His name is Kudzi Chikumbu, but you may know him as Sir Candle Man. When he is not leading TikTok’s creator community, which counts 100 million Americans among its ranks, he unboxes, sniffs, and reviews scented candles under the alias. Chikumbu could have had a staider career; he formerly worked as an accountant and consultant at Deloitte. An internship with Hulu, the video streaming service, during his MBA years at Stanford changed that trajectory. Chikumbu joined TikTok through its (for now) Beijing-based parent ByteDance’s acquisition of Musical.ly, a lip-synching app, where he managed entertainment partnerships for two years. While ByteDance searches for suitors to take over TikTok before a U.S. ban takes effect (the White House is uncomfortable with its China ties), Chikumbu is making sure the app continues to make people tick—even beyond its core Gen Z fan base. There is no bigger social media sensation at the moment, and it’s Chikumbu’s job to keep the momentum going for longer than the typical viral star’s 15 seconds of fame. Oh, and in case you were wondering, his eminence’s current favorite jar of wicked wax is LAFCO’s Feu Du Bois, whose fragrances of sandalwood, leather, and frankincense are meant, the company says, “to evoke the mood and feeling of being in the ski house.”

He caught a documentary about the final season of Oprah Winfrey's talk show—Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes. That viewing sparked an interest in the world of television and production. "Seeing people in action, coming up with ideas, developing them and bring them to life, struck a mega chord, and I realized I, too, could take my ideas and transform them into creative initiatives," he says.

Such notions simmered as Chikumbu toiled through the first half of his 20s as an accountant. Ultimately, however, he followed his dream, ditching the world of finance for a career in digital media. Now 33, and based in the U.S. for the past seven years, he contributes to TikTok initiatives geared toward fostering inclusion and bolstering talent.

As 2021 began, Chikumbu helped hatch TikTok for Black Creatives. Developed with media company Macro, this three-month incubator program features forums, town halls and educational events designed to nurture emerging artists and musicians.

Other like-minded efforts include:

• The #MakeBlackHistory Creator Summit, held in February 2020 in Los Angeles, with 100 Black creators attending a weekend of community building and workshops with luminaries such as Tracee Ellis Ross, Tyra Banks and Terry Crews, who spoke about goal setting, perseverance and career development.

• #BlackVoices Live, a livestream series produced with Essence and hosted by Makayladid that just wrapped its second season, featuring guests such as John Legend, Bozoma Saint John and Alicia Keys.

• #BlackTikTok, which provides a space for more than 400 Black creators to connect, share feedback and provide content strategy. The program includes webinars, discussions with the TikTok team and community building.

• #MyPride, a celebration featuring the TikTok Trailblazers, 25 LGBTQ+ creators who define what it means to embrace self-pride.

• Amplify Diverse Voices, consisting of in-app PSA videos and a mobile site that serves as a portal to showcase diverse creators and highlight educational resources.

Chikumbu was recently honored by ADCOLOR, which advocates for diversity across creative and tech, as its top innovator for 2020. That distinction recognizes "an employee who embodies progress and imagination," and who consistently "stands out among peers as an inclusion game changer and brilliant pioneer in their role, creating breakthrough developments and/or improvements, whether tangible or intangible."

Lisa's professional energy and passion is driven by a desire and commitment to help leaders-at-all levels, teams, and organizations perform at their highest level in order to remain competitive and relevant in an ever-changing, and challenging, global business ecosystem.

As a Senior Behavioral Scientist at CoachHub, Lisa leads research initiatives, solutions development, and client partnerships in the diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging practice area. Her goal is to help companies drive change and transform by building, and sustaining, inclusive cultures while creating a diverse workplace.

Lisa's career has included leadership roles in every aspect of talent development: career development, talent acquisition, employee engagement, leadership development, and executive coaching. She has worked for notable organizations such as Carnegie Mellon University, Barclays, and Lee Hecht Harrison (LHH). At CoachHub she is focused on the design of global coaching solutions, deployed at scale, which accelerates the career advancement and promotion of underrepresented groups through inclusion and belonging strategies. She enjoys this work. Lisa thrives from providing her clients with insights and metrics which allows them to integrate her solutions into their broader learning and development strategy.

She is an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and a graduate of Oberlin College. She obtained her Master's degree in Counseling Psychology from Rutgers University. She loves to hike, kayak and volunteer at the animal shelter. Lisa is also an advocate for adults with disabilities.

Jon is the Founder and CEO of Hiro Studio and has 22 years of experience as a Facilitator and Lean Management Consultant.

 Jon hosts Cozy Juicy Real events for teams and conferences around the world,  to bring communities together and quickly create new connections and stronger team bonds.

Faith is Manager, Academic, Affiliate and Student Communities for SHRM.  Prior to this role, Faith served as a Field Services Director (FSD) based in Pittsburgh, PA. In this role she is responsible for membership growth through renewals and member acquisition working closely with the chapter and state council volunteer leaders in IN, KY, MI, ND, SD and TN. Faith also leads strategic planning and succession planning workshops for state councils and chapters along with speaking to SHRM members and non-members on a wide range of HR topics that are impacting employees and employers who are creating Better Workplaces for Better Worlds.

Hello, I'm Katie Hardy! Based in South Carolina, I have been incorporating sustainable living throughout my whole life. I'm excited to guide you through the world of sustainable cooking in our zero waste cooking class. As a perpetual experimenter, I'm dedicated to discovering innovative recipes that align with eco-conscious living. Beyond the kitchen, you'll often find me nurturing my garden, accompanied by my ever-loyal canine companion. Join me on this journey of crafting purposeful, inspiring creations, and let's embark on a shared path of empowerment through our enriching workshops!

Denise Fenrick is a Systems Analyst with over two decades of commitment to the HR Knowledge Center for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).   Denise analyzes, develops, and sustains a spectrum of technologies and resources pivotal to the team's organization and SHRM member support.