THE
1O1 MOST INFLUENTIAL LATINOS OF 2016
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: TRUST, INTEGRITY & INCLUSION
STEVE HOWE
PLUS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS WITH
DELOITTE, PwC and KPMG CEO’S
EY AMERICAS MANAGING PARTNER
SPECIAL FEATURE:
LATINOS LEADING IN HI-TECH www.latinoleaders.com July / August 2016 Vol. 17 No. 4 Display until 09/10/2016
CONTENTS JULY / AUGUST 2016
20
COVER STORY:
THE TOP 101 It is not just a list. It’s the list. Here are the top Latinos in the country who are really the most influential. They are trendsetters, visionaries or just plain hard workers. They all influence many lives. This is the definitive list of the 101 most influential Latino Leaders in the United States.
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CONTENTS JULY / AUGUST 2016 4 Publisher meets: Jorge Ferraez talks about exclusive interviews with the CEOs and chairmen of the top four advisory firms in the country: EY, KPMG, Deloitte and PwC and gives a brief presentation of the 101 Most Influential Latinos in the country. 8 Editor’s Letter: Jose Manuel Escobedo introduces the
101 101 Most Influential Latinos in the country, highlights interviews with top advisory firms, as well as Latinos in hightech.
10 Silicon Valley and Frank Carbajal Eye Latino Tech Leadership: Highlights of the The Silicon Valley Latino
Leadership Summit.
12 Delivering Excellence: Introducing Paychex’s Andy Childs
and Antonio Lizano.
15 ALPFA Introduces: A new cloud-based technology platform to facilitate learning and increase mentoring opportunities for its members. 16 It is all about the mission: Exclusive interview with Andrew Sund, president of St. Augustine College in Chicago. 18 Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez: Breaks the Job Barrier with Tenacity and Hope.
20 Presenting: this year’s 101 Most Influential Latinos.
42
EY’S STEVE HOWE
42 EY’s Steve Howe: Knows How to Successfully Lead Through Trust, Integrity, and Inclusion.
47 PwC’s Tim Ryan: Life and Times of a Blue-Collar Business Mogul. 50 Deloitte’s Cathy Engelbert: Leading By Example. 53 KPMG’s Lynne Doughtie: Knocking It Out of the Park. 56 Alex Lopez Negrete: Houston’s Time-Honored Hispanic Ad Man. 59 Latinos in High-Tech: a candid conversation with Andre Arbelaez and Highlighting Hispanic Technology.
60 Hershey’s Carlos Amesquita: encouraging leaders to
empower other leaders.
61 Cisco’s Guillermo Diaz:
Investing in the next generations.
62 Rafael Mena: Chief Technology Officer for Orange County, Florida Uses Infotech To Improve Lives.
63 Salesforce’s Maria Martinez: passionate about developing
the next workforce generation.
64 Cheers! We know Jorge Ferraez is always drinking something special. This wine review is no exception.
4 • July / August 2016
50
DELOITTE’S CATHY ENGELBERT
JORGE & RAUL FERRAEZ / PRESIDENTS OF FERRAEZ USA
A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER
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The summer has finally kicked in and our 101 Most Influential Latinos edition is out. Over the years, this edition has gradually become a must-read reference for people who want to understand the influence of Latino leaders in our country. This issue has become a who’s who for each of the different industries we highlight. Our team of researchers and industry experts comes to us with their recommendations, and based on our own leadership perspectives and criteria, we evaluate who should make the cut. After all, there are only 101 spots. We have some surprises this year and quite a few new names. Among them are Andres Gluski, President and CEO of AES Corporation, one of the largest energy producers in the U.S.; Lin Manuel Miranda, a Tony Award sensation on Broadway; and Deborah Rosado-Shaw, the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer of PepsiCo, who we interviewed more than 13 years ago as an entrepreneur in New Jersey. We are also proud to partner with ALPFA (Association of Latino Professionals For America), one of the leading organizations pushing for a better future for Latinos. Their leadership has helped us deliver to our readers exclusive interviews with the CEOs and chairmen of the top four advisory firms in the country: EY, KPMG, Deloitte and PwC. The opportunity to talk to leaders of this caliber greatly enhances a direct dialogue with executives who are often difficult to gain access to. Being able to hear their visions and lessons for success provides a great deal of valuable information for people across all industries. We hope you enjoy this edition. Jorge y Raul Ferraez
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LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Publisher Jorge Ferraez
Dear Readers, It is my pleasure to introduce you to our edition of the Top 101 Most Influential Latinos in the country. It was quite the task compiling such a valuable list. I want to thank our contributing editor Judi Jordan for such an outstanding job amassing this year’s list. Thank you so much! We greatly value your collaboration and expertise on this matter. I must mention that the lucky 101 honorees have excelled in the fields of nonprofits, politics, government, health, science, business, and entertainment. I feel very honored to present the CEOs and chairmen of the “Big Four” audit and professional services firms in the world. In this section, we highlight exclusive interviews with leaders from PwC, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, and KPMG. I would like to thank the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), a leading organization in the country. They are dedicated to providing opportunities for Latinos in business, accounting, finance, and related professions. ALPFA made it possible for us to contact and interview these outstanding individuals. These stories are relevant and I highly recommend taking sufficient time to read them and reflect. Diane Alter and Kristian Jaime deliver exceptional storytelling in these articles that are marked by the characteristics of their ever flowing writing styles. Don’t miss our special Latinos in high-tech section. Learn how Andre Arbelaez, President of the Hispanic IT Executive Council (HITEC), and the Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Softtek USA, a global provider of process driven IT solutions, is driven to increase Latino representation in Silicon Valley. See how HITEC is becoming the conduit by assisting Arbelaez and other high-tech individuals to pursue this important initiative. I’m sure you will find this section very interesting and rewarding.
President and CEO Raul Ferraez
Director of Journalism Mariana Gutierrez Briones mcortez@latinoleaders.com Event and PR Director Mireya Cortez mireya@latinoleaders.com Administrative Director Lawrence Teodoro Managing Editor José Escobedo jescobedo@latinoleaders.com Washington, D.C. Sales Associate and Representative Deyanira Ferraez dferraez@latinoleaders.com Karla Espinoza kespinoza@latinoleaders.com Art Director Fernando Izquierdo ferdiseno@latinoleaders.com Editorial Art & Design Rodrigo Valderrama Carlos Cuevas Luis Enrique González Eduardo David Rodríguez West Coast Editor Judi Jordan judijordanll@yahoo.com Human Resources Manager Susana Sanchez Administration and Bookkeeping Claudia García Bejarano Executive Assistant to the Publishers Liliana Morales Circulation Manager and Website Administrator Rebekah Melendez rebekah@latinoleaders.com For advertising inquiries, please call 214-206-4966 x 227.
Regards, Jose Manuel Escobedo Managing Editor
Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino (ISSN 1529-3998) is published seven times annually by Ferraez Publications of America Corp., 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA, July / August 2016. Subscription rates: In U.S. and possessions, one year $15.00. Checks payable to Ferraez Publications of America, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Latino Leaders, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA.© 2001 by Ferraez Publications of America Corporation. All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino. The periodical’s name and logo, and the various titles and headings therein, are trademarks of Ferraez Publications of America Corp.
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Audited by Member of Reg. # 283/01
MEMBER OF SRDS
8 • July / August 2016
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L AT INO LE A DE R S
SILICON VALLEY AND FRANK CARBAJAL EYE LATINO TECH LEADERSHIP
Frank Carbajal
THE SILICON VALLEY Story by: Kristian Jaime LATINO LEADERSHIP SUMMIT HELD ON MAY 14
S
tanford University has been the site of many seminal moments in the tech world, and for the seventh year in a row, it brought together the industry’s progressive minds. The Silicon Valley Latino Leadership Summit (SVLLS), held on May 14 at the Stanford Faculty Club, was an opportunity to discuss how to invest in Latino diversity in various technology fields. Frank Carbajal, owner of EsTiempo, LLC and founder of SVLLS, knows all too well that Latinos run the risk of getting left behind in an increasingly technology-literate world. “The first summit was held in 2010 on Sand Hill Road, which was then known as the venture capital Mecca of the world. Very few Latino venture capitalists are on Sand Hill Road, so I brought the [best and brightest] to the inaugural event, which sold out,” Carbajal said. Meticulous planning paid off as the native of El Centro, California, and son of Mexican immigrants put a spotlight on the lack of diversity in the tech industry. Even more inspiring for the attendees, the fledgling SVLLS sought solutions. After receiving his Master’s Degree in Human Resource Management from San Jose State University, the first generation college graduate did what he does best: connect decision makers with upand-coming Latino talent in the state. Seven years later, the summit is still on point, with over 250 leaders in business, government, entrepreneurship and social media on hand. This year even featured a “start-up pitch” segment, where a panel of judges comprised of law experts and venture capitalists could provide vital advice and sales leads for participants. “[The summit] is a platform to show Latinos and non-Latinos that we are worth investing in since we are here to stay and worth the talent,” continued Carbajal. “In terms of the big picture, I’m a human capital connector. So I’m very fortunate that I’m connected with [leading Latinos] in technology.” 10 • July / August 2016
Carbajal is quick to point out fields like civil engineering are a growing industry for Latinos, while mechanical and electrical engineering are remaining stagnant. Most troubling to the author of “Building the Latino Future: Success Stories for the Next Generation” is that the number of Latino software engineers is seemingly decreasing. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curricula are the front lines of getting more minority students involved in careers that will be at the forefront of top-tier jobs in the next decade. Yet demographic trends indicate minorities are less likely to pursue such classes than any other block of students. If STEM training is the cornerstone, then admission to traditionally technological universities is the next logical step. According to Carbajal, the road to Latinos as tech leaders eventually leads to mentorship by industry dynamos. “People need to build the relationships with folks that are in top companies like Google, Facebook or Apple, for example. They need to be mentored and it needs to be reciprocal,” Carbajal explained. Since the inception of SVLLS, the goal has been to not only educate, but to facilitate. For all the connections at the annual event, success is gauged by the long-term relationships it can cultivate. For that reason, this year’s keynote address by Laura Gomez, founder and CEO of Atipica, was titled “Optimizing the Diversity Pipeline.” Amid a number of panels and vital networking opportunities, attendees also heard from Dr. Robert Rodriguez, president of DRR Advisors. His lecture, “Advancing the Latino Talent Agenda in Corporate America,” outlined the overall goal of conferences like the SVLLS and the increasingly deep pool of talented Latinos in the tech field. The conclusion of SVLLS only served to highlight the lynchpin of the summit as Art Lewin, owner of Art Lewin & Co. Executive Clothier, delivered “The Art of Networking — Winning Habits of Building Relationships.” “Es tiempo. It’s time to create a vision that is not only attainable but also sustainable for the future,” concluded Carbajal.
CANCER TREATMENT CENTERS OF AMERICA AT SOUTHEASTERN REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER Story by: Diane
Atlanta, Georgia
Alter
DR. PATRICIA RICH: CANCER CRUSADER
T
“I BELIEVE THAT PREVENTION IS EASIER THAN FINDING A CURE,” - DR. PATRICIA RICH
here are heroes and there are icons. And then there
are those ordinary folks who embody what it means to be a good and decent person. The kind of person you look up to and want to emulate. For Dr. Patricia Rich, M.D., a medical oncologist with Cancer Treatment Centers of America® at Southeastern Regional Medical Center in Newnan, Ga., that person was her father. During her childhood years spent in Argentina, Dr. Rich watched in awe and admiration as her father fervently served the country’s health campaign and its mission to give children vaccines. By the time she turned 15, Dr. Rich was part of the campaign. Her first brush with medicine was placing the polio vaccine on sugar cubes for children. That was when she found her calling and knew she was going to be a doctor. But very early on, she knew she was not going to be just any doctor. As a medical student, Dr. Rich was assigned to follow a cancer patient. The two became close and the patient confided that no one touched her because of her cancer, as if she were contagious. From that moment on, Dr. Rich has greeted every patient with a hug and pays attention to the whole person, not just the illness. Still, she dedicates a great deal of her time to research and clinical trials, increasingly encouraged by the strides made in cancer treatments, including new drugs and therapies. Advances in research allow doctors to personalize cancer treatment according to the type and severity of the illness. “As we individualize treatment, we hope to see marked increases in positive response rate,” Dr. Rich shared. Education is another key tool in combating cancer, and Dr. Rich is dedicated to providing as much knowledge as she can to the Latino community. Roughly 126,000 cancer patients are diagnosed each year and some 40,000 of those are Latino. As a medical oncologist, Dr. Rich treats patients battling a variety of cancers, from breast to prostate to CATMAX PHOTOGRAPHY
(L TO R) ANNE MEISNER, CTCA AT SOUTHEASTERN CEO; ENRIQUE LUTGEN, DR. RICH’S FATHER; NEDA LUTGEN, DR. RICH’S MOTHER; DR. PATRICIA RICH; MARK RICH, DR. RICH’S HUSBAND.
MATT BISH PHOTOGRAPHY
brain and bone. But of all the cancer types she sees, none are as feared as lung cancer. Indeed, lung cancer is the most common and fatal cancer that affects Hispanics. Some 10,000 Hispanic people are diagnosed annually with the disease. Yet lung cancer is also the most preventable cancer. That’s why educating people on how to prevent, recognize and treat the disease is critically important. Cigarette smoking accounts for about 80% of lung cancer diagnoses. Lung cancer is more prevalent among Hispanic men, but rates among women are close behind because more women are smoking, according to Dr. Rich. More women are dying from lung cancer than from breast cancer and ovarian cancer. Lung cancer rates in the Hispanic community are so high because the disease is typically diagnosed late, after it has progressed to an advanced, often incurable stage. “I believe that prevention is easier than finding a cure,” Dr. Rich said. Awareness drives a cure, she continued, and if caught early, most patients will survive. However, if diagnosed at stage IV, the survival rate drops to just 20%. Coughing, unexplained weight loss, coughing up blood, chest pain, and pain between the shoulder blades are some signs to be conscious of, especially if they get worse and you are a former smoker. Dr. Rich stresses that the most important thing to remember about lung cancer is that it is largely preventable. She urges people to pay close attention to potential symptoms, and to quickly seek medical care if lung cancer is suspected.
For more information visit www.cancercenter.com
L AT INO LE A DE R S
DELIVERING EXCELLENCE
P
aychex, Inc. is a recognized leader in the payroll, human resource, and benefits outsourcing industry, with a steadfast commitment to success and a record of achievement that continues a tradition of delivering excellence. The company was founded in 1971 by B. Thomas Golisano. Paychex now has more than 12,000 employees serving more than half a million small- to medium-sized businesses nationwide. Paychex serves approximately 605,000 payroll clients as of May 31, 2016. In an exclusive interview with Latino Leaders magazine, Andy Childs, vide president marketing and Antonio Lizano, corporate multicultural marketing manager share their professional expertise and the values Paychex is bringing to the small businesses and Latino-owned business?
ANDY CHILDS A senior executive with more than 30 years of marketing and business development experience, Andy Childs joined Paychex as the vice president of marketing in February 2011. Currently he leads leads the marketing, corporate development, and strategic planning functions for the company. Childs previously held marketing leadership positions at Pitney Bowes, Mercer, and ADP. Childs holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from Harvard University. Please share with us some facts about your background, family, early education. I am the oldest of three children. I was born in Alexandria, Virginia, and also lived in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Maryland, Kentucky and Connecticut growing up. My father grew up in Brooklyn and was an economist (now retired). He started his career teaching at Dartmouth University and Rutgers University and later worked for the federal government and in industry, for many years as Chief Econo-
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INTRODUCING PAYCHEX’S ANDY CHILDS AND ANTONIO LIZANO Story by: Latino Leaders Staff Writers
mist of BP Americas, before returning to education late in his career. My mother grew up in the Boston area and started a career as an elementary school teacher, but stopped working when she had children. My brother lives in the New York City area and is a pediatrician. My sister owned a print brokerage business in New Jersey, but has since retired and lives in Jacksonville, Florida. I graduated from Andrew Warde High School in Fairfield, Connecticut, and attended college at Harvard University, where I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, with honors, in chemistry. I have been married to my wife, Cindy, for 30 years, and we have a daughter, Zoe, who lives in New Jersey and teaches preschool. What was your first job and the start of your career? My first job was as a Brand Assistant at the Procter & Gamble Company, helping to market Frymax deepfrying shortening to restaurant operators. I switched over to marketing consumer health care products when I joined Whitehall Laboratories and continued with positions at Adria Laboratories, The Upjohn Company and Becton Dickinson. I also was a strategy consultant with McKinsey & Company for five years early in my career. Since 2000, I have held a range of CMO roles (corporate, business unit, geographic) marketing business and professional services, first for ADP then Mercer, Pitney Bowes, and now Paychex, Inc.
“CONTINUALLY SEEKING NEW AND BETTER WAYS TO GO TO MARKET IS CRITICAL TO RUNNING AN EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE OPERATION”
What made you choose the career path you have worked until now? From the very beginning, I enjoyed the challenges inherent in marketing and finding ways to use marketing strategies and tactics to solve business problems and grow businesses. Marketing is (usually) all about growth and thinking about new ways to reach and influence prospects and customers. When did you start with Paychex? I joined Paychex in 2011. What are your main responsibilities and strategies? As Vice President of Marketing at Paychex, I am responsible for leading all aspects of marketing, including advertising and product, channel, digital, social, web and search marketing. I also am responsible for our corporate strategy and planning and corporate development functions. What are the values of Paychex that you identify with? I identify with all six of the Paychex core values. Innovation – continually seeking new and better ways to go to market is critical to running an efficient and effective operation, especially in a rapidly evolving field like marketing. Accountability – it’s all about driving, measuring and reporting results. If we can’t demonstrate a strong marketing ROI, it’s hard to convince the company to keep investing. Respect – critical to productive working relationships. In marketing, we rely heavily on teamwork among both the groups within marketing and
our Partnerships with other functions, including product management, sales, training, compliance, corporate communications and finance. Service – we always strive to provide superior service to our internal and external constituencies. Finally, Integrity is central to all we do. Paychex is consistently recognized as one of the most ethical companies in the world, which is critically important in our industry. What is the value you see Paychex is bringing to the small businesses and Latino-owned business? Paychex has a 45-year history of serving the small business community. We work side-by-side with our clients to help them manage their employees with services such as payroll, human resources, retirement and insurance. We believe our clients’ administrative tasks and burdens get in the way of doing what they really love and are good at – providing their customers with great products and services. In short, we give our clients the freedom to succeed. In recent years, we realized that the Hispanic business community was being underserved by our industry and launched a series of initiatives to provide bilingual sales, marketing, service and product support to these companies. We now have tens of thousands of Hispanic-owned business customers and aspire to help even more in the future.
