Shirli Driz is a visionary, mission-driven executive leader with more than 35 years of experience driving operational excellence, organizational strategy, and cross-sector impact. As Executive Director, Shirli serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the California Association for Behavior Analysis (CalABA), managing the corporation's daily affairs, guiding statewide policy, and advancing the science and practice of behavior analysis across California. Partnering closely with the Board of Directors, she champions advocacy, public policy, and strategic revenue generation to ensure long-term organizational sustainability and membership growth.
Throughout her distinguished career, Shirli has specialized in leading complex organizational transitions, optimizing multimillion-dollar budgets, and building high-performing, inclusive teams. Prior to her leadership at CalABA, she was the Owner and Principal Consultant at Crystal Clear Biz Ops, providing strategic governance and compliance counseling to purpose-driven non-profits
Her profound expertise in large-scale nonprofit operations is anchored by her tenure as the Vice President of Operations for Inland Southern California United Way & 211+. In that role, Shirli spearheaded a massive strategic hiring initiative. She secured over $300 million in additional government project funding, and deployed a targeted fraud-reduction and risk-mitigation strategy that saved the organization over $20 million. She played a central role in a high-stakes corporate merger as the Interim President and CEO of Inland Empire United Way. Shirli’s ability to orchestrate financial turnarounds and build robust stakeholder consensus is further highlighted by her time at Inland Empire United Way. There, she engineered a financial restructuring plan that completely eliminated legacy debt within 16 months, generated $5 million in new strategic revenue, and achieved a 100% success rate across all federal, financial, and programmatic audits.
Complementing her extensive nonprofit executive career is a 29-year leadership background at Wells Fargo Bank & Co. Serving as Vice President and Community Banking District Manager, she oversaw operations across 11 regional branches, led a 235-member team to top district rankings, and designed DEI-focused hiring methodologies that reduced employee turnover.
A native of Israel, Shirli brings a vital cross-cultural perspective to advocacy and is deeply dedicated to promoting moderate voices and community-driven solutions. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Business with a Concentration in Spanish from California State University, Fullerton, is a native Spanish speaker and possesses fluent bi-literate competency.
Shirli is fully integrated into California's nonprofit and public network governance frameworks. She serves as a Director and former Treasurer for the Academy for Grassroots Organization, and is the former Acting Board Chair and Vice Chair for the California 211 Network Providers. A respected public ambassador, her dedication to community service has earned her a Certificate of Congressional Honor from Congressman Ken Calvert, state-level recognitions from Senator Roth and the County of Riverside Supervisors, and a finalist nomination for the JPMorgan Chase Community Icon Award.
