Concurrent Session

Global Speaker Sonia Aranza has presented on the international stage from Spain to Singapore.  She brings 27+ years of experience in Diversity, Inclusion & Global Leadership. Her clients include Boeing, CIA, McDonald’s and more. The U.S. Department of Labor describes her work as “Outstanding” and was selected to execute programs for landmark cases. SHRM featured her as a Diversity & Inclusion Expert in HR Magazine and she is a LinkedIn Top Voice in Leadership. She serves on the Faculty of Howard University’s Executive Diversity Program; named “100 Most Influential Filipina Americans in the United States” and honored “100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the World.”

Blair has spent the last 15 years working with the world’s most recognizable teams, corporations, athletes, and brands. Game On’s proprietary approach leverages the interactive power of game-based learning to inspire tangible workforce behaviors. Blair is considered a leading expert on the use of gamification and game theory to improve communication, leadership, team building, and culture.

Blair’s recent work in D&I includes instructional design and delivery for the U.S. House of Representatives and Deloitte. Some of Blair’s other clients include Joint Special Operations Command, USOC, US Air Force, US Army, USO, WWP, Hilton, Honda, Acura, NASCAR, and the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Judith has been at the forefront of the culture change movement in technology and entertainment – with a deep focus on analytics and strategies to identify and disrupt bias in social systems and corporate culture. She joined SAP in September 2018. 

Previously as Global Head of Diversity for Dropbox, Judith was responsible for all diversity and inclusion programs, as well as corporate social responsibility, and was the Diversity Programs Manager at Google where she directed the unconscious bias work stream, and built strategies for recruiting, retention, and advancement of the company’s technical employees.

Howard Ross is lifelong social justice advocate, and is considered one of the world’s seminal thought leaders on identifying and addressing unconscious bias.  Howard has delivered programs in 47 states and over 40 other countries to audiences including Fortune 500 companies, colleges and universities, and major institutions within healthcare, government, and non-profit sectors. He authored the Washington Post best seller, Everyday Bias:  Identifying and Navigating Unconscious Judgments in Our Daily Lives, ReInventing Diversity: Transforming Organizational Community to Strengthen People, Purpose and Performance. His latest  book, Our Search for Belonging: How the Need for Connection Is Tearing Our Culture Apart, published by Berrett-Koehler in 2018, received the Nautilus Gold Medal for Social Change and Social Justice. His next book, Building Belonging: 9 Pathways to Creating Inclusive and Joyful Organizational Communities, will be published in 2020.

Elizabeth Brown is currently the Chief People Officer at Unity Technologies. Prior to Unity, she led HR at Trulia, an online real estate website. She spent several years helping grow Trulia including playing a critical role in the Zillow/Trulia acquisition integration.

Prior to joining Trulia, Elizabeth spent two years at LinkedIn leading HR for the Global Sales and Operations group and the HR International team. In this role, she was at the forefront of hyper-growth and led the team to deliver 100 percent year-over-year headcount growth and opened several international LinkedIn offices. Elizabeth also served as an industry thought leader on recruiting, scaling organizations, culture, and leadership. Previously, she held several HR leadership positions at Microsoft Corporation and Intuit. Elizabeth received her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley. She was recently honored as one of San Francisco’s Most Influential Business Women.

Eric Ellis is President and CEO of Integrity Development Corp. Since 1991, his firm has served businesses, law enforcement agencies, and organizations by building cultures where Diversity, Inclusion and Respect flourish, driving business results.

One of our nation’s leading strategists on Diversity & Inclusion, Eric and his firm have won numerous awards, including the State of Ohio's Minority Business of the Year, and the NAACP President’s Award. Eric is a member of the SHRM Inclusion & Diversity Expert Panel.

Eric is author of the book, Diversity Conversations, 3rd edition, and co-hosts a weekly broadcast of the same name at www.1320thevoice.com or facebook live, every Saturday, 9:30 am EST @elliseric.

As the Executive Director of the Dave’s Killer Bread Foundation, Genevieve drives creation and growth of national efforts to expand employment opportunities for people with criminal backgrounds. On a given day you’ll find her sharing expertise with a group of hiring professionals, meeting with government agencies to advocate for hiring people with criminal backgrounds or collaborating with Second Chance Employers around the country to recruit more businesses into the fold. In addition to producing multiple Second Chance Summits around the country, she’s participated in the Center for American Progress and Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives task forces, presented at the Inc 5000, SXSW Interactive Festiva, Sustainable Brands,  International Corrections & Prisons Association, partnered with the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) to launch the Getting Talent Back to Work Toolkit, and joined hundreds of other companies across America on the Fair Chance Business Pledge and at the White House in 2016 and 2019.

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.

Melissa DeLay is the award-winning founder and principal owner of TruPerception. With nearly two decades of strategic and corporate communication experience—including consulting for companies such as Ameriprise Financial and the State of Minnesota, as well as senior positions with 3M, Carlson Companies, Maytag and AmeriPride—Melissa knows how to deliver the right words in the right way to drive change, manage crises, boost engagement and build a stronger brand.

Her first book “The Truth About Scandal: The Everyday Guide to Navigating Business Crises,” details Melissa's years of first-hand experience coaching and consulting professionals through some of the toughest communications issues facing modern leaders today.