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2014 Speakers

Keynotes

Tamara Mellon

Tamara Mellon is the founder of TAMARA MELLON brand and former chief executive officer and chief creative officer of Jimmy Choo. Mellon cultivated her skills early, working as accessories editor at Brittish Vogue ...
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Diana Nyad

Diana Nyad successfully fulfilled her lifelong dream of completing the 110-mile swim from Cuba to Florida on September 2, 2013. This feat marked her fifth and final attempt, and took place when Nyad was 64 years ...
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Soledad O’Brien

Soledad O'Brien is an award-winning journalist, documentarian, news anchor and producer. O’Brien was the originator of “Black in America” and “Latino in America.” In June 2013 she launched Starfish Media ...
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Shiza Shahid

Shiza Shahid is the CEO and co-founder of the Malala Fund, the organization representing the young Pakistani activist who was shot by the Taliban for her campaign for girls’ education. Shahid is an entrepreneur ...
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Debbie Sterling

Debbie Sterling is the founder and CEO of GoldieBlox, an award-winning toy company on a mission to "disrupt the pink aisle" with interactive construction toys and stories for girls. Sterling is an engineer, ...
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Sheryl WuDunn

Sheryl WuDunn was the first Asian-American reporter to win a Pulitzer Prize, is a business executive, lecturer and best-selling author.  With her husband Nicholas Kristof she co-authored four books: “A Path ...
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Breakout Session Speakers

Cynthia Ackrill, M.D.

Cynthia Ackrill, M.D. is a leader in the field of leveraging stress for optimal ...
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Katrina Alcorn

KATRINA ALCORN is general manager of design at IBM, responsible for leading one of ...
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Patty Chang Anker

Patty Chang Anker is the author of the memoir “Some Nerve: Lessons Learned While ...
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Jessica Bacal

Jessica Bacal directs the Wurtele Center for Work & Life at Smith College, an ...
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Kelly Ballard

Kelly Ballard is the executive director of Bazaarvoice Foundation, a 501(c)3 entity ...
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Jenny Bowen

Jenny Bowen is an advocate for the world’s forgotten children. She is the founder ...
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Kathy Brabson

Kathy Brabson’s career is truly one of inspiration. From her first step into the ...
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Sunni Brown

Sunni Brown is “infodoodler-in-chief” of a creative consultancy that uses applied ...
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Kimberly Bryant

Kimberly Bryant is the founder and executive director of Black Girls CODE, a ...
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Sara Canaday

Sara Canaday is a leadership expert, branding strategist, speaker and author. Canaday ...
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Brenda Dennis

Brenda Dennis is currently senior director of Worldwide sales strategy and ...
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Mandy Ginsberg

Mandy Ginsberg is the CEO of The Princeton Review and Tutor.com, two leading ...
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Dr. Lawana Gladney

Dr. Lawana Gladney is an emotional wellness expert, speaker, trainer, author and CEO ...
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Cindy G. Goldsberry

Cindy G. Goldsberry has 30 years of business experience, specifically in developing ...
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Megan Grassell

Megan Grassell is founder of of YellowBerry. As a high school student at the age of ...
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John Gray

John Gray is the leading relationship expert in the world and best-selling author of ...
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Amy Heirman

Amy Heirman is the managing director of talent management for United Airlines. In ...
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Jane

Jane Hyun

Jane Hyun is an internationally renowned executive coach and global leadership ...
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Lila Igram

Lila Igram put together a bootstrapping, volunteer team that together donated over ...
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Alexis Jones

Alexis Jones is an internationally recognized speaker, media personality, activist ...
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Debbie Jones

Debbie Jones is the owner and creative force behind French Laundry Home. She based an ...
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Cathy Kangas

Cathy Kangas is a legendary beauty expert and fiercely passionate entrepreneur, and ...
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Pam LeBlanc

Pam LeBlanc

PAM LeBLANC writes about adventure, travel and fitness at the Austin ...
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Tiffanie McDonald

Tiffanie McDonald serves as AVP of diversity management at USAA. The diversity ...
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Renee Mitchell

Renee Mitchell is vice president, global distribution sales for Freescale ...
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Tara Sophia Mohr

Tara Sophia Mohr is the founder of the global Playing Big leadership program for ...
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Karen Rapp

Karen Rapp is vice president and chief information officer at Freescale ...
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Cindy Ratzlaff

Cindy Ratzlaff was named to the Forbes’ “20 Best Branded Women on Twitter” list ...
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Cynthia Rubio

Cynthia Rubio is co-founder and president of Radiant RFID, an Inc. 5000 technology ...
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Michele Ruiz

