Christy Cissell-Khattab

Executive team member steering business strategy, culture, and performance—contributed to revenue growth from $20M to $29M. Championed a full brand refresh to reposition Cypress Grove for long-term consumer relevance and market leadership. Built and lead a high-performing integrated marketing team (internal and agency), overseeing brand, innovation, and digital strategy. Lead omnichannel marketing including e-commerce, paid digital, and strategic partnerships. Directed innovation strategy from consumer insight through commercialization, expanding product portfolio and market share. Serve as the strategic liaison to Emmi Group’s Swiss headquarters, aligning corporate vision with U.S. execution. As Deputy MD: Oversaw HR and recruitment, strengthened company culture, and ensured executive team operations aligned with organizational goals.

Directed sales operations as Interim Sales Director, managing a team of 4 regional sales managers while overseeing forecasting, budgeting, and delivering high-impact sales presentations to key retailers. Researched and analyzed key accounts to generate actionable insights, tailoring strategies to customer needs and strengthening partnerships that drove revenue growth.

Responsible for the process management of the executive team, oversight of HR and recruitment, direct company culture-led efforts, assist to create and drive strategic company/Emmi goals, and serve as the direct liaison to the Managing Director.

Rebranded and restructured the Alumni Association to include alumni, students and parents—dramatically increasing engagement. Led strategic planning, branding, and digital initiatives to elevate university visibility among 85K+ alumni. Partnered with university and CSU system leadership to advance institutional development and outreach goals. Orchestrated the university’s centennial celebration and high-impact engagement events. Served as a representative to the CSU advancement board and HSU advancement board.

Founded and scaled two successful ventures in competitive F&B markets—tripled revenue and achieved profitable exit. Built brands from the ground up, collaborating with designers to develop strong identities, marketing plans, and customer experiences. Oversaw end-to-end operations: finance, HR, sales, product development, and strategic growth. Created memorable, differentiated customer experiences to generate loyalty and long-term profitability.

Provided organizational effectiveness consulting services to include assessing/identifying organizational priorities, developed and executed suggested strategies and facilitated trainings based on company’s needs.

Designed and launched enterprise-wide leadership and training programs for a 2,000+ employee base. Played a key role in acquisition integration—focused on succession planning and organizational scalability. Facilitated high-impact training in organizational effectiveness, communication, and team performance.

Developed company-wide training systems to elevate brand consistency and customer service across 24 retail locations. Led a corporate training team, launching new product rollouts and merchandising initiatives that drove revenue. Built infrastructure for national expansion through scalable learning and operations frameworks. Managed corporate field trainers and collaborated with internal and external clients to ensure proper brand identification and representation for all retail/wholesale locations.

Successful trainee in the management program. Responsibilities were to develop all areas of branch operations in a competitive workplace; customer service, sales and marketing, finance, and rental operations.

Oversaw in-store branding and marketing across 16 locations and a team of 80+ staff. Created the company’s first operational manuals, training programs, and performance evaluation systems. Established scalable infrastructure for employee development and customer service excellence.