Concentric Conference

Hackathons are a great way to foster a culture of innovation, enable employee engagement, explore ground-breaking technology, and deliver business results. Web Accessibility can often seem overwhelming and hard to understand. With Hackathons, you can invite your organization to participate in a hands-on learning environment where you can explore how technology can help solve for your customers with a broad spectrum of needs and abilities. Think of Accessibility Hackathons as an inclusive playground where everyone is invited to play, explore and have fun! Join us for this engaging and fun talk about how you can use Hackathons to drive innovation, inclusivity, and accessibility in the products you create for your customers!

Gayatri Kini is the Founder and CEO of The Accidental Ally, a social enterprise dedicated to creating a world where the internet is accessible to all regardless of their ability. Gayatri aspires to change the way we think about disability, the way we think about people with disabilities, the way we think about accessibility. Gayatri has spent the last 20 years working at amazing companies such as Apple, Intuit, and Visa building products that delight their customers. She is passionate about solving for humanity with technology, using her skills to contribute on a global scale to web accessibility and disability inclusion. Gayatri lives in Palo Alto with her husband, Sanjay, her two children, Riya and Rohan, and their labradoodle, Penny Lane.

Having accessibility an afterthought and testing at end of the delivery phase or on production sites can be expensive and unusable for many user groups. Shifting accessibility left into the design phase will help to bake accessibility into the product and avoid costly mistakes, like re-designing and re-developing products. In this session we will look at how an accessibility checklist can provide design support for small or large organizations.

Amy Li is a IAAP CPWA certified accessibility subject matter expert who is highly motivated to help make digital content that is accessible to all users. She has provided end-to-end product life-cycle consulting services to help organizations make their products accessible including, but not limited to websites, mobile applications, and software. Prior to entering the accessibility space, Amy taught graphic design and web development to under-served and underrepresented youth nonprofit organizations. She speaks 3 Chinese dialects and in her free time she likes to collect vinyl records and follow acrylic painting tutorials.

Joel Isaac has a genetic disorder that has caused him to gradually lose his eyesight for many years. He has worked as a full stack developer and accessibility specialist building products for some well-known retail, non-profit, and government institutions. Focused on holistic solutions, Joel understands issues in diversity, inclusion, and accessibility at a deep level based on his personal and career journey. Currently only able to perceive shadows, Joel guides clients in understanding the impact of accessibility and inclusion while helping to guide the implementation of scalable solutions to support both customers and enterprise needs.

Pia Zaragoza is a creative technologist, researcher, and educator exploring the current use cases and future possibilities of emerging technologies. Constantly tinkering and experimenting, her work is at the intersection of computer science, engineering, and the social sciences. She is the former Vice President of Accessibility Research and Insights at JP Morgan Chase. Currently, she is a UX Mentor at Springboard and a Presidential Innovation Fellow.

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Extended Reality technology allows us to break out of screens and use the entire space around a user to design their experience. This comes with a unique set of challenges. In this talk, I will discuss 1) how to shift your mindsets to start thinking in 3-dimensional space 2) the differences in the types of digital realities within the XR spectrum and 3) a basic overview of some of the UX best practices for XR.

Aleatha Singleton is an Immersive Tech UX Designer with over 22 years of experience designing solutions across multiple platforms including most recently, XR and future technology. She writes a Medium blog covering the foundational aspects of UX design for Extended Realities in a way that is understandable and actionable in the hopes that she can help push forward the UX design field within this technology landscape.

The way we work has changed. While organizations are increasingly realizing the benefits of being remote, the limitations and constraints of working together inside of video and audio conferences are also being noticed. Virtual worlds are finally at a point where they can be shared effectively and bring back some of the sense of presence and social interaction that can further enhance our productivity and connection with each other. In this talk we’ll explore the state of virtual world platforms today, advice on how to design shared virtual work spaces, and improve creative collaboration.

