E-RACE: Eradicating Racism and BIAS in Employment
Overview
E-RACE is a 4-Part conversation series initiating meaningful dialogue about racism, bias and inclusion hosted by the iBELIEVE (Infosys Black Employees, Leading in Excellence, Vision and Equity) ERG Council and Americas Diversity & Inclusion.
We will kick-off the E-RACE series on the commemoration date of the Martin Luther King Jr. “I have a Dream” speech by acknowledging those who are personally impacted by listening and engaging in unfiltered conversations with an open mind and an open heart.
Part 1 - Hear me
Candid dialogue with Leadership on Black Lives Matter and Diversity & Inclusion
Part 2 - Stand by me
Allyship and Intersectionality- How to become an authentic ally by recognizing and honoring full identities
Part 3 - In my Shoes
Addressing systemic racism through structural inclusion. How to identify, tackle and improve the workplace.
As we strive to bring about behavioral changes to drive systemic inclusion; awareness coupled with key strategic actions will be necessary.
Conversation 3 continues the conversation with industry experts and leaders providing a unique perspective on immediate actions, best practices, and structural improvements that will help convey the fundamental mission of a more diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace.
Part 4 - Actions Speak Louder
Dr. James Pogue, educator, consultant, and executive coach, facilitates the conversation with executive leaders within the Infosys organization. This discussion addresses diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Leaders discuss what metrics, goals and accountability are being driven from the top and how Infosys will infuse a sense of action and urgency into the attraction, hiring and retention process of its diverse workforce. The discussion is part of an ongoing dialogue to help drive a sustainable diversity strategy and ensure continuity to pave the path forward.
Speakers
Inderpreet Sawhney
Group General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer of Infosys
In this role she leads the legal and compliance function of the Company. She is a strategic business partner supporting the business in legal and regulatory matters. She is also responsible for directing the development and execution of the compliance and ethics program for the Company.
Inderpreet is a seasoned international professional with over 25 years of experience. Her past experience includes: Managing Partner of a law firm in Silicon Valley where her mandate included counsel on complex international transactions. She also serves on the National Advisory Council of SABANA (South Asian Bar Association of North America).
In recognition of her work Inderpreet has received several awards including being featured in the top 25 Women Leaders in IT Services in 2020 and received the Global General Counsel Transformative Leadership Award from GLL in 2018 and the 2013 NASABA Corporate Counsel Achievement Award. She is a frequent speaker at conferences globally.
Inderpreet holds a BA (Hons.) and LL.B degree from Delhi University and an LL.M Degree from Queen's University, Kingston, Canada.
Mick Burn
Partner and Head of IGC Talent & Organization Practice, Infosys EMEA
Mick Burn is Partner and head of Infosys Consulting’s Talent & Organization practice for EMEA. The focus of the Talent & Organization practice is to help our clients to respond to digitally enabled change and ensure the smooth integration of technology and people. Mick brings over 20 years of shaping and delivering large, complex transformation programs for a range of global clients. Mick joined Infosys in 2012 and has been influential in establishing and growing the Talent & Organization practice in Europe. Prior to joining Infosys, Mick worked at Accenture as a change management expert serving multiple public and private sector clients. Mick is the Diversity & Inclusion Europe Lead for Infosys Consulting.
Skyler Mattson
President, Wongdoody
Skyler Mattson is President of WONGDOODY, a human experience company powered by Infosys. She has built her career driving award-winning, transformative work for clients across a range of categories, from consumer-packaged goods to technology to education. She is Founder of The Motherboard, a global community of thousands of moms who share insights to help Fortune 500 companies innovate. The Motherboard was awarded by Fast Company as a World Changing Idea.
Skyler has led several female empowerment initiatives, including #TheReal10 which aims to close the gender pay gap and #IPumpedHere, which encourages workplaces to provide better facilities for breast-pumping employees. Putting philosophy into action, Skyler frequently lectures at Pepperdine University, speaks at industry events, and writes about the importance of bringing more diverse voices and perspectives to marketing and technology. She has been a delegate to the World Economic Forum and proudly serves as a board member for the Infosys Foundation. Skyler thrives in high-energy environments where you rarely sit down, which is a good thing, since her clients at home include three sons under the age of ten.
