Carlyn (she/her) was born on the West Coast, went to elementary school on the East Coast, middle school in the South and graduated from high school in the Midwest. Each time she relocated to a new state, a common thread was her parents' goal to ensure she and her younger brother would feel empowered to dream big and try any and all things. Growing up in primarily white communities, Carlyn struggled for years with self-love and appreciation for her Blackness. It was not until college that she unlearned many negative attitudes about her skin color and instead felt confident in her identity and began to truly love being a Black woman in this country. She now finds it essential to empower other women, especially Black women. Carlyn studied healthcare and the system in undergrad and graduate school in Chicago at Loyola Chicago and Northwestern University with a true passion for improving the health and wellbeing of marginalized communities. Her early realization that healthcare is more than one's physical health - it's mental, emotional, and sexual as well spiritual fueled her interest in finding ways to make healthcare more approachable and accessible for folks that have historically struggled in clinical settings. Carlyn has had the opportunity to work in roles dedicated to women's health, queer health and the existing health disparities for Black folks. She is an enthusiastic learner, an eager listener and growing to be an effective leader. She welcomes the challenge and opportunity to better serve others around her and to do this important work.
Cherie Price is a multi-facetted professional with an extensive career in leadership roles in health care management beginning at the University of Chicago Medical Center where she supervised Health Information Management. Her expertise lies within communications, change management, process improvement, operational efficiency and social determinants of health to combat health disparities. She has dedicated 25 years of tenure to Elevance Health (formerly Anthem, Inc.), and currently holds the role of Operations Director for their Value Based Solutions Programs. She contributes to improving the health of humanity by delivering high performance health systems that embody; quality, access, efficiency, equity and healthy lives. Cherie’s responsibilities elevate the importance of whole health and advances health care beyond the roots of traditional health insurance. In 2010, Cherie embarked upon a new passion and proficiency that intersected healthcare with diversity, equity and inclusion. She was appointed by her company’s President to Co-Chair an organizational Diversity Council that spanned across their national footprint. Shortly thereafter, in 2012 the Chief Diversity Officer formed a corporate partnership with the newly established Illinois Diversity Council (ILDC) and Cherie joined the non for profit as a volunteer Activities and Events Chair. In the fall of 2016, Cherie became a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP) and stepped into the role of Council President after a unanimous Board of Directors vote. In her role as Council President, Cherie has strategically lead with the National Diversity Council’s core mission, vision and values. Over the last ten years since the Councils inception, Cherie has expanded the ILDC brand as the state’s premier resource for diversity best practices and leadership development and grown the partnership profile exponentially within corporate suites, educational seats and community streets. The business model and value proposition delivers both qualitative and quantifiable results which fundamentally impacts collaboration, innovation, sustainability and profitability. Her reputation as a strategic subject matter expert also includes that of an educator, resource creator and network connector; ultimately fostering cultures of belonging where all are welcomed, valued, heard and supported. Cherie has a thirst for learning and knowledge, as reflected in three higher education degrees; Business Administration, Healthcare Management and a Master’s in Communications with an emphasis is Business Leadership from Northwestern University. She holds numerous professional certifications including Interior Design, Change Management, Six Sigma (pending) and the DiversityFIRST Certified Diversity Professional designation. Cherie is an avid world traveler, inquisitively in love with people, extremely family oriented (aspiring to be the best Auntie ever!) and passionate about artistic creativity. She has resolved to her life’s’ purpose of giving of herself to encourage, empower and elevate others.
Deidre Boone is the Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) at United Airlines which is one of the largest leading US Domestic & International operating passenger and cargo airlines. Deidre is focused on partnerships, workforce programs and recruiting relationships that support United’s goals of being a leader in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Deidre’s experience spans over 20 years. She spent several years of her career as a Director on the International side of the business with expertise in Pricing and Revenue Management (PRM) and airline joint ventures. Due to her extensive experience she was also responsible for departmental Talent Acquisition and training in PRM. She has been a longtime advocate of DEI and prior to joining the DEI team formally, she developed a strategy to bring in more diverse talent in STEM related fields with a goal to change the face of divisions with opportunity to enhance minority representation. She has a passion for changing the economic future of under-sourced and underrepresented communities. Deidre has spent years of dedication in service and one of her proudest achievements is previously serving in a Vice-President role of the non-profit Ready Women -- non-profit was focused on assisting women enter or re-enter the workforce.
