CEO OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
JESSAMYN DAVIS
Co-CEO
RIOS
With over 20 years of experience in growing businesses in Los Angeles and California, Jessamyn Davis has held a variety of roles in strategy, finance, and management for middle-market companies across diverse industries such as biotech, design, manufacturing, and entertainment. She has played a critical role in building infrastructure for growing companies and leading them toward institutional-scale ownership by employing effective team-building techniques, business development strategies, debt structuring, relocation, operational analysis, and process improvement. For the past eight years, Davis has been instrumental in driving the growth of RIOS, a multi-disciplinary design collective head-quartered in Los Angeles whose local portfolio of projects include Grand Park, ROW DTLA, and creative content and entertainment spaces for clients such as GoodRx, Sony, Universal, and Fox. She has led the growth of the firm from a single office with 75 employees to nearly 300 professionals spread across seven global offices.
TRACY HERNANDEZ
Founding CEO
Los Angeles County Business Federation (BizFed)
Tracy Hernandez is the founding CEO of the Los Angeles County Business Federation, widely known as “BizFed,” a nonprofit alliance of business networks that advocates for policies and projects that create jobs and grow the economy. Hernandez launched the grassroots alliance in 2008. Today, BizFed unites 235 organizations representing 420,000 companies employing five million people in Southern California. Its sister organization, BizFed Central Valley, unites another 80 groups. Hernandez leads a team of grassroots pol-icy advocates at BizFed who are fearless in speaking truth to power. They are small, but mighty, and take on big challenges to tackle pressing issues at all levels of government and across all policy areas. Their efforts have led to tangible improvements for businesses, employees, and residents throughout Los Angeles County. Under Hernandez’s leadership, BizFed helped restaurants secure COVID relief grants and fought to reduce regulatory burdens, streamline permitting, and allow outdoor dining.
THERESA EDY KIENE
CEO
Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles
As CEO of Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles, Theresa Edy Kiene leads the second largest of 111 Girl Scout councils in the nation, with 50,537 total members, 150 employees, 18 properties and six retail stores. An experienced executive with strategic planning and change management expertise, Kiene provides direction and vision for the development and achievement of the GSGLA’s mission to build girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place. She is a lifetime Girl Scout herself. Kiene came to GSGLA from Fuller Seminary, where she was vice president of strategic planning and change management. Six months after accepting the CEO position, COVID-19, civil unrest, mental health, and learning loss challenges assaulted the youth and families of Greater Los Angeles. As a result of Kiene’s quick action and unwavering leadership, GSGLA is thriving in 2023.
MYRA NOURMAND
Principal Agent and Luxury Real Estate Agent
Nourmand & Associates
As the principal of Nourmand & Associates, Myra Nourmand plays a crucial role in the agency’s success. With over 36 years of experience, she manages client and business relationships, mentors agents, and assists in the development and direction of the brokerage’s strategic mission and long-term vision. Her dedication to mentoring and extensive knowledge make her one of the agency’s most valuable assets. Nourmand’s expertise and connections have earned her the nickname “First Lady of Beverly Hills” in the real estate industry. Her clientele includes some of LA’s most prominent figures, who seek her out to close deals on iconic properties. Most recently, she was entrusted with the iconic $16.955 Bugsy Siegel Estate in Beverly Hills. Additionally, in this past year, she closed the highest sale in Southwest Beverly Hills and the second-highest in the neighborhood’s history at the time.
EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
HALÉ BEHZADI
Managing Director and North America Head
Citi Private Bank
Halé Behzadi is the North America region head of Citi Private Bank and a member of the Citi Private Bank Global Leadership Team. She has direct responsibility for the private banking business across the United States and Canada. Prior to joining Citigroup and establishing the Private Bank office in Beverly Hills in 2002, Behzadi enjoyed a distinguished career with Bank of America as a senior vice president directing a team of private banking professionals in Beverly Hills. Behzadi has built her career in Los Angeles for nearly four decades, all of which has been in wealth management. She has championed diversity and the advancement of women throughout her career. In 2022, she established Citi Private Bank’s Women In Wealth client segment through the creation of a board of client advisors tasked with forming strategies to identify, attract and serve women wealth creators.