Srikantan (“Tan”) Moorthy
EVP and Head of US Operations Delivery and Global Head of ETA, Infosys
Tan is the EVP and Head of US Operations Delivery and Global Head of Education, Training & Assessment at Infosys.
He is an accomplished business leader, with over 3 decades of experience in global IT services industry and expertise in multiple corporate functions such as strategy, operations, education, talent development and technology implementation.
He has served in the in the capacity of Head of Application Management and Development and as Group Head of HR at Infosys. He is passionate about giving back to society, and he has actively partaken in youth and education related voluntary activities. He is an advisory member of multiple not-for-profit organizations, including the Infosys Foundation USA and Youth for Seva, among others.
Dr. James Pogue
CEO, President, JP Enterprises
Leadership and training are at the core of who Dr. Pogue is and align with his ongoing commitment to equip executives and professionals with the thought leadership to improve communicate & manage effectively. His military service and overseas deployment in the Middle East, gave him tangible examples of the critical balance between leaders and followers on teams.
His work provides leaders with well researched data partnered with highly engaged training to drive their ability to impact behavior and the bottom line.
After nearly 10 years in higher education as a Researcher, Professor and Administrator where he focused Diversity, Inclusion and Unconscious Bias, Dr. Pogue expanded his work to include Multigenerational Leadership. He helps companies prepare, recruit, and retain talent across gender, culture, ethnicity, and generations from Baby Boomers, to Millennials and now Generation Z.
As an Expert Keynote, Dr. Pogue supports leaders in making the decisions that impact cross functional teams at all levels. He travels frequently impacting professions across the spectrum including the food industry, high technology, travel, leisure, medical and legal fields.
As a Consultant and Executive Coach, Dr. Pogue helps organizations realize breakthrough outcomes by helping them identify and overcoming what is getting in their way. His work helps executives achieve optimal working relationships and achieve organizational expectations through both Personal and Corporate Executive Coaching.
In his spare time, Dr. Pogue continues his martial arts training where he has won 5 National Championships and both Silver and Bronze at the World Championships. James has two daughters, 4 granddaughters and resides in Plano, Texas.
Shannon Hart
Communication Lead, Infosys Knowledge Institute
Shannon is the Communications Lead for the Infosys Knowledge Institute, which is the thought leadership and research arm.
She comes to Infosys with more than 25 years of experience as a television, digital and print journalist and producer. She has worked in 10 television stations across the country. Her last stop was in the Dallas, Texas market at WFAATV. During her journalism career, she has interviewed three US Presidents, numerous celebrities and hundreds of everyday people. Most recently she led the marketing team at a craft brewery focusing on marketing, advertising, social media and product testing.
Shannon is from Arkansas but married to a New Yorker. With two small children she truly enjoys reliving parts of life through the eyes of a child. When and if she has free time, you can catch her cross stitching to practice patients and planning the next big vacation. If she gives you a card that seems handmade, she really likes you because she probably created it in her craft room. Shannon graduated from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a degree in Journalism. She also served in the US Army, which helped pay for college.
Frank Clark
Assistant General Counsel Head of the Americas (Commercial) Legal Team
Frank M. Clark II is Assistant General Counsel and Head of the Americas Legal Team at Infosys Limited. He manages a global team of 13 attorneys (based in the U.S., Brazil and India) that is responsible for providing timely, practical and comprehensive support to the Sales, Consulting and Alliance organizations in the Americas Region (Canada, U.S. and Latin America).
The revenue generated by customers in the Americas region comprises approximately 60% of Infosys’ total annual profit. He provides expert and strategic legal and business advice to senior executive management (CEO, COO, Presidents, Executive Vice-Presidents and Senior Vice-Presidents). Serves as a member of the Board of Directors for one of Infosys’ subsidiaries (Kallidus, Inc.).
