Eve Ellis is a wealth advisor developing sophisticated solutions which integrate traditional investments, trust, and estate planning, lending, and philanthropy for a select number of high-net-worth individuals, families, family offices, and nonprofit organizations, as well as custom planning for executives and entrepreneurs anticipating late-stage, pre- and post-liquidity events.

She also advises interested clients on socially responsible and impact investments, and provides access to two proprietary portfolios which she co-manages � the Gender Parity Strategy and the Matterhorn/Refinitiv Diversity & Inclusion Strategy - to investors seeking to align their investments with their values.

She is a member of the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment (US SIF).

Eve served on the board of the Ms. Foundation for Women for eight years and is a founding board member of the Ms. Action Fund. She is also longtime board member of Maccabi USA and of the investment committee of Congregation Rodeph Sholom in NYC.

A former professional tennis player, Eve was inducted into the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. She is also a Captain for the Yale Women’s Athletic Network.

Derrick is a Program Manager at , overseeing mentorship programming to drive impact objectives through curated connection and resource building.

To date, we have matched 1,000+ founders with mentors, with a 98% satisfaction rate from participants.

He has a passion for amplifying voices in entrepreneurship and working with smart companies who want to share their message in creative, community-driven ways.

He's worked for The Gotham Film & Media Institute (formerly IFP) and Made in NY Media Center championing creatives and entrepreneurs along the way.

As a writer at Esri, Rae crafts insightful customer success stories that highlight equity and inclusion through the power of a geographic and geospatial lens. Previously, Rae lead marketing communications in local government and nonprofits in their hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Sarah is a certified woman-owned and LGBT Business Enterprise®, providing organization and leadership development, team and executive coaching, LGBTQ+ leadership coaching, public speaking facilitation, and team development solutions. Serving as consultant, coach, and educator, her work increases client revenue, reduces turnover, creates business value, and transforms performance of leaders, and teams, helping them reach their highest potential.

Colleen Olson returned to the corporate world with iRelaunch after taking a career break to raise her two daughters and assist with eldercare for aging parents. Before her break, she served as President of Globetrotter Properties at Harlem Globetrotters International, where she was responsible for new business development, daily operations, and long-term strategies for the global sports entertainment brand.

During her career break, Colleen led several community volunteer initiatives and worked as an independent consultant. She now leads Business Development at iRelaunch, where she focuses on expanding existing partnerships and sourcing new clients that are looking to access top talent offered by returners.

Sarah Mills has been with iRelaunch since 2011, playing a key role in supporting thousands of professionals as they return to the workforce after extended leave (“relaunchers�). As the Executive Director of Events, Marketing, and Operations, she has led the production of 29 Return to Work Conferences, both in-person and virtual, driving a 40% increase in attendance when iRelaunch pivoted to virtual Conferences in 2020. Sarah works closely with relaunchers to prepare them for Conference participation, ensuring they have the necessary resources to maximize their experience.

Prior to joining iRelaunch, Sarah built a career in alumni relations and development, working in both college and high school advancement offices. She took an 8-year career break, during which time she remained actively engaged in her community, volunteering at her daughters' elementary school and serving on the advisory board for her local YMCA. Through her years at iRelaunch and her own relaunch experience, Sarah has developed a deep understanding of what it takes to re-enter the paid workforce.

Lola Adeyemo is an Author, a TEDx Speaker, an ERG Expert, and an Inclusive Workplace Advocate who partners with HR & DEI leaders to build Inclusive workplaces. As the founder of EQImindset and the non-profit Immigrants in Corporate Inc., she guides professionals in leveraging their unique perspectives and community involvement to develop distinctive professional brands.With extensive experience in ERG leadership and community building, Lola specializes in helping individuals identify transferable skills, build influential networks, and create powerful connections between their passion for advocacy and their professional aspirations. Her work has empowered professionals across industries to unlock their potential through intentional skill development and strategic positioning

Jen Ngozi is on a mission to ignite a confidence revolution for women everywhere.

As a former Big 4 Leader, Jen has trained thousands of leaders uncovering the skills of the most irresistible leaders.

As a sought-after voice on topics like self-advocacy and leading with confidence. Jen’s expertise has landed her features in Forbes, Vogue, Business Insider, and more.

Today Jen has a bold mission: to help one million women enter their confidence era.

Billie Simmons is a repeat founder, currently working on a soon-to-be-announced startup in the fertility space. Previously, she was founder and COO of Daylight - a neobank building financial tools for the LGBTQ+ community, raising $20M and then exiting to Atlas in 2023.