KAVITHA BHATIA
President and Chair, Prime Healthcare Foundation; Chief Medical Officer of Strategy
Prime Healthcare
Dr. Kavitha Bhatia serves as the president and chair of the board of the Prime Healthcare Foundation, a 501(c)3 public charity, and chief medical officer of strategy for Prime Healthcare, one of the nation’s leading health systems with 45 hospitals and more than 300 outpatient locations in 14 states. Dr. Bhatia leads the development and implementation of strategic initiatives that advance the mission and long-term success of Prime Healthcare. Dr. Bhatia works with corporate and hospital leaders to prioritize system-wide value creation and implement strategic initiatives to ensure Prime’s continued operational, financial, and clinical success. She is also recognized as a leader who is adept at building processes and systems. Dr. Bhatia’s leadership and vision have helped Prime build the infrastructure to leverage its unique value and national scale. She facilitates visionary, out-of-the-box thinking and has led teams toward transformative change in nearly every area of the organization.
ISOBEL LINCOLN
SVP, Human Resources
Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield
Isobel Lincoln began her career with Unibail- Rodamco-Westfield in 2020 as vice president of human resources and talent development before being promoted to her current position of senior vice president of human resources at URW. She has spent her career building teams and implementing strategic and creative solutions for companies in tech, entertainment, and finance industries including Warner Bros., Netflix, The TCW Group, Universal Music Group, and 21st Century Fox. Lincoln started with URW in January 2020 just as the company was beginning its evolution from legacy shopping mall owner and operator to creator and operator of multi-faceted mixed-use lifestyle destinations. She and her team supported the business not only through this transition but also through COVID by designing and implementing COVID protocols, supporting employees through furloughs, energizing staff, and helping to build a sense of trust during this time.
JULIE MILLER-PHIPPS
Regional President, Southern California, and Hawaii Market
Kaiser Permanente
Julie Miller-Phipps leads the hospital and health plan operations for Kaiser Permanente’s Southern California and Hawaii markets, and partners with the leadership of the Southern California and Hawaii Permanente Medical Groups to improve the health of over five million members and their communities. Combined, the Southern California and Hawaii markets have over 82,000 employees collaborating with 8,600 Permanente Medical Group physicians to deliver high-quality, affordable care through 16 hospitals and 264 medical offices. In the Los Angeles Basin, that includes seven medical centers. After 46 years and 12 positions within Kaiser Permanente, Miller-Phipps has announced plans to retire in July. She leaves a legacy of determination and leading from the heart that has resulted in tangible business outcomes. In addition, Miller-Phipps oversees funding and grants for programs that cultivate improvements in the economic, social, and environmental factors that strengthen the quality of health in Southern California and Hawaii.
MARY OSAKO
Vice Chancellor, Strategic Communications
UCLA
Mary Osako is the first person to lead UCLA’s communications and marketing efforts as a vice chancellor, serving in the role since September 2019. She oversees the university’s marketing and communications and helps maintain and enhance UCLA’s reputation as U.S News & World Report’s #1 ranked public university. Osako has more than 20 years of experience leading complex communications efforts at some of the most innovative Fortune 500 companies in the world. In her role at UCLA, she has developed initiatives to maintain and enhance its reputation as a world-class research university and ushered in new ways of communicating its story. She has also strengthened marketing, communications, and events across UCLA by instilling a commitment to collaboration for campus professionals. This is embodied in a weekly collaboration meeting where staff discuss updates from their departments, opportunities for collaboration, and how to communicate around pressing issues.
INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
COOPER HARRIS
CEO
Klickly
Cooper Harris is a serial technology entrepreneur, author, and speaker who currently serves as founder and CEO of Klickly, a VC-backed, award-winning com-merce-enablement platform headquartered in Santa Monica. Harris built Klickly with the goal of empowering the world’s most innovative eCommerce brands. The Klickly platform allows brands access to commerce technology that previously was only available to enterprise companies with huge budgets. Additionally, by building a proprietary, “buyable” ad (or “smart checkout”) Harris hoped to allow brands to reach a wider audience and consumers to check out faster, anywhere online. The challenge of building first-of-its-kind technology, as a female founder, was daunt-ing; nevertheless, after building a world-class tech team and issuing multiple patents, Harris took the product to market and now has successfully launched with almost 2,500 brands, helping empower them to compete with the large incumbents in the space.
MAJA MATARIC´
Chan Soon-Shiong Chaired and Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Neuroscience, and Pediatrics University of Southern California
Dr. Maja Mataric´ is the Chan Soon-Shiong chaired and distinguished professor in the Computer Science Department, with appointments in the Department of Pediatrics Neuroscience Program at USC, founding director of the USC Robotics and Autonomous Systems Center (RASC), co-director of the USC Robotics Research Lab, and the lead of the Viterbi K-12 STEM Center. Dr. Mataric´ is a recipient of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics & Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM) from President Obama. Her research has been supported by NSF, NIH, DARPA, ONR, industry, and foundations. In addition to her numerous high-impact research publications, Dr. Mataric´ is the author of a popular introductory robotics textbook, “The Robotics Primer,” is on the editorial board of the ACM Transactions on Human-Robot Interaction. Dr. Mataric´’s research in the past two decades has been in the new field of socially assistive robotics (SAR) she pioneered.
PAULETTE PANTOJA
Founder and CEO
Blu Digital Group
Paulette Pantoja is a visionary leader recognized for her innovative use of technology within the film and TV digital supply chain industry. As the CEO of Blu Digital Group, she has built a global media technology company that provides end-to-end digital media software and services to the OTT, broadcast, and video streaming industries. Pantoja founded Blu Digital Group in 2007 as the first dedicated Blu-ray disc testing facility in the film and TV home entertainment industry. Since then, she has led the company’s expansion into media processing and software licensing of its patented and proprietary cloud-based solutions for digital distribution workflows. With a focus on quality, speed, scalability, and efficiency, Blu Digital Group’s award-winning cloud-based software leverages AI and automation to set the standard for digital media distribution. Under Pantoja’s leadership, Blu Digital Group has grown to over 200 full-time employees and has facilities in multiple countries.
MERCY STEENWYK
CEO and President
ForensisGroup Inc.
More than 32 years and 30,000 cases, since she launched her innovative concept, Mercy Steenwyk’s ForensisGroup, continues to support attorneys and private and government agencies by providing consultants and expert witnesses in nearly every discipline. Testimony from ForensisGroup experts has helped keep lead out of drinking water, oil out of oceans, and dangerous chemicals out of food, and has led to safer skyscrapers and more reliable power grids while preventing intellectual property theft. ForensisGroup expert witnesses have been used in some of the largest, most complex cases including one with over $40 billion at stake. Steenwyk continues to lead her team in the ever-changing and evolving landscape of business and technology with the incorporation and exploration of AI. She is steadfast in her continuous effort to evolve with the changing work style and behavior of the new generation of clients.
EMERGING WOMAN-OWNED BUSINESS LEADER FINALISTS
GIOVANNA BRASFIELD
CEO
Brasfield & Associates
Dr. Giovanna Brasfield, commonly known as “Dr. G‚” has many significant highlights in her career in construction leading diversity & inclusion for large general contractors both in commercial and civil construction. Brasfield recently served as the highest-ranking African American in the US and Canada for Flatiron’s Southwest Division as the vice president of project diversity & inclusion leading contract commitments for the Los Angeles World Airport (LAWA)’s Automated People Mover Project (APM) for small business engagement, local workforce inclusion, and youth education. In October 2021, Brasfield has taken her knowledge and experience to consult with her own DEI practice “Brasfield & Associates.” As a consultant, she serves more firms within the construction industry with her expertise in DEI and aids companies with project pursuits in meeting contractual requirements that engage women, diverse businesses, the local workforce, and youth engagement.
