TIME TO ELEVATE & RADIATE

Hunter has driven success for creative agencies, B2C, B2B, blue chip companies, and start-ups over the past 20+ years. Passionate about solving complex challenges while meeting human needs, Hunter leads with an innovation mindset and a deep reverence for audiences, creating thoughtful, insight-basedstrategies. Previously, Hunter led marketing and strategy initiatives for Mercedes-Benz, DIAGEO, Everlywell, Verizon, Novartis, AT&T, Bank of America, GameStop, Pepsi, Kendra Scott, Thinkful, and Alaska Airlines.

Adwoa Frimpong first fell in love with marketing during a summer MBA internship when she saw firsthand how marketing could bring a brand to life. Having lived in 5 countries across three continents, she brings a unique and differentiated perspective, and a natural curiosity about the intersection of marketing and culture.

A seasoned marketer, she has a breadth and depth of diverse marketing experience across multiple industries (CPG, technology, advertising), marketing disciplines (brand marketing, product marketing, digital marketing, performance marketing), and geographies (Europe, Africa, North America). Her experience has included Nestlé global brand strategy and multi-channel multi-country consumer brand marketing campaigns with Publicis Groupe, product marketing and digital marketing with IBM, and now global marketing with Google.

Deeply passionate about mentorship, Adwoa previously sat on the board of the American Marketing Association (AMA) Atlanta Chapter and led the Mentorship Committee, where she had the honor of facilitating 100+ mentor/mentee pairings. In an effort to increase awareness of the mentorship program, Adwoa created and launched the #WhyIMentor series where mentors discussed their ‘what’ and their ‘why’ behind mentorship and provided sage advice for mentors and mentees.

Adwoa was recently named a 2021 Brand Innovators 40 Under 40 honoree, a 2022 Adweek Executive Mentee, and a member of the ADCOLOR Leaders class of 2022. She holds an M.S. in Marketing from Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and an MBA from Southern Connecticut State University.

Alex Parraga is the Chief Digital Officer at UC Santa Barbara, a position he’s held since 2014 when he first joined the university. Alex oversees university branding, digital strategy, and overall integrated marketing efforts.

He’s responsible for the university’s first-ever brand identity system and has fully revamped the marketing culture on campus. Prior to joining UC Santa Barbara Alex spent the majority of his professional career in the advertising industry. That’s where he originally found his passion for brand-building and integrated marketing communications climbing up the account management ladder at agencies including Ogilvy and BBDO and with client partners such as Mars Chocolate, General Electric, and American Express.

Alex discovered the advertising path thanks to an amazing experience in the AAAA’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program in the summer of 2002. He’s been in the advertising & marketing game ever since. Outside of work, Alex is a dedicated husband and father of four, not to mention a huge basketball fan. He’s a proud native New Yorker and a graduate of NYU’s Stern School of Business where he earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing & management.

Amber Laws is a Sr Solutions Manager with Amazon Ad’s Brand Innovation Lab (BIL) team where she manages a portfolio of clients in the Entertainment vertical. An accomplished marketer with 15+ years of experience, she develops innovative marketing solutions for Theatrical, TV/Streaming, and App ad partners across all of Amazon’s owned and operated properties.

Additionally, she serves as VP, Communications for Toastmasters Amazon NYC and Leadership recently selected her to be a BIL’s Cross-Discipline Community Development Lead across the global org comprised of 250+ employees. Prior to joining Amazon, Laws managed a consultancy supporting small businesses with product and social media marketing services. She launched her consultancy while living abroad in the Czech Republic, Thailand, South Africa, and Colombia as a participant of My Wander Year. Prior to tech, Amber enjoyed stints at media companies including Vevo, ESPN, Viacom, and iHeart Media.

Career highlights include managing the Newfront presentation for Vevo, sponsorships for The ESPYS, and branded content creation for Fortune 500 brands including Nike, Gatorade, and Capital One. Her desire to pursue a career in entertainment began while an undergraduate at Dartmouth College where she interned at Sony Music for one summer. Amber resides in New York City and is a native of Chicago, IL. She earned her Executive MBA from Fordham University and undergraduate from Dartmouth. Outside of work, Amber volunteers with Behind the Book, a program supporting literacy in urban schools.

