Our Team

Business Transformation Manager

Erica Aichwalder serves as the Manager for OBT. Erica brings a wealth of knowledge in business management practices, having led operations in the private sector for ten years. Her expertise includes budget, accounting, payroll and human resource functions.  

Since joining the team in 2013, Erica has focused on business process analysis, continuous improvement and organizational change management. Through observation, research and interviews, Erica collaborates with stakeholders to develop recommendations for positive business changes; helping transform information into actionable insights.  Erica also coordinates and facilitates the Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt training program on the Davis campus. 

Erica is a UC Davis alumna and holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology. She has a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification and is a Certified Prosci Change Management Practitioner.

Business Process Analyst

Michelle is a Business Process Analyst with OBT. Prior to joining UC Davis, Michelle worked for the University of Washington Medical Center for eight years, where her work focused on improving business systems in health care, both in administrative and clinical areas. 

Since joining the team in 2011, Michelle’s work has focused on business process redesign by facilitating data, gathering interviews with stakeholders, analyzing efficiencies and deficits associated with those processes and mapping future state flow charts. She has also supported the Shared Services Center implementation by helping to integrate the case management and knowledge management systems with the campus IT infrastructure. More recently, she has worked with Student Health and Counseling Services on communication strategies, and Contracts and Grants Accounting with streamlining their business processes and identifying areas for improvement.

Michelle holds a bachelor's from Princeton and a Master of Business Administration from Yale. She is a certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt and Black Belt.

Process and Change Consultant

Amy Burns is a seasoned Change Management Consultant and Lead Trainer for Aggie Enterprise in the Change, Communication, and Training (CCT) office at UC Davis. Amy excels at partnering with stakeholders to create and deliver effective training, gather valuable insights, and address diverse change management needs. She is committed to ensuring successful transitions and user adoption throughout Aggie Enterprise.

A retired Air Force Logistics Officer, Amy brings 15 years of experience at UC Davis, with a background that includes policy development, emergency operations training, and sustainability leadership. Prior to CCT, she worked at the California Department of Health Emergency Preparedness Office, where she led policy updates and training for state response teams. She also served as Facilities Management Sustainability Officer for 11 years, spearheading innovative sustainability initiatives, including leading the campus’s first LEED for Existing Buildings certification and authoring the Fossil Fuel Free Pathway Plan, Fleet and Small Equipment chapter—a critical blueprint for UC Davis's transition to electric-powered vehicles and equipment.

Amy’s expertise lies in team building and delivery, where she skillfully breaks down complex topics into manageable tasks, ensuring clarity and effective implementation. Known for her collaborative spirit, she thrives in team environments, fostering open communication and consensus to drive change. Amy’s leadership has consistently delivered results by building strong, cross-functional partnerships and aligning teams around common goals.

Amy holds a B.S. in Business Administration, an M.B.A. with a minor in Human Resources Management, and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification, underscoring her dedication to continuous improvement and operational excellence.

Instructional Designer

It all began, as so many things do, with a degree in Environmental Resource Management and a minor in Technical Writing from Penn State. This, as you might imagine, is not the kind of academic background that sets the world on fire, but it did give me a solid foundation for a career that would prove to be both eclectic and unexpectedly rewarding. My first job was as a technical writer for a consulting firm, where I helped Fortune 50 agricultural companies navigate the labyrinthine process of pesticide registration. It was, in a word, riveting. If you’ve ever wondered whether a certain bug-killer was safe to drink, wonder no more. I probably reported its findings and can speak for it. And let me tell you, it’s not a job that comes up much at dinner parties.

But then, as the world of technical writing began to change in ways that were both subtle and profound with the rise of the infamous Internet, I decided to make a leap to tech. I traded pesticides for PowerPoints and found myself in the curious world of instructional design. This turned out to be a surprisingly good move, as it allowed me to channel my love of words into creating training materials and eLearning courses. It was, in many ways, like discovering a hidden door in a house you’ve lived in for years—a door that leads to a room you never knew existed.

My career path soon took on the characteristics of a particularly well-traveled suitcase. I wrote documentation for Coca-Cola (because even the world’s most famous beverage needs instructions on how to drink it), developed eLearning content for the University of Georgia, and somehow ended up living and working in Barcelona, Prague, and Santiago, Chile. These experiences taught me many things, including how to design learning experiences for adults who would rather be doing almost anything else and how to order a coffee in three languages without accidentally insulting the waiter. In Santiago, I even started my own eLearning agency, which I ran for 16 years. It was, in many ways, like running a small, slightly chaotic kingdom, complete with loyal subjects, occasional rebellions, and a never-ending quest for more coffee.

