Wednesday August 19, 2015
General Session
How to Interest Teens in Tech Careers
Presented by Charles Eaton
Biography: Charles Eaton leads the philanthropic arm of CompTIA, the Creating IT Futures
Foundation, which helps populations that are under-represented in IT and individuals who
are lacking in opportunity to prepare for, secure and be successful in information
technology careers. Under Eaton’s direction, the foundation has expanded its scope to
cultivate best practices in American workforce development and tech-related STEM
education. Eaton is often invited to participate in White House Administration workforce
development campaigns and is quoted frequently in the media as an authority on tech
workforce development and STEM education. In the past few years, he’s been a speaker at
the US News STEM Solutions National Leadership Conference, the League for Innovation
STEMtech Conference, the California Workforce Association Spring Conference, the Philly Emerging Tech Conference,
the National Career Pathways Network’s Annual Conference, the National Association of Veterans Upward Bound
Conference and the Consortium for School Networking Conference. Eaton joined Creating IT Futures in June 2010 and
has more than two decades of non-profit management experience. Previously he was responsible for fundraising,
business development and marketing for the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC),
a healthcare association focused on improving healthcare quality and patient safety. Before joining APIC, Eaton was vice
president of member relations for the Consumer Electronics Association, which organizes the largest tradeshow in North
America, the International CES in Las Vegas. Eaton graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English from Duke University and
has four kids, ranging from elementary school-age to young adult.
Effective Communication -The Art of Mastering Small Talk
Presented by Denise Thomas, Senior Business Process Partner, MillerCoors
Biography: Denise Thomas is an active dynamic speaker and effective communication coach
whose mission is to help emerging young students and ambitious professionals become
recognized entrepreneurs and leaders by mastering the art of effective techniques that are
engaging and relevant. From 2011-2013, Denise facilitated Youth Leadership Programs across
Milwaukee Public Schools and local churches including Riverside University High School and
Morse Marshall School impacting over 100 students ability and willingness to communicate
effectively with teachers, peers and a large audience. Based on her contributions and impact to
the community, she was awarded the GE Volunteer of the Year Award and Community
Outreach Award by Wisconsin Toastmasters International in 2013. In 2012, Denise was selected
to co-produce and serve as the voiceover for the GE African American Forum Symposium Icon
Award• presentation in Washington D.C. Over 1500 GE employees and guests attended including
GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt. Earlier this year, she presented the Effective Communication
workshop to over 200 emerging teenagers during the YMCA/Direct Supply Teen Summit in Milwaukee focusing on
overcoming nervousness, organizing thoughts and communicating ideas. Denise has sat on numerous panel discussions
including the National Society of Black Engineers Backpack to Briefcase• in 2011 and MillerCoors Generations Panel
during the Diversity and Inclusion week in 2014. Inspire Influence Denise Thomas Inform Entertain She has been
featured as a keynote speaker for MillerCoors African American Professional Development Series, Evansville Memorial
Baptist Church Youth Summit and the Evansville Multi-Cultural Professional Network A Conversation With... series. She
currently serves as a Facilitator of the required Inclusive Leader course as part of MillerCoors University Leadership and
Development Training and the Club Coach for the Walworth County Toastmasters Club. Denise continues her focus on
empowering emerging young leaders by facilitating effective communication• workshops for the Hispanic Professionals
of Greater Milwaukee, MillerCoors B.R.E.W.•(Building Relationships Empowering Women) Employee Resource Group
and True Skool students in Milwaukee. Over the past 13 years, Denise has held numerous leadership positions and
earned various awards based on her successes in Global Supply Chain and Information Technology across companies
such as Toyota Motor Manufacturing Inc., Rockwell Automation, ConAgra Foods, PepsiCo, General Electric and
MillerCoors. A graduate of Cardinal Stritch University in Business Management, Denise is an active member of BDPA, the
MillerCoors African American Employee Network Executive Committee and Toastmasters International. She was recently
inducted as a YMCA Milwaukee Adult Achiever and Wisconsin Toastmasters Club Coach. She is a proud mother of two
teenagers. Her nineteen year old daughter Dominique is a sophomore at Vincennes University in Vincennes, IN and her
sixteen year old son Daren is a high school junior and resides with her in Greenfield WI.
Presentation Description: Learn how to effectively communicate your brand in cross functional and social
environments including work sessions and networking. The three main topics of discussion are:
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Effective Communication
Promoting Your Brand
Networking with Purpose
How Technology Has Changed the Way We Recruit
Presented by Bridget Baggett, Director of Recruiting, Career Innovations
Biography: Bridget Baggett helps organizations tackle the most challenging HR issues. She
is an expert in her industry and continues to assist organizations grow their leaders and
help develop a stronger workplace culture. Bridget holds a Bachelor of Science from
Tuskegee University and a dual Master of Business Administration and Healthcare
Administration (MBA/MHA) from Pfeiffer University. Bridget works primarily with start-ups
and small to mid-size companies. She assists with recruiting and retaining top talent. She
also assists with various HR issues that may impact an organization as a whole. She
currently holds the VP of Professional Development position with the Black Data Processing
Associates (BDPA). She is an also an active member of the Society for Human Resource
Management (SHRM), Charlotte Area Society for Human Resources Management
(CASHRM), Human Capital Institute (HCI), National Association of African Americans in Human
Resources (NAAAHR), and The Institute for Human Resources (IHR). Bridget facilitates many workshops for employers
and job seekers. Bridget values education and has partnered with many colleges and universities to assist with
professional development. She has facilitated professional career- related workshops for Livingstone College regarding
interviewing, resume wiring, and job searching. She has also partnered with Central Piedmont Community College for 3day intense workshop that targeted displaced workers.