Jordan is a creative technologist and design educator that is passionate about finding innovative, human-centered solutions to hard problems that deliver value through research, data, and collaboration. He is an adjunct professor at the School of Art at George Mason University, and serves as the co-chair of the Defense & Intel Committee for the VR/AR Association, the president of the DC Chapter of UXPA. Previously, he led immersive design at U.Group, where he specialized in finding innovative applications through human-centered design with emerging technologies like augmented and virtual reality, IoT sensors, and spatial data. He also worked in user experience and digital strategy for the Department of Defense and United States Senate.

Let’s be honest, many large companies are more concerned with maintaining market share rather than disrupting anything. This is due to having unique requirements, budget constraints, and goals when it comes to utilizing emergent technology. These include being held to more stringent accessibility and privacy standards; large-scale marketing goals for brand awareness; and innovation lab research and development. This panel discussion will start with how corporate design teams can maneuver through these landscapes to deliver experiences that are centered squarely around users. However, we will veer widely into humanistic concepts of what it means to live a ‘mixed reality’ life to describe the importance of understanding your users’ full context. We hope to arm you with the tools and strategies to overcome the very real barriers you will face in the way of bias, bureaucracy, and backwards-facing progress.

Ube is driven to develop the next generation of designers, using his 20+ years of experience to inspire and unite teams with a shared purpose. He employs design methods to address real business challenges; be it business strategy, change management, or cultural development. He’s spent his career establishing and building UX processes and culture within large, complex organizations. Partnering across functional boundaries, his teams have established credibility by revealing customer insights, introducing innovative concepts and solutions, and consistently delivering high-quality solutions that real people use.

Elijah is new to the UX Design space, but brings 6+ years of experience across different industries and professions, as well as his passion for technology, magic, and history. A self-professed ‘TechnoWizard in training”, he is obsessed with creating technology that is empowering, inclusive, and magical.

From the perspective of a new designer and young person who wants to change the world, I won’t be talking about how to design for XR, but instead how I think about designing for our future. As we move towards a new ‘extended’ reality. We have to ask, ‘what reality are we extending and why?’ Alan Cooper talks a lot about ‘ancestor thinking’, the idea of not borrowing from the future, and trying to be the best ancestor for all humans thereafter. I find this especially poignant as we begin to create technology that claims to augment, create, mix, or extend our reality. In this talk, I will discuss how we can create a better future by learning from our prehistoric past.

Elijah will use most of the last half hour of his time for a panel Q&A.

Elijah is new to the UX Design space, but brings 6+ years of experience across different industries and professions, as well as his passion for technology, magic, and history. A self-professed ‘TechnoWizard in training”, he is obsessed with creating technology that is empowering, inclusive, and magical.

In this talk I relate the accessibility POUR mnemonic (Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, Robust) to the Content, Context, and Users framework for information architecture, as described in the book “Information Architecture for the Web” (the Polar Bear book). In the world of accessible design, Users come in all different levels of (dis)ability; depending on our Context we can all suffer situational disabilities; and therefore your Content needs to adapt.

Joshua Randall is a user experience designer with a passion for digital accessibility. He began his career as an I.T. business analyst, working for large corporations across industries including financial services, healthcare, and chemicals. Most recently he was the director of the design practice at an agency focused on business-to-business e-commerce, and Joshua’s next role will be as a product designer at RevLocal, which provides local digital marketing services to small businesses. Joshua holds a master’s degree in user experience design from Kent State University, serves as President of the board of the Cleveland chapter of the User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA), and he also co-organizes the Cleveland Accessibility Meetup (A11yCLE).

Information architecture isn’t just about sitemaps and wireframes. More of our transactions and social interactions are moving online every day, and IA is how we structure them to get things done. This short talk introduces the basics of IA so designers can generate more value for their organizations, their communities, and themselves.

Jorge Arango brings clarity and alignment to UX and systems design projects by using architectural thinking. Over the past twenty-five years, he has architected digital experiences and “made the complex clear” for all sorts of organizations, from non-profits to Fortune-500 corporations. He is the author of Living in Information: Responsible Design for Digital Places (Two Waves Books, 2018) and co-author of Information Architecture: For the Web and Beyond (O’Reilly Media, 2015). In addition to his design consulting practice, Jorge also writes a blog, hosts a podcast, and teaches systems design in the graduate interaction design program at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

We are all lifelong learners. How can you distinguish your education and professional efforts from others working in your field? Education and certifications are complimentary to one another.

