Emily McCrary-Ruiz-Esparza is a freelance journalist and From Day One contributing editor who writes about work, the job market, and women’s experiences in the workplace. Her work has appeared in the BBC, The Washington Post, Quartz at Work, Fast Company, and Digiday’s Worklife.

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.

TJ is the Director, EEDI Business Partner, Operations at AbbVie.

Andrew helps organizations develop sustainable, human-centered processes to thrive in today’s always-on, always-connected work world.

After years as a high-performing sales leader in a fast-paced, demanding role, Andrew saw how his exhaustion and inability to separate life from work was impacting his relationships, energy and sense of purpose. He found a new way to manage my time and energy and now teaches other corporate leaders and their teams to do the same.

Through his leadership of Regenerate, Andrew has helped thousands of leaders develop energy-inspired practices to transform their workplaces — including Apple, Booz Allen Hamilton, Intel, Coca Cola, Accenture, Edelman, Genentech, GE, Lego Systems, DPR Construction, and American Express, and the US Air Force.

Steve has spent the last ten years of his career building technology that helps people to learn, grow, and connect. Before starting Campfire, he spent 5 years at Instructure building a talent management platform focused on career development and human performance. He worked with product, marketing, sales, and strategy teams to grow the business from the ground up to $27 million in annual revenue. While with Instructure, he worked with teams at Disney, Tesla, Lululemon, Johnson and Johnson, and other global brands to strengthen their talent management practices.

Now, Steve is focused primarily on finding ways for people to learn and grow through connected learning experiences called Campfires. The business has strong investment and is responsible for training hundreds of managers in the key skills needed to effectively lead teams. Steve’s experience in technology, content, facilitation, and talent management provide a rich mix of skills for solving these challenges.

Campfire was founded in 2020 at the very beginning of the pandemic and has benefitted from the changes and shifts that allow for us to consider new ways of connecting and working with each other. Steve has three co-founders - Todd, Taylor, and Marinne - who are all passionate about the mission of providing universal access to connected learning experiences.

Ashley Goodall is a leadership expert who has spent his career exploring large organizations from the inside, most recently as an executive at Cisco. He is the co-author of Nine Lies About Work, which was selected as the best management book of 2019 by Strategy + Business and as one of Amazon’s best business and leadership books of 2019. Prior to Cisco, he spent 14 years at Deloitte as a consultant and as the Chief Learning Officer for Leadership and Professional Development.

As a native North Carolinian, Courtney was raised in an equitable ecosystem of urban and rural life; embracing a legacy of what it means to be Tarheel born and Tarheel bred.

As a global business leader, executive coach, consultant, speaker, and community advocate, finding his purpose in life was an incredible alarm clock; leading to his life quote “If your presence doesn’t make an impact, then your absence won’t make a difference.” Currently, he serves as the head of North America human resources and global diversity, equity, and inclusion for BASF Agricultural
Solutions.

Having worked with top-tier organizations, across multiple industries, for more than two decades, Courtney’s career has been focused on helping people and organizations unleash greater potential, innovation, and performance to deliver sustainable social and economic impact.

Seema Bhansali is the Vice President of Employee Experience and Inclusion in the Office of the Chairman and CEO at Henry Schein, Inc., a Fortune 500® company whose mission it is to provide innovative, integrated health care products and services to healthcare practitioners. A proven strategic thinker adept at implementation and cultural change, she joined the Company in 2017 to develop and lead cross divisional strategies with an emphasis on team culture, engagement strategies, and government relations. Seema is responsible for co-leading Henry Schein’s holistic strategy to promote Diversity and Inclusion and developing the organization’s Employee Value Proposition. 

Before joining Henry Schein, Seema spent 14 years working in a number of roles with U.S. Congressman Steve Israel, Former Chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and Democratic Leadership's Policy and Communications Chair. During her tenure with Congressman Israel, Seema was dedicated to helping constituents and businesses navigate and understand federal agencies and federal policy. Through her various positions, she has also developed strategic programs to maximize brand value, foster team development, and advance intergovernmental communications.

Seema has also been a panelist or roundtable and panel discussions on government, communications, diversity, and leadership. Most notably in 2022, Seema was a presenter at the Diverse Dental Society’s annual conference where she presented “Bias Interrupted” focused on how to pause our internal biases and manage the bias of others. She was also a guest on a Podcast for Henry Schein’s Women’s Leadership Network discussing Mental Wellness and empowering team members to “drive their own car”.  In 2021 Seema moderated a panel for the ADSO on the Business of Diversity and a panel on Violence Against Diverse Communities. She has also been a panelist for the American Dental Hygienists’ Association. In 2014, Seema was invited by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security to present on working with federal agencies for successful conflict resolution. In 2018, Seema was recognized by City& State magazine as one of 10 leaders on the rise for Government Affairs on Long Island. In June of 2020, she received recognition from the Long Island Business News for her Diversity & Inclusion work at Henry Schein.

Seema lives on Long Island with her husband and two children and is on the Board of Trustees for Harbor Country Day School. She believes that practicing emotional intelligence, creating meaningful relationships and focusing on helping others achieve their goals are the cornerstones to success in business and life. She has been an attorney licensed to practice in New York since 2001 and is Senior Certified HR Professional. 

Tina Leblance is the Head of DEI for Americas at JLL.

Judith Ojo is the Founder and CEO of HR Media & Co., a minority women-owned HR consulting firm based in Manhattan. With over a decade of experience in HR and recruiting, Judith is dedicated to providing human-centered solutions that drive organizational success. She is also the founder of LET'S TALK ALL THINGS HR®, an educational platform designed to support businesses in navigating HR challenges.

