Cathleen Clerkin

Cathleen leads the research function at Candid and is responsible for executing Candid’s research agenda and managing the day-to-day operations of the Insights Division. In this role, she works closely with partners across Candid to help make meaning out of data and share it with the field.

Cathleen is passionate about conducting, translating, and leveraging research to turn ideas and data into action and impact. She is a psychologist by training, with interests in organizational behavior, resilience, equity, diversity, and inclusion, and leadership development.

Before joining Candid in December 2020, she worked at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) a non-profit dedicated to improving the understanding, practice, and development of leadership at all levels for the benefit of society worldwide. During her tenure (from 2013-2020), she went from a research associate to leading the strategic research function—the team primarily responsible for CCL’s research agenda and scientific contributions.

Cathleen’s research has been published broadly in both academic and popular press venues and she has been awarded multiple honors for her work, including recognition from the National Science Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the American Association of University Women, and the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.

Cathleen holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Psychology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. In addition to her work at Candid, she is also an Affiliated Research Scientist at the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California. She is currently based out of Charlottesville, VA.