Ayana Parsons

Co-Founder and General Partner
Fearless Fund

Ayana Parsons is Co-Founder and General Partner of Fearless Fund. With nearly 20 years of experience as both a corporate executive and organizational consultant, Ayana leverages her expertise in consumer markets, international business strategy and operations, top team effectiveness, board effectiveness and inclusive talent management to help drive organizational growth and transformation. Previously, Ayana served as the Global Head of Retail, Consumer Goods and Lifestyle Industries at the World Economic Forum. Ayana graduated summa cum laude with a BS in Management and her MBA in Marketing from Florida A&M University.

Jasmine Crowe-Houston

Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Goodr

Jasmine Crowe-Houston is an award-winning social entrepreneur, children’s book author, and determined leader working to make the world a better place. In 2017, after years of feeding people experiencing homelessness from her own kitchen, Jasmine launched Goodr, a sustainable waste management company that leverages technology to combat hunger and reduce food waste. She has been featured on CNBC, Oprah Magazine, Forbes, Fast Co., New York Times, and named by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the top 100 influential female founders, as well as Insider’s 100 People Transforming Business. Under Jasmine’s leadership, Goodr has provided over 30 million meals to those in need and redirected millions of pounds of materials from landfill. Jasmine currently sits on the board for Metro Atlanta Chamber and Drawdown Georgia.

Scott Faris

Co-Founder
Universe Creative

Scott grew up in West Virginia and attended NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts before teaching fifth grade on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. After working as a video producer for Teach For America, he co-founded Universe Creative, an LA-based doc production company, with his friend and long-time colleague, Meg Griffiths. UC’s clients include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation, and Amazon Studios. Scott enjoys stories that challenge conventional wisdom and preconceived notions about people and places often overlooked by popular media.

Meg Griffiths

Co-Founder
Universe Creative

Meg began her career as a photo and video journalist at the Houston Chronicle and then held a leadership role at Teach For America where she built the nonprofit’s first video studio. After overseeing content development and digital strategy at an LA-based agency, Meg co-founded Universe Creative, a documentary production company focused on social impact storytelling. Meg’s work has been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and is supported by the International Documentary Association and Redford Center. She holds a MA in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin.

Eduardo Briceño

Author & Facilitator
Growth.how

Eduardo Briceño is a global keynote speaker, facilitator, and author who guides many of the world’s leading companies in developing cultures of learning and high performance. His TED and TEDx talks have been viewed over 9 million times. He is the author of “The Performance Paradox,” which was selected as a “Must-Read” by the Next Big Idea Club. Eduardo was shortlisted by Thinkers50 (described by the Financial Times as the “Oscars of management thinking”) for the Breakthrough Idea Award, given to thinkers who “have ignited Eureka moments in management, offering radical ideas that have the potential to reshape the future of business as we know it.” Earlier in his career, he was the co-founder and CEO of Mindset Works, which he led for over a decade, and prior to that he was a venture capital investor with the Sprout Group.

Theresita Richard

Chief People & Culture Officer
Patagonia

Theresita Richard (she/her) is a visionary and purpose-driven leader fiercely committed to expansive liberation, humanity, and possibility. She is on a mission to transform the world of work, cultivating environments where humans can flourish in their fullness. She is the Chief People & Culture Officer for Patagonia and brings over 20 years of experience in diversity, equity & inclusion, organizational effectiveness, experience design, operations leadership, and human resources. Previously Theresita led Capital One’s Global Office of Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging, where she drove the work to advance diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging across the company. She currently serves on the board of Out & Equal, a global convener, thought leader, and catalyst actively working to embed equity and achieve workplaces of equality and belonging.

Theresita’s career has spanned the consumer goods, retail, and fintech industries and she has positively impacted the full range of organizations from building anew to broad-scale transformation. She is known for propelling organizations forward with a deep focus on talent, culture, and innovation. Theresita is adept at delivering holistic people strategies that ensure businesses are equipped and enabled to achieve their mission while unlocking thriving customer and employee experiences. She sees problems as opportunities and her goal is to always approach with curiosity, creating sustainable solutions for the future and challenging the status quo to solve needs in new and meaningful ways.

Theresita started her career in operations after earning her B.S. in Industrial Engineering & Operations Research from Cornell University. It was there that she discovered her passion for creating experiences around people and went on to pursue her M.A. in Human Resource Development from George Washington University. Over the years, she has worked with various Fortune 500 companies including Procter & Gamble, Target, Home Depot, and Starbucks.

Misty Gaither

Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB+)
Indeed

Misty Gaither is Indeed’s Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB+) leading a global team across the US, APAC, and EMEA. Misty is also responsible for helping Indeed achieve its 2030 ESG goals and developing the DEI International strategy for Recruit Holdings HR Tech Strategic business unit, the parent company for Indeed and Glassdoor. Misty has spent most of her career in various leadership roles within sales organizations, including Altria Group and JPMorgan Chase. Most recently, she pivoted into DE&I by way of a business development role at a nonprofit start up focused on racial equity and inclusion in tech.

