July 30th, 2020

James began his career in ‘non-traditional’ brand strategy. Working at a series of Marketing and Communication agencies in and around New York City. Through his professional experience he has built a combination of technical understanding and conceptual creativity to craft effective, measurable programs for clients and brands such as New Balance, Atari and Mercedes-Benz.  Currently, James is the Director and Head of Social Studio, leading a team of digital content strategist, creative designers, producers and video editors within The LEGO Group’s internal creative agency.

James was born in London, England and spent his childhood living between New Jersey and the UK, before coming to college in the US. James holds a bachelor’s in fine arts, from Syracuse University.

Brandi Boatner is the social and influencer communications lead for Global Markets in IBM corporate communications in New York City. In this newly created position, her responsibilities include developing a consistent, coordinated approach to identify top external influencers in each global market and how internal IBM influencers drive engagement around strategic narratives such as Blockchain, artificial intelligence, and quantam computing. Brandi is a true advocate for diversity and inclusion serving as a member of IBM’s Diversity and Inclusion Council and also served as the former chair of the IBM Black Network of New York business resource group.

Carmen Shirkey Collins is the Senior Social Media and Brand Manager for the Cisco award-winning Employee/r Brand team that you’ll find behind the @WeAreCisco social media accounts. She created the strategy behind making personal connections with current and future talent by amplifying the employee voices in Cisco’s 70K-person organization.

Carmen was named the 2020 Digital Communicator of the Year, a 2020 Top Woman in PR, the Social Media Professional of the Year four years in a row, and her team was named the 2020 Digital Team of the Year. You can find her @cshirkeycollins on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. When she’s not enjoying the Florida weather with her husband and ‘fur-kid” cat.

Innovation Strategist and Design Researcher who strongly believes in the power of solid research and visual storytelling techniques. She has helped companies from the Tribune Companies, AT&T, to McDonald’s and now at Facebook shape their future landscape by taking the research from just abstract numbers to involving company stakeholders in the world of their customers. She lives to understand users and to design beautiful and useful experiences, services and products, and has a thorough understanding of the value visual storytelling has to building a brand within a business and consumer context. She is also an educational product developer that has created over 400 products for the top 3 educational publishers and has authored her own award-winning series of children’s books for the pre-kindergarten dual language market.

Peter works on LinkedIn’s Brand Strategy Team, helping LinkedIn’s largest clients and their agencies develop best-in-class B2B marketing strategies.

Candace has been at Google since 2012 working with businesses of all verticals and sizes developing, implementing, and managing strategic advertising and marketing plans. Prior to coming to Google, her expertise was in Integrated Media Planning with a focus on digital at various ad agencies in the NY area. In addition to Digital Media and Business Development, Candace is passionate about teaching and positively impacting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion inside and outside of Google. Fun Fact: Candace was a professional singer for quite some time and even had the opportunity to perform at Madison Square Garden!

Curtis is the Brand Building Social Strategy Lead for the Kroger Company based in Cincinnati, Ohio. In this role, he drives the strategic direction for the overall social program at Kroger to ensure it delivers against key business and consumer objectives, connects with the overall Marketing Plan/key campaigns, and grows brand equity.

Experience.

Curtis has nearly two decades of combined experience in marketing, communications and digital strategy. He is a highly regarded brand strategist and social media expert who has led the social engagement efforts for a range of organizations including Southwest Airlines, The American Red Cross and The Society of Human Resource

Management (SHRM). His expertise has been featured in a range of media outlets including: Forbes.com, The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC.com, TheNextWeb.com, and Mashable.com.

Curtis serves on the Advisory Board of the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum and the Mayor’s Smart City Tech Task Force in Seat Pleasant Maryland.

With experience in social media for multiple Fortune 500 companies, Jamie wholeheartedly believes all good strategies, from brand campaigns to influencer marketing to employee advocacy, rely on connecting the audience, the brand and the platform. Currently, she uses this perspective to develop processes, programs and content that encourage United Airlines’ employees to be savvier on social media. Her employee influencer program in particular has been highlighted by the Chicago Tribune, but she is most proud of the fact that the group of creators has truly become a community of support and knowledge-sharing. It goes without saying that Jamie has a passion for travel, which she uses to both enjoy nature and find the best local foods. You can follow along her adventures on Instagram at @suchjam, on Twitter at @jamienrutter and on LinkedIn.

Cass (Oryl) Bailey is the president and CEO of Slice Communications, an agency in Philadelphia with fully dedicated public relations and social media teams that provides clients with actionable content and data-oriented approaches. She believes that integrated public relations and social media efforts are vital to accomplishing business goals when looking to grow and expand awareness of a company.

Cass brings a wide variety of experiences to the communications strategies she develops for the firm’s clients. With a background in international politics, economics, and philosophy, communications has become her passion and she has been tapped by various industry associations and the media to share her insights and experiences in the field.