Today, I find myself at UC Davis, where I lead the development of learning content from initial concept to final launch. It’s a bit like being the conductor of a jazz big band, except instead of trombones and saxophones, I have learning objectives and the occasional Zoom hiccup. My journey has given me a deep appreciation for the art of audience engagement, a knack for turning complex ideas into digestible content, and an unshakable belief that humor is the secret ingredient in any successful learning experience involving accounting. So, whether I’m designing a course on GL to PPM reconciliation or pondering the mysteries of quantum mechanics, I approach it all with the same philosophy: keep it simple, keep it engaging, and for heaven’s sake, keep it fun. After all, life’s too short to be boring.

Business Process Analyst

Bernadette Hill-Comeau is a Business Process Analyst with the Office of Business Transformation (OBT). Prior to joining UC Davis, Bernadette spent the last ten years leading Continuous Process Improvement initiatives in the industrial manufacturing & supply chain industries, at companies such as Nestle, FedEx Logistics, and Conagra Foods, as well as in the healthcare and biotech industries.  Her achievements include leading TPM and Lean training and development implementations for Nestle USA, acting as a Continuous Improvement leader for various organizations, and in the last two years consulting as a Lean and Six Sigma trainer and coach.

As part of the OBT team at UC Davis since 2020, Bernadette’s work is focused on business process redesign by facilitating data gathering interviews with stakeholders, analyzing efficiencies and deficits associated with those processes and mapping future state flow charts. Bernadette holds a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Development and a Masters of Science in Human Resources Management from Chapman University. She is also certified as a Six Sigma Black Belt from American Society for Quality (ASQ).

Instructional Designer

Heloisa Kinder is an Instructional Designer and eLearning developer with a diverse educational background. She received her Master of Arts in Instructional Technologies/Instructional Design from San Francisco State University.

Since 2014, Heloisa is responsible for designing, developing, and implementing eLearning courses, micro-learning videos, infographics, and animations for AdminIT at UC Davis. She collaborates with SMEs to create online training programs on a diverse range of subjects.

Technical Writer

Change Management, Communications, and Training Manager

Henrique (Henri) Teixeira is the Change, Communications and Training (CCT) Manager for Aggie Enterprise. Henri brings years of experience helping others develop new skills, communicate ideas, and tell stories.

Prior to joining UC Davis, Henri worked at Avid Technology where he initially supported and trained professional audio and video customers. Later as the Learning and Development Manager for the Professional Services and Customer Success divisions, Henri focused on developing onboarding, technical training, and professional development programs for internal staff.

At Davis, Henri worked at Continuing and Professional Education and FOA Communications, where he collaborated with experts across numerous disciplines to design and build educational multimedia, training programs and resources for students, UC Davis staff and for platforms such as Coursera. Henri also served as the FOA Communications video producer, where he helped tell numerous stories about UC Davis staff and programs.

Henri holds a B.S. in Business Administration and an M.S. in Education from California State University East Bay.

Business Analyst

Priya Venkatesan is a Business Systems Analyst with the Office of Business Transformation (OBT). Prior to joining UC Davis, Priya has spent several years in supporting projects and teams with a focus on the customer in Finance and Education industries at companies like such as ICICI Bank and ProctorU. Priya has a wide range of experience working across customer-centric roles in Operations bringing a wealth of knowledge in supporting projects and teams with a focus on the customer. Priya’s expertise includes experience in Learning Management Systems, root cause and data analysis.

Priya holds a Master's degree in Computer Applications from Bharathidasan University, India. She is a Certified Scrum Master (CSM) from Scrum Alliance.

Process and Change Consultant

Alicia is a Process and Change Consultant with OBT. Prior to joining the team, she was with the campus Shared Services Organization (SSO) for six years, where she served in multiple, progressively responsible positions.  

Alicia joined the OBT team in 2017 with a focus on change management and process improvement. She is a certified Prosci Change Management Practitioner/Trainer and has significant experience developing, documenting and delivering training. In addition, she has a keen process improvement mindset that was regularly reflected in her work at BelAir, Raley’s, UC Davis Health and the SSO. 

She holds a bachelor's degree in Psychology from California State University, Sacramento. Alicia has completed her Project Management – Lean Process Certification (PM-LPC) and is a certified Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt.