Jennifer Abbondanza is the Vice President of Corporate Initiatives for NBCUniversal’s Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, where she works with executives across the company to advance DE&I efforts in the areas of workforce, content, and philanthropy. She leads a team that drives diversity strategy, analytics and insights across NBCUniversal.

Jennifer has worked at NBCUniversal since 2007 and previously served as a Vice President in the Corporate Strategy & Development group where she focused on acquisitions, divestitures and strategic partnerships. Prior to NBCUniversal, she worked at Intel Corp, Deutsche Bank, and Brera Capital Partners. Jennifer graduated from Princeton University with a degree in economics and holds a Master of Business Administration from the UCLA Anderson School of Business. She currently resides in New York City with her wife and two children.

Pamela Newkirk, PhD, is a journalist, New York University professor, author and multi-disciplinary scholar whose work examines contemporary and historical depictions of African Americans in popular culture. Her latest book Diversity Inc.: The Failed Promise of Billion-Dollar Business, exposes the decades-old practices and attitudes that have made diversity a lucrative business while they fail to realize diversity. The book was included on TIME magazine’s “Must-Read” books of 2019 and featured in numerous publications, including TIME, FORBES and Fortune magazines. Her previous book, Spectacle: The Astonishing Life of Ota Benga, was awarded the 2016 NAACP Image Award and was selected as a New York Times Editor’s Choice and named a Best Book of 2015 by NPR, The Boston Globe, and The San Francisco Chronicle.

Dr. Newkirk has compiled and edited two collections of African American letters and is the author of Within the Veil: Black Journalists, White Media which won the National Press Club Award for Media Criticism. Prior to joining the journalism faculty at New York University she was a daily reporter at four news organizations including New York Newsday where she was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting team. She holds journalism degrees from Columbia and New York universities, and a PhD from Columbia University. Her freelance articles have appeared in a number of leading publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and TIME magazine.

Dr. Salima Bhimani is the Chief Equity + Inclusion Strategist for the Other Bets at Alphabet. She leads, partners with and enables the Bets to achieve equity, inclusion and increased representation through systemic change.

She came to Alphabet as an award winning equity, inclusion and diversity (EID) practitioner of 23 years having worked in the public, private, international and academic sectors. Some of her work highlights include: designing and leading a project on remodeling the Canadian Federal Government’s resourcing channels by exposing racial profiling and structural racism in education systems; leading efforts on women’s human rights through NGOs in the global south; creating racial and gender equity policy frameworks for large scale institutions.

Prior to her role at Alphabet she was the CEO and Founder of Relational, a boutique firm dedicated to empowering organizations on the path of EID.

Her secret sauce as an EID expert comes from merging her praxis as a systemic change designer, advocate, strategist, researcher, educator and consultant. She holds a PhD In Education with a focus on transforming racial and gender social exclusion in communities and institutions. She also has a Master in Environmental Studies (Globalization and Women), Bachelor of Education and Honors Bachelors in Anthropology and Women and Gender Studies.

In her other lives she is a trained North Indian dancer, an avid taiji sword student and a playwright.

Jamal Lopez has been a diversity practitioner for more than a decade, and currently serves as the Senior Director of Institutional Equity at Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM) in New York City, where he leads the Office of Institutional Equity to advance and operationalize the Dean’s diversity, inclusion, and equity goals. Jamal oversees WCM’s Title IX compliance efforts and investigations of all claims of harassment and/or discrimination, and collaborates with external and internal institutional partners to advance efforts on equity, inclusion, and respect.

Prior to working at Weill Cornell Medicine, Jamal worked as a federal police officer for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a social worker for the Administration for Children’s Services, and held senior roles in diversity at the NYC Department of Education, NYC Human Resources Administration and Con Edison.

Jamal’s educational portfolio includes a Juris Doctor degree from New York Law School, a Master’s in Public Administration/Human Resources Management, and a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice, both attained from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City.

