Who We Are

How America’s Pulse was Built

America’s Pulse was built entirely by volunteers. No one was paid. There was no venture capital, no investors – just one small donation of $5,000, half of which still remains in the bank.

Every member of the team believes deeply in the power of this platform to transform how people engage with and participate in their democracy. That belief has driven an extraordinary level of commitment to both the purpose and the vision.

Along the way, we had conversations with potential partners and supporters, but chose to wait until we were confident we had built something truly worth investing in. We’ve reached that point. Now, we’re ready – and we need the resources to bring this to market and fully realize the vision.

Over the past 12 months, the number of hours contributed has been remarkable.

What stands out most about this team is their initiative. An idea raised on a Friday is often picked up and brought to life by Monday or Tuesday. This is a group that doesn’t just believe in the mission – they act on it.

John M. Bernard, Co-Founder, President & CEO, author of Government That Works and many whitepapers, columns, and videos. Advisor to governors, agency leaders in 15 states, and three federal agencies. Senior Fellow, Governing Institute and Senior Fellow, Government Accountability, Washington Policy Center.

Ted Barber, Co-Founder, COO & CFO, enjoyed an extensive career with The Coca-Cola Company, starting off running his first syrup manufacturing plant in Portland, Oregon, serving as the company’s Director of Quality and ending it responsible for global syrup manufacturing. He worked with John after he retired from Coca-Cola on multiple state government projects.

Bobbi Benson, Director of Brand, Creative & Communications, is a seasoned professional in creative services, brand development, and strategic marketing, and an entrepreneur starting and running three businesses. She was John’s principal marketing partner throughout his consulting career.

Dan Hansen, Chief Product Design Officer, served the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as Governor Thomas Wolf’s Director of the Office of Transformation and later as Director of Strategic Operations. Dan holds a black belt from John’s Results-Driven Management Program for State Managers.

Dr. Michael O’Connell, Chief Data Officer, is a seasoned data and systems leader with two decades of experience building enterprise reporting systems, governing data pipelines, and leading cross-functional analytics teams across businesses and regulated industries. Michael’s expertise is in ensuring data integrity, transparency, and evidence-based accountability for America’s Pulse. He and John worked together when John was an executive leading transformation at The Standard, an insurance and financial services company.

Sharon Pette, Best Practices Director, is a nationally experienced program evaluation and evidence-based practices expert with a focus on youth and incarcerated adults. She and John met at the Oregon Youth Authority when John was leading his first state agency transformation effort. John has served as a mentor for Sharon over the years.

Vic Russell, Assistant to the CEO, brings nearly four decades of investigative and regulatory experience in private industry and state and federal government, including service as a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Lead Investigator. He is a Certified Scrum Master and runs the daily team meetings.

Thom Walters, Advisor, brand visionary, former Chief of Staff at the global ad agency Wieden & Kennedy, expert at advancing innovation and social change initiatives, leading market strategy, and organizational development.

Our Board Members

Governor Martin O’Malley (D), Co-Chair, served as Mayor of Baltimore (1999–2007) and Governor of Maryland (2007–2015), later becoming Commissioner of the Social Security Administration. He served as Chair of the Democratic Governors Association. O’Malley ran for the U.S. presidency in 2016. Known for data-driven government management (CitiStat/StateStat/SecurityStat) and for a slate of major progressive policy wins in Maryland, O’Malley was named Public Official of the Year in 2009 by GOVERNING magazine.

Governor Doug Ducey (R), Co-Chair, was the CEO of Cold Stone Creamery before entering public life. He served as Arizona’s 23rd governor (2015- 2023) and as State Treasurer (2011–2015). During his time as governor, he chaired the Republican Governors Association. Among his many accomplishments during his tenure as governor was making Arizona the lowest flat-tax state in the nation, reducing the regulatory burden and the removal of waste in state agencies. He drove a pro-growth/low tax agenda with nation-leading innovations in education. Conservative columnist George Will referred to former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey as the "most successful 21st-century governor".

Robert Shea, Board Member, is a government management and public policy expert and co-founder/CEO of GovNavigators. He previously served in the White House as Associate Director at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Administration and Government Performance, focusing on improving federal program performance and management. Before OMB, he worked on Capitol Hill, including as senior management counsel to the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and as legislative director for Rep. Pete Sessions. He later became National Managing Principal for Public Policy at Grant Thornton, advising public-sector leaders on strategy, performance, and evidence-based policymaking.