MEET OUR PRESIDENT

Joan Sullivan Anane – PRESIDENT & PRINCIPal

Joan Sullivan Anane has spent nearly 30 years taking on hard problems—and building the organizations, teams, systems, and coalitions capable of solving them.

At Good Influence Consulting, Joan advises leaders across government, philanthropy, higher education, and the nonprofit sector at moments when the stakes are high and the path forward is unclear. She helps them see the whole landscape, make difficult choices, align people around a shared direction, and translate ambition into lasting progress. Since launching her practice, Joan has partnered with more than 30 organizations, bringing the perspective of a seasoned executive and the commitment of someone who stays close to the work.

Before becoming a consultant, Joan spent a decade as CEO of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, leading a network of 20 public schools serving 13,500 students in Watts, Boyle Heights, and South Los Angeles. For Joan, school transformation was never merely a technical exercise; it was part of a larger struggle over whether public systems would recognize, learn from, and invest in the children and communities they had long underserved. Under her leadership, the Partnership dramatically improved student outcomes and raised more than $160 million. It also helped advance districtwide changes, including a funding formula that directed more than $1 billion to schools serving students with the greatest needs and an initiative that brought broadband access to 100,000 families.

Previously, as Deputy Mayor of Education for Los Angeles, Joan used the reach of City Hall to forge coalitions and public-private partnerships that removed barriers and opened opportunities for young people. She brought to the role the perspective of an educator and institution builder, having founded the Bronx Academy of Letters and built it from the ground up into one of New York City’s highest-performing public schools. Her work on Bill Bradley’s presidential campaign and her memoir, An American Voter, reflect a longstanding engagement with electoral politics and civic life.

An executive coach and frequent public speaker, Joan is known for combining strategic intelligence with relentless practicality—and for earning the trust that allows people to confront difficult truths and move forward together. A Yale graduate with a master’s degree in school leadership, she is an alum of the Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute, the Pahara-Aspen Education Fellowship, and the Broad Center’s Superintendents Academy. She is also the wife of Ama, the mother of three daughters, and a proud public-school parent.

Meet Our Founder

Ama anane – Founder & CEO

Ama Anane is a strategist, storyteller, and the founder of Good Influence Consulting. She built the firm around a belief that curiosity, creativity, and deep listening can help organizations understand themselves more honestly—and imagine something better.

Through Good Influence, Ama has led strategy, stakeholder engagement, research, and communications work for nonprofits, foundations, coalitions, and public institutions. She has helped leaders listen to the people closest to their missions, navigate complex questions of identity and equity, and turn what they learn into strategy and story.

Today, Ama is bringing that same curiosity and creative force to television and film. She is a staff writer on Dig, a new series co-created by Mike Schur and Amy Poehler, and made her directorial debut with the short dramatic romantic comedy Cottonmouth. Her scripts, poetry, stand-up, and films explore the identities and experiences that divide us—and make us whole.

Ama is a graduate of Emerson College and Columbia University. She serves on the governing boards of Communities In Schools of Los Angeles and the Moonshot Initiative. She lives in Los Angeles with Joan and their three daughters.