ABOUT US

Brett Spodak

CEO

Brett Spodak is a seasoned entrepreneur, innovator and problem solver. Over the last 25+ years, he has built multiple companies in the fields of education and technology by developing innovative solutions to problems he recognized in the marketplace.

After graduating from University of Michigan in 1993, Brett recognized that there was a shortage of tutors in his hometown of Baltimore. Middle school and high school students were struggling but could not find knowledgeable and engaging tutors who could help them succeed in school. With a strong math and science background, and a knack for communicating complex topics in simple terms, Brett decided to market his services and saw great success. As demand grew in all subjects, he hired additional staff and ultimately grew his company, Tutoring Connection, to become the largest one-on-one learning center in Maryland.

While running Tutoring Connection, Brett was on a continuous hunt for talented and passionate teachers for his learning center. While attending a job fair at a local university, he recognized that schools across the country were facing a similar challenge. There was a national teacher shortage with no easy way to find educators to fill their positions. In 1999, Brett addressed the need by building a website, Teachers-Teachers.com, that provided a streamlined way for schools to post job vacancies and search a national teacher resume database. Over the next fifteen years, Teachers-Teachers.com became the largest teacher recruitment company in the United States, growing its database to over one million job seekers and 20,000 schools.

During his tenure as CEO of Teachers-Teachers.com, Brett always looked for ways to leverage technology to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of his staff. Recognizing that the majority of his day was spent managing emails, to-do’s, meetings and notes, he developed hundreds of time saving techniques using the advanced functionality of tools such as Microsoft Outlook. After selling Teachers-Teachers, Brett recognized that professionals in all industries were overwhelmed with email and to-do’s and plagued with a shortage of time. In 2014, he founded Productive Power to help people overcome these challenges by teaching them how to master their digital tools.

Today, Productive Power's team of productivity coaches works with professionals in all industries to help them take control of their day. Through one-on-one coaching, participants are taught a more streamlined way to use their software so they can increase productivity and organization. Clients report life-changing results including the ability to accomplish more, beat deadlines and enjoy peace of mind in and out of the office.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

I love running a company that on a daily basis helps individuals transform their lives. I’m also privileged to work with individuals who share my same passion for helping people and who possess the talent to make it happen.

Carol Teliska

Carol is passionate about making a difference in people’s lives. She has always aspired to positively impact others, from her years as a classroom teacher to the time she spends volunteering in service to the individuals and families in her community.

As Productive Power’s Operations Manager, she is dedicated to implementing effective systems and strategies to ensure this life-changing program is made available to as many professionals as possible.

Carol first met the owner of Productive Power in 2001 when she joined him in his quest to change the way schools and teachers connect. She worked alongside him to help grow his successful recruitment service, Teachers-Teachers.com. It was during these years that she experienced first-hand how Brett’s best practices increased their team’s effectiveness and reduced everyone’s stress. She is thrilled to once again be part of a growing company with a mission that is close to her heart.

Carol lives in Eastern Pennsylvania with her husband and two children. Regardless of the season (though summer is her favorite) she enjoys her time raising her young children and spending time with her husband, family, and friends.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

I love being a part of a company that is helping people reduce their stress and find that frequently elusive work-life balance. Technology has benefited us all in so many wonderful ways. With that, however, is an increasing expectation to do more things and to do them quicker. There remain only so many hours in a week and it can be overwhelming at times. I am glad to be part of an organization that is helping people get on the right side of technology to improve the quality of their working and non-working lives.

Melissa Poole

Melissa joined the team as a Digital Productivity Coach in June 2017. Melissa knew at a very young age that she had a passion for helping others elevate their performance and improve efficiency. Back in the day, most people called that passion “being bossy.”

Before coming to Productive Power, Melissa worked as a client and internal trainer for Reynolds and Reynolds, where she developed numerous software training programs and courses. She single-handedly maintained and improved the department’s enrollment database and still enjoys creating databases in Microsoft Access for fun. Melissa lives outside of Houston, Texas, with her husband, two daughters, and a crazy beagle.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

I love that our program teaches our clients to become more productive at work, but my favorite part is that it carries over to their personal lives. There is nothing more meaningful to me than a client saying they actually spent the entire weekend with their family and didn’t feel like they needed to open their laptop to get a few things done. I love being able to have such a positive impact on my clients’ lives.

Tanya Callan

Tanya Callan is a Managing Director at Productive Power. She has five years of experience in productivity coaching in the real estate industry and a strong belief in work-life balance.
Tanya's mission is to empower individuals to achieve their goals and live a fulfilling life. She has a unique perspective, having experienced the difficulties of finding balance herself and is dedicated to helping others overcome those challenges.
Tanya lives with her fiancé Mike and their two dogs at the Jersey Shore and loves to dance, listen to music, and spend time outdoors.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

My favorite part about working at Productive Power is experiencing a better work-life balance myself while being able to help others find balance in their lives and see the excitement of their achievements.

