​2022 SPEAKERs

  WIID 2021
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​Conference Emcee
Aylssa Richardson

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Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of Senator Tim Scott

Alyssa Leigh Richardson is currently based out of Charleston, SC, where she serves as the State Director and Deputy Chief of Staff to Senator Tim Scott. In that capacity, she manages the senator’s in-state outreach and constituent services. She also serves as a liaison with the Washington office through strategy and amplification of the senator’s legislative agenda.
Prior to this role, Alyssa was a practicing attorney in Columbia, SC. For four years, she served as a federal prosecutor for the Department of Justice. In her capacity as an Assistant United States Attorney, she prosecuted criminal civil rights violations, including hate crimes and officer misconduct, public corruption, and violent crime. Notably, Alyssa assisted in the federal prosecution of the North Charleston police officer who shot an unarmed motorist, Walter Scott, in 2015.
Alyssa is a graduate of Harvard Law School. She is also a summa cum laude graduate of Furman University. Alyssa has previously served as law clerk to the Honorable Margaret B. Seymour of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. She is a proud native of Pee Dee region, claiming both Dillon and Marion as home.

Conference Keynote Speakers

Barbara Melvin

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South Carolina Ports Authority

As Chief Operating Officer, Ms. Melvin oversees terminal operations, carrier sales, information technology and support services, intermodal, inland ports, crane and equipment maintenance, engineering, environmental, Port Police, procurement, the logistics solution center, and cruise operations.  Ms. Melvin also serves as the SCPA’s lead staff person on the Charleston Harbor Post 45 Project. 
On July 1, 2022, Ms. Melvin will become president and CEO of South Carolina Ports 1. Melvin will be the sixth leader in the history of the port and the first woman to lead a top 10 U.S. operating container port. 
She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Georgia Southern University with a minor in international relations and a Masters in Business Administration in Global Supply Chain from the University of Tennessee Haslam School of Business. 

Dr. Mary Thornley

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Trident Technical College

Dr. Mary Thornley has been president of Trident Technical College since 1991. She truly believes in the transformational power of education and is passionate about the community college’s role in making our communities and our nation stronger, more adaptable, and better able to face the challenges of the future. Dr. Thornley holds a doctorate of education in curriculum and instruction from the University of South Carolina; a master of arts in teaching English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; and a bachelor of arts in English and French from Mars Hill College, North Carolina. 

LaVanda Brown

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YWCA, Greater Charleston

LaVanda Brown joined YWCA Greater Charleston as executive director in February 2016.  Her experience, leadership, and passion for serving others spans 30 years. During her decades of on-the-ground experience in social services focused on underserved populations, she has led and advised multiple nonprofit and for-profit organizations, including Family Promise of Greater Savannah, Union Mission, Greenbriar Children’s Center, Gang Alternatives of Miami, Clarke Community Services in New Orleans, and others in the behavioral health, employment, and community services arenas.   
Her work has garnered awards including the 2021 Trident Literacy Founder’s Award, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Best Practices Award for Transitional Housing and Case Management, and the Georgia Department of Community Affairs Magnolia Award for Excellence in Housing. 
LaVanda holds a dual bachelor's degree in psychology and sociology from Wesleyan College and a master's degree in counseling from Georgia Southern University.
 

Katrina Thompson

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Dixon Hughes Goodman, LLC

Katrina is the Chief People Officer for DHG. She has been with the firm for over 20 years serving in a variety of roles within Human Resources.  As CPO, she leads a dynamic group of HR professionals to drive and support DHG’s people strategy, systems and processes in alignment with the Firm’s strategy​
​Katrina has over 25 years’ experience in the field of Human Resources, and has worked in a wide range of HR disciplines.  In her personal life, Karina enjoys traveling, hiking, kayaking or any outdoor activity and spending time with her husband and son, a sophomore at Appalachian State University.

 

Breakout Session Speakers

Theodora Wills

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Kuma, LLC

Theodora has worked in the information privacy arena for over 20 years. Her experience has spanned federal, state and consulting executive positions, including Deputy Director for Privacy with the Department of Defense, Chief Privacy Officer for the State of South Carolina and currently Senior Director of Privacy for Kuma, LLC, a privacy, security and identity consultancy. She currently holds three internationally recognized privacy certifications and earned the designation of Fellow in Privacy from the International Association of Privacy Professionals.