Before founding Slice, Cass was a senior account executive at one of the top public relations agencies in the northeast region. She began her career at Ketchum Public Relations in Washington, DC, and has also held positions with the Honorable Mark Oaten, Member of Parliament for Winchester; the Tory Party in the United Kingdom; and New Economy Strategies.

She is deeply involved with her community, serving as Chair of the Board for Tree House Books, Secretary of the Board for Hopeworks ‘N Camden, and member of the Red Cross Philadelphia Leadership Council. Cass graduated from The Catholic University of America with a degree in international politics, economics and philosophy.

Tracey is a sought-after expert, advisor, and advocate for women in technology.  She is co-founder and CMO of Philadelphia-based software consulting firm Chariot Solutions and founder of TechGirlz.

Tracey is a frequent commenter on women in technology-related careers, and advises a number of leading companies on their STEM programs. She has shared insights and solutions from the stage at SXSW, as a contributor to Forbes, and as a speaker at the Philadelphia Women’s March.

She is also the Founder of Emerging Technologies for the Enterprise Conference, Women in Tech Summit, and Founder Factory.

Tracey began her career in retail management and advertising sales, before acquiring child transportation company KangaKab and expanding it to Pennsylvania.  In addition to leading the branding and marketing strategy for Chariot, she helped grow the company 5x since its launch. Tracey is a founding board member of Philadelphia Startup Leaders, board member for Creating IT Futures and WXPN, and an advisor for startups Rec Philly and Jenzy.

Ayanna Haskins, MBA, is the founder and president of Datcher Group, an information security company that identifies and manage risks to businesses by working with business and technology leaders. 

Ayanna has experience working in a wide variety of industries, including government, Fortune 500 companies, and more.  Her experience in information technology includes information security, compliance, SAP ERP, and enterprise infrastructure.  In addition to founding Datcher Group, Ayanna previously worked with TE Connectivity as the Director of Strategic Capabilities & Solutions and for Merck as the Director of IT Planning & Innovation.  

Ayanna graduated from Drexel University with an MBA, concentration finance and from Hampton University with a degree in marketing.

Sheryl Kantrowitz, originally from North Jersey, studied art as an undergrad and landed her first job at an advertising agency in the creative department and immediately fell in love with the industry.

Make friends. Seek out mentors. Meet your idols whenever possible.

Sheryl spent 10 years honing her skills in advertising agencies and branding consultancies in Philadelphia and NYC before beginning her current role as an Assistant Professor of Advertising at Temple University. Sheryl continues to work as a brand strategy and user experience design consultant. 

You are the most important tool you need to do good work.

Three things Sheryl feels are most important for success is having empathy, leadership skills, and the ability to understand overarching business objectives. Sheryl’s goals today include sharpening young advertising professionals’ skills and contributing positively to her community.

Candice Adams is the Director of Corporate Communications at NRG Energy, a Fortune 500 integrated power company that’s working to bring the power of energy to people and organizations. With nearly 15 years of experience, Candice has advanced sophisticated corporate communications and marketing programs for start-ups and Fortune 500 enterprises. In her role at NRG, she leads corporate communications and content as well as executive thought leadership. Proficient at achieving mission-critical organizational objectives, fostering positive change, and enhancing brand credibility, Candice has played an integral role in the company’s recent transformation. Candice also serves as marketing chair for PRSA tri-state and NRG’s board chair with socialmedia.org.

Kate is an eight-plus year veteran of the Tourism and Hospitality industry within the Philadelphia region specializing in all forms of digital marketing, customer relationship management, and communications. In her current full-time role, Kate oversees all digital content output for Visit Bucks County, the official tourism promotion agency of Bucks County, PA. Digital outlets include visitbuckscounty.com, digital advertising campaigns, electronic communications, paid search and social media.

Only in her role for under a year, Kate has successfully introduced cutting-edge technological advances to the team, immersing VBC into geofence initiatives and social retargeting initiatives in addition to managing budgetary allocations and quantifying the return on investment. Combined, Kate has seen over 6 million impressions within a 3-month time-frame on social retargeting initiatives.

In addition, to date, Kate has successfully propelled social acquisition to visitbuckscounty.com up 177% YOY, and overall performance up by 25% in pageviews, 43% in sessions and new users up 40%.

Furthermore, Kate has introduced digital passports to Visit Bucks County as a method to increase and promote business partners and tourism to and within the county in the form of an Ale Trail and Sweet Spots app for iPhone and android. Seeing over 5,000 digital downloads within a 6-month time frame, coupled with 35,000-page views and over 1,000 t-shirt fulfillments processed. Each individual who digitally checks-in to 5 or more breweries within Bucks County receives a complimentary ale trail t-shirt as well as special offers and perks to stopping in to the breweries to provide them business. In addition, Kate created a relationship with UnTappd as a cross-promotional tool and another digitally-forward platform to promote relevant product on.

