Kurtina’s Biography
Gulfstream Aerospace
Kurtina Pollen is the Director of People Programs and Change Management for Gulfstream. In this role, she is responsible for developing, implementing, and overseeing strategic program, project, and change management excellence across people programs enterprise-wide.
Kurtina was previously the Sr. Manager of Strategic Projects for Gulfstream. In this role, she was the Chief of Staff for the Office of the President, developed messaging themes and presentations supporting leadership needs. She also planned, organized, and coordinated company and supplier resources to meet assigned strategic goals to budgetary and schedule targets. Pollen also promoted and participated in all strategic initiatives and involved needed resources to continuously improve customer satisfaction, product competitiveness, and the strength of the Gulfstream brand.
In her past roles as the Sr. Manager of Customer Support Engagement and Manager of Customer Communications, she was responsible for managing Customer Support's engagement strategy and ensuring effective communication with Gulfstream customers through a variety of media, including newsletters, videos, and global forums. Pollen led the internal and external teams that designed, constructed, and launched Gulfstream's multi-media broadcast studio, Studio G. The successful implementation of this state-of-the-art studio dramatically influenced the brand-image and forward-looking goals of Gulfstream and its award-winning Customer Support organization. Each week, Pollen anchored Gulfstream's newscast, The Gulfstream Journal. She continues to be committed to ensuring the safety and dispatch reliability of the Gulfstream fleet.
As the past Chair of Gulfstream's Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) council, Pollen ensured goal alignment, guided the council through strategic planning, identified key roles for members, and actively participated in business unit reviews. She was influential in the forward movement of an inclusive and successful workplace.
Before joining the Customer Support organization, Pollen was the Information Technology (IT) Business Partner for Engineering and Customer Support. In this position, she aligned with business area management to analyze information system needs with solutions covering multiple technology platforms. She was responsible for developing strategy and implementing information technology projects to support her client’s business objectives. Other positions held in Information Technology include Senior Desktop Systems Analyst and Help Desk Analyst.
Savannah State University
Kurtina was called by her alma mater, Savannah State University, to be an Adjunct Professor teaching Computer Applications. She enjoyed helping students in her class navigate their coursework and also being a mentor to them. In this role, Kurtina developed the syllabus, understood students' needs, developed engaging lesson plans, ensured the relevant learning resources were available, evaluated student's performance, and addressed any issues promptly.
Computer Sciences Corporation & Other Professional Experience
Pollen was the Cross-Functional Change Management & Workflow Manager for Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), where she was responsible for workflow administration, including load balancing, service level agreement (SLA) compliance, metric reporting, operation processes, and change control management. She also worked in the IT departments for Chatham County and Savannah Foods and Industries.
Education, Magazine Features, and Organizations
Kurtina has a Master of Science in Technical Management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Computer Information Systems from Savannah State University. She is a Certified Project Manager, studied image consulting at the Fashion Institute of Technology, and completed Image Builder: Color Intensive Training at the Image Resource Center of New York. Kurtina is a member of the Association of Image Consultants International, Coastal Empire Habitat for Humanity Board Member, and the Savannah Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. She is a past board member of the Savannah Delta Foundation and George Leile Visions Board. Kurtina is a past recipient of the Rising Star in Technology Award by Women of Color magazine and was featured in Resilient, Aviation Week, Aviation Maintenance, and NonStop by Gulfstream magazines.
After-Hours
When Kurtina is not working, she enjoys helping individuals enhance and elevate their image, digital presence, and technical knowledge to increase their professional influence and impact. From leading workshops on self-authorship, dressing for success, and social media etiquette to planning live virtual and in-person corporate events and the technology to support them, she has the experience and leadership skills to elevate your brand to higher levels.