OUR TEAM

Experience and Know-how

The Innovations team consists of staffing professionals with several years of industry experience. We feel it is crucial to be experts in our fields to better serve everyone's needs -- clients and candidates alike. We stay on top of the job market and current staffing trends in order to provide you with the best possible insights and service.

Paula Todd — President
Paula founded Innovations PSI in 1985 after a successful career in financial services. Paula is an active member of the San Francisco business community and has many professional alliances. In addition, Paula has been a supporter of many charitable organizations in the Bay Area, including Glide Memorial Church, AIDS Foundation, the American Cancer Society and Boy Scouts of America. In addition to running a successful company, Paula is also very actively involved in the activities of her children.

Laura Kent — Direct Hire Consultant
Laura joined Innovations as a Direct Hire Associate in 1992 with 2 years of recruiting experience, and is Innovations longest standing employee after our President! Laura is a Bay Area Native and received her BA from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She is active in the community and enjoys spending time with her husband and two children.

Laura Imus — Direct Hire Consultant
Laura joined Innovations PSI in 1993 as an Associate in the Direct Hire division. Laura earned a BS in both Marketing and Management. Laura and her husband are avid sailors; they spent a year sailing through the South Pacific to New Zealand.They lived in New Zealand for 3 years before returning to the Bay Area. Laura is an avid swimmer, runner, and cyclist, and enjoys competing in Triathlons around the Bay Area.

Alima Connan — Direct Hire and Temporary Staffing Consultant
Alima joined Innovations in 1996 and has been part of the Direct Hire team since 2004. Prior to joining the Direct Hire team, Alima was the Manager of the Temporary Staffing Division. Currently she holds both positions, recruiting for the Direct Hire and Temporary Divisions. She is also a Bay Area native and worked in retail management before joining Innovations.

Suzanne Heske — Executive Search Consultant
Suzanne Heske has worked in financial services for 20 years. Suzanne has worked in a variety of roles for large capital markets firms (Merrill Lynch and Fidelity) doing prime brokerage sales and structured solutions sales. Prior to joining the sell side, Suzanne raised capital for hedge funds, commodities funds, fund of funds, and quantitative mangers. Suzanne started her career as a financial advisor, branch manager, and sales director for Paine Webber and Piper Jaffray. Suzanne attempts to keep up with her three boys and husband on the ski slopes when not in the office.

Desiree Dexter Brown — Direct Hire & Executive Search Consultant
Desiree joined Innovations in 2011 to run the office in Los Angeles and Orange County. A native of Orange County, she earned her BA degree from UC Santa Barbara. For 13 years Desiree lived in San Francisco and over the past 20 years has built a career linking passionate individuals to career opportunities, developing extensive management experience in both recruiting and digital media. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles with her husband, where they enjoy sunny days at the beach with their two children.

Kurt Gundersen — Temporary Staffing Division Consultant
Kurt Gundersen first joined Innovations in 2006 as a temporary staffing consultant and continues to manage the temporary division today. Prior to joining Innovations, he gained six years of experience as a temporary and direct hire legal recruiter. He has a BA in Theater from the University of Maine, an MFA in Acting from Arizona State University and can occasionally be seen on stage in local Bay Area productions.

Julie Forsberg — Business Development & Executive Search Consultant
Julie joined the Innovations team in 2011. She started a career at in financial services in 2006 with the Conifer Group, a private brokerage firm focused in outsourced services for hedge funds. She worked her way through multiple areas in the business to develop a diverse background in Business Development, Sales, Marketing, Prime Brokerage, Fund Administration, Trade Operations, Trade Execution, Corporate Services and Compliance. Julie received a BFA from Syracuse University in New York. Since moving from Colorado, she has been involved with the community through local non-profits and organizations, serving as a coach, mentor and event planner. Outside of work, Julie spends her time skiing, backpacking, traveling and painting.