Officially, it’s…
As an internationally-recognized Organizational Psychologist, Kelsey has spent her career conducting and applying scientific research to help leaders and their teams be more effective, inclusive, and creative.
She earned her B.S. in Psychology in 2011 from Penn State University and her Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from the University of Oklahoma in 2016. And in 2025, she earned her coaching certificate from the Institute of Executive Coaching and Leadership.
Kelsey has spent the majority of her career to date in academia as an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Arlington before earning tenure and promotion to Associate Professor of Management in the College of Business at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. In her academic career, Kelsey published 50+ academic articles on topics related to leadership, creativity, and inclusivity- making her a leading voice in these areas.
In 2023, Kelsey published the book, Painted Wolves: A New Model of Leadership from Powerful Women, which drew on leadership science and the examples of women in global positions of power to challenge and expand our understanding of what it means to lead effectively.
Kelsey has consulted with organizations around the globe to improve leadership capabilities and creativity using her dynamic and fresh approach. Through these experiences and conversations, she recognized a need to make leadership science and development more accessible and approachable. From there, her leadership development program, Like a Leader, was born.
Dr. Kelsey Medeiros
But you can call me Kelsey
It’s time for change. There are so many great leaders who are held back by systems that reinforce a status quo of leadership that is both exclusive and ineffective. To break down those systems we need to make leadership development opportunities more approachable while simultaneously breaking down barriers and out-dated beliefs about who can lead.
More science, please! The leadership industry is full of BS that might make you feel good - but will it make change? I use a science-based approach to everything I do to ensure that there is evidence to support positive change. And if you are concerned that this science focus means that I’m boring, pretentious, and stuffy, please keep reading…
Like your leadership BFF. Leadership development should be accessible. Imagine sitting in your favorite local coffeeshop or at your neighborhood wine bar chatting with your knowledgeable (and a bit excitable) BFF about what you need to be a better leader. That’s what you’ll get with me. You won’t find any needless jargon in my sessions. And we definitely won’t “circle back”, “leverage”, or “deep dive” anything. Anything. What you will find is a friendly face wanting to chat with you about how you can grow as a leader.
My Philosophy
Kelsey’s Background
Kelsey Medeiros, PhD
was born in California in the year of our lord Taylor Swift (1989 for the non-Swifties) and has been living her best Millennial life ever since.
Growing up, Kelsey wanted to be a dancer and then an actress. Until the day she watched “The Wedding Planner.” She then changed her dream to being Mary Fiore and one day picking out the brown M&Ms with Matthew McConaughey.
Pictured: Kelsey poolside in Hawaii
Kelsey eventually chose a different path earning her Bachelor’s Degree at Penn State University where she majored in psychology and football game attendance with a minor in business.
It was at Penn State University where she joined the Leadership and Innovation Lab under the direction of Dr. Sam Hunter and was introduced to the science of creativity and leadership.
Pictured: Kelsey at yet another OU football game
In 2011, she began her PhD studies at the University of Oklahoma’s (OU) Industrial and Organizational (IO) psychology graduate program.
It was at OU that Kelsey continued her studies in creativity, leadership, and football game attendance. It was also at OU that she began to learn about our “male-default thinking” in leadership research and practice and how the dominant views of leadership fail leaders and can create exclusive (rather than inclusive) spaces.
After graduating from OU with her PhD in 2016, Kelsey worked at the University of Texas at Arlington as an Assistant Professor of Psychology before moving to the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) where she was promoted to Associate Professor and earned tenure in 2022.
Pictured: celebrating the day I earned tenure with my colleagues and friends
Throughout her undergraduate and graduate studies, Kelsey worked with multiple organizations on issues related to people at work including NBC Universal and Hogan Assessment Systems.
Outside of work, Kelsey’s hobbies include traveling, wine, cooking, spending time with family and friends, going to the theatre, learning to snowboard, reading, running, drinking iced lattes year-round, eating multiple course meals, photography, and long walks along the Thames and through Stanley Park.
Kelsey now splits her time between London and Vancouver, working remotely for UNO and partnering with international clients and speaking on issues related to creativity, diversity, and leadership.
