Brandon Heard is a boundary spanning strategist at the global marketing and innovation consultancy, R/GA. His primary role focuses on brand strategy, portfolio optimization and campaign development for established brands like Samsung, Shopify, American Express, and Ad Council’s, Love Has No Labels.

Often the youngest person in the room, Brandon also works closely with global executives on racial equity and allyship within the organization, including in the development of a proprietary framework called, the Four Forces of Allyship. At R/GA, Brandon also co-chairs the LGBTQ+ Network where he partners with employees and brands to help advance the culture of diversity, equity and inclusion beyond calendar moments.

Outside of work, he leads editorial for ADCOLOR, an non-for-profit organization that champions diversity and inclusion within the creative, tech and entertainment industries. His role helps create a community where diverse professionals can support and celebrate one another.

Brandon also sits on the Next Gen Committee of Facing History and Ourselves, a global educational organization that engages all people to examine racism, bigotry and hate in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry.

When not trying to save the world, you can find him moving in the mountains on a hike; or you can just follow him on Twitter at @brandonleeheard or on LinkedIn at Brandon Lee Heard.

Helen Frew is Director of Permits Foundation and has 18 years of international advocacy experience spent in the UK, Brussels and The Hague, representing organisations from both the public and private sphere and working in and around the EU institutions. At Permits Foundation she develops strategy to work with governments worldwide, aiming to improve legislation to facilitate work access for partners and spouses of mobile employees. “Global mobility advocacy is such an exciting field to work in. There is never a dull moment and so much potential for contributing to change that benefits employee integration, company talent acquisition and country attractiveness as a place to do business.

Alejandra Zapatero is a Managing Director with Erickson Immigration Group. Alejandra has been practicing immigration law for 10+ years in Virginia, Washington D.C., and California. Her practice focuses on corporate immigration working with large, medium, small, and startup companies in filing employment-based petitions for foreign workers seeking temporary and permanent employment in the U.S. Her experience includes immigrant and non-immigrant visa petitions. Alejandra advises employers from startups to Fortune 500 companies on establishing and refining immigration programs including strategies for hiring, compliance, and complex immigration matters resulting from corporate restructuring including mergers, acquisitions, and reductions-in-force. 

She has counseled clients on workforce compliance including I-9 issues and public access file audits. Alejandra is proficient in the preparation and filing of non-immigrant visas such as E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1, and TN. She is also adept in immigrant visa processes, including the preparation and filing of PERM, I-140 petitions, and I-485 Adjustment of Status applications. She is also well-versed in family immigration law and has represented individuals seeking family-based green cards, deferred action of childhood arrival (DACA) work authorization, and naturalization applications. 

Alejandra is a frequent speaker on immigration issues and has presented at various conferences and events including SHRM, Worldwide ERC, Bay Area Mobility Management, British American Business Council, sf.citi, Global HR Business News, and the Council for Global Immigration.

Mike is the founder and managing partner of Hammond Neal Moore. HNM was founded in 1991 and is an immigration boutique firm headquartered in Cincinnati with branch offices in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Portland. The firm handles all types of employment based immigration matters for companies ranging from mom and pop start-ups to Fortune 100 and represents a variety of industries including manufacturing, technology, healthcare, universities, and research to name a few.  Mike’s practice focuses on representing corporations in the IT and healthcare sectors. He is the primary contributor to the firm’s Views on Business Immigration blog. He is a regular speaker at industry conferences hosted by TechServe Alliance and Staffing Industry Analysts. He has also been a speaker for AILA and local bar organizations. He has been named to the International Who’sWho of Corporate Immigration Lawyers since 2008.

Tahmina Watson is a nationally acclaimed immigration attorney and founder of Watson Immigration Law in Seattle, Washington, USA. Her practice focuses on business and investment immigration matters. She handles all employment-based visas such as L1A, H1B, O1, E2, EB5 etc.  Her clients include individuals and businesses from all over the world. 

Tahmina was a barrister in London, UK, before immigrating to America herself.  A passionate advocate for immigration reform, Tahmina is the author of “The Startup Visa: Key to Job Growth & Economic Prosperity in America”.  In addition to regularly publishing articles and appearing in the media including CNN, Forbes, The Telegraph and much more, she is the host of “Tahmina Talks Immigration” a radio show turned podcast available on itunes/Spotify and other podcast applications.  Recently, Tahmina founded a non-profit, the Washington Immigrant Defense Network- WIDEN which funds and facilitates legal representation in the immigration courtroom.   She is also cofounder of www.airportlawyer.org, a web portal that helps passengers at the airports seek assistance of volunteer lawyers.

Learn more about Tahmina at www.watsonimmigrationlaw.com and can contact her info@watsonimmigrationlaw.com.

Clement Chang is a Senior Associate with Pasricha & Patel, LLC.  He has over two decades of experience in immigration law.  His practice areas are focused on areas of business immigration, and employer compliance issues at the federal and state level.  Mr. Chang’s expertise extends to labor certifications (PERM), and employment-based non-immigrant and immigrant visa petitions. He assists with representations for a variety of clients from information technology companies, pharmaceutical companies, educational institutions, researchers and scientists, restaurants and dining services, to performers and musicians.  Mr. Chang also represents individual clients with filing of family-based immigrant and non-immigrant visas.

A graduate of Rutgers Law School – Newark, Clement is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, the Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association, and the New Jersey Bar Association and the New York Bar Association.