As a testament to Jamal’s leadership and passion to align HR and diversity strategies to organizational goals, Jamal has a certification from the Society for Human Resource as a Senior Certified Professional, and recently completed professional diversity certification at the Society for Diversity.

Additionally, Jamal has been an adjunct professor at Berkeley College in New York City since 2012, where he teaches undergraduate courses in Berkeley’s Justice Studies program.

Julie is a Consultant in DDI’s New York Metro team based in Manhattan. She partners closely with clients to build learning solutions, assessment strategies, and leadership development pipelines that reinforce organizational goals and values. She works with clients across a wide range of industries to create highly customized programs that focus on high-impact development and accelerating leaders’ success.

Prior to joining DDI, Julie worked as an engagement and leadership development consultant at L'Oréal USA through an initiative to transform organizational culture. She also has experience as a director of client services, building and leading a technical services organization within an educational technology startup. She credits her passion for developing others to her time spent as an English teacher in South Korea.

Marisa Grimes leads Mastercard’s inclusion and diversity efforts across the U.S. and Canada. She is responsible for aligning the company’s D&I initiatives with its business strategy to drive innovation and create a culture of belonging where employees from all backgrounds feel valued and respected, and have the opportunity to reach their greatest potential.

Prior to this role, Marisa spent six years as part of Mastercard’s Global Communications team. During this time she spearheaded communications initiatives for a variety of business areas, including data and services, digital payments, and the Center for Inclusive Growth, which works to advance social and economic inclusion around the world.

Marisa joined Mastercard from media and measurement company Nielsen. She also held previous public relations roles at media companies including TV Guide and Discovery Communications.

Marisa holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park. She writes frequently about the need for better access to quality education, particularly for children of color, and sits on the Board of Directors for the Northeast STEM Starter Academy, a non-profit whose mission is to expose students in under-resourced school districts to STEM education and careers.

Marisa lives in Westchester County, New York with her husband and two sons.

Emily Nordquist is the senior program manager for the Baumhart Center, an interdisciplinary center at Loyola University Chicago that equips leaders with the business tools to accelerate social impact. The center is home to a highly selective MBA program, called Baumhart Scholars, that prepares working professionals to marry profit and purpose in their careers.

Before joining Baumhart, Emily worked for LISC’s New Markets Support Co. (NMSC), a Chicago-based social enterprise, and a subsidiary of one of the largest community-development financial institutions in the country. NMSC delivers creative financing solutions to expand economic opportunity and has created over 7,000 jobs in low-income communities across U.S. cities and in rural America. In her role, Emily led the impact management process for NMSC’s portfolio of $1 billion of investments in health-care centers, schools, community centers, industrial facilities and more. Emily also developed and supported internal fund management, impact compliance, and asset management processes.

Emily is a 2018 inaugural Obama Foundation Community Leadership Corps (CLC) Member and a current Alumni Ambassador for the CLC program. She is also known for her efforts in helping young women in Chicago achieve financial wellness through her community-based organization, Penny. She was given the opportunity to speak about her work in reimagining financial well-being for women at the 2018 Obama Summit.

Emily has a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA from Quinlan School of Business at Loyola University Chicago. She currently serves on the Impact Investing Advisory Council of the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago and volunteers her time with the Illinois Diversity Council.

Dave Landa is the chief executive officer of Kintone Corporation, the startup behind Kintone: a digital workplace platform with a no-code builder that empowers organizations to effectively manage their data, workflows, and team collaboration in a more transparent and empowered way.

In leading efforts to improve teamwork for organizations across the country, Dave has developed profound expertise on the culture, tools and policies needed for teams to optimize collaboration. He has also spoken and written extensively about the role of management in team building, as well as the importance of purpose and individual happiness in the workplace.

