Allyson Anderson Book is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Baker Hughes. In this role she oversees Baker Hughes’ energy transition strategy by driving sustainable operations, supporting commercial energy transition solutions for customers, and ensuring market creation of these solutions via stakeholder engagement and policy development. In 2021 alone, she was recognized by Petroleum Economist as among Top 10 Women Leading Energy Transition in Sustainability, by Oil & Gas Investor as among 25 Influential Women in Energy, and by Hart Energy for its ESG Champion of Year Award. Before joining Baker Hughes, she served as the executive director of the American Geosciences Institute, which represents more than 250,000 geoscientists and focuses on increasing public awareness of the role geosciences play in society’s use of resources. Prior to that, she held several academic, policy and senior government positions, including teaching at Georgetown University, working for the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and serving as the associate director of strategic engagement of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) at the U.S. Department of the Interior. She began her career as a geoscientist for ExxonMobil. She holds bachelor’s degrees in geology and music from the University of Northern Iowa, and a master’s degree in geology from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
Tamika Baker is a c-suite executive who has a passion for leadership development, culture transformation and strategy. She currently serves as Chief Risk and Responsibility Officer for Regional Management. Prior to joining Regional, she spent five years as the Chief Strategy & Risk Officer for Firstmark Credit Union after spending 15 years in progressive leadership roles within the financial services industry. As Chief Strategy Officer, Tamika led the Marketing, Risk Management, and Cyber Security teams, while spearheading strategic planning and product development initiatives for the organization. JPMorgan Chase and USAA are among organizations where she has enjoyed leading various enterprise and operational risk management initiatives. During her tenure at JPMC, she independently created an automated risk methodology framework for submission to the US Patent Office. In her current role, Tamika is leveraging her strategy and ERM background to build out ESG and corporate responsibility programs, including partnering with organizations focusing on improving diversity within the corporate sector. She is honored to be a speaker for various executive leadership, women in leadership and emerging leader seminars, covering topics including: “Impactful Leadership,” “Building Dynamic Teams,” and “Identifying Blind Spots.” Tamika has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and is completing her Master’s degree in seminary. She has a laser-focus on ensuring she uses her influence and position to mentor and coach minorities and women into c-suite-level leadership. Her leadership mantra is: “If serving is beneath you, then leadership is beyond you.” Tamika has been happily married to her husband Korey Baker for 18 years. They are both ordained ministers who fervently leverage their entrepreneurial and executive experience to inspire and mentor those coming behind them. Korey and Tamika share two wonderful sons, Landen, 16, and Ashton, 15.
Award-winning leader and sought-after expert and speaker, Bhavana Bartholf provides vision and accelerates Digital Transformation for global corporations while driving systemic change that creates inclusive work environments. She has enjoyed over 20 years at Microsoft, leading and innovating their customer success, sales, marketing, consulting, and support businesses. Today, she is responsible for advancing technical sales strategy across solution areas to enable digital transformation for Fortune 500 companies. Transformative shifts require systemic change. Bhavana opens doors by creating highly successful and diverse workplaces. Whether her role is Digital Executive, disruptive leader, board member, author, keynote speaker, mom, or wife – she drives the conversations that help women and racial ethnic minorities around the globe get ‘seen’ and inspires inquisitive companies to examine their own cultural parity. The proud mother of three, Bhavana paves the path to the future she wants her children to experience. Her goal is that by the time they enter the workforce, they will experience an evolved and more inclusive environment that embraces differences and provides opportunity for all. Systemic change is possible and all of us play a role in creating the change we want to see. Change takes place one employee at a time, one keynote at a time, one conversation at a time – simply imagine the potential. Recent Awards: - Charlotte Business Journal's Women in Business Achievement Award: 25 Outstanding Women (2022) - National Diversity Council's Top 100 Women in Technology (2021) - National Diversity Council's “Power 50” Women in Leadership (2021) - Profiles in Diversity Journal's Women Worth Watching (2021)f