Antonio Lizano Antonio Lizano is the corporate multicultural marketing manager at Paychex. Lizano joined the company in May 2014. Lizano is in charge of discovering, defining, developing and deploying a Multicultural & International Marketing Strategy for PAYCHEX Corp. Lizano has implemented and verbalized segment business plan across the organization leadership. He also formalized the Multicultural initiative compressed of Hispanic, Asian and African American segmentation efforts. Lizano has a MBA, MINI MBA from the University of St. Thomas - Opus College of Business.
latinoleaders.com
“RESPECT IS ABOUT TREATING EACH OTHER WITH DIGNITY. IT IS THE VALUE WE HAVE FOR EVERYONE’S UNIQUENESS.” Please share with us some facts about your background, family, early education. I am the fourth of five children in my family. I was born in San Jose, Costa Rica, and grew up there until age 17. That’s when I decided to pursue my education in the U.S. and moved to Chicago. My parents were both educators in Costa Rica, my father on the administration side of the department of education and my mom a psychologist, Spanish teacher and a passionate opera singer. When I first arrived in Illinois, I entered a community college in a Hispanic neighborhood, Triton College, and I completed my associate’s degree and earned enough credits to transfer into a bachelor’s program that I completed at the Universidad Latina in San Jose, Costa Rica. I completed my MBA there as well. What was your first job and the start of your career? It is hard to identify my first job. As a humble Latino, paying my own way through college, I had to do all kinds of jobs to get through – busboy, cleaning, lifeguard, cook. But it was not until my second year in Triton that I started a career in the airline industry and I learned the corporate environment at the headquarters of United Airlines in River Grove, Illinois. I stayed there for five years, and had multiple roles in accounting, human resources, and customer service. What made you choose the career path you have worked until now? In the mid ’90s, I started working in the graphic arts and printing industry. I developed an e-commerce platform and marketing materials for the organization I was working for at the time. That experience led me to participate in major event trade shows in Germany, the U.S. and Latin America – I knew right then that was the path I wanted to follow. From there, I developed businesses relationships that prepared me to lead the sales development in Latin America for a major branding consulting organization, Addison Whitney. I also learned how to develop business strategy, sales and how to build and conduct a full marketing cam-
14 • July / August 2016
paign. That eventually took me to another organization, where I led the Hispanic and multicultural efforts across the nation in the banking industry at U.S. Bank in Minnesota. Eventually I started a marketing consulting firm, Marco Polo Advertising, that specializes in multicultural marketing. When did you start with Paychex? Three years ago, Paychex was looking for an experienced multicultural professional that could build a multicultural program and build a market strategy, and I was honored to join the organization in early 2014. At Paychex, we have a B2B approach and we reach business owners directly to help facilitate their human resource service needs. In my previous roles, I helped organizations build strong partnerships with the Hispanic market and nurture talent within to better service the market. Paychex has given me the opportunity to build a strong program that connects us with the fastest-growing segment of new businesses in America, the multicultural market. What are your main responsibilities and strategies? My responsibilities in the organization are to build a sustainable, vast and growing program that partners with the needs of the multicultural business owners and provides them with a full spectrum of HR solutions that work beside them, to empower their businesses and their people to succeed. I partner with the senior management team in the organization to grow the program and move all the business lines inside the organization to deliver a program that has a national presence, but that is truly regionalized to work side by side with local business owners. Across the organization, we have the opportunity to make an impact and grow our multicultural talent within the organization to better service the segment and deliver a full message across the market that we understand the needs of multicultural consumers. While my role in the organization is under the marketing business leadership, I have taken the lead role to promote across the organization our program to connect with multicultural business owners,
to prepare for growth and align the talent, service, sales, and marketing areas to build long-lasting and trusted relationships. What are the values of Paychex that you identify with? Paychex has six pillar values that we follow to deliver our award-winning service. I connect with all of them, but three are deeply embedded into my life: - Integrity. Because we are an organization that believes in the power of small business owners, we are proud of their accomplishments and we are committed to delivering reliable solutions. As a Hispanic in America, and a former business owner, I connect with integrity, and it might be what our community has long been seeking. - Partnership. Partnership is working and supporting each other, understanding different viewpoints, and unselfishly seeking the best outcome. Hispanics are well known for seeking peer advice to grow, and I connect with that. “Together, we can support each other to succeed.” - Respect is about treating each other with dignity. It is the value we have for everyone’s uniqueness. This value speaks to my experience as a Hispanic growing up in America and one that my mom always instilled in me – to respect others at all times. What is the value you see Paychex is bringing to the small businesses and Latino owned business? Small business owners are eager to learn, work hard and grow their businesses, and Paychex started as a small company 45 years ago, helping other small businesses with their payroll. Today, we have more than 13,000 employees and we deliver HR services to more than 600,000 businesses across the U.S. We are the leading company serving the small business market. Business owners trust our service because we truly know the needs they have. Latino-owned businesses are also looking for partners that value and respect them and that are committed to delivering, with integrity, the best solutions to empower them to succeed – that is our commitment to them.
LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ®
Empowering Latino Leaders
ALPFA INTRODUCES A NEW CLOUD-BASED TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM TO FACILITATE LEARNING AND INCREASE MENTORING OPPORTUNITIES FOR ITS MEMBERS
Members Have More Control of their Own Career Growth
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Story by Latino
Leaders Staff Writers
drive behavior change through a new technology platform powered by our two strategic partners, Jubi and Kubera. The Mentoring Exchange and Learning Center focuses primarily on 1) Mentoring, Coaching, and Tutoring; and 2) Learning Curricula, with a Leadership certification program built in. These two components combined deliver a cloud-based engagement platform that results in improved employee job performance and corporate productivity. As to why now, we want to be – and stay – as the premier professional organization in the country. These kind of offerings propel us to the elite status, as no other organization is offering these services. In addition, our members need the services. We want to remain relevant and support our members’ needs.
aymond Arroyo is President of ALPFA Solutions, an ALPFA organization that delivers innovative leadership programs to create stronger Latino leaders who, in turn, deliver greater value for their companies and our nation. Raymond is also a Managing Director and the head of the Diversity Practice at Reffett Associates, a certified, veteranowned, retained, executive search firm. Raymond is also the Chairman of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, representing more than 200 chambers and 4.1 million Hispanic-owned businesses. He has been recognized with numerous awards, including being a Top 100 Hispanic in the U.S. by this magazine, for two consecutive years. We were pleased to meet with Raymond Arroyo again, this time in Hartford, Connecticut, to discuss ALPFA Solutions’ progress and find out what’s new and exciting on his agenda for the second half of 2016 and into 2017. ALPFA Solutions delivers leadership development programs focused on Latinos, from entry level to middle-management level and executives. As it turns out, according to Raymond, there are plenty of reasons to cheer and celebrate. ALPFA is about to hold its 2016 annual conference in Dallas to record-breaking attendance, and it continues to grow in membership and in influence. ALPFA is also developing best-in-class services through next-generation learning technology that delivers significant value to members in terms of mentoring, coaching, tutoring, and learning curricula. All in one place. These services are designed to be delivered virtually, either at no cost to ALPFA members, or at an affordable cost, for the premium offerings.
RJA – It is indeed very exciting and a several important components. From the ALPFA Kubera platform, ALPFA offers its members the opportunity to connect with professionals who can coach them, and help them navigate their career path options in a safe environment. Members, whether students or professionals, can get the help they need, when they need it, from around the business and academia sectors. In addition, this platform offers Tutoring services for specific topics – whether math, business etiquette, or science, to name a few – ALPFA members can talk to a Mentor or a Tutor via a video conference at their own convenience. They can track progress, plan ahead, and get real-time feedback for maximum effectiveness. From the ALPFA Jubi platform, ALPFA members who are motivated to continuously learning now have the capability to participate in a process of progressive achievement by driving practical application of learning. Right now we offer two (2) powerful Leadership Certification Programs: • Habitudes, The Art of Self-Leadership – Helps to transform participants into better leaders. • Lead to Inspire – Equips participants with principles and practices necessary to inspire others.
LL WHAT IS THIS TECHNOLOGY ABOUT, RAYMOND? WHY NOW?
LL - WHAT’S NEXT?
We are thrilled about this new offering. It is ALPFA’s new and exclusive Mentoring Exchange and Learning Center, a cloud-based, next-generation leadership certification platform that engages mentors, coaches, and learners. This engagement is realized via an ongoing process of progressive achievement that drives practical application learning through an exciting and exclusive “Learn-Do-Inspire” architecture. It applies metrics to assess skills and
We are committed to equipping all of our ALPFA members with refined and enhanced skills and connecting them with high quality Mentors, Coaches and Tutors, from students to professionals. In fact, we want to match Latino students with professional mentors to guide the members on their journey from college graduation to full-time employment and developing their workplace skills and leadership capabilities necessary to compete in the 21st century economy. The new skill levels, combined with recommendations from members, will deliver top Latino talent into diverse talent pipeline pools, which will lead to fulltime employment and successful careers for our members.
ALPFA MEMBERS CAN BENEFIT FROM HAVING COACHES, MENTORS AND ACCESS TO A LEARNING CENTER DESIGNED JUST FOR THEM
LL - IT SOUNDS QUITE EXCITING TO ME, BUT THERE’S A LOT OF INFORMATION THERE. TELL US MORE ABOUT THE TWO LEADERSHIP CERTIFICATION PROGRAMS.
latinoleaders.com
It is all about the mission Exclusive interview with Andrew Sund, president of St. Augustine College in Chicago. Story by: Steve Penhollow
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Photo by: Bill Whitmire
he phrase “man of the world” is customarily used to describe a person who appreciates the complexities of the human condition and who is able to view life from many vantage points. In this sense, it surely describes Dr. Andrew Sund, president of St. Augustine College in Chicago. Sund’s ability to adapt and relate to a broad spectrum of the student population is one of the reasons he has been so effective at the college. But Sund is a man of the world in a more literal sense as well. Before he came to Wisconsin in the mid-1980s to attend college, he’d lived in Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, Mozambique, Tanzania and Swaziland. His mother is a native Chilean who worked as a secretary for the United Nations and his father was a native of North Dakota who was interested in Latin American issues. His parents met in Brazil. Sadly, Sund’s father passed away when he was only a year old. Because Sund was born a U.S. citizen, he decided at the age of 18 to continue his studies in the States. The move from Swaziland to Wisconsin in January meant an almost 80-degree drop in temperature. 16 • July / August 2016
Design by: Carlos Cuevas
Sund studied history and philosophy at the University of Wisconsin, with a goal of developing a career in academics. He eventually moved on to the graduate history department at Northwestern University in Chicago. To help cover some of his graduate school expenses, Sund started teaching classes at St. Augustine College. This was a pivotal moment in Sund’s life, as he has discussed in interviews. He’d been wondering if Northwestern was a bad fit for him. Discovering St. Augustine, therefore, was a revelation. “I felt the mission (at St. Augustine) was far more in tune with what I wanted to do as an individual,” he has said. Founded in 1980, St. Augustine College is the first bilingual institution of higher education in Illinois. Given his international background and his mother’s devotion to social issues, Sund was drawn to the college’s commitment to making higher education accessible to all and helping people integrate into society. Even as he earned his master’s degree at Northwestern and his doctorate in higher education policy and administration at the University of Illinois, Sund maintained a connection to St. Augustine, eventually taking on a variety of administrative roles at the college.
At St. Augustine, Sund learned that a teacher and administrator can have a stronger and more positive impact on students’ lives at a small school versus a large school. After a dozen years at St. Augustine, Sund took a job as assistant dean for research and planning and dean of workforce and community education at Olive-Harvey College, one of the City Colleges of Chicago. But in 2008, he was called back to St. Augustine to serve as its fourth president. St. Augustine was having financial difficulties at the time, Sund has said, and it needed someone with a comprehensive knowledge of how the institution was run. Sund was in a unique position, perhaps, to empathize with students from diverse backgrounds and economic circumstances who have made enormous sacrifices to attend college. As someone fluent in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Swahili, Sund understood the importance of having the college operate convincingly at every level in two languages. Sund’s immediate challenges at St. Augustine involved increasing enrollment and enhancing the college’s academic reputation. Upon his return, Sund discovered that the college’s mission had become too diffuse; that it was trying to do too many things. One of his accomplishments has been to refocus and hone that mission: To serve the Latino community and spread the message that St. Augustine is a bilingual school where immigrants are welcome. During the recent recession, St. Augustine experienced an enormous rise in enrollment of Hispanic students, according to an article in the bilingual Chicago newspaper, Extra. “The Hispanic community is composed of hard-working people that continually work towards a better life and are familiar with difficult times of an economic crisis,” Sund told Extra. “The Hispanic community will not have their arms crossed during these times, but will do the opposite and do the right thing. In this case, they will return to the classrooms to study and graduate.” In that article, Extra praised St. Augustine College’s efforts, saying: “It is the only institution that allows a student to begin studies in Spanish while the student learns English. By the time a student graduates, the student is ready to compete in the job market bilingually. The success it has achieved in the past 28 years in teaching bilingual higher education has transformed the college as a source of reference at the national level. Since it was founded in 1980, thousands of Hispanics have graduated and found better paying jobs and are working in better conditions.”
In 2010, Sund signed an articulation agreement with Chicago’s North Park University that allowed credits to be readily transferable between the two schools. “There is a continuity between both institutions that is helpful,” Sund said at the time. Because of this agreement, St. Augustine students who have earned associate’s degrees can advance more easily to North Park to earn their bachelor’s degrees. St. Augustine’s unique learning model, Sund said at the time, means students can earn associate’s degrees far more swiftly and affordably. “Learning a new language is difficult, and when someone is first starting out, it’s very easy to become frustrated and to quit,” he said. “Here at St. Augustine, students can discover their intellectual abilities and build confidence and self esteem. Being able to develop study skills in their own language makes a big difference.” Sund has since helped to add two satellite locations to the St. Augustine system and new, fully accredited bachelor’s degree programs in social work, hospitality management and psychology on the main campus. He said he wants to add more such programs to the St. Augustine curriculum in the future and hopes to find the time some day to write in a more general way about how to improve educational opportunities for Latinos in this country.
ST. AUGUSTINE COLLEGE - HISTORY On October 7, 1980, the Illinois State Board of Higher Education granted operating authority to the first bilingual institution of higher education in Illinois: St. Augustine College. This educational setting is unique in Illinois, and one of a few in the country. It came into existence as a result of years of work, observation, and research, and is based on more than ten years of community work performed by the Spanish Episcopal Services, an educational agency that was created under the auspices of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago by Father Carlos A. Plazas, Ph. D., in 1970. The College founders reacted to observation and research that indicated that a large number of Hispanic adults, because of specific circumstances, could avail themselves of dual-language (bilingual) academic and vocational career training. These findings also indicated that many Hispanic adults were capable of actively participating in four-year degree programs, but needed educational assistance to be able to compete at this level of education. Since there were no institutions of higher education to respond to these educational needs and provide opportunities for duallanguage learning, the Board of Directors of Spanish Episcopal Services elected to support the formation of St. Augustine College.
MISSION
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St. Augustine College is an independent, bilingual (dual-language) institution of higher education created under the auspices of the Episcopal Diocese to make the American system of higher education accessible to a diverse student population with emphasis on those of Hispanic descent; to strengthen ethnic identity; to reinforce cultural interaction; and to build a bridge to fill cultural, educational, and socio-economic gaps. Courtesy: www.staugustine.edu
Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez
Breaks the Job Barrier with Tenacity and Hope STORY BY CHRISS SWANEY
Landing upe Valdez’s life patterns would make great lyrics for a country Western song. For nearly three decades, Valdez’s elbow grease and a frightening single-mindedness to solve any and all problems helped her become the nation’s only female Hispanic sheriff, and one of only four female sheriffs in Texas. As the miles wrap themselves around her career, Valdez reflects on a life well-lived. “I never dreamed I’d be in law enforcement,’’ she says. “All I thought about growing up was the next job and where I would get my next meal.’’ The daughter of migrant workers would survey her handkerchief-sized kingdom through the sun-scorched bean spouts her family would labor to pick at 4:30 a.m. each day of harvest season. There were no fantasies of patio awnings or automatic charcoal starters for the portable grill. There were no diversions except hard work. But it was that tenacity and stubbornness that gave Valdez the spark to escape her humble background. “I never had a new pair of shoes until I was in high school because being the eighth child of migrant parents, I got all the hand-me-downs,’’ Valdez says. Her luck began to change when a concerned school teacher encouraged her to transfer across town to a better high school in San Antonio. At first, Valdez struggled to keep up. The curriculum was much harder and she was unprepared. “I was the child in the corner of the room nobody saw,’’ Valdez remembers. Her aha moment came when she first noticed that her shoes were always muddy when she arrived at school. She recalls looking out the school window at pristine sidewalks. And then it hit her: “I come from a part of town that has no paved streets.’’ She knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but her persistence paid off. Now, she is planning to attend her school’s 50th anniversary later this year. Her high school experiences set the stage for success in higher education. She earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Bethany Nazarene College (now Southern Nazarene University), and later earned a Master of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Texas at Arlington. Similarly, her road to career success has been sprinkled with gnarled challenges GETTIN G and, in some cases, downright negativity. “At the outset of my career, one law LUPE VTO KNOW ALDEZ enforcement official said he would work to get me fired,’’ she recalls. Lupe Va Valdez weathered discrimination like a storm trooper, and she thrived on the ld a bache ez is Dallas Co u structure that law enforcement jobs offered. Her law enforcement career began from Be lor’s degree in b nty Sheriff. She th Nazaren any Nazaren usiness admin earned as a jailer, first in county jail and then at a federal prison. She then moved on to e Colleg e Unive istration rs e Arts in C riminolo ity), and later ea (now Southern investigative roles as an agent of the General Services Administration, the U.S. gy and C rned a M Univers ity of Te riminal Justice aster of Department of Agriculture and finally, the U.S. Customs Service, where she xas at Arl fr ington. om the was a leader in the federal Counter Smuggling Initiative. Her man tra for su Thinkin With the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2002, she to be. Le g about what ty ccess focuses o n pe of pe arn from became a senior agent, serving in that role until her retirement in 2004. In rso th others th e way yo e bad experien n you want January 2004, Valdez retired to run for Dallas County sheriff. And the rest c u would e like to b s and treat e treate is history. d. Accomp When she entered the 2004 campaign, she was widely considered an Hiring 4 lish 0 expansi 0 new detenti ments underdog as a female, Hispanic and lesbian. “I simply never gave up, system, on of the freew on service offic construc ers, the ay mana and that is the advice I would impart to any person. Learn from others’ within th ti g e Lew S on of a 300-be ement patrol te d rr m ett ed care imp mistakes, always stay positive and be fair,” she says. roveme Justice Center, ical facility nts for th a e menta nd health Her mantra for success is very simple: “Educate to elevate.” Valdez lly ill. says everyone has to think about what type of person he or she wants to be. “I took bad experiences and learned from them, and vowed never to treat people the way I had been treated,’’ she says proudly. As sheriff, she continues to make improvements within the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department. Some of the department’s accomplishments under her leadership include the hiring of 400 new detention service officers, the expansion of the freeway management patrol system, construction of a 300-bed medical facility within the Lew Sterrett Justice Center, and health care improvements for the mentally ill. Valdez says change is the only constant in her job. She has to be thinking outside the box daily. “We have to consider how to handle these new driverless cars and what legislation will be necessary to make them safe on our highways,” says Valdez who rarely has any free time due to the demands of her job. But she still finds great reward in public service. “I’ve had to learn to let go,’’ she says. “I now take a couple days to unwind and just think. I take a silent retreat and recharge, and then I’m ready to go again. Crime never takes a holiday.’’
