John DesJardins is senior principal solution architect, focused on data and AI, at Rocket Software. He has been a hands-on CTO and Fractional CTO, driving innovation in real-time data and AI. His career includes leadership roles at Hazelcast, Cloudera, Software AG, and webMethods, partnering with Global 2000 firms such as HSBC, BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, Visa, Target, Walmart, Honeywell, GE, and many others to innovate with real-time data integration, analytics, and AI/ML systems with zero downtime. He has extensive experience with payments and trading systems, as well as Internet of Things.
As Hazelcast Chief Technology Officer, he directed engineering strategy to create a leader in real-time processing capable of billions of events per second with a 10X performance advantage over Flink or Spark and introduce a unified SQL API that simultaneously processes streaming and stored data. He also spearheaded an OEM partnership with IBM including working closely with their Cloud and IBM z Platform teams, and was named an IBM Champion in 2022. John also drove co-engineering work with Red Hat and Intel.

John DesJardins is senior principal solution architect, focused on data and AI, at Rocket Software. He has been a hands-on CTO and Fractional CTO, driving innovation in real-time data and AI. His career includes leadership roles at Hazelcast, Clouder... Show more

Anna Anderson is a Project Delivery Consultant, corporate trainer, speaker, and LinkedIn Learning Instructor with more than 15 years of experience leading complex technology and transformation initiatives across government, financial services, insurance, and other industries.

Throughout her career, Anna has led enterprise programs, worked with cross-functional teams, and helped organizations improve how they plan, execute, and deliver projects. Today, she brings that experience into the rapidly evolving world of artificial intelligence.

Through annalanderson.com, Anna helps organizations move beyond experimenting with AI to using it in practical, meaningful ways. Her work focuses on AI adoption, project management, workflow improvement, and helping teams build the skills and confidence to work effectively with AI tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and Claude.

Anna is also the founder of Women in Project Management Network, a community dedicated to connecting, educating, and supporting project management professionals.

As a LinkedIn Learning Instructor, Anna teaches *Succeeding in Project Management as an Introvert*, helping professionals recognize and leverage their unique leadership strengths.

Her speaking and training sessions combine real-world enterprise experience with hands-on demonstrations, practical frameworks, and actionable takeaways. Whether working with project managers, business leaders, or cross-functional teams, Anna focuses on helping people understand not just what AI can do, but how to use it responsibly to improve the way they work.

**Speaking and workshop topics include:**

- AI for Project Managers: From Prompts to Practical Workflows
- Building AI-Enabled Project Management and PMO Practices
- AI Adoption: Moving Teams From Experimentation to Execution
- ChatGPT, Claude, and Microsoft Copilot for Everyday Work
- Responsible AI, Governance, and Human Oversight
- Leading Complex Projects and Strengthening Project Delivery
- Succeeding in Project Management as an Introvert

Anna is available for corporate workshops, conference presentations, leadership sessions, webinars, and professional development events.

Speaking and training inquiries: annaLAnderson.com@womeninpmnetwork.com

Anna Anderson is a Project Delivery Consultant, corporate trainer, speaker, and LinkedIn Learning Instructor with more than 15 years of experience leading complex technology and transformation initiatives across government, financial services, insura... Show more

Nicole Derr is an agile coach turned community changemaker. She partners with leaders to build resilient, long-lasting organizations that contribute positively to their communities. Together they grow companies through innovative products and scalable, cooperative, people-first business practices. Improved business outcomes are the natural result.

Nicole has extensive experience with organizations of all sizes, from 1 to 20,000 employees, and in a broad range of industries, from tech, manufacturing, and finance, to non-profit, public service, and academia. She has worked throughout the midwest, the United States and beyond, but her favorite engagements are with small organizations making an impact in their local community. While Nicole’s focus is executives and leaders, she has worked with team members at all levels and across the entire organization.

Nicole Derr is an agile coach turned community changemaker. She partners with leaders to build resilient, long-lasting organizations that contribute positively to their communities. Together they grow companies through innovative products and scalabl... Show more

Richard Essangabasi is a Speaker, Entrepreneur and Business Developer from Nigeria. With years of experience in entrepreneurship, marketing, media & entertainment, business development & sales, he builds businesses that solve real problems and helps other entrepreneurs do the same.