Presentation Description How Technology Has Changed the Way We Recruit & Retain IT Professionals If your
organization is waiting for the next IT guru to upload their resume to your career page or ATS (Applicant Tracking
System), you have a better chance posting your job opening on MySpace and rushing to the nearest pay phone to place
the follow-up call. HR and Recruiting Technology have evolved and so has the ideal candidate. What we can expect? Millennials will dictate the evolution in HR Technology and the Recruiting Process - Technology Has/Will Forced
Transparency - High Turnover The pool of recruitment data is steady growing and the technology companies should
Marketing IT: Alignment with the Business
Presented by Fred Mapp, President, Quality Service Solutions
Biography: Mr. Mapp has more than 40 years of experience in the areas of information
technology systems, applications, infrastructure support, customer support and consulting
services. During that time he has held senior executive-level positions with companies such
as IBM, InfoSpan and American Express as well as the position of Chief Information Officer
for Honeywell and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). In addition, Mr. Mapp served as CEO
and President of the World Congress on Information Technology, a forum that is held
globally every two years under the direction of the World Information Technology Services
Alliance. He currently operates his own consulting company, Quality Service Solutions,
providing various business and information technology services and assisting companies with their Data Center strategy.
Highlights Fred has extensive experience developing and defining IT objectives and strategic plans and in the
implementation of technology to support business requirements. He also has a strong background in outsourcing, data
center efficiency, project and process management, six sigma and quality deployment. Fred has written white papers
and articles on topics such as data center build versus by, the need of collaboration between business functions and
cloud computing. Mr. Mapp has expertise in aligning business processes and requirements with technology. As a result
of experiences he has accumulated working and consulting with a variety of Fortune 500 companies, he has developed a
seven-step process that maps information technology to business goals. He explains this process in-depth in his book,
Mapping Information Technology to Your Business. Current Role: Synopsis Over the years, working in executive
positions at IBM, American Express, Honeywell, AMD and various other companies Mr. Mapp developed and refined
practices and processes to accelerate business and IT transformation and growth. During this time, he developed a
Seven-Initiative strategy helping organizations to leverage technology for competitive advantage, growth, innovation
and market dominance. Fred is author of Mapping IT to Your Business which describes the seven Initiatives in detail. The
Seven Initiatives outline fundamental principles for extracting more value from IT organizations positioning IT as a true
enabler of business success. Given today corporate demands to innovate, grow and align IT investments to revenue,
profit and market share growth his step-by-step approach provides a blueprint to positively impact top and bottom-line
financials and corporate shareholder value.
Presentation Description: Marketing IT: Relationship Building with Business Stakeholders is On the Rise What are
some of the reasons for IT not getting credit for getting things done? Is your organization spending an enormous
amount of time and energy on strategy development with little to show for your efforts? Management teams often get
bogged down in unfocused, inconclusive discussions instead of making rapid, well-informed strategy decisions. To stay
ahead of the pack you must market and translate your organization's strategy into basic day-to-day initiatives. How do
you avoid or address these issues? In this session I will cover several initiatives and techniques for you to consider. These
basic steps focus on areas to ensure your IT strategy is well-founded. By looking at these initiatives, you can identify
critical gaps in your strategy execution processes and focus on the most important choices you must make. I will also
cover results from the latest CIO survey. Survey results suggest IT leaders are increasingly taking action to market IT and
to build and solidify relationships with their non IT stakeholders.
Increasing your Educational ROI
Presented by Scott McGregor – Managing Partner McGregor & Associates
Biography: Scott McGregor, a 6-year Cisco veteran is a Program Manager with Cisco
Sales Associates Program and Partner Sales Academy and the Lead for Project
Infusion, an initiative to bring recruit diverse candidates into the Cisco sales force.
He is also a Development Advisor for the Sales NewHire Acceleration Program
(SNAP) with provides sales new hires with a set of tools to shorten their ramp to
sales productivity. Prior to joining CSAP, Scott was in Datacenter Sales focusing on
the Intelligent Automation product suite. With 22 years of corporate experience,
Mr. McGregor has worked for such companies as Bell Atlantic, The Marriott
Corporation and The Yoh Company in a variety of individual contributor and sales
leadership roles. Scott also has spoken extensively to students and professionals on
career and professional development and the business value of Diversity and Inclusion.