101 LATINO LEADERS
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
MOST INFLUENTIAL
They come in all shapes and sizes. But they all share one thing: an almost fanatical commitment for excellence in their fields. They may be ordinary Latinos, but their work passion is extraordinary. With our eight edition, we celebrate exemplary individuals who embody the pinnacle of those in our society who have not only risen to the top, but also have dedicated their lives to education, culture and the success of generations to come. It is with gusto that we list the achievements of those who have pushed beyond the boundaries of their fields and of the expectations placed on them. They already have formed legacies. These individuals, who inspire others, have not only revealed the keys that unlock their feats, but have also begun to pass that along to a younger Latinos. With each year, the list matures, and this year, we are proud to give you a deeper insight to our leaders by showing the Latin American countries and cultures represented, the online impact they have, their origins and their education. It is also with utmost pride that we introduce the 101 most influential Latinos of 2016 as demonstrated by their excellence in government, activism, finance, business, health, science, arts and entertainment and the athletics arena. Compiled and edited by: Judi Jordan.
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
MEDIA, ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
ACTRESS, MODEL, ENTREPRENEUR
CARTOONIST, ACTIVIST, PRODUCER, RADIO HOST
Alba, descendent of Mexican immigrant grandparents, initially rose to prominence starring the sci-fi TV series “Dark Angel,” directed by James Cameron, for which she won a Golden Globe nomination. Her most well-known films include “Sin City,” “Fantastic Four” and “Machete.” 2016 saw three Alba films in release, “Mechanic Resurrection,” “Dear Eleanor,” and “The Veil.” Alba has carved a niche outside of Hollywood as an eco-preneur. In 2008, the mother of two launched her baby and home product line, The Honest Company. Thanks to an additional $100 million of funding, the company has been recently valued at $1.7 billion. Alba’s estimated current net worth is $350 million. www.honest.com
@jessicaalba
• Born in San Diego, Lalo Alcaraz is a Mexican-American cartoonist. He is married, and has three children.
EMILIO AZCARRAGA JEAN PRESIDENT AND CEO TELEVISA SA
• Born February 21, 1968. He is married and resides in Mexico City.
With an estimated net worth of $2.4 billion, this Mexican media tycoon is Mexico’s 9th richest individual, ranking among Latin America’s wealthiest. He is Chairman and CEO of Grupo Televisa, the largest Spanish-language media company in the world. A skillful businessman, Azcarraga Jean took over the ailing business from his father, and is widely credited with the enormous success his company now enjoys. He sits on the board of directors of the Spanish-language Univision Network, in which Televisa also owns a stake, and Banamex, the Mexican financial giant. Additionally, he is Chairman, President, and CEO of Endeavor, an international non-profit organization headquartered in New York that serves entrepreneurs in nearly 20 nations with emerging markets in four continents.
Launched in 2002, Alcaraz is best known for his comic La Cucaracha, the first nationally syndicated, politically themed Latino daily comic strip. He is also the creator of “Daniel D. Portado,” a satirical Hispanic character who in 1994 called on Mexican immigrants to return south— “reverse immigration”—as a response to the controversial Proposition 187. A leading figure in the Chicano movement, Alcaraz also contributes political cartoons for LA Weekly and hosts a radio show on KPFK called the “Pocho Hour of Power.” Alcaraz consulted on Pixar’s upcoming “Coco,” 2017. He won against Disney’s attempt to copyright Dia de los Muertes as a Disney film and product title.
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
RAMÓN BAEZ SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, CUSTOMER ADVOCACY HP
• Born in 1962, married, resides in Menlo Park, CA
Baez began his career at Northrop Grumman, where he spent 25 years and finished as CIO for its electronics system sensor sector. He was previously CIO of Kimberly Clark, and Fisher Scientific. Ramón Baez, Hewlett Packard’s (HP) Senior Vice President of Customer Advocacy, Chairman of the Global Diversity & Inclusion Board, leads a customer-centric, technology driven business strategy across the organization. As Chairman of the D&I at HP, he aims to align business imperatives and drives accountability all the way to the top, engaging HP’s leadership in meeting their commitments to Diversity and Inclusion.
1976 Founded Alvarado Construction 1992 Became first Latino to own a major league baseball team (Colorado Rockies) 2003 Inducted in the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
Linda Alvarado is the President and CEO of Alvarado Construction, Inc., a commercial and industrial construction firm in Denver, Colorado. She is also President of the Palo Alto, Inc. restaurant company, co-owner of the Colorado Rockies baseball team, and serves on the boards of directors of 3M, Cypress Amax Minerals Company, Mayo Clinic, and Pitney Bowes. Winner of the Horatio Alger Award, Linda is a trailblazer, wife, and mother, and stands out at a strong Latina in the male-dominated arenas of construction, sports, and corporate boards. http://www.alvaradoconstruction.com
SPORTS
JOSÉ JUAN “J.J.” BAREA POINT GUARD, DALLAS MAVERICKS
• Born June 26, 1984, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Has a son. 2005-06 Became the second all-time leading scorer and leader in assists at Northeastern University. 2011 Helped lead the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA Championship 201415 Barea re-signed with the Mavericks
“JJ” Barea first began to make a name for himself in Puerto Rico as a player for Indios de Mayagüez of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He later moved to the United States and attended Miami Christian School in Miami where he helped the team win a championship. In 2006, he became the seventh Puerto Rican to play in the NBA. In 2011, he lead the Dallas Mavericks to win an NBA Championship. The same year, Barea opened the JJ Barea Foundation for the empowerment and education of youth in San Juan. https://www.facebook.com/pages/José-JuanBarea/160236700710610 https://twitter.com/jjbareapr
www.televisa.com/us
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PRESIDENT AND CEO OF ALVARADO CONSTRUCTION, INC.
• Born in 1951, Alvarado attended Pomona College. 1987 San Diego State University BA 1991 UC Berkeley MA, Architecture.
http://laloalcaraz.com
MEDIA
LINDA ALVARADO
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• Born on April 28, 1981, is married, mother of two, and lives in Beverly Hills.
LALO ALCARAZ
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
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JESSICA ALBA
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• Born in 1961. Resident of Southern California, married with three children. 1986-present President of Barreto Insurance & Financial Services 2001-2006 Appointed Adminsitrator of U.S. Small Business Administration 2006- present - President & CEO Barreto Inc
The Honorable Hector V. Barreto is Chairman of The Latino Coalition. Barreto currently serves as a member of the board of the United States Chamber of Commerce and sits on its council for small business. Barreto is a member of the Minority Business Hall of Fame and has been recognized by many organizations including: the U.S. Congress, the California State Senate and Assembly, the County of Los Angeles, YMCA, and the American Red Cross. He was honored in 2006 by the president of Fox in Mexico, with the Aguila Azteca Award. http://www.barretoinc.com/ http://www. thelatinocoalition.com/about-us/hector-v-barreto-
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
GEORGE P. BUSH TEXAS LAND COMMISSIONER
1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
RUDY M. BESERRA
XAVIER BECERRA
CHAIRMAN OF THE LATINO COALITION
• Born April 24, 1976 • Mexican-American. Married, with two sons. 2011 Served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan with the U.S Navy Reserves 2012 Deputy Finance chairman of the Republican Party of Texas 2014 Elected Texas Land Commissionerr
A member of the Bush family, Bush is the son of Republican Presidential candidate Jeb Bush, grandson of George H.W. Bush, and the nephew to President George W. Bush. Former Rice University undergraduate, he earned his Juris Doctorate at the University of Texas School of Law. He worked as a Florida teacher before serving in the U.S. Naval Reserves in Afghanistan. In 2015, he was overwhelmingly elected Texas Land Commissioner. Bush co-founded several businesses in the Texas area. http://georgepfortexas.org/ https://twitter.com/georgepbush (@georgepbush)
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POLITICS
HÉCTOR V. BARRETO
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VICE PRESIDENT OF LATIN AFFAIRS AT COCA-COLA
U.S. CONGRESSMAN, CALIFORNIA’S 34TH DISTRICT
• Born January 26, 1958, Becerra is married with three children. 1992 Elected to the House of Representatives 19971998 Served as chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
One of the most respected congressmen, with more than 20 years of service in the U.S. House of Representatives, Becerra serves as Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. He was the first Latino member of the powerful Committee on Ways And Means and is Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. He has been a vocal ally of fair and free trade, and has worked to bring industry to California. In 2016, Becerra spoke out against gun violence as part of the #NoFlyNoBuy ‘sit-in’ in congress. http://becerra.house.gov/ https://www.facebook.com/XavierBecerra?fref=ts https://twitter.com/RepBecerra
• Residence: Atlanta, GA • A native of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Mr. Beserra is married and has two children. 1999 Harvard Executive Forum -Board Development 1974 The University of New Mexico - AA Degree and Teacher Certificate, Special Ed / Political Science 2011 NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award. The Hector Barreto “Con Ganas” Award at the USHCC (United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce) convention in Miami, FL.
Everything having to do with the Latino community comes through his office. For the past 24 years, Rudy M. Beserra has headed Coca-Cola’s Latin Affairs division. Beserra is Vice President of Latin Affairs at Coca-Cola. He joined the beverage company in 1989 after serving under President Ronald Reagan as special assistant on Latino and Small Business Affairs. He is on the board of directors of numerous national organizations that assist and advance Latinos including the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC).
FINANCE
MEDICINE
FOUNDER & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, CABRERA CAPITAL
M.D. SPECIALIZED IN FAMILY MEDICINE
MARTIN CABRERA, JR. • Born in 1972, Cabrera is based in Chicago. 2007 Honored by the U.S. Department of Commerce with the Minority Business Advocate of the Year Award 2010 Received the Maestro Award for Leadership from Latino Leaders Magazine 2013 Served just a short four months as the reformer of the United Neighborhood Organization
Martin Cabrera, Jr. is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cabrera Capital Markets LLC, the leading Hispanic investment bank, and institutional brokerage firm in the US. He is responsible for overseeing many of the firm’s activities, including investment banking, corporate debt, initial public offerings and trading. He is also founder of Cabrera Capital Partners. Prior to the forming of Cabrera Capital, he served as a General Principal and Branch Manager of Salomon Grey Financial Corporation and was a Senior Vice President at Amerivet Securities, Inc.
FRANK CASTILLO • Residence: Chicago, IL. 1988 University of Wisconsin, M.D.
Dr. Frank M. Castillo specializes in Family Medicine at Chicago’s Erie Family Health Center, having joined the Health Care Team in 2001. He has received numerous honors, including the University of Chicago’s Abram L. Harris Achievement Prize, several Physician Recognition Awards from the American Medical Association and citation by EXTRA Newspaper for being one of the ”Top 10 Doctors Serving the Latino Community.” He was selected as Branstad Distinguished Educator by Northwestern University for the years 2014-2016 in recognition of his teaching excellence. He has contributed articles to such publications as Medicine & War and the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved. 312/503-1273
www.cabreracapital.com
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U.S. CONGRESSMAN, TEXAS’ 20TH DISTRICTT
SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT; FORMER MAYOR OF SAN ANTONIO
JOAQUIN CASTRO • Born Sept 16, 1974. Married, with two children. 2012 Elected to the House of Representatives 2013 Named co-president for the House freshman Democrats and Assistant Whip for House Democrats. 2015 Named Chief Deputy Whip Committee Assignments: Committee on Armed Services, Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Son of Rosie Castro, single mother, and community organizer, Joaquin Castro graduated from Stanford and Harvard Law along with his twin brother, Julian. He practiced law, ran for Texas’ house, and easily defeated every opponent on his way to the US Congress. Castro ranks among the most high profile Hispanics in national politics. Castro’s respect for public service and involvement in political movements and civic causes developed at a young age. Now in his second term in the House, he was at the forefront in proposing forward thinking legislative reforms in the areas of mental health, teen pregnancy, and juvenile justice. https://castro.house.gov/ https://www.facebook.com/JoaquinCastroTX?fref=t https://twitter.com/joaquincastrotx
JULIAN CASTRO • Born September 16, 1974. Married with two children. 2009-2014 3-term Mayor of San Antonio 2012 Delivered keynote address at the Democratic National Convention 2014 Confirmed as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Julian Castro’s goal is to maintain the Department of Housing and Urban Development as a transparent, efficient, and effective champion for the people. Since his confirmation last year as HUD Secretary, the buzz on Castro grew louder. He has campaigned with Clinton, who has made it clear that he has a place in her administration. In 2010 Castro was named one of World Economic Forum’s list of Young Global Leaders. http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/about/ principal_staff/secretary_castro https://www.facebook.com/profile. php?id=221038&fref=ts https://twitter.com/SecretaryCastro
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
JULIE CHÁVEZ RODRÍGUEZ SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT AND SENIOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT, THE WHITE HOUSE
• Born in Delano, California, Rodriguez grew up in Keene, in the Tehachapi Mountains.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez is currently Special Assistant to the President and Senior Deputy Director of Public Engagement. Julie manages a team of associate directors who work with leaders in the LGBT, AAPI, Latino, Veterans, Youth, Education, Labor, and Progressive communities. Prior to joining the White House, Julie served as the Director of Youth Employment at the Department of the Interior and the Deputy Press Secretary to former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. Before joining the Administration, Julie served as the Director of Programs at the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation. Granddaughter of labor rights leader César Chávez, Rodríguez helped launch the Chavez Foundation’s service-learning programs in Latino communities across the country. https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/author/Julie%20 Chavez%20Rodriguez https://www.facebook.com/julie.c.rodriguez.3
OPINION LEADERS
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
PHARMACEUTICALS
FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF CITYVIEW
CEO AND DIRECTOR OF SPRINT CORPORATION
NANETTE COCERO PFIZER REGIONAL PRESIDENT FOR EMERGING MARKETS IN GLOBAL INNOVATIVE
• Born June 11, 1947, married with three children.
• Born in 1971, of Bolivian heritage, he is married, with three children, and two children from a previous marriage. • Residence: Miami, FL and Kansas City, MO
MARCELO CLAURE
HENRY CISNEROS 1975-81 City council member for San Antonio. 1981-89 Mayor of San Antonio. 1993-97 Served as 10th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Co-chairman of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Housing Commission and Immigration Task Force
With a long career in community-building, Henry Cisneros varied career includes stints as mayor, housing developer, and TV corporate owner. He is now taken another role as a sort of “evangelizer” of climate change to the business sector, helping to shape public opinion on the subject. He was appointed to Secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1992 and worked to revitalize several of the country’s public housing developments with new policies, which helped grow the home ownership rate in the country.
NANETTE COCERO
Marcelo Claure founded Brightstar in the late 1990’s and grew it into a company of over $10 billion in revenue with operations over 50 countries. He is the owner of the Bolivar Soccer Team in his native Bolivia. Claure, the CEO of Sprint Corporation, is one of a handful of Latino CEO’s of multi-billion dollar companies. Sprint, now the 4th largest wireless network in the US as of March 2016, ranked number 87 on the Fortune 500 before Japan’s SoftBank acquired an 80% ownership). Claure also serves on the board of directors of Sprint. He is a wireless industry entrepreneur, having served as Founder and CEO of Brightstar Corp. https://twitter.com/marceloclaure
• Residence: New York 1985 Cornell University: BS, Chemistry 1992 University of Pennsylvania: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Pharmacology 1994 Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania Master of Business Administration (MBA), Marketing/Strategic Planning
Nanette Cocero is the Regional President for Emerging Markets in Pfizer’s Global Innovative Pharma segment in New York City. Cocero manages about 3,000 employees in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and emerging Asia Pacific countries. In 2012, Nanette played a leadership role in introducing Pfizer’s breakthrough medicine against lung cancer in China. During her 15 years at Pfizer, Nanette led the completion of the Pfizer-Wyeth merger in Spain; her efforts resulted in a larger portfolio of specialty care medicines for Spanish patients. This is what Cocero lives for; the opportunity to serve patients with medical needs.
http://www.cityview.com/contact/index.html https://www.linkedin.com/in/nanettecocero
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CONGRESS
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
CESAR CONDE CHAIRMAN NBC UNIVERSAL INTERNATIONAL GROUP AND TELEMUNDO ENTERPRISES
• Born Dec. 8, 1973, he is married and lives in Miami.
Conde is among the highest-ranked Latinos and youngest executives in English-language broadcast network; his wealth is estimated at $50 million. Harvard graduate and former White House Fellow, Conde exploded through the executive ranks at Univision to become one of the youngest presidents of an American broadcast network at the age of 36 in 2009. While at the Spanishlanguage network, he held half a dozen senior positions, from special assistant to the CEO, to VP and operating manager of the Galavisión Network to vice president Univision’s sales and business development. In 2013 Conde joined NBC Universal, where he served as an executive vice president prior to his promotion to Chairman. http://cesarconde.org
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MARIA CONTRERASSWEET ADMINISTRATOR, THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
• Born in 1955, in Guadalajara, Mexico, she is married, with three children. She currently resides in Washington, D.C. 1989: Founding president of Hispanas Organized for Political Equality 1999-2003: Cabinet Secretary of California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency 2001-05: Youngest member to be elected to San Antonio City Council 2014: Appointed 24th Administrator of the SBA
Maria Contreras-Sweet was named the 24th Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration in 2014. Serving as a member of the cabinet of President Barack Obama, her job is to support American small businesses. In her first 100 days she successfully pushed for quicker loan decisions and more capital going the way of ‘Main Street’ local businesses by streamlining the application process. www.sba.gov,
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
@MCS4Biz
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
HENRY CUELLAR
ROSARIO DAWSON ACTOR, PRODUCER, ACTIVIST
U.S. CONGRESSMAN, TEXAS’ 28TH DISTRICT
• Cuellar is married with two children. • BORN, SEPTEMBER 19, 1955 2001-2002: Texas Secretary of State 2005: Sworn in as U.S. Congressman 2009: Authored the Southern Border Security Taskforce Act of 2009
The son of migrant workers who never made it past the fifth grade, Cuellar has positioned himself as a strong advocate for education and has often described himself as “the most degreed member of Congress,” having earned an associate’s degree, a bachelor’s in Foreign Service, a master’s degree in International Trade, a law degree, and a Ph.D. in Government. Two schools in his hometown of Laredo are named in his honor. http://cuellar.house.gov/ https://www.facebook.com/pages/US-CongressmanHenry-Cuellar-TX-28/152569121550 https://twitter.com/repcuellar
• Residence: New York City • Puerto Rican/Cuban. Born May 9, 1979, New York City, single, she has a 14 year-old adopted daughter. • She studied at Lee Strasberg Institute
For Rosario Dawson’s role in Rent (2005), Dawson won the Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture. Dawson currently portrays Claire Temple in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in three of the Marvel Studios/ Netflix series, Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. Very politically active, Dawson is Co-founder of Voto Latino. Dawson is very involved with the Lower East Side Girls Club, she supports numerous charities including environmental group Global Cool, the ONE Campaign, Operation USA, Oxfam, Amnesty International, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, the International Rescue Committee and Stay Close.org, and serves on the board for V-Day, a global non-profit movement that raises funds for women’s antiviolence groups. @rosariodawson
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TED CRUZ U.S. SENATOR, TEXAS
• U.S. Senator, Texas • BORN, DECEMBER 22, 1970 2003-2008 Solicitor General of Texas 2012 Elected to the Senate
One of only three Latinos in the Senate, Cruz was among the first Republicans to announce his candidacy in the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. Previously he served as the first Hispanic (and youngest) Solicitor General of Texas, the State’s chief lawyer before the U.S. Supreme Court. He suspended his presidential bid in May 2016. He returned to the Senate to resume his fight to require the Library of Congress to use the term ‘illegal aliens’. At the 2016 Republican Convention, he defied the GOP denying Trump his endorsement, urging the audience to “vote their own conscience.” http://www.cruz.senate.gov/ https://www.facebook.com/tedcruzpage https://twitter.com/tedcruz https://instagram.com/ sentedcruz / https://instagram.com/sentedcruz
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
CASTULO DE LA ROCHA PRESIDENT AND CEO OF ALTAMED HEALTH SERVICES CORPORATION
• Born in 1948
De la Rocha attended UC Santa Barbara and received his JD from UC Berkeley. Focused on healthcare for over 27 years, he has had numerous mentions and awards, including induction into the National Association of Community Health Centers’ Grassroots Hall of Fame. He has spent a record 39 years at AltaMed. He was awarded the U.S. Surgeon General’s Gold Medallion for Public Health. AltaMed ranks number 1 in the Hispanic Business Magazine’s Top 25 Non-Profit list under his leadership De la Rocha has made a name for himself nationally as a foremost advocate for affordable health care to struggling Latino communities. He holds several degrees from top tier universities, including a Juris Doctorate from Berkeley. Since joining AltaMed in 1977, the company has grown exponentially under his tenure to now serve communities in the L.A and Orange County area. http://altamed.org
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
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CORPORATE, BUSINESS
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
VICE CHAIRMAN OF AT&T INC., CEO OF AT&T BUSINESS SOLUTIONS, AND AT&T INTERNATIONAL.
