MULTI-TRACK SHOWCASES
TRACK 1: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
TRACK 2: MENTORING & NETWORKING
TRACK 3: COMMUNITY
TRACK 4: DIVERSITY, EQUALITY & INCLUSION
9:45 – 9:58 a.m.
Opening & Welcome Remarks
Christina Aguilera, President, WiTH Foundation
Guy Finley, President, MESA and Executive Director, WiTH
Vanita Patel, Vice President, IBM Sales, Converge
10 – 10:30 a.m.
KEYNOTE: Stories from a Tech-Informed Diversity Journey
Our opening keynote sits at the cross-section of civic innovation, open data, and education. Jeanne Holm, Chief Data Officer and Mayor’s Senior Tech Advisor for the City of Los Angeles, will kick off this exciting event by framing the day’s themes around tech, leadership and diversity. Jeanne will share how data and analytics have informed Los Angeles’ programs and will provide practical advice on starting your own organization’s diversity and equity journey.
Jeanne Holm, Senior Tech Advisor and Chief Data Officer, City of Los Angeles
Click here to download presentation
10:30 – 11:00 a.m.
Leading Through COVID-19: Remote Work Now and Beyond
The COVID-19 pandemic forced companies to reassess their approach to remote work, be it expanding their established capabilities or just starting a program out of necessity. What are the needs and ramifications of this new reality, from technology to legal to culture? What will this mean for the future of remote work, even as the coronavirus pandemic abates? This session addresses remote work challenges most impacting your organization and the best practices to get people safely back to work.
Moderator: Nadya Ichinomiya, Chairwoman, WiTH Foundation and Executive Director, Head of Agile Center of Excellence, Sony Pictures Entertainment
Panelists:
Vicki Dobbs Beck, Executive in Charge, ILMxLAB
Jess Lewis, Senior Experience Cloud Solutions Consultant at Adobe
Erin McPherson, Head of Content Acquisition, Strategy & Programming, Verizon
BREAKOUT SESSIONS (Multi-Track Showcases)
TRACK 1: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
11:15 – 11:45 a.m.
How To Navigate Your Career In a World of COVID, Contraction and Consolidation
The long-range economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis are continuing to evolve as the entertainment industry adjusts to the new normal. So what are the near-term hiring plans for most employers? How do you navigate your career at such a challenging time? We’ll hear from top executive recruiters on how to evaluate your position with whatever new cards have been dealt and set yourself up for an exciting future.
Moderator: Valerie Hull, Associate, CEO and Board Services, Healthcare and Life Sciences, Heidrick & Struggles
Panelists:
Fran Pomorantz, Founder, The Pomorantz Group
Bill Simon, Global Sector Leader, Media & Entertainment, Korn Ferry
11:45 a.m – 12:15 p.m.
Research and Insights: Managing the Human and Business Impact of COVID-19
Consumers’ attitudes, behaviors and purchasing habits are changing during the pandemic and experts are saying that many of these changes will become the new normal. In just the past three months we’ve seen how consumers are using more digital channels than ever before to help with issues around isolation, spending more through e-commerce AND shopping more locally, and, of course, working remotely. Join this panel of research and insight specialists from studios and networks as they share new behaviors and insights from the last year.
Moderator: Nina Skorus-Neely, Secretary, WiTH Foundation, and Vice President, Business Technologies & Workplace Solutions-Consumer Products, WB Technology
Panelists:
Dawn Holliday, Director, Consumer Insights & Strategy, Walt Disney Studios
Tania Missad, Research & Insights for Consumer Products, Warner Bros.
Nicol Turner Lee, Director, The Center for Technology Innovation (CTI) and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution
TRACK 2: MENTORING & NETWORKING
11:15 – 11:45 a.m.
Reverse Mentoring To Drive New Thinking and More Equitable Workplaces
One great way to create an equitable workplace is to introduce a reverse mentoring program — where a person at the front of their career offers their perspective to more established professionals. This can open conversations around gender, age, social trends, and professional backgrounds to inspire community and a strong culture. In this session, we’ll dig into how Capital Music Group (Universal Music) is bringing “accelerator practices” to their business, infusing their companies with new ideas and in turn connecting their artists to new tech and new ways to reach the audience.
Moderator: Stefanie Kleinsmith, Human-focused Technologist
Panelists:
Ching-Ching Chen, Vice President of Content Partnerships & Strategy, Capital Music Group
Patty Newby, Project Manager, Gener8tor
Adrienne Palm, Director of gBETA Musictech
11:45 – 12:15 p.m.
The Ripple Effect: Choosing Technology as a Career Path
This session gathers the principal technologists and creatives behind ETC@USC’S (Entertainment Technology Center at USC) latest innovation project: “The Ripple Effect.” What challenges did these amazing women overcome on their career path as technologists? What biases do they see in the technologies that they utilize?