As a business development leader, Misty gained recruiting, HR, and D&I operations experience at some of the most coveted tech companies in Silicon Valley. She later took an opportunity to go “in-house” to work on D&I at Twilio as their first D&I business partner. Misty’s cross-industry experience contributes to her wealth of knowledge and unique approach to developing strategies that embed DI&B into the company’s infrastructure.

Troy A. LeMaile-Stovall

Chief Executive Officer
TEDCO

As the CEO of TEDCO — Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies — Troy leads the organization’s mission to support economic development through the cultivation of an inclusive entrepreneurial innovation ecosystem. He brings more than 25 years of experience in investment management, higher education, telecommunications, information/communication technology, and management consulting in this leadership role.

Prior to joining TEDCO, Troy was the Chief Operating Officer at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), the nation’s only urban land-grant university. He oversaw an array of critical functions at UDC, including capital construction, communications, emergency management, enrollment services, facilities management, government relations, information management, institutional research, marketing, public safety, risk management, and strategic planning, to name just a few.

An entrepreneur at heart and in spirit, Troy founded the management consulting firms LeMaile-Stovall LLC and GTMS Partners LLC. He also co-founded and served as the first President and CEO of GulfSouth Capital. His resume includes positions as the interim President of Zenith Education Group; Principal at Butler Snow Advisory Services; Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Howard University; and Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Jackson State (Mississippi) University, where he was awarded the Thurgood Marshall HBCU CFO of the Year. Earlier in his career, Troy held positions at McKinsey & Company, Southwestern Bell Telephone (now AT&T), AT&T Bell Labs, and Rockwell international.

Caitlin Iseler

Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Happyly

Caitlin Iseler is the Founder & CEO of Happyly, the corporate engagement platform designed to bring teams together (in person) through volunteerism and impact. Both through the app platform and concierge planning service, Happyly makes it easy for teams to come together and connect in meaningful ways that support individual mental health, team connection and make a positive impact on the world.

After spending 20 years in executive search and talent advisory with both large and boutique firms, Caitlin and her team set out to change the way companies spend time and resources to build culture and to bring people together. Today, they work with companies like Deloitte and Navy Federal Credit Union to bring these programs to life.

Caitlin is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a M.S. in Informational Technology Management and a B.A. in Religious Studies.

Ebbie Parsons, Ed.D.

Founder
Yardstick Management | Diversified Search Group

Dr. Ebbie Parsons, III, is the Founder and Managing Partner of Yardstick Management. A seasoned business executive with a passion for intentional impact, he has been applauded for his strategic thinking, engaging leadership, and results-oriented mindset throughout his successful career. After working at Fortune 500 companies, including Intel, Medtronic, and American Express, Dr. Parsons III decided to transition from a promising career in business in 2007 to join the prestigious Broad Residency Program in Educational Leadership. The Broad Residency was his first introduction to the inner workings of America’s public education system, where he served as the Chief Operating Officer of Hartford Public Schools.

Championing the overhaul of the district’s school funding methodology, he negotiated the state’s first pay-for-performance teacher union contract. He led the redistricting of the city to an “All-Choice” system of schools. Following his time in Hartford, Dr. Parsons, III, was on the founding team of the groundbreaking Relay Graduate School of Education, where he led the organization’s Human Capital function. Following Relay, he took on a new challenge to serve as the Chief Operating Officer of the third-largest Charter Management Organization in the U.S., Mosaica Education, Inc. At Mosaica, Dr. Parsons, III, managed over 80 schools across eight states, Washington, D.C., the Middle East, and Asia. He led Mosaica to its two consecutive most profitable years in its 14-year history while simultaneously leading the company to its highest academic performance results in years.

Leveraging his wealth of experience and expertise in business and education, he launched Yardstick Management with a vision to become a leader in transforming and impacting the global landscape of the management consulting industry. Less than a decade later, Yardstick Management has become a world thought leader and powerhouse in providing specialized Management, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Talent consulting services to renowned mission-driven brands and organizations worldwide. Yardstick Management is committed to building its clients’ internal capacity to enhance its ability to deliver extraordinary results to its constituents.

Reena Patel, Ph.D.