• Educational courses and training are fixed programs that have an end point.
• Certifications are issued by an accrediting organization, are time limited, require ongoing professional development, and can be renewed.

Samantha (Sam) Evans, CAE, MBA, is the Certification Manager at the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP), a division of G3ict, where she works with accessibility subject matter experts and professionals around the world to maintain, build and deliver accessibility certification programs. Working within the international standards for certification and credentialing, Sam facilitates the work of IAAP and the accessibility community to establish benchmarks of knowledge, skills and concepts for the accessibility professional. Sam is also an active accessibility and inclusion advocate. Sam holds an MBA in Marketing and International Business from Kennesaw State University and has more than 20 years of experience in association management.

No other role at your company spends time and effort evangelizing themselves the way we do. Developers aren’t making PowerPoints to explain why it’s important to hire qualified developers and let them write code. QA isn’t holding meetings to teach everyone the importance of testing software. It’s just us and it’s making us look weird and whiny. It’s rarely working and sometimes backfiring. How do you get CX and UX buy-in or start leveling up your company’s maturity? This session will examine the pitfalls of evangelism and what actions we can take instead. We’ll look at how some of the popular methodologies we think are bringing everybody onto the CX bandwagon might be training co-workers on how little they need us. We’ll be focusing on hiring CX specialists, the role of managers and leadership, processes, workflows, tools, and improving collaboration between us and our cross-functional teammates. Most importantly, we’ll look at how to measure the ROI of CX. Without being able to prove our worth, we are unlikely to get a seat at the table or level up our company’s maturity.

Debbie Levitt, CXO of Delta CX, has been a CX and UX strategist, designer, and trainer since the 1990s. As a “serial contractor” who lived in the Bay Area for most of the 2010s, Debbie has influenced interfaces at Sony, Wells Fargo, Constant Contact, Macys.com, Etsy, and a variety of Silicon Valley startups. Clients have given her the nickname, “Mary Poppins,” because she flies in, improves everything she can, sings a few songs, and flies away to her next adventure. Her “DevOps ICU” book and training teach non-CX roles about CX, why it’s done by specialists, and how to integrate it into teams and processes. Her “Delta CX” book and training teach companies how to improve customer satisfaction, predict and mitigate business risk, and increase ROI by investing in great customer experiences. Outside of CX work, and sometimes during CX work, Debbie enjoys singing symphonic prog goth metal, opera, and New Wave.

This talk focuses on key points within education economics, like setting UX educational goals, selecting the right learning experience methodologies, budgeting for the journey, evaluating alignment, and making choices. Darren will also present his thoughts on UX education options, as well as how to identify and evaluate expectations for these educational options and more within the journey to UX design.

Darren is extremely passionate about the discipline of Experience Design (including user experience, customer experience, and learning experience). He holds over 20 years of XD experience. Darren’s professional footprint spans such organizations as Ford Motor Company, General Motors, DigitasLBi, MRM/McCann, Wunderman Digital, Bosch, Ryder, Cengage Learning, and USA Networks, to name a few. He serves as an adjunct professor for Kent State University’s UX Design Master’s program, as an adjunct at Lawrence Technological University, and leads UX workshops at Grand Circus in Detroit and Grand Rapids, Michigan. You can also hear Darren on The World of UX podcast, available through a host of popular sources. Darren is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Northcentral University.

Can you write out the features and functions of your digital product in a simple, ordered list? If not, you may not have a viable product yet. From competitive research and concept testing to efficient design workflows, creating a prioritized list of what your product has and does is the perfect filter for stakeholder alignment. Deceptively simple, this process is one of the highest ROI strategic activities a product team can conduct. Learn how in just 30 minutes!

