Sara Taylor, President and Founder of deepSEE Consulting, has 35 years of extensive experience, nationally recognized as in the practice of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion serving local, national and global clients. While her areas of specialty are in both Diversity and Leadership Development, Sara has become a thought leader particularly in the field of Cultural Competence. Her bestselling book, Filter Shift: How Effective People SEE the World, is used by numerous individuals and organizations to increase success and create greater effectiveness. Sara holds a Master's degree in Diversity and Organizational Development and, prior to founding deepSEE, held positions such as Chief Diversity Officer and Leadership and Diversity Specialist.

James Wright of JamesWantsToKnowYou.com is a dynamic and compelling leader with a track record of delivering practical roadmaps for increasing Inclusion and Diversity in global corporations such as Apple Inc., LinkedIn, NBCUniversal, and Time Warner (now WarnerMedia). A featured guest on NBC and FOX, Wright’s articles and commentary appear frequently on LinkedIn and his expertise has been included in The Washington Post as well as several SHRM articles. 

In his practice, James offers transformative training solutions on Gender Equality, Unconscious Bias, Improving Race Relations, and Generational Diversity. In addition, James introduced The Language of Inclusion - a free download of over 135 key terms and definitions to help organizations find a common language to Inclusion. With increased focus on gender and LGBTQIA+ equality, James believes it is important to update these terms to signal where we are today in our journey to ensure diverse communities are truly seen, heard, and valued.

James attended Erskine College in SC & The Catholic University of America in Washington DC.

Nationally known as one of "America's Top Experts on Diversity" (Diversity, Inc., 2005), Dr. Jones’ philosophy is to lead with listening to support clients in finding a strategy and solution that works for them.

Dr. Jones has been heralded as a dynamic keynote speaker, transformational facilitator, phenomenal organization effectiveness consultant, and innovative executive. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, a master’s in Multicultural Counseling, and a Ph.D. in Industrial/ Organizational Psychology. He is the author of Journey to Excellence, a transformational book helping people define and achieve excellence in their lives.

Dr. Jones founded Jones & Associates in 1993 in order to build a firm committed to making a widespread positive impact in the world in the area of diversity, inclusion, and organizational excellence. The company's team of certified Jones & Associates consultants provide diversity, inclusion, organizational change and organizational development services to corporations, educational institutions, government agencies and non-profit organizations.

Ms. Walters has more than 30 years’ combined experience in management, HR administration, employment law practice, and teaching.

She has presented at conferences across the country, been engaged as an expert witness, and testified before U.S. Congressional and state legislative committees on employment issues.

Her book, “From Hello to Goodbye: Proactive Tips for Maintaining Positive Employee Relations” is in its 2nd edition and was one of the SHRMStore’s “Great 8” best-sellers for eight consecutive years.

Today, Ms. Walters works as an independent consultant doing business as FiveL Company, “Helping Leaders Limit their Liability by Learning the Law.”SM

Deborah Rinner Godwin is Vice President for Tero International. Deborah joined the Tero Team in 2002 and brought expertise on business etiquette and cultural communication issues that arise daily in business situations pertinent to presenting a positive image in our changing times. In addition to a masters in effective teaching from Drake University, Deborah is certified as a Corporate Etiquette and International Protocol consultant from the Protocol School of Washington, D.C. Deborah's role at Tero has evolved to include serving as a lead trainer in presentation skills, negotiation skills, leadership development, corporate etiquette, cross cultural communication and executive presence as well as customizing curriculum for clients from various industry groups. Deborah also serves as an executive coach to many of Tero's clients, and is an experienced keynoter.

Dr. Hogan is a scholar-practitioner, strategic adviser, consultant and an executive leadership coach. He is a champion of and an internationally recognized subject matter expert on diversity, equity, inclusion, and civil discourse. He is an enabler of executive leadership and organizational excellence. His distinction is the ability to promote transformational leadership development by creating incidents of cognitive dissonance and opportunities for self-reflection, self-discovery and self-awareness by using the arts as an agent-of-change.

Dr. Hogan is a Professor of Practice in Human Resource Management at the Pennsylvania State University, School of Labor and Employment Relations. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in-residence and on-line. His signature class is Ethics in the Workplace. Dr. Hogan’s action research interests include Global Leadership Development, Global Diversity and Inclusion, Business Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability, and the convergence of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and human beings in the workplace. He is the founder of the School’s Academy of Human Capital Development and served as Director from 2011 - 2018.

