About us
Veronica and Kristen, c. 1988
Kristen and Veronica have been friends for over 35 years. While their careers took very different paths—Kristen entering the art world, and Veronica excelling in private label credit cards and mortgage services—they never lost the spark of friendship. When Kristen’s tenure as the Executive Director and CEO of the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg brought her back to the Tampa Bay area, they were thrilled to reconnect in person after so many years living in different cities.
They teamed up to create Shepherd Lane + Associates after observing that their skills are complementary and meet the needs of museums and nonprofits in a new way.
In her consulting practice, Kristen Shepherd offers the holistic perspective of a former museum director and CEO.
She provides consulting, coaching, and interim leadership services in several areas of the museum operation, including her favorite—museum membership. In the museum industry, she is known as a collaborative, supportive partner and thought leader. She activates her unusual professional background in both business and nonprofit management to help nonprofits build and support teams across disciplines.
Kristen’s career spans over 25 years’ experience in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors. Her 10-year career at Sotheby’s auction house included roles in finance, strategic planning, and special projects before she entered the nonprofit museum world in 2008. In lead positions at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, and later at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), she innovated membership and giving programs, led diverse teams, and created new opportunities for collaborations both within the museum and with external partners. She is an authority in the museum world on membership, audience strategy, and visitor experience.
She was most recently the Executive Director and CEO of the Museum of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, FL where she revitalized St. Petersburg’s oldest and largest art museum through more relevant and exciting programming, art acquisitions, nationally acclaimed exhibitions, and a welcoming visitor experience. She professionalized the staff and brought transparency, best practices, and financial acumen to the overall operation of the museum. Her transformational leadership set the museum on the path to financial sustainability, with pre-COVID results showing a balanced budget and a significant increase in attendance, membership, contributions, earned media, and a growing national profile.
Kristen is passionate about the importance of the arts in communities. She is proud to have served as an advocacy Board member who co-chaired the Carnegie Hall Gala for the Sphinx Organization, a nonprofit whose mission is to promote diversity and to increase representation in classical music by addressing the systemic lack of access within Black and Latino communities.
Kristen holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in History of Art from the George Washington University. She was an American Marshall Memorial Fellow of the German Marshall Fund. She is a former trustee of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), past Board member of the American Museum Membership Conference (AMMC), and has served as a peer reviewer for reaccreditation for the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). She is also a member of the International Women’s Forum.
Veronica Lane offers training and support in project management, a critically important skill and an opportunity for professional development absent in most nonprofits.
So much of what museums do can be framed as a project—whether it’s navigating the re-accreditation process, a CRM rollout, or mounting an exhibition. Strong project management skills keep teams engaged, projects on track, and creates an efficient, effective roadmap to success. Veronica gets teams excited about learning a new approach to their work by inspiring each individual and infusing every class with energy, interaction, and a sense of fun.
Veronica is a Project Management Professional (PMP), Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP), published author, and keynote speaker for the Project Management Institute with over 30 years of active project management experience and corporate training expertise. Her mission is to share not only the tools to success, but also the order of operation so that her clients don’t have to fumble their way to greatness.
Veronica believes that solid project management is at the core of all successful organizations, and she takes great pride in being a catalyst for this success. From the private sector to the public sector, her project management training classes have garnered acclaim, equipping professionals with the tools to navigate complexity with ease. Engaging and fun workshops and seminars are at the heart of her approach. She believes that fostering a positive and interactive learning environment drives lasting impact. Embracing a culture of continuous growth, she facilitates sessions that inspire teams to excel, boosting both individual and collective potential. As a renowned expert in the field, her mission is to empower project managers with the skills, confidence, and vision to conquer challenges and unlock unprecedented success.
Veronica holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Economics from Florida A&M University. Her professional experience includes 5 years as a writer of expert testimony for an economist in Florida’s state capital. She spent 19 years at HSBC where she served as Assistant Vice President of Project Management. She was instrumental in creating the project management office for the Enterprise Business Solutions arm of Mortgage Services, coordinating cross-functional teams of 50+ system development professionals within a Matrix culture. She launched her consulting practice in 2015 and has facilitated training and support in Project Management for corporate, government, and academic clients. She’s a member of Project Management Institute, Inc. for which she provides keynote speaking services for various chapters across the country. She’s actively involved in the Tampa, Florida Chapter of Workforce Innovation, Trust and Influence (WITI), and competes in international dragon boat races with her Tampa Bay Dragon Boat and Tampa River Dragon Boat teammates.
Associates
Kathleen Hogan is a working actor, professional performance coach, acting coach, and acting teacher. She brings over 30 years’ experience and training to her work with professionals outside of the acting world. Kathleen infuses the proven Linklater and Uta Hagen acting techniques with her unique coaching style. She empowers each individual to break through habitual stress, self-consciousness, and tension to bring their authentic selves to their media presence. This technique allows them to share not only their authentic selves, but their best selves, with the intended audience. She is passionate about sharing her process with others, and believes that the skills she teaches can be applied to every aspect of life.
Kathleen graduated magna cum laude from the Honors College of Kent State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree. While living and working in Manhattan for 14 years, she studied with renowned teachers, performed in many venues, and coached fellow artists—several of whom are Broadway actors. She was accepted to the prestigious working actor’s training program at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, Massachusetts, and uses much of what she learned in her professional development training today.
In addition to her film and television career and private coaching practice, Kathleen teaches Uta Hagen Technique, Linklater Technique, and On-Camera Technique at Drama Inc. in Atlanta. She’s a member of the SAG/AFTRA union, and the Actor’s Equity Association. She’s an enthusiastic dog lover and avid reader. Her life’s mission is to use her life experiences to help others.