I’m a marketing and communications leader with more than 20 years of expertise. I currently serve as the vice president of marketing and studio operations within our ad sales division. I develop strategic opportunities for clients and create new operational strategies to maximize process and efficiencies. One of my major accomplishments in this role is implementing a new platform across the organization that consolidated the number of data repositories sales employees had to access for marketing materials and research. It streamlines their process, as well as providing them with insights into how their clients are consuming their pitches. I previously served as the first-ever senior director of diversity, equity & inclusion strategy for WarnerMedia News and Sports (WMNS), which included CNN Worldwide, Turner Sports, Bleacher Report and WarnerMedia Studios.

There, I was responsible for driving the division’s DE&I strategy, core vision, and internal and external programs, partnerships and opportunities. In September 2020, I was recognized by Cablefax with its inaugural D&I Champion Award for my work in this role. In 2021, I was also recognized by the National Diversity Council as a DEI Champion. I also served as director of ad sales integration for HLN, where I was responsible for developing and implementing the network’s sponsorship strategy with advertising partners for over 12 years. While there, I spearheaded the development of the network’s digital extensions, including establishing the social strategy for all shows. I also led the development of the network’s first, weekly on-air e-commerce segment.

Anita Schillhorn is Director of Strategy at McKinney, where she has led strategy Blue Diamond, Choice Hotels, Columbia, and Samsung, and manages the growth and culture for the Los Angeles office. She has worked at agencies in New York and Los Angeles including Grey, Havas, TBWA Chiat/Day, and Digitas, and also run her own consultancy servicing brands and agencies. She shares thought leadership and mentorship through various channels, including serving on the lead team of Ladies Who Strategize, a global online community of women in strategy; mentoring start-ups at the UCLA Venture Accelerator; writing about culture and marketing at her newsletter, Framing; and occasionally volunteering as a tutor at 826LA’s center for creativity. Throughout her career, Anita has been an advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion.

At Chiat, she began the Women’s Initiative, a diverse group of women in the Los Angeles office. She is a member of McKinney’s Agents of Change EDI committee. Prior to the ad industry, she worked in non-profits like the Asian Arts Initiative where she produced cultural events by and for the Asian American community, and the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians where she advocated for immigrant communities. She also produced documentary films, including a short about the Indonesian diaspora in Philadelphia, and a feature about an abortion doctor who serves in countries where abortion is illegal.

She has her Master’s in communications from Temple University, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude, and is pursuing her Executive MBA at UCLA.

I am a writer, thinker, an award-winning creative strategist and an immigrant from India. I am currently the VP, Strategy Director at DDB, Chicago.

However, one title is too contained for my ever-growing interests. In a career spanning 15 years across two continents, I have worked with brands like Google, State Farm and most recently the US Army. I believe in leading with empathy and making deep connections with people and am a passionate advocate for DE&I initiatives. In the work I do, I strive to bring the underrepresented “immigrant gaze” and POV to the world – to create more awareness about immigrants in advertising and our unique plight and challenges.

I am a mentor in many organizations such as 30-minute university, sherunsit, Asian leader circle and truly believe in paying forward as much as I can. I had the opportunity to share my growth and stories here in this AAPI spotlight on Adage – https://adage.com/creativity/work/aapi-creative-excellence-spotlight-archana-mahadevan-and-state-farm/2418776

Bart Van de Vel is an accomplished and driven business leader with extensive experience in advertising, digital transformation, and brand marketing for global markets. He’s an urgent optimist who feels authentically hopeful about the future and works to create positive societal change.

As a Global Program Manager at Meta, he gravitated toward making digital platforms more accessible in emerging markets. Having joined in 2013, Bart has been with the company longer than 98 percent of his colleagues. After four years at the company’s international headquarters in Dublin, Bart moved to Dubai, where he served as Head of Beauty & Luxury, before transferring to Miami, where he currently resides. Bart is also a Fuel Ambassador at Meta, where he supports a work-life integration program aimed at sustainability and high performance.

