Our Founder
Dr. Corrin Spiegel, CEcD, ICMA-CM
President & CEO
corri@aretestrategic.com
563.265.1254
With more than twenty-five years of leadership experience, Dr. Corrin Spiegel brings creativity, strategic vision, and disciplined execution to every endeavor. As President and CEO of Arete Strategic, she partners with leaders and organizations to uncover opportunity, build capacity, and drive meaningful progress. Her gift for connecting people and ideas fosters cultures where innovation takes root and lasting success can flourish.
Her work is grounded in the belief that every challenge holds the potential for renewal. During her tenure as City Administrator, she led community development initiatives, redefined service delivery models, and guided complex transitions with clarity and purpose. These efforts strengthened organizational performance, inspired collaboration, and advanced growth through thoughtful, values-driven partnerships.
Corri’s expertise draws equally from academic rigor and real-world experience. She holds a Doctorate in Business Administration with a research focus on intrinsic motivation, positive psychology, and organizational commitment. She also earned a Master of Public Administration and a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership with a concentration in Strategic Innovation and Change Management. As both a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) and an ICMA Credentialed Manager (ICMA-CM), she embodies a lifelong commitment to excellence, learning, and purposeful leadership.
At Arete Strategic, Corri champions the belief that enduring success begins with individual growth. Drawing on experience across public, private, and nonprofit sectors, she helps leaders identify their strengths and align them with organizational goals. This approach cultivates environments where courage and clarity fuel progress, ensuring outcomes that are both transformative and enduring.
Her philosophy is simple. Excellence emerges when people are encouraged to think differently, act with intention, and approach change as an act of creation. This conviction defines her work as both a leader and a trusted advisor.
Arete Insights
CliftonStrengths
Strategic. Arranger. Activator. Learner. Individualization. (2025)
Activator. Command. Strategic. Analytical. Relator. (2020)
Relator. Individualization. Responsibility. Strategic. Arranger. (2015)
Relator. Analytical. Activator. Responsibility. Command. (2013)
Everything DiSC
High D: Commanding - Resolute - Pioneering (2022)
High D: Results - Challenge - Action (2019)
High I: Promoter (2003)
Working Genius
Discernment + Galvanizing: The Intuitive Activator. (2025)
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
ENTJ-A (2025)
ESTJ-A (2022)
Enneagram
Challenger (8). Achiever (3). Reformer (1). (2025)
Just For Fun
Gemini Sun. Sagittarius Moon. Leo Rising.
…also, a farm kid.
There is a traditional professional biography, and then there is a portrait shaped by more than a decade of leadership assessment insights, capturing the strengths and values that define the practice of Arete.
These insights are reflected throughout Dr. Spiegel’s leadership journey. As a transformational leader, she brings together strategic vision, decisive action, and relational intelligence to drive meaningful progress for both organizations and individuals. As President and CEO of Arete Strategic, she approaches every challenge as an opportunity for growth. Guided by creativity, collaboration, and fearless execution, Corri fosters environments where innovation flourishes and bold ideas become tangible results. Her philosophy of leadership, grounded in both academic expertise and practical experience, is informed by a range of professional assessments that illuminate her ability to inspire excellence through connection, precision, and purpose.
Core Strengths and Leadership Style
Dr. Spiegel’s leadership reflects a distinctive combination of strategic clarity, disciplined execution, and genuine connection. Drawing on insights from CliftonStrengths, Everything DiSC, MBTI, Working Genius, and Enneagram assessments, she blends intellectual rigor with emotional intelligence to bring out the best in others and deliver meaningful results.
Strategic Visionary: Across multiple CliftonStrengths assessments, the trait of Strategic consistently emerges as a defining quality. Corri excels at analyzing complex systems, identifying patterns, and envisioning innovative paths forward. Her ability to anticipate challenges and recognize opportunity keeps her ahead in planning and decision-making. Grounded in her Reformer instincts, she values continuous improvement and principled leadership, ensuring every strategy is both creative and rooted in integrity.
Catalyst for Action: With Activator in CliftonStrengths and Galvanizing in Working Genius, Corri turns ideas into reality with energy and purpose. As an Achiever and Challenger in the Enneagram, she brings persistence and confidence to every initiative, motivating teams to pursue ambitious goals and overcome obstacles with determination.
Confident Leader: Her high D profile in DiSC and ENTJ-A and ESTJ-A classifications in MBTI reflect her decisive nature and forward momentum. She leads with clarity and conviction, inspiring others to challenge assumptions and pursue results that create meaningful impact. Guided by her Challenger instincts, she encourages others to lead with courage and to act decisively when it matters most.
Relational Connector: With Relator appearing consistently in CliftonStrengths, Corri values genuine connection and trust. Her Individualization strength allows her to understand the unique qualities of each person she leads, creating environments where individuals thrive and teams succeed. She is deeply committed to cultivating cultures of recognition, shared purpose, and authentic collaboration.
Analytical Innovator: As an Intuitive Activator in Working Genius and with Analytical in CliftonStrengths, Corri combines insight with evidence-based reasoning. This balance allows her to approach complex challenges with creativity and precision. Guided by her Reformer instincts, she maintains a steadfast commitment to excellence, ensuring that every initiative is both visionary and thoughtfully executed.