His other responsibilities include managing the Americas Legal Team budget, employment decisions, litigation and dispute matters, external counsel and various Infosys Legal Department projects. He currently serves as the Project Lead for developing, arranging and executing the delivery of contract negotiation training to internal clients and various other types of legal training to the Infosys Legal Department.
He is the recipient of several awards, including the Infosys Legion Award (2018) for his excellent leadership and support of the organization; the Sun Microsystems Leadership Excellence Award (2010); American Express Quality Excellence Leadership Award (2005).
Ken Barry
Associate Partner - Business Consulting (IGC Unit)
Kenneth has over 20 years of consulting experience, serving as a Chief Business Architect guiding Business Process Transformations and defining Future State Enterprise Architectures, while delivering Business Transformation and Technology Modernization programs.
Kenneth’s retail clients have included Coach, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Walmart, The Home Depot, Under Armour, Tiffany Hallmark, REI, Genuine Parts Corporation, NAPA Auto Parts, Sysco Foods, Save-On-Foods, Smart and Final, Buy-Low Foods (Associated Grocers, Choices Markets, Canadian Choices Wholesale, Van-Whole Produce, Nature’s Fare Market).
Anurag Varma
Vice President - Head of Government and Public Affairs, Infosys Ltd.
In this role, Anurag has been a driver of the company’s efforts to integrate into its business model the holistic engagement of stakeholders in each community in which it does business. In the U.S., since May 2017, Anurag was one of the leaders of the internal Steering Committee for Infosys to establish its new investments, and driving the corresponding ecosystem engagement, in U.S. States including Indiana, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Arizona and Texas.
Before joining Infosys, Anurag was a lobbyist in Washington, D.C., with a legal and government affairs practice which focused on advocating on behalf of Indian (and other) corporate and government interests in the United States. At the same time, beginning in the late 1990s, Anurag served on the lead plaintiffs’ counsel teams for national civil rights class action racial discrimination cases on behalf of African American farmers and Native American farmers resulting in settlements of over $2 billion and $760 million, respectively. In this capacity, he traveled across 35-40 U.S. States to personally meet and work with 20,000+ AfricanAmerican and Native American farmers.
Nicole Kilby
Principal - Business Consulting (IGC Unit)
Nicole Kilby is a techno-functional Principal Consultant currently aligned to the IC Retail Practice. Nicole has over 15 years of experience in Information Technology and Global Operations. Prior to joining Infosys Consulting in 2015, Nicole worked in Global Operations and FP&A for CH2M Hill, an Engineering and Consulting firm were she managed the Government, Facilities and Infrastructure sector $1B portfolio. Since at Infosys, she has delivered major Financial, Digital and Agile Transformation initiatives. Nicole has extensive practical experience in using the Agile methodology for delivery and with her techno-functional skillset has effectively engaged with Business and IT stakeholders in aligning strategies, developing roadmaps, scope management and solution designs for achieving an optimized user experience. Nicole has consistently demonstrated her effectiveness in restructuring, redefining and standardizing complex program and project centers with the aim of increasing efficiency of project delivery teams, empowering managers and, driving the team culture to achieve the Business objectives. She takes pride in the value she consistently brings to her teams and clients.
Nicole is not only a hard worker, but also a sound leader and caring mentor in the Infosys community. She is passionate about the development of people and improving experience of those around her. Her many contributions include leading and creating the framework for the Core Analyst Program for NAM Analysts that launched late 2018 – built to enhance the experience & development of our newest teammates, while adding value to the firm – as well as continuing her service as an Advisor for the A-Team, a community for Analyst and Consultants. Nicole has recently co-launch iBELIEVE, the Black ERG at Infosys. She is always on the lookout for ways to leverage her time and passion for the betterment of the team.
In the past, Nicole held the position of Third Friday Coordinator for the Atlanta office for 2.5 years as well as lead community outreach events such as Habitat for Humanity, Books for Africa, and Salvation Army Angel Tree. For her service to communities around her – both near and far – she was recognized with a Local Leader Award in Dec 2018.