And he is actively engaged in the Mixed@Meta steering committee, a multicultural community within Meta that welcomes people of mixed ancestry who identify culturally and socially with various groups. Bart is currently enrolled as a doctoral candidate in Business Administration at the Paris School of Business.

He graduated with great distinction from HEC Paris, holding a Master of Science degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. In addition, Bart obtained mini-MBAs in Marketing and Brand Management, completed the Neuroscience and Neuromarketing program at Copenhagen Business School, and is a certified foresight practitioner. When not glued to a mobile screen, Bart travels the world & the seven seas, learns about wine, is an Italo disco fanboy, and enjoys exploring underwater worlds as an advanced open water diver.

Chris Lin is a marketing executive with a track record for growing businesses spanning tech, beauty, and CPG. At Google, she is currently the Head of Marketing for Google Fi and has held previous roles as Head of Artist and Industry Marketing for YouTube Music and Consumer Apps Marketing Lead for Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to Google, Chris has worked at Airtel Africa, L’Oreal, Tribal DDB, TBWA, and OMD. Outside of work, you can find her in dance class or surfing.

An award-winning creative, Courtney Richardson is currently Creative Director at Droga5 where she leads creative direction for iconic brands and icons including Sean Combs, Combs Enterprises, The Africa Center, Hennessy, Chase Sapphire and more. She credits her early beginnings watching her uncle direct music videos for the Wu-Tang Clan, Snoop Dogg, & Master P with igniting her passions and creative intuitions.

Formerly Creative Director at PAPER Magazine, it was there she led original ideas and disruptive thinking for brands like Nike, Samsung, Hulu, HBO, VH1 and others; while working with celebrities including Zendaya, Issa Rae, Megan Thee Stallion, Lena Waithe, Taraji P. Henson, Tiffany Haddish, Laverne Cox, Michaela Coel, Colin Kaepernick and more. Recognized and inducted into the 2022 Creative Class of Black thought leaders by The Creative Collective as a ‘Culture Shifter,’ Courtney was named 2021’s ‘Creative of the Year’ by ADCOLOR & The One Club and was recently honored as a ‘Trailblazer’ by the Black Women in Media Awards, alongside esteemed social justice activist Dr. Bernice King and Grammy-award winning singer Deborah Cox.

She has been featured by outlets including CBS Morning News, EBONY Magazine, AdWeek, Refinery29, Bustle, PopSugar and more. Her creative thinking has also been praised and sought after by none other than the one and only, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.

Courtney’s life goal is to uplift humanity, particularly marginalized communities. She truly believes in radiating self-love and spreading positivity. The world needs more, so she aims to put forth that philosophy first in everything she does.

I am a writer and communications professional with more than 15 years of experience. The majority of my professional work has involved working as an in-house communications leader for companies and organizations that champion and disseminate the work of artists and content creators. In February of this year, I began a role at Audible, the Newark, NY-based Amazon subsidiary, as the partner relations lead on the global corporate communications team. In that role, I work directly in support of the thousands of authors, narrators, producers, and publishers who create the audiobooks, podcasts, and other spoken word content that is available on Audible. Prior to joining Audible, I worked for six years at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, where I was the director of communications, overseeing all internal and external communications for the famed ‘artists’ museum’. I believe in the transformative power of art, culture, and technology, and I am grateful that I have had the opportunity to spend my professional career immersed in the world of ideas and content.

Dianne (although she goes by Dee) Villarreal is a Brand Marketer with 20 years of experience in marketing. She prides herself on building teams and creating an environment for her employees to thrive.

She started her career on the creative agency side at BBDO New York and Wieden+Kennedy Portland, crafting stories for brands like Nike, Pepsi, M&M’s and Chrysler. It was in this chapter she learned what was toxic and was healthy and took careful note. She made her transition over to the client side as a Brand Strategist at Columbia Sportswear and then spread her wings at Red Bull producing branded content, working alongside artists & athletes across the world to bring their ideas to life.

