Leadership

Sudeep’s notable achievements during his career have been in winning the National HR Award for best HR Employer in 2002, an editor to the book on Careers in Conservation, as well as an author of three books What Influences the Generation Y to join a Nonprofit Organization? & Nonprofit Management: Trials and Tribulations and Nonprofit Management: Connecting the Dots. Sudeep’s postgraduate degrees are in Human Resource Management at Hawaii Pacific University, USA where he received a distinction; and from HELP University, Malaysia where he was the first DBA Doctorate program graduate. He is an Alumnus of Harvard Business School and is certified as a Professional Facilitator from the International Association of Facilitators (IAF). He received his certificate from Harvard University in Strategic Management and Governance Leadership for non-governmental organizations.

He served as the Board Member and Treasurer to the World Institute of Action Learning (WIAL), USA for four years and completed his term as the Vice Chair and Advisor to the IAF Malaysian Chapter. He served as a Board Member to Amnesty International Malaysia and is active with Amnesty International USA, Maryland Chapter. He was identified three years consecutively as Marketing in Asia Top 100 LinkedIn icons from 2018 – 2020. He was an Adjunct Professor to the Swiss School of Management, Italy where he was a supervisor for a DBA student through to the successful completion of her Doctorate in 2020.

Currently he is serves as a volunteer to CareerVillage.org, USA where the impact of his work helped more than 5000 students in 2021. He also contributed to realizing over $20K in savings to nonprofits across the globe by working for Catchafire.org. He is a committee member of the International Social Services (ISS)-USA and is an Adjunct Professor to Towson University. He coaches young children soccer on a part-time basis.

He has many management tips, sharing of knowledge, podcasts and YouTube interviews that are available.  He speaks and writes in English, Malay and Indonesian.  His mother tongue is Malayalam.  He resides in Maryland, USA with his wife, and has two adult children.

Sudeep can be contacted at sudeep.mohandas@centreforglobalinclusion.org

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drsudeepmohandas

Ms. Riikka Salonen, bi-national of Finland and the U.S., has served as a DEI leader in academic and faith-based health systems and now specializes in health equity and culturally responsive care as a consultant. This GDEIB Expert Panellist has offered her DEI and intercultural services in 20 countries since 1994.

Dr. Rohini Anand is the Founder and CEO of Rohini Anand LLC providing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) advisory services to clients in the public and private sectors. She is a strategic business leader and trusted board member who has successfully transformed cultures and built an iconic brand with an enduring reputation, resulting in accelerating new business creation. With expertise that spans executive leadership, human capital, global corporate responsibility, wellness and diversity equity and inclusion, Rohini brings a unique perspective on the critical alignment of the business culture and the triple bottom line to drive exceptional performance. Rohini is recognized as a pioneer in the DEI field and is a sought-after expert by leaders around the world. Her global experience, cultural dexterity, extensive network and ability to influence leaders to result in a reputation for judgment, integrity, and accountability.  

Rohini Anand is a thought leader and a published author. Her book, Leading Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: A Guide for Systemic Change in Multinational Organizations, has been endorsed by luminaries like Indra Nooyi, former Chairman and CEO, PepsiCo, Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder and CEO Chobani and Tent, Michel Landel, Danone S.A Board member and former CEO, Sodexo, amongst others. It is available on Amazon here and Bookshop.org and on bookdepository here for international orders.

Most recently Rohini was SVP Corporate Responsibility and Global Chief Diversity Officer for Sodexo. She reported to the Global CEO and was a member of Sodexo’s North America Executive Committee. Rohini successfully positioned Sodexo as a global thought leader in DEI and Corporate Responsibility. Sodexo’s remarkable global culture change, led by diversity and inclusion, is featured in a Harvard Business School case study entitled Shifting the Diversity Climate: The Sodexo Solution. 

Rohini has been featured in several articles in CNBC, The Boston Globe, The New York Times, and the Washington Post. Rohini has appeared on CNN, Bloomberg, and CNN Money as well on National Public Radio. She is the recipient of many accolades including the Mosaic Woman Leadership Award, the Women’s Foodservice Forum Trailblazer Award, Webster University’s Women of Influence Award and the Who’s Who in Asian American Communities Award (WWAAC), amongst others. 