One of Nicole’s favorite pastimes is learning new things and traveling. With a great appreciation for the beauty and diversity of culture, she aspires to travel to all 194 UN recognized countries. To date Nicole has traveled to 5 continents and 36 countries. In both her professional and personal life Nicole’s motto is having, a student mentality is the key to unlocking the door to continued success.
Anurag Sinha
SVP – Head Communications, Media & Entertainment, Infosys
Anurag is a global technology and business leader, public speaker, thought leader and a strong advocate of education and diversity in the world of technology.
He is currently an Industry Head of Communication Service Providers, and Media & Entertainment for Infosys Limited, managing a $1B P&L. He is passionate about partnering closely with Fortune 500 CXOs helping them define and implement their digital agenda, business and operational strategy and drive growth and innovation. Responsible for bagging the largest deal in the history of Infosys, a TCV of $1B, he created an innovative construct for accelerating digitization and network transformation while enabling CEO’s cost transformation agenda.
Prior to this role, he led the global delivery, consulting, presales & marketing function for this industry with direct responsibility for 15000 workforce across US, Canada, Europe, China, Australia, New Zealand and India. He also led the org-wide Application Development Service Line Council that catered to $2B portfolio of projects across all verticals in the company with the goal of increasing the Revenue, Efficiency & Market Positioning.
He serves as the Head of the Diversity and Inclusion Council at Infosys for North Americas and shapes policy and goals to make the company more inclusive and lead the way for women in technology. He is a Trustee for Infosys Foundation USA where he inspires children, young adults, and educators to become creators of technology.
Anurag is based in Dallas, Texas. He has done Executive Education on Global Leadership from Stanford University Graduate School of Business, and Bachelors in Engineering in Computer Science from Bangalore University.
Sandra Jackson
Senior Unit Manager EEO & Workforce Diversity, Infosys
Sandra has worked for Infosys Ltd. for 9 years leading the Affirmative Action/Compliance and Workforce Diversity and Inclusion functions for the Americas Region.
Her past experiences included living and working internationally in Zurich, Switzerland and then on to Izmir, Turkey. It is there where she found her love for culture and her appreciation for global diversity.
She has over 20 years of human resources experience including holding several roles in IT as the Global Talent Manager for HP Enterprise Services, Manager Diversity & Inclusion, EDS (now DXC Technologies) as well as various HR Strategic Business Partner roles.
She has developed and facilitated leadership training & development programs and managed diversity & inclusion strategies to increase the talent pool for women and underrepresented groups.
She is a recipient of the Diversity Consortium Founder Award (National Diversity Connections Consortium), and the INROADS Internship Outstanding Manager of the Year Award (INROADS Southwest Region).
Sandra holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Relations and Business Management. She is PMP and SPHR (HRCI) certified. She is also certified by Berlitz Language Institute for Cultural Training and by Global Novations for Diversity and Inclusion Training.
Sandra resides in Dallas, Texas, and in her spare time she enjoys travelling, working out at the gym, wine tasting, bike riding, volunteering and spending time with her son and family.
Dionte Durham
Infosys Senior Legal Counsel, Americas
Dionte currently works as Senior Legal Counsel where he practices corporate transactional and real estate law. Since his time at Infosys, Dionte has negotiated and closed deals helping to bring in hundreds of millions of business to the company. Additionally, Dionte leads the real estate legal team where he handles all real estate legal matters for all of Infosys offices and development hubs in North, Central and South America.
Dionte graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication. While attending the University of Illinois, Dionte was both an Evans Scholar (Western Golf Association) and James Scholar (Honors program) and Dean’s List recipient. He earned his Juris Doctor and L.L.M. in Real Estate from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2012 and 2016, respectively.
Before joining Infosys Limited, Dionte worked as Corporate Counsel for Deloitte and Touche LLP, and as a commercial and corporate litigator with Wiedner and McAuliffe.
