Dr. Rita Webster

Dr. Rita Webster is an executive coach who works with women leaders and their teams to help them make bigger contributions to their organizations and the world. She founded WiseLeader more than 20 years ago. During the pandemic, she launched the Mid-Level Women Managers Leadership Cohort series, which is a curriculum-based training program designed to build skills and develop insights from the most recent women’s leadership research. Topics include Imposter Syndrome, Emotional Intelligence, Work Life Balance, Selecting Mentors and Sponsors, Negotiating, Delegating, Strategic Thinking, Self-Care, Building a Business Case, and Managing Up.

In addition to her one-on-one executive coaching work, Rita also runs roundtables for executive women leading change and does systemic team coaching for teams who want to make better decisions and be more aligned with all their stakeholders. Recently she has been hosting DEI table talks with HR leaders to discuss challenges and brainstorm creative solutions. In the Land A Job You’ll Love program, she works with women leaders one-on-one when they want to prepare for a next-level role, teaches them how to define what it is they want to do next, and then coaches them to get into the new roles.

Dr. Webster earned her PhD at the University of Minnesota. Her dissertation was a case study in leadership which formed the philosophical foundation and approach for her coaching work today. She taught the Life Leadership Circles for Women Managers certificate program at the University of St. Thomas. She is a founding mother of the nonprofit Awesome Women where she co-designed a speaking process that has helped women get in touch with who they truly are and what they truly want.

Rita is a member of the Minnesota Change Management Network, Human Resource Executives, Women Leading in Technology, Women Business Leaders, TeamWomen, and the Health Leadership Trust. She currently serves on the board of trustees at her church and is a former board member of the Minnesota OD network.

Her favorite role is being Nanna to her two granddaughters, Cece, 2-½, and Willow, 4-½. Rita lives near the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minn. During the summer, you will find her in her backyard flower gardens, arranging flowers, and digging in the dirt at her community vegetable garden.