2014 USBLN® 17th Annual National Conference Keynote Biographies
The USBLN® would like to thank our esteemed 2014 Keynote Presenters:
Keith P. Wiedenkeller, SPHR
Chief People Officer, AMC Theatres (Retired)
President & CEO, Humane Society of Greater Kansas City
Chair, US Business Leadership Network (USBLN)
Jill Houghton
Executive Director,
US Business Leadership Network (USBLN)
Steve Pemberton
Chief Diversity Officer, Walgreens
The Honorable Kathy Martinez
Assistant Secretary, Office of Disability Employment Policy,
U.S. Department of Labor
Apoorva N. Gandhi
Vice President, Multicultural Affairs,
Marriott International, Inc.
Marketplace Track Chair
Belinda Reed Shannon
Vice President, Equality & Inclusion,
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
Workplace Track Chair
Jenny Lay-Flurrie
Senior Director, Trusted Experience Team
(TExT), Microsoft
Board Member, US Business Leadership
Network (USBLN)
Joyce A. Bender
Founder & CEO, Bender Consulting Services,
Inc.
Disability-Owned Business Enterprise (DOBE®)
Host Committee Chair
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
Cindy Ulven
President & CEO, Accelerated Engraving &
Signage, LLC (AES)
Patricia K. Graves
President & Founder, Caption First, Inc.
Jack D. Smith
President, Charlotte International Partners
Andy Houghton
Principal & CEO, Integrated Global Strategies
(IGS)
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
KEITH P. WIEDENKELLER
Chief People Officer, AMC Theatres, (AMC) (Retired)
President & CEO, Humane Society of Greater Kansas City
Chair, US Business Leadership Network® (USBLN®)
Keith P. Wiedenkeller is the recently retired Chief People Officer for AMC
Theatres. In this role, he was responsible for all aspects of human resources,
including recruitment, diversity, training, organizational development, compensation & benefits,
recognition, community relations, change management, cultural communication, and employee & labor
relations.
Wiedenkeller started in "the movie business" as an usher in 1975. He began his career with AMC as a
manager in 1985, working his way up through various operations, training and human resources roles
before being named to his HR leadership role in 2002.
During his tenure at AMC, Wiedenkeller has been instrumental in developing and implementing
numerous ground-breaking initiatives, including AMC's FOCUS outreach program for employing youth
with disabilities. His efforts have earned the company recognition from many sources, including "Best
Employer" from the Missouri Governor's Council on Disability and the US Business Leadership Network,
a consistent 100% rating from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, as well as "Best
Place to Work" awards from Ingram's Magazine and the Kansas City Business Journal.
Wiedenkeller earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and is a
certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). He currently serves as past-president and
founding member of the Business Leadership Network of Greater Kansas City and chairs the Board of
Directors of the US Business Leadership Network. His insights on human resources have been regularly
featured in Film Journal International magazine. He is also a top-ranked speaker, presenting on HR
topics at numerous local, state and national seminars and conferences, most recently at IBM's annual
world conference in Orlando, Florida.
Wiedenkeller recently made the transition from the corporate to non-profit world by taking on the role
of President & CEO of the Humane Society of Greater Kansas City, the area's oldest and most
comprehensive animal welfare non-profit group. He currently resides in the Kansas City area with his
wife of 30 years, and "way too many" dogs.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
JILL HOUGHTON
Executive Director, US Business Leadership Network (USBLN)
Jill Houghton was appointed as the Executive Director of the US
Business Leadership Network (USBLN) in October 2011 after serving
as the Interim Executive Director for 10 months. The USBLN is a
national non-profit that helps business drive performance by
leveraging disability inclusion in the workplace, supply chain, and marketplace. The USBLN
serves as the collective voice of nearly 50 Business Leadership Network affiliates across the
United States, representing over 5,000 businesses.
Additionally, the USBLN Disability Supplier Diversity Program® (DSDP) is the nation's leading third party
certification program for disability-owned businesses, including businesses owned by service-disabled
veterans.
Ms. Houghton has over 24 years of diverse leadership experience at the federal, state and local levels to
advance the employment and economic self-sufficiency of all people with disabilities. Most recently, Jill
served as the Executive Director of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Advisory Panel from
February 2005 until its legislative sunset in January, 2008. The bi-partisan Panel was comprised of twelve
private citizens and was housed independently within the Social Security Administration in Washington
D.C. The Panel's charge was to advise the President, Congress and the Commissioner of Social Security
on the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program and issues related to work incentives programs,
planning and assistance for individuals with disabilities.