DIANA RAMOS SANTIAGO CARTER
CEO
Arykas and Ybots Public Relations Firm
As the CEO and founder of Venn Negotiation, Christine McKay has helped hundreds of small and mid-sized companies across more than 50 countries negotiate more effectively. She has negotiated with nearly half of the Fortune 500 and helped her clients improve broken business relationships, grow revenue, and avoid catastrophic failures. She passionately empowers entrepreneurs and business owners to ask for more of what they want and shows them how to get it. McKay is also the author of “Why Not Ask: A Conversation about Getting More,” which provides insights into her unique life story as a single mother from rural Montana who managed to earn an MBA from Harvard Business School, her subsequent career, and the negotiation lessons she learned along the way. Determined to create a better life for herself and her children, her drive and grit have been instrumental in propelling her to where she is today.
CHRISTINE MCKAY
CEO
Venn Negotiation
As the CEO and founder of Venn Negotiation, Christine McKay has helped hundreds of small and mid-sized companies across more than 50 countries negotiate more effectively. She has negotiated with nearly half of the Fortune 500 and helped her clients improve broken business relationships, grow revenue, and avoid catastrophic failures. She passionately empowers entrepreneurs and business owners to ask for more of what they want and showing them how to get it. McKay is also the author of “Why Not Ask: A Conversation about Getting More,” which provides insights into her unique life story as a single mother from rural Montana who managed to earn an MBA from Harvard Business School, her subsequent career, and the negotiation lessons she learned along the way. Determined to create a better life for herself and her children, her drive and grit have been instrumental in propelling her to where she is today.
JESSICA STARMAN
Co-Founder and CEO
Elev8 New Media
Jessica Starman is a seasoned public relations professional and media relations expert and is the co-founder and CEO of Elev8 New Media. Since starting Elev8 in 2018, Starman and her team have provided private and publicly-traded companies with media relations services and strategy-focused full-service public relations to clients across all industries. Elev8 has obtained coverage for clients in mainstream, broadcast, trade, and local media. Jessica now employs a team of ten in-house with additional outsourced contractors to service clients across North America. Based in Los Angeles, Elev8 New Media is an award-winning boutique public and media relations firm specializing in securing earned media and press coverage for its client companies. Additionally, Elev8 provides full-service social media services to its clients. Starman advises her experienced team of professionals and client executive teams on corporate strategic positioning and effectively articulating company stories to the mainstream community.
CHAMPION OF WOMEN FINALISTS
DR. SORAYA COLEY
President
Cal Poly Pomona
Throughout her career, Dr. Soraya M. Coley, the first woman and first African American to serve as president of Cal Poly Pomona (CPP), has actively mentored and championed women toward positions of leadership. During her tenure, CPP has grown its enrollment, despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has expanded its legacy as a national leader in promoting social and economic mobility. President Coley has appointed many women to cabinet-level positions at CPP, which is currently 75 percent women, including the provost and vice president for academic affairs, the vice president for student affairs, and the vice president for administrative affairs. President Coley has consistently demonstrated a sustained and continuing commitment to the advancement of women through actions or initiatives enhancing women’s leadership development. As the ACE South-ern California Women’s Network presidential sponsor for four years, President Coley has devoted resources to the professional development of women.