DIRECTOR, PRODUCER, SCREENWRITER, AND NOVELIST.
PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR HISPANIC HEALTH
• Born on October 9, 1964, in Guadalajara, Mexico, del Toro is married and lives in Los Angeles.
• Born June 17, 1953. Delgado resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband.
His first directed feature, the Spanishlanguage Cronos, won the Mercedes-Benz Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993. The Devil’s Backbone and his acclaimed El Laberinto del Fauno received an Oscar nod and 50 international wins and 30-plus nominations. The larger budget projects followed: Mimic, the Hellboy series, Pacific Rim, with a sequel in the works, Crimson Peak, plus his TV series, The Strain, and another handful of projects slated thru 2018. He is also credited as a writer in the film series The Hobbit.
1975 M.A. in psychology from New York University 1981 Ph.D. in clinical psychology from SUNY Stony Brook and an M.S. in Urban and Policy Sciences from Stony Brook’s W. Averell Harriman School of Management and Policy
RALPH DE LA VEGA • Born in Cuba in 1952, married, lives in Atlanta. De la Vega holds a bachelor’s degree of science in mechanical engineering from Florida Atlantic University, and an MBA from Northern Illinois University.
Ralph de la Vega holds a bachelor’s degree of science in mechanical engineering from Florida Atlantic University, and an MBA from Northern Illinois University. De La Vega is Vice Chairman of AT&T Inc. and CEO of AT&T Business Solutions and AT&T International. He is the author of the 2009 book “Obstacles Welcome: How to Turn Adversity to Advantage in Business and Life.” De la Vega serves on several boards of directors, including the board of New York Life Insurance Company. He previously served as COO of Cingular Wireless and as President of Latin America Operations and President of Broadband and Internet Services for BellSouth’s operations in ten countries.
GUILLERMO DEL TORO
http://deltorofilms.com
JANE L. DELGADO
Currently, Dr. Jane L. Delgado is President and CEO of National Alliance for Hispanic Health. Prior to that, she was a talent coordinator for Sesame Street before joining the Department of Health and Human Services. She serves on a variety of prestigious health organizations and research boards and has authored books, most recently “The Buena Salud Guide” book series, “The Latina Guide to Health”, and “The Buena Salud Guide to Arthritis and Your Life.” http://janeonhealth.blogspot.com/ https://twitter.com/janeonhealth (@janeonhealth)
26 • July / August 2016
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https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphdelavega
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
SPORTS
CONDUCTOR, VIOLINIST. MUSIC DIRECTOR ORQUESTA SINFÓNICA SIMÓN BOLÍVAR, LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC
PRODUCER, ACTIVIST
JOCKEY
• He was born on March 12, 1949 and lives in Los Angeles with his wife.
• Born on May 23, 1972 in Hidalgo, Mexico.
MOCTEZUMA ESPARZA
GUSTAVO DUDAMEL • Venezuelan. Born January 26, 1981 in Barquisimeto, Lara Venezuela. Divorced, with one child.
Dudamel began to study conducting in 1995, first with Rodolfo Saglimbeni, then later with José Antonio Abreu. In 2015 Dudamel conducted both the opening and end titles, for the official motion picture soundtrack and film of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. The character of Rodrigo in Amazon’s Mozart in the Jungle was based, in part, on Dudamel. Dudamel began his tenure as Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic on September 28, 2009 with a rehearsal of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony that included the Los Angeles Master Chorale and representatives of eight communitybased choruses. In February 2011, the orchestra announced the extension of Dudamel’s contract through the end of the 2018–2019 season, including the orchestra’s 100th anniversary.
1960s: Participated in the Chicano Movement 1973: Received his M.F.A. from UCLA 1997: Produced ‘Selena’, Jennifer Lopez breakout film. 2005: Opened up the first multiplex in the Maya Cinemas chain
A prolific producer with 31 credits, Oscarnominated Moctezuma Esparza blazed the trail for Chicano/Latino on-screen stories since the 1970s. His documentary short “Agueda Martinez: Our People, Our Country” received an Academy nod in 1978. His biggest hits include “Selena” and “The Milagro Beanfield War” and the HBO film “Walkout.” Recognizing the need for more cinemas to screen Latino and ethnically diverse films as well as Hollywood fare, Esparza launched the Maya Cinema multiplex chain; there are now four in California. www.mayaentertainment.com @MoctesumaE
VÍCTOR ESPINOZA Appropriately named, Victor has won all the most prestigious races and honors nationally and internationally. Winner of the 2016 Dubai World Cup, Winner of the Triple Crown in 2015 riding American Pharaoh, Espinosa is the first Latino, and the oldest jockey to ever win the coveted race. His luck comes often in three’s-Espinosa is a three-time Kentucky Derby winner - riding War Emblem in 2002, California Chrome in 2014, and American Pharaoh in 2015. Espinoza also won the Preakness Stakes three times, riding War Emblem in 2002 California Chrome in 2014 and American Pharaoh in 2015. He came to the US in 1992, without a word of English and lived in the stables in Northern California. In 2002, he won his first Kentucky Derby. He never looked back. To date, Victor has won a whopping 3,200 races. https://twitter.com/espinozasvictor
www.GustavoDudamel.com
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C E OA S S OC I A T I ONOFL A T I N OP R OF E S S I ON A L SF ORA ME R I C A ( A L P F A ) , A U T H OR
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JESUS “CHUY” GARCIA
LISA GARCIA QUIROZ TIME WARNER’S CHIEF DIVERSITY OFFICER
• Mexican. Married, with three children. Resides in Cook County, Illinois. • Born April 12, 1956 in Durango Mexico.
• Born 1961, Staten Island, NY. Married.
1992- First Mexican- American member of the Illinois State Senate 2010- Elected Cook County Board of Commissioners 2015- Runner-up for Mayor of Chicago
President Obama appointed Lisa Garcia Quiroz, Senior Vice President, Corporate Responsibility, and Chief Diversity Officer at Time Warner Inc., to chair the Corporation for National and Community Service Board of Directors (CNCS). CNCS is a federal agency that helps more than five million Americans make a positive impact on the lives of fellow citizens through service. As Time Warner’s first Chief Diversity Officer, she has deepened the company’s dedication to diversity and corporate responsibility. She is also president of Time Warner’s Foundation. Lisa Garcia Quiroz was made Time Warner’s chief diversity officer in 2012. She is also a senior vice president at the company and president of the Time Warner Foundation. Previously.
http://www.chicagoforchuy.com/index.html https://twitter.com/garcia4chicago (@garcia4chicago)
MARKETING PUBLIC RELATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS
HENRY GOMEZ 1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
MEDIA
COOK COUNTY COMMISSIONER, 7TH DISTRICT
Old school in a good way, Progressive Dem Jesus ‘Chuy’ Garcia has seen it all. Garcia’s measure cut off Cook County’s cooperation with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, preventing County officials from detaining a person based on the suspicion of being undocumented. The measure became the first of its kind in the nation and more than 250 localities followed Garcia’s lead nationwide. Garcia was reelected to a second term on the County Board in 2014, and currently serves as the 7th district Cook County Board of Commissioners, presiding as its floor leader.
28 • July / August 2016
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EVP, CHIEF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER, HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE
• Born July 30, 1962, • 1985: Boston College, B.A. Political Science
Henry Gomez has worked with Hewlett Packard Enterprise for over 15 years in various capacities. With more than 27 years of experience in marketing, communications, and broad-based business management, Gomez is responsible for leading marketing, advertising, brand, media, and industry analyst relations, executive communications, employee communications, government affairs, global social innovation, and environmental sustainability. Henry was president and EVP of SKYPE from 2006-2007. He also is a member of HP’s Executive Council. https://www.linkedin.com/in/gomezhenry
2002 Hispanic Heritage Award.
www.linkedin.com/in/lisagarciaquiroz
RELIGION
JOSE HORACIO GOMEZ CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF LOS ANGELES
• Born December 26, 1951. Monterrey, Mexico. The only son of five children born to Jose Gomez and Esperanza Velasco. 1978 Ordained to the Priesthood for Opus Dei 2001 Auxiliary Bishop of Denver 2004 Archbishop of San Antonio, TX 2011 Archbishop of Los Angeles
Archbishop Gomez has been a U.S. Citizen since 1995. During his priestly and episcopal career he has founded or co-founded a number of initiatives designed to bring Latino Catholics closer to the Church, and received many awards. Named one of Time Magazine’s 25 Most Influential Hispanics in 2005, since his arrival in Los Angeles he has worked to reconstruct a more traditional approach to Catholicism. http://www.la-archdiocese.org/archbishop/Pages/ default.aspx https://twitter.com/ArchbishopGomez
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ANDRES GLUSKI PRESIDENT, CEO, AES CORPORATION
• Born in Caracas, 1957, married with two children. • Attended Wake Forest University, MA and PhD University of Virginia.
Gluski was named President and CEO of AES in 2011. The AES Corporation is a 30-year old Fortune 200 global power company, operating in 17 countries on four continents with revenue of $15 billion. In what was truly a win-win scenario, Gluski’s ‘strong, fair’ leadership of La Electricidad de Caracas, and his protection of shareholders’ interests during the company’s acquisition by AES led to his hiring as AES COO. Gluski’s core tenets of collaborative, responsible, goal-focused management laid the grid for award-winning success: AES is recipient of four International Edison Awards for innovation and operational improvements, and was named ‘one of America’s Safest Companies’ by EHS Today Magazine. AES (703) 522-1315 http://www.aes.com/
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
SELENA GÓMEZ SINGER, ACTRESS, PHILANTHROPIST
• Mexican-American. Born July 22, 1992 in Grand Prairie Texas. Resides in Los Angeles. She earned a high school diploma through homeschooling in May 2010.
In 2009 she released the pop album Kiss & Tell. This was followed by voice acting for animation; Selena Gómez is the voice of the Mavis character in the 2012 animated film Hotel Transylvania and its sequel. Other recent projects include the 2013 film Spring Breakers and the 2015 album Revival, with single “Good for You.” 2016 has been a year of touring with the album, and “Hands to Myself, her third single to reach # 1 in the pop charts” was just announced. Gómez has a own clothing line, perfume and production company. Gómez is also an active philanthropist; she has been a UNICEF ambassador since 2009. She also works to help children globally through her C.A.N. (Charity, Action, Now) foundation. http://www.selenaGómez.com/ @selenaGómez
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ALEJANDRO GONZÁLEZ IÑÁRRITU
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
JUAN GONZÁLEZ MORENO CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF GRUMA AND GIMSA
DIRECTOR, SCREENWRITER, PRODUCER, COMPOSER
• Born in 1958. Married. Residence: Nuevo Leon, Mexico
• Mexican. Born August 15, 1963. Youngest of seven children, married, with two children, resides in Mexico City • Majored in communications at Universidad Iberoamericana
Juan González Morenois Chairman and CEO of GRUMA and GIMSA, the world’s leading producers of corn and flour tortillas and wheatflour related food products. In 2016, it was reported that Gruma/Mission Foods contributed US $4 million dollars to create a Mexico-Texas bilateral relations center “The Mission Foods TexasMexico Center” to provide a solid foundation for developing a better understanding of the unique relationship between Mexico and Texas in political, economic, social, and cultural matters. In 2013, González Moreno was named number 20 in “Los 100 empresarios mas importantes de Mexico” (Mexico’s 100 important executives) in “Expansion magazine.” Association of Mexican Entrepreneurs in the U.S. gave special recognition to Gonzales Moreno as Entrepreneur of the Year 2013.
With his film “Babel” he became the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Oscar in 2007 and the first Mexican-born director to win the Prix de la mise en scene at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2015, Iñárritu won the Academy Award for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Picture for Birdman. This year, he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the enormously expensive [$135 million] western, “The Revenant,” thus making him the third director to win back to back Academy Awards, and the first since 1950. #inarritu
(81) 8399-3300
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
LUIS GUTIERREZ TWELVE-TERM U.S. CONGRESSMAN, ILLINOIS’ 4TH DISTRICT
• Born December 10, 1953, he is married with two children. 1992: Sworn in as U.S. Congressman 2010: Helped guide the passage of the Development Relief and Education Act for Alien Minors Act (DREAM Act) 2016: He angrily testified before congress protesting the lack of response to gun control and Zika Virus.
Now in his twelfth term, Democratic Congressman Luis V. Gutiérrez is the senior member of the Illinois delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives. An active and vocal member, Gutierrez has not only pushed for quicker legislation to deal with the country’s immigration issues but he has also spearheaded programs to help immigrants become proficient in English, help immigrant children in the education system and inspired other Democrats to join the fight. He has become increasingly visible in the fight for gun control, and against the stagnant house of representatives. http://gutierrez.house.gov/ hhttps://www. https://twitter.com/ facebook.com/RepGutierrez repgutierrez / http://repgutierrez.tumblr.com/
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LINDA GRIEGO ENTREPRENEUR, AND BOARD MEMBER, MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. HOSPITAL, CBS CORPORATION AND AECOM TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION, AMONG OTHERS. PRESIDENT, CEO GRIEGO ENTERPRISES, INC
• Born 1949 in Tucumcari, New Mexico. Married, resides in Los Angeles.
Linda Griego is a member of several high profile boards, including CBS as well as the Chair of the MLK Jr. Hospital Foundation. Since 2006, she has served as a trustee of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. In 2010, she joined the board of directors of The German Marshall Fund. She also serves on the board of trustees of the Art Center College of Design. An avid restaurateur, Griego owned Engine Co. No 28 for 23 years; she now owns several specialty bakeries/ cafes in Downtown Los Angeles. She is currently planning the construction of a Latino arts community to revitalize her native New Mexico. Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/pub/lindagriego/14/590/48
http://www.gruma-en.com
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
DR. DAVID HAYESBAUTISTA
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
DAVID HERNANDEZ CEO OF LIBERTY POWER
• He is in his 40s. Residence: Fort Lauderdale, FL
PROFESSOR OF MEDICINE AND DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF LATINO HEALTH AND CULTURE AT THE SCHOOL OF MEDICINE, UCLA, LOS ANGELES
• Born in 1946, Dr. Hayes-Bautista is married with two children. 1971 Founding Executive Director of the La Clinica de la Raza in Oakland, CA 1987 Currently Professor at UCLA
Dr. Bautista is a prominent voice in his field, and has been for almost 40 years. Currently, Bautista is a professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, where he established the Study of Latino Health and Culture at the School of Medicine in 1992. He researches the cost-effective, high-quality standard of care in Latino communities, and his work has been repeatedly published in medical journals. Dr Bautista is a media expert and public speaker.
MBA, Finance, Marketing 1997 – 1999 Palm Beach Atlantic University, Palm Beach Atlantic University , BS, Accounting 1988 – 1991
David Hernández is the CEO of Liberty Power, the largest independent retail electricity supplier in the United States. Since Hernández cofounded the company in 2001 it has become one of the ten largest Hispanic-owned companies in the country, serving nearly 200,000 business and residential accounts across the electric retailer’s national footprint. Liberty Power was ranked the #1 Fastest-Growing Hispanic 500 Company in 2007 by Hispanic Business Magazine. sclark@libertypowercorp.com https://www.libertypowercorp.com/leadership/davidhernandez/
dhayesb@ucla.edu http://ph.ucla.edu/faculty/hayes-bautista
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
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29 • July / August 2016
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ENTERTAINMENT
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
MARIA HINOJOSA
RUBEN HINOJOSA
MARIA TERESA KUMAR
JOURNALIST, RADIO, AND TV PRODUCER, DIRECTOR.
U.S. CONGRESSMAN, TEXAS’ 15TH DISTRICT
PRESIDENT AND CEO OF VOTO LATINO
• Born July 2, 1961, she is married with two children.
• Hinojosa is married and has five children. Born, August 20, 1940
• Born 1974, Bogota, Colombia, grew up in Sonoma California. Lives in Washington D.C.
1997 Sworn in as U.S. Congressman 2007 Appointed chairman of the Subcommittee on Higher Education 2012 Elected chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus
2004: Founded Voto Latino with Rosario Dawson 2010: Pushed to get American Latinos to fill out the 2010 census via a bilingual iPhone app 2013: Named one of the 10 Most Powerful Women in Washington by Elle Magazine
For 25 years, this Mexico City-born journalist has been covering all sorts of issues for radio and TV networks like National Public Radio, CBS and CNN. A winner of four Emmys and other national and international awards, Hinojosa is known for also covering underreported issues, Latinos and other communities. She hosts the radio show Latino USA on National Public Radio since 1992. In 2010 she founded the Futuro Group, a nonprofit media organization that produced the recent PBS TV series “America by the Numbers” and has taken over the production of Latino USA. www.futuromediagroup.org
@Maria_Hinojosa
Serving his tenth term, Hinojosa is an advocate for transparency, equal rights, education, and housing development viewed as a champion for the disadvantaged by his colleagues, and those he represents. His voting record is current, and posted on his website for his constituents to see. His region of Hidalgo County is the third fastest growing metropolitan statistical area in the country. With a great deal of his district along the Rio Grande Valley, he is a pivotal figure in the immigration reform talks, he encourages freshly elected Democrats to jump into the fray and join him in solving this critical issue.
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hinojosa.house.gov/biography CongressmanRubenHinojosa
She’s a powerhouse. Kumar, co-founder of acclaimed Voto Latino along with actress Rosario Dawson, raised the nonpartisan org to interest Latino millennials in taking part in the political process, and own their power. Kumar also serves on the national board of Planned Parenthood and Latino Leaders Network. Considered an influential and creative business owner, she is a frequent guest expert on TV and in s biggest programs. Her long list of awards includes an Emmy nomination and the White House Project award. (@MariaTeresa1
usreprhinojosa
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
MEDIA
ACTRESS, PRODUCER, ACTIVIST
JENNIFER LÓPEZ
STEVEN M. LOPEZ
SINGER, ACTRESS, PRODUCER, ENTREPRENEUR
COLUMNIST, THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, AUTHOR
• Puerto Rican. Born July 24, 1969. Has two children and resides in Los Angeles.