Dave has been on the forefront of the cloud revolution for decades, driving strategic business development on the executive teams of leading SaaS application providers. His career includes stints at Fortune 500 companies (Ball Corporation) and startups (Blue Rice, SPG Solutions, Electric Run), and he was instrumental in bringing a mid-stage company (Active Network) through to a successful IPO.

Emma Hinchliffe is an associate editor for Fortune, where she covers women in business and gender issues across business, politics, and culture. Emma is a coauthor of the Broadsheet daily newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women and cochair of the Fortune/U.S. State Department Global Women’s Mentoring Partnership. Before joining Fortune, she worked as a reporter for Mashable and the Houston Chronicle. She is a graduate of Georgetown University.

Neela serves as Head of External Engagement Strategy, Diversity & Inclusion at Goldman Sachs, where she manages key partnerships and builds initiatives at the intersection of equity and the firm’s talent. Previously, she served as Head of Strategy and Management for the Office of Corporate Engagement. In this role, she secured the firm’s inaugural $25M commitment to HBCUs, oversaw the Fund for Racial Equity, and served as a key liaison between nonprofit organizations and Goldman Sachs.

Prior to Goldman, Neela was a senior consultant with boutique advisory firm BDO-FMA, where she coached nonprofit executive directors, facilitated interactive workshops and led project teams.

Neela started her career working for mission-based organizations—ranging from the Aspen Institute to an educational nonprofit in Calcutta.

She is a Facilitator for Interpersonal Dynamics, a leadership course at the Yale School of Management (Yale SOM), and serves on the Advisory Board of the annual Yale Philanthropy Conference. Neela received her BA in English Literature and African American Studies from the University of Virginia and her MBA from Yale SOM.

Neela grew up bilingual, always has a notebook on her, and learned how to ride a bike three years ago—she now rides it everywhere.

Shay Hable is Chief Labor & Employment Counsel and Chief Diversity Officer for Newell Brands, a leading global consumer goods company with a strong portfolio of well-known brands, including Paper Mate®, Sha​​​rpie®, EXPO®, Parker®, Elmer’s®, Coleman®, Oster®, Sunbeam®, Rubbermaid Commercial Products®, Graco®, Baby Jogger®, Aprica®, Calphalon®, Rubbermaid®, First Alert®, FoodSaver®, NUK®, and Yankee Candle®. In her Legal role, Shay advises Newell leadership on legal issues related to a wide range of employment matters. Shay specializes in helping Human Resources and leaders prioritize legal risk in a manner that aligns with business objectives and the Company’s values. Prior to taking her Newell role, Shay practiced for nine years at Bryan Cave (previously Powell Goldstein) and for one year at Taylor English Duma. Both as outside and in-house counsel, she focuses on proactive counseling and training to increase Human Resources effectiveness while reducing legal risk.

In 2017, Shay began splitting her time between Legal and various HR leadership roles, to expand her skillset and create a tighter infrastructure between HR and Legal. Most recently, since May 2019, she serves at the Company’s Chief Diversity Officer, with a mission to embed diversity and inclusivity as a value and leadership competency in everything Newell.

Lydia Dishman is Fast Company’s senior editor for growth and engagement. She has also written for CBS Moneywatch, Fortune, The Guardian, Popular Science, and the New York Times, among others.

Singleton Beato is the Global EVP, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer at McCann Worldgroup,
where she is responsible for designing and leading strategic initiatives that increase organizational capacity,
innovation and growth. With over 25 years of experience as an accomplished executive, Singleton is recognized for her
success driving large scale people and organizational change initiatives across a wide range of industries, having held talent leadership roles at J. Walter Thompson, Crunch Fitness International, and Bloomberg L.P.