Global Managing Partner
Yardstick Management | Diversified Search Group

Reena Patel, Ph.D. serves as the Global Managing Partner on the Yardstick Management Team. Her expertise includes digital strategy, casino gaming, product licensing, and organizational growth. In her former position with Playboy Enterprises Inc (PLBY Group) Reena functioned as President of International and Chief Operating Officer of Global Licensing and Joint Ventures. She was responsible for Playboy’s brand monetization across licensing, gaming, digital products, and third-party retail. She previously served as a member of the senior management team as Vice President of Global Licensing at International Game Technology (NYSE: IGT) with additional experience in various roles with Merrill Lynch and Sun Life Investments. Reena also has community-based board experience with California health advocacy and service provider, HealthRight 360 and women’s mental health and services provider, Prototypes.

Reena holds a B.Sc. in Basic Medical Sciences from the University of Toronto, Canada, a MBA from Plymouth University, New Hampshire, and a Ph.D. in International Business from the ISM, Paris. She lives in Los Angeles with her partner, two boys, and three pups.

Naima Greenwood, MBA

Chief Operating Officer
Yardstick Management | Diversified Search Group

Naima Greenwood serves as the Chief Operating Officer at Yardstick Management, responsible for growing the company’s portfolio and managing ongoing projects. Before joining Yardstick Management, Naima served as a Senior Manager on a government contract with the Office of Foreign Labor Certification. Naima has a diverse background in Sales and Marketing, Operations, and Retail.

Naima holds a Bachelor of Science degree cum laude in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing from Florida A&M University and an Executive MBA in Global Business from Georgia Institute of Technology. Naima started her career at Target Corporation as a Business Analyst in their entertainment division. There she collaborated with major movie studios and record labels in managing their releases.

She later relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where she managed a $1 billion domestic landscape business for over 2,200 retail stores for The Home Depot. After completing her Executive MBA, Naima was recruited by Bank of America where she served as an Assistant Vice-President. She oversaw efforts to convert California accounts to a single platform for improved efficiency and reliability and managed a multi-million-dollar project to develop global consumer risk assessment plans for call centers.

Naima resides in Atlanta with her husband Andre, and their daughters, Ava and Aubree. In her spare time, she actively volunteers in a variety of civic and cultural organizations including Habitat for Humanity, and the Andrew & Walter Young YMCA. Outside of professional interests, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her family.

Slma Shelbayah, M.A.

Chief Communications & Marketing Officer
Diversified Search Group

Slma Shelbayah serves as the Chief Communications & Marketing Officer at Diversified Search Group. Her background includes more than 15 years of experience as an award-winning journalist, communication, and public relations expert in the media industry, including experience as a reporter, show host, editor, writer, voice-over artist, and producer.

Previously, Slma was the Chief Communications Officer at Yardstick Management and oversaw the internal and external communications strategy alignment, marketing, public relations, branding, and project management solutions for clients. Additionally, Slma managed her own communication consulting firm. She brings with her experience as a former Director of Corporate Public Relations with Savannah College of Art and Design. Previous to that role, she spent many years in journalism as a producer, writer, and assignment editor at CNN. She has also taught as an Adjunct Professor of communications, language, and business for several universities, including Brenau University, Georgia State University, and Clayton State University.

Slma holds a B.A. in Journalism with a minor in Sociology and an M.A. in Linguistics with a focus on cross-cultural linguistics of Spanish and Arabic, both degrees from Georgia State University. She was inducted and graduated from LEAD Atlanta’s distinguished and highly selective leadership program for the class of 2018. She has also obtained a certificate from Oxford University, in the U.K., during which students were selected from 30 countries across the world to pursue a seminar on global media policy: technology and new themes in media.

Monica Miller-Smith, Ed.D.

Director of Research & Impact
Yardstick Management | Diversified Search Group

Dr. Monica Miller-Smith serves as the Director of Research and Impact at Yardstick Management, where she oversees training and development. For nearly fifteen years, she instructed courses in Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Connecticut, University of Bridgeport, and Central Michigan University. She possesses expertise in diversity, equity, and inclusion, low-income populations, civic engagement, and distance education. Some of her most notable academic and education-related experiences are developing a mentoring program that provided service-learning experiences for thousands of elementary students and hundreds of college students in Connecticut, presenting at national and international conferences on civic engagement, economic inequality, and experiential learning, and creating early childhood, socioemotional teacher trainings and developmental screening assessments to connect families in Nevis, West Indies with speech language and behavior therapy resources.

Her textbook, Families and Children Living in Poverty, was published in March 2020. It explores the factors that contribute to the existence of poverty, as well as the social, developmental, and environmental ramifications of poverty. Through scholarly studies, case studies, historical events, and contemporary happenings, readers examine the connections between poverty and family-related challenges, including adverse childhood experiences, lack of a living wage, health disparities, social exclusion, and homelessness. Monica is currently working on the second edition of her textbook.

Monica earned her Doctorate in Education from the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California. She is an avid traveler and has lived in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, Puerto Rico, and Nevis, West Indies. She currently lives in St. Simons Island, Georgia with her husband and two daughters.