Societal Impact Conference: Leaders Accelerating Change

 Caryn Beck-Dudley, AACSB

Caryn Beck-Dudley became president and CEO of AACSB in June 2020. She previously served as dean of the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University. Prior to that, she served as dean of the College of Business at Florida State University and the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University. In addition to holding other leadership and teaching roles at Utah State, Beck-Dudley has taught at the University of Georgia Terry College of Business and the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. Before her academic career, she was an attorney in commercial and corporate law. Beck-Dudley served two previous terms on the AACSB Board of Directors, including as the 2018-19 board chair. She has served on numerous AACSB committees and previously chaired the Maintenance of Accreditation Committee.

Christopher Boone, Arizona State University

Christopher Boone is a Professor in the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University. Previously, he served as Dean of the School of Sustainability and the Founding Dean of the College of Global Futures at ASU. Boone's research contributes to advancements in sustainable urbanization, environmental justice, urban ecology, global environmental change, and innovation in higher education. At ASU, he has taught classes on sustainable urbanization, urban and environmental health, principles and methods of sustainability, environmental justice, sustainable design and innovation, designing future universities, and interdisciplinary methods for socio-ecological research. He has a PhD from the University of Toronto and was a post-doctoral fellow at McGill University.

Michael Bzdak, Johnson & Johnson

As the Global Director of Employee Engagement in the office of Global Community Impact at Johnson & Johnson, Michael Bzdak manages the Corporation’s efforts to engage employees in social impact. He continues to manage a volunteer support program as well as philanthropic support of K-12 education, including a signature school-to-career program and a global STEM education initiative. He has authored and co-authored a number of articles related to the role of business in society including, “The Collaboration Challenge: Global Partnerships to Achieve Global Goals,” published in World Health and Population in January of 2018. With co-author with Mark Aakhus, Michael published “Revisiting the Role of ‘Shared Value’ in the Business-Society Relationship,” in the Business and Professional Ethics Journal in 2012.

London Clark, NYU Stern School of Business

London is an MBA candidate at NYU Stern specializing in strategy and sustainable innovation. As the Co-President of the NYU Social Impact and Sustainability Association, she leads initiatives to foster a community of responsible leaders who are passionate about building a radically better way of doing business. Eager to apply her strategic know-how to exciting problems at the intersection of sustainability and technology, London has pursued internships at the Invest NYC SDG Initiative of NYU’s Center for Sustainable Business and the Commercial EV Charging Strategy team of Ford Motor Company. Prior to Stern, London spent six years in the media and technology industries in impact partnerships, marketing, communications and change management roles. She holds a BA in International Affairs from The George Washington University.

 Corinne Dougherty, KPMG

Corinne Dougherty is a partner in KPMG’s Washington, DC office.  She has over 18 years of experience providing financial statement audit and related assurance services, as well as accounting and advisory services to her clients. Corinne is part of KPMG’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) leadership team. In this role, Corinne leads the development and delivery of ESG related training. Additionally, she advises clients in developing best practices for ESG reporting and leads teams engaged to provide ESG assurance services.

Nina Eisenman, Nasdaq

Nina Eisenman serves as Vice President, Head of Corporate ESG Strategy at Nasdaq where she leads the Corporate ESG Strategy and Reporting team. Nina has helped global organizations including PepsiCo, Ares Capital Management, Morgan Stanley, Liberty Mutual, Prologis, and Western Union develop sustainability communications platforms and articulate the material, financial and non-financial impact of their ESG initiatives. Nina has a BA in Astronomy from Barnard College and is an MS in Sustainability Management candidate at Columbia University.

Ann Florini, Arizona State University

Ann Florini is a Fellow in the Political Reform Program at New America, working on how innovative governance tools can help to address the intertwined challenges of climate change and democratic decay.  She is also Senior Advisor to NatureFinance and the Task Force on Nature Markets; a Senior Global Futures Scientist at the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Lab and a Professor of Practice at the Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona State University; a founding Board Member of the Economics of Mutuality Foundation; and a Founding Member of the Council on Economic Policies.

Erik Foley, The Pennsylvania State University

Erik Foley is the director of the Center for the Business of Sustainability and an instructor in management and organization at Penn State's Smeal College of Business and teaches courses in sustainability strategy and social entrepreneurship. The center's mission is to accelerate the integration of sustainability in business, which is done through a community of scholars, educators, students, and industry partners. He is faculty director of the Business Sustainability Strategy Graduate Certificate Program and co-faculty director of Penn State Executive Programs' “Building a Sustainable Supply Chain” short course. See Foley's AACSB Insights article, “Sustainability Across the Curriculum.”