Mariah Fleming

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Robert Bosch LLC

Mariah is a graduate of the  College of Charleston with dual degrees in Business Administration and Hospitality and Tourism Management. She serves as Communications Specialist at the Robert Bosch Charleston Plant.. In this capacity, she develops and implements a plant-wide communication strategy that includes media outreach and social media content creation. She is a member of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce Leadership Class of 2022.​

Jessica Brewer

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3Together, Inc.

Jessica Brewer is the President & Chief Executive Officer of 3Together, Inc., a software company she co-founded with two others, that is focused on building micro-SaaS applications for the healthcare and finance communities. Prior to 3Together, Jessica served as Chief Operating Officer of Amplified Ag, a family of companies focused on indoor farming technologies and operations.
Jessica earned a Master of Science in Software Engineering Management from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics with a Minor in Computer Science from the College of Charleston. She serves as co-chair of the board of directors for the Charleston Women in Tech and also serves on the board of directors for the South Carolina Aquarium. Jessica is also a member of the Tiffany Circle of the American Red Cross

Joy Riley

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SC DOT

Joy graduated from Clemson University in 1996 in Engineering and is registered as a Professional Civil Engineer for the State of South Carolina.  Joy is also a registered professional project manager, a certified public manager and a certified design build professional. 
Joy has been with SCDOT for over 12 years, as a transportation project manager.  Joy has over twenty five years of professional engineering experience that also includes working with the SC Department of Health & Environmental Control and as a small business owner for an environmental engineering and consulting firm. Joy is currently the project director for the I-526 Lowcountry Corridor Project as a part of the newly formed Office of Alternative Project Delivery at SCDOT. Joy is also the current President of the WTS SC Chapter which is a professional organization committed to advancing women in the Transportation industry. 

Betsy Hayden

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Awesome Focus

Betsy is a Certified Speaker, Executive Coach & Trainer of The John Maxwell Team and Appreciation At Work. She holds a degree in Architecture and a minor in Drafting & Design. Betsy has worked for 5 of the largest engineering firms in the world where she used John Maxwell’s Leadership principles to lead successful high performance teams. She focuses on: Leadership, Influence, Team Building and Communication.

Ullas K. Perez

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The Boeing Company

Currently Ullas is an Information Technology expert, leader, and dedicated mentor with The Boeing Company, well-known for her executive excellence, proven organizational skills, and sharp analytical abilities. As an IT Delivery Manager within Boeing’s Network Infrastructure Services team, she managed two teams of Network Infrastructure Services (NIS) technologists focused on Network Load Balancing ensuring efficient distribution of Boeing application traffic across multiple servers as well as Wide Area Network Optimization. She works closely with managers throughout the IT Infrastructure organizations fulfilling application delivery business requirements; she also works with Application Domain Managers throughout the enterprise, applying technology that addresses numerous business challenges and links the team to the Information Technology & Data Analytics community. 

Robin Willis

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Microsoft TEALS

Robin Willis spent 8 years as Associate Vice President of Talent and Workforce Development with the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. In that role she evaluated local talent needs and developed work-based learning opportunities for students. The talent shortages in Charleston's IT industry have been critical since the first Talent Demand Study was released in 2014. Robin had a passion for connecting all students to the CS opportunities in their own backyard. In 2021 Robin joined the Microsoft TEALS team and now manages South Carolina and North Carolina

Rachel Downing

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AmplifiedAg

Rachel Downing is Senior Director of Software Development for AmplifiedAg, Inc where she leads a team of people performing software development and IT administration. Downing has been with AmplifiedAg, Inc since February 2021. Prior to AmplifiedAg, Inc, she was with Benefitfocus for over 11 years where she led cross-functional teams including engineering, QA automation, platform control, release management, customer support, the benefit service center and most recently professional services implementation teams. 