JESSE DRAPER
Founding Partner
Halogen Ventures
Jesse Draper is a trailblazing founding partner at Halogen Ventures, with a proven track record of supporting female entrepreneurs thanks to her focus on early-stage investing in consumer technology companies led by female and co-ed teams. As the first solo female GP in Los Angeles, Draper’s experience spans four generations of venture capitalists, and she brings deep expertise in understanding consumer trends and behavior, identifying innovators, and solving problems at scale. Since 2015, Draper has raised over $50 million in funding from institutional investors, endowments, funds of funds, and family offices to invest in the next generation of female-founded billion-dollar businesses. Halogen Ventures has invested in over 70 female-founded companies, with ten exits under the portfolio. Among her notable portfolio companies are Skimm, Babylist, ThirdLove, HopSkipDrive, The Flex Company, Squad (acquired by Twitter), Eloquii (sold to Walmart), and This is L (sold to P&G).
IRMA VARGAS
Program Manager
New Economics for Women
Irma Vargas is the program manager for the New Economics for Women’s East Los Angeles BusinessSource Center (ELA BSC) which les’ Economic Workforce and Development Department (EWDD). In her current role, Vargas not only strategizes with the EWDD but also collaborates closely with NEW’s sister business centers and the local chambers, community organizations, and community advocates to support business development and job creation/retention, especially for disadvantaged women and women of color entrepreneurs and small business owners in the East Los Angeles area. Vargas is known for her continuous service to such underrepresented women and women of color entrepreneurs and small business owners, especially with her procurement expertise. As a community leader and Latina with an entrepreneurial mindset, she has been a tireless advocate in promoting government procurement contract opportunities, especially for underrepresented women business owners to enhance their success.
DENISE YI
Managing Director
Citi Private Bank
Denise Yi is a managing director and the North America co-head of Women in Wealth at Citi Private Bank. Since becoming North America co-head of Women in Wealth in 2022, Yi and her team have developed and launched a critically important business segment to serve and support women’s financial journeys. In this capacity, Yi is co-leading the business development efforts and advancing the private banking experience tailored to women clients built upon three core pillars to educate, engage, and elevate women business founders, corporate executives, inheritors, and investors. Yi is a passionate champion of diversity, equity, and inclusion. She served as the co-chair of Citi Private Bank North America’s Diversity Operating Committee for the last two-plus years. She is a culture carrier and actively promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion. She is also a thought leader who has advocated to advance DE&I initiatives in several impactful leadership roles.
MENTOR OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
MARY JREISAT
Senior Project Manager
Shawmut Design and Construction
In an industry that’s just 10% women, Mary Jreisat has not only forged a name and reputation for herself – establishing herself as a go-to builder for completing the most complex and important renovations in the most condensed timelines – she has also lifted up the women around her. This is even more impressive as Jreisat has continuously worked on sports venue projects for the last four years – another male-dominated industry. One of the keys to Jreisat’s mentorship is that she understands everyone learns and progresses differently. For example, Jreisat mentored a woman who made a career change into construction, joining a stadium project where Jreisat helped her solidify her skills. Now, she’s on the largest project in Shawmut’s 40-year history. Jreisat works to excite the future generation, paving the way so women have an easier experience and know how to approach their roles
with confidence.
SANDRA KLEIN
US Bankruptcy Judge
US Bankruptcy Court, Central District of CA
Judge Sandra R. Klein’s professional experience is inextricably linked to her community service and philanthropic endeavors – she has truly walked the walk of an exemplary mentor every day since the very beginning of her long career. Judge Klein serves as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Central District of California. She has been committed to public service throughout her career, with a focus on educating, mentoring, and giving back to her community. Since taking the bench, Judge Klein has continued to serve the public, especially youth in underserved communities. She is co-founder and co-leader of a Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles troop for girls experiencing homelessness. Having launched a series of impactful mentoring programs for young students, Judge Klein’s commitment to public service includes offering the next generation of lawyers real-life experience and making the bankruptcy court more accessible for self-represented litigants.
