Paula Shannon is the founder of Whole Leader Lab, an executive leadership advisory practice working with senior leaders and executive teams navigating complexity, change, and the demands of leadership at altitude. Her work focuses on strengthening the human systems that shape leadership effectiveness, team performance, and an organization’s ability to turn strategy into meaningful results.

Before founding Whole Leader Lab, Paula spent more than 25 years in public education and nonprofit leadership, including 17 years in senior and C-suite roles. Most recently, she served for nine years as Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Staff of Tulsa Public Schools. Her career also includes executive leadership roles with Syracuse City School District, Achievement First, and Providence Public Schools. Across these roles, she led strategy, organizational transformation, leadership development, and cross-sector partnerships in complex, publicly accountable systems.

Today, Paula brings that lived executive experience to her work as an executive advisor, coach, consultant, speaker, and facilitator. She works with individual executives and leadership teams to strengthen judgment, communication, trust, shared accountability, and the capacity to lead effectively under pressure. Her approach integrates evidence-based leadership practices, validated assessments, Emotional Agility, and Systemic Team Coaching.

Paula is a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow and an ICF Certified Coach. She holds a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of Rhode Island and a bachelor’s degree in government and international relations from the University of Notre Dame. She is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and works with leaders and organizations nationally.