• Born 1953 in Pittsburg California. Son of Spanish and Italian immigrants.
López broke the glass ceiling for Latinas in entertainment as the first Latina actress to be paid more than $1 million as result of her leading role in the 1997 “Selena.” She has 45 acting/video credits which include her new TV series “Shades of Blue.” López is also a savvy TV producer with 16 credits. López has released eight studio albums, and many singles. With a new Las Vegas ‘residency’ at Planet Hollywood, her earnings keep pace with her ambition. On July 21st, 2016, her production company announced López’ latest TV deal: a 10 episode: “World of Dance”, a reality show on NBC.
Lopez has three local news Emmys, five Golden Mikes awards, and has won numerous national journalism awards including the H.L. Mencken and Ernie Pyle awards. In 2008 Lopez received the President’s Award from the Los Angeles Press Club. His book, “The Soloist,” won the PEN USA award for literary non-fiction. On April 29, 2011, Lopez received an honorary doctorate degree from San Jose State University Lopez has written for the LA Times since 2001. Lopez’ series of columns about his unlikely relationship with schizophrenic bassist, Nathaniel Anthony Ayers became the subject of a national best-selling book by Lopez that inspired the film The Soloist, which starred Robert Downey Jr. as Lopez.
EVA LONGORIA • Mexican-American. Born March 15, 1975, in Corpus Christi, Texas. Married. First famous to fans of The Young and the Restless, on which she starred from 2001 to 2003, Eva Longoria was cast in her most iconic role to date as Gabrielle Solis in ABC’s Desperate Housewives, which ran from 2004 to 2012. From 2015 to 2016, Longoria starred as Ana Sofia Calderón on the short-lived NBC sitcom Telenovela, and currently serves as an executive producer for the Lifetime television series Devious Maids. Longoria has also appeared in several advertising campaigns and has been named one of Hollywood’s most beautiful women by several publications, including People en Español and People magazines. She currently holds contracts with L’Oréal, Hanes, and New York & Co, among others.
As a producer with business instincts, Eva Longoria now heads her own foundation to aid Latinas get into entrepreneurship. Active within the Latino community, Longoria is the national spokesperson for PADRES Contra El Cancer and involved in the organization MAL- DEF: Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
www.jenniferLópez.com
@JLo
steve.lopez@latimes.com
http://eva-longoria.us, instagram.com/evalongoria evalongoria
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ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
EMMANUEL LUBEZKI
MÓNICA LOZANO
BOARD MEMBER, EXECUTIVE
• Born July 21, 1956. Married, two children. • Residence: Los Angeles, CA Lozano studied sociology and political science at the University of Oregon
She has been a Director of Target Corp. since March 9, 2016. Ms. Lozano has been a Director of The Regents of The University of California since March 2, 2014. She has been Independent Director at Bank of America Corporation since April 2006. Additionally, Ms. Lozano serves as a Director of The Rockefeller Foundation. Ms. Lozano was Chair of the Board of U.S. Hispanic Media, Inc., the parent company of ImpreMedia, LLC from June 2014 to January 2016. Lozano served as the Chief Executive Officer and Publisher at La Opinión L.P. from 2004 to July 2012. She served as a Director of The Walt Disney Company from September 2000 to March 3, 2016 www.aspeninstitute.org/people/monica-lozano
CINEMATOGRAPHER
• Mexican. Born in 1964, he is married and lives in Mexico City
Mexico’s superstar Director of Photography, Emmanuel Lubezki is in a class by himself, literally. After two decades of extraordinary camera magic 40-plus films, and five Academy Award nominations, “Chivo,” as he is called by his friends, scored a ‘triple’, as the first cinematographer to win three back-to-back Oscars in 2014, 2015, and in 2016. The winning streak commenced with the Alfonse Cuaron –directed sci-fi thriller “Gravity,” followed by Alejandro Inarritiu’s “Birdman” and “The Revenant.” He has also won more than 120 international prizes and more nominations. On the way to legend, Lubezki worked with the world’s top directors, including Mike Nichols, Steven Soderbergh, Alfonso Arau, The Coen brothers, and Terrence Malik. His acclaimed films include Children of Men, The Tree of Life, Ali, Y Tu Mamá También, and Como Agua Para Chocolate http://wp-a.com/cinematographers/emmanuellubezki
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LUIS MAIZEL CO-FOUNDER AND SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR, LM CAPITAL GROUP, LLC
• Born in 1951, he resides in San Diego 1971: Graduated from The National University of Mexico with a degree in industrial engineering 1974: Graduated from Harvard Business School as a Baker Scholar 1984: Ended four-year tenure as president at Industrias Kuick, S.A. and Blount Agroindustras, S.A.
Luis Maizel is the Co-Founder and Senior Managing Director of LM Capital Group, LLC. Prior to founding LM Capital, he served as Vice President of Finance for Grupoventas, S.A. and was a member of the faculty at the Harvard Business School. He was also President of Industrial Kuick, S.A. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of the Hispanic National Mortgage Association and President of the Investment Committee for the Board of Trustees of the University of San Diego. www.lmcapital.com
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
FINANCE
SUSANA MARTÍNEZ
ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS
MANUEL MEDINA
GOVERNOR OF NEW MEXICO
DEPUTY SECRETARY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
CHAIRMAN, FOUNDING PARTNER, MANAGING PARTNER AND CEO, MEDINA CAPITAL
• Born November 24, 1959. Married, with two children.
• Medina was born in 1953, Matanzas, Cuba • Resides in ft. Lauderdale, married with three children.
• Born July 14, 1959. Married, with a stepson. 1997-2010 District Attorney 2011- Governor of New Mexico 2013- Named Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world
The first Hispanic female governor in the United States, Martinez was raised in the Rio Grande Valley. She graduated from the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Well respected for her bi-partisanship in New Mexico and instrumental in passing Katie’s Law, requiring DNA from all felony arrests. www.governor.state.nm.us/Meet_Governor_ @Gov_Martinez Martinez.aspx
2009-2013: Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 2013: Appointed Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security
Cuban-born Mayorkas is the first foreign-born official to head the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Prior to this position, he served as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which operates the largest immigration system in the world. In 1998 Mayorkas, who earned his Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School, was confirmed by the Senate as United States Attorney for the Central District of California. He has been recognized by the National Law Journal as one of the “50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America.” www.dhs.gov/person/alejandro-mayorkas Alejandro-Mayorkas, homelandsecurity
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Manuel “Manny” Medina heads Medina Capital, a private equity firm focused on high-growth technology companies in sectors such as cyber security, big data, mobility and cloud-based technologies, announced late in 2014 the closing of the firm’s Fund with $182 million of aggregate committed capital. In his early career, Medina, worked as certified public accountant, with Price Waterhouse after earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Florida Atlantic University in 1974. In addition, Mr. Medina is a managing partner of Communication Investors Group, one of their investors. http://medinacapital.com/about-us/team/manuel-dmedinacapital medina
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
CORPORATE. BUSINESS
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31 • July / August 2016
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HISTORIC TRIP TO CUBA 32 • July / August 2016
O
n the morning of May 2, 2016, Carnival Corporation’s 10th and newest brand, Fathom, sailed into Havana. This marks the first time in over 50 years that a U.S. cruise line has sailed from the U.S. to Cuba. The historic, inaugural voyage to Cuba sailed completely full and included several Cubanborn passengers such as Carnival Corporation’s General Counsel and Secretary Arnie Perez and his wife, Carmen, who were the first to step foot in Cuba. Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest leisure travel company, sails every other week with 7-day voyages to three ports of call in Cuba. Passengers can board Fathom’s MV Adonia, which sails from Miami to Havana and has the capacity for 704 individuals to engage in one-on-one, interactions with locals for a culturally rewarding experience. “We are so honored to be a part of making history. More importantly, we are contributing to a positive future. We want to extend our sincere appreciation to Cuba and to our team who worked so hard to help make this happen,” said Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation. Pioneered by Fathom, impact travel provides the opportunity to build a community with like-minded travelers who wish to become immersed in another culture and work alongside locals to create long-lasting experiences. To learn more, visit Fathom’s “Cruise to Cuba” (www.fathom.org/cruise-to-cuba/) or at www.wlcl.com.
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
ROBERT MENÉNDEZ
LIN MANUEL MIRANDA
U.S. SENATOR, NEW JERSEY
ACTOR, COMPOSER, RAPPER, WRITER
CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF MOLINA HEALTHCARE, INC.
• Menendez has two children.
• Puerto Rican. Born January 16, 1980 in New York City, married with one child.
• Born March 19, 1943, married, with four children. Lives in Long Beach, CA
2008 - Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical “In the Heights” won two Tony for Best Musical; Best Original Score “In the Heights” 2016 - Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical “Hamilton” won 11 Tony awards and a Pulitzer.
1980 - 1984 MD Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California 1978 – 1980 B.A. Chemistry, California State University - Long Beach 1976 – 1978 A.S. Physical Sciences, Long Beach City College
Menendez was first elected to the Union City School District’s Board of Education at the age of 20 and went on to become mayor of Union City in 1986. One of only three Latinos in the Senate, he authored comprehensive immigration reform legislation that passed the Senate in 2013 with an overwhelming bipartisan show of support. www.menendez.senate.gov/ senatormenendez
senatormenendez
Lin Manuel wrote the book, music, and lyrics for Hamilton and In the Heights, in addition to starring in the title role. He has personally won a Pulitzer Prize, two Grammys, an Emmy, an Olivier, a MacArthur “Genius” Award, and three Tony awards, among others. Hamilton was inspired by the 2004 biography Alexander Hamilton by historian Ron Chernow. It has been added to the New York City public schools curriculum For his performance in the lead role of Alexander Hamilton in the show, Miranda received the 2016 Drama League Distinguished Performance Award. linmanuelmiranda.com
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
TOMAS D. MORALES
DIRECTOR, WHITE HOUSE DOMESTIC POLICY COUNCIL
• Born in 1956. Married, two sons.
• Bolivian-American. Born July 27, 1962. Muñoz is married, with two children.
PRESIDENT AND CEO, NATIONAL COUNCIL OF LA RAZA
2009-2012: Director of White House Intergovernmental Affairs 2012: Named Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council
A former senior vice president for the National Council of La Raza, Muñoz also previously served as Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House and has long been one of Obama’s top and most loyal advisers on immigration issues though the difficult times. In 2000 Muñoz received a MacArthur Foundation fellowship in recognition of her work on immigration and civil rights. She was featured in several episodes of the documentary series How Democracy Works Now: Twelve Stories. www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/dpc/about/ @cecilia44 dpc-director
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molinahealthcare.com
JANET MURGUÍA
PRESIDENT OF CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SAN BERNARDINO
president.csusb.edu
J. Mario Molina, MD, is Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Molina Healthcare, Inc., which is ranked number 301 on the Fortune 500, with $9.67 billion in revenues. During his career with Molina Healthcare, Molina also served as Medical Director and as Vice President of provider contracting, member services, market, and quality assurance. He serves on several additional boards including the Association of Health Insurance Plans, the Aquarium of the Pacific, Homeboy Industries, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS
CECILIA MUÑOZ
Tomás Morales is President of California State University, San Bernardino, Chairman of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, and the Chairman of the TIAA-CREF Hispanic Advisory Board. During his stellar career in higher education, Morales served in leadership roles at the College of Staten Island (CUNY); CalPoly Pomona; the City College of New York (CUNY); and the State University of New York (SUNY). Morales is at the top level of leadership in the U.S. higher education sector, serving as Chairman of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.
J. MARIO MOLINA
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• Born: September 6, 1960, Kansas City, Kansas. 1982 - B.A. degree in Spanish, Kansas University. 2001-04 Executive vice chancellor for university relations at The University of Kansas 2005: Became president of NCLR
Kansas City native, Murguia began her political career in Washington, D.C., as legislative counsel to a Kansas councilwoman. Her career took her through the White House as deputy assistant to President Clinton as well as other roles in the 1990s. She is on the board of directors of the American Heart Association and the Partnership for a Healthier America, and is on the executive committee of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and is a board chair for the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility. @jmurguia_nclr
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
Born, January 21, 1954 1992: Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives 2006: Sworn in as U.S. Senator 2009: Appointed chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
33 • July / August 2016
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
EDUCATION
MEDIA
U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN, CALIFORNIA’S 32ND DISTRICT
PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, EL PASO, VICE CHAIRMAN AMERICAN COUNCIL ON EDUCATION
ACTIVIST, MEDIA ADVOCATE.
• Born, December 4, 1936, Brownsville Texas. Married with five children.
• Born in 1941, in St. Louis, resides in El Paso, TX.
1986: Elected Mayor of Norwalk, California 1992: Elected to the California Assembly 1998: Elected to U.S. House of Representatives
1988: Became President of UTEP 1999: Inducted into the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame 2012: Vice Chairman American Council on Education
2000: A key player in the signing of the Memoranda of Understanding with NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX 2014: The NHMC launched the Latino Experts Program 2016: Protested publicly against slanderous and racist comments from GOP candidate Trump..
GRACE NAPOLITANO
Napolitano is a leader in promoting mental health, including her efforts to revitalize the Congressional Mental Health Caucus and to designate May as National Mental Health Awareness Month. She introduced the Mental Health in Schools Act in 2011, a bill to provide more on-site, professional mental health services for students. Napolitano is a member of the House Committee on Natural Resources and the House Committee for Transportation and Infrastructure. napolitano.house.gov/ gracenapolitano
ALEX NOGALES
DIANA NATALICIO
RepGraceNapolitano
Diana Natalicio is the President of the University of Texas, El Paso having assumed the position in 1988. Dr. Natalicio was recently named to the 2016 TIME 100 list of the most influential people in the world. She also received the TIAACREF Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence and the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education, was inducted into the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame, honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award at The University of Texas at Austin, and awarded honorary doctoral degrees by Georgetown University, Smith College and the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo Leon.
• Born in 1943, raised in Calexico, California.
As head of the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Nogales has been at the forefront of the fight for accurate portrayals of Latinos. He has confronted Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump over his derogatory comments about Mexicans, and Nogales was one of the most prominent and vocal Latino leaders calling for swift action against Trump. Earlier in the year, Nogales and NHMC celebrated the “open internet” rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission that he believes will pave the way for full Latino participation on the internet. www.nhmc.org
@NHMC
www.utep.edu
34 • July / August 2016
1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS
JAVIER PALOMAREZ
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
GUILLERMO PERALES
BUSINESSMAN, COMMUNITY LEADER, ENTREPRENEUR
PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF SUN HOLDINGS, INC.
• Born in 1961, married, two children
• Mexican. Born in 1962, he resides in Dallas, Texas.
2009 - Present President & CEO of United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Director of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility Previously served as Vice President of Multicultural Marketing at ING Financial Services
Texas A&M University Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), MBA Master’s Degree in Business Administration Tecnologico de Monterrey, ITESM
Javier Palomarez is the President and CEO of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC), America’s largest Hispanic business association. The USHCC actively promotes the economic growth, development and interests of more than 3.2 million Hispanic-owned businesses, that combined, contribute over $486 billion to the American economy every year. In 2014, Mr. Palomarez received an honorary Doctorate from Westminster College, Utah’s premier Liberal Arts institution. Most recently, he was awarded the Distinguished Alumni Medallion from National 4-H Council and was recognized by the Government of Mexico with the Ohtli Award, the highest honor bestowed upon foreign citizens.
Insatiable entrepreneur Perales picked up 84 GNC stores in 2016, betting on the growing hunger for health. Winner of the 2015 Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the International Franchise association, Guillermo Perales is President and Chief Executive Officer of Sun Holdings, Inc., the company he founded in 1997. With over 450 food locations, Sun Holdings is the largest Latino-owned operator of Quick Service Restaurants in America. Their brands include Burger King, Popeye’s, Arby’s, Golden Corral, Cici’s Pizza, and Krispy Kreme. They also have T-Mobile stores. Sun Holdings is ranked as 8th largest Franchise owner in the United States, valued at $555 million.
jpalomarez
guillermoperales.wordpress.com
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
THOMAS PÉREZ U.S. SECRETARY OF LABOR
• Dominican. Born Oct 7, 1961. • Perez received his degree from Brown University and law degree from Harvard. He is also a law professor. He resides in Maryland with his wife, and three children. 2007-09: Secretary of the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation 2009-13: Assistant U.S. Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. 2013: Sworn in as 26th U.S. Secretary of Labor
Hailing from a long line of political figures, Pérez was sworn in as the Secretary of Labor in 2013. Prior to this position, Pérez was assistant attorney general for civil rights at the U.S. Department of Justice. He was secretary of Maryland’s Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation and a member of the Montgomery County Council. On July 7, 2016, CNN reported that Pérez was on Hillary Clinton’s VP shortlist for the 2016 campaign. www.dol.gov/_sec
@LaborSec
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MEDIA
PAUL RAINES
CEO AND A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF GAMESTOP
• Born in 1964. Married, resides in Dallas, Ft. Worth Texas He graduated from Georgia Tech with a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering in 1985 where he was also a member of the Fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta
Paul Raines is the CEO and a member of the board of directors of GameStop, which is ranked number 311 on the Fortune 500, with $9.3 billion in revenue. GameStop has over 6,600 locations and 36,000 employees worldwide. Raines is also a board member of Advance Auto Parts, which is ranked number 294 on the Fortune 500, with over $9.8 billion in revenues. Raines phenomenal career in retail includes leadership roles with Game Stop, Home Depot, L.L. Bean, and Kurt Salmon Associates. news.gamestop.com/leadership/executivemanagement/j-paul-raines
JUDICIAL SYSTEM
JORGE RAMOS
JIMMIE V. REYNA
JOURNALIST, NEWS ANCHOR, AUTHOR
JUDGE, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FEDERAL CIRCUIT
• Born March 16, 1958, he has two children, and lives in Miami.
Ramos majored in Communications from the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City. In 2016, respected, Emmy-winning anchor Jorge Ramos came face to face with the enemy. Rudely ejected from a press conference of GOP presidential nom, Trump, for asking the hard questions. Mexican-born Ramos came to the U.S. in the ‘80’s; in that time, he has become the most trusted face of Latino journalism. Ramos has co-anchored Noticiero Univision for nearly three decades, covering major events from wars to the September 11 terrorist attacks. He has interviewed US and Latin American presidents and Nobel Prize winners. He also hosts Univision’s “Al Punto” and Fusion’s English-language “America with Jorge Ramos.” He has authored 11 books jorgeramos.com
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
@jorgeramosnews
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
ROSIE RÍOS
TREASURER OF THE UNITED STATES
• Born July 17, 1965. Rios, a Harvard grad, is married, with two children. 1997: Hired as director of economic development for Fremont, Calif. 2001: Hired as director of economic development and redevelopment for Oakland, Calif. 2009: Sworn in as 43rd Treasurer of the United States
The 43rd and current Treasurer of the United States will go down in history for successfully leading the efforts for placing a woman on U.S. currency for the first time in over a century. Treasurer Rios began pushing for the change soon after she joined the Obama Administration in 2009. Rios was inspired by her on the Treasury/ Federal Reserve Transition Team in 2008 where the theme of democracy led the charge. Harvard University recently selected her as the first Latina in its 380-year history to have a portrait commissioned in her honor. www.treasury.gov/about/organizational-structure/ Rosa-Gumataotao Pages/rios-e.aspx
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• Reyna is married, with one child, resides in Rockville, Maryland. Born, November 11, 1952 2006-2007: President, Hispanic National Bar Association 2011: Appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit by President Barack Obama. Reyna is the first Latino to serve on the CAFC, which has nationwide jurisdiction of appeals arising from federal district courts, the Court of International Trade and the U.S. Court of Claims. On April 4, 2011, the U.S. Senate confirmed his nomination by a roll-call vote of 86-0.