Camille Chang Gilmore is Vice President of Human Resources (HR) and Global Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer (CDEIO) for Boston Scientific Corporation. In this role, Camille oversees HR strategies, health equity, community and diversity & inclusion programs for the company’s $11.0 billion global business, in over 130 countries, whereby their products treat approximately 30 million patients every year. Diversity is a core value at Boston Scientific. As CDEIO, Camille drives diversity and inclusion, community and health equity strategies and programs across the organization that recognizes and values the unique talent, attributes and contributions of all employees. Camille has more than 25 years of HR experience. Prior to coming to the medical device industry in 2004, she held roles of increasing responsibility at Federal Express, Exxon Chemical Company, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IBM and the State of Oregon. Camille is an active member of her community as well as the communities that Boston Scientific resides in. She serves on the board for the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies (GTCYS); SHRM Foundation Board of Directors; as well as a liaison to the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME) organization. Camille is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and was selected as one of Savoy Magazine’s 2016 Top Influential Women in Corporate America, The Network Journal’s 2018 Top 25 Black Women in Business, 2019, 2018 BLACK ENTERPRISE's Top Executives in Corporate Diversity as well as ranked #2 in DiversityGlobal Magazine’s 2020 Top 10 Influential Women in Diversity. Camille is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Deanna L. Draper serves as Senior Vice President, Legal for Dell Financial Services, Global Marketing, Dell Digital (IT) and Security & Resilience (including the CISO). She also leads Dell’s Office of the Chief Privacy Officer. She is charged with leading a global team of professionals to provide outstanding and innovative legal support, compliance, strategy, and risk management to these businesses. Deanna’s dynamic, 19-year career with Dell Technologies includes a multi-year engagement in Singapore leading a diverse team to support the APJC region’s corporate, compliance, ethics and global operations work, as well as overall legal support for Korea and Taiwan. She’s also led global and regional legal teams in support of sales, marketing, compliance, vendor management, product development, consumer protection, corporate and mergers and acquisition integration organizations. Further, she’s acted as Ethics & Compliance leader for the APJC region including investigations, compliance training and remediation execution. Deanna leads the Dell Technologies’ legal department diversity program whose mission is to promote diversity both within the company’s legal department and externally within the communities where Dell Technologies operates. The Dell Technologies legal department diversity program is responsible for recognizing outstanding diversity leadership in its outside counsel partners through the annual Legal Diversity Award, supporting the education of diverse students through four annual law school scholarships in local communities, providing mentoring and support for high school students interested in legal careers, and most recently developing programs to attract, retain, develop and promote diverse talent internally. Before joining Dell Technologies, Deanna held positions in the corporate, transactional and technology sections at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, LLP and was also an associate at a Texas statewide political consulting firm. Deanna received her Juris Doctorate with honors from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, and her MBA from McCombs School of Business, University of Texas at Austin. Deanna was born and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Julie is a passionate and accomplished Sr. Executive with exceptional experience, and proven record of success creating cutting-edge technology to drive business transformation and strategic growth for Fortune 50 organizations. Julie Durham is the Chief Technology Officer at UnitedHealthcare, where she is responsible for driving innovation and leading the company's technology and digital strategy. She oversees $3.0B of technology investments that drive UHC $249B Revenue globally. With over 20 years of experience in the tech industry, Julie has a proven track record of delivering results in fast-paced and dynamic environments. Prior to her UHC CTO role, she was the CTO For Optum Payment Integrity and Optum Connect where she served on senior pursuit team that led M&A integration of Equian for $3.2B. She also created the first AI Platform & Transformation team for UHG. Her expertise in cloud computing and data analytics helped the company stay ahead of the competition and solidify its position as a market leader. Former employers and clients include Best Buy, SAP, Nike, Apple, Al-Futtaim, ExxonMobil and GE. Throughout her career, Julie has been recognized for her exceptional technical skills, business acumen, and ability to build and lead high-performing teams. She has been named Top 100 Executive Women in Tech. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Information Systems and Finance from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and is a sought-after speaker on topics related to technology and digital transformation.