Dr. Anand received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She serves on the boards of several organizations including WomenLift Health a Gates Foundation initiative, Aspen Institute’s Family Prosperity Initiative, Tent Partnership for Refugees and Galt Foundation. She also serves on the external diversity advisory boards for Sanofi and for Charter Communications and chaired the Catalyst Board of Advisors. Rohini is a Senior Fellow with the Conference Board and is on the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Center for Inclusive Governance’s Advisory Council. 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohinianand

Mary moved from Kenya to Finland 18 years ago as a college student. She holds degree in international business and spent 15 years working in hospitality in Helsinki and London. Mary has also spent her time volunteering for gender advancement and educational non-profit organisations both in Kenya and Finland. After graduating with an MBA, she moved into advertising. She currently works under the largest advertising umbrella brand as a Project Manager. At the agency, she specialises in mainly content maintenance and content management projects for global corporations. Mary is also a DEI consultant, keynote speaker, and content creator who is focused on purpose-driven topics and brands, creating social impact, and elevating the voices of racialised and minoritised communities.

Ursula Arlauskas is a graduate of Portland State University and has spent nearly a decade in the Wealth Management and brokerage world. In 2017 she joined the world of philanthropy over at the Community Foundation for SW Washington as a Development Associate. Ursula uses her lived experiences to connect, learn and live by her values to make a positive impact in the community and build relationships. Her role at the Foundation has been all encompassing as a co-project manager for SW Washington’s largest giving day GiveMore24!, organizing major events, data integrity, strategic planning, technology assists and helping to lead their equity work inside the organization. In addition to her work at the foundation she sits on the Leadership Council for Partners in Diversity an organization who works with employers to address critical needs for achieving and empowering a workforce that reflects the rapidly changing demographics of the Pacific northwest.

Gamiel is more than an engaging, passionate, seasoned Diversity & Inclusion expert.  He was the proud recipient of the Global Diversity Leadership Award presented by the Global HRD Congress and the author of ‘Demystifying Diversity' and Yemen Proud.

Gamiel’s first foray into the world of Diversity was in 2000 when was in publishing, collaborating with the then Commission for Racial Equality to promote the Amendments to the Race Relations Act which require public bodies to take action on Race Equality. Now more than two decades later, Gamiel has built an award-winning Global Diversity and Inclusion Consultancy working with companies that include: Publicis Group, BAE System, Siemens, Rolls Royce, Eon, Channel 4, Zalando, South Pole, BNP Paribas, the Welsh Assembly Government, Local Authorities, the NHS, Charities, Schools, Colleges and Universities and more...

Gamiel works with employers to design and implement Change Leadership/Positive Action initiatives to attract new talent from diverse backgrounds, support existing talent to reach their potential through leading themselves as well as role modeling inclusive behaviors for others to follow and ensure that the culture of the organisation is conducive to the needs of diverse talent through audits, benchmarks (GDEIB), research, training, coaching and leadership behaviours. Gamiel has been called a subject matter expert in the area of Inclusion and Diversity and talks at many conferences as the keynote speaker. Gamiel also supports the development of new and existing heads/managers of DEI through a partnership with ‘d&I Leaders’ working with 245 participants. 

Gamiel spent 15 years in business magazine publishing where he revitalised failing magazines. This is where he developed an interest in Diversity as a means of attracting new audiences and giving fresh content to readers and advertisers. Gamiel was headhunted by Havas to head up their Diversity and Inclusion practice before moving to Barkers (now Penna) where he accumulated a wealth of knowledge and experience in the areas of diversity and inclusive leadership.