He has worked with global brands like Google, Ethereum, Base, Cowrywise, and more. He is the Co-Founder/CEO of Shard Network, a satellite-powered campus ISP, and the Convener of Campus Pitch Africa, Africa's biggest campus pitch competition. Beyond these, he is building a conglomerate of ventures across fashion, media, finance, and hospitality.

Beyond building, he runs webinars, mentors founders 1-on-1, and consults for African SMEs. His work is driven by three purposes: building the economic value of African SMEs, raising the next generation of young African leaders, and funding the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Richard Essangabasi is a Speaker, Entrepreneur and Business Developer from Nigeria. With years of experience in entrepreneurship, marketing, media & entertainment, business development & sales, he builds businesses that solve real problems and helps ... Show more

Matt Fenner is a finance and operations executive with more than 30 years of experience helping entrepreneurs and investors build scalable, high-value businesses. He currently serves as COO of Caplin Ventures, a Jacksonville, Florida investment firm managing 10 operating companies and 20+ passive investments across healthcare staffing, technology, engineering, and professional sports.

Matt is available to speak on topics including: M&A strategy and execution, financial management for growth-stage companies, building and exiting micro-cap businesses, private investment strategy, and operational leadership in diversified portfolios. He holds an MBA in Finance and a BBA in Accounting from the University of North Florida.

Matt Fenner is a finance and operations executive with more than 30 years of experience helping entrepreneurs and investors build scalable, high-value businesses. He currently serves as COO of Caplin Ventures, a Jacksonville, Florida investment firm ... Show more

Hernan Huwyler is a Global Risk Management Executive and the Academic Director at IE Law and Business School (Executive Education). With a dual background as an MBA and CPA, Hernan specializes in the intersection of Law, Technology, and Quantitative Risk.

He focuses on "translating" complex regulatory frameworks (EU AI Act, GDPR, ISO 42001) into actionable architectures for engineering and business teams. Unlike traditional compliance officers, Hernan advocates for data-driven risk management, moving beyond "heatmaps" to utilize Monte Carlo simulations, convolution models, and Python-based risk quantification.

Hernan has led Risk, Control, and Audit functions for major multinational corporations across Europe and the Americas. He writes and speaks extensively on Adversarial AI, Algorithmic Auditing, and the financial quantification of Cyber Risk. Past keynote venues include Risk Awareness Conferences (>2,000 risk managers), IIA and ISACA Summits, ProcureCom Europe, IKN Madrid, IE University, and closed-door sessions for international organizations and national regulators. Hernan’s talks consistently rank in the top 5% of conference feedback scores because he makes complex security requirements, business needs and regulations feel like a competitive advantage.

Speaking Topics:

AI Governance: Implementing ISO 42001 and navigating the EU AI Act.
Risk Quantification: Why "Impact x Probability" fails and how to use convolution models.
Adversarial AI: Balancing transparency with security to prevent data poisoning.
AI ROI: Risk-adjusted financial modeling for Generative AI deployments.
AI Architecture: Decision-making and planning on how to plan AI developments.

Ready-to-Submit Talk Proposals:

Session 1: The Technical/Quant Talk

Title: Kill the Heatmap: Quantifying AI Risk with Python & Monte Carlo Simulations
Abstract: Most organizations manage AI risk using colorful 5x5 "heatmaps." This is mathematically flawed and dangerous for high-stakes AI deployment. In this talk, we will ditch the gut-check methodology. I will demonstrate how to use convolution and Monte Carlo simulations to model the "tail risk" of AI hallucinations and regulatory fines. You will leave with a method to calculate the actual financial exposure of your models—no expensive GRC software required, just math and logic.