Laurie Fry is the Chief Talent Officer at Epsilon, a global marketing company that provides data-driven marketing solutions to its clients. With over 20 years of experience in talent management and organizational development, Laurie is a seasoned HR executive who is adept at designing people and culture strategies that drive business results. Throughout her career, Laurie has helped organizations grow and transform into global, high-growth tech companies. She’s passionate about building high performing, inclusive cultures where people can do their best work. With a deep understanding of the importance of talent acquisition and people development, Laurie has led numerous successful initiatives aimed at attracting, retaining, and developing top talent. Her leadership has resulted in Epsilon being recognized as one of the best places to work in the industry. Her women-in-tech recruiting programs have been recognized with Top 20 Most Innovative Practices for DivHersity Hiring and include a focus on helping women return to the workforce through a SheRises program. Laurie is a strategic thinker and collaborator, working closely with business leaders to align talent strategy with business objectives. She is passionate about creating a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion and has championed initiatives to increase diversity across the organization. Laurie holds a master’s degree in English from Indiana University and a bachelor’s degree in English, Spanish, and Secondary Education from Baylor University.
Vivian Greentree, Ph.D., is a Senior Vice President and Head of Global Corporate Citizenship and President of the Fiserv Cares Foundation at Fiserv, where she has created award winning employee-centric programming while driving culture development through diversity and inclusion, employee engagement, and community investment strategies. Vivian joined Fiserv through the Fiserv acquisition of First Data in 2019, where she served in the same capacity. Before launching First Data’s Office of Corporate Citizenship, she joined First Data as the Head of Military and Veteran Affairs in February 2014. In that role Vivian created First Data Salutes, a company-wide military engagement strategy to provide the military community with access to career opportunities and best-in-class education resources, while offering premier business solutions to veteran-owned businesses. In recognition of Fiserv’s success under Vivian’s leadership, Fiserv has been designated a Civic 50 by Points of Light and has been included in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index, Disability:IN’s Disability Equality Index, the Human Rights Campaign Human Equality Index, and has ranked in top 5 on Military Times’ Best for Vets: Employers for the last 5 years. Prior to joining First Data, Vivian co-founded Blue Star Families, the nation’s largest military family organization, where she created and oversaw BSF’s groundbreaking and now annual Military Family Lifestyle Survey, which examines a broad spectrum of issues affecting modern-day military families, including a military community civic health index. Vivian is a Navy veteran and military spouse with leadership experience across public, non-profit, and private sectors. In 2019 she was accepted into the prestigious Presidential Leadership Scholar program, designated a City of Alexandria “40 Under 40,” and was recognized by the Washington Business Journal as a “Veteran Who Means Business.” In 2020, she was awarded Corporate Citizen of the Year by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and in 2021 she was designated a Power50 CSR and DEI leader by the National Diversity Council. Most recently, Vivian was inducted into the 2022 Leadership Atlanta class. Vivian is dedicated to creating positive spaces for citizens to thrive and firmly believes that human capital management and corporate citizens are the key for effective organizations and a flourishing, civically engaged society. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Dog Tag Bakery, a veteran entrepreneurship incubator, is on the Board of Advisors for Girl Scouts of America’s Greater Atlanta Council, and the Alumni Association Advisory Board for the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia. Most recently, she joined the Board of Directors for the Red Cross of Georgia. She is also a mentor for the Georgia Education Mentorship program, a collaboration between Georgia College and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. She is a proud military spouse, married to a recently retired Naval Aviator, and together they have two boys, ages 18 and 16.
Eleanor Hayes Meritt is a Senior Vice President at Oracle Corporation. She is responsible for Identity and Access management development, Oracle Fusion Middleware support, Database On-Premises support and Site Reliability engineering for Fusion Middleware. Eleanor is known as a versatile innovator who leads complex, cross-functional technical initiatives applying her broad, full-stack technology background to oversee large, globally consistent customer focus, delivering critical products that scale organizational capacity, drive competitive differentiation, and generate billions of dollars in revenue.
Pam Heminger is a senior vice president of Caterpillar Inc. with responsibility for the Strategic Procurement & Planning Division. In this position, she is responsible for ensuring consistent, enterprise-wide procurement governance and standards; managing category and supplier strategies and a central information system; and overseeing key strategic supplier and category councils and the advancement of procurement talent, capabilities and technology. Prior to joining Caterpillar in 2020, Pam held a series of roles with increasing responsibilities in procurement and business operations at Honda of America including vice president of Honda North America Purchasing. Before joining Honda of America, she held various supply chain and materials management roles with Lennox International. In 2015, Automotive News selected Pam as one of “100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry,” a recognition awarded every 5 years. Pam graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Procurement & Materials Management and Production & Operations Management. She received her MBA from Capital University in 1994. She serves on the Bowling Green State University College of Business Leadership Council and is a board member of the National Minority Supplier Development Council and Center for Procurement and Supply Management Leadership.
