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.

Kristina is the managing principal of HRComputes, a management consulting firm, providing human capital management digital solution strategy and advisory services including DEI strategy and implementation to build more equitable and inclusive organizations.

Her executive business management experience spans the corporate and not for profit worlds. She is a professor for the Bard MBA in Sustainability. She is the author of Driving Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion published by Taylor & Francis.

She is a diversity, equity, and inclusion thought leader and frequent speaker. She has received numerous awards for her JEDI work.

Dr. Edward E. Hubbard, President and CEO of Hubbard & Hubbard, Inc., an International Business Performance Consulting Corp. specializing in Business Improvement, Diversity Return on Investment (DROI®) Measurement/Analytics, and organizational development.  Author of more than 59 DEI ROI and Business-related books, Dr. Hubbard is an expert in Organizational Analysis, ROI Measurement, Strategic Planning, and more. Dr. Hubbard was an honoree at the Inaugural International Society of Diversity and Inclusion Professionals Living Legends of Diversity Award Ceremony in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico where he received the “Living Legends of Diversity Award” for creating the “Diversity ROI Analytics” and “Diversity Measurement Fields and their associated Disciplines” and is recognized globally as the creator of these unique sciences and fields of study. 

Dr. Hubbard received the “Excellence in Global Leadership Award” from the World HRD Congress (the highest individual professional award given), the 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award from The Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences, the Sentry Award from the U.S. Pentagon, and many others.

Dr. Hubbard serves on the Harvard Business Review, Diversity Executive Magazine and Strategic Diversity & Inclusion Management (SDIM) magazine Editorial Advisory Boards and serves on the Board of Directors for The Ohio State University African American Alumni Society. He also holds a Practitioner Certification and Master Practitioner Certification in Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP), a Neuroscience discipline. Dr. Hubbard earned Bachelors, Masters Degrees from The Ohio State University and earned a Ph.D. with Honors in Business Administration.

Omari Faulkner is President and CEO of Blue Fire Fed, a strategic communications and development company.  As a trailblazing business leader, driven by service and a passion to address the needs of the military community, Omari delivers solutions and provides thought leadership to Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, universities, and nonprofit organizations.  He ensures veterans, military families, and active military members transitioning to civilian life are fully integrated into the civilian workforce and culture; filling an untapped niche in the global workplace.

He has traveled to over 45 countries as a U.S. Department of State Special Envoy and is the author of Athlete for Life, a book providing student-athletes, parents, coaches, and the sport development community with a blueprint for success and lifelong accomplishment.  Today, he remains an active Public Affairs Officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve.  

Cynt Marshall has been a dynamic force for inclusion and diversity within the Mavericks organization and over a 36-year career at AT&T.  When Cynt was hired as the CEO of the Mavs in March 2018, she set her sights on a culture transformation.  Her vision was for the Mavericks organization to become the NBA standard for inclusion and diversity. Cynt brought transparency, trust and her values-based leadership style that evolved the company culture in her first 100 days.

Prior to her joining the Mavs, Cynt founded Marshalling Resources, a consulting firm specializing in Leadership, Diversity & Inclusion, Culture Transformation and overall optimization of people resources. Upon the company naming its first Chief Inclusion Officer in June 2017, Cynt worked with The Dow Chemical Company to develop and implement a strategy for institutionalizing an inclusive culture. Dow was named to DiversityInc’s Top 50 list in 2018 and has since been identified on Fortune’s Great Place to Work lists.

Cynt’s notoriety began many years ago as a young Officer at AT&T and grew exponentially when she served as Senior Vice President – Human Resources & Chief Diversity Officer at AT&T.  There she was responsible for identifying and developing leaders, aligning employees with the company’s vision and priorities, overseeing major business unit HR support, performance development, employee engagement, skills transformation initiatives, EEO and Affirmative Action. Cynt also led the team that created a world class Diversity and Inclusion culture, landing AT&T in the top 3 on Diversity Inc’s 2017 Top 50 list of companies.  She also spearheaded the work that for the first time placed AT&T on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list in 2017, one of only two Fortune 50 companies.

Before her SVP-Human Resources and Chief Diversity Office roles, Cynt served as President-AT&T North Carolina where she became the first African-American chair of the North Carolina State Chamber of Commerce. Prior to her North Carolina appointment, Cynt held a variety of executive line and staff, technical and non-technical positions at AT&T and its predecessor companies.

Widely recognized for her visionary leadership and ability to get things done Cynt is the recipient of several honors and awards. In 2021, Forbes named Cynt one of 15 of the world’s most inspiring female leaders, Dallas WISE (Women In Sports and Events) honored her with the inaugural Women of Inspiration award, The Women’s Forum of New York bestowed the Elly award, and Texas Women’s University recognized Cynt with the Virginia Chandler Dyke Leadership award. Cynt received the 2020 Girl Scouts of America Lifetime Achievement award and was touted as one of Adweek’s 30 Most Powerful Women in Sports. In 2019, Cynt was honored with the Women of Power Legacy Award by Black Enterprise and was the recipient of the National ATHENA® Leadership Program Award. This annual award is presented by chambers of commerce, women’s organizations and universities worldwide. In 2017, Cynt was honored by The Network Journal as one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Business and was honored with the ATHENA® Leadership Program Award by the Dallas Regional Chamber, which recognizes exceptional women who excel in their careers, contribute to their communities and develop women leaders. In March 2020 and several times prior, Cynt was selected as one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in Corporate America” by Black Enterprise magazine and named to Ebony magazine’s 2016 “Power 100” list.  In 2014, industry analysts and members of the press conferred on Cynt the HR Executive of the Year - Best in Biz Award. For her efforts on behalf of the people of North Carolina, in 2013 Cynt received the prestigious Leadership North Carolina Governor’s Award, which honors just one citizen each year for lifetime achievements.