Bryn joined Esri in 2008 and has since progressed from an inside sales role to a sales team lead. As a team lead, she mentors emerging sales professionals and helps them address the unique challenges faced by local governments and organizations. Bryn is dedicated to fostering growth among sales team members and advancing the use of geospatial solutions in the public sector.

Dr. Varuna Srinivasan is a healthcare innovator and the founder of Fluid Health, a gender-inclusive platform dedicated to connecting individuals experiencing pelvic pain with sex therapists and providing personalized reproductive mental health care. With a background in sexual health and a passion for public health, Dr. Srinivasan is committed to creating accessible, compassionate healthcare solutions for diverse communities. She strives to empower women and queer individuals to take control of their health while navigating the often fragmented healthcare system.

Lauren McCullough is the founder and CEO of Tromml, a leading sales enablement platform focused on the automotive aftermarket industry, delivering advanced analytics and real-time insights to empower sales teams. Under her leadership, Tromml completed Techstars Austin (Fall 2023), was named one of GrepBeat’s Startups to Watch, and won the MEMA Startup Challenge. Lauren is a recognized voice in the automotive aftermarket industry, speaking on AI, eCommerce, and analytics, and she serves on the YANG (Young Auto Care Networking Group) Council and various industry subcommittees. She was honored with the Women in Auto Care Women of Excellence Award in 2024 and is now a finalist for the Auto Care Association’s 4 Under 40 Impact Award.

Elisa Spencer is a Supply Chain Director at Avery Dennison, leading procurement, logistics, and research and development for the Vestcom business. She has a proven track record of developing and executing supply chain strategies that improve bottom-line financial performance. Her prior supply chain experience includes demand and inventory planning and procurement leadership roles at Hallmark Cards and Bushnell. She began her career as a family law attorney before discovering her enthusiasm for supply chain.

Elisa is currently also a co-chair of Elevate, the women's employee resource group at Avery Dennison. She is passionate about creating opportunities and a safe space for professional development, networking, and connection for the group's members and allies.

Elisa holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in international business and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas at Austin.

Ally Perdan is the Product Specialist for the Ink Business at Avery Dennison, where she focuses on maintaining product line and departmental organization during new product launches. With a diverse background, Ally enjoys the marketing and strategic aspects of her role. During her six-year career with the company, she has also been actively involved with Elevate, Avery Dennison's Women's ERG. Ally has served in various positions on the ERG Steering Team and is currently the Manufacturing Engagement Chairperson. She is passionate about promoting DE&I among frontline manufacturing employees and fostering an inclusive culture from the bottom up.

Daralyn Baldogo is a dynamic Marketing Manager at Avery Dennison, bringing over a decade of comprehensive marketing experience to her role. Her expertise spans strategic marketing communications, brand management, and event strategy. She has a diverse marketing background, including roles at AAA Ohio, Tim Hortons, and agencies like The Social Co. and O Media Group, with experience in membership growth, regional marketing, and social media.

Passionate about DEI, Daralyn has been a member of Avery Dennison's women's ERG, Elevate, since 2019, and currently serves as the communications chair on the steering committee chair, driving an inclusive workplace.

Daralyn holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from The Ohio State University, underpinning her strong foundation in effective communication and marketing principles. She is skilled in content creation, digital marketing, and developing cohesive marketing programs, consistently delivering results and driving brand success.

Jordyn Coyne has over 8 years of experience in the field of cybersecurity, with expertise in security operations, detection engineering, and incident response. Jordyn is currently the Senior Manager of Incident Response at Elastic where she leads the team accountable for analyzing and responding to suspicious and/or malicious activity within the Elastic enterprise environment. Prior to Elastic, Jordyn worked at the fitness company Peloton, where she began as the team's first Incident Response Analyst and progressed to eventually lead the company's Security Operations and Response Team. Jordyn currently lives in San Diego and in her free time enjoys playing tennis and snowboarding as well as playing board games (especially Catan).

Shianne Hancock is a Global Business Development Team Lead in the Natural Resources and Architecture, Engineering and Construction industries at Esri. She is responsible for designing strategic initiatives and leading a team of sales professionals focused on increasing revenue and market share within the small-to-medium business domain. With almost 20 years of professional experience, Shianne is a catalyst for accelerating results, optimizing sales performance, developing adaptable sales professionals, and ensuring customer success and satisfaction.