KIMBERLY RAVENELL
Partner
Withum
Kim Ravenell is the tax practice leader in Withum’s Encino office. She has over 25 years of experience providing tax planning and compliance services for high-net-worth individuals and closely held businesses of all sizes. She prides herself in her responsiveness to her clients and in providing the best client service possible. Over the years, Ravenell has mentored dozens of team members. An advocate for mentoring underrepresented groups, she is a leader of “Women of Withum’s” empowerment program, which focuses on the elevation and inspiration of women. She also consistently demonstrates that she evaluates her success by her team’s success. Whether there is a requirement for a quick phone call or an in-depth coaching meeting, Ravenell will gladly volunteer her time on weekdays or weekends. She promotes equity for all women by providing a safe space for women team members to network and seek support.
EMILY BURKHARDT VICENTE
Partner, Co-Chair Labor, and Employment
Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP
Emily Burkhardt Vicente is co-chair of the Hunton Andrews Kurth’s national labor and employment team and diversity and inclusion committee. She was selected as co-chair of the national labor and employment practice of an American Lawyer 100 firm after only eight years as a partner. This is no small feat and a testament to her leadership abilities. She has defended some of the largest Fortune 100 companies in high-stakes employment litigation and is one of few lawyers to successfully take hybrid class and collective action cases to a jury trial. Beyond Vicente’s accomplished professional career, she has a deep commitment to supporting and lifting women professionally and personally. She co-leads the firm’s small office women’s mentoring circle and she provides mentorship to women across all stages of their careers, offering valuable and constructive feedback to push others forward.
COMMUNITY IMPACT ADVOCATE FINALISTS
TAMMY CAPRETTA
Chief Transformation and Risk Officer
Keck Medicine of USC
Tammy Capretta, RN, MPH, serves as chief transformation and risk officer for Keck Medicine of USC, supporting growth within Keck Medicine. Capretta’s integral role in many of Keck Medicine’s efforts has supported the growth and development of the Keck Medicine organization. In her position, Capretta created and oversees four offices: the Office of Integrated Risk Management, the Office of Integrated Credentialing, the Care for the Caregiver Office, and the Office of Healthcare Compliance. These offices ensure that as Keck Medicine grows throughout Southern California and beyond, the health system brings the same quality of care to the community. Due to Capretta’s efforts, patients know they can receive uniformly excellent treatment and care whether they are in Newport Beach, Visalia, Santa Clarita, or another of the health system’s 100-plus unique clinics. Capretta is also a leader in Keck Medicine’s successful “Culture of Safety” initiative.
ANGELA UNDERWOOD JACOBS
Senior Vice President and Regional Manager
California Bank & Trust
Angela Underwood Jacobs has established a successful career as a bank executive and holds an admirable and distinguished record of service as a former city council member and in many charitable endeavors. In 2015, Jacobs began her service on the Lancaster City Council, where she became known as a vocal advocate for small businesses and a staunch defender of working families. In 2016, she was the first African American woman elected to serve on the Lancaster City Council. Jacobs is currently senior vice president of the Greater Southern California North Region at California Bank and Trust. She looks forward to the opportunity to continue to contribute to the ongoing development and prosperity of the region. Utilizing the invaluable leadership experience that she has acquired throughout her professional career; she has been instrumental in the development and success of multiple committees and outreach programs.
BONNIE ROBERTSON
Manager, ESG
Dine Brands Global
Bonnie Roberston has proven to be a valued member of the Dine Brands team and has played an essential role in Dine Brand’s efforts to serve its people and planet. Every year, Dine issues an ESG report that reports on the progress the company makes in this area, and through Robertson’s role, she greatly contributes to the report’s accuracy and impact, covering the topics of people, planet, food, and governance. Her leadership and expertise in ESG management have helped Dine Brands improve in corporate sustainability, demonstrating the company’s commitment to positively impacting the world. Robertson ‘s contributions to the community, particularly in the ESG field, further demonstrate her commitment to making a positive impact. She continuously identifies opportunities for the company to give back to its communities, whether through volunteering, donations, fundraising, or waste reduction initiative, she truly lives by the values of doing what’s right.