Janice Innis-Thompson is an attorney who has worked for leading companies in financial services, technology and manufacturing. She joined Nationwide in October 2020, after a distinguished career in government and as a Chief Compliance Counsel and Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer at companies such as International Paper, Tyco International, TIAA and Samsung Electronics, North America. She created TIAA’s Ethics program, which won Ethisphere’s Awards in 2014, 2015 and 2016 ranking TIAA as one of the most Ethical Companies in the World. In her current role as SVP, Litigation and Legal Operations, she leads a large group of attorneys and legal professionals who manage Corporate Litigation and provide legal counsel to Finance, HR, IT and Marketing. Following a Judicial Clerkship on the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, Janice began her career with the United States Department of Justice, where she was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in three jurisdictions: Middle Districr of Florida; Western District of NY; and Eastern District of NY. During that time she also served a year as Counsel to the Director of EOUSA (Executive Office for United States Attorneys), and worked with Attorney General Janet Reno during the 1996 election. In addition to her day job, she has served on several non-profit boards offering guidance on governance, risk management, compliance and audit. She also served as an initiating member of Edward Jones’ BridgeBuilder Mutual Fund, which currently has over $100 Billion in assets under care. Janice chaired BridgeBuilders’ Nominations & Governance Committee for 7 years and was a member of the Audit Committee. She currently serves on the boards of MBIA; The Executive Leadership Council; University of Florida’s Law Center Association; and the National Forest Foundation. Janice holds a B.S. with honors and a J.D. from the University of Florida, Gainesville.
Lisa Knight is the Chief Intellectual Property Counsel and Associate General Counsel at American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”). Her responsibilities include identifying and protecting AIG's key areas of innovation using intellectual property, protecting the AIG’s global brands, monetizing IP, performing freedom to operate analyses, mitigating intellectual property related risks and implementing best practices globally that enhance AIG's patent and trademark portfolios. Prior to her role at AIG, Lisa has had roles at American Express as Vice President of Global Intellectual Property Strategy, Vice President and Senior Intellectual Property Counsel and owner of her intellectual property law practice, Knight Law Services. For over 20 years, Lisa has specialized in strategic trademark and patent portfolio management and IP monetization, patent litigation and prosecution, and IP transactions in technical areas that include blockchain, cybersecurity, AI, IoT, mobile payments, online security, E-commerce, gaming technology, enhanced data analytics and contactless payments. She successfully obtained over 500 patents for her clients, including 7 patents on which she is listed as an inventor. Lisa started her legal career as an associate at Fish & Neave, an intellectual property boutique (now part of Ropes & Gray) and subsequently worked for several years in the Intellectual Property group of Schulte Roth and Zabel, LLP. Prior to law school, she was an electrical engineer for Hughes Aircraft Company, Missile Systems. There she designed guidance system electronics for several strategic missile system programs. In addition to the Juris Doctor that she earned from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, Lisa also has a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Engineering Management both from the California State University at Northridge as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the New York Institute of Technology. Lisa is a co-founder of the IP Network, an organization dedicated to facilitating professional and social connections between African-American Intellectual Property attorneys. She is also the co-founder and Co-Chair of the ChIPs New York chapter and Chair of the ChiPs Social Justice Committee. Lisa is a member of the Leadership Committee for the National Women’s Law Center.
Lisa LeCointe-Cephas is Senior Vice President, Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer of Merck. Lisa is also the Global Pro Bono Lead for the Company, and the global Executive Sponsor of the Black Employee Business Resource Group. Lisa is responsible for ensuring compliance with laws and regulations around the world and fostering an ethical, values-based corporate culture. Prior to leading Compliance, Lisa was the Head of the Global Investigations at Merck for over 3 years. In that capacity, Lisa’s team was responsible for conducting investigations related to breaches of Merck’s policies, laws and regulations. Lisa joined Merck in February 2018 from Bristol-Myers Squibb Corp. (“BMS”), where Lisa served as lead Government Investigations counsel. Prior to BMS, Lisa was a partner in the Government Investigations and White-Collar Defense practice of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Lisa received her BA in Psychology from Yale University and received her JD from Columbia Law School.