Eric Shumake has over two decades of experience in UX research, strategy, design, and education. Noted throughout his career for exceptional empathy, acumen, and effectiveness he has worked with brands and agencies such as Procter & Gamble, Capital Group, Johnson & Johnson, Mars/Wrigley, Acuvue, Ubisoft, The Integer Group, The Creative Group, Omnicom, Sanofi, Novartis, and TBWA. Mr. Shumake has taught at Naropa University and Rocky Mountain of Art + Design and recently mentored at the MIT Hacking Healthcare hack-a-thon with teams winning first and second place in their respective categories.

What does it take to launch a career in the UX industry? In the mystical world of UX unicorns and Design fairy tales, Designers code, Researchers design and all are well versed in every single prototyping tool. Of course, they enter the field in their 20s, own a Ph.D., and have at least 5 years of hands-on experience. In reality, though, it might take 15 years of experience in different industries, a Master’s degree in your 30s, a good leap of faith, and the willingness to start over again. And this might just as well be what it takes to launch a career in the UX industry.

Marie-Aude Ramos is a UX Researcher based in Switzerland, a career switcher, a UX community builder, and the founder of User Wizard, a UX career mentoring program. She transitioned to UX after over a decade of experience in the fields of Customer Management and Marketing within different industries. She and the User Wizard team encourage career switchers to develop their UX careers by building upon their unique assets while consolidating their UX skills with the support of their mentor.

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William Ntim is a Senior UX Designer at PayPal. He has spent nearly a decade leading, creating and launching design solutions at small to large-sized corporations including The Home Depot, HostGator, Farouk Systems, Cornell University, Zurvita and BoomWriter. William is a critical thinker with a frontend development background, a founder, speaker and coach. In his downtime, he enjoys mentoring junior to mid-level designers on best practices and the realities of a UX practitioner.

One of the most common factors considered when someone applies for a job entails the design process one uses on their projects. It’s sought in portfolios and discussed during the interview. Many companies even use experience with design processes as a differentiator, basing hiring decisions upon the breadth and types used. In truth, however, many such queries are worth as much as asking someone about the air they breathe. During this talk, Darren will analyze several design processes to reveal what’s really under the hood, challenging us to rethink the values placed upon these methods.

Darren is extremely passionate about the discipline of Experience Design (including user experience, customer experience, and learning experience). He holds over 20 years of XD experience. Darren’s professional footprint spans such organizations as Ford Motor Company, General Motors, DigitasLBi, MRM/McCann, Wunderman Digital, Bosch, Ryder, Cengage Learning, and USA Networks, to name a few. He serves as an adjunct professor for Kent State University’s UX Design Master’s program, as an adjunct at Lawrence Technological University, and leads UX workshops at Grand Circus in Detroit and Grand Rapids, Michigan. You can also hear Darren on The World of UX podcast, available through a host of popular sources. Darren is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Northcentral University.

How much time do you take each day to learn something new? As organizations continue to become more customer-centric, the need for continuous self-improvement is even more valuable. Happy employees lead to happy customers. Discover how to take the 1% Challenge and push yourself to learn something new.

Marc Majers is an author and lead user experience researcher at Progressive Insurance. In addition to holding a master’s degree in Information Architecture & Knowledge Management with an emphasis in User Experience Design, he is a certified usability analyst through Human Factors International and UX Certified from Nielsen Norman Group. His skills range from user research, interaction design, digital strategy, conversion rate optimization (CRO), and usability testing. He is a board member of UXPA Cleveland and Better World Day. More information can be found at http://marcm.com.

This talk will, with examples, elucidate how user testing live user flows consistently will enable companies to be prepared for instances of stress to those user flows. Oftentimes what a UX team tests is informed by just the new product features being worked on. This talk will make a case for why UX teams should have a constant set of tests running on their live websites/apps as a means to immediately identify areas of their product that might have been affected by an external stressor.