Moderator: Guy Finley, Executive Director, WiTH and President, MESA
Panelists:
Wendy Aylsworth, Chief Executive Officer, Walden Pond
Kathryn Brillhart, Cinematographer & Director
Brooke Noska, VFX Producer & Co-VFX Supervisor, The Orville
TRACK 3: COMMUNITY
11:15 – 11:45 a.m.
Leveling the Playing Field: Getting More Women in Tech
In this session we will hear from the five non-profit organizations that WITH is currently supporting: STEM Advantage, PepUp Tech, CodeTalk, STEAM:CODERS and DIY Girls, whose missions center around introducing underserved and underrepresented communities to the technology sector, many of them girls and entry level women. By creating programs that teach coding, and other science, math and technology applications, we’ll hear how the right education and opportunities can advance equity and drive more diversity in technology roles and ultimately drive to more tech careers in Hollywood.
Intro: Nadya Ichinomiya, Chairwoman, WiTH Foundation and Executive Director, Head of Agile Center of Excellence, Sony Pictures Entertainment
Moderator: April Schneider, Chairwoman, WITH Community Engagement and Executive Director IT, TV Distribution, Sony Pictures
Panelists:
Charmayne Mills Ealy, Director of Operations, Steamcoders
Cindy McKenzie, Chief Information Officer, Deluxe Entertainment Services Group; Board of Directors, Stem Advantage
Sharon Plunkett, Director, St. Joseph Center, CodeTalk
Leticia Rodriguez, Executive Director, DIY Girls
Selina Suarez, Chief Executive Officer, PepUp Tech
11:45 – 12:15 p.m.
How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter
In the current COVID-era, where all business models are being turned upside down in entertainment, the typical “heroic” leadership of “I know so I’m going to tell you what to do” is bankrupt. We need leaders who are great at asking questions and can disrupt themselves, create leadership in every team member and foster entrepreneurship in every employee. This workshop session leans into the qualities that make great leaders legendary!
Alyssa Gallagher, Leadership Author & Speaker
Presentation not available per speaker request
TRACK 4: DIVERSITY, EQUALITY & INCLUSION
11:15 – 11:45 a.m.
Tackling Bias (AI and human) in the Recruitment Process
AI holds the greatest promise for eliminating bias in hiring for two primary reasons. It can eliminate unconscious human bias, and it can assess the entire pipeline of candidates rather than forcing time-constrained humans to implement biased processes to shrink the pipeline from the start. We’ll hear from a panel of People Officers and Human Resource leaders in how they’re evolving their tool sets to tackle the new normal.
Moderator: Jessica Fernandez, Board Member, WiTH Foundation and Head of Security & Technology Communications, Amazon Studios
Panelists:
Edie Givens, Senior Vice President, People and Organization, Sony Pictures Entertainment
Talia Robinson, Senior Vice President Human Resources, ViacomCBS
Dolores Tersigni, Founder and President, Ellavate
11:45 – 12:15 p.m.
Empowering Leadership through Technology
Across the globe, COVID-19 has thrown society for a curveball that many of us were not prepared for. While you or someone you know have undoubtedly been affected by the pandemic, it has also created opportunities for leaders to make positive changes within their organizations. Additionally, it has increased the demand for a different type of leadership and led to the discovery of new ways we conduct our business. This session discusses how these challenging times have changed the way she manages and discusses some of the technology she’s implemented, in-house and for clients, to help keep their objectives on track.
Vanita Patel, Vice President, IBM Sales, Converge
12:30 – 1 p.m.
KEYNOTE: Driving Social Impact and Empowering Women of Color in the Media and Tech Worlds
A fireside chat with Jeanine D. Liburd, who in her role as Chief Social Impact and Communications Officer for BET Networks, is curating and leading initiatives that aim to empower and measurably impact the Black community. We will hear how she is working with the network’s corporate communications, social responsibility and events teams to drive change
Jeanine Liburd, Chief Social Impact & Communications Officer, BET Networks (a subsidiary of Viacom Inc.)
Interviewed by: Lori H. Schwartz, Principal, StoryTech
1 – 1:30 p.m.
Moving Through Critical Times: A Conversation with WiTH’s Women’s Leadership Award Winners and Closing Remarks
This ever-changing world is challenging management assumptions and best practices at an astonishing rate. During this session, we’ll look at the skill sets needed today to manage remote teams, implement new technologies, inspire communication, and maintain a strong and supportive culture. Women’s Leaderships award winners will share their stories of how their work and approaches have evolved.
Moderator: Theresa Miller, Treasurer, WiTH Foundation and Executive Vice President & Chief Information Officer, Lionsgate
Panelists:
Susan Cheng, Executive Vice President, Content Technology & Operations; Founder/Leader Internal Diversity & Inclusion Steering Group, WarnerMedia
Cindy McKenzie, Chief Information Officer, Deluxe Entertainment Services Group
1:30 p.m.
Closing Remarks
VIDEO INCLUDED IN PREVIOUS SESSION.
Christina Aguilera, President, WiTH Foundation
Guy Finley, President, MESA and Executive Director, WiTH