Shawn Lewis has 20+ years of diverse experience in learning technology, performance consulting, and curriculum development. She is the Chief Learning Officer for Wells Fargo. In her role, Shawn is responsible for driving measurable business impact by developing overall learning and talent strategies across the organization’s 260,000 employees. She holds a bachelor of science degree in Public Health Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a master’s in Organizational Development from Pfeiffer University. She is a member of several professional organizations, including the Association for Talent Development (ATD) and the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI). Shawn is also a member of the Wells Fargo Women’s Team Member Network and the African American Team Member Network. She is a proven learning leader and innovator with recognitions, including a Brandon Hall Excellence Award. Shawn is based in Charlotte, North Carolina. She loves to read and travel (anywhere warm).
Mecca Mitchell is the Senior Vice President overseeing Leadership & Organizational Development, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, and Community Impact for Burlington Stores, Inc., where she is responsible for leading efforts to create supportive and equitable institutional structures, fostering welcoming and inclusive environments that promote growth and development, and cultivating a culture that leverages diversity, inclusion, and equity best practices to drive business objectives, while responding to the diverse needs of its workforce, its customers, and the communities it serves. Prior to this position, she served as the Senior Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion & Community Engagement for the Westchester Medical Center Health Network, a ten-hospital system located in the Hudson Valley. In that role, she ensured that all internal organizational policies and procedures across the network aligned with diversity, inclusion, and equity principles, while also building relationships with external stakeholders to explore innovative partnerships that created sustainable health and promoted community vitality. Prior to this position, Mrs. Mitchell served as the Chief Diversity Officer for the State of New York where she was responsible for the creation and implementation of recruitment and retention initiatives designed to promote workforce diversity and inclusion, while also leading state-wide initiatives to increase Minority & Women Owned Business (MWBE) procurement opportunities. Prior to serving as NYS’s Chief Diversity Officer, Mrs. Mitchell was the Executive Director of Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity Management for the New York City Department of Education, the largest school district in the country. In that role she was responsible for ensuring department-wide compliance with all EEO laws and diversity policies by overseeing the Discrimination Complaint Unit, the Procurement/Contract Compliance Unit, the Training Unit, the Disability Rights Unit, Title IX Unit, and the Diversity Management Unit – a unit that Mrs. Mitchell created. Mrs. Mitchell began her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney in the New York County (Manhattan) District Attorney’s Office. Appointed by the renowned Robert M. Morgenthau in 2000, she prosecuted assorted criminal matters as a member of the Trial Division, Sex Crimes & Domestic Violence Units, and the Welfare Fraud Unit. Mrs. Mitchell holds certifications from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations in Diversity Management and Equal Employment Opportunity Studies. Mrs. Mitchell, who is licensed to practice law in both New York and New Jersey, graduated from Hofstra University’s School of Law in June 2000 and is a graduate of the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany, where she double majored in Criminal Justice and Political Science. Mrs. Mitchell has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades including: Crain’s New York Business Notable Black Leaders and Executives Honoree, Athena International Award Honoree, Healthcare Leaders of New York Diversity Leadership Awardee, National Association of Minority Contractors Diversity Champion Awardee, Girl Scouts Heart of the Hudson Woman of Distinction Honoree, Tri-State Diversity Council Healthcare Diversity Awardee, YWCA Community Champion Awardee, City & State Corporate Social Responsibility Awardee, National Diversity Council Most Powerful & Influential Woman Awardee, Diversity MBA Top 100 Under 50 Executive Leader Awardee. In 2020, Mrs. Mitchell was selected to lead the Hudson Valley’s Regional Covid-19 Health Equity Task Force. She was also confirmed by the NYS Senate to serve as a member of the NYS Minority Health Council. Additionally, she serves on the Board of the United Way of Westchester and Putnam Counties and volunteers her time as a mentor for Judge Judy’s Her Honor Mentorship Program.
