Ruchi Jalla is the Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer at BAE Systems.

Marquis Miller is the City of Chicago’s first Chief Diversity Officer. He works with Candace Moore, Chief Equity Officer, in the Office of Equity and Racial Justice (OERJ) to support and undergird the City’s strategic human capital activities, diverse vendor initiatives, the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, the Chicago Commission on Human Relations and the work of the OERJ in policy and systems development.

Prior to joining the City, he was managing principal of The Business Mosaic LLC, and held vice president and business leadership roles at the NMSDC, SBLI USA Mutual Life Insurance Company, Inc., Chicago State University, the Chicago Urban League, the UNCF, and The Ohio State University. A thought leader in the fields of organizational leadership, diversity and durability, Marquis is a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP), as recognized by the National Diversity Council.

Crystal Andrews Banks is the Diversity and Inclusion Director at Ulta Beauty. As a proven cultural transformation change agent with over ten years of experience, she furthers Ulta’s D&I efforts by identifying and formulating viable solutions to drive innovation. She drives the organization’s D&I strategy, serves as an enterprise D&I consultant, leads internal and external D&I communication messaging, and provides oversight for a myriad of diversity initiatives.  Crystal’s background includes stints in Marketing and Internal Communications which assist in her big picture ideology and creative approaches. She studied at St. John’s University and received her MA in Sociology and BS in Communication with a business minor. A sought after thought leader and speaker, she was recently recognized by Essence Magazine as a revolutionary beauty industry executive. Previously, Crystal worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, KPMG, Baxalta and Johnson Controls where she added value to develop and strengthen their D&I agendas.

Olga Yakimakho is Director of Leadership and Organizational Development at Special Olympics International. Olga runs the Special Olympics Leadership Academy (winner of 2017 ATD Excellence in Practice Award, 2018 LEAD award for Best Global/International Leadership Program and 2019 Supernova award) and other professional development initiatives for Special Olympics leaders in 193 countries. She has been instrumental in development of Special Olympics’ approach to inclusive leadership called Unified Leadership.  In the past 20 years, Olga has held a range of organizational and leadership development, culture change and inclusion, performance improvement and strategy design roles. An experienced trainer and facilitator, she has delivered workshops in 28 countries. Olga holds an MPA in International Management from Middlebury Institute for International Studies in Monterey, California.

Dr. Stefanie K. Johnson is a researcher focused on the intersection of leadership and diversity and works with the best companies to implement evidence-based practices to reduce unconscious bias and increase inclusion. She is a member of the MG 100 Coaches, was selected for the 2020 Thinkers50 Radar List, and is the author of the National Bestseller, Inclusify: Harnessing the power of uniqueness and belonging to build innovative teams. She publishes her work in the top journals and has received $3,800,000 in external grant funding. She has presented her work at over 170 meetings around the world including at the White House for a 2016 summit on diversity in corporate America. Media outlets featuring Stefanie’s work include: The Economist, Newsweek, Time, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, HuffPost, Marie Claire, Washington Post, Quartz, Discover, CNN, ABC, NBC, CNBC. She has appeared on Fox, ABC, NBC, CNN, and CNN International.

Tsedale M. Melaku is a Sociologist, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Graduate Center, CUNY, and author of the 2019 book You Don't Look Like a Lawyer: Black Women and Systemic Gendered Racism, which reflects the emphasis of her scholarly interests on race, gender, class, workplace inequality, diversity, and occupations. You Don’t Look Like a Lawyer focuses on how race and gender play a crucial role in the experiences of women of color in traditionally white institutional spaces. Dr. Melaku’s work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, New York Times, Bloomberg Law, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, NBC Left Field, the TODAY Show, and the Fair Observer. Her interdisciplinary research on women in the workplace unites three strands of significant sociological inquiry: diversity in the workplace, women in positions of leadership, and the impact of intersectional identities on advancement opportunity. Presently, she is further developing her theories on invisible labor and its impact on marginalized individuals. Dr. Melaku is currently editing The Handbook on Workplace Diversity and Stratification and serving as Co-Chair of the Program Committee for the Society for the Study of Social Problems.  She received her Ph.D. and M.Phil. in Sociology from The Graduate Center, City University of New York, and her B.A. in Sociology and Africana studies from New York University. To learn more about her research and interests follow her on Twitter, @TsedaleMelaku or visit her website, www.tsedalemelaku.com.

Adam Weber is the host of the popular  HR Superstars Podcast & SVP of Community for 15Five where he supports and leads thousands of HR professionals through the HR Superstars Community, elevating them to become more strategic leaders. 

