Coaching Culture and Building L&D

Denise Rodriguez is a Senior Manager of Learning & Development at Cognex Corporation, the world’s leading provider of vision systems, software, sensors, and industrial barcode readers used in manufacturing and logistics automation. A certified executive coach (ICF ACC) and the founder of Denise Rodriguez Coaching, Denise brings more than 15 years of experience building high-impact learning and leadership development programs across global retail, consumer, technology, and multi-site businesses.

She is known for her ability to build L&D functions from the ground up, aligning talent development strategy with business priorities while maintaining a deeply human approach. Her work sits at the intersection of talent development, leadership development, and one-on-one executive coaching, and she brings a stakeholder-centered coaching philosophy that makes leadership growth visible, measurable, and shared. At Cognex, Denise leads enterprise-wide learning and development, focused on strengthening capabilities and growing leadership aligned with the company’s culture and key business priorities.

Previously, as Head of Learning and Development at Primark, the international fashion retailer with more than 80,000 colleagues across 17 countries, Denise built the US L&D function from the ground up over four years. Before Primark, she served as Instructional Design Manager at The TJX Companies, where she honed her expertise in designing learning systems for complex, distributed organizations. She also held roles at IGT, where she earned her executive coaching certification and began her one-on-one work with senior leaders.

A multilingual professional fluent in French and Spanish, Denise began her career in international education after studying marketing at the University of South Florida. Throughout her career, she has championed a mindset of stewardship, believing that developing leaders is not just about workplace skills, but about helping people live better lives.