Ritvij Gautam is the Co-Founder of TryMyUI Inc. He hails from Mumbai, India and came to the United states to study Physics and Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College. After specializing in the area of Philosophy of Mind and interning at LAM Research’s Global Quality department, Ritvij started TryMyUI at the age of 21 right after college with his Co-Founder Timothy Rotolo to help companies ensure that their websites and apps are usable for their target demographic customers. Since then, TryMyUI has grown to be one of the leading user testing platforms in the world with customers like Qatar Airways, National Geographic, TDBank, BigCommerce, RyanAir and many more. Ritvij is also a board member of the Community Advisory Board at The University of Utah College of Social Work where he advocates for the importance of UX in digital learning. He and Tim have co-authored the book “This SUX!” which is available on their TryMyUI website. In his free time, Ritvij is an avid squash player, rock climber and skier.

What does user research actually look like in practice? Come join me and I’ll show you what it looks like under the hood! I’ll share what user research actually LOOKS like in practice. You’ll see dozens of examples and a variety of methods extracted from my own research studies. We’ll talk about key user research terms you need to know and which ones to NEVER use! We’ll get hands-on with a super fun, live, analysis and synthesis activity. 
And wrap up with a Q&A. Eat your Wheaties! This will be an energizing, informative, and interactive session!

Michele Ronsen is a user research executive, coach, and educator. She teaches design and user research to people around the world. Her corporate training and workshops are inspired by working with Fortune 500s and start-ups for more than twenty years. In 2010, Michele founded Ronsen Consulting, a design and strategy firm specializing in human-centered research, design development, and hands-on learning programs. Ten years later, she established Curiosity Tank to help more people ask better questions in order to make confident decisions. In 2020 Michele taught over 3200 students how to ask better questions and make more informed business decisions. LinkedIn also honored her with a TopVoices award in the Technology category. Clients include Slack, Blue Shield, UC Berkeley, California College of Arts, Academy of Art University, General Assembly, Facebook, Zillow, Xero, Gusto, Invisalign, Toyota, Autodesk, BNP Paribas, Microsoft, Square, Ministry of Thailand, and more.

Have you ever had a question about the transgender or queer community but didn’t know how to ask? Mei, a member of both of those communities, will be walking you through the social and scientific backgrounds of gender and sexuality identity in this 101 level course.

Mei, who uses they/them pronouns, is a graduate of University of California San Diego with a Master of International Affairs. Mei was assigned female at birth and spent most of their young adult life perceived as a woman. They started to live their authentic life as a transgender nonbinary person half way through their graduate degree, becoming the first openly nonbinary person to graduate from UC San Diego’s Global Policy School. After six years of study and work in the intelligence analysis field, they realized that diverse individuals like themselves were vastly underrepresented in the traditional political science space. Their goal is to blend their expertise in diplomacy with their lived experience as an openly queer individual, bridging the divide between the LGBTQ+ community and public service.

Race is a difficult topic to discuss, and the protests against police brutality and systemic racism in the past year have thrust race into the forefront of discussions about diversity and inclusion. This conversation aims to ask thought-provoking questions to help the audience consider their own identity and how they contribute, or experience, harm because of it.

Jasmine Orange is a UX Designer with a passion for inclusion and innovation based in Atlanta, GA. She currently works as a UX Designer at Ernst & Young. She is also currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in HCI, and is a member of UXHelpers as well as IxDA. She is a speaker, giving presentations about accessibility, inclusion, and design thinking. Amber Banks is a Senior Project Manager who has worked in media, IT, infrastructure, and software development within several Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 companies.. She has extensive experience leading complex, cross-functional projects with high value propositions. Her skills center around building stakeholder relationships and delivering quality products. Ying Yao is a Senior UX designer at Honeywell, a first-generation Asian American immigrant, and a friendly human. She kicked off her career creating digital solutions for Fortune 500 clients before transitioning to enterprise UX to tackle B2B product challenges. In her off-hours, she’s also the co-lead of Ladies that UX Atlanta, an inclusive design community for diverse women and non-binary folx, and a design mentor at Amazing Design People list. Kimberly Andrade is a current student at Baylor University School of Law. She is a former paralegal at Hunt & Tuegel, PLLC. She is a former member of Baylor Model UN, and received her Bachelors in Political Science from Baylor in 2018.