Prior to her current role, Shianne was a Project Manager at Esri where she managed multi-million-dollar customer engagements in the Transportation industry. Here, she took a detail-oriented approach to delivering timely, successful projects through collaborative problem-solving and servant leadership. Her passion for helping organizations solve social, economic, and business-critical challenges leveraging geospatial technology and location intelligence began with her role as a Training Consultant at Esri. Her time as a Sales Representative at Brinks Home Security and DeRoyal Orthopedic laid the foundation for her Business Development career and taught her invaluable trusted-advisor soft skills that empower her leadership style to be both empathetic and outcome focused.

She received a BBA in Management from the University of Texas at San Antonio and in recent past served on the Board of Directors for Susan G. Komen - San Antonio. Shianne is an avid outdoor-adventure seeker, fitness enthusiast and enjoys verse by verse Bible studies during her downtime. She is a daughter, sister, aunt, friend, and mentor to many.

Fatima is a senior software engineer at Yelp with a deep passion for mentoring early-career tech professionals. She has successfully guided many individuals through their first steps in the tech industry, helping them overcome challenges and achieve their career goals. An experienced speaker, Fatima has presented at leading conferences including Developer Week 2024, the Southern California Linux Expo (Scale) 2023 and 2024, NDC Copenhagen Developer Festival 2023, Women of Silicon Roundabout 2022, cdCon+GitOpsCon 2023 (as a keynote speaker), Momentum 2024, and the Black is Tech Conference in 2022 and 2023. Fatima holds a master's degree in data science from HEC Montreal and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Waterloo, Canada.

Priyal Divakala is an engineering manager for the Search User Experience Mobile team at Yelp. Her career at Yelp began as a software engineer, and she later transitioned into managing a team focused on enhancing the Yelp search user experience. She is committed to the professional development of her team of software engineers, as well as women and allies at Yelp, providing mentorship and guidance for career growth. Priyal’s experience with public speaking (within Yelp, at previous companies, and during school), has helped her overcome public speaking anxiety. She now leads a public speaking initiative within Awesome Women in Engineering (AWE)—a Yelp Employee Resource Group. Through this role, she organizes public speaking events and workshops to help others improve their skills. Priyal holds a master's degree in computer applications from Dharmsinh Desai University and a bachelor’s degree in computer applications from Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda.

JoAnna Kraynek is an Assurance Partner at PwC and serves a broad range of clients within the financial services industry—including registered investment companies, private equity funds, venture capital funds and hedge funds—delivering audit and accounting services. Since joining PwC, JoAnna has worked with multinational corporations as well as large and medium-sized companies at various stages of their life cycles, from startup ventures to growth-oriented organizations transitioning to initial public offerings. Her experience also includes numerous acquisitions, as well as public and private debt and equity offerings and restructurings. JoAnna is a dedicated mentor and coach and leads PwC’s Parenting Inclusion Network.

Jodie brings twenty years of sales and marketing experience to the WordPress space. Her marketing expertise and ability to restructure and to systematize businesses has been recognized by business leaders in many fields including media, consumer product goods, and nonprofits.

She was on the organizing team for WordCamp US in Philadelphia and can be found speaking at WordCamps across the country. She volunteers at many local organizations.

In her downtime, she has been known to get lost in old bookstores avoiding the fact that there is no more shelf space at home. Jodie lives in Philadelphia with her family, pets, and entirely too many houseplants.

Dr. Menaka Sankaralingam is a Code Wrangler at WooCommerce. She is a Google Certified Professional Data Engineer with a PhD in Natural Language Processing. Menaka is a seasoned data professional with experience leading data-driven initiatives in the e-commerce domain. A combination of deep technical knowledge with a learner mindset, perseverance, and strong problem-solving abilities enable her to contribute effectively to complex data projects.

Zandy Ring is the Chief Operating Officer at Tumblr, a division of Automattic. Ring holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Bonaventure University and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations and strategic initiatives of the Tumblr platform. With a wealth of experience in the technology industry, Ring has demonstrated a strong track record of driving growth and innovation in their career.

Jade Gandhi is a Consultant at Vizient, specializing in data analysis, financial optimization, and strategic consulting. She collaborates across the organization to optimize purchase service spend, identifying cost-saving opportunities. Partnering with Spend Optimization analysts, she leverages data to create actionable reports that enhance financial performance for Vizient and its clients.

Passionate about women’s empowerment, Jade serves on the Women @ Vizient leadership team as a strategist, driving initiatives that foster equitable access to professional growth.

Beyond Vizient, Jade has worked with nonprofit organizations and health technology startups, focusing on patient care coordination and healthcare accessibility. She directed patient care efforts at a nonprofit, researching insurance plans to assist underinsured individuals. She also contributed to a startup’s pilot program supporting families with children with disabilities.