Session 2: The Governance/Security Talk

Title: The Transparency Trap: How to Audit AI Without Creating Vulnerabilities
Abstract: New standards like ISO/IEC 12792 demand AI transparency, but in the age of Adversarial Machine Learning, "oversharing" is a security vector. If you reveal your full architecture and training sources, you invite data poisoning and model inversion attacks. This session outlines a "Tiered Disclosure Architecture." We will discuss how to route specific data to auditors, regulators, and users differently, ensuring compliance with the EU AI Act without handing the keys to bad actors.

Session 3: The Business/Strategy Talk

Title: The Real Cost of Intelligence: A Risk-Adjusted Framework for AI ROI
Abstract: Companies are deploying Generative AI based on productivity hype, but they are ignoring the "OpEx Iceberg"—model drift, inference costs, and liability reserves. This talk presents a financial framework for calculating the true ROI of AI. We will cover how to factor in the "Risk Delta" (new risks vs. automated risks), calculate the Levelized Cost of AI (LCOAI), and determine when to build vs. buy based on process uniqueness. A session for leaders who need to justify the cloud bill to the CFO.

Hernan Huwyler is a Global Risk Management Executive and the Academic Director at IE Law and Business School (Executive Education). With a dual background as an MBA and CPA, Hernan specializes in the intersection of Law, Technology, and Quantitative ... Show more

Consultant senior et formateur certifié SAFe Practice Consultant, ElMehdi Safraoui est un expert passionné par la transformation digitale et Lean Agile, particulièrement dans le secteur public. Fondateur du cabinet Arrioph, il accompagne des organisations basées entre Paris et Casablanca dans leurs parcours de transformation Agile et numérique, en plaçant l’humain et l’innovation au cœur de la performance.

Consultant senior et formateur certifié SAFe Practice Consultant, ElMehdi Safraoui est un expert passionné par la transformation digitale et Lean Agile, particulièrement dans le secteur public. Fondateur du cabinet Arrioph, il accompagne des organisa... Show more

Marcin Zajkowski's journey with Umbraco (.NET, Open Source) began back in 2008 while he was doing an internship in Microsoft. Today he works with the leading UK/Worldwide Umbraco Gold Partner - Novicell - as Senior Solution Architect and Country Manager in Poland. Marcin is also responsible for organizing Umbraco PL Festival as well as the Poland Umbraco Meetup group + together with his colleague Callum Whyte, he is hosting umbraCoffee LIVE on YouTube, where they're chatting about what happened in the community / Umbraco in each following week.

Besides Umbraco, Marcin is also a co-owner and CTO/CKO in a programming school for children - WOW School - where he is also teaching young minds how to code (Umbraco included! ;)).

Marcin Zajkowski's journey with Umbraco (.NET, Open Source) began back in 2008 while he was doing an internship in Microsoft. Today he works with the leading UK/Worldwide Umbraco Gold Partner - Novicell - as Senior Solution Architect and Country Mana... Show more

Here I am; I host; I speak; and I talk on panel discussions... Unimaginable 10 years ago. Reality now. Still unbelievable. Still loving my job and everything it comes with it.

HR professional and practitioner with a strong IT background and nerdy mind. After years in positions as Head of People & Culture or HR, I decided to switch my focus, roll up my sleeves again and get my hands dirty.

Now I am helping companies, teams and individuals in the fast-growing and highly dynamic IT environment with their needs related to development, growth, internal processes, people-relatad data interpretation and communication. My academic roots in anthropology and other humanities were an immense advantage in my transition to the IT industry, where I deeply anchored myself. I cannot imagine my life without being surrounded by those clever, smart individuals with their willingness and drive to grow and learn more.

My overall philosophy is quite holistic and that reflects even in my approach towards all of the People related topics – viewing the whole area not just as "human resources" but as "human relations," emphasis on the value of interpersonal connections. Thanks to my analytical and entrepreneurial nature I strive for a balance between the people-centric and data-informed decision making. And always making sure the decisions are being made hand in hand with the business needs of the organisation.