As of January 1, 2016, Judge Reyna has heard over 820 cases and authored 189 opinions, including 72 precedential opinions and 2 en banc opinions. Reyna currently serves on the Nationwide Hispanic Advisory Council of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. www.cafc.uscourts.gov/judges/jimmie-v-reynaJimmie-V-Reyna circuit-judge.html
FINANCE
GINA RODRÍGUEZ
MARCOS A. RODRIGUEZ
ACTRESS, WRITER
CHAIRMAN AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, PALLADIUM EQUITY PARTNERS
• Puerto Rican. Born July 30, 1984 in Chicago. Single, she resides in Los Angeles
• He lives in New York
She attended NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Rodriguez studied for four years at the Atlantic Theater Company and Experimental Theatre Wing, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2006. Rodriguez is a Golden Globe winner for her portrayal of Jane Villanueva in the hit TV comedy “Jane the Virgin.” Rodriguez, whose TV career began with Law and Order, became known for her work on the soap opera Bold and the Beautiful. While working on ’Jane, Rodriguez continues to develop her film career. Her projects include the action thriller “Deepwater Horizon,” opposite Mark Wahlberg and Kate Hudson, a drama, “Sticky Notes” with Ray Liotta, and a romantic comedy “Sharon 1.2.3.” Rodriguez is also politically active; she publically endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. http://hereisgina.com
1961: Left Cuba as a 6-year-old for the United States 1989: Joined the firm Joseph Littlejohn & Levy (JLL) 1997: Founded Palladium Equity Partners
Marcos Rodriguez founded Palladium Equity Partners in 1997 and serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Prior to this, he joined the firm of Joseph Littlejohn & Levy in 1989 and ultimately became a partner. He worked for General Electric in operations. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for several of Palladium’s portfolio companies, including Capital Contractors, Jordan, Taco Bueno and on the Board of Trustees of New York-Presbyterian, the University Hospital of Columbia, and Cornell University. www.palladiumequity.com
@HereIsGina
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
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35 • July / August 2016
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THIRD SECTOR
PRODUCER, WRITER
PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL HISPANIC CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
ROBERT RODRÍGUEZ St. Anthony High School of San Antonio. Assisted College of Communication, University of Texas
The world and Hollywood first noticed this director when he won the Sundance Audience Award in 1993 with El Mariachi, a film reportedly made on a $7000 budget. That would be the beginning of a popular trilogy along with Desperado and Once Upon a Time in Mexico. His innovative film Sin City won the Technical Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and was followed by the sequel Sin City: A Dame To Kill For released in 2014. The Texan filmmaker has directed and multitasked in all of the Spy Kids and Machete film series. His El Rey Network, a cable channel reaches 25 million households and is currently seeking unknown talent in the U.S. to produce original content. www.elreynetwork.com
@Rodríguez
1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
SPORTS
ANTONIO RAMIRO “TONY” ROMO AMERICAN FOOTBALL QUARTERBACK, DALLAS COWBOYS
• Born:April 21, 1980. Married, father of two. 2003- Signed as a free agent by the Dallas Cowboys 2011- Ed Block Courage Award 2014- National Football Conference passer rating leader 2015- #1 ranking player on the Dallas Cowboys Roster Since joining the Dallas Cowboys, Romo has broken a multitude of records and is the first quarterback in franchise history to average 300 passing yards in a season. Romo’s grandfather, Ramiro Romo Sr., who emigrated from Muzquiz, Coahila, Mexico, has often cited Tony’s success as an example of the possibilities afforded to immigrants in the United States. In 2015 after being named #1 ranking player, Romo was injured, and missed 22 games in 2015 season. He is recovered after surgery and hopes to play “for another ten years.” His current estimated worth is $45 million. http://tonyromo9.com
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ANTHONY D. ROMERO
SAMUEL RODRÍGUEZ
• He was born on June 20, 1968, is single, and lives in Austin.
36 • July / August 2016
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tonyromo
• Rodríguez serves as Senior Pastor of New Season Christian Worship Center in Sacramento, CA. Rodríguez earned his Master’s degree in educational leadership from Lehigh University and most recently received an Honorary Doctorate from The Baptist Universities of The Americas.
Samuel Rodríguez is the head of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership. That means he commands over 40,118 Latino Evangelical Churches. The fiery, completely bilingual preacher of Puerto Rican origin has been active in politics, swaying the Hispanic Evangelical vote in 2012 and some say he will do so again next year. There is a reason Time Magazine chose Rodríguez as one of the 100 most influential Latino leaders in the world. He has a new book out, “The Lamb’s Agenda” and is getting ready to go around the country in preparation for next year’s elections.
• Puerto Rican. Born in New York City on July 9, 1965. Single. 2001- Became Executive Director of American Civil Liberties Union 2005- named Time Magazine’s 25 Most Influential Hispanics 2011 - Margaret Sanger Award from Planned Parenthood.
It was pivotal time for America when Romero became Executive Director of the ACLU just days before 9/11. Anthony graduated from Stanford University of Law School and Princeton University. His father’s struggle for equality and respect inspired his path. In 2016 he signed a letter with Norman Lear, Ernesto Zedillo, and Eve Ensler to Ban Ki-Moon, the eighth Secretary General of the UN for a more humane drug policy for epidemics. He is a coauthor, member of several non-profit boards and the first openly gay leader of the ACLU. Romero has received several civil service awards. www.linkedin.com/pub/anthony-romero/4/845/7a2
info@nhclc.org
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
HR MANAGEMENT
U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN, FLORIDA’S 27TH DISTRICT
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, AND CHIEF GLOBAL DIVERSITY AND ENGAGEMENT OFFICER FOR PEPSICO
• Cuban. Born, July 15, 1952, married with two children, and two stepchildren.
• Married, five children
DEBORAH ROSADO SHAW
ILEANA ROSLEHTINEN 1982: Elected to Florida House of Representatives 1986: Elected to the Florida Senate 1989: Elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, the first Hispanic woman to serve in Congress
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen has made history since being elected as the first woman to serve in U.S. Congress in 1989. After 27 years in the house, she’s seen it all. Looking for balance in immigration, she remembers what it was like to arrive in the US as a Cuban refugee. Back then, Ros-Lehtinen began working as a teacher in the Miami-Dade area. With education at the forefront, she continues to support efforts to increase financial aid availability for students and seeks to increase the quality of education in South Florida. https://ros-lehtinen.house.gov/ roslehtinen
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
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iroslehtinen
“100 Most Successful Latinas in the U.S.”-Hispanic Magazine “Entrepreneur of the Year”-National Foundation of Women Legislators “America’s Free Enterprise Legend Award”-Students in Free Enterprise “80 Elite Women Leaders”-Hispanic Business Magazine “Entrepreneur of the Year”-Latina Style Magazine
Deborah Rosado Shaw has guided PepsiCo’s Global Diversity and Engagement (D&E) strategy since July 2014. It is her job to ensure that diversity and engagement are ingrained at PepsiCo and that they create pathways for identifying and developing global innovators of many cultures. Deborah was a member of PepsiCo’s Ethnic Advisory board for 12 years. She has discussed diversity and engagement in programs on CNN, FOX, NBC, and Telemundo. http://debshaw.com
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
SPORTS
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
U.S. SENATOR, FLORIDA
GOLF PLAYER
GROUP VICE PRESIDENT OF HISPANIC STRATEGY AT TOYOTA NORTH AMERICA
• Born, May 28, 1971, he is married with four children.
• Mexican-American. Born July 17, 1989, single.
2000-2009: Member of the Florida House of Representatives 2010: Elected to the U.S. Senate 2015: Announced his candidacy for the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election 2016: On March 16th he quit the presidential race.
Graduated from Azusa High in 2007. Salas earned a golf scholarship to USC. She graduated with a degree in sociology in 2011.
LIZETTE SALAS
MARCO RUBIO
After announcing his bid for the White House in April, Rubio, a former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives who once interned for U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, has shifted to a more moderate position to appeal to the larger Republican base. Rubio was chosen to deliver the Republican response to President Obama’s 2013 State of the Union Address. It marked the first time the response was delivered in English and Spanish. On June 22nd Rubio announced his intention to run for reelection, despite previous statements to the contrary, and losing his state in the presidential primary
1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
www.rubio.senate.gov/public/ marcorubio
38 • July / August 2016
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PATRICIA SALAS PINEDA
The American Dream came true for Lizette Salas, Golf’s new star was born and raised in Azusa, California by working-class, Mexican parents from Zacatecas. Salas learned to play golf with a makeshift club that her father, a gardener, constructed. Now she tours the world. Salas won her first championship on the LPGA Tour at the 2014 Kingsmill Championship winning by a four-stroke margin. She raised over 50,000 for the Hispanic Scholarship fund in her 2014 season with support of her sponsor, Toyota. LizetteSalasOfficial
lizettesalas5
• Born in 1952. Married, resides in New York. • Pineda received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mills College and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California at Berkeley.
Patricia Salas Pineda is the Group Vice President of Hispanic Strategy at Toyota North America. As the highest ranking Hispanic executive at Toyota, Pineda is responsible for all facets of engaging with the Hispanic community, from Hispanic business organizations, to media, community groups, and associates. During her career at Toyota, Pineda has held leadership roles in diverse areas such as Legal, Human Resources, Government Relations, Corporate Communications, Governance and Philanthropy. She has an extensive track record of service on nonprofit boards and currently serves on the corporate advisory board of the NationalCouncil of La Raza. www.linkedin.com/pub/patricia-pineda
MarcoRubio
PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
MEDIA
IGNACIO SALAZAR, PRESIDENT OF SER, THE LARGEST, EMPLOYMENT NON-PROFIT AGENCY DEDICATED TO HELPING LATINOS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
ACTRESS, PRODUCER, WRITER.
CO-ANCHOR, NOTICIERO UNIVISION
• She was born on June 19, 1978, in New Jersey. Resides in Los Angeles with her husband and twin sons.
• Mexican-American. Born 1954 in Los Angeles. Salinas lives in Miami with her 2 daughters.
Since her first big screen role as Eva Rodriguez, the gifted ballet dancer in the film Center Stage (2000). Zoe has not only held her own in major motion picture productions but gained the respect and praise from industry insiders such as Jerry Bruckheimer and Steven Spielberg and actors/actresses such as Tom Hanks, Ashton Kutcher, Kirsten Dunst and Orlando Bloom. With 45 projects under her belt, and the next 3 “Avatars” yet to shoot her cinematic future is assured. As star of the highest-grossing film of all time, the sci-fi thriller, Avatar Zoe shines as the bluegoddess alien, Neytiri. The Latina Sci-Fi ‘queen,’ Saldana also stars in two otherworldly blockbuster series, “Guardians of the Galaxy” and “Star Trek.”
In 2016, Maria Elena Salinas served as commencement speaker in American University[17] and California State University, Fullerton[18]and received an honorary doctorate from American University. Salinas won a 2014 Peabody Award, Walter Cronkite Award, and Gracies Award for her news and documentary special “Between Abandonment and Rejection,” a prime-time report on the exodus of Central American children to the United States, which judges praised as “balanced and revealing.” In 2014, she won the Broadcast Legend Award from the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California. In 2012, with her co-anchor Jorge Ramos, she received an Emmy Award for Lifetime Achievement from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
IGNACIO SALAZAR
ZOE SALDANA
• Married, with two children. Resides in Livonia, Michigan Ignacio Salazar began his employment with SER in 1975 as executive director of SER Metro-Detroit. By 1980, he was named Vice President of SER National. In 1984 he returned to the Midwest to serve as president of the Detroit organization. In 2002 he was chosen to be SER National’s president and CEO.
As the head of the largest Latino direct services organization, Salazar has a reputation for a steady hand in times of crisis. His gift for implementation helped shape SER into one of the most important nonprofit companies in the country. To Salazar, each of the thousands of individuals entering SER offices for job training or counseling is important and has a deep meaning for him. This philosphy has led to his longevity as SER’s leader, and mentor to those dedicated to Latino employment.
http://zoesaldana.com
MARÍA ELENA SALINAS
@zoesaldana
mariaesalinas www.ser-national.org/ignacio-salazar/
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FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, HEALTH
U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN, CALIFORNIA’S 38TH DISTRICT, CHAIR CONGRESSIONAL HISPANIC CAUSUS
U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN, CALIFORNIA’S 46TH DISTRICT
GOVERNOR OF NEVADA
LINDA SÁNCHEZ
BRIAN SANDOVAL
LORETTA SÁNCHEZ
• Mexican-American. Born, January 28, 1969 in Orange California. She is married and has a child.
• Born, January 7, 1960, Sanchez is married. She and her sister Linda Sanchez are the first sisters to serve simultaneously in Congress.
2002: Elected to U.S. House of Representatives 2005: Appointed Assistant Minority Whip
1996: Elected to U.S. House of Representatives 2015: Announced her bid for the 2016 U.S. Senate race
Linda Sánchez’ political career began with the redistricting of the 39th congressional district following the 2000 Census. A tireless campaigner, Sanchez finished first in a six-person primary for the Democratic Party nomination in March 2002, ran unopposed in the Democratic primaries in 2004, and in the general elections she won by a margin of 60.7%. For the 2006 elections, she defeated two challengers in the primary with 77.8% of the vote. She is the ranking member on the House Ethics Committee. Known among her peers for her efforts toward children and workers’ safety, Sanchez recently sponsored the Safe Schools Improvement Act of 2015.
Now serving her tenth term, Sanchez currently serves as the Ranking Member of the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee. As founder and co-chair of the Women in the Military Caucus, she advocates for female service members to serve in combat roles and fights to stamp out sexual assault in the armed forces. Sanchez represented California’s 47th congressional district from 2003 to 2013 and again in the 46th district from 1997 to 2003. The district, in central Orange County was formerly a GOP stronghold. Sanchez is a member of the Democratic Party, and of the House ‘Blue Dog’ Coalition.
1994- Elected 25th District representative for the Nevada Assembly 1999- Chairman of the Gaming Commission of Nevada 2002- Elected Attorney General of Nevada 2005- Appointed United States District Judge for the District of Nevada by George W. Bush 2011 Governor of Nevada
Consistent record of public service in Nevada in a variety of roles, currently as Governor since 2011. Prior to become Governor, Sandoval at 35 became the youngest to be chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission. Went on to be elected Nevada’s Attorney General and then appointed a US District Judge by George W. Bush. Member of the Republican Governors Association and the Hispanic Leadership Network. http://gov.nv.gov/
@BrianSandoval
https://lorettasanchez.house.gov/ LorettaSanchez lorettasanchez
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
MUSICIAN, GUITARIST
PBS SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, STATION SERVICES, AUTHOR, TV HOST
MEMBER, LOS ANGELES COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS; FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF LABOR
JUAN SEPÚLVEDA
CARLOS SANTANA • Born 1947 in Autlan de Navarro Jalisco. Married Graduated in1965 from Mission High School. Became a U.S. citizen in 1965.
A music legend with a career spanning nearly 50 years, Santana has influenced an entire genre of Latin-infused rock. “Rolling Stone” listed Santana, who has won 10 Grammys and three Latin Grammys, at number 20 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. He also is the recipient Billboard Latin Music Awards’ 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award. Santana performs sold-out dates around the world. The Milagro Foundation, established by Santana in 1998, has granted more than $5 million dollars to supporting underserved children and youth in the areas of arts, education, and health. fanclub@santana.com santanacarlos
www.santana.com
• Residence: Washington, D.C., San Antonio, Tex. • Mexican-American Born: November 22, 1963, Topeka, Kansas. 1985: Harvard College with a B.A. in Government. 1987: Oxford B.A. in Politics, Philosophy & Economics 1993: Stanford Law, JD.
He is the 3rd Latino to be awarded a Rhodes scholarship. With over 25 years of experience working with philanthropic organizations, nonprofits, businesses, governments and communities he comes to build efficiencies, find solutions, foster collaboration and nurture innovation. In many communities, public television and radio stations are the only remaining broadcasters that are locally owned and operated with the power to reach and change the lives of America’s citizens. As PBS’ Senior Vice President, Station Services, Juan works closely with stations, the PBS Board of Directors, station affinity groups and other national public media organizations.
HILDA SOLIS
• Born October 20, 1957, Los Angeles, CA. Married. 1994-2001: California State Senator 2001-2009: U.S. House of Representatives 2009-2013: 25th U.S. Secretary of Labor 2014: Sworn in as member of Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Solis stepped down from her Cabinet post in 2013 to return to her home state of California where she now serves on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the most powerful county level legislative body in the U.S. As Secretary of Labor she helped to improve access to health care for women, minorities and millions of uninsured Americans. She was the first woman to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 2000 for her pioneering work on environmental justice issues. http://hildalsolis.org @HildaSolis
hildasolis
www.linkedin.com/in/jusepulveda
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replindasanchez
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https://lindasanchez.house.gov/ CongresswomanLindaSanchez
• Born August 5, 1963. Married, three children. Resides in Reno, Nevada
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JUDICIAL SYSTEM
PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS
CARLOS TORTOLERO
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
JUSTICE, U.S. SUPREME COURT
PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF MEXICAN ART
CHAIRMAN OF TRUJILLO GROUP INVESTMENTS
• Born: Guadalajara, Mexico, 1954. Married, Tortolero resides in Chicago.
• Sol is married to Corine Trujillo and they both live in Dana Point, CA.
1987 – Founded the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum 2006- present: President and Founder of the National Museum of Mexican Art
1999: Received the Ronald H. Brown Corporate Bridge Builder Award from President Clinton 2001: Joined the Board of Orange SA 2009: Left Telstra and returned to the United States
SONIA SOTOMAYOR • Puerto Rican. Born, June 25, 1954. Sonia Maria Sotomayor grew up in New York City. Single. 1998-2009: Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit 2009: Confirmed as 111th Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
The Court’s first Hispanic justice and its third female justice, Sotomayor is also among its most visible through speeches and television appearances. She is also vocal on the Court’s rulings, making headlines for her scathing dissent in last year’s Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, allowing closely held for-profit corporations to be exempt from a law its owners religiously object to if there is a less restrictive means of furthering the law’s interest. Justice Sotomayor remains outspoken about decisions that she finds objectionable, and go against the interests of the American people as a whole. www.supremecourt.gov/about/biographies.aspx Sonia-Sotomayor @ SotomayorScotus
SOL TRUJILLO
Carlos Tortolero holds a B.A. in Secondary Education and History from the University of Illinois and an M.A. in Bilingual Education Supervision from Chicago State University. He worked as a teacher, counselor, and administrator in Chicago public schools for many years before his passion for art drove his crowning achievement as Founder and President of the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago. This is only Latino museum accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. Tortolero served on numerous boards including the University of Illinois, the American Alliance of Museums, the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and the Smithsonian Latino Center, to name few.