SHAAMA SHARADA
WISE Gabilan Associate Professor;
Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science and Chemistry
University of Southern California
Dr. Shaama Sharada is an expert in the development and application of quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics methods to design catalysts for sustainable chemistry. Her research program focuses on developing algorithms and frameworks to accelerate the prediction of viable catalysts for applications ranging from energy-efficient gas-to-liquid fuel conversion and green chemistry for light-assisted CO2 utilization. Dr. Sharada’s work was published in the special issue for women in physical chemistry of the Journal of Chemical Physics and was subsequently awarded government funding. Her pioneering research in unearthing the steps constituting catalytic cycles for light-driven CO2 utilization using molecular organic catalysts will be key in unlocking viable green chemistry routes for mitigating CO2 emissions. Dr. Sharada is also making significant strides in the computational design of molecular thermal catalysts.
WOMAN TO WATCH FINALISTS
MARGAUX BURKHOLDER
Senior Project Manager
Walter P Moore
Margaux Burkholder is a licensed structural engineer with 13 years of design experience. She has worked on a range of project types and has experience with high-rise and performance-based design, seismic retrofit and rehabilitation, multi-family residential, commercial, sports, and entertainment. One of Burkholder’s noteworthy projects early on included the $234 million County of Los Angeles Hall of Justice seismic retrofit and parking structure. The project turned the red-tagged, 14-story, 1925 Hall of Justice into new office space for the LA Sheriff’s Head-quarters as well as adding a 1,000-car parking structure. Burkholder executed the project from start to finish with her team. She also worked on the $2.5 billion and 1.5 million square foot Century Plaza project involving the renovation of the existing 16-story historic Century Plaza Hotel and the addition of two 46-story residential towers. Burkholder was an integral part of the project’s success.
SARAH CHUNG PARK
Founder and CEO
Landing International
Sarah Chung Park is the founder and CEO of Landing International, a B2B technology platform unlocking retail success for emerging beauty brands. A beauty industry veteran since 2003, Park is a sought-after expert and trusted advisor to beauty retailers across North America. Since starting Landing in 2014, Park has launched over 200 emerging brands into retail doors, resulting in over $40 million in retail sales. Park founded Landing with the mission of making the beauty industry a more conscious and inclusive place. Landing’s tools are designed to champion mission-driven brands and game-changing retailers committed to creating greater innovation, representation, and responsibility. Driven by the belief that empowering independent brands creates a more inclusive and diverse industry, Park innovates B2B technologies to level the playing field in beauty. She has also become a leading resource in the beauty industry for retailers looking to provide minority-owned, women-owned brands to their customers.
ANNAMARIE JONES
Chief Operating Officer
MemorialCare Medical Foundation
Annamarie Jones is the chief operating officer of MemorialCare Medical Foundation in Fountain Valley. Jones has served in many roles during her healthcare career, which has allowed her to build a strong foundation in operations. Building a strong organizational culture is her passion. One way she is approaching this at MemorialCare is by personally rounding with staff and clinicians at every location. Jones has established leader rounding with the executive management team and developed an online rounding feedback tool with dashboards to help track and trend concerns raised by doctors and staff. Because of the consistent visits, teams are more willing to provide feedback, which allows for overall improvement in team engagement and operational results. It has helped MemorialCare Medical Foundation leaders improve trust and build stronger relationships between the executive teams and clinic staff while producing document-ed feedback that is conducive to positive change and improvements.