Gamiel is also a founding member of the MK Ethnic Business Community, a Trustee for The Parks Trust, Women Leaders UK and a member of the Employability Advisory Group for Bath University

Founder of Re-Link Consulting, a research-based advisory firm based in India, Deepa has 20  years of experience, consulting with organisations in bringing about a complete culture change, especially taking the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion lens, across the corporate,  academic as well as social sectors. She has a Master’s degree in Economics and started her career with the Madras School of Economics, India, which gave her a strong foundation in research, enabling her to design evidence-based solutions rooted in the organisation’s cultural reality.  

A trained facilitator, Deepa has facilitated numerous dialogues with leadership teams across sectors and countries- India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Dubai, South Africa, US, and Egypt as well as addressed conferences and webinars with a global audience. In these sessions, she takes an experiential approach to help the participants discover the value of diversity and uncover their own biases.  

In the corporate sector, her work involves assessments and audits of people processes as well as employee mindsets, using participatory interviews, Creating powerful communication campaigns that are delivered digitally and carrying out community research. Her work in creating Transition Guidelines: Returning Mother’s Project and technology-based digital solutions on tackling workplace stereotypes, won the best communication award for the clients. A student of Counselling therapy, she advises organisations to create mental health interventions and remove the stigma attached to mental health. 

She is closely involved in the academic sector, and gives guest lectures to management students on concepts of DEI. During her stint as an Adjunct Faculty at the Tata Institute of  Social Sciences, she initiated leadership programs for school leaders, a program that was oversubscribed. She has also worked with jailors to create employment opportunities and skill building for the jail inmates post-release. 

Deepa writes and publishes papers and articles in media publications, including Business  World, Deccan Herald and People Matters. 

Sudeep’s notable achievements during his career have been in winning the National HR Award for best HR Employer in 2002, an editor to the book on Careers in Conservation, as well as an author of three books What Influences the Generation Y to join a Nonprofit Organization? & Nonprofit Management: Trials and Tribulations and Nonprofit Management: Connecting the Dots. Sudeep’s postgraduate degrees are in Human Resource Management at Hawaii Pacific University, USA where he received a distinction; and from HELP University, Malaysia where he was the first DBA Doctorate program graduate. He is an Alumnus of Harvard Business School and is certified as a Professional Facilitator from the International Association of Facilitators (IAF). He received his certificate from Harvard University in Strategic Management and Governance Leadership for non-governmental organizations.

He served as the Board Member and Treasurer to the World Institute of Action Learning (WIAL), USA for four years and completed his term as the Vice Chair and Advisor to the IAF Malaysian Chapter. He served as a Board Member to Amnesty International Malaysia and is active with Amnesty International USA, Maryland Chapter. He was identified three years consecutively as Marketing in Asia Top 100 LinkedIn icons from 2018 – 2020. He was an Adjunct Professor to the Swiss School of Management, Italy where he was a supervisor for a DBA student through to the successful completion of her Doctorate in 2020.

Currently he is serves as a volunteer to CareerVillage.org, USA where the impact of his work helped more than 5000 students in 2021. He also contributed to realizing over $20K in savings to nonprofits across the globe by working for Catchafire.org. He is a committee member of the International Social Services (ISS)-USA and is an Adjunct Professor to Towson University. He coaches young children soccer on a part-time basis.
 

He has many management tips, sharing of knowledge, podcasts and YouTube interviews that are available.  He speaks and writes in English, Malay and Indonesian.  His mother tongue is Malayalam.  He resides in Maryland, USA with his wife, and has two adult children.

Sudeep can be contacted at sudeep.mohandas@centreforglobalinclusion.org

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drsudeepmohandas

Malay-English, Animah has lived in diverse environments all her life. Her fierce desire for equity - among genders, race and the global East and West - led her to law in Malaysia’s largest law firm, before joining Schlumberger and a Petronas-Hess JV, rising to general counsel.

Animah stands up for excluded voices, to enable less dominant perspectives be heard via her vibrant global community of change- makers and leaders, the Speak Up Collective.

Animah speaks globally on diversity, ethics, anti-corruption and co-creates healthy and inclusive Speak Up Cultures for organisations. Her writing spans from corporate scandals, to deep reflections around #MeToo and toxic leadership while provoking thought around equity and privilege. She now lives in England.