In-person Pass

Eric Ellis, President and CEO of Integrity Development Corp., is an award-winning entrepreneur, thought leader, author, and keynote speaker with over thirty years of experience in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.  

Named one of the Top 100 DEI Experts in the World by the Society for Human Resources Management and "Cincinnati's Diversity Fixer" by The Cincinnati Enquirer, Eric is an innovative thought leader who helps transform organizational cultures into people-centered workplaces that inspire employee engagement and a sense of belonging.

Eric is a singer/songwriter, and the author of Diversity Conversations. He hosts a weekly podcast named after his book, which can be found on Apple, Spotify, Facebook and YouTube.

Laura Whitaker, M. Ed., began her relationship with Extra Special People, Inc. by working as a counselor and, subsequently, a leadership team member in 2003.  With her passion for enhancing the lives of children with developmental disabilities and her specialized education in this field, Laura was selected as the director after the founder, Martha Wyllie’s sudden passing in 2004. She has found her dream job with ESP (or as she says, her dream job found her!).  As Executive Director, Laura uses her leadership and management strengths to manage staff, oversee multiple year-round programs and raise funds to run programs. Her favorite part of the job is getting to hug the many children who walk through the ESP doors.

Erica is the National Expansion Manager for Java Joy based out of Athens, GA she graduated from the University of North Georgia with a Bachelor's degree in Sociology and Business Administration and she also has a certificate from Emory in Human Resource Management. Prior to working for Java Joy she worked for several years developing new retail stores across the southeast and doing HR in a corporate office that did fundraising for elementary schools. She has been working with children and adults with disabilities since she was 10 years old. When she is not working she enjoys running, cooking, gardening, and hanging out with her friends and family. 

As a DEI practitioner and organizational consultant, Judy leads strategic culture and diversity, equity, and inclusion transformations to build organizations where all employees thrive. For over 20 years, she has designed and delivered solutions for corporate, nonprofit and educational clients.

Judy leads the global DEI consulting practice of AMS (Alexander Mann Solutions), a Talent Acquisition and Workforce Solutions firm. She has designed diagnostic tools of end-to-end recruitment processes to foster inclusivity that she’s delivered for organizations including Barclays and Bristol Myers Squibb. She’s also developed DEI strategy, communication plans, career development frameworks and global training initiatives on Inclusive Leadership, Conscious Inclusion in Hiring, and Unconscious Bias for companies including Delta Airlines and MUFG. Prior to joining AMS, Judy led a certified Woman- and Minority-owned DEI consulting firm, Think People.

​Judy serves as an Adjunct Instructor in Workforce Diversity at the University of Cincinnati ‘s Master’s in Applied Psychology Program. She has a B.S. in Management & Organizations from Indiana University's Kelly School of Business. She holds certificates in Diversity & Inclusion from Cornell University, and Coaching with the International Coaching Federation; she is a Qualified Administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory®. She has been named a “Top Diversity Officer” by the National Diversity Council. Her expertise in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion has been featured in Forbes, DiversityQ magazine, the Recruiting Daily podcast and on numerous conference platforms, including SHRM’s Inclusion Conference.

Chelsea C. Williams is a passionate Entrepreneur, Workplace Educator, and Mentor to the next generation workforce.

As the Founder & CEO of Reimagine Talent Co. she & her team support employers, education institutions, and nonprofits in spearheading multi-generational workforce & talent development solutions rooted in belonging.

She is a frequent contributor to media outlets like CNBC, Fast Company, Investment News, Insider, and Forbes on managing & leading multi-generational teams and engaging & developing Generation Z.

Chelsea's honors include receiving the 2021 Forbes Next 1000 Award for small businesses redefining the American dream and being selected as a 2022 Tory Burch Entrepreneurial Fellow.

Kandi Pickard is the President & CEO of the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) where she provides vision and leadership, working collaboratively with individuals and organizations to support the entire Down syndrome community. Kandi holds a degree in business administration and brings two decades of experience in operations and effective administration management to her role at NDSS. Kandi’s involvement in the Down syndrome community first began as a local volunteer and advocate after her youngest son, Mason was born with Down syndrome. Nine years later, she leads NDSS with a focus on building community and keeping people with Down syndrome at the center of everything the organization does. Kandi’s vision for the future of NDSS includes resources, programs and support for individuals with Down syndrome and their families from birth to adulthood, with a special focus on caregiving, public health and supporting aging adults.