Patti Leahy

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Enterprise Investors

Patti is a strategic business advisor to companies undergoing transformation. Previously, she was vice president at Benefitfocus, where she was responsible for Investor Relations and ESG as well as the company’s startup accelerator.  Patti serves on the board at Enterprise Investors, the oldest and one of the largest private equity firms in Central and Eastern Europe, which specializes in buyout transactions and the provision of expansion financing to high growth businesses. She is also a director of SC Launch, an investment affiliate of South Carolina Research Authority, which approves funding for technology-based startups in South Carolina. Patti earned her MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management and her BA in International Relations from Oklahoma State University. ​

Jenny Schutzman

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Liberty Mutual Insurance
​Executive Director of Charleston Women in Tech 

Jenny can't sit still if she isn't actively challenging herself and learning something new. She is full-time Software Engineer, Executive Director of Charleston Women in Tech, and teaches coding to adults on the weekends.    
Before her hard pivot to software in 2017, Jenny worked 10+ years with various international and local non-profits.  During that time she led projects for more than 50 grants which ranged from $10k to over $1 million, coming from agencies such as USAID, UNWomen, US Department of Justice, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, large anonymous foundations and several Canadian agencies.  In her new life of software development she brings these honed leadership skills to the table to push ingenuity, team cohesion, and a general excitement about being part of something bigger than one’s self.  
Jenny made the switch to software development in 2017 and has never looked back.  After attending the local JRS Code School, she has worked for a number of Charleston-based and national companies.
 

Jamie Tozzi

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Leadership Coach

Jamie Tozzi is a professional coach and speaker passionate about helping high-potential leaders and executives develop the transformational leadership and communications skills critical to achieving results in today’s complex business climate. Jamie is also a Board Member of two growth stage technology companies, Gladly and Enavate. Jamie is a former technology executive with a 24-year track record of delivering exceptional results. During her 20- year tenure at Microsoft Corporation, Jamie was known as a Transformation and Growth Leader, helping grow the Dynamics business from $100M to over $1B, and leading a $1B sales organization to breakthrough performance as an award-winning member of Microsoft’s North American Executive Leadership Team. 
Jamie graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Boston College where she pursued studies in both marketing and communications. She also participated in numerous industry Leadership Development and professional coaching certification programs.

Jen Thorson

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Modjoul

Jen Thorson is the Chief Operating Officer and founder at Modjoul. Prior to founding Modjoul, Ms. Thorson was the Head of Strategic Planning, Transformation, Operations, and Regulatory Control at American International Group. Ms. Thorson was recognized as a top talent at AIG and was a member of AIG’s top 50 women executives.
​Ms. Thorson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from the University of North Dakota and a Master of Arts degree in Human Resources Development from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN.  ​

Molly Copple

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SCRA

South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is committed to growing the innovation economy and increasing employment opportunities. SCRA provides funding and support to advance translation research and university-based startups, lab and workspaces for startups and academic institutions, facilitates partnerships with industry partners, and business support with emphasis on assisting startups achieve critical milestone towards commercialization. As Operations Manager, Molly is focused on stakeholder relationship management, interfacing with founders to provide support in various areas, oversees organizational processes, and manages the Due Diligence process for SCRA’s Investment Affiliate, SC Launch, Inc.
Along with her professional experience, she have a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan. Molly has a passion developing creative & strategic solutions to new business development and financial growth.

Angela Ortiz

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New Forge Tech

Angela Ortiz, co-founder of New Forge Tech, is an experienced Business Development Executive, Marketer and Strategist with a demonstrated history of working in the information technology (Assisted Reality) and services industry. Skilled in Event Planning, Public Speaking, Mindfulness/Transformation Coaching, and Relationship Building, she is a strong heart-centered business professional with a passion for helping companies identify and solve their pressing challenges using AR and smart glass technology. She holds a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree focused in Project Management.  For the last 5 years she has been introducing augmented reality in manufacturing/logistics and best practices to ensure proper training for technology adoption.​

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  • Home
  • About
    • Executive Committee 2022
  • Conference Schedule
  • Sessions
  • Speakers
  • "Man"-el
  • Sponsors
  • Scholarship
  • COVID-19