Presentation Description: The presentation is designed to help undergraduate and graduate students set
themselves up for success and use their newly-acquired education to get them the best career possible. Some
of the objectives are to: Clearly understand and articulate their reasons for obtaining a college education;
Develop a "toolkit" for enhancing their value proposition in the career marketplace and understanding the
need for a repeatable process for securing the career of choice.
IT Service Management-Is your organization ready to Transform?
Presented by Wilhelmenia Ravenell, IT Manager, Eli Lilly and Company
Biography: Wilhelmenia Ravenell is an IT Manager at Eli Lilly and Company, for R&D
applications used for global Clinical Development. Over the past 14 years, she has held
various positions for global system implementations, which included the tool, processes,
and other aspects of Lilly's Service Management transformation. Wilhelmenia is an ITIL
Expert in Service Management and maintains a passion and commitment to educate,
anticipate and replicate. She is also a Lifetime BDPA member, former BDPA Indianapolis
Chapter President and lifelong community volunteer. Wilhelmenia enjoys sports and
family time with her husband and teenage daughters, who "always have a plan" for
something.
Presentation Description: Transformation goes beyond designing processes and tools.
Processes and tools alone don't transform organizations. It's the way they are deployed
and adopted that transforms an organization. True transformation takes a vision, a village and investment in readiness.
Come listen as we share our story and the critical success factors for our transformation journey from operational siloes
with inconsistent IT customer experiences, to self-service capabilities, harmonized global processes and tools with
consistency and transparency for everyone involved. The objective of this workshop is to: To provide an overview of the
Service Management Framework, to share best practices to prepare for Service Management Transformation and to
articulate the ROI, which includes the customer experience.
Public Cloud as your Data Center
Presented by Yung Chou, Technology Evangelist, Microsoft
Biography: Yung Chou is a Technology Evangelist in Microsoft US Developer Experience
and Evangelism team. Within the company, he has had opportunities on serving customers
in the areas of support account management, technical support, technical sales, and
evangelism. Prior to Microsoft, he had established capacities in system programming,
application development, consulting services, and IT management. His technical focuses
have been on virtualization and cloud computing with strong interests in hybrid cloud,
Windows Azure Infrastructure Services, and emerging enterprise computing architecture.
He has been a frequent speaker in technical conferences, roadshow, and Microsoft events.
Presentation Description: Cloud computing can offer infrastructure, runtime environment
and applications on one's demand and is essentially a datacenter at an individual's disposal. This session highlights these
capabilities and walks through the processes and steps to demonstrate the point by allocating storage, creating
networks, deploying infrastructure, and establishing an AD forest in cloud on demand. The objectives of this workshop is
to Understand what is cloud computing, Become familiar with cloud computing service model and Gain experience at an
operation level on building an IT environment in cloud.
focus on harnessing that data and focusing on unconventional ways to help leverage digital connections and real-life
relationships to attract and retain IT professionals. The objectives of this workshop is: How to Leverage Technology in
the Recruiting Process, How to Create a Competitive Advantage within Your Recruiting Process and How to Create a
Employee Retention Strategy.
Technology Trends - Disruptors and Enablers
Presented by Christopher Jackson, Chief of Staff - Deloitte Growth Enterprise
Services.
Biography: As Chief of Staff for Deloitte’s Growth Enterprise Services (DGES) business Chris
has direct responsibility for the development and delivery of Consulting DGES strategy and
operating approach. He is a frequently requested lecturer on global competitiveness,
technology strategy, and emerging technologies. In addition to being a member of
Deloitte’s Technology Strategy and Architecture practice he is also active in the following
organizations; United Way, Junior Achievement, the National Association of Black
Accountants (NABA), Information Systems Audit & Control Association (ISACA), The St. Louis
Dream Center (a Joyce Meyer Ministry), and the Black Data Processing Association (BDPA).
Presentation Description: An overview of Deloitte's Technology Trends Forecast and what technology leaders should
know. The presentation will help you understanding the technology landscape in 2015, have a discussion of the
technology disruptors and how they will impact business and give an overview of the technology enablers and how to
leverage them.
PMO 2020 - Project Management Capabilities Outside of IT
Presented by Kim Corley, Associate Director, Deloitte
Biography: Kim Corley has over 27 years of experience in Information Technology, working in
in various industries including professional services (Ernst &Young, IBM Global Services, and
Debis IT Services), and Fortune 500 companies like Allstate, State Farm and Quaker Oats with a
few entrepreneurial ventures sprinkled throughout. Her roles have primarily been in positions
of leadership, either as a project manager, program manager, department head, client
engagement leader or Founder and CEO of an online gifts retailer. Ms. Corley is currently an
Associate Director in the Deloitte Global Technology Services PMO where she partners with
stakeholders (Global CIO, Member firm CIOs, and other technology leaders) to drive crossfunctional transformation initiatives focused on people, process and technology.
Responsibilities include: Leading complex global integration projects to achieve Global Technology Services goals,
Identification and reporting on key performance measures (KPIs) to measure the success of integration efforts, and Act
as change agent, and process improvement subject matter expert, advocating use of standard frameworks and tools
across the global technology enterprise.