Previously he was the Co-founder and Chief People Officer of Emplify (which sold to 15Five in 2021), a company that helped leaders measure, diagnose. He also co-founded Bluebridge Digital, where he grew and sold the company in 2016. 

He is the author of the Amazon bestseller, Lead Like A Human. In 2020, Adam was named to Business Insider’s list of Rising Stars in HR. 

Adam is a proud Ball State University alum holding a bachelor's degree in sociology and a master's degree in organizational communication. 

He lives with his wife, two sons and dog Poppy in Zionsville, Indiana. 

Matt Orozco has spent over 12 years working in HR Technology across both the public and private sectors with organizations ranging in size from 10 - 100,000+ employees. He has worked with organizations such as Staples, Alaska Airlines, Volvo, State of Pennsylvania, and Fort Lauderdale County in various functions including sales, marketing, analyst relations, and consulting. Matt was focused on consulting with current and potential customers at Peakon prior to the Workday acquisition, and he is currently overseeing a mindset focused leadership development program for sales leaders and high-potential candidates at Workday!

James Lopata is a PCC and ICF Certified Coach Supervisor with more than 20 years of Executive Management and Business Coaching experience across multiple industries. James is President of the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, and is also award-winning writer published in Forbes and The New York Times, and more.

Jenic is the Executive Vice President of the BVA Nudge Unit USA, a global consultancy that applies behavioral science to effectively encourage and facilitate the adoption of desired behaviors that are beneficial to people, organizations and society.

Through the company’s Nudge Management practice, she works with clients to bridge the leading academic insights on human behavior with design thinking and organizational transformation to boost efforts in the areas of diversity and inclusion, employee wellness and engagement, innovation and culture.  As a consultant to the United Nations HeForShe movement and affiliate clients, driving change for a gender equal world is a passion topic of hers.

Prior to joining the BVA Nudge Unit, Jenic developed and led the global Qualitative Research arm of PRS In Vivo, a global insights company.  She served as a consultant to Fortune 500 clients specializing in the application of behavioral science to influence shopper and consumer behavior.

Jenic holds a BA in Psychology and a BBA in Marketing and Organizational Behavior/Business Policy from Southern Methodist University, and completed Harvard and Yale’s Executive Programs on Behavioral Economics.  She resides in New Jersey, is an avid traveler and is immersed in all things metaphysics.

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.

Dr. Cynthia A. Hedricks conducts studies and publishes behavioral science research. She just celebrated her 13^th year as Chief Analytics Officer at SkillSurvey, where she leads the analytics team on assessing the role of a job candidate’s past work behavior, as observed by others, on critical outcomes of interest to organizations, such as quality of hire, retention, and diversity initiatives. Most recently, she has also been using supervisor feedback to explore the career readiness of college students, analyzing data from a large sample of undergraduate interns who are enrolled in U.S. institutions of higher education.  Before she became an I/O practitioner in a corporate setting, Cynthia was a university professor, teaching courses on the nature of work and leisure, research methods, and statistics.  She completed a PhD in Biopsychology at The University of Chicago and was an Andrew Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.  She is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Society for Human Resource Management, and the Society for Industrial and Organizational (I/O) Psychology.  Cynthia currently works remotely from Princeton, NJ and Chicago, IL.

Heather Tinsley-Fix is a Senior Advisor at AARP, where she leads the organization’s work on employer engagement and helps drive AARP’s focus on providing workers 50+ with the tools they need to thrive in today’s work environment.  With a background in marketing, innovation, and program management, Heather works with employers and job seekers, external partners, and academics to provide thought leadership on 50+ labor market issues and create practical resources that enable employers to build age-inclusive organizations that capitalize on the value of experience.  She holds a B.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Literary Theory, both from the University of Exeter.

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.

PaShon Mann is the VP Talent Acquisition at Comcast.

Kristen Bellstrom is features editor at Fortune, where she oversees The Broadsheet newsletter and edits the publication’s women and business coverage. Kristen also serves as co-chair of Fortune‘s Most Powerful Women Next Gen Summit. She was previously a senior editor at Money, where she ran the publication’s real estate and travel coverage. She began her journalism career at SmartMoney, where she was a writer and editor covering the travel industry, luxury, and consumer products. Kristen is a graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and Duke University.

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.

With a love for coherence and efficacy, Dion works as a strategist and coach to help organizations operate in alignment with their values. Currently, Dion serves as Bravely’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Strategy Lead, helping to integrate those lenses within the employee experience, the customer success, and social impact functions.

Prior to joining Bravely, Dion has spearheaded DEIB, strategic planning, learning and development, and operations within New York City government. Throughout his career, Dion has led with a passion for enhancing the power of people and communities to drive systemic change. Dion holds his BA in Human Development and Social Relations from Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, MI.