Cynt graduated from the University of California-Berkeley with degrees in Business Administration and Human Resources Management and holds four honorary Doctorate degrees. She also earned a Diversity and Inclusion Certificate from Cornell University. Cynt has chaired a variety of non-profit boards and currently serves on the board of Dallas CASA (chair), Dallas Regional Chamber, Texas Women’s Foundation, Texas 2036, T.D. Jakes Foundation, Pro Sports Assembly, Executive Leadership Council (ELC), and is a member of the International Women’s Forum. She is also on the Board of Directors of BGSF Staffing, JELD-WEN, Chime Financial, Inc. and Blinkcns, Inc.

The fourth of six children, Cynt grew up in Richmond, California, and lives in the Dallas area. She and her husband, Kenneth Marshall, have four adult children. 

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.

Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP, is President and Chief Executive Officer of SHRM. With nearly 340,000 members in 180 countries, SHRM impacts the lives of more than 362 million workers and their families globally.

As a global leader on the future of employment, culture and leadership, Mr. Taylor is a sought-after voice on all matters affecting work, workers and the workplace. Recognized as one of the “300 Most Influential Executives in Corporate America” for 2024 by Savoy Magazine and one of the “Most Influential People Shaping Public Policy” in our nation’s capital by Washingtonian Magazine, Mr. Taylor is frequently asked to testify before Congress on critical workforce issues and authors the weekly USA Today column, "Ask HR."

Mr. Taylor's career spans more than 20 years as a lawyer, human resources executive and CEO in both the not-for-profit and for-profit spaces. He has held senior and chief executive roles at IAC/InteractiveCorp, Viacom's Paramount Pictures, Blockbuster Entertainment Group, the McGuireWoods law firm and Compass Group USA. Most recently, Mr. Taylor was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

He is the author of the national bestseller, RESET: A Leader’s Guide to Work in an Age of Upheaval, which immediately upon its release in September 2021, was in the top three of The Wall Street Journal’s list of best-selling hardcover business books.

Mr. Taylor is a member of the United Way Worldwide Board of Trustees and serves on the corporate boards of XPO Logistics (NYSE: XPO), Flores & Associates, and Guild Education. He previously served on the White House American Workforce Policy Advisory Board and as chairman of the President's Advisory Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities during the Trump Administration.

The Women Business Collaborative (WBC) named Mr. Taylor as one of its 2023 Trailblazers in Gender Equity and Diversity for his work to achieve equal position, pay and power for all women in business. In 2020, he received the Distinguished Executive of the Year Award from the Academy of Management, and he was named 2021 ALA Professional Society CEO of the Year by CEO Update.

He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources and is licensed to practice law in Florida, Illinois and Washington, D.C.

Melissa Anderson serves as SVP, Chief Human Resources Officer for Albemarle Corporation.  She is responsible for all facets of Human Resources, which includes leading the execution of the Human Resources strategic plan, partnering with Executive and Senior Leadership teams to establish and implement key HR initiatives, and achieving HR objectives and approaches with an emphasis on business partnerships, talent acquisition and development, compensation and benefits, inclusion and diversity programs, and HR operations.

Prior to joining Albemarle, Anderson served as executive vice president, administration and chief human resources officer for Duke Energy where she was responsible for human resources policy and strategy, talent management and diversity, employee and labor relations, total rewards strategies and programs, and delivery of business partner services. Her administrative responsibilities included the real estate, land services, aviation and support services organizations.

Melissa has over 30 years of experience in HR, including serving as vice president of human resources of global financing at IBM Corp. During her 17-year tenure with the Fortune 100 company, Anderson created and implemented talent strategies and led several successful cultural initiatives. She has also served as senior vice president of human resources and government relations for The Pantry Inc., from 2006 to 2010.

Anderson earned a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial relations from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master of Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University.

A native of Boone, N.C., Anderson has a son and a daughter.

As executive director of SHRM Northern California Operations, Ayllon is responsible for overseeing membership engagement activities, including recruitment, retention and local educational programs for HR professionals living and working in the Greater SF Bay Area. Additionally, she oversees the financial responsibilities of the Northern California operation. Prior to joining SHRM, Ayllon served for nearly 18 years as executive director of the Professional Association of Childhood Education, where she oversaw the organization’s daily operations, program development and strategic planning initiatives. Ayllon holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from San Francisco State University. Additionally, she is SHRM SCP Certified and a Certified Association Executive.

Kevin Abbed is the Specialist, Academic and Afiliate Engagement for SHRM.  Prior to that he served as Member Engagement Associate, where he engaged with members, students and prospective students. Kevin earned his bachelor’s degree in Communications from Penn State University.