Suma Nallapati leads a global team of more than 450 information technology specialists and drives Insight’s digital transformation efforts — including automation, enhancing client experiences, expanding data and digital capabilities, overseeing day-to-day IT operations and cybersecurity. Before joining Insight in 2022, Suma served as Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at both Dish Network and Everbridge. Previously, she held positions at TeleTech, Catholic Health Initiatives and the State of Colorado. During her tenure as the Secretary of Technology and Chief Information Officer for the State of Colorado, Suma discovered her passion for strategizing and implementing IT initiatives to support vulnerable populations. One of her proudest achievements was significantly reducing processing times of Medicare and Medicaid eligibility by moving the program to the public cloud. Suma started in tech at a time when there were very few female executives. She is committed to creating more opportunities to bring young women into technology and is fiercely passionate about advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the technology industry. Her experience includes work with the Blind Institute of Technology, LadyCoders and Women in STEM. She was named in 2019 among the Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology by The National Diversity Council. Suma has a love of travel. She was raised in India and has traveled extensively before settling in Denver, Colorado. Suma also loves hiking and spending time outdoors with her family. She can occasionally be found singing to her favorite tunes while enjoying her Smule Karaoke App.
Anita Sehgal is currently in her ninth year with the Houston Astros as Senior Vice President, Marketing & Communications. In her role, Anita provides strategic leadership for the ballclub’s retail, advertising, marketing, communications, broadcasting, and alumni relations, including support for a broad variety of sponsorship, ticket, special event, community, and the Astros Golf Foundation and Houston Open initiatives. Prior to joining the Houston organization, Anita spent over 20 years in various strategic marketing functions with several organizations, including FGL Sports, Best Buy and most recently Academy Sports + Outdoors. Hailing from Canada’s Regina, Saskatchewan, Anita, who earned her United States citizenship in September of 2019, received a bachelor’s of business administration degree, with a focus in marketing and human resources, from the University of Regina. She plays an active role in several Houston-based organizations, including her position as an Executive Committee Board Member of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Houston and a board member of WISE Houston. She is also an active Brand 50 member of World 50. Anita serves as an Independent Board Director with Reitman’s Canada, Ltee, Escalade Inc, and Holley Inc – where she recently took on the role as Chair for the Governance & Nominating Committee. In 2016, Anita was honored as one of Houston’s Top 15 Business Women by the National Diversity Council. In 2018, Anita was honored again by the National Diversity Council as the National Business Woman of the Year. She also received honors in 2018 as one of Texas Executive Women’s Women on the Move. Most recently, Anita was recognized in 2021 by the National Diversity Council as a Power 50, for her contributions and commitment to both business and community. In November 2021, Anita was celebrated as the 2021 Woman of Inspiration by WISE Houston. Anita was honored by Houston Woman Magazine as one Houston’s 50 Most Influential Women in 2022.
Qiana Spain is Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resource Officer for Amtrak. She joined Amtrak in March 2020, coming most recently from Siemens. Qiana began her career at Lockheed Martin where she held leadership positions in various HR functions including labor relations, operations, digital transformation and as a strategic HR business partner. Qiana has played a key role in reshaping Amtrak's work culture to incorporate lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic. Employees have gained greater flexibility with full time remote and hybrid work arrangements introduced in spring 2022. Aligned with the needs of the business, these arrangements allow for greater work-life balance and have increased job satisfaction. This new approach to working has helped Amtrak attract new talent as ridership continues to recover from pandemic-related disruptions. In 2021, the company also received a transformational level of federal investment to advance vital infrastructure projects and fleet acquisitions. This investment dovetails with a company vision to expand passenger rail services to more Americans and has accelerated Amtrak's need for employees across all departments. In response, Amtrak aggressively expanded recruitment efforts, intern and co-op programs, rotational programs and apprenticeships focused on specialized skills. In 2022, Amtrak hired 3,700 new employees and has set a goal of filling 4,000 additional full-time positions in 2023. A restructured New Employee Orientation program ensures new hires have the foundation for success as they build their careers at America's Railroad. Qiana and her team also improved Amtrak's Total Rewards package to better invest in talent, strengthen