Work Experience
HR Advisor & Consultant
Advanced Cyber Security
June 2025 - February 2026
Help organization look at current staffing model and future staffing needs. Assist with sourcing and recruiting top talent for a few key roles. Organizational Development, Coaching and +2 skills
HR Advisor & Consultant
Academic Search
June 2025 - August 2025
Helping with various HR projects and processes for this fast-growing search business.
HR Advisor & Consultant
Magnet Biomedicine
March 2025 - Present
Fractional CHRO role at Magnet Biomedicine, a biotech company pioneering molecular glue therapeutics to target disease-driving proteins previously considered undruggable, with an initial focus on cancer. Program Management, Organizational Development and +3 skills
Interim CHRO
Cohere Health
December 2022 - June 2023
Interim CHRO for Cohere Health while the company searched for their next full-time head of HR. Managed a staff of HR Consultants as well as relationships with a benefits brokerage firm and 401K wealth management firm.
Learning Facilitator
Independent Consultant
June 2020 - Present
After 35+ years in HR—and nearly 12 of those at Harvard University working in higher education—I’m excited to be returning to consulting. I’ll be focusing on team building, organizational development, and leading workshops on management and employee development—work I’ve always genuinely loved. It feels great to be getting back to this, and I’m really looking forward to what’s ahead and the people I’ll get to work with along the way. If you or your organization are thinking about strengthening your team or investing in employee development, I’d love to connect—feel free to reach out. Facilitator and Presenter, Training and Development Educator and +5 skills
Senior Director
Harvard University
June 2010 - June 2022
Direct a staff of 12 HR Consultants who provide support as HR Consultants and Advisors to all of Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University - FAS comprises the main university (undergraduate and graduate students), faculty and over 3,000 staff. Lead the efforts around training and development and OD capabilities throughout FAS and design and deliver a series of sessions on management and leadership development as well as teambuilding sessions.
Co-Founder/VP of Talent Solutions
myperfectgig
September 2007 - May 2011
Hiring Manager
Co-founder of a new internet start-up to revolutionize the online recruitment industry by delivering unparalleled matching between an employer’s job spec and a candidate’s actual skills. By creating a “common language” between the two, My Perfect Gig will deliver an experience for both corporate recruiters and candidates that is uniquely defined, precisely matched, and successfully connected.
SVP & CHRO
Brass Ring Communications
July 1999 - January 2007
Created the HR function and then took over billable Consulting organization with revenue upward of $3M annually.
Director of Worldwide HR Operations
IBM
May 1985 - May 1999
Directed HR function for Lotus Development North America Sales & Services and for Europe, APAC, Japan, Latin America and Canada. Managed a staff of 7 HR Consultants with dotted line management of multiple geographies. Lotus was acquired by IBM in 1995 and I remained at IBM until 1999.
Education
London School of Theology
Masters Degree, Theology/Pastoral Counseling
1983 - 1985
Grade: Masters Activities and societies: Student Council Member Masters of Theological Studies and Certification in Pastoral Counseling
Assumption University
BS, Biology & English
1976 - 1980
Masters in Counseling from Weston School of Theology