Presentation Description: Speed to market pressures and rising stakeholder expectations, will increase demand for
technology services from internal technology organizations. Over the next few years, these demands will likely: make
technology prioritization more challenging, create a backlog of technology requests, and if analyst predictions are
accurate, lead business stakeholders to take matters into their own hands and implement the technology themselves.
While stakeholder managed projects may chip away at the technology backlog, there are inherent risks such as: creation
of shadow IT organizations which can significantly increase technology costs if left unchecked, lack of project delivery
competencies outside of the PMO could put these projects at risk. However, business-led projects may be the right
approach under the right circumstance. We will explore how can internal technology work with business units to
identify a project delivery approach that balances risks, costs & business needs? How can IT help business units build
project delivery capabilities to increase their chances of success? And Is a project delivery capability center the right
approach for your IT organization?
The Successes and Failures of an IT Leader
Presented by Saundra Williams, Sr. VP and Chief of Technology for the NC
Community College System
Biography: Dr. Saundra Wall Williams is the Sr. Vice President and Chief of Technology
for the NC Community College System, the State's primary agency for delivery of job
training and adult education. She leads IT, resources, infrastructure, data management,
data reporting, distance learning, business intelligence, technical training, project
management, and educational technology systems. An Adjunct Professor at NC State, she
is a Houle Scholar in Adult Education and the College of Sciences Alumni of the Year. She
is an author with publications in technology. She has a B.S. and M.S. in Applied
Mathematics and Statistics and an Ed.D. in Adult Education.
Presentation Description: Are you a leader? Are you held accountable for doing more with
fewer resources, i.e. money, time, people? This presentation is designed to develop the
leader within you by strengthening your leadership skills to get desired results. We will cover
four major sources to enhancing your Leadership Skills Simple Intelligence Leadership Model 1. Personal Development
2. Building Relationships 3. Teamwork 4. Getting Results The book Simple Intelligence is used as a reference/resource
during this presentation. This session will help Motivate IT Leaders and Managers to Lead with Authority, Building
Mental Toughness and Teamwork. As a result of completing this workshop, the participant will be able to understand
how successes and failures prepare the technology leader, will be able to identify seven (7) skills necessary for
technology leadership success and be able to apply a leadership skill model to a current technology challenge.
Moving an Elephant in the Room: Big Data Migration
Presented by Tyrone Hinderson, Software Engineer, Conductor, Inc.
Biography: Tyrone Hinderson is a backend software engineer from New York, NY. He
graduated from Columbia University in Spring‘14, and now he designs and builds scalable data
ETL systems for Conductor, Inc; Conductor specializes in Web Presence Management
technology - software that helps marketers optimize their content to be found across key
digital marketing channel. He is currently designing a new data pipeline for Keyword Search
Volume, and recently his work has ranged from developing COGS models for new systems to
implementing a concurrent diff algorithm for data validation. In his spare time, Tyrone loves
to play video games at home, go indoor rock climbing in Brooklyn, exercise with algorithmic
challenges on Hackerrank.com, and visit his family in his hometown of Los Angeles among
myriad other interests and activities.
This presentation demystifies the problem of moving a major portion of a company’s technological infrastructure from
an unsustainable legacy system to a newer, more scalable solution. The goal is to show that with the proper approach,
such a transition can be undertaken successfully and without assuming unmanageable risk. To this end, we will share
anecdotes from Conductor’s own endeavor to replace an immense relational datastore and a corresponding data ETL
process which, together, form a crucial component of our application that nonetheless cannot be supported much
indefinitely. The presentation will cover the process of deciding to redesign a large component of your tech stack, along
with best practices for perceiving and mitigating risk and ultimately securing performance and cost improvements.
Participants should have a better idea of how to identify an unsustainable software system or subsystem, how to plan a
large-scale data migration from one system to another and should come away with fresh perspectives on a few specific
technologies.
Cyber, Disaster Recovery, Cloud & Storage ?
Presented by Carl Hill, President, Golden Technology Services, Inc.
Biography: Carl Hill is President and co-founder of Golden Technology Services an IT
Cloud, Security Services, and Storage Backup solution provider.
His cyber expertise helps solve problems for all size businesses in both the private and
public sector.
Hill had a successful 25+ year career with IBM that produced a successful track record
and recognition including 2 IBM President’s Award for innovation and execution. Carl is
the President of the BDPA Triangle and a Board Member of the United Minority
Contractors of North Carolina. He graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis with a BA
in Psychology and a minor in Economics.
Presentation Description: Are you missing out on a few disruptive and innovative solutions around Cyber Security,
back-up Storage, Cloud and Disaster Recovery solutions? Come learn what others are doing and why to reduce costs
and leap ahead of competitors. We will discuss: Cyber Security Landscape & Solutions, Disaster Recovery Landscape &
Solutions and why integrating Cyber & Disaster Recovery with Storage is a better solution.