Ms. Houghton is a graduate of the University of Kansas and served as an intern for Senator Robert J.
Dole in the United States Senate. Ms. Houghton currently serves on the board for the United States
International Council on Disabilities (USICD).
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
STEVE PEMBERTON
Chief Diversity Officer and Divisional Vice-President, Walgreens
Steve Pemberton is a Child Advocate, Motivational Speaker & Author of A
Chance In The World (Thomas Nelson, 2012). He currently serves as the
Chief Diversity Officer and Divisional Vice-President for Walgreens, living a
very different life than the one initially envisioned for him. He has become
recognized as one of the nation's leaders on matters of diversity and
inclusion and its importance to the growth of the American industrial
complex. In 2006, Fortune named Steve Pemberton one of the Top 20 Chief Diversity Officers in
corporate America. In 2007, Steve was called to Capitol Hill to provide expert testimony on best
practices in diversity recruiting and in 2008 he was named by Savoy as one of The Top 100 most
influential African-Americans in corporate America.
A ward of the state for much of his childhood, Steve has made opportunity, access and equality pillars of
his personal and professional life. He is recognized as one of America's most inspiring executives. His
unconventional journey to corporate America has had a profound influence on the lives of others,
inspiring young people and teaching professionals and care givers what is possible when you overcome
tragedy and become more than your circumstance. A Chance In The World: An Orphan Boy, a
Mysterious Past, and How He Found a Place Called Home (Thomas Nelson), is Steve's riveting
autobiography that chronicles his difficult path through foster care and determined search for his family.
It is an inspirational story that crosses generations and cultures, but specifically speaks to those who
have had the odds stacked against them. His relentless journey to overcome, find his biological family,
and right the wrongs of his parents' past, is a model for all children to follow. His powerful story has
been featured by People Magazine, The Boston Banner, The Boston Herald, Crain's Chicago Business,
Chronicle News Magazine, and multiple news networks across the country.
Steve currently serves on several boards including The Home for Little Wanderers and UCAN to provide
guidance and inspiration to children in need. The Pemberton Fund For The Future has been established
in his name at The Home For Little Wanderers to assist children aging out of the foster care system.
Steve is a graduate of Boston College. He is married and has three children.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
THE HONORABLE KATHY MARTINEZ
Assistant Secretary, Office of Disability Employment Policy
U.S. Department of Labor
As Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy, Kathy
Martinez leads the Department's Office of Disability Employment Policy
(ODEP) and advises the U.S. Secretary of Labor and internal agencies on
how departmental regulations and policies impact people with disabilities.
In ODEP, she oversees strategic planning and performance management for
a number of policy initiatives to increase opportunities for people with disabilities to prepare for and
succeed in employment. As part of this, Ms. Martinez established a logic model and identified
corresponding metrics that are used to assess ODEP's progress towards its goal of improving the
number and quality of job opportunities for people with disabilities in America's labor force.
Among ODEP's chief policy accomplishments during Ms. Martinez's tenure is assisting the
department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs in developing and enacting new rules
designed to strengthen Federal contractors' responsibilities to hire, retain and advance qualified
people with disabilities under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Under her leadership,
ODEP also played a critical role in President Barack Obama's July 2010 Executive Order directing all
federal agencies to increase the representation of people with disabilities in their workforces. As part
of this, she oversaw the development of eFedLink, a first-of-its-kind online community of practice that
facilitates the exchange of information and ideas about disability employment among federal hiring
managers and human resources personnel.
Ms. Martinez has also led ODEP in putting policy priorities into practice through several innovative
grant programs. These include Add Us In, through which consortia nationwide are working to increase
the capacity of small businesses to employ people with disabilities, and the Employment First State
Leadership Mentor Program, through which several states are receiving support to promote
community-based, integrated employment as the primary outcome for people with significant
disabilities. Since arriving at ODEP, she has also brought an increased focus to the intersecting issues of
technology and disability employment, engaging industry partners and employers in an effort to open
virtual doors for people with disabilities.