Bob Andress

As a Managing Director, Bob helps busy professionals tame their hectic workday. His passion for helping others has guided his career for well over a decade. As a Licensed Practical Nurse, Bob learned that the greatest joy came from offering assistance to those who need it. Bob later took that passion and his love of technology into the electronic medical records (EMR) space. Here, he realized his knack for training and has since trained hundreds of professionals in many industries on a myriad of technologies. Bob’s current role allows him to listen to people’s needs and prescribe the type of program that will help them realize their productivity goals.

Bob lives in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, with his wife, and two children. When not helping his clients, he enjoys family time, watching his local sports teams, and organizing a local music festival.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

Working for Productive Power has allowed me to use my training skills and follow my passion, all while working from home. Not only do I get to work within an amazing, collaborative team, but I get to wake up each morning knowing that I’m about to help people achieve their goals while giving them more time to spend doing the things they love.

Shawna Spiller

Shawna joined the Productive Power team in October 2019. She brings her diverse background, including project management, client relations management and marketing to our team. Her 'client first' mentality has allowed us to ensure that our productivity program is successful, from beginning to end.

Shawna comes from a science background, earning her BS degree in Soil Science and Chemistry from Southern Illinois University. After college, she found herself drawn to business and was an executive for a large, national professional liability company for three years. She has also held multiple roles as the lead project manager for both local companies and global corporations. These experiences have provided her with unique insights into how business operations and processes can be improved to benefit both the company and the consumer. She has a deep commitment to the utilization of available technology and a desire to help others succeed, both personally and professionally.

Shawna lives in beautiful Southern Illinois with her three children, two dogs and one very finicky cat. She has many hobbies she enjoys, including cooking gourmet meals for her friends and family, hiking and camping with her children, volunteering in the local homeless and animal shelters and traveling to Cozumel, Mexico to scuba dive.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

Seeing the total transformation of our clients from the beginning of the program to the end! People come to Productive Power feeling completely overwhelmed with their day and once they’ve completed our course, they have taken back control of their workflow. I enjoy the feeling of accomplishment after speaking to our clients, knowing that we were able to reduce their stress, give them time back in their day and enhance their lives!

Leah Colatosti

Leah has worked with Productive Power as a Digital Productivity Coach since 2017, and now also as the Curriculum Development Manager. Helping clients achieve peace of mind and satisfaction in their daily workflow is her passion, especially when she can help them find fast and simple solutions to difficult problems. She is a firm believer in using tools as they're designed to be used and maximizing the use of the platforms you already have before adding more complexity to your workflow.

As a Certified Digital Wellness Educator, she also enjoys helping clients make positive, concrete changes in their relationship with technology to improve their focus and decrease distractions. She believes we're all susceptible to the distractions of modern life, but enjoys working with clients to find creative ways to manage these distractions and foster a positive (and productive!) relationship with digital tools.

Leah lives in Littleton, CO with her family. She spends her summers exploring the west in her camper and her winters skiing as much as she can.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

Watching clients transform the way they work to be empowered by their workflow. Many people feel like the workday is just happening to them, so seeing clients take control of their day and feel proactive is a wonderful feeling as a coach! I really enjoy the freedom to help clients meet their individual needs and goals that are important to them.

Lauren Kohrs

Lauren joined the Coaching team at Productive Power in February of 2019 but has been training for over a decade. She has had a passion for people for as long as she can remember. In fact, her love of training started at the young age of 15, when she was given the opportunity to train incoming new hires at a local business. Subsequently, Lauren became a trainer and mentor in every position she held.

In 2016, Lauren was able to turn her lifelong passion into a career at Houzz, where she achieved the title of Lead Marketplace Customer Support Trainer. There, she lead in-person and remote training classes for hundreds of new and existing employees. Lauren has trained in everything from customer support, to tone and empathy, to company policies, and of course, the various technologies needed to complete the job. As her experience grew, she developed an extended in-depth training for new hires, helped create training curriculum for a massive technological transition, and acted as a leader and mentor for other trainers.

