Hello * Hola * Salut * Olá * Namaste

My name is Marisa Ortiz and I serve visionary leaders and mission-driven organizations as a workplace consultant, instructor and coach. Having worked with organizations in several countries, my experience in talent development and cultural awareness bridges teams in diverse industries.

Born and raised in Torreón, Coah., México, I relocated to Texas to start college at only 16 years of age and obtained an honors degree, Cum Laude Bachelor’s Degree in French and Political Science, from the University of Texas at El Paso in 2002. As an international student I worked part-time in IT, research, and community relations spending summers in intensive academic experiences; I studied French at L’Université Catholique de l’Ouest and Mexican history and anthropology at the Universidad Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico City. At the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington, DC, I interned at the Sustainable Development department and at L’Alliançe Française d’El Paso I established a French language school. The National Council on US-Arab Relations selected me to represent the US after 9/11 on an academic trip to the Middle East.

In 2002 I moved to San Antonio, TX to work at a local nonprofit organization for people with disabilities, managing a grant-training program, offering social work services, and fundraising events for almost 5 years. I was recruited by Strengths-based global company Rackspace in early 2007 to manage the Asian-Pacific account base during night shift while finishing my graduate degree. I received the 2007 Marianist Scholarship on Development for excellence in academic performance at St. Mary’s University; simultaneously providing my international clients with “Fanatical Support,” mainly in South Asia, and organically providing intercultural training to US and UK coworkers.

By mid-2008 I was working as a corporate trainer bringing intercultural awareness to employee training programs in the HR department managing company wide customer-facing employee onboarding using Strengths for 5 years. My first Strengths certification was in 2011 by Houston-based Evolve Performance Group.

In 2012 I was one of four founders of the Latin American (LATAM) division of Rackspace doing international business strategy and marketing; translation and localization to Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese, and leading visits to headquarters in both languages while growing the team from 4 to 40 employees in one year. By 2014, I returned to HR as the company-wide Strengths Program Manager facilitating all Strengths workshops, coaching, and obtaining my Gallup Certification in January 2015, also supporting new employee orientation facilitating for up to 120 new employees monthly.

In 2015 I decided to pursue self-employment consulting full time balancing family, community, and entrepreneurship, and have been steadily successful serving clients in diverse industries while organically growing my business.

I serve my community in San Antonio, Texas to a global audience as a faculty and board member of Executive Book Review, group of life-long learners engaging in rich dialogue through fascinating books.

I am passionate about world history, global affairs, learning and teaching, the arts, languages and literature, world music and dance, mindfulness and sustainability. I am a professional singer, former belly dancer, connected to ancient wisdom traditions, home birther and peaceful Montessori parent.