Like many so many other unfortunate people in 2020, Ken Norman was laid off in April 2020 at the the beginning of the COVID pandemic. Even with his rich work history, including over 20 years in logistics management, Ken spent over 2 years unemployed and searching for gainful employment. Even after working with professional career consultants to re-write his resume and re-do his online professional profiles, his efforts fell short to captivate recruiters and hiring managers for roles he was clearly qualified for. It wasn't until Ken sought help from Angela and went through ThisWay's candidate profile enhancement process (Work ThisWay) was he able to go from "overlooked" to having 4 job offers in his inbox in a week's time.

ERGs offer employers a competitive edge by serving as a tool for attracting, recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and cultivating leaders. ERGs can also aid employees in developing skills and knowledge critical to an employer's business, which can enhance the company's products and services. More broadly, ERGs are a proactive method of promoting diversity and an inclusive work environment while positively contributing to a company's internal and public reputations. Join Angela Hood as she welcomes Bryan Darby and Rasheed Mustakeem from QTS Data Centers, a Blackstone (BX) portfolio company, as they discuss how QTS has fostered DE&I through ERG and Affinity Group initiatives. About The Speakers: Rasheed Mustakeem is the Director of Implementation Services for QTS Data Centers—a Blackstone (BX) portfolio company—responsible for the project management of all customer data center deployments as well as internal IT infrastructure deployments. He also serves as President of Community in Action (CIA) at QTS, the employee resource group (ERG) devoted to fostering diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) at all levels of the company. Before joining QTS in 2014, Rasheed spent 15 years working in renewable energy as a business unit leader. He got his start in Management Consulting as an analyst performing oil and gas M&A due diligence. Bryan Darby is the Vice President of Strategic Technology Initiatives at QTS Realty Trust based in Overland Park, Kansas. As a transformational executive, he has more than 25 years of proven success developing and propelling near- and long-term business impacting and expense optimizing transformational strategies to ensure the continued growth of the business.

Norma brings more than 20 years of experience in DE&I. as a thought leader, Professional Speaker, and Entrepreneur.  She is the Co-Founder of SpeakTu, a Workforce Insights Analytics tool that supports Social scoring for ESG and Fair Pay Transparency compliance across the globe.  In her most recent roles at Softpath System and its subsidiaries OPTEVUS and WYDUR. Norma has supported internal and external company initiatives as a DE&I subject matter expert. Her other responsibilities during her tenure included managing corporate social responsibility activities, team member engagement tactics, and diversity learning initiatives including supplier diversity programs. In other roles at Year Up and DeVry University, Norma spearheaded the new business expansion and re-engineered corporate engagement efforts with Fortune 500 companies.   Norma serves as a board member of HoPe (Hispanic Organization Promoting Education).  She has also served in leadership roles for the American Staffing Association, Association of Latino Professionals for America, Prospanica, SafeAmerica, YWCA, and the Military Support Ministry in Marietta, Georgia. Norma is an alumna of Leadership Cobb, Cobb County Honorary Commanders, and Cultivating Hispanic Leadership Institute for the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Leadership Council.   Norma earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Management from Robert Morris University in her hometown of Chicago. She also holds a Master of Business Administration degree in International Business from Keller Graduate School of Management. Norma is married to Rudy and has two children, Rudy, and Isabel. Norma’s preferred pronouns are she, her, and hers.

Michelle Turner is the Vice President of Clinical Talent and Delivery for Hazel Health, a healthcare company providing in-school and in-home virtual healthcare. Michelle has spent the last 15 years developing scalable solutions to bring healthcare where it is needed most. Prior to Hazel, she was the Executive Director of The Addis Clinic, an organization that connects physician volunteers with frontline health workers through telemedicine technology. She was previously the Development Director of a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) and a Development consultant for multiple nonprofits. She holds an M.S. in Health Science and a B.S. in Child Psychology.