Dionte has a fervent passion for service. Dionte is a very active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., the first black intercollegiate fraternity, with members include Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, W.E.B. DuBois, Dick Gregory, Paul Roberson, and Dr. Cornel West to name a few. Dionte serves as the President of his chapter, providing all forms of service to better the Chicago and Chicagoland communities. Additionally, for the past 10 years, Dionte has been involved with Just The Beginning – an organization to increase the pipeline of diversity in the legal community, where he served as Vice President of the Associate Board. Dionte serves as a member of the diversity inclusion counsel for the Western Golf Association’s Evans Scholar Foundation, providing full scholarships to students.. Dionte is also a member of Grammy Nominated singing group, New Direction, where they have been featured 3 times on the Fox hit series, “Empire”. He is also the co-founder of The House Chi, an intimate live music showcase which provides local and seasoned artists a unique platform to showcase their music and grow through live performance.
Erin Clarke
Chief of Staff for Infosys Consulting
Erin has been with Infosys Consulting since March 2017. In her current role, she supports the Global Managing Partner of Consulting to drive the development and execution of Infosys Consulting's global strategy and operating model. Prior to joining Infosys, she has held several roles as a leader in consulting operations, communications and marketing.
Prior to these internal consulting roles, Ms. Clarke served clients as a Senior Managing Consultant where she led projects in support of clients’ operational improvement efforts in such areas as operations management, global operations excellence, process definition and implementation, organizational transformation, program management, product trial launch, marketing operations, and competitive intelligence.
Erin holds an International Business Degree from the University of Georgia and an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.
She is a lifelong Atlantan and resides there with her husband and son. She enjoys travelling, staying active while spending time outdoors, watching UGA football and spending time with friends and family.
Todd Craighead
Senior Principal in IC CRL Practice and Chair of Multicultural ERG, Infosys Ltd.
Todd lives in Atlanta and has been with Infosys for 1.5 years after spending over 15 years at The Coca-Cola Company. Todd’s career focus has been designing and leading business transformation and improvement programs integrating process, organization, and technology change.
Todd’s desire to chair the Multicultural ERG, whose mission is “to raise cross-cultural awareness by helping members better understand and celebrate other cultures”, resulted from his participation in ERGs at Coca-Cola and the rich cultural experiences he’s gained by traveling to and working on projects in more than 20 countries across 5 continents.
Much of Todd’s volunteer activity outside work involves coaching or supporting sports teams and organizations, reflecting his belief that sports can teach many life lessons for young children. He has two college-aged children and this is the first time in over 10 years that he and his wife haven’t had their fall weekend plans built around supporting their son’s football team.
Sam Riga
Lead – Human Resources Business Partner, Infosys Ltd.
Sam has worked for Infosys Ltd. for about 2 years, where he oversees the HR and business partnership across MA, ME, NH, RI and VT.
Prior to Infosys, he held various HR positions at large utility and construction management firms, Eversource Energy and Consigli Construction Co. In these roles, he made significant contributions to diversity-focused initiatives, including EEO hiring practices, career programs for inner city students, partnerships with local organizations and universities, mentorship programs, and various community service programs. Additionally, he helped design, and participated in, a leadership development program during his time at Eversource Energy.
In addition to his role as a Lead – HR Business Partner, Sam currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Young Employee Network (YEN) ERG, which is dedicated to creating an internal ecosystem for attracting, sustaining, and retaining the workforce of today and tomorrow.
During his short tenure with Infosys, Sam has been the proud recipient of the Retention Champion Award, ACE HR Award, and most recently the HR MVP Award for the Americas.
Sam holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science with a Business Concentration from the University of New Hampshire, is SHRM-CP certified, as well as a certified Predictive Index (PI) consultant.
He currently resides in Walpole, Massachusetts with his wife, Jessica, and their two dogs, Cooper and Charli. In his spare time, you will find him playing ice hockey or tennis, cooking, trying new craft beer, and spending time at his lake house.