Here I am; I host; I speak; and I talk on panel discussions... Unimaginable 10 years ago. Reality now. Still unbelievable. Still loving my job and everything it comes with it. HR professional and practitioner with a strong IT background and nerdy ... Show more

Your NetWork Is Your NetWorth "Happy Cloud Happy Explorers!"
Find Your Ikigai & Kokorozashi Feed Focus and Starve Distractions
Mpumelelo Pinky
Systems Administrator-IT Support
Sip and Cloud Tech Founder
CloudBoost and Faith Inspired Tech with Pinky
Multilingual Multi Cloud Ambassador
Tech Mentor and Community Pathway Builder
AI Engineer in Training

Your NetWork Is Your NetWorth "Happy Cloud Happy Explorers!" Find Your Ikigai & Kokorozashi Feed Focus and Starve Distractions Mpumelelo Pinky Systems Administrator-IT Support Sip and Cloud Tech Founder CloudBoost and Faith Inspired Tech with Pi... Show more

Business Architect, Financial Services | Trusted AI for Banking, Custody & Insurance | Offerings, Client Relationships, Practice Growth | FINOS Ambassador | Speaker & Author, The Little Book of AI Clarity.

Business Architect, Financial Services | Trusted AI for Banking, Custody & Insurance | Offerings, Client Relationships, Practice Growth | FINOS Ambassador | Speaker & Author, The Little Book of AI Clarity. Show more

Amanda Chestnut, JD, founded Money Mastery LLC to help small-business owners understand how their books, taxes, and decisions fit together. Based in southeastern North Carolina, she helps owners uncover problems, anticipate tax consequences, and make informed choices while there is still time to act. She understands that behind those decisions are families, livelihoods, and people carrying more responsibility than others often see.

An Accredited Business Accountant through the National Society of Accountants and an elite-level Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Amanda brings more than 20 years of experience. Her bachelor’s degree in social psychology informs her approach: useful advice starts with understanding the person who needs to use it.

Amanda is rethinking how an accounting firm operates, using her own practice as a testing ground for AI. She is building systems that take on reviews, track documents, and support communication, while questioning which processes and software still earn their place. She generously shares what she learns with fellow accountants. Her purpose is to create space for the work that requires human attention: sound judgment, difficult conversations, and helping someone feel understood enough to ask the next question.

A Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce Emerging Entrepreneur Award recipient and NC Project LEAD Entrepreneur Innovator Award nominee, Amanda is a Reframe Society Leader and certified in Exactly What to Say for Accountants.

Amanda Chestnut, JD, founded Money Mastery LLC to help small-business owners understand how their books, taxes, and decisions fit together. Based in southeastern North Carolina, she helps owners uncover problems, anticipate tax consequences, and make... Show more

With over 18 years in software, Gaurav Shekhar, works with Fortune 500 companies as Sr Engineering Manager and Enterprise Cloud Architect, excels in merging management, architecture, and coding with precision in cloud technologies, data science, and machine learning. As a strategist, Gaurav bridges complex technical processes with tangible business outcomes, leading successful projects, implementing innovative solutions, and fostering a culture of standardization and automation. His track record includes impeccable system architecture, design, and an unwavering commitment to client satisfaction. Seeking to transcend standards and create value, Gaurav brings expertise, innovation, and dedication to collaborative projects.

With over 18 years in software, Gaurav Shekhar, works with Fortune 500 companies as Sr Engineering Manager and Enterprise Cloud Architect, excels in merging management, architecture, and coding with precision in cloud technologies, data science, and ... Show more

Maribel Maza is a Systems Engineering student at UPC, building her path in Emerging Technologies, Innovation, Research and Strategic Consulting.
Beyond her professional work, she contributes to communities and initiatives focused on AI, STEM, education, and social impact. She is passionate about leadership and service, creating spaces where more people can learn, connect, and grow.

Maribel Maza is a Systems Engineering student at UPC, building her path in Emerging Technologies, Innovation, Research and Strategic Consulting. Beyond her professional work, she contributes to communities and initiatives focused on AI, STEM, educat... Show more

I design for user agency, across digital products and interactive narratives.

I’m the co-founder and CEO of Choose Your Fate, an interactive storytelling platform where creators build branching fiction and readers shape the story through their choices. I lead the company’s direction across product, business strategy, growth and the creator ecosystem, while staying hands-on in product design.