Previously, Singleton was EVP, Diversity Strategy and Talent Development at the 4A’s where she provided leadership
and advice to senior advertising and media agency executives working to create and activate a strategic approach to D&I. Singleton was the visionary and architect of high-profile initiatives including The Face Of Talent symposium and the Ad industry’s only Talent Leadership Conference, Talent@2030. She also led the transformation of the renowned Multicultural Advertising Intern Program (MAIP) and the 4A’s Foundation. And, after assuming P&L responsibility for Talent Development and Diversity related revenue streams, Singleton consistently delivered on revenue and margin growth targets for the organization.

Singleton received a MS from Fairleigh Dickinson University and serves on several non-profit boards including the Brand Erwin Center for Brand Communications, AdWeek’s D&I Council, the AAF’s Mosaic Council, NYWICI, Own The Room and Figure Skating in Harlem as well as the Advisory Board of the Brand + Integrated Communications program. She has received numerous awards and accolades from the AAF, the 4A’s, the ADCOLOR Coalition, the National Diversity Council, the World Diversity Leadership Summit. Additionally, Singleton was named one of 2019’s Most Influential Women In Corporate America by Savoy Magazine, one of AdWeek’s 2020 Women Trailblazers and one of New York’s Most Outstanding Corporate Citizens.

Sharon Epperson, named one of “12 to Watch in TV News,” can be seen regularly on CNBC television and other media platforms.

As CNBC’s senior personal finance correspondent, Epperson covers the many facets of how people manage, grow and protect their money. Her expertise includes saving and investing for retirement, paying for college, managing mortgage, student loan, credit card and other debt, and building a financial legacy through estate planning.

Preparing your finances for the unexpected is another critical (and personal) aspect of her reporting. In September 2016, Epperson sustained a ruptured brain aneurysm and she nearly lost her life. She has become a staunch advocate for health and wellness issues, raising awareness about brain aneurysms and funding for research. In September 2018, she and her family established “The Sharon Epperson Chair of Research” through the Brain Aneurysm Foundation to provide grants for research on early detection and innovative treatments.

Epperson is a lead contributor to “Invest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.,” a multi-platform financial wellness and education initiative at CNBC in partnership with the micro-investing app Acorns, and developed its companion 8-week learning course and weekly newsletter, “Invest in You: Money 101.” She also contributes to NBC’s TODAY and NBC Nightly News as well as Today.com and NBCNews.com.

Her book, The Big Payoff: 8 Steps Couples Can Take to Make the Most of Their Money-and Live Richly Ever After, was a finalist for the Books for a Better Life Awards, honoring works that have “changed the lives of millions.” She also was a contributing writer for The Experts’ Guide to Doing Things Faster. Her personal finance expertise has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, USA Weekend, Self, Essence, Ebony and TIME, where she had covered business, culture, social issues and health as a correspondent prior to joining CNBC.

Epperson has numerous industry and civic awards, including the Special Achievement Award from the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) and the Savvy Inspiration Award from the non-profit, financial empowerment group Savvy Ladies. She won an Alliance for Women in Media’s Gracie Award for Outstanding Online Host for her “Financial Advisor Playbook” video series on CNBC.com. She has received the Vanguard Award for her distinguished career in business and personal finance reporting from the National Urban League Guild, and the All-Star Award from the Association of Women in Communications. She also has won awards from the New York Festivals, the New York Association of Black Journalists and the National Association of Black Journalists.

She currently lives with her husband and two children in Westchester County, N.Y.

Emtrain founder and CEO Janine Yancey is a passionate advocate for healthy workplace cultures. Janine’s unique approach blends technology, behavioral science, data analytics, and social media-inspired interactions to help inform and improve workplace behavior. Janine presides over a team of experts and an extensive library of content including courses, video, resource guides, checklists and analytic reports that define the modern workplace.

Janine is a proponent of neutral, third-party guidance and problem-solving. By orchestrating a publicly-accessible community interface for employee questions and concerns, Janine stays at the forefront of real-world, real-time harassment, bias, discrimination, and ethics issues.