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1 O1 MO ST I N F LU E N T I A L L AT I N O S
http://greatmuseums.org/explore/more/museum_ faces_carlos_tortolero
CORPORATE, BUSINESS
ACTRESS, ENTREPRENEUR, PRODUCER
CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF PINNACLE GROUP
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
• Ecuadorean. Nina Vaca was born in 1971. She is married with four children.
• Born July 10, 1972 Barranquilla, Colombia. Vergara lives in Los Angeles. She is married, with one child.
2016 – 2016 AT&T Supplier Award (Pinnacle Group) 2016 – Minority Business Hall of Fame and Museum (MBHF&M) Inductee 2016 – Annual Enterprising Women of the Year Award, Lifetime Achievement Award from Dallas Business Journal’s
She studied at the Creative Workshops School of Acting. 1989: Appeared in a Pepsi commercial as a 17 year-old, her first performance appearance 2012 and 2013, she was the top-earning actress on US television. 2014: She was ranked as the 32nd most powerful woman in the world by Forbes
NINA VACA
Sol Trujillo is the Chairman of Trujillo Group Investments. He is a member of the board of directors of Western Union, which ranks number 468 on the Fortune 500, with $5.6 billion in revenue and 10,000 employees. Trujillo has served as the CEO of three major telecommunications companies on three continents including US West in North America, Orange S.A. in Europe, and Telstra in Australia. In 2010, Trujillo co-founded the Latino Donor Collaborative (LDC), an organization dedicated to improving the Hispanic brand and ensuring Hispanic participation at every level of leadership in America. www.soltrujillo.com
SOFIA VERGARA
Nina Vaca has patterned her career after both her parents, Hernan and Amanda Vaca. In 2014, Vaca was appointed a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship by the Obama administration. Chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Group, Vaca founded the company in 1996 with just $300. In 2015, Pinnacle was named the Fastest-Growing Women-Owned Business in the country by the Womens’ Presidents Organization, and the company is one of the largest Latina-owned businesses in the U.S. Vaca serves on the boards of directors of three Fortune 1000 companies: Kohl’s Corporation, Cinemark Holdings, and Comerica, Inc.
DAfter a series of films and TV appearances, Vergara finally struck gold in a role that was tailor made for her: Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on the ABC series Modern Family. Vergara shares ensemble SAG Awards with the cast of Modern Family. She has won Imagen Awards and has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and seven Screen Actors Guild Awards. Vergara leads her own artists’ management company, focused on Latino talent. http://sofiavergara.com
www.pinnacle1.com/our-ceo-founder/Twitter @ninahvaca
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MOST I N FLU E NTIAL L ATI N OS
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L AT INO LE A DE R S
STEVE HOWE AMERICAS MANAGING PARTNER EY
Knows How to Successfully Lead Through Trust, Integrity, and Inclusion Story by Diane
Alter
S
Photos by Brian
Camarao
teve Howe jumps out of bed day every day excited and ready for whatever comes his way. He loves the guaranteed daily chaos, the endless travel, and the tremendous variety of expected and unexpected activities. Going on 34 years at Ernst & Young, Howe relishes his job more today than when he started. Howe joined Ernst & Young in 1983 and has risen through the ranks to become the firm’s Area Managing Partner. Prior to his current position, he ran the firm’s Financial Services practice, where he served as an audit partner and senior advisory partner. To prepare him for his career, Howe earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematical economics from
42 • July / August 2016
Colgate University, and an MBA in accounting and finance from New York University. Howe’s position at EY is indeed one that would make most people hit the snooze button a few more times, but he truly enjoys what he does. He currently leads EY’s American unit, which is made up of more than 65,000 people across 30 countries — all who report to him. He is EY’s Managing Partner in the U.S. and he chairs the EY Americas Operating Executive and the U.S. board. He also represents Ernst & Young LLP in its regulatory
LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
relationships and as executive sponsor for inclusiveness. The energetic Howe, with a cadence that suggests calm and reason along with purpose, approaches every day with the understanding that no matter what comes his way, he must be ready. He views every setback, every obstacle, and every issue as an opportunity to learn and grow. While his job presents a host of challenges, it also allows him to help others achieve their goals, no matter how big or small. The great big world, he said, continues to get smaller and smaller. Technology has fostered an environment that is always plugged in and turned on, and as a result, we are all more connected. Since the 2008 financial crisis, the pace of change and connectivity has quickened, and Howe says the challenges are now much greater. Making people more comfortable with change and finding ways to communicate EY’s ambitions of helping companies build a better business world has been a major adjustment. That is why he believes it is so important to get out into the marketplace, to understand different cultures, and to embrace the many differences.
“Ours is a people business that entails effectively working with our vast and varied clients,” Howe told Latino Leaders. “It is also a very complex and rapidly changing business. While that can be challenging, it also creates lucrative and exciting opportunities. Since our clients and teams come from such diverse backgrounds and cultures, we place great emphasis on embracing those cultural differences with both our customers and employees. Over the years, we have learned just how much diversity allows all people to contribute more, to contribute better, and to contribute stronger.” The great thing about EY’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, Howe explained, is that it encompasses gender, multicultural, and generational diversity, while also welcoming people with disabilities and different perspectives. Workplace diversity is a crucial part of corporate culture, and Howe says it should not be underestimated. He also understands that diversity is critical to EY performing at a consistent, exceptional level all around the globe. Most importantly, it starts at the top. “Our people see that diversity and inclusion (practices) are in place and ensured at EY,” Howe shared. “My focus is on helping everyone realize the power of our organization and getting everyone engaged. Key for me is telegraphing that we
“Ours is a people business that entails effectively working with our vast and varied clients.”
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L AT INO LE A DE R S
embrace culture and diversity. I aim to let everyone know they can be who they are and contribute what they can to this agenda. They can approach issues differently, share what works within their culture, and know that they will be heard and taken seriously. That starts with building trust. And you cannot build trust without listening and learning.” EY has learned a lot about diversity and the Latino community through its relationship with the Association of Latino Professional For America (ALPFA). Established in Los Angeles in 1972, ALPFA currently serves more than 72,000 professionals and student members across the country. Its mission is to empower and develop Latinos as leaders of character in every sector of the global economy. “We are diverse by definition, and we have a responsibility to make sure that diversity remains a top priority,” Howe said. “We have learned from ALPFA the importance of Latino demographics. We see more and more Latinos entering the 44 • July / August 2016
workforce, becoming successful entrepreneurs, and exceptional leaders. We know we need to recruit more Latinos and increase our focus on the Latino community. Another thing we have learned from ALPFA is that many Latino businesses are family-owned. Latinos place a great deal of importance on family and inclusion, and they see that Latino representation is pronounced throughout EY. That is a big positive for them and for us. When they see how strongly we believe in them, and how our values align with theirs, it brings out the best in all of us.” According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the Hispanic/Latino population in 2015 was 55 million, making people of Hispanic origin the nation’s largest ethnic or racial minority. Hispanics constituted 17 percent of the nation’s total population, fueled by a growing number of births. That percentage is growing every year, creating a historic shift that shows how young people are at the forefront of sweeping changes by race and class.
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L AT INO LE A DE R S
Howe is encouraged by the enthusiasm of toHowe recognizes that he is a role model and a menday’s youth, including the budding Latino populator to a multitude of employees. After husband and fation. “Young people want to be involved,” he said. ther, those are the most important roles he plays. His “They want to be part of change and the future. advice to new CEOs and up-and-coming leaders is to That is terrific and that is why we want to see know what you are up against, surround yourself with more Latinos enter our profession. We want to be great people, and leverage their abilities. Also, build viewed as the employer of choice for Latinos and trust, build great teams, and have the courage to lead. all groups.” Howe embodies EY’s value statement: “People who When Howe is not busy sharing EY’s commitdemonstrate integrity, respect, and teaming. People ment to diversity in the business community, he with energy, enthusiasm, and the courage to lead. spends as much time as possible with his wife, People who build relationships based on doing the Kate, and their four children. He is pasright thing.” sionate about giving back to the comDoing the right thing munity and the business. Howe actively defines who we are, Howe supports a number of charities, and is noted, and that is the funinvolved in the development and supdamental belief of EY’s port of EY’s Corporate Responsibility global organization. That initiatives. He is a member of the Board belief guides the actions Ernst & Young is a multinational professional of Governors of the Center for Audit and behaviors of the firm services firm headquartered in London. It is Quality, the Board of Trustees of the and its employees. He one of the the “Big Four” audit firms and is Financial Accounting Foundation, the the third-largest professional services firm believes having wisdom, in the world by revenue, along with PwC, Board of Trustees of Colgate Universihonesty, and integrity in Deloitte, and KPMG. ty, the Board of the Partnership for New the workplace is one of The organization operates as a network of York City and the Board of Trustees of the most important qualimember firms, which are separate entities in Carnegie Hall. ties of great leadership in each country they are represented. EY has some 212,000 employees in more than 700 Howe has also received numerous business. They go hand offices across 150 countries. It provides assurawards and accolades. He was honored in hand. As the old adage ance, tax consulting, and advisory services to by the National Association of Corpogoes, “wisdom is knowing myriad companies. rate Directors in 2014 as a Directorship the right path to take. InThe firm dates back to 1849 when Harding & Pulle founded the company in England. 100 candidate, recognizing him as one tegrity is taking it.” The current firm was formed by the 1989 of the most influential leaders in the To be sure, people do mega-merger of Ernst & Whinney and Arthur boardroom and corporate governance not remember what you Young & Co. The company was known as community. Also in 2014, Accounting say; they remember what Ernst & Young until 2013, when it underwent Today named Howe to its “Top 100 you do. Howe is a doer. a rebranding to EY. The acronym “EY” already was an informal and widely used name for the Most Influential People” list of thought That is what people refirm prior to its official adoption. leaders and visionaries who are shaping member most about this EY has won numerous honors and awards, the accounting profession. In addition, unwavering and dedicatplacing a heavy focus on diversity and he was recognized in 2013 as one of ed leader. inclusiveness. Both are integral to how it serves clients, develops its people, and establishes the top “100 CEO Leaders in STEM” by leadership roles within our communities. STEMconnector. Fortune magazine ranks EY one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For.”
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LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
TIM RYAN U.S. CHAIRMAN PWC
Life and Times of a Blue-Collar Business Mogul Story by Kristian
P
Jaime
ricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) is among the most lucrative corporations in the nation, but for Tim Ryan, the recently named U.S. Chairman, the road to the boardroom started in a grocery store. For someone whose father worked as an electric company lineman and whose mother who worked as a grocery store cashier, the trajectory to Chairman at one of the largest companies in the world was not forged by privilege. The avid marathon runner and father of six remembers how he learned to relate to people while working in the produce department of a local business. “When I was in high school, I used to work in a supermarket that was a small, family-owned chain. It was known for high-end customer service, and that’s where I learned about how to treat customers, who today are clients,” Ryan said.
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L AT INO LE A DE R S
He stayed at that job for the next decade and the lessons he gathered there led him to apply for admission at nearby Boston College. It seemed a world away from his humble hometown of Dedham, Massachusetts. Arriving on campus was the wake-up call he needed, even noting slight embarrassment as he and his father looked at the affluent legacy families all around them. Yet it was not long before the first generation college graduate started to fit in with his classmates and catch the academic eye of a mentor that suggested public accounting as a possible career path. Given the entrepreneurial streak in the executive-to-be, a focus on accounting seemed to be a match made in business heaven. “At the time, I thought public accounting was working for the government, but what (my mentor) saw was that it was about dealing with people rather than technical brilliance,” Ryan said. “He knew, given my background, that I understood that you have to know how to listen – and the rest is history.” Academic prowess soon developed into the career opportunities he was seeking since a high school biology teacher told him success would always elude him. Even before PwC came calling in June 1988, he had already learned a crucial tenet of leadership when he was chided in his youth by a storeowner. The lesson was simple: leadership is not making everyone like you; it is getting the most out of the people who work for you. Starting on that balmy Boston morning, wearing a suit his mother helped him pick out, Ryan’s journey to the top of PwC was underway, complete with a moderate financial crisis by 1990. The epicenter was New Hampshire and the person is charge was Marion Murphy, the first female partner of the Boston office.
Excruciating, but necessary, banking decisions challenged his personal integrity and that of PwC, but Ryan had a front row seat to see how Murphy, another mentor, kept everything intact. It was a lesson he recalled when a much more severe crisis occurred in 2008 across all major U.S. market sectors. “This (experience) was formative to me since I was now equipped to lead when a similar set of circumstances required similar decisions to be made on a global scale,” Ryan said. “She did the right thing, even when there was pressure from clients to bend and not to do the right thing.” As Vice Chairman and leader of U.S. Markets, Strategy and Stakeholders in 2013, he was responsible for the firm’s strategy function and stakeholder relationships, including investor relations, regulatory affairs, public policy, corporate responsibility and human capital. With so much on their plate, the PwC’s corporate culture had to be as dynamic as the company expected its employees to be. That was not an easy task considering the various markets in which the company operates. For Ryan, that culture is as much a part of his success story as it the firm’s. “None of us can do it alone, so we have to put ourselves in a position to win,” contended Ryan. “And I realized early at PwC that there was a culture of helping people succeed. One of the reasons I’ve stayed so long is because I’ve never been told no. I’ve been talked out of bad ideas, but I’ve never been told no.” Ryan succeeds Bob Moritz, who took over as Global Chairman of PwC in July after serving two terms as U.S. Chairman since 2009. Ryan started his four-year term on July 1 and has made it a priority to balance a demanding job and family life. According to Ryan, the corporate culture has evolved from the rigid structure of past generations to one that is far more responsive to the workforce. In short, if it matters to your employees, it must matter to you.
“If we want to attract the best people, we need individuals from all backgrounds and all ethnicities. So the first thing I did was bring in the most diverse leadership team we’ve ever had.”
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LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
“Flexibility is very important to me as an individIt’s incredibly important to identify the best that’s out ual,” he said. “Growing up in the firm with six kids there,” Ryan said. “Also, we’re passionate about looking for people who want to change the world. Those and having other interests, having balance in my life are the people we’re looking for at PwC. Also, by talkwas very important. The reason I’ve stayed is because I’ve been able to have a whole life instead of ing to a diverse group, we understand the world better.” just work.” ALPFA reaches more than 72,000 professional and Ryan feels an obligation to continue building that student members across the country, and 100,000 culture for his employees, saying that management more are expected within the next two years. In adstructure also must stay ahead of the curve by offering benefits that are as comprehensive as possible. dition to networking and professional leadership That is the rationale behind offering a groundbreakdevelopment opportunities, student members have ing student loan benefit program for employees. access to 50,000 paid summer internships through With PwC operating in 157 countries, diversity is hundreds of Fortune 1,000 corporate partners. at the forefront of management The organization will hold strategy. Of the 226 newly apits annual convention in Dallas pointed partners, 44 percent from August 5-9 and will serve are minorities or female. as one of the largest networking “If we want to attract the best and information resources on PwC started in earnest with the founding of people, we need individuals career opportunities and profestwo firms in London in the 1800s: Cooper sional development. from all backgrounds and all Brothers and Price, Waterhouse & Co. Both “The most important trait in ethnicities. So the first thing were famed financial houses that would not leadership is confident humility. I did was bring in the most dijoin forces until 124 years later with the modern iteration of PricewaterhouseCooper, which verse leadership team we’ve I hire people that are humble was later shortened to PwC. Today, they boast ever had,” Ryan explained. and confident,” said Charles P. over 208,000 employees in 157 countries, proThe shockwaves created by Garcia, incoming ALPFA CEO, viding industry-focused services in the fields of such a diverse workforce also during the 2014 Annual Convenassurance, tax, human resources, transactions, performance improvement and crisis managetion Gala. “We have about 400 resonate with PwC clients bement for complex client and stakeholder issues cause all of their new products corporate partners, and when worldwide. must reach a much wider dewe met with some of them, I Among the market sectors in which they mographic. As millennials conreminded them we are a memhave solidified their expertise are: aerospace tinue to establish themselves in ber organization. We exist to and defense, asset and wealth management, automotive, banking and capital markets, the workforce, the sea change provide value to our members, business and professional services, chemicals, in their attitude toward work and that’s provided through the communications, energy and mining, engineerstresses the importance of makleadership of our chapter presiing and construction, entertainment and ing the world a better place. dents.” media, financial services, forest, paper and packaging, health industries, hospitality and Ryan has even reached out to Among the goals presented leisure, industrial manufacturing, industrial entities like the Association of two years ago were technolproducts, insurance, law firm services, metals, ogy, growth, new partnerships Latino Professionals For Amerpharmaceuticals and life science, power and ica (ALPFA) to create bonds and strengthening the Latino utilities, private company services, private with the brightest minds in the community. Since then, ALPFA equity, public sector, real estate, retail and consumer, technology and transportation and fastest-growing minority block has reached out to CEOs from logistics. in the country. across the country to continue The Earn Your Future Initiative donates an “The value of working with the mission that will be celebrataverage of $190 million to teaching youth ed at the convention deep in the ALPFA is gaining access to talfinancial literacy, as well as performing over 900,000 hours of combined community ent we may not otherwise have. heart of Texas. service by employees and partners to reach over 3 million students and educators.
latinoleaders.com
CATHY ENGELBERT Leading By Example
Story by Diane
Alter
The first thing you need to know about Cathy Engelbert, CEO of Deloitte LLP, is she is a fierce competitor. The next is that she is a committed leader and mentor.