Google tapped her to dive into the technology space to build a content team for their hardware business. Learning more about the operations in a fast paced tech environment inspired Dee to learn more about what people truly need so they can do their best work. She now is the Global Creative Operations Lead for YouTube’s Creative Studio cultivating an environment for employees to thrive in.

She resides in Denver, CO; she’s a mountain girl at heart and still lives the Red Bull lifestyle. Any given weekend you’ll find her paragliding off cliffs, climbing canyons, mountain biking in downhill bike parks, ice climbing up frozen waterfalls, rafting the rapids or splitboarding in the backcountry.

I’m a Black woman, and an introvert. These three qualities make me a master ninja. I move in the shadows, unnoticed – always observing, synthesizing, dot connecting, calculating trajectories, and then making moves that domino into big positive results.

I have personally and as team leader won numerous industry awards (detailed in my LinkedIn profile). My proudest award was concepting and leading the campaign that won our agency its first industry award in the multi-cultural category. My passion and greatest achievements are growing small projects to be much bigger than they initially appeared – and also more profitable and award-worthy than anyone ever expected. Currently, I am pioneering a program to harness the energy and imagination of all our employees to create a continual pipeline of pro-active ideas for our clients. I believe in the power of always asking “What if?” and “Why not?” and that the true currency is ideas. I’m also a co-founder and leader of our agency’s Black ERG.

Beyond the expected ERG duties, my goal is for us to help our internal teams and our clients recognize the economic power of the Black consumer. Toward that end, we have won our first client project for African American consumers that will be in-market next year. I have relentlessly fought to have this project remain true to honoring and acknowledging, not just selling to, Black consumers, to use truly Black lead/Black owned creative partners and to maintaining authenticity and profound respect for our Black target every step of the way.

Gary is the Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) for Amazon Music. He is a proud alumni of Hampton University, with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Upon graduating from Hampton, Gary began his career in finance before transitioning into the world of learning & development as a Facilitator and Instructional Designer at Booz Allen Hamilton servicing the Department of Defense.

He earned his Master of Science in Education from George Mason University in 2014, with a focus in Curriculum & Instruction. Gary relocated to New York City in 2014, accepting a role as Program Manager of Learning & Development at JPMorgan Chase & Co. In 2018, he was tapped by Capital One to be a Learning Consultant, and later a certified Culture of Belonging practitioner where he was able to connect learning & development with DEI. Now, as the Head of DEI for Amazon Music, he creates, refines, and executes DEI goals and partners with central DEI teams to execute Amazon-wide DEI goals.

He also develops curated experiences and tools focused on engagement and inclusion of historically excluded communities. Outside of Amazon, Gary is an avid traveler, hosting his own travel and lifestyle blog, CatchGifUcan.com.

As chief diversity officer, LaMon provides her vision and leadership for the continued advancement of Adelphi University’s diversity and inclusion resources and programs. A proven innovator and leader, LaMon has been a key contributor to Adelphi for more than 15 years—as a full professor of English, former director of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program, prior department chair and associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. She co-chaired the inaugural College of Arts and Sciences Diversity and Inclusion Committee and served as board member, development chair, and subsequently president of Cave Canem Foundation, Inc., an organization committed to cultivating the artistic and professional growth of African American poets.

LaMon earned her bachelor’s degree at Mount Holyoke College, a JD at the UCLA School of Law, and an MFA at Indiana University, Bloomington. The author of three collections, What Water Knows; Last Seen (a Felix Pollak Poetry Prize selection); and Gravity, U.S.A. (recipient of the Quercus Review Press Poetry Series Book Award), she is also the author of the chapbook, The Legend of Clarence Thomas, winner of the Integral Music Chapbook Prize; and author of the novel, In the Arms of One Who Loves Me, published by Random House/Ballantine Books.

Noted twice by the NAACP as a finalist in the category of Outstanding Literary Work, Poetry, Ms. LaMon is the recipient of fellowships from the BAU Institute at the Camargo Foundation, the Cave Canem Foundation, the Yaddo Foundation, and others.