Maria Guevara, MSF International

Maria Guevara is the MSF International Medical Secretary, working in a trio with the International President and the Secretary General. She has over 18 years of humanitarian experience and over 10 years management practice through her work with Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders. Her humanitarian field work has spanned across countries in Africa, Americas, and Asia in both emergency and stable settings as well as being the organization's Regional Representative in Asia. Dr. Guevara serves as a nominal member of the Independent Vaccine Allocation Group associated with the COVAX facility as well as being part of the Advisory Group to the Sunway Center on Planetary Health. 

Amy Hall has been with the Eileen Fisher brand for over 28 years, having launched and led the company’s Social Consciousness work, including human rights, environmental sustainability, policy, and women and girls. Today, she serves as the Social Consciousness Strategic Advisor for the company and the Sustainability Strategic Advisor for the Eileen Fisher Foundation. In both capacities, she works to advance responsible business practices within the company and the industry. An outdoor enthusiast, Amy can be found cycling around New York’s Hudson Valley on her self-built bamboo bike – or kayaking the Hudson River and collecting trash in her net bag.

Simon Hayward, Accenture

Simon Hayward is Global Lead for Leadership and Culture at Accenture, an honorary professor at Alliance Manchester Business School, and an acclaimed author, conference speaker and media commentator.  He has a wealth of strategic leadership experience gained over 30 years and has developed major, award-winning leadership and cultural transformation programmes for clients across Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific.Simon published The Agile Leader in 2018 with a second, extensively updated edition in 2021.  His first book, Connected Leadership, was published in 2016 and shortlisted as Management Book of the Year by the Chartered Management Institute and the British Library. Simon has also had chapters published in the Palgrave Handbook of Leadership in Transforming Asia (2017), which explored Connected Leadership in the Asian context, and the Sage Handbook of Qualitative Business and Management Research Methods (2017).

Jeffrey Hollender, American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN)

Jeffrey Hollender is a leading authority on corporate responsibility, sustainability and social equity. He serves as the CEO of the American Sustainable Business Network, an organization that develops and advocates solutions for policymakers, business leaders, and investors that support an equitable, regenerative, and just economy. Today, as a CEO, author, speaker, consultant, and activist, Hollender's mission is to inspire and provoke business leaders to think differently about the role they and their companies play in society. Along the way, he's working to drive systemic change that makes it easier for businesses to become radically more sustainable, transparent, and responsible.

Charles Holmes, Solvable

Charles Holmes is a cultural anthropologist by education and a convenor, community builder, facilitator, and educator by avocation. For the past 30 years of he has honed a passion for creating meaningful dialogue amongst groups whose diverse opinions might otherwise work against an understanding of their shared interests and potential for building common futures together. Charles co-founded the Learning Strategies Group at Simon Fraser University, where he also taught. Together with Peter Senge and a team of colleagues he co-created the Academy for Systems Change. He has facilitated dialogues with the Dalai Lama, with many multi-national corporations, non-profits and government agencies. He is a core member of the Solvable team, a Vancouver based consultancy dedicated to guiding corporations and capitals to regenerative futures.

Nicholas Igneri, AACSB

As global chief product officer, Nicholas Igneri leads the strategic direction for learning and development, data, and product innovation. He brings over 20 years of senior executive experience to AACSB. Previously, Igneri served as senior vice president of education for the American Management Association International (AMA), where he led the strategic direction of educational content distributed in classroom, virtual classroom, and on-demand modalities. In addition, Igneri led the direction and strategy for AMA’s learning technology ecosystem, including the learning management system and the synchronous learning, evaluation, and support platforms. He also led the customer experience strategy at AMA. More recently, Igneri led the research and development of a new Certification in Management.

Bill Imada, IW Group, Inc.

Bill is Chairman and Chief Connectivity Officer of IW Group, a fully integrated marketing communications agency specializing in the growing multicultural communities. For more than three decades, Bill and his team have played a critical role in reaching the growing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Hispanic/Latinx, and LGBTQ+ communities. Imada's areas of expertise include community outreach, community relations, intercultural communications, media relations, experiential events and activations, and partnership marketing.

Andrew Jack, The Financial Times

Andrew Jack is global education editor for the Financial Times, writing on educational issues around the world and editorial lead for the free FT schools programme. He was previously head of curated content, deputy editor of the big read section, pharmaceuticals correspondent, and a foreign correspondent in France and Russia.

Alan Jagolinzer, University of Cambridge Judge Business School

Alan Jagolinzer is the Professor of Financial Accounting, the Head of the Accounting Faculty Subject Group, and the Founder and co-Director of the Cambridge Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School. Alan has published research in top academic journals that relate to insider trading, executive compensation, corporate governance, and international financial reporting. His current research examines problems with governance structures of US universities and the societal implications of disinformation campaigns. Alan has earned teaching recognition at several universities including the 2010 Stanford University Graduate School of Business MBA Distinguished Teaching Award.

