The Speakers
LAURA E. KNIGHTS
Laura E. Knights, LCSW is an executive coach, speaker, and facilitator with 18+ years of experience creating personal and professional development programs that have touched leaders all over the world. Her expertise and background in business, human resources, adult education, and social work uniquely equip her to teach others how to deal with both the "head work" and "heart work" required to succeed at work and in life.
TAYE JOHNSON
Taye Johnson (she/her) is an LGBTQ+ advocate, researcher, and tech educator. Nicknamed the “Quiet Storm”, Taye is a well-known proud introvert. She has years of experience working within the global data industry. Throughout the years she has worked for startups, nonprofits, and global enterprises.
.png)
KENYA ODUOR, PhD
​Dr. Kenya Oduor is the founder and CEO of Lean Geeks. Lean Geeks is a firm focused on creating effective outcomes that enhance clients’ products and services. Dr. Kenya works to understand individuals and users to influence their ability to be purposeful and effective. For business clients, she defines, creates, and optimizes products and services in their portfolios. For individuals, she ushers growth in a positive and rewarding direction. To accomplish this, she focuses on understanding human context, defining viable opportunities, and designing effective outcomes.
ASHLEY M. SCOTT
Ashley M. Scott is an award-winning Fortune 50 data professional, and entrepreneur who uses her experience in data analytics and business to encourage and champion diversification of the data practitioner pipeline. Scott previously co-led the project management of an American medical tourism facility in Tanzania, East Africa, and she created the #DataGirl social media campaign, which received international recognition and supports the Data Girl Scholarship. With her online platform, Data Girl Ash, Scott demonstrates tactical approaches to make data-driven decisions while empowering others to pursue their own successful careers. Scott holds an MBA with distinction from Mercy College, a BS in Public Health, magna cum laude from the University at Albany (SUNY), and has earned a Women’s Entrepreneurship certificate from Cornell University.
MINDELYN ANDERSON, PhD
Dr. Mindelyn Anderson earned her doctorate in Sociology from The Johns Hopkins University and an undergraduate degree in Sociology with minors in Anthropology and Policy Studies from UCLA. Mindelyn, a California Bay Area native, currently resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband (the other Dr. Anderson), three daughters and son. You can find her out and about in the DC, Maryland, Virginia area serving community organizations dear to her including Zion Church and John Eaton Elementary School as well as working toward racial equity and inclusion through Juniors Read and Mirror Group. Feel free to ask her anything about work, life, and everything in between.
MONIQUE MILLS
Monique Mills received her undergraduate electrical engineering degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology and her MBA, with a concentration in Management of Technology, from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
After many years of corporate industry experience, she took the plunge and stepped out on her own to create and lead the growth of her own software company as well as a multidisciplinary management consulting company, TPM Focus.
FELICIA JOYNER
Felicia Joyner is a visionary Senior Business Analyst and Data Analyst at Blue Cross Blue Shield North Carolina who designs solutions that meet critical business needs. She is skilled in planning, coordinating, and administering systems development projects and advancing projects during all SDLC phases and agile sprints.
.jpg)
ASYA SPEARS
Asya Spears is the founder of Rose Data Studio, a data education firm that cultivates a more diverse data workforce by building data literacy skills to enhance collaborations in population health and higher education. Through her research, teaching, and coaching services, Asya advances the statistics, data storytelling, and career design skills of people from all backgrounds who desire to advance equity in the sectors they enter.
CARLA WINSTON
As a Retail & Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) leader with nearly 20 years of industry experience, Carla has successfully partnered with customers across the retail landscape to unlock business opportunities based on fact-based insights and chart strategic direction from a consumer-centric data approach. Carla is known for translating marketing and sales initiatives into growth-driving actions, resulting in increased profitability and stronger partnerships. Prior to joining Dataiku as Solutions Consultant, Carla most recently led the Category Insights divisional team at PepsiCo.