JENNY KANTOR
Executive Vice President, Group Head
Edelman
Jenny Kantor has nearly two decades of consulting experience, specializing in corporate positioning, media relations, thought leadership, and business transformation communications. She creates communications programs that help organizations promote, protect, and evolve reputations, manage transitions, and align around a strategic vision. Kantor has supported communications efforts for clients across multiple sectors including technology, B2B, higher education, health/wellness, food, and retail. Her client list includes Comcast, Mattel, Intuit, the University of Phoenix, UCLA, Verity Health, Nordstrom, and more. This past year, Kantor was promoted to executive vice president and appointed oversight of Edelman’s corporate communications practice for Southern California, based on the consistent value she has delivered to her clients, colleagues, and the agency. Under Kantor’s oversight, the corporate practice delivered a 25.4% fiscal year-over-year increase in top-line revenue.
NEXTGEN WOMAN OF THE YEAR FINALISTS
ABEGAYLE DE CASTRO
Project Engineer
PCL Construction, California Buildings
Abegayle De Castro is project engineer on the Consolidated Rent-A-Car facility (ConRAC) megaproject at Los Angeles International Airport for PCL Construction. The project is her first in a full-time role; she previously worked on large sports facility project during her internship with PCL. De Castro worked in a team of two to manage the construction of the building the exterior perimeter structures and the envelope for a 5.5 million square foot facility, managing subcontracts and scheduling, responding to RFIs, overseeing quality control and executing on the safety program and procedures. More recently, she’s assisting with closeout, punch, startup and commissioning. Although she is relatively new to construction and working on a project of such massive scale that many early-career engineers could only dream of, De Castro shines bright. She is already known for being a team player, and her work product is impeccable.
SARAH JOHANSON
Senior Manager, Marketing Operations
Matthews Real Estate Investment Services
Starting her career as a marketing coordinator at Matthews in 2016, Sarah Johanson has grown to be a leader, mentor, and respected marketing professional in the commercial real estate industry. Showing her work ethic, communication skills, and dedication to success, she quickly rose in the ranks from coordinator to specialist to ultimately Matthews’ senior manager of marketing operations. Johanson has learned the ins and outs of commercial real estate. She uses her experience to adapt and revitalize the company’s property marketing platform and develop a dedicated team to ensure agents receive top-level marketing assets. She created and built out the company’s pre- and post-production teams. Johanson stands out among her peers as a self-starter, executing ideas and delivering results. She initiates and oversees ongoing efforts to automate marketing processes, working closely with Salesforce representatives and various departments within Matthews.
RACHEL RUSSELL
Assistant Director, Field Marketing
EY
Rachel Russell is an award-winning event marketer, creating and executing memorable experiences for attendees. She is the assistant director, field marketing at EY and runs the Entrepreneur Of The Year program, which recognizes business leaders in 145 cities and 60 countries throughout the world. In addition to building relationships with business leaders of high-growth companies, Russell works with the LA Office managing partner to strategically position EY’s brand in the Los Angeles market through the deployment of multi-channel campaigns such as events, partnerships, PR, web, and paid social. She researches local organizations, evaluates event sponsorships, and develops field marketing plans to meet go-to-market objectives and achieve revenue goals. In 2023, Russell is managing EY’s presence at the Upfront Summit and US Open. She is working to differentiate the firm’s brand and ensure they are showing up at the best events.
KYLIE WONG
Project Architect
HGA
Kylie Wong, RA, is a project architect in HGA’s Los Angeles office. She joined the firm after graduating magna cum laude with her Bachelor of Architecture from USC. As a member of HGA LA’s ACE (Arts, Community, Education) Practice Group, Wong specializes in performing arts and higher education projects. Currently, her main projects are public Southern California Community College projects. She is proud to serve BIPOC communities within underfunded campuses and still provide them with long-lasting design solutions. Since joining HGA in 2017, Wong has always enjoyed taking on leadership roles in extra-curricular activities within the firm along with her leadership on project work. Rather than waiting for opportunities to present themselves, she has actively sought out ways to get involved. She began by leading the office’s Wine and Design, a monthly forum to elevate the level of design discussion outside of day-to-day work.