Michele Ruiz is a bi-lingual entrepreneur and public speaker whose passions are ...
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Ritusm Sharma headshot 2

Ritu Sharma

Ritu Sharma is co-founder and president of Women Thrive Worldwide, and a leading ...
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Gail Sheehy

Gail Sheehy is the author of 16 books, including the classic New York Times ...
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Vandana Singh

Vandana Singh is the executive director for the global customer experience and ...
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Abigail Trafford

Abigail Trafford is an author, journalist and public speaker whose work focuses on ...
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Louis van Amstel

Louis van Amstel is a “Dancing with the Stars” choreographer and three-time World ...
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Leticia Watts

Leticia Watts is Americas region LSC finance manager, lubricants at Shell. She is ...
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Kate White

Kate White is an internationally known expert on leadership and success and a New ...
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Joan C. Williams

Joan C. Williams has played a central role in reshaping the debates over women’s ...
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Norine Yukon

NORINE YUKON is the former CEO of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas and ...
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Kerri Zane

Kerri Zane is a single mom lifestyle expert, co-parenting authority, speaker, Emmy ...
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Expert Exchange

Deborah Carter

Deborah Carter possesses a personal and professional drive to help others succeed and ...
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Hope M. Galley

Hope M. Galley is a sales and emerging partner executive at Cisco Systems, ...
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Kathy Kinney

Kathy Kinney is best known for her iconic role as “Mimi” on the ABC hit TV series ...
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Heather Lawley

Heather Lawley is a senior strategist, global inclusion and diversity, with an ...
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Lisa McLin

Lisa McLin is the senior director of sales strategy at Rackspace Hosting, the #1 ...
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Kim Tryce

Kim Tryce is manager of operations for the Product Integration Engineering team at ...
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Steve Yager

Steve Yager is vice president, Americas region in technical services for Cisco. He is ...
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Local Leader

Becky Arreaga

Becky Arreaga is agency president of Mercury Mambo. Along with her business partners ...
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Leslie Beasley

Leslie Beasley is the co-founder of Open Arms, a social enterprise committed to ...
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Carol McGarah

Carol McGarah has worked as a governmental affairs consultant in Austin, Texas since ...
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Gayle Reaume

Gayle Reaume is founder and CEO of Moolah U. An innovative and energetic leader, ...
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Social Media Roundtable

Emily Bell

Emily Bell is founder and president of After Interactive. With over 15 years of ...
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Cathy Benavides

Cathy Benavides is a native Austinite, and writes a plus size style blog called ...
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Sandra Fernandez

Sandra Fernandez is a communications professional with more than 15 years of ...
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Elizabeth Jurewicz

Elizabeth Jurewicz joined Rackspace hosting in November of 2011 as an enterprise ...
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Veronica Morales

Veronica Morales is the founder and CEO of The Social Being: Meetings & Media ...
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Amanda Quraishi

Amanda Quraishi is a blogger, interfaith activist and technology professional living ...
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Jen Smith

Jen Smith is the go-to source for smart Facebook marketing. Equal parts tech geek and ...
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Carly Uson

Carly Uson has combined her natural love of lifestyle, fashion and beauty with a ...
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Corinne Weisgerber, Ph.D.

Corinne Weisgerber, Ph.D. is a social media professor and Internet researcher at St. ...
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Virginia Woodruff

Virginia Woodruff founded the witty website Great Moments in Parenting. Since ...
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Nazli Yuzak

Nazli Yuzak is a results-producing digital marketing leader with over 10 years of ...
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Special Guest Speakers

Gayle Morris

Gayle Morris, vice president at Cisco Systems, is responsible for running the ...
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Karen Quintos

KAREN QUINTOS is Dell’s chief customer officer, where she leads a global ...
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Small Business Roundtable

Fayruz Benyousef

Fayruz Benyousef is a philanthropy expert and nonprofit management advisor. Her ...
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Michelle Breyer

Michelle Breyer is a co-founder and president of TextureMedia Inc., a 16-year-old ...
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Alison Brushaber

Alison Brushaber is the chief product officer and one of the founding partners of ...
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Jeanne Corrigan

Jeanne Corrigan is a strategist, focused on the women’s market. She is part ...
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Holly Hanna

Holly Reisem Hanna is a publisher, social media manager and work at home mom. Her ...
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Laura LeMond

Laura LeMond is the founder of Mosaic Weighted Blankets. She was born prematurely ...
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Jan Ryan

Jan Ryan is a serial entrepreneur and tech executive. She is a partner at Austin’s ...
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