In her free time, Kate adjuncts for West Chester University, providing students a digitally-friendly look into marketing initiatives and strategies.

A two-time graduate (STHM ’12, MTHM ’18) of Temple University, Kate also proudly served as the 2018 Winter Commencement speaker, and has served on the STHM Alumni Association Board of Directors for the past 5 years. She is passionate about creating opportunities within the tourism spectrum to influence travelers from a digital standpoint.

Donald is a national award-winning analytics professional with 10+ years of experience developing data-driven strategies across consumer driven marketing and product launch strategies. As a respected leader of the analytics team, Donald can facilitate personal and professional growth throughout the teams and ensures accountability against client data and deliverables. He is an expert in connecting data science and analytics to actionable business strategies, innovating new ways to process and visualize data, and developing more efficient processes internally and externally for both client and internal team success. Donald is a Rutgers University graduate and a winner of DM News Top 40 under 40.

Nate Elliott is the founder and principal of Nineteen Insights, a marketing research and advisory firm that helps brands create great marketing programs and helps technology vendors build great products. For more than 20 years he’s shaped his industry and worked with every big online publisher, brand, and agency.

When it “goes down in the DM,” there’s a person at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health’s STD Control Program who is responsible for ensuring that condoms and other protective barriers are easily accessible for Philly’s teens and young adults — that person is Desarae Bradham. As the Communications and Policy Coordinator, she promotes and markets two of the condom distribution programs through social media.

Recently, she joined the COVID-19 communications team and runs the Philly Health Department’s Public Health Twitter account to relay COVID-19 information and messages to Philadelphia residents. Her methods include using pop culture, multiple languages, and occasionally “Philly Slang” to help get these messages across.

Desarae received her Master’s of Public Health degree last year and enjoys traveling.

Brian Kotloff is Director of Social Media at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. A Penn grad, he spent seven years working in the sports content world, including five as a member of the NBA’s digital and social team, before making the move to higher ed.

Jimmy White IV is a South Philadelphia native who passionately seeks to make a positive impact for youths and veterans locally and nationally through collaborations with organizations such as We The People Stage, Year Up, the Weekly Fight and the Travis Manion Foundation.

He is an Operation Iraqi War veteran who served on broad the fast attack submarine USS Montpelier as a nuclear electrician. He was awarded several honors as a service member including three Navy Achievement medals and the title of Junior Sailor of the Year for his dedication and his outstanding performance.

Jimmy is a dedicated business professional who has rose through the ranks of the Facilities Management profession starting as an entry level maintenance mechanic to senior leadership advancing to the position as a Global Operation Manager. He is currently a member of the property management team for the Comcast Technology Center as the Operations Manager which is occupied by Comcast, NBC 10 Studios and Four Seasons hotel & restaurants.

He is a passionate speaker who presents to audiences on the topics of character, leadership, professional/personal development and living a life of purpose. He is a husband and father of three amazing children, Jim-Jim, Jo-Jo and Jack-Jack. He is a minister and youth department president at the Prophetic Church of Christ in South Philadelphia.

In 2018, he was awarded the Travis Manion Foundation “If Not Me, Then Who” award in recognition of his work honoring the life of Chris Hixson who heroically passed away confronting the shooter during the Parkland School shooting. Through partnership, with Chris Hixon’s son (Thomas Hixon), they inspired students through leadership presentations exemplifying Chris Hixon’s character, bravery and service to other.

Laura Bucher is the customer storyteller at DonorPerfect. Her passion for philanthropy and writing initially gained momentum in her experience with social work and has quite naturally developed into her current role, interviewing the changemakers that make up the nonprofit sector and sharing their stories to inspire the fundraising success of others.

DonorPerfect is an online fundraising software solution designed for the important work nonprofit organizations accomplish every day, built on over 30 years of fundraisers’ input. DonorPerfect’s Communications and Marketing team strives to produce timely and relevant fundraising content to equip nonprofits with the information and tools they need to surpass their fundraising goals.

Sarah is a dynamic, award-winning communications professional known for sharp skills and expertise in digital marketing, corporate communication and social engagement. And for building high-performing teams. With more than a decade of experience in corporate and agency careers, she designs and executes communications strategies that advance business goals, strengthen brand reputation and reach customers or targeted audiences where they are online. Today, Sarah leads the Social Media Center of Excellence at Cigna, a Fortune 13 company. The global function goal is to advance digital expertise and social media execution across the enterprise – from governance, process and people to strategy, measurement and technology.

