Meet Renita
"I'm trying to make work suck a little less."
Speaker · Executive Coach · Leadership Catalyst.
THE SHORT BIO
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Renita Joyce Smith is an Executive Coach, Speaker, and Leadership Catalyst.
She specializes in navigating the space between who Fortune 500 leaders and executive teams have been, and who they’re becoming.
With two decades in Big Four management consulting — strategy, technology, program management, and change management — she helps leaders navigate the human systems that shape every organization: power, identity, fear, belonging, ambition, silence.
Her work is deep but not heavy, and her approach is safe enough for truth and sharp enough for real change.
She is the founder of Leap Forward Coaching & Consulting and the voice behind Between the Leap and the Land newsletter and podcast.
Trusted by
If you want the real story — how I got here, why this work, and what it actually looks like — keep reading.
Renita Joyce Smith works in the space most people rush past: the disorienting middle between the version of themselves that got them here and the one their leadership is now asking them to become. She calls this space Between the Leap and the Land — and it’s where her best work happens.
With two decades of experience in Big Four management consulting — spanning strategy, technology, program management, and change management — Renita has worked with Fortune 500 leaders and executive teams who appear successful on the outside, while something fundamental is shifting underneath. Her work goes beneath performance to what’s actually driving it. She helps leaders navigate the human systems that shape every organization: power, identity, fear, belonging, ambition, and silence.
Her approach is rare: warm enough for truth to emerge, sharp enough for change to occur.
Clients describe it as “the most honest conversation I’ve had at work.”
As a speaker, Renita brings the same catalytic presence to stages, keynotes, and executive retreats — on topics including authentic leadership, the future of work, identity in transition, and what it actually takes to lead as a full human being in systems that weren’t designed for it.
She is the founder of Leap Forward Coaching & Consulting, and the voice behind the newsletter and podcast Between the Leap and the Land. When she’s not on stage or in session, you’ll find her exploring Dallas, serving in various nonprofit organizations, covered in paint, or loving on her pup or her deeply unreasonable number of house plants.
WHAT I KNOW TO BE TRUE
Most people are not broken.
Most visible problems have invisible causes.
Humans are creators before they are reactors.
Curiosity is more useful than certainty.
Emotional intelligence is business infrastructure, not a soft skill.
Leadership is relational. Always.
Technology should expand human agency, not replace it.
Better futures require more humanity, not less.
CREDENTIALS & CERTIFICATIONS
Years in Big Four Consulting
Executive Coaching Hours
Workshop Facilitation Hour
As Seen & Heard
On Stage
TEDx · 2024
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Out in Tech · 2025
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Gulf Coast · 2025
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In the Press
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Who is Renita Joyce Smith?
Renita Joyce Smith is an Executive Coach, Speaker, and Leadership Catalyst based in Dallas, TX. With two decades in Big Four management consulting, she helps Fortune 500 leaders and executive teams navigate the human side of change — the dynamics of power, identity, fear, belonging, and silence that shape every organization. She is the founder of Leap Forward Coaching & Consulting.
What does Renita speak about?
actually takes to lead as a whole human being in systems that weren’t designed for
it. Her talks cover authentic leadership, navigating change and transition, how AI is
reshaping leadership and organizations, women’s leadership, team dynamics,
emotional intelligence, and the intersection of technology and humanity. Every
keynote is customized to the audience and organization.
What makes Renita different as a speaker?
about — she’s led through the restructures, the change initiatives, the team
dynamics she now helps other leaders navigate. But that’s the foundation, not the
differentiator. Renita brings five years of improv training, an artist’s eye (she’s a
painter), and the kind of neurodivergent brilliance that sees connections other
people miss. The result is a speaker who holds a room with equal parts authority and
warmth — and who is, by every account, a genuine hoot and a half. Audiences don’t
just learn something. They feel something shift.
Does Renita customise her keynotes and sessions?
audience, the organizational context, and the specific challenges they’re navigating.
The result is a session designed for that room — not a generic talk with swapped-out
references.
How do I book Renita for an event?
Contact Renita to discuss your event, retreat, or organizational project. You can
reach her through the Book Renita page or at info@renitajoyce.com.