Virtual Pass

Stephen Shapiro began his journey in innovation 25 years ago, founding and leading a 20,000-person innovation practice at Accenture. 

Today, as the author of seven books, including his latest, PIVOTAL: Creating Stability in an Uncertain World, he continues to challenge the status quo and inspire creative breakthroughs. His Personality Poker® card game has been played by over 250,000 people, helping organizations create high-performing innovation teams. Stephen’s expertise has been featured on major television networks like CNBC, USA Network, and TLC, making his work as dynamic on-screen as it is on stage. 

Offstage, he channels his passion for innovation into magic, blending creativity with the art of making the impossible possible. 

With presentations in over 50 countries, a 2015 induction into the Speaker Hall of Fame, and his role as a Senior Research Fellow with The Conference Board, Stephen’s impact is as far-reaching as it is transformative. 

A Fortune Top 50 World’s Greatest Leader and Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award winner, Mick Ebeling is a pioneer who uses innovation to solve global challenges. As the Founder of Not Impossible Labs, he’s renowned for inventions like the Eyewriter (eye-tracking tech for paralyzed artists) and Project Daniel (3D-printed prosthetics in conflict zones), driven by his “Help One. Help Many” ethos.  
 

A three-time TIME Best Inventions honoree, Mick’s work spans restoring speech (Don’s Voice), combating hunger (Bento), and immersive music experiences (Music: Not Impossible). His philosophy, “Commit, Then Figure It Out,” fuels boundary-pushing solutions merging tech, storytelling, and human need.  

A powerhouse keynote speaker, Mick transforms audiences with tales of turning “impossible” into action, inspiring bold problem-solving. His book, Not Impossible: The Art and Joy of Doing What Couldn’t Be Done chronicles his journey from small acts to global impact.  

Mick empowers individuals and organizations to redefine limits, proving that audacity + empathy = world-changing innovation. 

The first Deafblind person to graduate from Harvard Law School, Haben Girma is an award-winning advocate, author, and keynote speaker. She earned the Helen Keller Achievement Award, reached Forbes 30 under 30, and President Barack Obama named her a White House Champion of Change. She believes disability challenges are opportunities for innovation, sparking new technologies that move society forward. Haben travels the globe teaching organizations how to build stronger, resilient, and more connected communities.

Her bestselling book Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law takes readers on adventures around the world, including training with a guide dog in New Jersey, climbing an iceberg in Alaska, fighting for blind readers at a courthouse in Vermont, and talking with former presidents Biden and Obama at the White House. Warm, funny, thoughtful, and uplifting, this captivating book shows how we can resist isolation and find the keys to connection. The New York Times, Oprah Magazine, the TODAY Show, and Stephen Curry have all praised the book.

A spellbinding speaker, Haben’s keynotes have touched the stages of Apple, Bottega Veneta, Disney, Gartner, Google, Microsoft, Oxford University, and many more. Her engaging presentations ignite audiences to make positive changes in their communities. TIME included her as a speaker in TIME100 Talks.

In 2023, Haben became one of the first leaders appointed to serve as a Commissioner for the World Health Organization’s new Commission on Social Connection.

Haben was born and raised in California, where she currently lives. She travels with her Seeing Eye® dog Mylo. He often falls asleep during her keynotes.

Khaliah O. Guillory (KOG) worked her way from banker to vice president at a Fortune 100 company that oversaw a $1 billion book of business and over 220 employees. While Vice President of Wachovia Bank, she served as one of the founding members of the Diversity Council, influencing positive change at the company. During this time, the organization saw a retention increase of approximately 35% due to her leadership. After leaving Corporate America, her phone started ringing off the hook and hasn’t stopped since.

An avid napper and Forbes Featured Sleep Coach, Khaliah is obsessed with sleep so much, she founded Nap Bar™, the first-of-its-kind, white-glove, virtual reality wellness experience in the world. Nap Bar offers communities and companies onsite and en-suite rest sanctuaries to help reduce sleep deprivation and increase mindfulness and alertness.

In 2015, Khaliah founded KOG & Co., a boutique firm that partners with corporations to transform human emotion through inclusion, equity, culture, wellness, and employee engagement experiences. Khaliah is an international speaker chosen to deliver the 2018 MBA Commencement Speech at the University of Houston-Downtown. She has been featured in a plethora of national media outlets, including Forbes, Huffington Post, Essence, Houston Business Journal, Fox News, ABC, and NBC.

Khaliah’s thought leadership has inspired companies like Microsoft, Synchrony Bank, Shell, NASA, and LinkedIn, to name a few. As a dynamic professional speaker, she champions workplace well-being and belonging with electrifying energy and real-world insights.