Currently, Dr. Hogan serves as a Scholar-in-Residence at the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State, College of Arts and Architecture and serves as a member of the Community Advisory Council. In March 2019, he was selected to serve as a scholar for the Penn State Student Engagement Faculty Academy for Academic Years 2019 – 2021.

Howard Ross is lifelong social justice advocate, and is considered one of the world’s seminal thought leaders on identifying and addressing unconscious bias.  Howard has delivered programs in 47 states and over 40 other countries to audiences including Fortune 500 companies, colleges and universities, and major institutions within healthcare, government, and non-profit sectors. He authored the Washington Post best seller, Everyday Bias:  Identifying and Navigating Unconscious Judgments in Our Daily Lives, ReInventing Diversity: Transforming Organizational Community to Strengthen People, Purpose and Performance. His latest  book, Our Search for Belonging: How the Need for Connection Is Tearing Our Culture Apart, published by Berrett-Koehler in 2018, received the Nautilus Gold Medal for Social Change and Social Justice. His next book, Building Belonging: 9 Pathways to Creating Inclusive and Joyful Organizational Communities, will be published in 2020.

Mary-Claire Burick is a dynamic and strategic leader whose focus is on improving communications, building engagement and leading change. She develops realistic strategies, ties individual and group actions to business outcomes and ensures that employees have the skills, resources and training to achieve their goals. 

Mary-Claire is the President of the Rosslyn Business Improvement District, an organization that works with businesses, residents and county government to ensure that Rosslyn flourishes as one of the world’s most successful urban centers. Previously, Mary-Claire was President of MC Strategy, a consulting firm helping leaders build healthy and effective organizations.  Prior, she was Vice President of Operations for Allbritton Communications, managing ABC-7, NewsChannel 8 and POLITICO.  Earlier in her career, she helped launch the Fox NewsChannel, where she served as Operations Manager. 

She was named Washington Business Journal’s Women Who Mean Business and has a certificate in Organizational Consulting and Change Leadership from Georgetown University and a BA in Communications from University of Delaware.

Follow Mary-Claire on Twitter @MaryClaireBuric.

Rebecca Shambaugh is an internationally recognized leadership expert, author, and keynote speaker. Rebecca is President of SHAMBAUGH, a global leadership development organization and Founder of Women In Leadership and Learning (WILL), one of the first executive leadership development programs in the country, dedicated to the research, advancement, and retention of women leaders and executives. Rebecca has coached and advised over a hundred leaders and executives and has enhanced their overall level of excellence in such areas as communications, strategic thinking, gender intelligence, visionary leadership, employee engagement, executive presence, and culture transformation. Prior to starting her own company, she worked for such premier organizations as General Motors, Fairchild Industries, and Amax Inc. as a senior executive in the leadership and human resources arena.

A powerful storyteller with a powerful story to tell, Dr. Steve L. Robbins has an uncanny ability to inspire people even in the midst of disrupting and challenging the way they think about the world. Born in Vietnam, Dr. Robbins immigrated with his mother to the United States where they faced many challenges during a time when there was much anti-war and anti-Vietnamese sentiment.

Working through and rising out of the challenges of poverty, discrimination and the tough streets of Los Angeles, Dr. Robbins now brings insightful perspectives on issues of inclusion & innovation, leadership, and the power of caring.  Drawing upon a compelling life journey, his talks and workshops are filled with intriguing stories, laugh-out-loud humor and a keen understanding of human behavior.

Dr. Robbins uniquely knows how to simultaneously challenge and motivate people with a dynamic use of storytelling, humor and extensive knowledge of pertinent issues and concepts. The inclusive power of his message are why organizations like Coca-Cola, Disney, Ford Motor Company, Walmart, Lululemon, Pixar, NASA, The NBA,  Michelin, Bank of America, Mercedes-Benz,  and numerous others call on Dr. Robbins to inspire, educate and prepare their people for the exciting challenges of dynamic and diverse environments.

A thought leader and innovator, Dr. Robbins' unique, science-based approach to inclusion and diversity has captured wide acclaim from numerous audiences and organizations across the the world. His approach does NOT blame or point fingers. It uses neuroscience and the science of human behavior to encourage individuals and organizations to be more open-minded, mindful and intentional about inclusion and valuing people for their unique gifts, abilities and experiences.

Dr. Robbins earned an undergraduate degree in Communication from Calvin College, and his masters and doctorate in Communication Science from Michigan State University.  His background in communication, social-psychology and cognitive neuroscience drives his work with individuals and organizations – the core of the work is about understanding human behavior and leveraging human differences in an ever-changing, fast-paced 21st world.