Dr. Cynthia J. Young, founder and CEO of CJ Young Consulting, has dedicated her career to helping rising professionals and executives unlock their potential and advance their careers. Enlisting in the U.S. Navy at age 18 and then retiring as a Lieutenant Commander, Cindy spent 23 years leading, managing, and mentoring Sailors on shore and at sea, including through four deployments to the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Gulf.
As a Career & Leadership Consultant and Public Speaker, Cindy provides tools and strategies that can help others elevate their roles, share their knowledge within organizations, and enhance their problem-solving skills using her unique, human-centric approach to knowledge management.
What Sets Dr. Young Apart: Human-Centric Knowledge Management
Cindy’s approach is unique in that it emphasizes people over processes or technology. She believes knowledge capture, sharing, and transfer are essential to creating effective problem-solvers and leaders. Her goal is to empower professionals to stand out and be recognized for their contributions, even in environments without extensive technical resources.
Her Knowledge Management Bootcamp® program is one of the many ways she works with organizations and individuals to foster a culture of knowledge sharing, which Cindy believes is the foundation of growth and innovation. Cindy’s clients learn that open knowledge sharing can build trust, improve collaboration, and create opportunities for professional growth.
A Background in the Military
Cindy understands the challenges of transitioning from military service to civilian industries. After retiring, she immersed herself in understanding the civilian workforce, applying the knowledge management practices she had first learned of and used in the Navy to the corporate world. Things she thought were standard, such as openly sharing lessons learned and after-action reviews shared with the entire team, were only shared with senior leadership.
She wanted to change how information and the actions people took to manage the knowledge gained. This led her to focus on managing expertise as an organizational event more than a singular and siloed event.
Her commitment to continuous learning and performance improvement helped her secure three promotions in her first post-Navy role. She was eventually promoted to a division manager position in a DoD contracting company, where she supported professional services for ship repair.
Moving to another opportunity at another DoD contracting company, Cindy currently leads certification and training for a weapons system, all while managing her consulting business and offering guidance to others on navigating their career paths after her regular working hours.
Helping Others Navigate Their Careers
Cindy’s journey sparked the inspiration to launch CJ Young Consulting. As she moved from military to civilian work, she found a gap in resources tailored for professionals ready to advance but unsure how to do so effectively. Her experience in knowledge management allowed her to see the power of shared knowledge as a tool for developing career opportunities, especially for those without access to advanced technology.
Today, Cindy is recognized as an authority in her field. She holds various professional certifications and a Doctorate in Business Administration, with her research focused on the impact of knowledge management and innovation on firm performance.
Her expertise earned her a place among Thinkers360’s Top 50 Global Thought Leaders on Careers in 2023, and her multi-award-winning book, The Knowledge Management Memory Jogger, was named one of the “50 Books from Thinkers360 Thought Leaders You Should Read in 2024.”
She also speaks regularly at knowledge management and process-driven conferences with plans to expand her speaking engagements in 2025.
Career Highlights and Recognition
Throughout her career, Cindy has been a passionate advocate for knowledge management. She delivered a TEDx Talk titled “A Knowledge Mindset: What You Know Comes from Where You Sit.” She also discussed actions that organizations can take to improve trust and retention through knowledge management practices.
Her writing has also been featured in esteemed publications such as Industrial Systems Engineering Magazine and Harvard Business Review Ascend (now HBR Early Career). As of September 2024, she began contributing to Forbes.com to the careers and knowledge management beats.
GROWTH Career Accelerator: Cindy’s Newest Program
Cindy’s commitment to helping professionals advance is further evidenced in her future launch of the GROWTH Career Accelerator. This six-pillar framework is designed to provide structured guidance on knowledge, skills, teamwork, problem-solving, leadership, and management. Participants are offered personalized feedback to support their professional growth and adaptability in various work environments.
A Balanced Approach to Career Growth
Cindy’s career demonstrates that leadership success involves more than titles or technical acumen. The focus is on encouraging a collaborative, knowledge-rich environment that values every individual’s insight and contributions. Through CJ Young Consulting, Cindy is committed to providing strategies and resources that help others pursue fulfilling careers aligned with their strengths, values, and aspirations.
To connect with Cindy and learn more about her services, visit her website at CJ Young Consulting or connect with her on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram.
Published by: Josh Tatunay