Jade holds a degree in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, with minors in Business, Healthcare Administration, and Informatics.

Mary is a passionate software engineer with a decade of experience in the field. She is maintaining high standards for her code but also requires a nurturing working environment. Her personal journey, marked by her experiences as a woman navigating the tech industry, an expat adapting to new cultures, and a parent raising a family in a multicultural environment, has shaped her into a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion.

Throughout her career, Mary has been mentored and supported by remarkable people sharing their expertise with her. She has been trying to do the same by being a champion of initiatives that foster a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace. Converting friction points to improvement initiatives, ensures a nurturing environment when individuals can be challenged and evolve, ultimately leading to greater success for both individuals and organizations.

Eryn is a future of work evangelist, retired digital nomad, workforce expert, and scale-up builder. She is the founder of Startup Consortium, editor of Weekly Workforce, and Co-Creator of the AI Maturity Index. Before founding Startup Consortium, she built two unicorns in the staffing industry where her work has helped 4.5 million people in over 190 countries access new learning and job opportunities.

Colette 't Hart is a tech entrepreneur, product designer, and UX strategist dedicated to transforming the future of recruitment. As the CEO & Co-founder of Idonea, she is pioneering an AI-driven, bias-free hiring platform that ensures fair and skill-based talent matching. With a background in user experience, digital transformation, and business development, Colette has spent her career designing solutions that bridge technology and human impact.

Passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion, she champions innovative hiring practices that break down barriers and create real opportunities for all candidates. At the summit, she will share some insights on how technology can reshape recruitment to be more inclusive, data-driven, and effective for both job seekers and hiring managers.

Kenasha Paul, J.D. is an award-winning social entrepreneur and business professional who has dedicated her life to building thriving pathways lined with access points, opportunities, and resources for underrepresented communities.

A dynamic force in community building, her first major feat started in 2008 when Paul helped the Black Student Union at FIU go from a student club with a then operating budget of $500 to a university-wide council managing a six-figure plus budget and representing nearly 12% of black students on campus. After graduation, she was asked to found and lead the FIU Black Alumni Chapter representing over 25,000 black alumni nationwide.

This work inspired her launch of the Black Professionals Summit conference in (2014) while in law school at Nova Southeastern University, later advancing the Summit into the Black Professionals Network (BPN) in 2016, as a non-profit social learning organization serving all of South Florida’s black professional community. In 2022, the organization expanded nationwide and currently has chapters in Miami, Broward, Chicago, and Los Angeles with more markets on the way.

Black Professionals Network (BPN) is now the fastest-growing non-profit organization. Its mission is to support 1 million black professionals on their journey towards success, wealth, and legacy, to ensure 90% reach accredited investor status.

Her success in building social capital across private and public sectors caught the attention of the venture and tech community. In 2021, she was announced as part of a novel partnership between the City of Miami and Florida International University to serve as Director of the Venture Miami Opportunity Program, focusing on women-founded tech businesses. In 2024, she was recruited by Florida Memorial University to spearhead the launch of their Entrepreneurship Center which will open in 2025, as part of a public-private partnership to support Sistrunk residents and FMU students.

Vanita Marzette is a Senior Product Manager specializing in Wine & Spirits Labels at Avery Dennison, where she also serves as the Chair of the Black Employee Resource Group. With over two decades in marketing and brand management, Vanita is a results-oriented leader with a proven track record of launching successful B2B and B2C products. Her expertise lies in understanding customer needs and translating them into innovative solutions that drive growth and profitability.

Vanita is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in the workplace. As Chair of Avery Dennison's Black Employee Resource Group, she is committed to fostering a supportive environment and creating opportunities for underrepresented employees.

She holds a Bachelor's degree in Marketing from Cleveland State University and an MBA from Lake Erie College. A dedicated mentor and community leader, Vanita serves on several boards in the Cleveland area.

Lateefah supports the R&D base team with business continuity, growth, and sustainability projects. She leverages her strong quality and customer service skills to ensure projects focus on internal and external customer needs. Lateefah has a degree in Chemical Engineering with a focus in Polymer Engineering and Environmental Studies certification from the University of Akron. As co-membership chair of the Black Employee Resource Group, Lateefah shares her passion to grow members while assisting them in leveraging networking opportunities within the resource group and beyond. Outside of work, she is the Special Needs Chair for her autistic son’s Parent Teacher Association. She is passionate about growth opportunities and education of children and adults in the neurodivergent community.