When she’s not revolutionizing the way we rest, you can find Khaliah chasing her next adventure — like skydiving from 10,000 feet out of a perfectly good plane. She’s a lover of ’80s music, a travel junkie, a vinyl collector, and has an undeniable obsession with socks, sunglasses, and watches.

A member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Khaliah is also the recipient of the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award. Her impact runs deep, so much so that former Mayor Sylvester Turner and the City of Houston declared October 29 as Khaliah O. Guillory Day in recognition of her philanthropic work.

Tamla Oates-Forney is an innovative thought leader and speaker, women’s advocate, wellness champion, philanthropist, and investor. Tamla serves as Chief Executive Officer of SHRM Linkage, a leadership development firm empowering organizations to achieve business success by unlocking the full potential of their talent from the backpack to the boardroom.

Tamla previously served as EVP, Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) for USAA, where as a member of the Executive Council she led USAA’s team of more than 500 HR professionals spanning talent development, talent acquisition, pay and benefits, culture, and employee services for 37,000 teammates. Prior to joining USAA, Tamla served as Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer at WM (previously Waste Management). She spent the majority of her career (20 years) at General Electric, where she held multiple leadership roles, including HR Leader for GE Africa, Chief Diversity Officer for GE Appliances and Lighting, and Vice President of HR for GE Energy Connections.

Tamla is also a member of the Board of Advisors for her alma mater, UNC Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, and is a sought-after speaker, advisor, and thought leader for several HR-related technology startups.

Tamla is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in business administration. A renowned expert in her field, she has received multiple honors, including being featured in The New York Times, Fast Company, The Network Journal’s 25 Influential Black Women in Business, and Savoy’s 2020 Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America. She is also a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), a network of Black CEOs and business leaders who support the development of diverse talent and the promotion of social justice.

Josiah is a Partner in the Boston office of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP where he provides strategic guidance to employers on all facets of the complex US business immigration process. He represents employers in the information technology, energy, insurance, management consulting, and legal industries before the US Department of Labor, US Department of Homeland Security, and US Department of State in addition to providing counsel regarding immigration compliance, program management, and corporate reorganizations. Josiah is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association where he serves on the national Department of Labor Liaison Committee and is a frequent speaker at the local and national levels on business immigration matters.

Josiah is also passionate about giving back to his community and provides pro bono counsel to a number of organizations including Doctors Without Borders and Kids in Need of Defense.

John Fay is an attorney and technologist with a deep applied knowledge of business immigration, I-9 compliance and E-Verify rules and procedures.  During his twenty-plus year career, John has advised corporations, educational institutions, and individuals on a variety of U.S. immigration and I-9 issues.  At the same time, he has also been uniquely involved in information technology, having designed several immigration and I-9 management software applications.

As Director of Product Strategy at Equifax, John provides strategic leadership and direction in the development and support of Form I-9, E-Verify, and immigration case management software solutions.

Jason Finkelman is an Immigration Attorney working at the forefront of immigration law to assist domestic and foreign businesses, as well as international individuals in a variety of employment-based and family-based immigration matters.  He represents U.S. and international companies, entrepreneurs, investors, business-owners, executives, professionals, skilled workers, students, and families in obtaining employment visas, lawful permanent residence ("green cards") and U.S. citizenship.  Jason works with clients across a number of industries including high-tech, semiconductor, healthcare, higher education, energy, oil/gas, import/export, research, and entertainment to help them meet their immigration goals. Please visit www.finkelmanlaw.com for more information on his services.

Kelly Bunting, Co-Chair of the Greenberg Traurig, LLP's Labor & Employment Practice's Workplace Compliance & Counseling Group, and member of its Artificial Intelligence Law Group, has considerable experience defending class and collective wage and hour litigation and misclassification claims, having defended employers in Title III ADA access litigation and litigation alleging race, sex, pregnancy, age, disability discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. She is deeply experienced in virtually all aspects of employment litigation, including wage and hour, labor, Title VII, harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, non-competition and non-solicitation, trade secrets, SOX and Dodd Frank whistleblower claims, CEPA, ADEA, FMLA, NJLAD, and failure to accommodate issues. She has identified and managed employment issues in M&A deals and appeared before the EEOC, NLRB, and DOL in many states, as well as state agencies in DE, NY, NJ and PA. Kelly has represented many clients in mediation and settlement negotiations, and created HR and compliance training modules. She is regularly sought after as a workforce trainer for issues related to harassment and discrimination, FCPA compliance, good management techniques, and union awareness.

Kelly focuses much of her practice on international L&E issues, including employment/secondment contracts, data privacy, and global anti-corruption compliance. She advises clients on national and international handbook policies, procedures, and strategic HR issues, and provides day-to-day counsel in hiring, employee relations, employee discipline, and termination. She also conducts and advises on internal investigations.