ITIL, DevOps & Cloud - How ITSM Bridges the Gap
Presented by Steven Broaden, ITSM Senior Consultant, Microsoft
Biography: Steven is a Senior Consultant in Microsoft's IT Service Management practice. He
has 16 plus years of Information Technology experience, including Project Management,
Network Administration and IT Service Management – e.g. ITIL, COBIT, and ISO/IEC 20000.
He has managed projects for clients in both public and private sectors across various
industries such as Healthcare, Manufacturing, Energy, Beverage and IT Services.
Steven
holds the following degrees: MBA, Leadership - Capella University, MS, Information
Management and Communications - Walsh College. BS, Electronic Engineering Technology DeVry Institute of Technology
Presentation Description: ITIL and ITSM are acknowledged as good practices in the IT
Industry, yet as we transition to the world of DevOps and the Cloud first approach; many Application Managers and IT
organizations are not clear on how the ITIL Framework is applicable in this new world. As a result, IT organizations will
struggle to achieve the full benefits that DevOps and the Cloud first approach can provide to the business. Discover how
IT Service Management remains key to enabling success in the new world of DevOps and Cloud first. This session will be
an overview of the Dev/Ops, overview of the Cloud First Approach and Blending of ITIL, Cloud and DevOps.
Thursday August 20, 2015
Plenary Luncheon “Managing Large Scale Enterprises”
Presented by Michael Boykin, Ph.D, CTO, Hewlett-Packard Company
Biography: Dr. Michael Boykin joined the HP Enterprise Services (ES) organization in
2013 as a member of the Consumer Industries team with 20+ years of experience. During
his tenure, he has been consistently recognized for IT architecture and operational
leadership in support of IT-enabled business transformations. Michael’s interests lie in
aligning corporate business and IT strategies with the goal of helping customers achieve a
competitive edge in their market segments. As an ES DT, Dr. Boykin’s goal is to support
clients in these pursuits, helping HP drive greater value for inside and outside the
traditional IT department.
Prior to joining HP, Michael served as the Director of Infrastructure and Technical Services
for a major ES customer. Additionally, Dr. Boykin held leadership positions with several firms specializing in IT
outsourcing as well as application and infrastructure hosting. He has also worked extensively with several leading
manufacturing and pharmaceutical firms seeking to enhance the integration of shop-floor data collection systems with
front-office transaction and business intelligence systems.
Dr. Boykin obtained his MS and PhD degrees in Computer Science from the University of Pittsburgh where he was
recognized as an Alcoa Fellowship award recipient. His research focused on the development of efficient real-time
distributed systems and network designs. As an adjunct faculty member, Dr. Boykin also taught graduate computer
science and telecommunications courses at his alma mater.
Manage your IT infrastructure with Puppet
Presented by John Hoffler, IT UNIX Engineering Manager, BB&T
Biography:John Hoffler has run the High School Computer Competition programs at several
BDPA chapters. He is currently UNIX Engineering Manager at BB&T Bank. For the past
several years John has used Open Source Puppet to automate the installation and
configuration of the laptops used by HSCC students.
Presentation Description: This hands-on lab will show how Puppet yields consistent,
auditable system configurations and streamlines the system build process. We'll review the
value proposition of DevOps and create Puppet modules capable to installing all the
software and performing all the configuration needed for a Java-based web development
workstation.
Privacy & Big Data: Cool or Creepy?
Presented by Arlonda Stevens, VP, Data Governance Consultant, PNC Bank
Biography: Arlonda Stevens is a vice president at a financial institution where she has held
various positions during her 18-year tenure. Most recently she was a Privacy Systems
Manager and is currently a Data Governance Consultant. Arlonda is CIPP certified by the
International Association of Privacy Professionals and serves as a co-chair for IAPP
KnowledgeNet, Cleveland Chapter. She holds a PMP certification and is a member of NBMBA
and BDPA. Arlonda received a BS from Fisk University, a MBA from Baldwin Wallace College
and is currently a PhD candidate at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western
Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio. Her research focuses on the impacts that a data driven society has on consumer
information privacy.
Presentation Description: In this age of Big Data, there is a proliferation of consumer data that is being tracked,
collected, used, and shared, oftentimes without the knowledge of the individual. Marketers, data brokers, data
aggregators and online advertisers use the consumer insight to deliver personalized messages. However, not all
consumers view these messages as clever or coincidental but creepy and in some cases, an invasion of their privacy.
Although companies are not doing anything illegal and have a right to accomplish their organizational goals, is delivering
personalized messages that are perceived to be intrusive and eerie the right thing to do from the consumer’s
perspective. To put it another way, just because we can, should? This presentation will discuss how the interplay of
trust, transparency, control and context may contribute to a personalized communication being perceived as creepy,
and things that should be taken into consideration when crafting a personalized messages that will not come across as
creepy or privacy invasive. Finally, we will delve briefly into the ethics of Big Data from the perspective of right vs. right.
Information obtained from my qualitative and quantitative inquiry on this topic will be leveraged to provide voice of the
customer perspective. This session will concentrate on understanding "creepy" and what makes a personalized message
unsettling, The role of trust, transparency and control in privacy invasive communication and ways to mitigate privacy
invasive communication through ethical use of consumer data.
