About the Team
James A. Batten
Founder and Principal
James A. Batten, founder of The Batten Group, has served nonprofit agencies for more than twenty years beginning his career in 1983 as a Development Professional for the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation. Since that time he has served chapters as Executive Director of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the March of Dimes, Chief Executive Officer for the Alzheimer’s Association and President and Chief Executive Officer for the Arthritis Foundation. He has provided training to volunteers and staff on a local, state, regional and national level in the areas of human resources, development, strategic planning, building strong volunteer committees and boards. With his intimate and expert knowledge of nonprofit management, he is uniquely qualified to evaluate and assess professional talent in all disciplines of nonprofit. In the last three years he has become a trusted and valued partner while completing executive searches for a host of organizations. Throughout his career he has hired talented staff and helped build powerful volunteer structures that have been jointly responsible for improving the lives of others, in part, by raising tens of millions of dollars through special events, major gift initiatives, capital campaigns, planned giving, grant writing and direct mail. Jim has created strong programs, services, professional and public education workshops, advocacy efforts and cutting-edge research initiatives. He co-created and presented a workshop on Nonprofit Sustainability at Winthrop University. Jim is currently writing a book to share the most significant accomplishments achieved by CEOs and other leaders in the nonprofit, health and mission based organizations.
Jim and his wife of twenty-nine years, Bonnie have three children, Philip, David and Jennifer. Jim has coached youth soccer and basketball and mentored young athletes at SOAR Sports in Matthews since 1991.
Peggy Reimann
Executive Recruiter
Peggy has worked as a recruiter for 10 years. Prior to joining The Batten Group, she was living and working in Chicago, placing candidates in Fortune 500 companies as well as in trading and financial institutions. Her experience encompasses both consulting and direct hire placement and she worked in the Information Technology sector during the Y2K craze.
Peggy lives in Matthews, NC and is married with two young children. She is actively involved in their elementary school, currently serving on the PTO Executive Board and as the past PTO President. She received her BA from Wittenberg University and studied abroad in Egypt, Jordan and Israel.
Robert Thomas
Recruitment Associate
Robert Thomas has worked in the recruiting industry for more than 11 years and has held key roles within recruiting agencies, corporate employers and non-profit organizations fulfilling multiple recruiting needs and requirements ranging from entry level professionals to C level executives. Robert most recently participated in staffing, hiring and managing employees for Samaritan's Purse major philanthropic project, "Operation Christmas Child."
Prior to joining The Batten Group, Robert has served as Division Director for Robert Half International leading a successful team of technology recruiters as well as Business Development Manager responsible for the reorganization and direction of technology recruiters across the south east region of the United States for Alternative Resources Corporation (ARC), and served Time Warner Cable as their corporate Information Technology and Telecommunications Niche recruiter.
Robert spent three successful years consulting and contracting with recruiting firms and clients engaged in various search and staff augmentation projects hiring premier talent in Information Technology, Accounting/Finance, Mortgage and Medical industries.
Throughout his professional career, Robert has served as a Corporate Recruiter primarily responsible for all Information Technology, Telecommunications and HR specific hiring, where he hired over 350 full time employees, taught the finer points of behavior interviewing to all hiring managers, managed multiple vendor management relationships and coupled with the Talent Acquisition Group, reduced agency spending by over 40%.
Robert's interests outside the office include officiating basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball at the high school and collegiate level. Robert teaches and mentors youth about sports and the importance of healthy competition and adolescent development. Robert has been working with middle school and high school athletes since 1998.
Sabrina Jones Niggel, MPA
Director of Research and Training
Sabrina “Bri” Niggel has worked for nearly 20 years in the nonprofit and public sectors and has held positions with agencies ranging from a national healthcare organization to a community-based nonprofit organization. Bri most recently served as a program officer for one of the largest philanthropic foundations in the state of South Carolina. In 2005 she was recognized as a Hull Fellow of the Southeastern Council of Foundations.
Currently a PhD student enrolled in UNC-Charlotte’s Public Policy program, Bri consults with public charities and private foundations while she completes her degree. Her areas of specialization include capacity building for grassroots organizations, grantmaking, and program evaluation. She also serves as an instructor for the nonprofit management programs at Duke University and Winthrop University. Other activities include service with the IRS’s Academic Initiative and UNCC’s Nonprofit and Voluntary Action Consortium. Her research interests include health policy and the nonprofit sector, and she has most recently investigated the role of philanthropy in community-based healthcare programs for the medically underserved.
Bri joins The Batten Group to serve as National Director, Research and Training
James Poole
Executive Consultant
James Poole has been Vice President and Senior Associate for Dynamic Development Associates (DDA) for twenty years. He has broad international and domestic experience in consulting, leadership development, team building, board development, meeting and organizational management.
James is a managing partner of Dynamic Development Associates and directs the General Management and Financial Development division. In this role, he is responsible for the design, development, and implementation of training; exploration, goal analysis, planning, strategy development, and direction of financial resources campaigns. An accomplished proposal writer, James also specializes in organizational design and development, needs analysis and program implementation. In Financial Development, he has distinguished himself through his work with the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA).
Prior to joining DDA, James served for twenty-one years in various management positions with the Young Men's Christian Association domestically and internationally. He is the author of numerous article and "How To" manuals on developing Performance Measures and Train the Trainer. An accomplished speaker, James hosted a community focused weekly TV show in Hartford, Connecticut and served on the admission staff at the University of Hartford. In addition he was a faculty member at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio where he directed the Upward Bound Program. James also served as an adjunct faculty member at Trinity College in Washington, D.C. He has also taught at Baltimore City Community College and Howard Community College in Columbia, Maryland.
