Leadership & Navigation

Dr. Shirley Davis, CSP, President of SDS Global Enterprises, a global workforce solutions firm, is an award-winning Human Resources expert, with over 30 years of business experience in a variety of senior executive roles for several Fortune 100 companies, as well as her last role of Vice President of Global Diversity and Inclusion for the Society for Human Resource Management. She’s also a best-selling author of 5 books, serves on the National Speakers Association and the NSA Foundation Boards, and the Make A Wish Foundation Board. She is a popular facilitator for eight LinkedIn Learning leadership courses.

As Manager of Talent Engagement Solutions, Dana Meyer leads the recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) team’s recruitment marketing and social recruiting practice. In this role, she creates and delivers solutions to attract and engage candidates. Dana draws on a background in marketing, communications, public relations, and social media to support clients in a wide variety of employment branding and employment value proposition efforts, including digital and social advertising, event coordination/promotion, marketing campaigns and mobile recruiting.

Previously, Dana led a social recruiting team for a global RPO provider. She is a recurring contributor to the SourceCon/ERE blogs, and a featured speaker at industry association events and conferences. Dana has a degree in marketing from University of Wisconsin – La Crosse.

Liz A. Buday is the director of Diversity, Inclusion and Dispute Resolution for the Architect of the Capitol (AOC), which is the builder and steward of the landmark buildings and grounds of Capitol Hill.

Liz works with AOC leaders and employees to further the agency’s efforts in building and sustaining an inclusive workplace based on respect and civility. She provides direction on conflict resolution, EEO issues, work/life programs, sexual harassment prevention, and all D&I initiatives. Liz has introduced a host of innovative strategies that expand the D&I portfolio to include employee engagement, corporate culture, leadership development, broader training, and organizational assessments. Liz is also a certified Executive Coach (ICF-ACC) and serves as an internal leadership coach.

With over 25 years of D&I, Human Resources and Organizational Development experience, Liz was previously the director of civil rights for the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), chief executive officer for a private civil rights and human resources consulting firm, and she began her career with the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Marjorie Derven, Director, Valeocon Management Consulting, delivers Diversity & Inclusion strategies and initiatives to some of the world’s best companies, combining D&I expertise with Organizational Effectiveness, Change Management and Learning, to create integrated approaches that produce sustainable results. Marjorie works with clients to establish strategic alignment, clarify key priorities for resource allocation and create designs that have buy-in at mutiple organizational levels and functions.  With a view of organizations as ecoystems, Marjorie collaborates with clients to design best fit solutions. The author of many blogs and articles, Marjorie is a frequent speaker on D&I best practices.

As Workfront’s SVP of People and Culture, Laura is responsible for creating a contagious culture where people who thrive on “getting it done” and “doing it right” come to do their best work.  She has spent the last 20 years shaping global talent management strategies for Fortune 500 corporations.  Laura has received multiple awards and industry recognition for her work including being named to the San Francisco Business Times Most Influential Women list. 

In her dual capacity as a strategic process diversity consultant and an employment attorney, Cindy-Ann Thomas adeptly navigates clients through multiple diversity and inclusion challenges and opportunities.  Company executives in a broad spectrum of industries, including government, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, higher education and professional services, have looked to her for the past 18 years for diversity and inclusion services and counsel that emphasize talent development, engagement, productivity and retention. Cindy-Ann - who is a regular speaker for both regional and national SHRM events - is the program host of Littler’s Diversity & Inclusion Podcast Series.

Steve Garguilo is an instigator with a track record of large-scale, grassroots change inside big companies. As the Founder of Cultivate, he leads a team that empowers changemakers inside many different types of organizations. His team at Cultivate also pioneered an enterprise software platform that supports workplace communities.

He is the author of a #1 bestseller, Surge: Your Guide to Put Any Idea into Action.

Garguilo has also worked on social ventures globally. In 2014, he completed The Mongol Rally, a 10,000-mile adventure from London to Ulan Bator, Mongolia, fundraising for the African Prisons Project. He has visited each of the 48 contiguous United States and is a member of the “century club” having visited over 100 countries.

Takiyah Cunningham is an individual who is working her purpose of building purposeful understanding, engagement and relationships for individuals across organizations.  Takiyah is Manager of Diversity Programs and Partnerships for Cintas Corporation where she is responsible for the diversity and inclusion leadership development program.  Takiyah is also responsible for military and disability programming, as well as all Business Resource Groups.  Prior to Cintas, Takiyah worked as manager of Diversity and Inclusion for United Way of Greater Cincinnati, where she provided strategy and led efforts in the areas of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.  Takiyah serves on the Chief Diversity Officer Roundtable hosted by University of Cincinnati and the Equity Delegation.

Takiyah has been an active volunteer with several organizations, including Board member for UMADAOP Cincinnati, Inc., Cincinnati Urban League Guild, YWCA Rising Star, graduate of the Rising Star Board Leadership program. She has received many honors, the latest, being recognized as one of Cincinnati’s ‘100 Wise Women’. Takiyah is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and Cincinnati (OH) Chapter of The Links, Inc.

Takiyah graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and earned her Master of Arts degree in Human Resource Development from Xavier University in Cincinnati. 

Takiyah resides in Cincinnati with her husband Adrian and their three daughters Dylan, Emery and Maison.

Joe Gerstandt brings greater clarity, action, and impact to organizational diversity and inclusion efforts.

Joe has worked with Fortune 100 corporations, small non-profits, and everything in between. He speaks at numerous conferences and summits, and blogs at joegerstandt.com. He is a featured contributor for the Workforce Diversity Network Expert Forum and his insights have been published in Diversity Executive, HR Executive, and numerous other print and on-line journals.

A strong advocate for resetting the diversity and inclusion conversation, Joe sees these issues as poorly understood and often misunderstood.