La June Davis-Wiley is an accomplished human resource professional with over twenty years in the industry. She is responsible for leading the human resources function, with a focus on development and execution of talent management and employee relations strategies that represent the organization’s culture and values. As a member of the executive team, she contributes directly to long and short-term strategic objectives of the organization while maximizing organizational effectiveness. She oversees HR programs and initiatives that enhance the employee experience and collaborates with leaders across the organization. La June holds a Master of Arts degree from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Columbia College, Chicago, IL. She also holds certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).
Louise Cloutier has been helping women claim their powerful voices for nearly 40 years. As a Gender Justice Coach she works on a variety of issues, including: verbal abuse, workplace discrimination (especially in male-dominated professions), unequal pay, imposter syndrome and perfectionism, gender-based shame, verbal microaggressions, sexual harassment, excessive apologizing and other self-deprecating habits, reclaiming dignity and boundaries after sexual assault and domestic violence. She offers private sessions, workshops and presentations on all these topics.
Nichelle Grant is Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Siemens USA, where she guides the company’s Diversity and Inclusion strategy. Grant’s more than 20 years of experience within the Siemens business includes developing go-to-market strategies, focusing on the customer experience, and driving operational excellence combined with her passion and commitment to the cause will position the company exceptionally well with stakeholders across the country. Grant has been involved with Diversity & Inclusion at Siemens for over 10 years, which included voluntarily leading the company’s employee resource groups and diversity councils for Siemens USA. Most recently, she has played an integral role working with our supply chain and procurement teams to increase our supplier diversity efforts and represent us before many customers for whom this is core to doing business with Siemens. Grant’s leadership of Diversity & Inclusion extends far beyond Human Resources and has a much broader reach into topics that drive change and make impact to our workforce, our workplace and the marketplace. Grant will drive a more holistic approach to building and leveraging a workforce that mirrors the diversity of our customer base, suppliers, partners and society.
Payal Beri is a mindset transformation coach and speaker for highly driven and empathic women leaders in non-profit, social enterprise, technology and healthcare. She has 10+ years experience as a former clinical therapist and global leadership consultant, having worked with fortune 500 companies & non-profits. She's blended her experience to empower women leaders, like you, who are highly empathic and struggle with perfectionism and imposter syndrome to embrace your empathy as your superpower to build confidence in communication, trust your decision making, and build high performing teams without the guilt of giving too much. She is on a mission to ensure no women fueled with purpose feels alone in her journey as a leader. Through her coaching program, workshops and speaking events she provides strategies, tools and transforms your mindset to empower you to lead and lean into your empathy without sacrificing yourself. Payal also is a podcast host of the show, The Unapologetic Woman with Payal Beri, found on apple podcast, spotify and everywhere you listen to podcasts. She holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology and is currently a Phd candidate (2021) with her research focusing on leading with empathy and psychological safety to create dual accountability in the workplace. You can connect with Payal on LinkedIn, Instagram and request to speak with her on www.payalberi.com
Scarleth is the founding director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) at the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), which provides homes to more than 63,000 households while supporting healthy communities in neighborhoods throughout the City. She previously served as the Senior Advisor to the Chief of the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program. Scarleth joined CHA in March 2010, as a Special Projects Coordinator. She is a Leadership Greater Chicago (LGC) Fellow and an elected member of LGC’s Leadership Fellows Association. She serves as the Assistant Secretary of the Board Directors of Thresholds and as a Board member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) – The Next Generation Society. Scarleth also served as the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Strategic Advisor for the Illinois Green Alliance and as a member of the Board of Directors of St. Joseph Services. Scarleth holds a B.A. in Global Studies with a minor in French from the University of Minnesota and an M.A. in Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She holds a D&I Certificate from Cornell University and is a Qualified Administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory. Scarleth was born and raised in Mexico City and currently lives in La Grange Park, IL with her husband and dog.
Sophie brings more than 12 years of customer and client facing experience to the EX3 Labs project delivery team. Her strengths of empathy, communication, organization and relationship management have served her well in her role as a delivery lead. Sophie’s skills have enabled her to play a critical role in the successful delivery of more than a dozen digital projects. In addition to ensuring projects cross the finish line, Sophie specializes in program development and management. Sophie’s ability to navigate complex project environments and relationships with empathy has allowed her to quickly develop trust and understanding with clients. She employs these skills as a Design Thinker, designing and facilitating workshops for clients across many industries including Construction, Healthcare, and Diverse Talent Acquisition. Her experience spans across numerous industries from Aviation, Tourism, Education, Customer Service, Retail to even Real Estate. Throughout her career, Sophie has placed her values of empathy and equity at the forefront of any role she takes on. She continues to employ these values in her every interaction at EX3 Labs.