Tanesha Jones, IKEA

Tanesha Jones is an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Leader at IKEA North America Services LLC. Tanesha is dedicated to inclusion and connecting how engagement can influence and impact organizational environments. Through her work with Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), she is vested in identifying and developing diverse talent pipelines. Working with a network of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (ED&I) Ambassadors, Tanesha continues to amplify the need for inclusion as a foundation for success by championing activation across her organization, at the corporate level as well as in all units, across several markets. She works on initiatives to secure implementation and education in service of bolstering an inclusive workplace culture where everyone is valued, seen, and heard. 

Katell Le Goulven, INSEAD

Katell Le Goulven joined INSEAD in April 2018 as the founding Executive Director of the Hoffmann Global Institute for Business and Society. Previously with UNICEF, she founded a Policy Planning unit to analyze global trends and emerging issues and inform UNICEF’s strategic positioning, and led UNICEF’s corporate engagement with International Financial Institutions. She has over 20 years of professional experience at the interface of research and decision-making designing policies and strategies, and advising senior executives in international organizations and governments. She holds a PhD in agricultural economics, a Msc. in tropical agronomy, and an engineering degree. 

Kimberly Davies Lohman, New Impact

Kimberly is an impact strategist with a decade of experience identifying market-based solutions for social and environmental challenges. She was most recently a sustainability consultant with Resonance and Accenture. Kimberly began her career in international development with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Grameen Foundation. She earned her MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and BA from The University of California, Davis. Kimberly spends her free time chasing snow in the mountains and sailing the wonders of the Puget Sound.

Jemilah Mahmood, Sunway University

Jemilah Mahmood is a medical professional with more than two decades experience managing crises in health, disasters and conflict settings. She is currently Professor and Executive Director of the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University in Malaysia.  She is a member of the Malaysian Climate Action Council and Consultative Council for Foreign Policy at the government of Malaysia, and a Senior Fellow of the Adrienne Arsht-Rockefeller Foundation Resilience Centre. Dr. Mahmood is also the Pro-Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.  She is a strong advocate of planetary health and sustainability and actively advises on Environment, Social and Governance in the advisory and board roles she holds.

Sophia Martinez, Centro de Enseñanza Técnica y Superior University

Sofía Martínez is a recent graduate of the Bachelor of International Business from CETYS Universidad with Summa Cum Laude honors.. In her journey as a student leader she founded the Model United Nations Club. She has also been part of the Society of Business and Administration Students, FORTES (Student Strength) and was vice president of the Células Congress of the School of Business and Administration 2020. Also, she was the first representative of Latin America in the PRME Global Students initiative last year. 

Henry Mintzberg, McGill University

Henry Mintzberg is a writer, researcher, and educator, most of whose work focuses on managing organizations, developing managers, and (most recently) rebalancing societies. His 21 books have earned him 21 honorary degrees. He sits (a) in the Cleghorn Chair of Management Studies (b) in the Desautels Faculty of Management (c) at McGill University (d) in Montreal, Canada. While devoting his professional life to studying, experiencing, and coping with organizations, he spends his private life escaping from them.

Jens Molbak, NewImpact

Jens Molbak is the founder of NewImpact, a humanity benefit nonprofit based in Seattle, WA.  NewImpact is seeking to change the way the world finds opportunities and solves problems by pioneering the field of Tri-Sector Innovation. Jens first realized the potential for tri-sector innovation when he founded Coinstar in 1990. His goal was to create a company that could simultaneously benefit the private, public, and non-profit sectors. Today, Coinstar has processed trillions of coins and billions of dollars for millions of people, raising over $150M in donations to nonprofits and saving the government billions of dollars, all while providing a valued consumer service and increasing spendable cash power. After the success of Coinstar, Jens realized tri-sector business models could be applied to many types of organizations, with the potential to help transform society.

Rohan Nipunge, University of Colorado-Denver Business School

Rohan Nipunge is a dual-major undergraduate student at the University of Colorado -Denver Business School. He has a vibrant passion to exercise every opportunity to expand upon his existing knowledge and consequently, challenge the status quo. Rohan’s persistence fuels his ambition to elevate to new heights, regardless of the circumstance, encouraging his hunger for growth. Aside from his extensive involvement on campus, Rohan is actively engaged with the AASCB Societal Impact Accelerator and National Millennial & GenZ Community. Recently, he also completed his internship with TIAA.