Linda Gossage
Infosys AVP, Global Alliances
Linda has enjoyed over 20 years in the Information Technology industry as an accomplished sales professional with applied knowledge in enterprise software sales, ecosystem development and team leadership. In her most recent role before joining Infosys, Linda lead the Strategic Alliances and Channel Sales organization for IBM’s Watson Financial Services Solutions. She has held leadership positions at IBM, Sybase and has worked for multiple startup companies in California’s Silicon Valley including PeopleSoft.
As AVP of Global Alliances at Infosys, Linda has the overall responsibility for the IBM partnership as well as the Cyber Security and Open Source Platform ecosystems. She is passionate about creating synergies with partners and the unique capabilities of Infosys to deliver meaningful outcomes to our clients in their digital transformation journey. With her extensive global sales background, she delights in the opportunity to bring together cross functional and multi-cultural teams to drive mutual success across organizations.
Linda has lived and worked in Asia and is conversational in Mandarin and Cantonese. She is an active member in her local chapter of Women in Technology and a mentor at the Alameda Boys and Girls Club serving underprivileged youth and families. She resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and 14-year-old twins who have recently started their freshman year of virtual high school. When there is free time she enjoys being outdoors and taking in all the natural beauty of Northern California.
Andrew Hogenson
Global Lead, Consumer Goods, Retail & Logistics
Andrew leads Infosys’ global consumer goods, retail and logistics practice. In this role Andrew has market-facing responsibilities for our capabilities, team and clients. Andrew has over 30 years of experience driving large transformation programs and high-value consulting work. Prior to joining Infosys, Andrew led the consumer goods and retail advisory practice in the for EY in the West. Previously he spent over two decades at Accenture as a part of their supply chain strategy practice and then as a partner in their retail practice. A regular speaker at places such as Stanford, UC Berkeley, USC and University of Washington, Andrew is often featured in prominent publications like the Wall Street Journal. Andrew was recently on NBC Nightly News as an expert on holiday shopping and supply chain impact. He is also a frequent speaker at renowned retail and supply chain events.
Andrew has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Seattle University and an MBA for University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Gena M. Pemberton
VP, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Omnicom Health Group
Gena Pemberton is the VP, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Omnicom Health Group (OHG). She joined OHG after a 13-year career at Johnson and Johnson, where she held various Corporate Finance roles. Most recently, she was the Director, Finance Leadership Development Programs and Finance recruiting. Gena set the strategic direction, while leading and coordinating the recruiting and execution of all finance leadership programs. Gena also led and supported special projects which included leading the Finance Organizational Health review, CREDO Survey and Diversity & Inclusion initiatives. Prior to that, she was with Motorola for 8 years. She is also a dedicated volunteer, and is currently serving as the President for the National Hampton Alumni Association, Inc.
Gena holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Hampton University, an MBA from University of Phoenix, and a Diversity and Inclusion Certificate from Cornell University. She is originally from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and currently resides in NYC.
Terrez Marriott Thompson
Founder & Chairman Powered By Zerret, Incorporated
Terrez Marriott Thompson is the Founder and Chairman of Powered By Zerret, Inc (PBZ). PBZ is a nonprofit focused on the empowerment of women of color entrepreneurs through coaching, networking and other resources including financial. PBZ believes that true empowerment comes from economic self-sufficiency. Thompson has always lived by her hometown hero’s lyrics (Billie Holiday) “God Bless the Child that got his/her own”.
Prior to founding PBZ Terrez was a 35-year veteran of The Coca-Cola Company She served as Vice President of Global Supplier Diversity until her retirement. In that role she led the team. She is proudest of the innovative work she did to develop diverse suppliers. Most notably the Supplier Training and Empowerment Program (STEP) to support The Coca-Cola Company’s 5By20 initiative to empower 5 million women by 2020. Her crowning accomplishment was to establish a world class program focused on Women of Color entrepreneurs, including a Spanish language version launched in her final year.