Jessalin Lam is the co-founder of Asians in Advertising, a non-profit focused on developing a community for Asians, providing opportunities and resources to elevate them to higher leadership positions, and creating recognition for AAPI representation. She is on the 3AF NextGen committee where she helped launch their 1st annual AAPI mentorship program in 2021.

She is currently the VP Member Development and Diversity at IAB. Previously, she was the Precision Marketing Academy Director on the Nissan United team at TBWA Worldwide leading a global employee training program across the agency and client. Lam is a DEI Champion, mentor, and people-oriented leader with combined experience across marketing/advertising, learning and development, diversity and inclusion, partnerships, business development, client management, and consulting. She is a connector who loves to cultivate learning cultures to allow others to thrive and seize their potential with a growth mindset. She graduated from Baruch College with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Marketing and Advertising.

She was awarded with the 2021 3% Nancy Hill Award and Ad Club of New York selected her to participate in the 2018 I’mPart women fellowship along with being recognized as the Ad Club of New York Rising Star in 2015. Lam was selected as a 2016 ADCOLOR Futures and joined their advisory board in 2017 to continue to champion diversity and inclusion.

I’m an ambitious leader, energetic team-builder, avid problem-solver, and award-winning communicator with a successful cross-industry track record of maximizing efficiencies and surpassing expectations. Hard work is my hallmark (and the most important example I set for my team day in and day out). Aside from winning, one of the things I pride myself on most is my ability to mentor and motivate my team members, who thrive under my passionate leadership.

Having worked in travel, lifestyle, hospitality, law, real estate, technology, financial services, and even the public sector and entertainment, I bring a sharp skill set and uncanny ability to solve problems. Add to this my work in digital, corporate social responsibility, corporate, crisis, and government, and having me on your team means you have someone who thinks like a CMO – and sometimes a CEO – on your side.

My work has been recognized by the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA), Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA), Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA). Originally Cuban and fully bilingual, I now live in Miami (Fla.). I’m a proud double Gator with a BS in Public Relations and an MA in Mass Communications from the University of Florida. When I’m not taking a killer class at the gym, I can be found singing car karaoke on the way to brunch with friends. Snapping up last-minute concert tickets is my extreme sport.

Kristen Marston is a cultural consultant and impact advisor who has dedicated her career to creating positive and long-lasting change across the media landscape.

She specializes in working with entertainment and advertising professionals to create accurate, inclusive, and empathetic portrayals of Black, Brown, and LGBTQ+ communities to tell powerful stories that create positive and long-lasting social change. She has consulted on over 100+ major TV shows, films, and documentaries for companies like HBO Max, MTV, Amazon, Disney, ABC, NBC, Starz, Lionsgate, and more. Kristen joined The League in 2021 and currently serves as the Chief Impact Officer. In her most recent role as Culture & Entertainment Advocacy Director at Color Of Change Hollywood, her contributions ranged from advising on projects from the Emmy-winning Netflix series, When They See Us to launching the #ChangeHollywood Initiative with Michael B. Jordan to rally stakeholders across the industry, educate decision makers, and secure institutional commitments to drive change that matters.

Prior to this work, Kristen’s team launched the entertainment media program at the nonprofit, Define American where she facilitated consultations between immigrant communities and content creators to help shape impactful stories on TV and in film.

Kristen has contributed to think tanks and initiatives for organizations, including Times Up, Yes And Laughter Lab, and the Sundance Documentary Fund and her voice has been featured in BBC, The New York Times, LA Times, Variety, Hollywood Reporter, The Washington Post, The Guardian, CNBC, FastCompany, Mashable, Mic, The Los Angeles Business Journal, Adweek, Miss Magazine and more. Kristen holds a Master of Professional Studies in Organizational Development, Training, and Learning, as well as a Graduate Certificate in Project Management from the University of Denver and a Bachelor of Science degree in Advertising from Metropolitan State University of Denver.