culture and advance technology that makes benefits easier to access. Enhancements have made Amtrak’s benefits simpler and more connected, while also allowing for greater personalization with a more competitive offering for employees and their families. Qiana leads efforts to foster a more diverse, inclusive workplace where employees feel a sense of belonging and see themselves at all levels of the organization. This includes the launch of eight Employee Resource Groups. These voluntary, employee-led groups provide personal and career support, as well as the opportunity for employees to have a voice in corporate policies and strategies related to diversity and inclusion. Amtrak's ongoing efforts to attract and retain high caliber talent were recognized in 2022 through a number of widely respected industry awards. The Disability Equality Index named Amtrak as one of the best places to work for disability inclusion, and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation acknowledged the company's efforts to support the LGBTQ+ community when it awarded Amtrak a top score on its Corporate Equality Index. In addition, Amtrak earned a place on Forbes magazine’s “America’s Best Employers” list. This was the sixth time Amtrak received this recognition, in the transportation and logistics category. Forbes also awarded Amtrak a spot on its list of “America’s Best Employers for New Graduates.” In spring 2023, Qiana was named to Mogul's list of “Top 100 People Leaders and Chief Human Resource Officers.” This honor recognizes leaders who have advanced implementation of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging best practices, invested in resources to hire diverse talent and placed diverse people across their organization. Qiana earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a focus in Information Technology and Human Resources from the University of Colorado, Boulder and a Master of Science degree in Human Resources with an emphasis in Employment Law from Pennsylvania State University.
Sherice Torres is an inspirational leader with over 25 years of experience in marketing, brand management, strategic planning, and change management. She currently serves as Chief Marketing Officer at Circle, a global internet finance firm that provides payments and financial infrastructure to businesses of all sizes. Previously, Sherice served as Chief Marketing Officer for Novi, the fintech division of Meta/Facebook, as well as in several senior marketing roles at Google - including social responsibility, kids and family products, Google Pay and Google Shopping. Earlier in her career, she spent nearly 15 years at Nickelodeon in a variety of leadership roles across consumer products, strategic planning, digital video and paid apps. Sherice began her career in the change management practice at Deloitte Consulting. A mother of two boys, Sherice has a passion for revolutionizing the public education system and advancing academic and professional opportunities for women and people of color. She is a member of the Executive Leadership Council, an independent non-profit that opens channels of opportunity for the development of Black executives to positively impact business and our communities. Sherice serves on the board of Advance Auto Parts and the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. Sherice graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and earned her MBA at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. She is also a graduate of the Stanford Law School Directors’ College, the nation’s premier executive education program for directors and senior executives of publicly traded firms.
Angie Wesley is SVP, Chief Workforce Strategy and People Team Operations Officer at TIAA, a Fortune 100 financial services organization and leading provider of retirement services in the academic, research, medical, and cultural fields. She oversees all aspects of workforce strategy and analytics, talent acquisition operations, payroll and global HR shared services. Angie joined TIAA in 2014 and is located in the Charlotte, NC, office. Angie is an experienced HR executive who has served in senior leadership roles at Fortune 500 companies. With more than 20 years of human resources and sales experience in financial services, her expertise is in key areas including HR generalist, talent acquisition, organization design, organization effectiveness, talent planning and performance management. She has consistently achieved success in supporting business objectives and driving improved organizational performance. Prior to joining TIAA, Angie spent 15 years at Wells Fargo, one of the world’s largest financial institutions. During her tenure she served as a Senior Recruiting Leader and Senior HR Generalist, supporting multiple business areas. She previously held a sales leadership role with Aerotek Employment Services, ensuring top level sales and expansion of new territories. Angie is on the OnConferences Senior Council and is a member of the Association for Latin Professionals for America (ALPFA), National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) and National Association of Professional Women (NAPW). Angie received a bachelor’s of science in communications with a focus in public relations and marketing from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her husband, four children and three dogs.