At Coca-Cola other key roles are as listed. AVP of Coca-Cola North America Innovation, where she led the design and implement a new product innovation process for the Company’s flagship business unit. As Deputy to the EVP Public Affairs leading the $1 billion Empowerment and Entrepreneurial Program for minority and women-owned business. She started at Coca-Cola in the Finance organization serving as controller for The Coca-Cola Trading Company, and financial services manager for the Africa Group. Before Coca-Cola, Thompson was employed by Price Waterhouse as a senior auditor.
Board Participation: Rose International, Independent Director; Nonprofits include (current & former), CFI Racial Justice Inclusion & Diversity Advisory Board, National Minority Supplier Development Council, Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (ACE), NMSDC Business Consortium Fund, Girls Inc. Of Atlanta, UNICEF Atlanta, Atlanta Women in International Trade (AWIT)
She has received numerous awards and honors, including 2-time recipient of NMSDC’s President’s Award, WBE Hall of Fame, National ACE Board Commendation for exceptional service/leadership to Greater AAPI community, Jack & Jill of Atlanta’s Mother of the Year, Pinnacle Award from Eastpoint College Park Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta & Whose Who in Black Atlanta, AWIT Women of the Year.
A nonpracticing Certified Public Accountant, Thompson earned her bachelor’s in accounting from Morgan State University in 1981. She also is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated; The Links Incorporated and the proud wife of Rodney and mom to Summer and Chanel, their very friendly Pitbull.
Pursuits: Empowering, Reading, Traveling & Foodie
Monika Kalra Varma
Monika Kalra Varma has dedicated her career to human rights and social justice work in the United States and abroad. In 2017, she returned to her native Bay Area to serve as the Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the SF Bay Area (LCCRSF), the oldest civil rights institution on the West Coast. For over 50 years, LCCRSF has worked to dismantle systems of oppression and racism by partnering with community organizations and pro bono attorneys to protect and promote the rights of people of color, immigrants, and economically marginalized individuals by fighting injustices, transforming legal systems, and building a more equitable and just world. Monika is leading the organization to a number of victories, including the repeal of an unconstitutional loitering ordinance in Oakland, a federal court ruling protecting immigrant youth in California, and the legalization of public banking in California. From working to end the criminalization of poverty to building more racially and economically inclusive communities, LCCRSF is setting precedents that are being used by advocates across the country.
Monika previously worked as the Executive Director of the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, the largest provider of pro bono legal services in the District of Columbia serving 20,000 individuals, nonprofit organizations and small businesses. During Monika’s tenure, the Pro Bono Center received several awards, including the American Bar Association’s Harrison Tweed Award for long-term excellence in increasing access to justice. Monika was also one of four members of the D.C. Bar’s executive team, setting the strategic direction and policies for an organization with a budget of over $37 million and 100,000 members.
As the Director of the Center for Human Rights at the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice & Human Rights (RFK Center), Monika and her team partnered with social movement leaders domestically and internationally, providing long-term advocacy, legal, and direct programming support. Their groundbreaking strategies and advocacy campaigns advanced movements to ensure a right to health in Haiti, end untouchability in India, rebuild the Gulf Coast after Katrina, increase access to justice in Chad, and stop modern-day slave labor conditions faced by migrant farm workers in Florida. Prior to the RFK Center, Monika worked as an associate legal officer with the Office of the Prosecutor at the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, where her trial team secured the Tribunal’s first conviction of the crime of terror against General Stanislav Galić, the Serb military commander in Sarajevo from 1992 to1994.
Monika is a graduate of University of California, Davis School of Law. She is the proud recipient of the 2016 South Asian Bar Association of North America’s Public Interest Achievement Award and the 2019 recipient of the Northern California South Asian Bar Association’s Public Interest Award. Monika is married to attorney Anurag Varma. They are raising their twelve-year-old daughter and eight-year-old twin boys in the Bay Area. Monika enjoys writing children’s books to inspire the next generation of social movement leaders and change agents. In these challenging times, Monika is driven to not only fight against injustice, but reenvision and help build the world she wants to raise her children in.
