Biography
I have spent more than twenty years building the organizations and capabilities that fast-growing technology companies don’t yet have. I have built ten of them from scratch — user experience, custom development, technical support, software licensing, and more — each with measurable top- or bottom-line impact. Today I am the founder and CEO of NDH Advisory, a fractional-executive and advisory practice for scaling SaaS and technology-enabled health companies.
Before establishing my current business, I was a Partner at ZS Associates. Within a $700M practice area that had until then only configured third-party software, I built the Custom Development and Power Platform functions from the ground up. That business grew to $30M in net new revenue and more than 300 people across three continents, and catalyzed the practice area into digital solutions. Earlier, at SAP, I ran strategic programs for C-suite and board leadership as the company grew from 11,000 to 85,000 people.
My doctorate is in Anthropology, and it shapes how I work. Anthropology taught me to pay close attention to people — customers and employees alike — because the experience of one is rarely separable from the experience of the other. Most implementation teams don’t pay enough attention to the people who will be using technology, and it’s often why these projects struggle to reach their adoption goals – or they fail entirely. A master’s in Whole Systems Design taught me to see the dynamics that connect seemingly disparate challenges, and to design the processes and structures needed to address them. Operations leadership taught me to orchestrate many things in parallel and to drive change through influence as much as through authority.
Twenty years inside fast-growing technology companies has given me an appetite for constant change — new problems, new capabilities, and new ways of building. The newest of those capabilities are AI-enabled, including customer-facing and back-office operations that run on AI. I approach them the way I’ve approached every capability before — ensuring people are thoughtfully considered when new solutions are envisioned and deployed. I bring deep expertise across enterprise software and technology-enabled health, a human-centered lens, and — together with the teams I have been privileged to lead — a consistent record of outstanding results.
What It’s Like to Work with Me
I embed. I join the team, lead the discovery, and build against the real constraints of your data, and your internal systems and how you want to serve your customers. Your team will be able to operate the system(s) when I’m gone, or I can stay engaged to help you to optimize it over time.
I lead with transparency. I communicate directly and without ambiguity. I collaborate because I believe that the best ideas emerge from diversity of perspectives. And I try to create environments where people feel safe enough to challenge me — because I believe that is how we achieve the strongest outcomes. I invest deeply in the people I work with, whether they report to me or not.
Testimonials
Attribution note: The feedback below was provided anonymously through ZS Associates’ twice-yearly performance review and Principal 360 process, and SAP 360 feedback.
Leadership Style
“Natalie is the epitome of a leader. She operates on the principles of transparency and unbiasedness. She clearly communicates team’s future vision and expectations from the team members which is highly appreciated. She is very approachable and is genuinely interested and engaged in investing in empowering of the team and making it a better place to work.”
— Peer feedback, ZS Associates
Communication
“She’s an incredibly articulate communicator. She is very strategic — sees over the horizon and ties it back to now — zooms out and back.”
— Peer feedback, ZS Associates
Collaboration
“I like how Natalie seeks out (potentially) contrary viewpoints as a way to pressure test ideas and strategies, or where we might anticipate issues arising. She always supports us and acts as a valuable thinking partner when I am trying to resolve an issue.”
— Peer feedback, ZS Associates
Talent Development
I care deeply about the people I work with — not just their output, but their growth. Building teams where people felt genuinely developed has always mattered to me. That commitment doesn’t change in a fractional context — I show up the same way regardless of the org chart.
“I really appreciate how much she cares about her team’s development. Her team’s engagement is one of the highest across ZS, and I think she drives very good followership.”
— Peer feedback, ZS Associates
Mentoring & Coaching
“We have standing 1:1s — she thinks differently from how I do. She’s very sincere in providing advice when you seek it. She brings a very different lens and is able to ask me questions in a way that opens up my thinking and helps me diagnose more deeply… extraordinarily wise person who takes time to reflect and then gets me to look inside more.”
— Peer feedback, ZS Associates
Values & Commitments
Representation in technology matters to me personally. Being a woman and a social scientist in enterprise tech has meant spending a career in rooms where people like me were rare. I have tried to use that position deliberately — to open doors for others, and to build teams where people can bring their whole selves to work.
Women’s health is one of the most consequential and chronically underfunded areas in healthcare. I am a founding member of In Women’s Health, a limited partner and investor with Portfolia’s women’s health funds, and an advisor in Springboard Enterprises’ women’s health accelerator. I am in it for the long term.
I have spoken and written about LGBTQ+ experience in the workplace for years, and I serve on the board of OutCare Health, which works to advance LGBTQ+ health equity by supporting providers and expanding patients’ access to affirming care.
I believe that organizations that create genuinely inclusive environments don’t just do the right thing — they perform better. There is a growing body of evidence that diversity of thought, education, worldview, and lived experience are drivers of innovation. The best outcomes — for clients, for products, for teams — come from people who can bring their whole selves to work.
Most recently, I advised a post-sales transformation for a PE-backed enterprise SaaS company — establishing a new vision and direction, guiding community replatforming, the new economy design for rewards and recognition, and advising on the harmonization of their community, learning, and self-service capabilities.