A tireless visionary, Janine writes extensively, has provided expert testimony and advice to state legislatures, and helps leading companies implement harassment prevention, diversity, ethics, and compliance programs. Janine is a sought-after speaker and has been published and interviewed in the mainstream media including The Washington Post, Fast Company, USA Today, Bloomberg Business, TechCrunch, and Startup Grind. She’s presented at Society of Ethics and Compliance; Techstars FounderCon; Founders Network, and The Club.

Prior to founding Emtrain, Janine was a partner at Employment Law Partners where she specialized in solving labor and employment problems for high tech firms including Google, Intuit and a variety of start-ups. Janine also worked as counsel at Liebert Cassidy Whitmore, served as Board Member of the Northern California Human Resources Association, and authored The HR Handbook, designed to help young tech companies navigate workplace laws.

Janine earned her JD at the University of California Hastings School of Law and a BA in English and Political Science at the University of California Berkeley.

Tanya joined Lennox International in January 2018. She has global responsibility for all Talent Management functions, including Succession Planning, Employee Engagement, Performance Management, Career Development, Learning and Leadership Development. In addition, she oversees HR strategic and operational support for Lennox International’s Corporate Functions. She is also the Executive Sponsor and lead for Diversity and Inclusion.

Prior to joining Lennox, Tanya spent two years at Trinity Industries, a heavy industrial manufacturer, where she led all Talent Management functions, as prior to that she served 11 years at PepsiCo in a variety of HR and Talent Management leadership roles. She started her career at Accenture, where she spent 10 years leading large-scale organizational and cultural change.

Tanya received her BBA in Organizational Behavior/Business Policy and Management Information Systems from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. She is certified in Global HR (GPHR), as well as a certified executive coach. She resides in Irving, Texas with her husband Shane.

Connie is a seasoned leader in the employer benefits and healthcare space. Beyond her professional accomplishments, her personal passion is to further diversity and inclusion in the workplace by raising awareness, providing education and breaking down barriers, specifically for the neurodiverse community.

In her current role at Rethink Benefits, Connie leads the Rethink at Work program which employers with virtual and in-person training, clinical accommodation consulting, and leadership development resources vital to hire, manage and optimize neurodiverse talent in the workplace.  Connie’s drive is to assist companies with achieving  their best business by helping their employees be their best selves.

Alexandria "Lexy" Ray recently joined Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP law firm as the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lead located in Chicago, IL, but working from the San Francisco Office.  Lexy will partner with both staff and attorneys to translate the firm's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion into tangible and real-world results across 22 offices throughout the United States.  Lexy's background includes working in non-profits, banking, for-profit education, and FinTech. She has served as a DEI thought leader for companies in the United States and globally, building out programs to support women in leadership and spearheading diverse employee retention efforts.

Along with being a DEI Leader for Hinshaw & Culbertson, Lexy is a mother of two boys, aged 16 and 14, and an active member of her community. Her civic activities include serving as a mentor with the Oakland Elizabeth House, which is a residential transitional program for women with children who have experienced homelessness, violence, addiction, and poverty.  In addition, she is currently pursuing her Master’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resource Management at University of Phoenix.

Dr. David Rock coined the term ‘Neuroleadership’ and is the Director of the NeuroLeadership Institute, a global initiative bringing neuroscientists and leadership experts together to build a new science for leadership development. With operations in 24 countries, the Institute also helps large organizations operationalize brain research in order to develop better leaders and managers.

David co-edits the NeuroLeadership Journal and heads up an annual global summit. He has authored many of the central academic papers that have defined the Neuroleadership field, and presents this research at prestigious leadership conferences around the world each year. In 2015, he presented at the White House as part of a thought leader series hosted by the Office of Personnel Management.

David is the author of the business best seller Your Brain at Work, as well as Quiet Leadership, and the textbook Coaching with the Brain in Mind. He blogs for the Harvard Business Review, Fortune Magazine, Psychology Today, and the Huffington Post. He is quoted widely in the media about leadership, organizational effectiveness, and the brain.