Every wonder what neurodiversity is and what the heck it has to do with UX Design? Saskia Mick will walk you through the concept of neurodiversity, explain its impacts on the way we use and design, and show how to make your designs more friendly for neurodivergent folx.

Saskia Mick is a UX Designer Oakland, CA. They are most excited about inclusive design and discovering how tech has the ability to improve everyone’s quality of life. They have written and spoken on ADHD, as well as Design & Neurodiversity. When not designing, they are probably watching Star Trek.

Building on the past three conversations in this series, Mei will give a more indepth view of what it means to be diverse in a world that forces assimilation with the status quo. They will talk further on race, gender, sexuality, mental health, and poverty to show how discrimination hurts not just the individual, but society as a whole. Their presentation will be followed by an open discussion with panelists across multiple different fields and identities to better understand how all of these elements affect each of us on a personal level. This session will not be recorded or available on the Delta CX YouTube channel to allow total freedom of conversation from participants and panelists.

Havana Nguyen is a Sr. User Experience Designer at Florence Healthcare who specializes in design ops, interaction design, usability testing, and product discovery. She has done UX for aerospace, human capital management, and other enterprise SaaS products. To advance the UX community, she leads Ladies that UX Atlanta and has written for UX Design Collective and UX Planet. When she’s not doing UX, she is the Lead Character Artist on the award-winning graphic novel series Kamikaze. Find her art and work at havananguyen.com. Isi Iyoha is a current student at San Diego State University getting her Master of Social work. She received her Bachelors in General Biology and her Bachelors in Psychology from UC San Diego in 2017. Amber Banks is a Senior Project Manager who has worked in media, IT, infrastructure, and software development within several Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 companies.. She has extensive experience leading complex, cross-functional projects with high value propositions. Her skills center around building stakeholder relationships and delivering quality products. Kimberly Andrade is a current student at Baylor University School of Law. She is a former paralegal at Hunt & Tuegel, PLLC. She is a former member of Baylor Model UN, and received her Bachelors in Political Science from Baylor in 2018.

“These mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb.” – Najwa Zebian It’s hard enough to balance it all on a good day. Home, career, personal struggles… it’s a lot. What happens when we also find ourselves faced with unexpected challenges? Life can be unpredictable, and we are often faced with mental health issues, personal losses, work conflicts and frustrations, and other sudden or chronic forms of stress. In this session, we will explore some of the complications that can make work less satisfying and more demanding than it has to be. Whether facing of physical/mental illness, unhealthy work relationships, unrealistic expectations, or burnout, we will talk about ways to reassert our humanity, restore balance, and regain ownership of our careers and our lives.

Among the varied pursuits that Dr. Seth Finkle has enjoyed over the past few years, being a frequent guest on the Delta CX podcast is one of his favorites. His contributions have included topics such as imposter syndrome, empathy, narcissism, gaslighting, critical thinking, self-advocacy, earning respect in the workplace, and the psychology of change. Dr. Finkle has been working in the fields of mental health and education for nearly 30 years, including 24 years working as a psychologist in public and private schools, mental health treatment settings, and private practice. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree from Tufts University with a dual major in psychology and music and subsequently earned his Doctor of Psychology degree from Widener University. In addition to his work as a clinical and school psychologist, Dr. Finkle has served as an adjunct faculty member for over 20 years, initially at West Chester University and currently at Moravian University. When not working, he enjoys reading, spending time with family and friends, contemplating life, and making music in his home studio.

What is burnout and how do you prevent it? Whether in your personal or professional life, burnout can impact your satisfaction and productivity. Burnout in one arena of your life can impact the other. In this session, we will explore how to recognize burnout and and strategies to manage/prevent it.

Suzie Bichovsky is a public school educator, yoga teacher, founder of Coachucation™, a burnout prevention strategist, and the host of the Keep Your Candle Lit podcast. When she isn’t doing those things, she can be found with her nose in a book, petting her cats, or hanging out in nature. In addition to coaching and yoga, Suzie has provided professional development support for educators in the public school and university settings. She is an educator with over 20 years of experience. As the author of Because…You Matter, Suzie hopes that readers of all ages will connect with the message of the book as well as be inspired to spend time in nature.