Shelly Douglas is the Senior Director of Corporate Engagement for CHC: Creating Healthier Communities, the largest health/wellness federation in the country dedicated to raising money and capacity through workplace giving and strategic cause initiatives. In her role at CHC she helps bring communities, nonprofits, and businesses together around a shared commitment to better health and wellbeing. She is the Co-Chair for the American Cancer Society Leadership Council, Board of Directors for the Oklahoma Lung Cancer Initiative, Board of Directors for the Santa Fe Family Life Center, Board of Directors for the City Rescue Mission and Board of Directors for the University of Central Oklahoma Alumni Association. In 2022 she was nominated for the Journal Record’s “50 Women Making a Difference. Shelly is also past President of the Edmond Chapter of Ambucs, an organization that creates mobility for disabled children and veterans. Shelly was voted Rotarian of the Year in 2016 and has a passion for her community and giving back. She is also the proud grandma of 6 month old Poppy Mae.

Priya and Angela discuss how women can identify and capitalize on growth opportunities in business environments, and how mentorship can help women continuously level up their relationships, both personally and professionally. d Priya Srinivasan is Vice President of IBM Expert Labs Customer Excellence and Subscription working across IBM Data and AI, Automation and Sustainability Software products. She leads a WW team responsible for IBM Client Success with IBM Software products. Prior to that she has lead several roles across IBM Data and AI Engineering & Support.

Great Resignation, Big Quit, Great Reshuffle.  Yeah yeah, we know, now what? Now with its own official Wiki page, The Great Resignation continues to wreak havoc on the talent acquisition industry, and COVID continues to be a factor as we near the end of 2022. But what are companies actually doing to counter employee attrition? Joining Angela and Torin Ellis for a third discussion. Torin leads a progressive boutique with a laser like focus on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) strategy and risk mitigation. He embraces a collaborative approach built on transparency, actionable strategy, and rigorous performance monitoring.

Cary Sparrow is a business leader and engineer who has thrived throughout his career with his entrepreneurial approach and keen eye for innovation opportunities. He founded Greenwich.HR in 2015 with a vision of bringing transparency to the labor market.  Prior to founding Greenwich.HR, Cary served as a Vice President at Cargill, the largest privately-held company in the US, with over 65 businesses across nearly 70 countries. At Cargill, Cary was responsible for upgrading the global workforce management infrastructure, including all related technology, processes, data, and organization structures. Prior to Cargill, Cary was a Principal and Global Practice Leader at Willis Towers Watson (then Towers Perrin). Cary is a veteran of the United States Navy, where he served as an officer on nuclear fast attack submarines. Cary has a master in management degree from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, with concentrations in finance and strategy. He also has a masters degree in industrial and systems engineering, with research in artificial intelligence and neural network control systems. His bachelors degree is in computer and systems engineering.

As CEO, Patrick Sheahan is focused on one thing: positioning Circa as the catalyst for companies to build high-performing diverse teams. To execute this vision, he has pivoted the company from a legacy job board to an innovative sales and marketing led SaaS-based technology company that will provide tools for organizations to radically approach their talent acquisition and compliance management. Prior to joining Circa, formerly LocalJobNetwork, Patrick was CEO of OnCourse Learning where he established a new standard of technology and delivery of best-in-class online education brands, products and services. Patrick’s experience is a powerful mix of proven corporate leadership and high-level consulting. He has held numerous business-unit leadership positions at Dover Corporation, including CFO of Performance Motorsports, Inc. and General Manager of their Wiseco Performance Products subsidiary. Before Dover, Patrick worked for KPMG. Patrick is a CPA and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, and he holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Marquette University and a Master of Business Administration in Strategy and Entrepreneurship from the University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management. Outside of work, Patrick is a lacrosse and hockey parent to his two children and enjoys the outdoors, whether it be skiing, golfing, a day on the water or chasing his two Labradors.

Joining Angela for another discussion on Diversity Cafe is Torin Ellis. Torin leads a progressive boutique with a laser like focus on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) strategy and risk mitigation. He embraces a collaborative approach built on transparency, actionable strategy, and rigorous performance monitoring. Join Torin and Angela as they work through the harsh reality on how companies are not living up to their 2020 commitments to support DE&I and racial injustices, and why so many of them are failing to deliver on those promises.