Lauren lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her favorite pastime is attending concerts and music festivals, but she also loves traveling, reading, spending time outdoors, and boating with her friends and family.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

I truly enjoy meeting and building relationships with people from all walks of life, and with Productive Power, I’m able to meet people from all across the U.S.! I also love to watch people grow and help them reach their full potential. I have a saying which is, “I live for the light bulb!” meaning I thrive on those aha-moments a client experiences when they realize just how much our program can help them. That genuine look of accomplishment that a client gets when they’ve reached their goals is invaluable, whether that goal is a decluttered work life or getting back indispensable personal time that they’d lost. Being able to share in that joy with each client is tremendously gratifying.

Lauren Moscardelli

Lauren joined the Productive Power team as a Digital Productivity Coach in 2019. As the company's Learning & Development Manager, Lauren is dedicated to creating and implementing internal training and mentorship programs that foster growth and success for her team members. Her passion for learning and development is evident as she consistently creates resources and training programs to empower others in their personal and professional journeys.

As the team's Product Manager, Lauren spearheaded the development of our first eLearning program and facilitated the development of group workshops. She has further expanded our ability to help clients achieve their goals and foster a culture of collaborative learning. She has a remarkable talent for using relatable analogies that foster personal connections and make complex concepts easily understandable. Don’t be surprised if some of her phrases get stuck in your head!

Lauren lives just outside of Kansas City, with her husband, two children, and two dogs. When she's not helping clients boost productivity, she enjoys gardening, camping with her family, and helping others in her community harness the endless power of technology.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

I feel incredibly fulfilled working for a company that creates significant positive change in people's lives. It's truly rewarding to witness individuals recognize that they can achieve substantial goals through small daily adjustments. Whether it's helping them grow their business, engage in impactful projects, improve work-life balance, or automate tasks for greater flexibility and freedom, the joy of seeing my participants rapidly reach new heights of success is unparalleled. I find it especially rewarding when these positive changes extend beyond their professional realm and positively impact their personal lives too!

Olivia Aebli

Olivia is a Digital Productivity Coach with the Productive Power team. She is energized by the success of others and has always felt destined to fulfill roles that would allow her to provide support and guidance to those around her. She has been cultivating her nurturing approach to coaching others since her childhood role as a peer mediator.

With an extensive background in education and coaching, Olivia has guided hundreds of individuals to reach their personal and professional goals. Olivia discovered the power of leveraging technology to increase efficiency when she assisted her school district with the implementation of Microsoft products in classrooms to create a productive remote learning experience. From counseling and supporting university students to assisting with the implementation of software to facilitate virtual learning, Olivia has always led with empathy and compassion.

Olivia currently lives just outside of Baltimore, MD. She loves any activity that allows her to spend time outside and has a passion for art. She also enjoys listening to music and attends live concerts and often as she can.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

My favorite part about working for Productive Power is the impact of our programs. The difference that Productive Power services can have on such a wide range of professionals is truly astounding. As a coach, I am fortunate to have the opportunity to build relationships with people from a diverse range of backgrounds. This program has something for everyone, and getting to see the excitement that participants feel when they are introduced to a practice that makes sense for their needs is so rewarding. Everyone can benefit from what Productive Power has to offer, and I love that I am able to support people in a way that promotes both efficiency and a healthier work-life balance.

Kattie Stenson

Kattie is a Digital Productivity Coach with the Productive Power team. With her coaching career rooted in the education field, Kattie has always believed in both being a lifelong learner and using innovative strategies to enhance a person’s strengths. Kattie helps her clients adapt systems to increase speed, function, and well-being to guide them on their journey to personal success.
As a teacher, Kattie incorporated state-of-the-art virtual and augmented reality into her classroom. Her use of innovative technology in education, combined with her exceptional teaching skills, led to the opportunity to present at multiple conferences across the nation, including the International Society for Technology in Education. Moving into a role as an Instructional Coach, Kattie implemented curriculum development programs and training on resources used throughout the education field. As her experience grew, so did her reputation with her colleagues, establishing her as a leader in multiple content areas. Kattie’s mission is to help others identify the potential for growth, set goals, and provide clarity, direction, and positive support with an ultimate goal of satisfaction and success.
Kattie lives in Omro, Wisconsin, home of the Packers, Badgers, and Bucks. When she isn’t cheering on the Wisconsin fan favorites, she spends her time exploring, creating, and adventuring outside with her husband and three little children.

What is my favorite part about working for Productive Power?

Working for Productive Power has helped me find efficient strategies and tips to keeping life balanced and logical. Learning these techniques created highly productive mannerisms across Windows, Google, and Mac platforms to increase my work-life balance and flow. The strategies that are offered create simplistic structures to open up doors and avenues in my daily tasks, both professionally and personally. This allows me to centralize my focus on the areas that bring the most value of my time in my eyes. I love that I can provide these same game changing techniques and skills for clients across the nation who are striving for an advantageous life in and out of the office.