Thomas M. Colligan
Executive Consultant
Working in the non-profit sector since 1976, Thomas M. Colligan has held senior positions with community based and federated organizations including community centers, settlement houses, YMCAs, camping and environmental groups, youth and family counseling organizations, museums, health agencies and community arts organizations. His experiences include affordable and supportive housing, child care, tourist/visitor-based museums, work in diverse urban, small city and rural development projects and numerous interim assignments.
A nonprofit organization President and CEO for 24 years he has worked on the national staff of the Arthritis Foundation as a Senior Vice-President of Organizational Development, with the United South End Settlements and Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Inc. as Interim President, WaterFire Providence as Interim Managing Director, Interim Executive Director of The House of the Seven Gables Settlement Association and Interim Executive Director with the Mystic Community Center facilitating his fourth nonprofit merger.
Tom now specializes in interim leadership and repositioning efforts in senior executive and financial development positions, works in crisis and turnaround management, facilitates strategic planning and board development processes and delivers trainings in leadership, management and negotiation.
Based in Torrington, Connecticut he has worked across the nation and has delivered over 50 training programs, holds numerous training certifications and has facilitated dozens of strategic planning processes and board retreats.
Lyndon E. Murray
Executive Consultant
Lyndon Murray served as the Executive Director of the Howard County Family YMCA of the YMCA of Central Maryland, the Northwest Family YMCA of the YMCA of Middle Tennessee, and Alexandria Family YMCA of the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. In his roles Lyndon distinguished himself by improving the quality of the facilities, its leadership teams both staff and volunteers, growing programs, membership and budgets and turning around financial deficit operations. He developed and implemented appropriate programs for diverse service areas. In an effort to improve the quality of service and eroding facility image, he led the process of community involvement to build a state-of-the-art $5 million new multi-recreational YMCA facility in Alexandria and a $50,000 community playground for the North Nashville community in Tennessee and many other renovations.
Prior to his executive YMCA experience, Lyndon worked full-time at a suburban and then, an inner-city branch of the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington while attending college at Howard University. His responsibilities were in aquatics and youth programming. Based on his attention to detail and quick study success, he moved up the ranks and temporarily out of the Y to become the Youth Program Director at the Barney Neighborhood House, one of the oldest social settlement houses located in Washington, D.C. He followed this with a five-year stint with the Fairfax County Park Authority as an Assistant Director for Operations/Administration. In 1988 he opened a new state-of-the-art aquatic facility and demonstrated his fiscal acumen by leading the facility to become the first recreation center in the county to ever operate in the black in its first year of operation.
When asked to describe his major attributes Lyndon sighted the following: "I am a bridge builder who spends a great deal of time listening and then translating what I hear into prudent action. I also set high standards for myself and expect the same from those on my team".
John B. Hipp
Executive Consultant
Beginning in 2000, as National Director of Special Events Programming for JDRF, John Hipp directed the development of the newly created Special Events Department. This department provided national focus and coordination of training, best practices, resource development and technology for the organization’s 90+ black-tie galas, 60+ golf events, and a 6-site century bike ride program for the 80 JDRF chapters in the United States. During his tenure as National Director of Special Events, revenue grew from $32.6 million in 2000 to the significant milestone of $75.7 million in 2007.
From 1995-2000, John served as the Executive Director of the JDRF Georgia Chapter. During these five years the chapter was responsible for fundraising and capital campaign transfers of over $9.1 million.
Prior to joining JDRF, John worked with Inner Harbour Hospitals and The Atlanta Outward Bound Center as the Development Director at both organizations. John has served on the boards of The Link Counseling Center, North Carolina Outward Bound Center, Georgia Center For Nonprofits, and Summerbridge Atlanta. He currently is on the board of the JDRF Georgia Chapter and chairs their major gifts committee and nominating committee. He also serves as president of the chapter.
Vincent Goglia
Executive Consultant
With more than forty years of experience in the non-profit sector, Vin has held several key, senior leadership positions with organizations such as: the YMCA; American Cancer Society; American Heart Association and Autism Speaks.
Although their mission and business plans vary, these organizations, and many others, all rely on solid well-conceived volunteer-staff partnerships and plans. Consistently and effectively developing these partnerships and plans, he has been recognized both locally and nationally for raising millions of dollars in comprehensive development plans; coupled with numerous community-based creative, enrichment programs providing vital community services and public awareness. In recognizing the power and strength of collaboration, Vin facilitated several key collaborative efforts identifying and engaging the agencies’ resources and strengths significantly increasing both public approval and support to these collaborative agencies while achieving mutually agreed goals and objectives. He has also rebuilt underachieving community areas, recruiting and training volunteers and staff forming stronger more effective agency presences.
Vin helped lead major agency reorganizations in his markets resulting in stronger community involvement and communications, attracting new leadership resources and building more effective volunteer/staff team efforts; and as a national trainer he led many efforts to effectively build staff and volunteer teams in mission-focused initiatives. He helped create a national training site for an agency’s signature fund development event bringing prestige and recognition to the local community, training site while providing vital training and knowledge to many other communities across the country.
He has also facilitated focused, agency efforts to produce creative and innovative education programs reaching diverse populations of youth, adult, and senior audiences. His efforts, partnered with engaged, leadership volunteers and staff have led to further leveraging of community resources. This resulted in broader and more long-term progress with measurable improvements in early education special needs programs, health and fitness initiatives for adult and children, greater public awareness, membership growth and more comprehensive fund development efforts.