Ms. Karla V. Salazar, a bilingual leader, offers over eighteen years of management experience in the public, nonprofit, and private sector. This diverse intersection of public and private industry experience has allowed her to have the ability to work effectively with multidisciplinary professional and administrative staff. Many of her client interactions are directly with Executives in the Finance, Operations, and Public Affairs departments.
Her life mission is to contribute to a more humane world by collaborating with visionary leaders, developing and implementing transformative ideas, strengthening organizations, and being of service to our communities. The guiding principle that drives and motivates Karla as a professional and citizen of the world is her ability to empower, impact and influence individuals and organizations toward a common good.
In the public sector, she worked as an Assistant Manager at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco - Los Angeles, Field Director for the California State Controller – Executive Office, and an Analyst at the City of Santa Monica – Finance Department.
Since 2010, she has collaborated with nonprofit organizations such as the California Community Foundation and Nonprofit Finance Fund. Her work with nonprofits has led to directly providing financial management consulting services to over 40 nonprofit organizations throughout California along with managing the day-to-day operations including business development, relationship management, staff management and leading advisory committees.
Karla has also enhanced her professional experience by working closely with several community organizations. She is a board member of United States Selective Service System, Families In Schools and continues to be involved in several community projects.
In 2013, she launched her financial and strategic management consulting work under SOS Strategies partnering with foundations and nonprofit organizations in Southern California. She is also a part-time instructor at UCLA Extension, teaching the online required course, the Business of Nonprofits for the Certificate in Nonprofit Management.
Karla earned a Master of Arts Degree in Public Policy from the Claremont Graduate University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science with an emphasis in international relations and specialization in Chicana/Chicano Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Salazar also completed the Executive Program in General Management at the University of California, Los Angeles, John E. Anderson School of Management.