2023 Pittsburgh Women in Leadership Symposium
March 30, 2023
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM (ET)
Theme
Rising in Resilience: Achieving Empowerment through Advancement & Adaptability
Sponsored By
Panelists
Love
Since 1998, Kim Love has served in various capacities at InVision Human Services, a company serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, settling into her current position of Chief Executive Officer in 2022. Kim has responsibility for internal operations, including facilitating the development and implementation of the company’s strategic direction, which includes a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Throughout her career, Kim has been a strong believer in and advocate for not only supporting people of all abilities to find their voice, but equally as important, for others to listen. She has helped to create an environment at InVision wherein the people receiving services are the most important part of the team and are viewed as the experts on their lives, their needs, and their dreams. At InVision, teams and services are built around people to help them live their most meaningful lives. Kim holds a bachelor of arts in psychology from Point Park University, as well as a master of arts in Psychology from Duquesne University. She has served on multiple boards of directors for non-profit organizations throughout the years.
Ross
Dr. Kendra Janelle Ross is the Head of Social Impact at Duolingo. Before joining Duolingo, she served as an Assistant Professor of Sports, Arts, and Entertainment Management at Point Park University, where she also completed a PhD in Community Engagement. A proud graduate of Pittsburgh Public Schools, she holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Business and Technology from New York University and master's degrees from Brooklyn College/CUNY and The New School for Social Research. Dr. Ross spent two decades in New York City, working both on stage and behind the scenes in the entertainment industry. For over a decade, she managed label operations for Universal Music Group, the world's leading music company. Dr. Ross is a veteran songwriter, vocalist, and producer who has recorded with several renowned artists. Since returning to Pittsburgh in 2014, she has been an active member of Pittsburgh’s arts scene. Dr. Ross serves as the co-chair of #ArtsInHD, a collective of creatives in the historic Hill District community, and is one of the architects of Unisound's Black Teaching Artist-In-Residence program through her firm ACT3 Consulting Partners. Mayor Ed Gainey recently appointed Dr. Ross to the Regional Asset District Board.
Villabos
Veronica Villalobos is the Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and the Center for Health and Racial Equity at the Highmark Health/Allegheny Health Network’s (AHN) Enterprise Institute for Equitable Health. She strives to build a more diverse and inclusive workforce, to ensure clinical programs are accessible to all, and to address health disparities among patients, members and customers. She is responsible for the execution of all aspects of the enterprise DEI Strategic Plan, as well as strategic initiatives related to the Highmark Health Equity Campaign to include establishing AHN as a hub of world-class health equity research. Veronica formerly worked at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and was selected for the Senior Executive Service in 2010. Veronica spearheaded the first government-wide D&I; effort for a workforce of 2.1 million, serving as the first Director of OPM's Office of Diversity and Inclusion. In that role, she led efforts and met the government’s goal of hiring over 100,000 employees with disabilities within 5 years to enable agencies to better meet their missions. Through her efforts, the Federal Government implemented the first Government-wide D&I; Strategic Plan, resulting in the historically highest level of employment of women and minorities in the workforce with an increase of 10.4 percent in the Senior Executive Service over 4 years. Before joining OPM, Veronica worked at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), as one of the agency's first Honor Program Attorneys. During her time there, she chaired the EEOC’s Work Group on Hispanic Underrepresentation in the Federal Workforce. Veronica graduated from Saint Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana, and earned her law degree from American University’s Washington College of Law. She is a member of the Maryland Bar and serves on the Boards of the American Association of People with Disabilities; the Epilepsy Association of Western Central Pennsylvania; the Bender Leadership Institute; and the Latino Community Center.
White
Ashli White is Vice President, Program Manager on the Diversity Pipeline & Programs team for emerging talent at BNY Mellon. In this role, she manages diversity recruiting, programming, and conferences for early career talent with a focus on technology. Before this role, Ashli served as the Global Summer Analyst Program Manager, overseeing the firm’s internship program in the US, EMEA and APAC region. Ashli has a passion for creating equity and opportunity for underserved populations, as well as serving as an advocate for mental health. In her spare time, she serves as a mentor for PA Women Work, as well as volunteering for Literacy Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Promise. In November 2022, she was elected to the board of Hope Grows, a non-profit with an objective to provide advocacy and assistance for caregivers. She also is an active member of the Vibrant Pittsburgh Next Generation Council, a group of professional millennials with a focus on providing an inclusive community for BIPOC talent in Pittsburgh. Ashli also serves a leader for BNY Mellon IMPACT, a multicultural business resource group aimed at supporting the recruitment, advancement, and retention of employees in the Pittsburgh region. In addition to her volunteer efforts, Ashli was selected by BNY Mellon to participate in the 2022-23 Leadership Development Initiative cohort through Leadership Pittsburgh. Ashli received a Bachelor’s in Advertising from Temple University and a Master of Human Resource Management from Penn State University. In her spare time, she enjoys biking, nature walks, travel, reading, writing, and creating mixed media art. She lives in downtown Pittsburgh.