In this session, Susan will lead us on a cultural analysis of two organizational design models: hierarchies and networks. Most companies will have aspects of both organizing models, depending on the nature and focus of the work at hand. Considering standard cultural elements: Power, Communication, and Learning – an analysis will show that effective behaviors and dynamics are quite different for each model. For example, who has power in a hierarchy? Who has power in a network? And how do these differences impact performance expectations, organizational norms, and define success? After an introduction to the cultural differences in the two models, the session will be open for dialogue and considerations of how to apply the concept to your work situation.

As a strategic talent consultant and leadership coach, Susan McKeone has been recognized by clients as having made significant impact through her engagements. With a focus on the interplay between individual leaders, teams, organizations, and culture, Susan learns and adapts to the context and environment in which her clients operate. Through this approach, Susan recommends customized approaches and perspectives based on the fundamentals of leadership development. Susan brings 25 years of experience in developing highly talented individuals to prepare for senior leadership roles. She particularly brings an understanding of science-based businesses and the leadership and careers of scientists. Susan has deep experience in the development of scientists transitioning to become leaders, and to become leader of leaders, and in developing the skills to lead successful science-based businesses. Beginning in 1994, Susan provided strategic talent management to the Chief Science Officer of the Rohm and Haas Company, with a focus on the leadership of the chemical company’s scientists and engineers. In 1998, Susan founded a leadership development practice where the predominance of her clients are health-science based companies including Pfizer, Merck, Amgen, and LifeCell. In most cases, her engagements are long term strategic relationships that have stood the test of time as judged by successful leader successions and transitions and in the dynamic leadership performance of clients who build strong collaborative cultures. Susan is recognized as a key executive strategist as well as a preferred HR partner. Her engaging and direct style is both pragmatic and supportive. She obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, Organization Development & HR Management Certificate from Columbia University, and Master of Science degree in Organizational Psychology from Villanova University.

This presentation looks at how we can not only maintain a positive attitude while doing stressful, demanding work, but also manage to find ways to express your self and your interests, your passions, fully and still maintain a work/life balance. And, not having to compromise one’s ethics for the sake of the bottom line or to assuage workplace conflicts.

Dr. Bill Reynolds has over 30 years of experience working in the mental health field, including inpatient and outpatient settings, substance abuse research and treatment, and private practice providing consultations. He has been practicing psychology in Buffalo for the last 20 years. He earned his doctorate, a PsyD, in Clinical Psychology as well as an MBA in Healthcare Administration from Widener University. He has been a Licensed Psychologist with the State of New York at the Buffalo Psychiatric Center (BPC) since 2004. His primary duty at BPC since February of 2017 is to serve as the psychologist on the Admissions unit. He is the Director of Psychology Training at BPC and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at UB. He served as the president of the Psychological Association of Western New York from September 2017 to August 2019 and has been the executive director of Superhero Alliance of Western New York, Inc. since February 2018. In his personal life he has been married for over 25 years and has three adult children. He has earned a 5th Degree Black Belt in Isshin-Ryu Karate and a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate and is the owner of his own school, the Mizuchi Dojo, as well as being a local independent filmmaker, actor, stunt performer, and Jedi Master.

• Virtual booth in our “Arena.”
• Post a video, info about your business, and downloadable files.
• Host public and private conversations with people at your booth’s “tables.”

• 30 seconds of video time (prepare a video or send images or PPT slides) shown in the video loop playing between sessions in all tracks.
• Virtual booth in our “Arena.”
• Post a video, info about your business, and downloadable files.
• Host public and private conversations with people at your booth’s “tables.”

• 2 minutes of video time (prepare a video or send images or PPT slides) shown in the video loop playing between sessions in all tracks.
• Virtual “round table” in our lounge.
• Table will display your logo.
• Virtual booth in our “Arena.”
• Post a video, info about your business, and downloadable files.
• Host public and private conversations with people at your booth’s “tables.”