From fortune 100 companies, to active duty roles and military deployments, Lois has spent over 20 years engaged in both supporting, developing and coaching talented humans as they work to advance their personal, professional and business goals. From working in client-facing roles at the world’s most-respected creative agencies, to advancing education through learning & development or through building the foundations of human resources practices in startups, Lois has maintained the importance of DEI and cultural fluency as a critical component & pathway to personal and business success. As the head of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) for Basis Technologies, Lois helps evolve workplace culture, enhance corporate infrastructure and engage employees to foster greater inclusion, representation, and equity in the digital media industry. Lois has built a depth of expertise driving diversity and inclusivity at scaled and start-up organizations.

Previously director of talent and inclusion at agency Highdive Advertising, Castillo established the agency’s HR organization and architected its practices for staffing, onboarding, training, and employee support. Prior to this role, Castillo held various positions at Leo Burnett, first with a multi-year career working with clients, and then transitioning into roles supporting employee professional development and growth. When promoted as Leo Burnett’s director of inclusion and engagement, she guided numerous aspects of its DEI strategy and goals. Before starting her professional career in the private sector, Castillo served in the U.S. Army for five years. She has multiple accreditations for inclusionary practices and employee development.

Marques currently serves as the Director of Cultural Platforms at American Express. In this role, he is responsible for developing and executing a marketing strategy around how and where the American Express brand shows up to authentically connect with diverse communities. Prior to American Express, Marques was a finance director at PepsiCo where for the last 9 years he held roles of increasing responsibility across account management, partnerships, and business development helping grow the Frito-Lay North America (FLNA) business. Passionate about recruiting and developing talent, Marques was also one of the executive sponsors for diversity recruiting at the MBA and BA level across the enterprise. Prior to joining PepsiCo, Marques was a strategy and operations consultant with Deloitte Consulting focused on M&A strategy. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in Business Administration from Morehouse College and holds an MBA in Strategy and Global Business from Cornell University. Lastly, Marques is a Founding Member of the Cornell Johnson Recent Alumni Council, serves on the Steering Committee of the Alvin Ailey Young Patrons Circle, and is a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated. In his free time, Marques enjoys planning international trips and attending music festivals (Coachella, 7 years and counting!). Originally from Stafford, TX, Marques currently resides in Harlem.

In my family, teaching is the family business. My parents are teachers. My sister is a teacher. So, as a nerdy, academically overachieving college applicant, I decided to become a teacher. A college teacher. My undergraduate years found me at Harvey Mudd College, studying chemistry.

Competing with classmates with International Baccalaureate backgrounds who had been programming for years put into perspective how woefully underprepared my small rural high school had left me. But I found a home at Mudd, creating the first LGBTQ+ student group and leading new student orientation programs that made space for people of all backgrounds to succeed. Onward to graduate school at Northwestern University. Just one small problem. What no one tells you about graduate school is that success means becoming the world’s leading expert at one very specific thing – and I’m someone who wants to know a little about a lot of things.

A dilatant or a generalist, depending on your perspective. That realization took me to an unexpected career in healthcare communications. I’ve grown from a Junior Copywriter to Executive Creative Director in just under 20 years. I’ve won business for the agency, and the occasional award. I lead our pro bono work with the Tegan and Sara Foundation. I’m currently serving as a mentor in the 4As Vanguard program, and as an executive mentor in the Omnicom Health Group Black Career Collective. I’ve won business, and the occasional award. But it turns out, I’m still a teacher. A teacher of creatives.

I have been working in online digital advertising for over 15 years with a focus on advertising operations and programmatic media. During the course of my career I have worked at ad agencies, ad networks and now client side for some of the largest companies in the space including: dentsu Media (Microsoft Account), JP Morgan Chase, New York Times, etc. I have recently completed a fellowship in New York for 92Y called Women In Power as well.

Neisha is an award-winning creative marketer, people manager, and DEI advocate with a protagonist spirit and optimism at her core. She got her start as a creative director at various ad agencies and is now Global Head of Inclusive Content & Experiences at Meta where she works with brands to reinvent what inclusive creativity looks like from mobile to the metaverse. Her experience across the past fifteen years spans CPG, healthcare, retail, financial services, telecom, multicultural and non-profits; her highlight reel features storytelling for everything from tequila to toothpaste to tablets –the ones with touch screens and the ones you take with water.