Yang Xu has a global background and over 20 years of broad experiences in Consumer Goods industry. Born and raised in China, Yang obtained a bachelor’s degree in Finance. She then pursued her master’s degree at HEC Paris and London Business School. Yang debuted her career in Business Development with GE Healthcare in EMEA, and thereafter held many roles with increasing responsibilities with Whirlpool Corporation across Treasury, M&A, Strategy, and numerous Financial, Commercial and Operational roles the U.S., Europe and Asia. In 2018, Yang joined Kraft Heinz as Global Treasurer, a role that focuses on company capital structure, and manages major capital market transactions. Over time, Yang expanded her scope to include various global finance functions since 2020. She further added the scope as the Global Head of Corporate Development in early 2021 focusing on Strategy and M&A agendas. Yang joined the Kraft Heinz’s Executive Committee in 2022. In addition, she serves as Board Director of GameStop, a NYSE listed company. Yang is recognized by driving value through strategic and financial acumen, leading large-scale transformations and transactions with global experiences. As a leader, Yang is passionate about developing talents and building strong and diverse organizations.
Amy Yao is Senior Vice President and Chief Actuary at Blue Shield of California, a tax-paying nonprofit health plan with over $22.9B in annual revenue serving 4.7M members in the state’s commercial, individual, and government markets. Applying her 20+ years of leadership experience, Yao oversees the Actuarial department and provides analytical support across the enterprise. Her demonstrated record of meeting goals in mission-critical areas, including business development, risk management, turnaround leadership and profitability, serve Blue Shield well. She leads pricing and risk adjustment processes for all lines of business (individual, small and large employer groups, Medicare, dental/vision/life, and stop-loss), reserves and trend developments, financial forecasting, rating model development, provider network trend and analytics, underwriting, and provider payment innovations. Using actuarial analytics, her team provides actionable insights to inform and influence financial planning, healthcare system transformation and innovation, risk management business strategy, healthcare affordability, and predictability of business performance. Prior to joining Blue Shield in 2006, Yao served United HealthCare for 12 years (PacificCare Health Systems prior to merger), culminating in the role of Director/Vice President, Ovations, and led Medicare-based strategies and directed a series of enterprise initiatives as Pricing Director. Formative experiences included Milliman & Robertson (Actuary Consultant), Pacific Life and Aetna. Yao actively serves the advisory boards of DMHC Financial Solvency Standards Board and the University of Santa Barbara Actuarial Program. She previously served on the board for the Asian Pacific Fund and Chaired the Western Operations Conference – Actuarial & Underwriting Caucus. Yao was also Founder and Mentor of Blue Shield’s California Women Lead to Excellence. Her business acumen throughout her career has earned her the ‘Bay Area’s Most Influential Women’ award from the San Francisco Business Times in 2014, 2015 and 2016. Yao holds a Master of Science in Applied Mathematics from the University of Connecticut and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Tsinghua University in Beijing. She is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries.
Natasha Zuyev, a Six Sigma Master Black Belt, is a transformational leader with expertise in highly regulated environments. In her role as Chief Quality Officer for the Consumer Health sector at Johnson & Johnson, Natasha is accountable for Quality & Regulatory Compliance for the end-to-end global Consumer Health business. Natasha’s accomplished career is built on a strong foundation of systems thinking, data-driven decision making and leading with integrity and compassion. She has built and inspired diverse global teams to exceed goals, coaching and developing talent to reach their highest potential, adding to a strong pipeline of Quality leaders. MAKE, with responsibility for the quality performance of all global J&J Consumer Health manufacturing plants. Natasha began her career with Johnson & Johnson in 2013, as the Vice President of Consent Decree, where she led the strategy and execution of the McNeil Consent Decree Workplan across the J&J US OTC manufacturing sites. Prior to joining J&J, Natasha held a variety of Quality and Compliance positions with increasing responsibilities at Merck and Schering-Plough. At Merck, Natasha was an Executive Director of Business Integrity and Risk Assurance, accountable for mitigating compliance risks by using predictive analytics and developing and implementing robust Business Integrity Systems and Programs. Earlier in her career, Natasha was a Director of Corporate Quality at MSC, where she led the Quality organization for the Medical Device, Electronic, and Automotive Divisions. Natasha earned her B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the City College of New York (CCNY), and her MBA in Management from Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU). She holds several professional certifications, including Master Six Sigma Black Belt, Mindful Leadership, Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance and Registered Lead Auditor. In 2018, she was certified by World 50 Next Women, an exclusive executive development program for top global leaders.