Bechara is the CEO and co-founder of Philly Marketing Labs. PML is a Google Premier Partner, Inc. 5000 and 4 times Philly 100 fastest growing digital marketing agency. PML works with companies seeking accelerated growth to adapt, engage and thrive in the digital marketplace. Whether it’s YouTube, paid search, search engine optimization, website design, conversion optimization, content strategy or more, Philly Marketing Labs works as an extension of your team, helping you with strategy, implementation and ongoing consulting. PML combines the science of analytics with a unique human element to deliver marketing strategies and results that exceed your business needs.

Chris is the Co-Founder and President of InnerView, a marketing consulting firm that helps companies align their brand and product stories with their customer-facing teams. At InnerView, Chris draws from his nearly 20 years of sales, marketing and corporate leadership to help companies engage their frontline teams in new ways, producing improved customer experiences and better financial results.

Beyond his work with clients, Chris is able to apply his passions as a teacher and thought leader. He has taught as an adjunct MBA professor at Temple’s Fox School of Business and has been published in outlets such as Harvard Business Review and Ad Age. He was also recently named to the Forbes Agency Council. Chris received a B.A. in Public Relations from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School and an MBA from Temple University. He lives outside Philadelphia with his family.

Kathleen Hayn joined Slice Communications as a Public Relations Account Manager. In her five years of agency life, her client roster has spanned from higher-ed to consumer-product goods and she has hustled to get brands and company leadership recognized in top-tier publications such as CNN, NBC News, Time Magazine, ESPN, and The Washington Post.

After graduating from St. John’s University, Kathleen had a brief stint in the NYC event planning world before realizing her real passion was in PR and her hometown of Philadelphia.

When she’s not in the office, you’ll find her at a concert around the city or cheering on her Philly sports teams (and Liverpool Football Club).

With a passion for creating and a love for people, Jourdan Guyton unites the two to produce vital content for her generation.

After a successful first season on Youtube and the festival circuit, Jourdan and her co-creator sold the second season of their web series Two Grown, to BET Networks in 2019. She served as a lead actor and executive producer in the series. 

In the spring of 2020 Jourdan launched Vera Jean Media, a boutique agency specializing in production, content strategy, and social media marketing. Her true passion is helping others and creating exceptional content.

Sarah Marshall is the Director of Marketing and Communications for The Quell Foundation, a nonprofit whose mission is to create a paradigm shift in the care and treatment of those living with a mental health illness. Her duties include implementing the marketing and communications outreach around the foundation as well as for the documentary “Lift the Mask – Portraits of Life with Mental Illness.”

Prior to her work with The Foundation, Marshall served as the Communications Manager for USRowing, the national governing body for the sport of rowing in the U.S., managing content and press coverage around domestic and international rowing events which included the 2016 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Marshall has also spent time in the athletic departments at Villanova University, Murray State University and The Ohio State University as a media relations assistant in sports information.

Marshall received her degree in Strategic Communications in 2013 from The Ohio State University, where she was on the Women’s Rowing Team. She lives in Philadelphia, Pa. and is originally from New Philadelphia, Ohio.

Julia comes to USGBC after having spent 3+ years operating her own café/restaurant in Ithaca, NY. The original farm-to-table (and zero waste) business concept grew out of a passion for local goods and consumer accessibility interests. Due to the latter, her skills in digital marketing strategy grew, which is what brought her to the marketing and communications team here, in DC. With a background in journalism – which includes publications with In These Times, Ms., and Philadelphia Inquirer – she brings a polished set of writing and editing skills for professional purposes. She is a 2009 graduate of Ithaca College, and volunteers as a hotline counselor for domestic violence and sexual assault.

Kathy is a digital accessibility expert who has been working in the field of accessibility since 2001. As an invited expert of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group, W3C Mobile Accessibility Task Force, and the WCAG 2.0 Evaluation Methodology Task Force, she contributes to the development of new accessibility standards, guidelines, techniques and methodologies.

Most recently Kathy has been leading the W3C Mobile Accessibility task force, which is defining the accessibility requirements for small screen devices and touch interfaces that are part of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 standards.

Kathy helps companies understand accessibility requirements and provides them with accessibility assessments, support, and strategy for ADA, WCAG, and Section 508 compliance. As a recognized accessibility expert, Kathy is a frequent speaker at conferences educating people on the importance of accessibility and has provided accessibility training for many corporations, government agencies and universities.

She grew up with a parent who is hard-of-hearing and she watched a cousin with Down Syndrome go through the trials and tribulations of public school. These experiences, along with working at a camp for kids with disabilities, greatly influenced her decision to enter the field of accessibility. After college a mutual friend introduced her to John Slatin, who, at that time, was working on WCAG 1.0 standards. He was looking for volunteers to help conduct user testing with students with disabilities to figure out techniques for accessibility and to help with the development of the standards. She soon got involved with Knowbility and started promoting accessibility, working alongside Jim Thatcher for many years. Both Jim Thatcher and John Slatin were her mentors.