About Us

Founded in 2015 by Leslie Eckmeder, the Cross Academy Association is dedicated to revolutionizing the early-career landscape. We empower organizations to build cutting-edge programs that shape the next generation of leaders, and to support the practitioners who lead and drive these programs to new heights. Through our global community, members gain unparalleled access to insights, best practices, and collaborative opportunities with fellow leaders.

Each year, our membership grows stronger and more diverse, driven by a shared passion for cultivating excellence in the early-career space. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the operational complexity and challenges associated with delivering early in career programs has increased significantly. Now more than ever, it is imperative that members of the Cross Academy Association continue to collaborate and support each other to not just maintain, but evolve and grow their programs.

The Cross Academy Association conducts a monthly virtual call where members discuss best practices, share program updates and connect with others to brainstorm ideas and troubleshoot issues within their programs. Also, the CAA conducts an annual three day on-site summit where members travel from across the country and globe to commune and share program insights and best practices.

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Our Mission

Our mission is to provide a platform for professionals from diverse industries to collaborate and share best practices in developing and implementing effective early in career programs. We aim to create a supportive community where members can learn from each other, stay up-to-date on industry trends, and drive innovation in early career talent development. By working together, we strive to prepare the next generation of leaders with the skills, knowledge and experience necessary to thrive in their careers and positively impact their organizations and communities.

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Meet the Leadership Team

The Cross Academy Association is led by a group of highly experienced and passionate professionals that have dedicated their profession to supporting the community of people that lead and support early career programs.

Co-Chair & Managing Director

WALLY BRUNER

As a management consultant and founder of Early Career Partners, Wally leverages his 30 years of Tech expertise and certifications in project management and cloud computing to help organizations build and manage best-in-class sales, consulting services and early career enablement programs across all industries and segments. Wally is passionate about empowering sales, consulting, learning, and development teams to deliver innovative and customer-centric solutions that drive adoption and success.

Wally is also a recognized leader and pioneer in the early career arena, having designed, launched, and led award-winning onboarding and training programs for front-line sellers and solutions engineers at Salesforce, Amazon Web Services, and Oracle. Additionally, Wally co-leads the Cross Academy Association for Early Career Programs, a global professional association that develops best practices and frameworks for early career practitioners and organizations. Wally's mission is to cultivate nascent talent and create a synergistic force that propels the early career field to new heights.

Co-Chair

GISELLE KOVARY, M.S

Giselle is the Practice Lead in Optimus SBR’s Learning & Enablement Group with over 25 years of experience as a sought-after resource to industry leaders across the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors, dedicated to building strategies and programs that help clients target, motivate and engage employees in order to increase performance and productivity.

Giselle has devoted more than twenty years to researching the impact that generational differences have on organizational performance, creating solutions and programs in five practice areas – sales & customer service, leadership, team building, early-in-career talent, and HR. Giselle has co-authored two books: Loyalty Unplugged: How to Get, Keep & Grow All Four Generations and Upgrade Now: 9 Advanced Leadership Skills . Giselle also completed Canada’s first national survey on Gen Zs.