ICF San Diego's Coffee & Conversations

Welcome to Coffee and Conversations, brought to you by the International Coaching Federation’s San Diego Chapter. Our host, Donald E. Coleman sits down with coaches, business leaders, and community influencers to explore how the *Power of Coaching* is transforming lives, organizations, and communities. Together, we’ll uncover insights, stories, and strategies that inspire growth, connection, and sustainable change. Whether you're a seasoned coach or simply curious about how ICF coaching can impact your world, you’re in the right place.

Contributors

Host

Donald E Coleman, ACC

Donald E. Coleman is the acting President of ICF San Diego. He is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and the founder and chief evangelistic officer of Semper Kaizen Corp, a human development company. For over 30 years, he has devoted himself to joyfully serving others and adding value by restoring hope and creating new possibilities. He’s now using his experience to partner with credit unions, other not-for-profit organizations, and individuals to create sustainable change using his “Kaizen Approach” and the power of coaching. His servant’s heart makes him an ideal partner for anyone desiring to create sustainable change in their life or organization.

https://www.semperkaizencorp.com/about-us

Guests

Guest

Alla Shashkina, ACC

Alla Shashkina is an Executive Coach based in San Diego, CA. Alla spent over 15 years in software engineering and artificial intelligence, including 11 years at Apple, where she became the first female engineer and manager on the Siri Global team. She led Siri’s language expansion and later built and led an engineering organization that helped deliver the privacy-first, on-device Siri now available in over 41 languages. A WWDC speaker and an early pioneer in AI and NLP, Alla holds two master’s degrees — one in Linguistics and another in Computational Linguistics and Computer Science.

Her path to coaching began after she reached what she describes as a glass ceiling in her corporate career, a moment that invited her to redefine success and reconnect with her deeper purpose.

Today, she coaches leaders and professionals in tech who sense untapped potential but aren’t sure how to access it.