Christopher Steyskal is seeking a challenging leadership position leveraging his 8+ years of experience managing employee performance and developing high performing teams. He has a Master's degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology and is currently the Manager of Workplace Learning and Development at airweave in New York, where he launched their first US store and exceeded sales projections. Prior to that he held various management roles over 10 years at Gracious Home, growing sales and profits in multiple departments.

1. Christopher Steyskal
223 East 85th Street, 8, New York, New York 10028
(718) 839-4574 steyskalc@gmail.com
Strong people manager with 8+ years of experience in aligning employee performance with business objectives
and strategy. Proficient with organizing training, developing resources, and building high performing teams to
that support business strategy and goals; and drive competitive growth. Interested in securing a challenging
position to leverage my leadership skills and degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology.
SUMMARY OF PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS:
 Master of Science in Industrial Psychology
(anticipated July, 2016)
 Team Building
 Course Planning & Training
 Workshop Facilitation
 Process Improvement
 Progress Tracking and Reporting
 Strategic and Analytical Thinker
 Motivational Leader
 Collaborative Learning Management skills
 Retail Sales
 Recruiting & Staffing - exempt & non-exempt positions
 Mentoring and Developing staff
 Conflict Resolution, Crisis Management
 Vendor Management
 Customer/Client Management
 Presentation Skills
 Interpersonal skills
 Excellent written & oral communication skills
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
airweave, New York City, New York
Manager, Workplace Learning and Development January 2015- Present
Responsible for the expansion of airweave into the US market and successfully launched New York Flagship
store, the first standalone store for the Japanese conglomerate on time and under budget.
Accomplishments and Responsibilities:
- Manage the recruiting, selection, and training for salaried and hourly employees
- Responsible for developing processes, including programming POS system and inventory analysis on a
global scale
- Created and deployed training and development program for the U.S. team
- Facilitate training for store and office staff, sales representatives, and managers
- Developed team building and group dynamics enhancement workshops ongoing since May of 2015
- Accountable for appropriate store scheduling to maximize customer experience in turn surpassing sales goals
- Managed third-party vendors for warehouse/delivery logistics
- Mentored employees to facilitate growth and development
- Identify and correct performance issues through coaching and training daily, weekly, monthly as needed
- Exceeded sales projects by more than 100% during first year
- Facilitated leadership meetings between departments and channel partners to ensure maximum cooperation
and communication among our global partners
- Established 10 additional retail channels and partnerships, including development of individualized training
programs for each of the individual channels
- Established organizational reporting structure for international executive team, through collaborative meetings
between global teams in Singapore, China, South Korea, Japan and the United States
- Responsible for delivering sales, delivery, and revenue reporting for international executive team
- Created 3,6,12 month stock and sales projections reflecting anticipated growth, ensuring efficient space use
in distribution center and alleviating the risk of a stock deficit
- Spearheaded airweave’s public relations initiatives in New York City, 2015, increasing brand awareness
- Advise U.S. and Singapore branch leadership on hiring practices to ensure diverse and multi-faceted
workforce.
- Create task inventories, KSAO lists, and job descriptions for multiple departments.
- Serve as a member of airweave’s Global Advisory Council providing expertise on more efficient use of human
capital throughout the organization.

2. Gracious Home, New York City, New York
- Division Manager Home Furnishings 2011 to 2015
- Department Manager – Stationery, Gifts, Travel, Tableware, and Interior Design 2011
- Department Manager – Stationery, Gifts, and Travel 2010
- Department Manager - Stationery and Gifts 2010
- Assistant Manager – Stationery and Gifts 2009
- Department Head 2008
- Freelance Consultant 2007
Accomplishments and Responsibilities:
- While a consultant, was given much autonomy and grew Stationery Department sales by 200% during a two year
period, transforming it into a profitable department
- As Department Manager of Travel, was able to secure 5% growth in revenue while maintaining gross profit.
- As Department Manager of Tableware and Table Linen, I initiated focused training efforts on sales, stock
allocation, and daily processes. The department which had been experiencing diminished profitability, ended the
year with 20% growth in revenue and a 15% increase in gross profit margin. The department also saw a 31%
increase in customer satisfaction and the loss due to shrinkage decreased by 5%.
- As Home Furnishings Manager, I was responsible for driving sales for 11 departments totaling $5.7 million while
maintaining gross profit
- Evaluated weekly, monthly, year to dated sales reports to project growth and opportunity needs
- Created 3 month, 6 month, 1 year product, staff and innovation asset needs assessment and action plan
- Responsible for achieving 5% growth in division sales during and increasing the gross profit for division from 18%
to 25%. While other divisions rebounded, my division repeated this growth in 2013, maintaining responsibility for
25% of the company’s Gross Revenue
- Developed an aggressive campaign to facilitate growth of the company’s Trade Partnership Program, which
increased annual partnership sales by 30% and trade partner retention by 50%
- Since assuming a leadership role, coached and trained employees for specialized high-end retail sales and
management, assessed team members’ attributes, and developed targeted action plans for professional
development, thereby preparing Sales Associates for advancement to Department Managers and Corporate
Partner positions
- Interacted with product designers, fabricators, wholesalers, and importers to ensure product quality and favorable
buying terms, including exclusive item offerings, deeper discounts, and free/discounted shipping.
- Assisted other division managers with business analysis and employee development
- Assisted location Managers in daily operations as well as staff memberband procedural development for retail
locations
- Responsible for payroll allocation, justification, and processing for 80 employees
PROFESSIONAL SKILLS:
 Microsoft Office Suite  Adobe Acrobat  Auto C.A.D Point of Sales
 Adobe Illustrator  QuickBooks  B2C
 Photoshop  Inscribe  SPSS
EDUCATION:
 Master of Science in Industrial Organizational Psychology (anticipated July 2016)
Touro College; New York City, New York
 Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts, SUNY Purchase; Purchase, New York
References furnished upon request