Watershed Thought Leaders
Dan Isbister
Dan is a proven sales and business development professional bringing 30 years of experience in the ever changing IT industry to Watershed. Dan’s IT career started in Development, Engineering evolving into large Program Capture roles that served as great background for 20 years in Sales roles at Wang Laboratories, 3Com, Cisco and VCE. Dan also spent some time in Business Development and Partner Management roles at Cisco broadening his negotiating background.
Dan has managed sales territories in Civilian, DoD and the System Integrator Communities and also managed partner and Systems Integrator relationships for these OEM’s. Throughout his business career, Dan has negotiated and crafted innovative business agreements, leveraging vital alliances and creating value for all partners and customers.
A 6-time member of the United States Kayaking team and 1979 National K-1 Slalom Champion, Dan still enjoys kayaking, sailing, skiing, biking and traveling. Dan has a BS in Information Systems from the University of Maryland and MBA from George Washington University.
Cait Clarke, Esq.
Cait Clarke, Esq. has 20+ years of experience teaching, training and coaching in law, leadership, management and negotiation for attorneys and others in the legal arena.
Cait has designed curriculum, managed trainings, and trained hundreds of attorneys throughout the U.S. in a variety of programs, including the National Defender Leadership Institute at the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government's Executive Session on Public Defense, funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Harvard Law School, and Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans.
Her doctoral fieldwork took her to South Africa where she studied and published on plea negotiations. She has also completed the MIT-Harvard Public Disputes Program and Harvard Law School's Program on Negotiation for Senior Executives.
In her community work, Cait has served as Co-Chair of the National Consortium on Community Problem Solving and on the International Board of Advisors to Justice Without Borders. She is extensively published, with law reviews, articles, book chapters and book reviews to her credit. She holds her S.J.D. from Harvard Law School, LL.M from Georgetown University Law Center's Criminal Justice Clinic, J.D. from Catholic University's Columbus School of Law, and B.S. from Villanova University's School of Commerce and Finance.
Carrie Cameron, Ph.D.
Carrie Cameron, PhD is a specialist in cross-cultural negotiation and communication. Lead author of Watershed’s Best Negotiating Practices: Negotiating Across Cultures program, she consults with Fortune 100 companies in the energy, health care, aerospace, and airline sectors, as well as in academia.
Carrie is a faculty member at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, where she conducts research on international scientific exchange and communication; in 2009 she was named a Fulbright Senior Specialist in this area, a distinction that she will hold for five years.
Carrie was instrumental in developing and implementing cross-cultural business and negotiations training for the five international partners of NASA’s International Space Station and has consulted with Japan’s NASDA ISS team on their negotiations with NASA. In the energy sector, she has served as cross-cultural negotiations consultant on various projects, including a $1B international development project. In the academic arena, she coaches U.S. and international researchers negotiating for grant funding, research resources, and implementation of scientific research agendas.
With over 25 years’ experience in training, research, and consulting, Carrie’s work has taken her to a wide range of countries, including Russia, Japan, Paraguay, Chile, Mexico, Germany, Hungary, and Egypt. She is active in community and school efforts dedicated to refugee assistance and to community and global integration.
Having completed a Bachelor’s degree magna cum laude in Russian at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, she went on to complete her doctorate and conduct postdoctoral research in Linguistics at Rice University. She is fluent in Spanish and Russian and conversant in several other languages.
Neil Shister
Neil Shister, advisor, writer and editor for Watershed, is author of The Ten Minute Guide to Negotiation, which has been translated into German and Japanese.
Most recently Editorial Director of World Trade Magazine, covering transportation, logistics management, finance and supply chain technology as well as international trade policy and economic development, Neil advises Watershed on industry specific issues.
Neil’s journalism and communications experience includes correspondent with Time Magazine, television writer for The Miami Herald, editor of Atlanta (GA) Magazine, Senior Vice President of Hill and Knowlton (Manager, Custom Publishing), Vice President/Marketing Inc. Magazine Business Resources, and Editor/Publisher, PRTM Consulting’s Insight Magazine. Neil has also served as a communications consultant, Adjunct Professor at Boston University, School of Communication and Associate Professor at Hampshire College, School of Language and Communication.
Neil holds a M.Phil. from Yale University and B.A. from the University of Michigan (Phi Beta Kappa), and served in the Peace Corps in the Ivory Coast, West Africa. Among Neil’s many published works are 10 Minute Guide to Negotiation, Macmillan Spectrum/Alpha Books, 1997 and Negotiate Your Way to Financial Success, G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1987 (ghost writer).
Cari Keller
Cari has 20 years of sales and marketing experience in the for-profit, nonprofit and public sectors. She has worked for two Fortune 500 companies (MCI Worldcom and Sun Microsystems), a global association (International Institute of Finance), and a ground-breaking federal agency (Corporation for National and Community Service). Cari has contributed management skills to start-up and small business enterprises. She has an MBA and a BA in International Studies from The American University. Well-traveled, Cari is globally aware, culturally sensitivity and a skilled communicator.
Catherine Robertson, Ph.D.
Catherine Robertson brings 25 years of experience as an educator, researcher, writer, and continuing student of communication and performance. She uses her research, strategic planning and facilitation skills to develop curriculum that engages the learner and creates insights and lasting behavioral change. Catherine taught classes at Notre Dame College in Cleveland, Ohio on public speaking, mass media, news writing, nonprint media and film. She holds a BA in English, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Communication/Performance Studies from Northwestern University.