Academically, David is on the faculty and advisory board of CIMBA, an international business school based in Europe, and is a guest lecturer at many universities including Oxford University’s Said Business School. He is on the board of the BlueSchool, an initiative in New York City building a new approach to education. He received his professional doctorate in the Neuroscience of Leadership from Middlesex University in 2010.

Sheree is listed as one of the Most Influential Women in UK Tech, recognised by Computer Weekly as one of 50 Most Influential Women in UK Tech 2020 and is an international multi-award winner for her services to Diversity & Inclusion in the industry. She is currently an Advisory Board Member for Women Who Code, a Forbes contributor, and has written “Demanding More”, a book on why Diversity and Inclusion doesn’t happen and what you can do about it (now available for preorder).

For many years Sheree has worked with companies such as challenger bank Monzo and Big Four accountancy firm Deloitte to provide leadership and training to C-suite and leadership teams, and develop fully-formed, focused diversity and inclusion strategies.

As a passionate advocate for women joining and remaining in the tech industry, she launched and led the award-winning U.K. expansion of Women Who Code. In 2019, Sheree was named Queen’s University Belfast Graduate of the Year, and was included in the Financial Times’ Top 100 BAME Leaders influencing the tech sector.

Sheree, whose inspirational work has been featured in numerous publications, aims to make certain that all humans are able to benefit from fantastic opportunities, and reach their full career potential.

Pronouns : she/her

Stephanie Braid (she/her/hers) is a Human Resources leader with over 10 years of well-rounded experience in talent management, equity diversity and inclusion, total rewards, data & analytics, employee engagement and more. In her current role as Director of KPMG in Canada’s Inclusion, Diversity and Mental Health portfolios she is able to harness her belief in the transformative power of inclusive & diverse workplaces.

Dr. Maya Garza is the Regional Vice President for Behavioral Science at BetterUp. She is a talent management expert and coach with 15 years’ experience working with executives and senior leaders in government and the private sector. She has consulted for numerous Fortune 500 organizations to transform the way people and systems operate to achieve transformative results. She designs organizational interventions, learning and development programs, and facilitates executive retreats, strategic planning sessions, and design workshops. Her areas of expertise are in human capital strategy, performance management, assessment design, judgment and decision making, and organizational development.

As a coach, Maya focuses on helping her clients transform their professional and personal lives through self-awareness, thoughtful problem solving, reflection, and deliberate practice. Maya recognizes the potential for success within each person and partners with them to unlock and leverage internal capabilities. With cohorts and teams, Maya uses action learning coaching to promote shared problem solving and development.

Before BetterUp, Maya was the Solutions Director at Mind Gym, as well as the leader of the Performance Impact Solutions team at CEB, helping organizations achieve excellence with their human capital strategy. Maya received her PhD in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from Bowling Green State University. She has published in academic journals, as well as in such outlets as AOL Gov and HR Training Magazine.

With more than 20 years of experience guiding organizations toward workplace inclusion, Teresa Hopke brings a wealth of knowledge and wisdom on the importance of establishing cultures of belonging where everyone can thrive. Her unique, trusted, and proven insights on employee wellbeing, women's leadership development, and DEI (Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion) make her an incredibly valuable resource as Talking Talent’s CEO and as a partner to her coaching clients. ​

​Teresa’s career has been focused on building up others in order to achieve the best results, both for the individual and the teams they work with. Her innovative ideas and determination to see real change are the reasons for her success over the last two decades.  She is a nationally recognized thought leader on the topic of inclusive leadership, and she has been featured in many top tier business publications and media outlets such as CNBC, the CBS Morning Show, NBC Nightly News, NPR, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, HR Magazine, Money Magazine, and others. ​

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As a mother of four, Teresa understands the needs of working parents and caregivers. She also continually advocates for people who are underserved, undervalued, and underestimated in the workplace.