Woodard
Adrienne Woodard is the head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) for Covestro LLC. In this role, she is responsible for developing and implementing the DEI strategy across the company’s U.S. organization with the goal of providing current and future employees with a workplace that is accepting, supportive and equitable. Prior to Covestro, Woodard spent over 20 years in the transportation industry, where she gained progressive, multi-disciplinary human resources experience that included roles in DEI as well as recruitment, employee relations and affirmative action. Her passion for listening to employees’ perspectives informs a broad view of the topics that are the most critical to a workforce, which she has used to effectively develop data-driven DEI strategies across large organizations. During her first year at Covestro, Woodard both led and contributed to key process implementation and collaboration projects in the U.S. and globally, resulting in the expansion of Employee Resource Groups, inclusion of DEI metrics in employee surveys, expanded educational opportunities and reimagined DEI communication programs, all while using a data driven approach. Woodard holds a degree in Psychology from the Ohio State University. She resides in Moon Township with her son and daughter.
Moderator
Dine
Mona Dine is an accomplished Human Resources leader with over 20 years of experience. As a talent management leader across a variety of industries, her expertise is utilized to develop impactful leaders, create engaging environments and promote talent practices that drive performance and business results. Mona currently leads Talent Management and Corporate Human Resources at US Steel. She has worked in senior level Human Resources roles at Kennametal, HarbisonWalker International, PNC, and Robert Morris University. Mona holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Michigan and a Master’s degree specializing in Career Development from the Ohio State University. Mona holds certifications as a Professional Certified Coach (ICF); Senior Professional in Human Resources (HRCI); Senior Certified Professional (SHRM); Organizational Development Certified Professional (ODCP); and Fostering Inclusion & Diversity (Yale University). Mona functions as a Corporate Advisory Committee member and Mentor for PA Women Work. She also volunteers for the National Diversity Council and the March of Dimes. Mona serves as the Chair for the Diversity and Inclusion Forum for Vibrant Pittsburgh. She is a frequent speaker and panel member on topics addressing leadership development and enhancing diversity and inclusion within organizations.
Awardee
Russo-Long
Nayli Russo-Long is a business executive, strategist, and leadership coach. She is currently the Vice President of People and Strategy for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Owner and Lead Coach for Inner Power, LLC. In her role as VP of People & Strategy for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Mrs. Russo-Long focuses on improving the organization's overall performance by identifying key strategic priorities, developing, and executing business strategies, leading diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, and building high-performing teams in a collaborative, inclusive, and people-centered culture. Before joining the Pirates, Nayli worked for 14 years in the healthcare industry, starting as a pharmacist before moving her way to management. Her most recent role was with Highmark, Inc. as the president's Chief of Staff. Mrs. Russo-Long is passionate about helping organizations and ambitious women build effective strategies to go after what they want with clarity, courage, confidence, and commitment. Her experience as an immigrant, high-performing executive, and entrepreneur has given Mrs. Russo-Long a clear perspective on what it takes to succeed and why most people plateau or burn out without reaching their full potential. Her work and experience have helped her identify the traits, habits, and qualities companies and high achievers have in common that lead them to perform at their peak and achieve world-class results consistently. She developed the Pittsburgh Pirate's first leadership academy and Inner Power LLC's signature coaching program, High Performer Bootcamp, which is focused exclusively on Women's Empowerment and Growth. Mrs. Russo-Long holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and a Master's degree in Business Administration. She is also a certified leadership coach and public speaker. She advocates for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and believes that representation and diversity of thought at all levels make companies and nations thrive and flourish. She is passionate about creating a better world for the next generation and using her voice, position, and influence to elevate and support those less fortunate. A native of Venezuela, Nayli Russo-Long moved to the United States in 2007. As the only female on her youth baseball team, Mrs. Russo-Long now combines her passion for baseball and her high-performance framework to unlock individual and group performance and achieve desired outcomes.