Under Ms. Martinez's leadership, ODEP also launched the award-winning Campaign for Disability
Employment, a national, multi-organization public awareness initiative that educates about the value
and talent people with disabilities bring to America's workplaces and economy. This integrated
campaign has produced two television public service announcements (PSAs), "I Can" and "Because,"
both which challenge common myths and misconceptions about the expectations and job skills of
people with disabilities. Together, these PSAs have garnered millions of dollars in earned media
airtime.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
Prior to being nominated by the President in 2009, Ms. Martinez was Executive Director of the World
Institute on Disability, where she successfully managed a number of initiatives, among them Proyecto
Visión, a national technical assistance center to increase employment opportunities for Latinos with
disabilities in the U.S. She has also served on the National Council on Disability, the board of the U.S.
Institute of Peace, and the State Department's advisory committee on disability and foreign policy.
A graduate of San Francisco State University, Ms. Martinez speaks and publishes widely on an array of
topics related to disability employment, including the emergence of disability as an essential
component of workplace diversity and inclusion and the importance of expectation in ensuring youth
with disabilities grow up with an assumption of work — a topic on which Ms. Martinez, who herself
was born blind, offers compelling and personal perspective.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
APOORVA N. GANDHI
Vice President, Multicultural Affairs, Marriott International, Inc.
Marketplace Track Chair
"I am excited to be part of this important team working to accomplish
business goals and to help position Marriott as a global diversity leader.
Diversity is the one thing that we all have in common and I am proud to
show how we at Marriott celebrate it every day."
As Vice President for Multi-Cultural Markets and Alliances for Marriott International, Apoorva Gandhi is
responsible for creating and executing an externally-focused global strategy that builds preference and
loyalty from diverse customer segments for the Marriott portfolio of brands. He helps ensure the
company's marketing, sales and operations consider and reflect multi-cultural markets and alliances as
Marriott continues its aggressive growth throughout the world.
Mr. Gandhi has nearly 20 years of proven strategy, business process, program management and
organizational change skills, leadership and delivery expertise. He also has extensive management and
delivery experience working with diverse business clients and a solid track record delivering measurable
success to clients across various business disciplines.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Gandhi was senior director for organizational capability where he led
the company's global reorganization program in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. He has held
other positions with Marriott, beginning as a front desk associate when he first completed college. He
also worked as vice president for global lodging services where he helped deliver critical brand
initiatives.
Before joining Marriott, Mr. Gandhi was a senior consulting manager in Accenture's Communications
and High Tech practice for more than a decade, where he managed merger and integration programs as
well as process reengineering efforts for large telecom clients. He also led diversity programs at
Accenture.
Mr. Gandhi is an honors graduate of the University of Maryland, School of Business and Management.
He is a member of the J.W. Marriott, Jr., Diversity Award committee, Delta Sigma Pi Business Fraternity
and Omicron Delta Kappa Leadership Society.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
BELINDA REED SHANNON
Vice President, Equality & Inclusion, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
Workplace Track Chair
Belinda Reed Shannon currently serves as Vice President, Equality & Inclusion for
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). Belinda heads the Equality & Inclusion Center of
Excellence, which builds the strategies, processes, interventions, programs and
policies that support the company's EEO, Affirmative Action and Diversity and
Inclusion efforts.
Belinda and her team work with leaders across the business to ensure employment practices are carried
out in a manner that is without bias and supports the company's desire to create a diverse and inclusive
workplace. Belinda formerly served as an attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the Office of Solicitor,
U.S. Department of Labor.
JENNY LAY-FLURRIE
Senior Director, Trusted Experience Team (TExT), Microsoft
Board Member, US Business Leadership Network (USBLN)
Jenny Lay-Flurrie is Senior Director of Trusted Experience Team (TExT), leading a
team focused on three important areas of Accessibility, Online Safety and
Privacy. Company wide mission to drive customer experience for customers
with disabilities, creating initiatives such as the Disability Answer Desk which
provides support to customers with disabilities. Also Chair of the 'DisAbility' group at Microsoft, an
employee resource group (affinity) focused on 'enabling people to be successful regardless of ability or
disability'.
Previously, Jenny spent 2 years building the new division in Microsoft focused on the Customer
Experience for Accessibility and 5 years leading the Advertising Support and Services (AdSS) organization
responsible for service and support of Microsoft Search Online Advertising Products (Bing / AdCenter).