Most recently, I was a Principal Product UX/UI Designer at Persado, an enterprise AI platform that helps banks and other regulated brands create, score and optimize marketing language at scale. I designed the experiences where marketing and compliance teams review, approve and test AI-generated language.

I have a decade of experience in product design. I progressed from Product Designer to Head of Product Design at Mind-Alliance, a U.S.-based B2B software company building intelligence tools for law firms and legal teams, where I led a three-person design team. I’ve worked across AI, financial services, marketing and telecommunications, and my background is in Product & Systems Design Engineering.

Alongside my work, I co-organize ProductTank Athens, mentor designers on ADPList, and take part in events and conferences as a speaker or organizer, including the design team for PyCon Greece 2026. I write about design on Medium, with pieces published in UX Collective and Bootcamp.

I tend to gravitate toward the spaces between disciplines: where design meets technology, stories become systems, and products grow into communities.

I design for user agency, across digital products and interactive narratives. I’m the co-founder and CEO of Choose Your Fate, an interactive storytelling platform where creators build branching fiction and readers shape the story through their cho... Show more

Skyler Holobach built the compliance and abuse function at Pardot, now Salesforce, from scratch and spent 7 years deciding which senders got to keep sending. Her team made it through multiple acquisitions and shakeups without losing a single person, and she ranked in the top 10% of leaders at the company the entire time. She led product at SocketLabs next, where she grew revenue 25% year over year and shipped products from 0 to 1.

Today she runs Threadsmith Group, which pulls email senders out of deliverability crises (think Spamhaus listings, or the Monday morning when nothing is landing in the inbox) and fixes the habits that put them there. She has spoken at M3AAWG and Dreamforce more than once, and she chairs the Anti-Harassment committee for the Women of Email board, which has more than 9,000 members across 50 countries.

She writes and ships her own software with Claude Code and was a panelist on "Deciphering the AI Overwhelm" in New York. Years of watching bad actors hunt for every loophole give her a much less starry-eyed take on AI than most panels get. Her portfolio, also built with Claude, lives at holobach.com.

She also speaks on burnout, which she knows from every chair in the room: she has been the manager who caught it in her team before it became a resignation letter, she burned out herself as a high performer, and then she got laid off anyway with the metrics to prove performance was never the problem. Her Unspam talk on the neuroscience of burnout is where those two worlds met.

Off the clock, she trains saber and longsword at Athens School of Arms, crochets, sews, cross stitches, weaves, and has probably picked up another hobby since writing this bio. She holds a BS in Psychology from UGA and lives in Athens, Georgia.

Skyler Holobach built the compliance and abuse function at Pardot, now Salesforce, from scratch and spent 7 years deciding which senders got to keep sending. Her team made it through multiple acquisitions and shakeups without losing a single person, ... Show more

Soham Sharma is the Founder of Botmartz AI Solutions, an AI engineering company focused on building production-ready AI systems for organizations. His work focuses on Enterprise RAG, AI agents, agentic retrieval, knowledge systems, and the engineering practices required to move AI from prototypes into reliable production systems.

He regularly speaks and teaches on AI Engineering, RAG architectures, LLM applications, AI agents, and modern AI development workflows. His technical interests include LangChain, LangGraph, PyTorch, FastAPI, vector databases, evaluation, retrieval systems, and production AI architecture.

Beyond product engineering, Soham is active in the developer and AI community through workshops, hackathons, mentoring, and technical events. He has worked with developers, students, founders, and engineering teams across AI and software development initiatives.

His talks are designed to be practical and implementation-focused — helping audiences understand not only what AI can do, but how to actually design, build, evaluate, and deploy AI systems.

Soham Sharma is the Founder of Botmartz AI Solutions, an AI engineering company focused on building production-ready AI systems for organizations. His work focuses on Enterprise RAG, AI agents, agentic retrieval, knowledge systems, and the engineerin... Show more

Vin Mitty is a data and AI leader with a PhD in the field, researcher, and author of the book, The AI Decision Map.