Neisha has been named 40 under 40 (University of Florida, 2021), a Woke Woman (Essence, 2018), a Next Creative Leader (One Club, 2015), and a Rising Star (ADCOLOR, 2012). Her passion for progress and people-centered mindset has led her to be seen as a transformative business and cultural leader who consistently delivers results, elevates the work and helps others in the process. A friend once said, “Don’t tell Neisha you have an idea or a problem, she will figure out how to make it happen or fix it, and you’ll have no choice but to be great.” It was a somewhat weird compliment, but it’s definitely true.

I am a purpose-fueled, multi-dimensional brand marketing leader, with an emphasis on multicultural approaches and executions to address business objectives such as growth, plus engagement with deserving but underutilized audiences. I have 15 years of professional experience in marketing/advertising for small brands, startups, and global agencies.

I am currently a Group Account Director for a new Intercultural Practice at Droga5 where I am charged with operationalizing and building process for the Practice while leveraging our access to resources from Accenture as a strong differentiating feature in this inclusive capability for the agency. Previously at TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, I pitched, built, and led a Multicultural Practice. These efforts helped transform how the agency operated and delivered work products, and led to me receiving an Innovator Award nomination for ADCOLOR 2021. Additionally I took on a pro-bono client, Compton Girls Club – a non-profit dedicated to helping empower and enlighten young women from underserved communities in LA – I designed and co-led the partnership with client QuickBooks to create a Business G.IRL Incubator series for young entrepreneurs to launch their businesses.

This amazing partnership was also award-winning: “Best Brand or Charity Collaboration” at The Drum Awards for Social Purpose; Gold winner in the Brand Partnerships category at the Shorty Awards 2021 (Impact); and Gold winner in the DEI category at the (inaugural) 2022 Anthem Awards. I also exercise leadership internally, whether officially as an affinity group leader, or unofficially as a vocal, engaged, and action-oriented employee.

Advertising professional, postgraduate in Marketing, with more than 19 years of experience in marketing and communication, she was elected in 2019 by YouPix – business consultancy for creator economy – as one of the 15 people in Brazil who contributed the most to the content and influence market. One of the honorees at Women to Watch Brazil 2021 and one of the 10 Media Professionals of 2021 by Meio&Mensagem (Advertising Age’s partner), she began her career working with large corporations, having worked at AVON’s brand communication for all Latin America and also at J Walter Thompson being one of the leaders of 20|20 Program, the first racial equity program in Brazilian communication industry. Being at Globo – the largest media conglomerate in Brazil – she was responsible for the content strategy of the main advertisers in the country and currently works at Facebook’s Creative X, developing global consistent/local relevant Brand Marketing efforts with internal and external creative teams for Meta’s brand and apps.

I am the Director of Brand Marketing at Delta Air Lines where I lead teams responsible for defining Delta’s brand and bringing it to life in ways that resonate with and inspire customers. In my role, I lead global brand strategy, national advertising campaigns, ESG communications (including sustainability and DEI) and brand activations for large-scale partnerships like the Olympics. During my time at Delta, I led the development of our brand mission that is the foundation for all that we do, companywide. I’ve also spearheaded the introduction of ESG marketing as a discipline and led the creation of numerous award-winning campaigns that have positively influenced customer perceptions and driven business impact. I bring 15 years of experience across industries ranging from financial services to entertainment. Prior to Delta, I led marketing campaigns for the US Open Tennis Tournament. I was honored to be recognized as one of Brand Innovators Top 40 Under 40 Marketers, a Woman to Watch in Marketing and as part of Adweek’s 2021 and 2022 classes of the Executive Mentor program. I graduated from Northwestern and received my MBA from NYU. My highest honor is being a daughter, wife and mom of 2 beautiful boys.

