Executive coach, leadership advisor, and former technology founder helping leaders navigate AI adoption, organizational change, communication, and growth.
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Executive coaching and AI leadership for a changing world.
Wheel Media is the professional platform of Michael Rolph—executive coach, leadership advisor, former technology founder, and strategist with more than 25 years of experience helping leaders, organizations, and communities navigate growth, change, innovation, and the human side of technology.
Current Focus: Executive Coaching, AI Executive Coaching, Leadership Development, Organizational Change, Cross-Cultural Leadership, AI Fluency for Leaders, Strategic Communication, and the Future of Work.
Originally founded as a digital strategy, branding, and marketing consultancy, Wheel Media has evolved alongside the changing needs of leaders and organizations. Today, it serves as a hub for ideas, writing, and advisory work focused on leadership, organizational effectiveness, AI adoption, communication, and change.
To learn more about Michael’s current work, visit:
Wheel Media was founded by Michael Rolph in 2002 and operated for more than fifteen years as a full-service digital strategy, branding, and marketing consultancy serving mission-driven organizations, startups, nonprofits, educational institutions, and small businesses.
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Wheel Media helped organizations navigate growth, communication, digital transformation, brand development, and organizational change through services including marketing strategy, brand development, visual design, UI/UX design, web development, organizational design, and talent pipeline development.
The company worked with organizations ranging from emerging startups to established institutions, helping leaders clarify their message, strengthen their brands, improve communication, and adapt to rapidly changing markets.
Over the course of hundreds of client engagements, a consistent pattern emerged: the most important challenges organizations faced were rarely technical. They involved leadership, communication, culture, trust, alignment, and the ability to adapt during periods of change.
That insight ultimately shaped the evolution of both Wheel Media and Michael Rolph’s professional work.
Today, Wheel Media serves as a platform for writing, coaching, and advisory work focused on executive coaching, AI adoption, leadership development, organizational change, cross-cultural leadership, and the future of work.
Michael Rolph is an executive coach, leadership advisor, former technology founder, community builder, and organizational development professional with more than 25 years of experience helping people and organizations navigate growth, change, innovation, and transformation.
His background spans technology startups, marketing and growth strategy, executive leadership, workforce development, higher education, nonprofit leadership, entrepreneurship, and international community leadership.
As Founder and VP of Strategy at Wheel Media from 2002–2017, Michael led digital strategy, branding, marketing, web development, organizational design, and business growth initiatives for a diverse range of organizations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.
Today, Michael serves within the U.S. Foreign Service community in Taiwan, where he works at the intersection of leadership, communication, cultural intelligence, organizational effectiveness, and community building.
His work combines practical business experience with graduate training in counseling psychology, leadership development, diversity and inclusion, workforce development, interpersonal dynamics, and cross-cultural communication.
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Today, Michael’s coaching and advisory work focuses on:
Recent writing explores leadership, AI adoption, organizational change, workforce development, communication, and the future of work, including:
If you are navigating AI adoption, leading through change, developing leadership capacity, strengthening communication, or looking for an experienced executive coach and strategic advisor, we invite you to connect.
Explore our Services, learn more about Strategy & Planning, or visit Michael Rolph Executive Coaching to learn more about current coaching and advisory engagements.
San Francisco Bay Area
Listen up, new research reveals that good listeners are great leaders. A study from UKG Consulting group found that when people at work feel heard they perform better and are more engaged. At a time when the great resignation is making the search for talent harder than ever, leaders can …
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Sacramento
There’s an awesome program in Boston that knows every kid has the potential to be great, if only they had the opportunity. Studies show that children who grow up in poverty and are perpetually in ‘fight-or-flight’ mode can have a permanent change in their brain chemistry. Resilient Coders fights this …
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Detroit
In an era where youngsters are almost as likely to meet online as the are in person, now elderly folks can get in on the fun. Enter the Freebird Club, an Airbnb-like app that gets seniors traveling and meeting new people. Cuz we’re never too old for new experiences, and …
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Charlotte
The Michigan Urban Farming Initiative (MUFI) is a nonprofit dedicated to getting rid of food deserts and giving people an opportunity to play in the dirt, no matter where they live. Located in Detroit, MUFI has converted a huge plot of land into a thriving, productive farm that offers the …
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San Francisco Bay Area
Enter Offbeat. This rad new startup is revolutionizing food takeout by giving jobs to refugees in New York City. These chefs often cook the food they’ve grown up eating, like tomatoey Nepalese manchurian or Iraqi potato kibbeh. The owners of this company, Manal and Wissam Kahi, understand that steady, dignified …
Read moreSacramento
It seems that by now, almost everyone is familiar with popular social media. While social media is a great medium, it is most effective for business when utilized with strategy and purpose. Content that is produced through social media has created a new form of marketing that utilizes hashtags and …
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