Drawing from 2 decades of technology leadership, PhD research, and executive interviews on his podcast, Mitty helps organizations and leaders transform AI into measurable business outcomes.

Vin Mitty is a data and AI leader with a PhD in the field, researcher, and author of the book, The AI Decision Map. Drawing from 2 decades of technology leadership, PhD research, and executive interviews on his podcast, Mitty helps organizations a... Show more

Jeremiah Tillman is an IT professional, technical instructor, and full-stack software developer based in Chicago, Illinois. He manages instructor development and delivery for advanced technical and cybersecurity training. Jeremiah focuses on connecting deep infrastructure engineering with practical security solutions. His experience covers enterprise IT design, full-stack development, and systems engineering. In his free time, he researches hardware security, audits consumer electronics, strips firmware, and creates affordable ways for defensive teams, educators, and independent researchers to test hardware.

Jeremiah Tillman is an IT professional, technical instructor, and full-stack software developer based in Chicago, Illinois. He manages instructor development and delivery for advanced technical and cybersecurity training. Jeremiah focuses on connecti... Show more

Dr. Marie Alcazar is a Transformation Maven, Ecosystem Coach, author, and Founder of Built4Agility. With nearly four decades of industry experience—including 20 years in Change and Transformation and 14 years in Agile—she brings a practitioner’s perspective to how people, organizations, and systems navigate change.

Her work explores a central idea: who you are shapes how you lead. Through her Leadership iS a Lifestyle™ philosophy and Human Infrastructure Development™ framework, Dr. Marie focuses on the human capabilities that shape how people think, adapt, and create lasting impact.
Through Built4Agility, she is applying that thinking to expand access and opportunity for NXT-Gen Leaders from historically underrepresented and economically disadvantaged communities, helping people develop capability, demonstrate what they can do, and create meaningful career and economic mobility.

Dr. Marie is also the author of Truth-Telling iS Data™: The Art & Architecture of Alignment and a speaker who challenges people to think differently about leadership, transformation, human development, and the future of work.

Dr. Marie Alcazar is a Transformation Maven, Ecosystem Coach, author, and Founder of Built4Agility. With nearly four decades of industry experience—including 20 years in Change and Transformation and 14 years in Agile—she brings a practitioner’s pers... Show more

You know what’s truly rewarding? Helping someone learn and grow. There’s nothing quite like being part of someone’s journey and knowing you played a role in their progress. As a human being, a mother, a team member, and Head of Design, my mission is to contribute to as many growth stories as possible. Over the past 18+ years, I’ve gained a wealth of experience in design, product, and leadership - and now, it’s time to give back.

You know what’s truly rewarding? Helping someone learn and grow. There’s nothing quite like being part of someone’s journey and knowing you played a role in their progress. As a human being, a mother, a team member, and Head of Design, my mission is ... Show more

Abtin Aghagolian is the Co-Founder and CTO of Pikd (pikd.app), a London based geospatial AR platform that turns the real world into an interactive, privacy first interface for brands and consumers. Pikd has worked with Red Bull, Burger King and the London Design Biennale.

He has been building consumer technology at scale for close to a decade. Before Pikd he founded a venture studio where he grew a team of over 100 people and shipped eleven platforms, including a video on demand service with more than a million users, alongside psychometric ad engines and fan engagement systems. That background is why he argues about privacy from the advertising side of the table rather than against it.

His current work is privacy preserving AI. He holds a UK patent pending invention for context aware augmented reality built on zero knowledge proofs and psychometric context modelling, and is leading a consortium bid into Innovate UK and the Eureka clusters on privacy first smart city infrastructure.

He has spoken at Digital Almaty, Global Tech Wave and Red Bull Basement, where he gave "Don't Build the Future Wrong: Ethics by Design in the Age of Immersive AI". He holds a BSc in Computer Science and Management from the University of St Andrews and a DBA from the University of Tehran.

