Claire Kittle Dixon, Executive Director
Claire Kittle Dixon is the Executive Director of Talent Market.
Claire’s career has focused almost exclusively on talent development. She operated her own headhunting firm in the private sector before realizing she didn’t want to build a life around “making widgets.” Seeking a more meaningful line of work, she took her skills and transitioned into a career in the free-market nonprofit movement.
She joined the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation where she served as the Program Officer for Leadership and Talent Development. While at Koch, Claire managed the hiring process for the Foundation and launched and managed two talent programs – the Koch Associate Program and the Koch Internship Program.
Before launching Talent Market, Claire served as the Vice President and Director of Research of the Buckeye Institute, Ohio’s free-market think tank.
Claire earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame and a Master’s in Public Policy from Georgetown University. After spending years in our nation’s capital, Claire decided to stop and smell the roses in Charleston, SC.
Lauren Skiver, Talent Manager
Lauren (Vander Heyden) Skiver is Talent Market’s Talent Manager.
Lauren comes to us from DonorsTrust, where she was the Outreach Manager. Lauren has spent her career helping connect people with opportunities in the free-market movement — first as a Grants Coordinator at the Charles Koch Foundation and then in various grants and outreach related roles at DonorsTrust.
Lauren is a Midwesterner at heart, adopted Southerner, and lover of all things outdoors. Originally from Illinois, she moved east for her undergrad studies at Grove City College, and then south to DC where she spent the better part of a decade. She lives in the mountains of Asheville, NC, with her husband and two young daughters, who are young capitalists in training.
Katy Gambella, Network Engagement Manager
Katy (Ranville) Gambella is Talent Market’s Network Engagement Manager.
Katy began her career at the Institute for Humane Studies and later joined the Cato Institute. Starting at Cato as a Research Assistant, Katy quickly realized her comparative advantage (and preference!) is to work with people and not to do policy research. During her participation in the Koch Associate Program, she moved into her role in Student Programs, where she spent nearly four years recruiting, hiring, and supervising more than 300 interns.
Katy (along with Lauren and Claire) is a Midwesterner at heart and a very recently adopted Southerner. She was raised in Michigan, where her family still lives, and studied Economics at Hillsdale College. After graduation she spent seven years in Washington,DC. She now lives in Charlotte, NC with her husband. They plan to visit every brewery in the region on a quality control tour.