Contact: W. Scott Brown, Christian Leadership Alliance, 703-597-8413

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif., June 22, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- Christian Leadership Alliance (CLA) today announced the hiring of two new directors, effective July 1, 2015. Dedra Herod has been hired as CLA's director of event experiences. Heather McCulloch has been hired as CLA's director of business development and marketing.

Christian Leadership Alliance, a national association with more than 6,000 members, seeks to equip and unite leaders to transform the world for Christ. CLA, which will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2016, represents many of the nation's most influential Christian ministry organizations and leaders.

Dedra Herod will direct CLA's annual Outcomes Conference. She has served CLA as conference event planner for the past two years, including as keynote producer for the 2015 Outcomes Conference. She joins the CLA staff full-time. Prior to contracting for CLA and other clients, she served as conference event planner for Allume and speaker coordinator for Blissdom. She is based in Greenville, SC.

"CLA is blessed to have Dedra Herod serving as our director of event experiences," said Tami Heim, CLA president and CEO. "She has done a great job leading the Outcomes conference, and with her depth of experience in creating high-impact conference events, we're thrilled to have her join CLA full-time."

Heather McCulloch will direct CLA's business development programs and marketing initiatives. Since 2004, she has served as both a sales director and an account manager for HarperCollins Christian Publishing, managing American Book Association sales for major accounts such as Amazon, Books A Million, Barnes and Noble and Baker and Taylor. She is based in Nashville, TN.

McCulloch replaces Julie Gladney who has consulted as a business development executive for CLA for the past two years. Gladney now serves as the director of business development for Definiti Healthcare Management based in Lake Forest, Calif.

"Heather McCulloch brings a breadth of successful sales and marketing experience to CLA," said Tami Heim. "I'm grateful to have her join our team, and know she will build deep and productive relationships with the partners who help CLA achieve its mission. We also thank Julie Gladney for all she has done to help CLA build capacity, and wish her success in her business development work in the healthcare field."

Christian Leadership Alliance (CLA) is a national association of leaders from Christian nonprofit ministries and businesses across the United States. CLA unites, trains, and equips Christian leaders to think higher for greater kingdom gain. www.ChristianLeadershipAlliance.org