Abtin Aghagolian is the Co-Founder and CTO of Pikd (pikd.app), a London based geospatial AR platform that turns the real world into an interactive, privacy first interface for brands and consumers. Pikd has worked with Red Bull, Burger King and the L... Show more

Friendly, Curious, Eclectic;

Patrick Trierweiler is a security-focused compliance professional with 200+ closed engagements and currently working as a Compliance Analyst for Steel Patriot Partners. A Florida State University CCI Alumni, an Eagle Scout, and Writer for the ISACA Blog from time to time. His more niche work related to emerging technology, cybersecurity, and culture can be found on his Blog "It'll Be The Future Soon" on LinkedIn and Substack

Patrick dived straight into the IT Audit and Cybersecurity space out of College in 2019 and has seen a lot during his 7 year tenure in the industry. Joining A-LIGN during a time of exponential growth where each year both the companies revenue and his team doubled in size. During his time there he went from SOC 2 IT Associate Auditor to FedRAMP Manager. Performing and SOC 1 ITGC+BP, SOC 2, HIPAA, SSPA, Ransomware Preparedness, FedRAMP, FISMA, and NIST 800 engagements including full audits, readiness assessments and gap assessments. As well as sitting on the Methodology, Training, and GRC committees creating trainings, controls, and testing methods.

He Left A-LIGN in late 2023 and has worked in the FedRAMP/IT Consulting space ever since. Today, he designs, builds, and maintains Security Compliance Programs in the private sector.

Patrick lives the greater Tampa Bay area and is always looking for ways to assist the community. He mentors and performs resume critiques for Veterans, College Kids, and generally anyone interested in breaking into Tech and IT Audit.

Friendly, Curious, Eclectic; Patrick Trierweiler is a security-focused compliance professional with 200+ closed engagements and currently working as a Compliance Analyst for Steel Patriot Partners. A Florida State University CCI Alumni, an Eagle S... Show more

Yulia Kosarenko is the author of the books "Business Analyst: A Profession and a Mindset" and "Foundations of Business Analytics", speaker, consultant, and corporate trainer.
As the owner of Why Change Consulting Inc., she helps her clients grow mature enterprise architecture and business analysis practices, and plan and execute digital transformation programs.
As the Professor of Business Analytics at Humber College, she encourages her students to look for ways to solve business problems using analytics.
As a business analysis mentor, she leads the BA Mindset Mentorship Circle and encourages business analysts to learn, adapt, and thrive.
Yulia is active in the business analysis, architecture, and analytics communities, publishing articles and videos, joining podcasts, and advocating for applying common sense and critical thinking in all business endeavours.

Yulia Kosarenko is the author of the books "Business Analyst: A Profession and a Mindset" and "Foundations of Business Analytics", speaker, consultant, and corporate trainer. As the owner of Why Change Consulting Inc., she helps her clients grow ma... Show more

Since early 2020, George Drazenovic has been a faculty member at University Canada West (UCW) in Vancouver, BC, where he has taught subjects including accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, and corporate strategy. He also served as Chair of Undergraduate Programs for nearly four years. Before his academic career, he worked in the private sector, leading various ventures in the junior public markets.

His professional experience spans HR management, recruiting, industry partnerships, business development, financial reporting, capital budgeting, strategic planning, capital markets, regulatory compliance, and investment valuation. He began his role at UCW as an MBA instructor and was later promoted to Associate Professor. In 2021, he was appointed Chair, reporting directly to the VP of Academics. By the end of 2024, student enrollment and faculty numbers had increased more than tenfold under his leadership. He oversaw program strategy, curriculum updates, academic governance, industry outreach, budgeting, and compliance.

He was responsible for managing three undergraduate programs: the Associate of Arts, the Bachelor of Commerce (ACBSP-accredited), and the Bachelor of Arts in Business Communications. These programs supported over 5,500 students and more than 200 faculty members. He served as a voting member on several committees, including Senate, Curriculum, Governance and Standards, Quality Assurance, Admissions Appeals, and Undergraduate Program Working Committees. He completed the consent renewal for each program and contributed to the development and redesign of numerous courses.

