ABOUT STEVEN M. DARTER

Since 1976, Steven Darter has focused his consulting on helping organizations improve results through a better understanding and positioning of people and helping people make good decisions about their life and work. He specializes in executive and management development, career development, team development, selection, succession, and consultation on issues related to job fit, performance, and the effective utilization and management of strengths. He has extensive experience evaluating and advising people, ranging from CEOs of Fortune 500 corporations to troubled teenagers, on work, career, and life issues.

Steve has been writing and speaking about motivated strengths and SIMA® (The System for Motivated Abilities®) and the impact it has on individual, team, and organizational productivity, effectiveness, and work satisfaction since 1976. He is the author of several articles and two books: Managing Yourself, Managing Others: Learn How to Improve Effectiveness, Productivity, and Work Satisfaction., which has three editions (2001, 2011, and 2015), and the book Lessons from Life: Four Keys to Living with More Meaning, Purpose, and Success. (2018, 2023), which has been ranked by one media company as the #1 “profound book about finding yourself.”

During his long career, Steve has interviewed close to 5,000 people. In each interview he used SIMA to understand the person's unique motivational design {Motivated Abilities Pattern® (MAP®)} and best paths for success; and in some cases, what had gotten in their way. This vantage point gave Steve an unusually close-up view of how peoples' lives unfolded, including their successes and failures, and the impact of decisions they made, actions they took, beliefs they adopted, course corrections they made, regrets, feelings of disappointment and failure, and satisfaction.

Steve is a recognized expert in helping people understand the implications of SIMA and MAPs; and is known for his dynamic and engaging presentations, workshops, seminars, and team building sessions.

Steve started his consulting career in 1976 with People Management Inc. (now SIMA International). In 1984, he was appointed Senior Vice President and Head of Executive Search and Selection; from 1990 to 2005, he was president of People Management Northeast Inc.; and from 1996 to 1999, he simultaneously served as chairman of the People Management partnership organization. In 2005, he formed People Management SMD, LLC. In 2012, Steve semi-retired, but does take on a limited number of consulting and speaking engagements. He is particularly interested in helping people who are at crossroads in their lives.

Steve has taught a career counseling course to graduate counseling students at Saint Joseph College and an advanced practicum on "Managing to Strengths" to MBA students at the University of Hartford. His honors include being profiled as one of North America's top executive recruiters in the book, The New Career Makers, based on survey results of CEOs, senior HR executives, and other business leaders.

Steve has an MS degree in education and an EdS degree in counseling from the State University of New York at Albany. His B.S. is in Sociology from SUNY at Oswego.

Steven M. Darter
Steven M. Darter