Embracing BDPA Significant Stories: Sound Bytes
Presented by Franne McNeal, President, Significant Business Results LLC
Biography: Franne McNeal, MBA, is a Significant Business Results Coach, Business Advisor
for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Initiatives at Community College of
Philadelphia and 2014 Main Line Power Woman. Franne is a serial entrepreneur, speaker
and author, who as early as age three, turned interest into income.
Presentation Description: Join us to participate in the power of The BDPA iRadio Show.
This is a hand-on lab where you will prep your bio, 3 key messages, and live interview. We'll
show you the technology, teamwork and talent behind the show. Walk away with a better
understanding of how your story promotes BDPA and attracts volunteers, members and
sponsors. Additional bonuses include the opportunity to be a social media advocate of the
BDPA iRadio Show via blogging and posts on Facebook, LinkedIn, Google + and Twitter. You will
learn how to prep your bio, 3 key messages, and live interview, understand the technology,
teamwork and talent behind the BDPA iRadio Show and understand how your story promotes
BDPA and attracts volunteers, members and sponsors.
How to Build, maintain and grow an IT program
Presented by Raymond Bell, Administrator, The Hope Project
Biography: Raymond E. Bell is the founder of R. Emmanuel Bell Consulting, a training and
facilitation company. Mr. Bell is a social entrepreneur, keynote speaker and facilitator. He is
devoted to teaching and coaching young adults how to become I.T. professionals. Through
his workshops, courses and coaching programs Mr. Bell shows young adults how to get out
of the unemployment line and on a career path. Raymond’s passion is to empower young
people to take ownership and control of their own destiny. In 2009 Bell founded The
H.O.P.E. Project, also known as the Harvard of the Hood•, an I.T. career training program.
The H.O.P.E. Project has been called one of the best I.T. career training programs in the
country by the President of the Help Desk Institute (HDI). Graduates earn an average annual
salary of $43,000, working on major government contracts, such as Lockheed Martin, World
Bank and CACI. Mr. Bell is considered one of the leading experts on I.T. career training and workforce development in
the United States. Mr. Bell has received numerous awards for his work including the 2014 BDPA Washington DC Chapter
Member of the Year, 2012 National Black Caucus of State Legislators, Nation Builder Award, for his outstanding work
developing world class I.T. professionals. Raymond Bell has been seen on and/or featured in Ebony, ABC, CBS, WHUR,
NewOne Now with Roland Martin, Washington Post, City Paper, National Public Radio, National Journal, BET and many
others. RaymondBell.com, GetAJobIn30Days.com, HopeProjectDC.org
Presentation Description: The presentation will focus on the areas that have helped The HOPE Project become one of
the most successful IT Career training programs for young adults in the country. The session will focus on:
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Building a Successful IT Career training program for young adults
Maintaining a Successful IT Career training program for young adults
Growing a Successful IT Career training program for young adults
EEOC Complaint & Labor Relations
Presented by Larry Henderson, Programmer – Mainframe, US Navy
Biography: U.S. Air Force Flight Engineer, employed by the U.S. Navy 25 years as a
desktop software specialists & Mainframe programmer
Presentation Description: Most people think that they work in a fair and equal
opportunity workplace, nothing could be further from the truth. Everyone should have
some idea of what their working rights are and how to protect them. Violations happen
every day and without some knowledge you may not be able to make a rational decision
on how to proceed. This workshop's should provide some of this knowledge. During this session, we will discuss knowing
your rights as an employee, EEOC Complaint system and Labor Relations.
Agile & Agriculture: An Unlikely Pairing
Presented by Malcom Mathis, II, Product Adoption Specialist, Monsanto
Biography: Mr. Malcom B. Mathis II works at Monsanto, a fortune 500 Agricultural
Biotechnology company, as an IT Product Adoption Specialist. He currently leads the global
launch efforts of an enterprise IT logistics project. Mr. Mathis received his B.S. in Chemistry
from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. He went on to receive a Masters in Analytical
Chemistry from Kent State University in Ohio. Mr. Mathis is the current VP of Strategy and
Planning for the St. Louis chapter of BDPA. He also volunteers in the Science and Agriculture
Education Outreach program at Monsanto.
Presentation Description: As we embark upon the midway point of the second decade in
the 21st century, technology is at the helm of just about everything we do. When the
common person thinks about technology, firms like Google, Apple or Microsoft come to
mind. However, there is a sector busting at the seams for innovative technology that many IT professionals are not
aware of - Agriculture. The presentation will provide an overview of the current use of information technology in
agriculture (i.e., Mobile Technology, Internet of Things, Predictive Analytics, etc). It will also demonstrate how Agile and
Scrum are used to meet the technology demand. It will spark the interest of both the rookie and veteran IT professional.
During this session we will discuss Agile and Scrum, Technological advances in agriculture, and Data and Information.