He introduced academic leadership roles that supported faculty growth and strengthened student outcomes. He aligned the accounting curriculum with the CPA Western School of Business and added new certification-aligned and technology-focused courses. His efforts brought improvements in curriculum structure, scheduling systems, and the implementation of a new learning management platform. He also mentored faculty, supported DEI initiatives, launched student engagement activities such as Pitch Night, and expanded professional partnerships.

Before joining UCW, he held roles as CFO, CEO, and Director in multiple public companies. He led mining exploration projects and helped secure funding and support for pharmaceutical research and early-stage clinical trials.

George Drazenovic continues to contribute his knowledge and leadership across education, industry, and research with focus and integrity.

Since early 2020, George Drazenovic has been a faculty member at University Canada West (UCW) in Vancouver, BC, where he has taught subjects including accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, and corporate strategy. He also served as Chair of Undergrad... Show more

Lakindu Widuranga Alwis is an entrepreneur and software engineer, currently serving as the CEO of Akwid Labs, an AI startup that offers AI solutions to businesses, from small enterprises to large-scale organisations. He possesses extensive knowledge and experience in developing AI-powered products. Additionally, Lakindu is a final-year student at SLIIT.

Lakindu Widuranga Alwis is an entrepreneur and software engineer, currently serving as the CEO of Akwid Labs, an AI startup that offers AI solutions to businesses, from small enterprises to large-scale organisations. He possesses extensive knowledge ... Show more

Lukas Hüttis is an AI consultant and speaker focused on practical AI workflows, automation and responsible AI use. He helps self-employed professionals, consultants, coaches and trainers turn ad-hoc use of tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude into reliable workflows for recurring tasks.
His approach is hands-on and hype-free: instead of chasing every new tool, he focuses on processes that create real value and can be used independently after implementation.
Lukas has more than a decade of experience with digital products, IT projects and emerging technologies and has trained over 500 participants in courses, workshops and 1:1 settings. Before focusing on AI, he worked extensively in Web3 and blockchain and later published the book “Web3 ohne Bullsh*t”, reflecting critically on the hype around emerging technologies.

Lukas Hüttis is an AI consultant and speaker focused on practical AI workflows, automation and responsible AI use. He helps self-employed professionals, consultants, coaches and trainers turn ad-hoc use of tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude into r... Show more

Andrew Trochinski is a Microsoft Dynamics/D365 expert with over 15 years of experience in ERP implementation, supply chain optimization, and process improvement. He holds multiple Microsoft certifications and APICS credentials. Andrew specializes in bridging technical solutions with business impact, delivering practical insights on MS Dynamics/D365 upgrades, integrations, and operational efficiency.

Andrew Trochinski is a Microsoft Dynamics/D365 expert with over 15 years of experience in ERP implementation, supply chain optimization, and process improvement. He holds multiple Microsoft certifications and APICS credentials. Andrew specializes in ... Show more

Mariano is a former Microsoft BizApps and Power Platform MVP and the Chieft Technology Officer at Mekorma. As a technology professional in the Dynamics space for 30 years, Mariano has been a staple at community events like DynamicsCon, Community Summit North America, Scottish Summit, and DynamicsMinds, delivering engaging presentations throughout the world. Mariano is a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT)

Mariano is a former Microsoft BizApps and Power Platform MVP and the Chieft Technology Officer at Mekorma. As a technology professional in the Dynamics space for 30 years, Mariano has been a staple at community events like DynamicsCon, Community Summ... Show more

Since discovering Power BI in 2018, Chris Cusumano has focused on using data to simplify work, not complicate it. He’s helped teams across airline operations, engineering consulting, auto repair, and SaaS turn fragmented data into clear, usable insights through well-structured models, intuitive visuals, and practical analytics.

In 2026, he joined Microsoft as a Senior Data Engineer, leveraging Power BI, Fabric, and AI data agents to drive internal reporting.

Since discovering Power BI in 2018, Chris Cusumano has focused on using data to simplify work, not complicate it. He’s helped teams across airline operations, engineering consulting, auto repair, and SaaS turn fragmented data into clear, usable insig... Show more