Jean Oelwang, Virgin Unite

Jean is the founding CEO and president of Virgin Unite, where she has worked with partners to lead the incubation and startup of several global initiatives, including: The Elders, The B Team, The Carbon War Room, The Africa Donor Collective, Ocean Unite (now ORRAA), The Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator, and 100% Human at Work. She is on the boards of RMI, The Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator, AID Live, and Unite BVI; Foundation, The B Team, Penn State Board of Visitors, and Just Capital. She is also a B Team leader. She is the author of Partnering; and co-founded Plus Wonder to spark more meaningful deep connections and collaborations in the world. See our AACSB Insights interview with Oelwang, “Radical Collaboration.”

Austin Okere, CWG, PLC

Austin Okere is the founder of CWG Plc and has over 30 years of entrepreneurial experience. Currently an entrepreneur-in-residence at Columbia Business School, New York, he has also been appointed to the Advisory Board of the Global Business School Network in Washington, D.C. Okere served on the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council for Innovation and Intrapreneurship and has served as a consultant to the Sustainable Development Goals, African Center (SDGAC) in Rwanda. Okere has recently been appointed to AACSB's Business Practices Council. See Okere's AACSB Insights article, “A Model for Analyzing Sustainable Development.”

Miguel Padro, The Aspen Institute

Miguel joined the Aspen Institute Business & Society Program (Aspen BSP) after working in business for 10 years, primarily in in the healthcare technology and education sectors.  He currently leads the program’s Purpose of the Corporation work.  Miguel brings a deep curiosity about the intersection of capitalism and democracy, an interest that first emerged in his undergraduate studies of Eastern European transitions out of communism and evolved further during his subsequent global travels and pursuit of an MA in International Relations.

Carl Rhodes, University of Technology Sydney

Carl Rhodes is dean and professor of organization studies at the University of Technology Sydney Business School. Rhodes writes about the ethical and democratic dimensions of business and work. This work endeavors to question and reformulate the role of business in society so prosperity can be shared by all. Rhodes’ most recent books are Woke Capitalism: How Corporate Morality is Sabotaging Democracy (Bristol University Press, 2022), Organizing Corporeal Ethics (Routledge, 2022, with Alison Pullen), and Disturbing Business Ethics (Routledge, 2020).   

Bruno Roche, Economics of Mutuality

Bruno Roche is the founder and executive director of the Economics of Mutuality, a new school of thought and a disruptive model for economic performance designed to transform business at the core, establish reciprocal relationships between business, society and the environment—and by doing so nurture a movement of purposeful and thriving companies aiming at promoting a more complete form of capitalism. 

Sandra Seru, Forum for the Future

Sandra is the Managing Director of Forum for the Future Americas and directs a team dedicated to unlocking complex sustainability challenges. Her experience and expertise are in enabling senior leaders to develop a vision and strategy for transformational change, and designing collaborative programs that are primed to accelerate system transitions. One challenge she is focused on is sustainable nutrition. She has driven several projects focused on answering the question – how can we ensure the way we grow, distribute and eat food provides healthy diets while restoring ecosystems? Sandra also coaches senior leaders to act on complex sustainability and social justice challenges.

Alison Taylor, Ethical Systems

Alison Taylor is the executive director at Ethical Systems and an Adjunct Professor at the New York University Stern School of Business. She is currently writing a book on the new landscape for business ethics. Her previous work experience includes being a Managing Director at non-profit business network Business for Social Responsibility and a Senior Managing Director at Control Risks. She holds advisory roles at ESG and risk consultancy Wallbrook and sustainability non-profit Business for Social Responsibility. Alison received her Bachelor of Arts in Modern History from Balliol College, Oxford University, her MA in International Relations from the University of Chicago, and MA in Organizations Psychology from Columbia University.

Jan-Willem Vosmeer, HEINEKEN

As Global Manager of Sustainable Development & Stakeholder Engagement for HEINEKEN, Jan-Willem oversees and supports the company’s sustainability strategy, Brew a Better World. Besides managing stakeholder engagement with investors, NGOs and organizations like the United Nations, Jan-Willem is driving Social Impact. In addition, he is closely involved in the Inclusion & Diversity agenda. He has been instrumental in the development of the 2030 Water Stewardship strategy and managed global sustainability reporting for many years. In previous positions within HEINEKEN, Jan-Willem was Group Crisis Manager – managing crisis issues and crisis preparedness, interim Brand PR Manager for the Heineken brand and responsible for activating global internal communications programs.

 Jason Wingard, Temple University

Jason Wingard is a leading academic and executive specializing in the areas of organizational strategy, leadership development, and the future of work.  He currently serves as President of Temple University and holds a dual appointment as Professor of Policy, Organizational and Leadership Studies; and Professor of Management. He is also currently Founding Partner and Chairman of The Education Board, Inc., a boutique management consulting firm specializing in executive coaching and corporate advisory services. As a public servant, Dr. Wingard also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of Kroll, the world’s premier provider of services and digital products related to governance, risk and transparency.