Cybersecurity Attacks and Cardholder Data
Presented by Kevin Simmonds, Director - Cybersecurity & Privacy Consultant, PwC
Biography: Kevin is a Director in PricewaterhouseCoopers' (PwC) Cybersecurity & Risk
practice based in Atlanta, Georgia. His areas of focus since 2003 has been information
security strategy, IT/IS compliance, and technical security which include penetration testing
studies, social engineering, and web application assessments. Kevin has assisted numerous
clients in the Financial Services, Telecommunication, Retail & Consumer, and Healthcare
industry with developing/executing an information security strategy which aligns with
business objectives. He has also assisted global companies with adhering to Payment Card
Industry (PCI) data security standards.
Presentation Description: During this presentation we will discuss various cybersecurity
attacks/concepts, types of adversaries and their focus, and how payment data (e.g., credit
cards) will continue to be an issue for merchants and customers. Our main topic of discussion
for this session will be Cybersecurity Attacks, Protecting Cardholder Data and Environments and Security Best Practices.
State of the IT Market
Presented by Eric Billington, IT,Director, Gans, Gans & Associates
Biography: Eric Billington is a seasoned Recruitment and IT Professional. Eric possesses 10
years of progressive experience in information technology and business consulting,
recruiting, sales, training analysis, design and delivery; technical project management,
development, implementation, evaluation and delivery. He has led and managed executive
recruiting projects and teams, while creating strategic alliances, collaborations, and
partnerships with colleges and universities, trade and technical schools. For the past four
years Eric has managed a technology company, coordinating, directing and designing all
operational activities including strategic planning, identifying business requirements and
project planning, as well as providing cost effective technology solutions for a diverse clientele.
Eric spent five years as an Executive Recruiter for Gans, Gans & Associates creating numerous
career opportunities for IT, healthcare, academic, and housing professionals within the public, private and government
sectors, as well as Fortune 500 companies.
Presentation Description: Throughout his career Eric has had the opportunity to identify needed software skills and
technical abilities to support some of the most common, yet complex IT infrastructures while remaining current with
ever changing technology and decreasing budgets. During this presentation, Eric will provide insight into some of the
challenges faced by companies to successfully recruit IT professionals with the desired skill set and experiences. During
this session we will discuss the challenges facing employers looking to hire skilled IT professionals, The dynamic between
experience and education and Pros and Cons of full time and contract employment.
A Preview of Windows 10
Presented by Yung Chou, technology evangelist, Microsoft
Biography: Yung Chou is a Technology Evangelist in Microsoft US Developer Experience
and Evangelism team. Within the company, he has had opportunities on serving customers
in the areas of support account management, technical support, technical sales, and
evangelism. Prior to Microsoft, he had established capacities in system programming,
application development, consulting services, and IT management. His technical focuses
have been on virtualization and cloud computing with strong interests in hybrid cloud,
Windows Azure Infrastructure Services, and emerging enterprise computing architecture.
He has been a frequent speaker in technical conferences, roadshow, and Microsoft events.
Presentation Description: Windows 10 is the next release of Windows OS. This presentation
previews selected features and highlights new work patterns and user experience on
performing desktop routines. During this session you will Experience Windows 10, Know the significant improvements
and important features of Windows 10 and Become familiar with desktop routines of Windows 10.
Women in Information Technology
Presented by Nat’e Parker-Guyton, Chief Clinical Informatics Officer, Mercy Health System
Biography: Nat’e Parker-Guyton is a notable leader in healthcare. She has served as a
healthcare leader for over 10 years advancing through the ranks in nursing and
administration. Nat’e has a diverse skill set realized through various career experiences such
as: Chief Nurse Officer at Mercy Suburban Hospital, Senior Director of Nursing Operations at
St. Francis Hospital (Delaware), and Nurse Manager of Cardiac Transplant and Telemetry at
Temple University Hospital. Currently, Nat’e Parker-Guyton is an essential stakeholder in her
role as the Clinical Informatics Officer for Mercy Health System, Pennsylvania. Mercy Health
System, the largest Catholic healthcare system serving the Delaware Valley with (4) acute
care hospitals, (45) physician practices, home care and PACE program.
Presentation Description: Women in Information Technology is about realizing the power
we have as women to break into the field of information technology, and the diversity of role available. From healthcare
information technology to application, to vendor relations, and sales, there are a plethora of available jobs in the
industry. I was a bedside nurse and worked my way up to a Chief Clinical Informatics Officer for a large healthcare
organization. I would like to share my story, encourage other women, and provide some practical tips and steps to help
them reach their destiny. The main focus of this session is to understand the diversity of roles in information technology
for women, connect with your instincts to lead in the field of information technology and leveraging networking and the
power of relationships.
"Internet of Things The New Vision"
Presented by Dr. Tyra Oldham, CEO LAND sds
Biography: Dr. Tyra Oldham, entrepreneur, artist, writer, speaker, consultant and strategist
to public and private sectors nationally and globally. Dr. Tyra Oldham, Systems Engineer,
Organizational Change & Development expert, founder and CEO of LAND sds, sustainable
management consulting company. Oldham is the founder and editor of LANDsds Sustainable
News called, The NeXuses, content strategist in policy, energy, technology and sustainability.