Elizabeth leads the HR function for the Global Services organization in the Commercial Bank. 

Prior to joining JP Morgan Chase in June 2012, Elizabeth lived in Shanghai, China where she developed an HR consulting practice and worked as Head of Marketing for the Jane Goodall Institute. 

Elizabeth’s career has spanned an array of progressive HR leadership roles for large multi-national organizations including Morgan Stanley, Toyota Financial Services and Mary Kay Cosmetics. She has lived and worked in Dallas, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Chicago and Shanghai. 

Elizabeth is a graduate of Texas Christian University’s School of Communications, the University of the Chicago Booth School of Business Leadership Program, and she studied Mandarin at the Mandarin Language School in Shanghai, China. Elizabeth serves as a Board Member for Child Care Associates and is the Chair of the Board of Visitors for the Bob Schieffer School of Communications, Texas Christian University. 

Elizabeth lives in Fort Worth with her husband, Jonathan, and three rowdy dogs. Her daughter, Katherine, recently graduated from the University of California San Diego and is now living and working in La Jolla, California.

Raymond Lee is the Founder and President of Careerminds, a global outplacement company based in Wilmington, Delaware. He has over 20 years of human resource, outplacement, and career consulting experience. Raymond pioneered the concept of virtual outplacement after experiencing years of traditional outplacement in a variety of HR roles. He has his bachelor’s in psychology and holds a Master’s Degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Louisiana Tech University. He sits on the Careerminds Board of Director’s and is active in SHRM, HRPS and ATD. Raymond’s been featured on SiriusXM Business Radio, CareerTalk, and the Wall Street Journal and he’s recently published a book titled, Clocking Out: A Stress Free Guide to Career Transitions.

Cordell brings 20 years of experience to his leadership of the Aspen Institute Socrates Program, a global education forum for leaders and Expectant Advisory, a privately-held leadership consultancy. Previous to his current roles, Cordell held leadership roles with TechTown Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Business Roundtable, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools and the IBM Corporation.

Honors include: an Eisenhower Fellowship to China; designation as a White House Champion of Change for Computer Science Education; designation as a “40 under 40” by business and civic organizations in Washington State and Tennessee; University of Notre Dame Law School alumni of the year awardee; selections as a Robert Bosch Foundation Fellow for Young American Leaders and a Broad Foundation Resident in Urban Education. Current board service includes the Alumni Council for Cultural Vistas, AIPAC National Council and the privately-held blockchain start-up Injii. He previously served on the Advisory Council for the Center for Democracy and Technology and the boards of the United Way of Greater Chattanooga, United Way of King County, Downtown Seattle YMCA and the Siskin Hospital for Physical Rehabilitation.

Cordell speaks at conferences, leads workshops and moderates panels and seminars all over the world. Recent appearances include: Congressional testimony before the US Congressional Commission for Security and Cooperation in Europe (December 2019); 2019 Horasis Conference (Las Vegas, NV); 2019 SmartCity Expo (Atlanta, GA); 2019 Concordia Summit (Bogota, Colombia); 2019 Young Leaders Academy of Macedonia (Skopje, Macedonia); 2018 Blockchain Trends Summit (Seoul, South Korea); 2018 The Wright (Golden, CO); 2018 SXSW Festival (Austin, TX); 2017 YSEALI Summit (Manila, Philippines); Confluence ROME (Rome, GA); Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank District’s Reinventing Community Conference (Philadelphia, PA); US News STEM Solutions Leadership Summit (Dallas, TX); ACT Board of Directors Annual Meeting (Washington, DC); Council of Chief State Schools Officers Legislative Conference (Washington, DC); and the Association for Career and Technical Education’s National Policy Seminar (Washington, DC).

Cordell earned a J.D. from the University of Notre Dame Law School, a M.Sc. in Public Policy and Management Studies from Carnegie Mellon University and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Washington.

Dr. Michael Baran is the CEO of Iris Inclusion, a global diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) firm. Dr. Baran draws on his own social science research to inform his DEI speaking engagements, writings, consulting, leadership development, and eLearning. After teaching at Harvard University, he has been supporting DEI in organizations for 20 years. His work has been covered in the New York Times, BBC, Forbes, CNN, NPR, and more.

His recent book, Subtle Acts of Exclusion, was named by Forbes as one of “The 11 Books To Read To Be A More Inclusive Leader” and has won several awards.