Catherine Lazen,M.Ed, MSW, LCSW
Neurodiversity Expert | Neuroscience-based Leadership Consultant
About Catherine
Background
I am an educational psychologist, psychotherapist and neurodiversity expert with thirty years of experience working in educational, therapeutic and organizational settings. I help highly skilled professionals, executive leaders and corporate training organizations navigate relational challenges, improve collaboration, build resilience and protect investment of talent within neurodiverse teams. With a background in cognition and interpersonal neurobiology, I offer a brain-based, clinical perspective to leadership coaching and management consulting.
The Problem
Losing specialized technical talent is expensive. Replacing a senior engineer, technical lead, or specialized clinician costs an organization 80-200% of their annual salary when accounting for recruiting fees, vacancy costs, productivity ramp-up, and tribal knowledge loss, according to Gallup research.
Relational disconnect drives attrition. In technical and clinical organizations, collaboration often breaks down because fundamentally different cognitive and relational styles are operating under pressure. Highly specialized, technical specialists are known for their capacity for precision, autonomy, depth of analysis, and systems thinking. Leadership requires a different set of strengths: speed of decision-making, social navigation, and organizational alignment.
While skills necessary for each role can be taught, people have innate temperamental, neuro-developmental and cognitive strengths and challenges (beyond personality styles), that need to be understood, respected, and navigated. Those differences shape communication patterns, stress responses, and approaches to collaboration.
When neurotypes collide—particularly in high-stakes environments—the result is often misinterpretation, frustration, and escalating conflict. The specialist risks career disruption and loss of income, while the organization faces 80-200% of salary in replacement costs, tribal knowledge loss, and potential system failures. Traditional HR interventions—performance improvement plans, mediation, standard coaching—often fail to resolve the friction because they don't address the deeper, neurodevelopmental differences and psychological causes.
What I Offer
I offer clinically informed, neuroscience-based expertise at the intersection of neurodiversity, stress resilience, and leadership capacity — helping organizations understand how the brain operates across neurotypes and under pressure, and what that means for collaboration, performance, and retention.
Specialist-Leader Relationships
I work with both technical specialists and their leaders when relational friction threatens retention. Whether you're the high-performer feeling misunderstood or the executive struggling to retain critical talent, I help both parties develop fluency in each other's neurotypes and communication styles.
Organizational Strategy
I partner with C-suite executives, HR leaders, and senior management to build infrastructure for retaining neurodivergent talent—from policy development to leadership training to crisis intervention.
Training & Development
I collaborate with L&D teams and training organizations to develop and deliver evidence-based programming on neurodiversity, psychological safety, and collaboration across neurotypes.
My Approach
My work adapts evidence-based clinical approaches for application in workplace settings. I build on strengths and address challenges with a commitment to individual dignity and organizational success.
Who I Work With
High-Level Individual Contributors
Technical experts, senior engineers, and specialized professionals navigating workplace dynamics and leadership expectations.
Executive Leadership
C-suite executives, directors, and senior managers seeking to build inclusive, high-performing teams and retain critical talent.
HR Teams
Human resources professionals addressing complex interpersonal conflicts, accommodation requests, and talent retention challenges.
Corporate Education and Training Organizations
Learning and development teams seeking evidence-based training on neurodiversity, psychological safety, and workplace collaboration.
Services
Professional Leadership Coaching
One-on-one coaching to help leaders navigate complex relational dynamics, reduce workplace friction, and strengthen team collaboration.
Expert Advisory Services
Strategic consultation for organizations seeking expert guidance on neurodiversity, relational dynamics, and talent retention strategies.
- Training material review and feedback
- Expert witness/perspective for HR decisions/inclusion policy
- Speaking engagements
- Custom advisory on neurodiversity strategy
Professional Training
Customized 2-hour and half-day training sessions on workplace dynamics, communication strategies, and evidence-based approaches to collaboration and talent retention.
- Disability Ethics and Accommodations: Neurodiversity in the Workplace
- Psychological Safety in the Workplace: The Interpersonal Neurobiology of Teamwork
- Beyond Personality: Neurodevelopmental Profiles of Leaders and Contributors
- Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) for Executive Teams
- Psychotherapeutic Tools for Managing Workplace Stress
- Understanding and Working with Difficult People at Work
Areas of Expertise
The following areas of expertise inform my consulting work and are translated into practical, non-diagnostic applications for leadership and organizational development:
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) for neurodivergent and neurotypical adults
Interpersonal Neurobiology of Conflict and Collaboration
Skills-based psychotherapeutic modalities for emotional regulation and interpersonal relationships: Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and Radically Open Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (RO-DBT)
Ethics and Legality of Disability Accommodations in Schools and Workplaces
Autism and Neurodiversity: strengths and challenges
Cognition and learning styles: differentiating management for diverse learners
Empathy and collaboration within power structures: clinically informed, ethical communication strategies for management and employee engagement
Performance, Communication and Neurobiology of Stress
Common Questions
Learn more about my approach, ethical framework, and how we can work together.
Is this therapy?
No. This is leadership consulting and professional coaching, not clinical care.
Who do you work with?
Leaders, organizations, and neurodivergent professionals navigating workplace dynamics.
What business outcomes does this support?
Reduced attrition, improved collaboration, lower escalation costs, and team stability.
Is this confidential?
Yes. Coaching conversations are confidential with clear agreements.
Let's Work Together
Ready to transform how your organization understands and leverages neurodiversity? Get in touch to discuss how we can work together.
Or email me directly at [email protected]