She holds PhD, MBA, Women’s Studies from Miami University and awarded International
Business from Moscow School of Business. Honored as Green Supplier, Who’s Who, Book of
List, Business Courier and more. Oldham has consulted to Government, OEMs, companies
such as, P&G, Ford, Cargolux, Arnold IT, MIG, Lucid, Toyota and produced research in Africa,
Europe and Russia.
Presentation Description: Is it a reality or theory the idea of the "Internet of Things"? As we promote connectivity
through the internet is the "Internet of Things" (IoT) which seeks to bring connectivity, solutions, innovation and possibly
equity within this unfolding idea. The ability to conceive a vision for the potential of the internet must consider its
impact on people and things to produce insiders and outsiders within the "Internet of Things". This talk discusses this
game changing technology through the lens of ubiquitous computing to connect the world through the "Internet of
Things" and its impact on present and future world of work, education, economics and people.
“Professional Growth through Employee Resource Groups”
Presented by Ron Huff, Service Delivery Executive, HP Enterprise Services
Ron is a Network Service Delivery Executive in Global Network Delivery. He is responsible
for the network tactical and strategic direction of several large HP customers. Ron has a
Bachelor’s degree from Hampton University, a Master’s degree from Liberty University. He
is the Co-Chair of the HP Black Employee Leadership Council, the Chair of the HP North
Texas Black Employee Network, a member of the ITSMF and BPDA. He is the Chairman of
the Advisory Board for the Academy of Engineering in Dallas Independent School District.
Ron is also a Board of Directors member for the Collin County Black Chamber of Commerce.
Presentation Description: Employee Resource Groups (ERG) has the power to stimulate
professional growth in each corporation which contributes to overall bottom line. When
employees are empowered to learn new skills through ERGs it immediately impacts their job
performance. Professional relationships and networking occurs when employees volunteer for
events they care about. ERGs are voluntary organizations that help corporations improve internal
relationships and promote their brand to local communities.
ERGs in most cases are considered separate business units which often include budgets, board members, special
committees and critical relationship building with senior leaders. They also provide career path development, industry
certifications, trainings, mentoring, sponsorships and a host of educational lessons on leadership. More importantly
ERGs are a mixture of employees at different levels in the corporation which provides interaction with senior level
executives on a frequent basis.
For the employees that are looking for that next step to enhance their leadership and professional growth an ERG will
provide critical experience in a quick timeframe. In most corporations the ERGs are global which adds essential global
leadership experience. It enhances the cultural relationships and allows global collaboration on new technologies.
This presentation will provide examples of creating an ERG if one does not exist. It will also provide illustrations of
educational seminars, newsletters, leadership development plans, and organizational structures for the established
ERGs. Additionally, it will empower senior leaders attending the presentation to look at ERGs as a solid return on
investment for their corporation.
Clinical Innovation for Patient Engagement
Presented by Subha, Ramiah, Senior Director, Innovation R&D, Cigna
Biography: Subha has spent the past twenty five years in technology leadership roles at
Fortune 500 companies in Chemical, Pharma, Media, Retail, Technology, and HealthCare sectors.
He has founded a technology startup, and as its founder CEO, brings balanced business,
leadership, and technology experience. His expertise spans all facets of IT, Marketing,
business/IT innovation, strategy, planning, infrastructure operations, architecture, applications,
processes, security, governance, management, and business operations. Currently as a senior
director of “Innovation” he reports to Cigna's CTO to grow customer centric innovation efforts in
Cigna Inc. (a F100 Healthcare provider). Prior as a visionary and Staff Vice President of
Technology in the CIO office at WellPoint, (a F30 Healthcare provider) Subha oversaw business/IT
strategy, planning, and innovative solution architecture for new products, customer service,
infrastructure, and unified business communication systems. Since 2009, he has spearheaded efforts to transform
WellPoint’s business vision, strategy, IT operations, products, services, processes, using disruptive technology
innovation. These innovative new products/services and clinical/customer service systems support WellPoint ecosystem
of ~40,000 associates, ~35M customers, and hundreds of thousands of business partners/providers.
Transformation to Smart and Connected Healthcare,
Presented by Errol C. Millington, IT Principal – User Enabling Capabilities –
Architecture, Cigna
Biography: Errol Millington has overall 19 years’ experience in information technology.
Current Errol has spent the last five years at Cigna responsible for end user capabilities
leading strategy around endpoints and collaboration tools for the enterprise. Errol also
supports innovation teams with specific focus on the endpoint and collaboration tools.
Prior to Cigna, Errol spent eight years with CIBC managing telecommunications
technologies and instrumental in introducing real time collaboration tools with SIP protocols
system with custom UI code for desktop collaboration. Errol has spent most of his career in
the financial sector as an engineer, implementing and managing PBX and carrier
technologies working with Williams Communications, Intecom and various other companies. Errol has a bachelor’s
degree in Network Management from DeVry University and a master’s degree in
Strategic Communications and Leadership from Seton Hall University.