Originally hired by Microsoft in London where she led the EMEA consumer support team for Customer
Service and Support (CSS).
Jenny was born in Birmingham, UK and spent much of childhood playing music, going onto gain a degree
in Music/Clarinet. Spent post college years in technology service and support sector, working for
companies including The Mirror Group, Energis (now Cable and Wireless) and T-Mobile. She lives in
Mercer Island, WA with her 6 year old daughter, partner Tom and cat 'Marmite'.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
JOYCE A. BENDER
Founder & CEO, Bender Consulting Services, Inc.
Disability-Owned Business Enterprise (DOBE®) Host Committee Chair
Joyce A. Bender is the founder and CEO of Bender Consulting Services,
Inc., a firm that recruits and hires people with disabilities in the public
and private sectors, who are trained in the information technology,
engineering, finance/accounting, human resources, and general
business areas. Joyce also incorporated Bender Consulting Services of
Canada, Inc. in 2001, a Canadian company that focuses on creating
competitive employment opportunities for Canadians with disabilities. Bender Consulting is
headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA and operates in 19 states in the U.S. and two provinces in Canada. A
USBLN certified DOBE since 2010, and successful business owner for more than 20 years, Joyce believes
that disability-owned and operated firms are business-savvy with strong capabilities and are ready to
compete in the business marketplace.
CINDY ULVEN
President & CEO, Accelerated Engraving & Signage, LLC (AES)
Cindy Ulven is the President and CEO of Accelerated Engraving & Signage,
LLC is a highly professional company specializing in delivering custom and
quality signage to meet the needs of our clients. We are a licensed ADA
compliant company and provide Braille and all types of signage for
commercial and public buildings. We also wholesale and retail
personalized engraved gifts and corporate awards to stores and businesses
throughout the U.S.
AES is located in western Minnesota and ship products national and international. We have
manufactured Braille signs for Government projects and the National Institute of the Blind.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
PATRICIA K. GRAVES
President & Founder, Caption First, Inc.
Patricia K. Graves is president and founder of Caption First, Inc., a company
that provides real time and offline media captioning for people with
hearing loss as well as for people whose Native language is not
English. With a history of business ownership that spans 25 successful
years, Patricia is a perfect example of how hard work and business acumen
allow small businesses to successfully compete in the marketplace,
regardless of disability.
Certified as a DOBE® by the USBLN® in 2012, headquartered in Colorado, and with employees and
independent contractors throughout the United States, Caption First serves people, corporations, and
organizations nationally and internationally.
JACK D. SMITH
President, Charlotte International Partners
Charlotte International Partners Inc. was established in 2003 by Jack D.
Smith, President. Charlotte International Partners is the exclusive US
partner for six of Europe's most respected commercial lighting
manufacturers and is responsible for the sales, marketing, logistics
and distribution of their products. With more than fourteen years'
experience with LED and driver technology, Charlotte International
Partners represents the world's largest commercial LED lighting manufacturer: I-LED, one of the Linea
Light Group companies from Italy. Combined with their other lighting factories, Charlotte International
Partners offers the largest selection of LED lighting in the USA with more than 26,000 unique products.
Their products are offered to the professional lighting industry by a network of the nation's leading
manufacturers reps covering all the major metropolitan areas. As the preferred lighting vendor of some
of the largest retail chains, CIP offers a vast selection of specialty lighting in all styles at factory direct
prices.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org
ANDY HOUGHTON
Principal & CEO, Integrated Global Strategies (IGS)
Integrated Global Strategies (IGS) was launched in 2012 by Andy
Houghton, Principal and CEO. Our company specializes in disability
awareness training and strategic communications, including the
production of visual media. This focus makes Integrated Global Strategies
a leading diversity supplier source for clients seeking communications and
marketing expertise and high quality media products and services
including: motion/video production; special effects and open and closed
captioning services at competitive prices. Specifically IGS helps clients establish quality
benchmarks/standards based on best practices and industry standards; create a replicable model that
can be applied enterprise wide; and link essential capabilities of nonprofit organizations to corporate
strategic sourcing initiatives.
© 2014 US Business Leadership Network. All rights reserved. www.usblnannualconference.org