Judith has held leadership positions across nonprofit, government, and corporate sectors. In 2022, HR Media & Co. was recognized as a Top 10 Emerging L&D company by Manage HR magazine, and in 2023, Judith earned a spot in Marquis Who's Who in America.

A strong advocate for her community, Judith has been actively involved in Brooklyn, serving as the President of Soroptimist International of NYC, where she has made significant contributions to women's empowerment and community development.

Antoinette Hamilton joined Lam Research as the Global Head of Inclusion & Diversity in February 2020.  Previous to her current role at Lam, Antoinette was the Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Experience at Xandr, an AT&T company. In her role, Antoinette drove the strategy for global diversity and inclusion initiatives. Prior to that, Antoinette served as the assistant vice president of diversity and inclusion at L’Oréal USA, working on strategic projects and innovation. She spent three years in Osaka, Japan where she taught culture and communication in support of the efforts of the Japanese Ministry of Education and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Earlier in her career, Antoinette worked for INROADS, a non-profit organization dedicated to career advancement for college students from underserved communities.

Antoinette is a graduate of Hampton University. Additionally, she serves on the board of Tech Fin and Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site. In her personal time, she enjoys knitting and is an avid skier.

MaryAnne is committed to improving access to healthcare for women and families. With over 5 years of experience at Maven, she has helped a broad range of clients support their workforce with comprehensive care from preconception through menopause. MaryAnne also brings personal insight into the challenges of this life stage.

Dr. Martin Payne is the chief commercial officer for Empowerly, the leading solution for helping students and families navigate the complicated college admissions process. Prior to Empowerly, Martin spent over two decades working with innovative early-stage venture capital-backed organizations and large publicly traded companies in the HR, Education, and Wellness spaces. His approach focuses on collaboration, influence, and innovation, which has led to a proven track record of operational excellence and revenue growth.
Martin holds a BA in Psychology from New College of Florida, an MBA from Nova Southeastern University, and a Doctor of Education (EdD) in Organizational Change and Leadership from the University of Southern California.

Michael Watson is a talent acquisition expert and artificial intelligence enthusiast who is dedicated to using cutting-edge technologies to revolutionize the world of work. Michael's passion for work began in his early life, as he grew up with military parents who instilled in him the values of hard work, dedication, and service to others. His father dropped out of high school at 16 to join the Navy, and his mother served in both the Air Force and Marines, so Michael knows firsthand the importance of having a strong work ethic and a sense of purpose.  After years of experience in corporate HR and talent acquisition for companies such as Aerotek, Robert Half, Polycom, Western Digital, Workday, Rambus, and Gigamon, Michael joined the artificial intelligence startup Eightfold.ai. As a former customer of Eightfold.ai, he has unique first-hand knowledge of how AI is being used to hire and retain talent.

At Eightfold, Michael is part of a team that is using AI for good, mapping skills to opportunities and enabling the right career for everyone in the world. As the Head of Global Customer Evangelism for Eightfold's products and solutions, Michael frequently interacts with business leaders, customer executives and government officials to amplify the power of Eightfold’s artificial intelligence (AI) and their vision to use artificial intelligence for good and enable the right career for everyone in the world. Michael believes that AI has the potential to help individuals find fulfilling and meaningful work, and he is dedicated to ensuring that everyone has access to the right career opportunities. He is passionate about helping individuals find work that aligns with their unique skills and interests, and he believes that AI can be a powerful tool to help people achieve their career goals.

Michael is a thought leader in the field of talent acquisition and artificial intelligence, and he is committed to using his expertise to help organizations and individuals navigate the rapidly changing world of work. He is the author of 2 books; Career AI: Navigating the Job Market in the Age of Artificial Intelligence and The AI-Powered HR Professional. He is a frequent speaker and writer on topics related to AI, talent acquisition, and career development, and he is always looking for new and innovative ways to use technology to improve people's lives. Michael attended Fresno State University where he studied Criminology.

When he is not working, Michael is busy working on his family's farm and dedicates a lot of time to coaching youth baseball and softball in his community. He is married and has two children.

Kelli Henderson is the Vice President, Total Rewards at Aflac. 

Dr. Toni Morrissey is an OB-GYN with over 25 years of experience currently practicing at Maven Clinic and Almond ObGyn. Dr. Morrissey previously worked at Optum for over two decades, most recently as a senior partner OB/GYN. Her roles included high-risk care, fetal medicine certifications, clinical documentation improvement, and EMR customization. Dr. Morrissey's expertise spans obstetrics, gynecology, and digital health innovation. In addition to her patient care work, Dr. Morrissey developed the Baby Birthday app to help better predict delivery dates. She earned her MD from Johns Hopkins and BS in Neural Science from Brown University.

Jenny Sucov is a journalist and editor who focuses on health and well-being. She has worked for companies and publishers including Hinge Health, EverydayHealth.com, Canyon Ranch, Real Simple, and Prevention.

Bryan Walsh is an editorial director at Vox overseeing the tech, climate, and world teams, as well as the editor of Vox’s Future Perfect section, which covers the policies, people, and forces that could make the future a better place for everyone. He is the author of the 2019 book End Times: A Brief Guide to the End of the World, which is about existential risks like AI, pandemics, and nuclear war, and isn’t really all that brief. Previously he worked at Axios as the Future Correspondent and worked at TIME magazine for 15 years as a foreign correspondent in Asia, a climate change writer, and as the international editor.