Simeon is an award-winning, creative communications professional who has worked in media, advertising, and now tech. After several years of working in media managing integrated buys and strategizing for emerging platforms, he transitioned over to advertising where he worked for over a decade as a Copywriter and Creative Director. Simeon has successfully created campaigns and activations at a range of specialty agencies–including digital, multicultural, PR, experiential, and traditional– across consumer sectors for Fortune brands. While working as a creative, Simeon co-founded the podcast Mixed Company and for several years, along with his co-hosts, advocated for every diversity dimension and created safe spaces for creative professionals at every level to have difficult conversations in the open for our collective growth. His work with Mixed Company has garnered awards and speaking engagements, but most importantly sparked equitable strategies for inclusion that he has implemented as a consultant, manager, and creative director. Simeon currently works at Twitter as the Creative Development Manager for Twitter Next where he leads Creative Development Partners who ideate for brands that want to activate ideas which resonate within culture and foster sustainable conversations on the platform.

I am a queer, first-gen, American-Pakistani that grew up in California, whose career in media + tech spans across San Francisco, Los Angeles & NYC. I left the ad world in 2019 to pursue a role as the VP of Sales for Lesbians Who Tech & Allies, where I built partnerships with big tech companies to recruit LGBTQ+ talent, and GM a diversity recruiting platform. I now manage revenue partnerships with 3 of the big 6 Ad Agencies at TikTok, serve as a Board Member on the PRIDE ERG, volunteer at a local church to help prepare meals for the community, and work with mutual aid groups in North Brooklyn. I am deeply devoted to building community and safe spaces for queer folx and people of color in the industry, and would love to learn and grow with other leaders.

My name is Dr. Valerie Williams-Sanchez and I am currently the Vice President of Cultural Intelligence and Relevance for Blue Chip Worldwide, a full-service brand and marketing agency based in Chicago.

With more than 25 years of experience in marketing and communications, and a theoretical grounding in Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, I blend my professional and academic practices and acumen to “put pedagogy into practice” across industries. In the academic arena, I have earned degrees from St. John’s University (PhD, Literacy), Columbia University (Master’s, Journalism), and the University of California, Berkeley (BA, Literature). I also extend my literacy purview through my children’s book series the Cocoa Kids Collection® (which puts multicultural kids center stage) and my small business Valorena Online, LLC.

Through service on nonprofit Boards related culture, education, and health literacies, I am an active agent who puts my talents to work in communities of concern. I currently serve on Boards for 1) Black Public Media, 2) Multicultural Children’s Book Day, 30 Nyack (New York) Library Board of Trustees, 4) Say-Ah! A Health Literacy non-profit, and 5) Cultural Literacy Everywhere (Core Group). I am also a certified project manager member of Project Management Institute. With my tenure soon ending for three Boards, I’m looking for new engagements more closely aligned with my current work.

I identify as a divorced, Black American cisgender woman who is a Gen X, mother of a multicultural, Afro-Hispana daughter.

From age 12, Vivian has recognized marketers’ power to shape culture and societal identity. Vivian, born in Nigeria and raised in Texas, chose to create the change she sought to see: to be a visible leader that paves the way for others like herself, and leverage brand platforms to drive real-world change.

As Global Marketing Director, Future of Self Care at Johnson & Johnson, Vivian shaped award-winning campaigns like TYLENOL®️ #HowWeFamily and CLEAN & CLEAR®️ See The Real Me, J&J’s first featuring a transgender teen. These redefined diverse representation by addressing real struggles with identity and representation. She also launched a maternal health brand focused on reducing the devastating mortality rates of Black pregnant women.

Today, as Global Head of Brand at WhatsApp, Vivian is leading the brand to new heights and lifting its cultural perception with 2.5 billion users. She drove expansion of WhatsApp Payments in India and Brazil, empowering economic opportunity for ~200M people, often overlooked in global economies. She led WhatsApp’s US entry with a provoking campaign challenging users’ privacy perceptions. Her campaigns -Family Diary, Just Send It, One, Hand Gesture, and Doubt Delivered- garnered widespread acclaim, including 27 award wins and nearly 200 nominations.

Additionally, she signed Giannis Antetokuonmpo as the first brand partner for Meta full stop, one whose Greek-Nigerian heritage is the ultimate exemplification of dual+ cultured users. Outside WhatsApp, Vivian mentors and lends her voice to spaces that focus on empowering young girls and women of color, including her podcast “She’s Been Called.”