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NE OF EIGHT CHILDREN, including five spirited brothers, Cathy has been competing since birth. When her three older brothers headed outdoors to play basketball, Cathy was always the fourth in a heated game of 2-on-2. During her senior year at Lehigh University, she captained the girls’ basketball and lacrosse teams. Those childhood and collegiate games taught her the value of competition and teamwork at a formative time in her life. Cathy started at Lehigh studying engineering. On the advice of an inspiring professor, she transferred to the university’s business school and took up accounting, where she felt a greater connection to the subject matter. “I was drawn to accounting because I was told it was the language of business and would guarantee me a job when I graduated,” Cathy told Latino Leaders. Following graduation, Cathy landed a position at Deloitte’s Philadelphia office. Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax, and advisory services to many of the world’s most admired brands, including 80 percent of the Fortune 500 companies. 50 • July / August 2016
LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ®
Empowering Latino Leaders
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making. “Because without those, it’s very hard to do what we do. I’m reminded of the Cadet Prayer at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, which says: ‘Choose the Harder Right Instead of the Easier Wrong.’ It sums up how we hold ourselves to a higher standard in everything we do at Deloitte.” Cathy leads her team by encouraging them to listen and watch clients’ and colleagues’ body language. Being aware of body language helps them sense when someone is uncomfortable, needs more mentoring, and when they need advice or direction, she explained. This philosophy has served Cathy well during her 30 years at the organization. “At Deloitte, we have Cathy has had several careers during her three decades at the Deloitte. She’s something we call ’business chemistry,’ which helps worked in the life sciences industry, the audit and advisory practices, has advised you understand your personality and style as a leader. multinational companies, and has held multiple leadership roles. “I have spent my I’m an ’integrator-pioneer,’ which means that I tend career taking risks and building my capabilities, working with clients across the to be collaborative and a listener but also creative and country in a wide range of industries,” she explained. “These experiences were critilove generating new ideas.” cal in my development as a leader.” As a pioneering CEO, Cathy has learned that the Becoming the leader of an organization with a head count of over 70,000 was not pace of change will never be slower than it is today. Cathy’s goal. Yet she always aspired to be a leader. She credits the mentorship and Given the pace of innovation, it is imperative to remain agile in order to be the disruptor, not the dissponsorship she received during her career for helping her get to the top. She also rupted. She has also learned that in an effort to keep recognizes the importance of paying that forward. up in today’s fast-paced world, it is easy to lose sight “I’ve learned that mentorship is key for personal and professional development,” of how important it is to take care of yourself and Cathy shared. “My mentors provided great advice throughout my career and my find balance in your professional and personal lives. sponsors were behind closed doors, pounding the tables for me. Now it is my turn “I’m always reminded of the James Patterson quote to do that for others.” about the five balls we juggle in life: work, family, Deloitte LLP’s retired CEO, Mike Cook, had a significant impact on Cathy’s career health, friends and integrity,” Cathy said. “When you development. “Mike has been a great source of support,” she said. “He was ahead drop a ball at work – you have a bad day – that ball is of his time, realizing that if we wanted to fulfill our commitment to our clients, we rubber; it bounces back. But the other four balls, they had to retain our high-talent women. Not only was that the right thing to do for our are glass and they can shatter. So you want to be sure business; it was also the right thing to do for our people. Mike started our Women’s that you are taking care of the things that matter most.” Initiative in 1993. I was an early participant in the program. That experience, combined with his guidance, really helped shape my career.” Given the pressures on her time, Cathy is vigilant Deloitte’s stance on diversity has been equally imporabout defining the things that matter tant in shaping Cathy’s career and creating success for most. On the home front, that means the organization. Deloitte knows that its strongest asset prioritizing time with her husband and is its people, and the organization has always recognized two kids. At Deloitte, it means focusing that the diversity of its employees’ backgrounds, their on key operational issues and especially on clients. The challenges that come skills, and their perspectives are what lead to fresh and Deloitte LLP provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax, and advisory services to many up in almost every conversation with diverse thinking. of the world’s most admired brands, including client executives include transformaAlso assisting Deloitte in serving its vast client base is 80 percent of the Fortune 500. tion, innovation, cybersecurity, finding ALPFA, a national nonprofit membership organization Deloitte has been ranked number one by and retaining talented professionals, for Latino business professionals and students dedicated market share in consulting by Gartner, and and making the right choices. to enhancing opportunities for Latinos in business, acfor the fourth consecutive year, Kennedy Consulting Research and Advisory ranks counting, finance, and related professions. Identifying the right choices is Deloitte number one in both global consulting “We are strong supporter of ALPFA,” Cathy said. “Apkey for any person in any leadership and management consulting based on proximately 800 of our professionals are members. position. “What I tell current and aggregate revenue. Deloitte is consistently Scores of our current and past leaders sit in leadership future leaders is, ‘find the choices recognized for being a welcoming employer, and has been listed on Fortune’s Best Places positions at ALPFA. It is critical for us to collaborate with you need to make,’” Cathy said. “We to Work list for 17 years. The organization has organizations like ALPFA because the business commuall have finite capital, can’t make evalso received perfect scores on the Human nity benefits from the strong young leaders they develery choice, and can’t invest in every Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index op. ALPFA aims to support the next generation of Latino disruptive technology. It’s critical to in recognition of their LGBT-friendly policies. professionals, and we are proud to be a part of helping balance short- and long-term priAn interesting fact – Deloitte is a firm of firsts when it comes to Inclusion. Deloitte was the orities, and be able to tell the differthem achieve that mission.” first to appoint a woman as chairman of a ence between the two. Take risks, Cathy proudly points to honesty and integrity as Big Four professional services firm, had the know when to say yes, and have the the values that are most important to her. An ethical first minority chairman and first Latino CEO. confidence to say no.” approach guides her everyday behavior and decisionDeloitte was also the first to have a female 52 • July / August 2016
CEO of a Big Four organization and first female CEO of a large consulting firm.
LATINO LEADERS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ®
Empowering Latino Leaders
LYNNE DOUGHTIE (FAR RIGHT) WITH KPMG GLOBAL CHAIRMAN JOHN VEIHMEYER (FAR LEFT), 66TH SECRETARY OF STATE CONDOLEEZZA RICE (SECOND FROM LEFT) AND SEVERAL 2016 KPMG FUTURE LEADERS PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
LYNNE DOUGHTIE: Knocking It Out of the Park Story by Diane
Alter
Watching and helping her parents successfully run a small family business is what sparked Lynne Doughtie to pursue a career in business. The unwavering work ethic Lynne’s parents instilled in her at an early age drove her passion for business and paved the path for her to eventually become Chairman and CEO of KPMG LLP, one of the world’s largest tax, audit, and advisory firms. latinoleaders.com
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etting to the top required years of hard work, which has always come naturally to Lynne. Her story is indeed a tale in the virtues of hard work and discipline. After graduating from Virginia Tech University with a degree in accounting, Lynne took a job as an assistant accountant at KPMG in 1985. Over the years, she rose through the ranks and eventually established herself at the helm of the iconic company. “I’ve spent my entire and diverse career at KPMG,” Lynne told Latino Leaders. “Because of the breadth of services we offer, I have had multiple careers at our firm. Over the course of my career, I had numerous roles within our audit and advisory businesses. Each of these roles provided me with opportunities to grow my skill set, expand my professional network, and work with some of the world’s leading organizations.” The path Lynne’s career took over the last three decades was not always straight, and it included a few bumps along the way. Yet those twists and turns developed into some of her greatest opportunities. “There have been times when my career took an unexpected turn, which presented challenges,” Lynne shared. “But my philosophy has always been to take whatever pitch comes your way and knock it out of the park. When you do your best and embrace new challenges, the opportunity to grow is great.” 54 • July / August 2016
As a result of this positive approach, Lynne was appointed Chairman and CEO in 2015, a time of tremendous growth and momentum for the firm. Amid strong growth across all three of the company’s business channels, Lynne took over at a time when KPMG, with a multitude of awards under its belt, was recognized as the fastest growing Big Four firm in the U.S. Likewise, Lynne has been recognized with numerous honors and awards, including being named one of Consulting Magazine’s “Top 25 Consultants” and “Top Women Leaders in Consulting.” She was also featured in Profiles in Diversity Journal’s “Women Worth Watching,” and recognized in Accounting Today’s “Women in Accounting.” Lynne’s undeniable qualifications prepared her well for the top spot at KPMG. Among the challenges Lynne has seized upon during her time leading KPMG has been the firm’s commitment to diversity. KPMG’s inclusive culture and diverse teams allow Lynne and the company to achieve better results, spur innovation, and drive growth. These
ALEX LOPEZ NEGRETE
Houston’s Time-Honored Hispanic Ad Man Story by: Diane Alter
Photo: Jason Gilmore
Design: F. Izquierdo
The United States and its workforce have become increasingly diverse over the last several decades. As a result, businesses that embrace diversity have a more solid footprint in the marketplace than their rivals. A diverse workforce combining workers from different backgrounds and experiences spawns a more creative, innovative, and productive staff. Without question, diversity is a key ingredient to growing a strong and inclusive business that is built to thrive and endure. Alex Lopez Negrete has been helping businesses tap into the Latino community via advertising for more than 30 years.
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opez Negrete founded Lopez Negrete Communications in 1985 with his wife and partner, Cathy. An independent, Hispanic owned and operated full-service agency specializing in Hispanic marketing, the firm was established with the belief that the Hispanic market is a viable and powerful consumer segment. Lopez Negrete knows that thoughtful, relevant, fully integrated, in-language and in-culture communications are the best way to reach this far-reaching and important market. His wellplanned and determined approach has produced unparalleled results. Today, Lopez Negrete’s eponymous advertising agency is headquartered in Houston, with a second office in Los Angeles. With a workforce of more than 160, Lopez Negrete Communications is a proven leader in providing fully integrated national Hispanic marketing and communications services. The company serves an assorted and enviable list of clients that includes global giants and marquee names. Banking behemoth Bank of America, oil goliath Philips 66, tech titan Microsoft Corp., and retailing powerhouse Walmart are among Lopez Negrete’s clients. Before Lopez Negrete Communications was a highly recognized, frequently honored, and widely respected name in the ad community, the man behind the firm was a spirited child growing up in Mexico City. His dream was to come to the United States and make it big in the music industry. “My Mexican roots made me the person I am today,” Lopez Negrete told Latino Leaders. “My mother was American and my father Mexican. Right after I was born in Houston, we moved back to Mexico. My upbringing allowed me to have a balanced interest in all things Mexican. I set out to be a good Mexican, and truly appreciated where I grew up and what I grew up with. I took nothing for granted and relished the little things like riding my bike to the market. It was an amazing culture to be raised in.”
L AT INO LE A DE R S
“I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN FEARLESS. I HAVE NEVER BEEN AFRAID TO KNOCK ON THE BIG DOORS. HUMILITY, MEANWHILE, IS ANOTHER KEY TRAIT OF A SUCCESSFUL LEADER. SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO ADMIT YOU JUST DON’T KNOW IT ALL. YOU HAVE TO BE WILLING TO LEARN. IT CAN BE HUMBLING, BUT IT’S SO VERY IMPORTANT.”
latinoleaders.com
“When I moved to the States at the age of 18 to attend the University of Houston, the transition was not easy. But Houston’s Mexican-American community involved me, influenced me, and paved the way for me. They made me feel like I belonged. I soon recognized that I did. My community lifted me. That is where my earliest opportunities came from. They provided me with an extra set of tools that was, and continues to be, an invaluable business asset.” While Lopez Negrete had hopes of making a name for himself in music, he knew that was not going to be easy, nor was it going to provide for him. So he studied business at the University of Houston. Midway through his college term, Lopez Negrete changed all of his day classes to nighttime so he could start his career. During this time, he married Cathy, and the two of them watched as Houston underwent a period of radical change. In the late 1980s, Houston was enjoying a big oil boom. Yet oil prices quickly collapsed, and the struggling industry took the economy down with it. Banks closed, malls were shuttered, and many businesses went bankrupt. Lopez Negrete acknowledged things in the area were complicated. But by starting his career before graduation, he had given himself a head start. The musically inclined Lopez Negrete started with radio. “I always knew I was going to have to understand the communications business in a circular fashion,” Lopez Negrete said. “That means I had to understand print, media, data, and analytics. Today it goes even further. I also have to be an expert in social media, digital, and mobile. In expert fashion, I soon found out that every door leads to another, and often another success.” Lopez Negrete credits his success as a businessman and leader of the Hispanic community to being really good at managing expectations, understanding clients’ and consumers’ needs, and maximizing opportunities. Delivering on promises, remaining committed and intent, as well being daring and having humility, have also served him well. “I have always been fearless,” Lopez Negrete shared. “I have always said, ‘I can do that.’ Fearlessness is really just the willingness to try. I have never been afraid to knock on the big doors. Humility, meanwhile, is another key trait of a successful leader. Sometimes you have to admit you just don’t know it all. You have to be willing to learn. It can be humbling, but it’s so very important.” Another important leadership trait is being able to venture into the unknown and recognize lucrative opportunities. That is what Lopez Negrete did when he opened his communications company in 1985. 58 • July / August 2016
“There was this great big underserved community where big things existed,” Lopez Negrete said. “The Latino consumer needed and deserved much better. A lot of ads at the time translated badly. I understood how to address and sell to these valuable consumers. They needed to be talked to with elegance, courtesy, respect, and a viable strategy. “Dealing today with culturally diverse businesses that target a varied group, we have the multifaceted challenges of bringing understanding and a richer perspective. Every talk with every client begins with the question, ‘how’s business?’ Our job is to let corporate America know that there is value in engaging with diverse businesses and people. That is the new America. As a diversified ad company, we are much better prepared than others to deliver.” Instinct and intuition play a big part in the ad game, and they are two areas in which Lopez Negrete excels. Developing personalized relationships that show you care are also imperative. It all takes a great deal of research, listening, observing, knocking on doors, riding buses, and learning from your experiences. Mistakes and failures are inevitable, but they all provide valuable lessons. “You have to have the courage to ask, ‘what could I have done better and what can I do now?’” Lopez Negrete added. Lopez Negrete said he still must do much more to protect the Latino brand and to reflect Latinos in a more positive light. That is what drives, energizes, and challenges him. The Latino consumer will become an even bigger factor and dominant force in commerce and consumerism. From food to fashion to the arts, the Latino community is a very tangible identity. “The very best is yet to come, and I am proud to be a part of it,” Lopez Negrete said with passion. “We are at a pivotal point of inflection. Advertising aimed at Latinos has moved from being cross-cultural to omni-cultural. That means it’s in all things and all places.” Lopez Negrete said what he does is a labor of love. And when you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like work. It’s innate. That’s what makes Lopez Negrete Communications more than just an advertising agency. It is an agent of ideas, innovation, diverse growth—and love.
LATI NO L EADERS I N TE C H N O LO G Y
HITEC’S ANDRE ARBELAEZ
HIGHLIGHTING HISPANIC TECHNOLOGY
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ilicon Valley, the iconic technology hub, continues to create pioneering ideas, cutting-edge products, and some of world’s greatest leaders, thinkers, and futurists. Without question, the innovations that have emerged out of this elite California region have made our lives easier and better. But Silicon Valley is unquestionably antiquated in one key area: diversity. A recent analysis of employees at leading tech firms that report ethnic and gender figures reveals, on average, 71 percent are men, while 60 percent identify as white, 23 percent Asian, 8 percent Latino, and 7 percent black. Andre Arbelaez, President of the Hispanic IT Executive Council (HITEC), and Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Softtek USA, a global provider of process-driven IT solutions, aims to boost Latino representation in the region. HITEC is the vehicle helping him and others pursue this important initiative. HITEC is a premier global executive leadership organization comprised of senior business and IT executives who have built impressive careers in the information technology industry. The organization’s network extends throughout the Americas and is focused on building stronger technology and executive leaders, leadership teams, corporations, and role models in a rapidly changing “tech-centric” world. HITEC’s leaders include executives from leading global and Fortune 500 companies, including AT&T, Hershey, Bank of America, and Facebook. Others lead some of the largest Hispanic-owned IT firms across the Americas. “HITEC debuted in 2007 in NYC when a handful of Hispanic tech executives recognized there were topics in the tech space that needed to be addressed,” said Arbelaez, who is of Colombian heritage and resides near Detroit, Michigan. “Our goal then, as it remains today, is to elevate the role of Hispanics in the technology industry.” That means HITEC is sharpening its focus on increasing the presence of Hispanics in tech. The company must also focus on engaging middle and high school children, as well as providing scholarships for students pursuing an education and career in technology. “Our attention is on pushing our diversity to the next level and pulling up the next generation,” Arbelaez explained. “We have to bring those low diversity numbers up in Silicon Valley, and we are starting
Story by: Diane Alter
with today’s youth. We show Latino students that there is indeed a future in tech for them. We do this by showing them there are people who look, act, and talk like them who have become wildly successful in the tech industry.” HITEC also shows tech companies and industry leaders how to become more inclusive by leveraging Latino leaders in the tech pipeline. “It’s all about exposure,” Arbelaez continued. “We show corporate America that the Latino community is abundant in talent. In fact, Mexico is growing its tech community at the quickest clip ever. We say loudly and proudly, ‘look at us.’ Companies have started to take notice,” he added with conviction. Still, Arbelaez admits the diversity issue remains a problem in Silicon Valley. But he is quick to add that he has seen improvement. Tech companies have become more open, more accepting, and more likable to Latinos. “I have seen a strong and sincere effort by tech companies to open their doors and welcome Latinos,” Arbelaez shared. “It is not yet on the level where Latinos are hired on merit alone and not simply to meet a certain quota. The retiring baby boomer generation, however, will change that when companies wake up and recognize that the future workforce is equally made up of the emerging Latino population.” The tech workforce will enjoy robust growth over the next several years. Demand for highANDRE ARBELAEZ is the President of tech jobs is expected to outstrip demand for jobs the Hispanic IT Executive Council (HITEC). HITEC’s elite network spans the Americas and across the U.S. economy through at least 2020. is focused on building stronger technology Fueling growth in the industry are the increasingand executive leaders, leadership teams, ly sophisticated areas of cybersecurity, wearable corporations, and role models in a rapidly changing, flatter, and information technology devices, and the Internet of Things (IoT). centric world. These global leaders include Since the bottom of the dot-com bust in executives leading Global 1000 corporations 2004, employment growth in the tech sector while others lead some of the largest Hispanic-owned IT firms across the Americas. had grown at a pace three times faster than the Andre brings a premier group of private sector as a whole and has proved more relationships of CEO’s, CIO’s and both VP’s of IT and Workforce Diversity and Inclusion resilient through the recession-and-recovery from Fortune 1000 global companies such period, according to a report commissioned by as AT&T, HP, Johnson & Johnson, Comcast, Engine Advocacy, a tech start-up lobbyist. DHL, Hershey’s, Bank of America, Lowe’s, Accenture, ESPN and Facebook to name An unwavering work ethic, combined with loya few. Andre Arbelaez is a leader in the alty, hard work, and Christian values, are some Hispanic IT community nationally. key Latino attributes that will successfully help fill Andre is also the Global Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for the void. “We are all connected. Tech knows no Softtek USA. Founded in 1982, Softtek is a boundaries. Tech is borderless. Latinos do not global provider of process-driven IT solutions with 30 offices in North America, Latin want to change any existing work culture; they America, Europe and Asia. With 10 Global merely want to integrate,” Arbelaez said. Delivery Centers in the U.S., Mexico, China, Despite the great strides HITEC has made over Brazil, Argentina, Spain and India, Softtek helps improve time-to-business-solution, the last nine years, there is still much more work lower costs of existing applications, deliver to do. “We are on an incredible path and we conbetter engineered and tested applications, tinue to deliver,” Arbelaez said. “We will continue and produce predictable outcomes for toptier corporations in over 20 countries. Through to push up Latinos already in the tech workforce on-site, on-shore and its trademarked Global and pull up the next generation of leaders.” Nearshore™ service delivery models, Softtek teams with CIOs to constantly increase the Technology just may be the tool that one business value of IT. Softtek is the creator and day closes the Latino diversity gap. At the very a leader of the nearshore industry. least, with HITEC’s help, it is an industry that Andre is a bilingual executive with demonstrated success selling technology can make a significant difference. driven solutions to international and domestic corporate customers. A strategic minded leader and team builder, who creates trust and lasting relationships with customers.
latinoleaders.com
LATINO LEADERS IN TECHNOLOGY Since 2008 HITEC (Hispanic IT Executive Council) has compiled a comprehensive list featuring the top 100 most influential and notable Hispanic Professionals in the Information Technology Industry. At Latino Leaders magazine we are honored to partner in an effort geared towards the development of IT Hispanic leaders in the everchanging global landscape of information technology. The compilation of this list is a difficult task undertaken by HITEC. The list follows strict criteria, and judge’s candidates on their achievement levels, scope of responsibility and the positions they hold within their respective companies. The core mission of the HITEC 100 Nominations is to highlight and showcase outstanding professionals who have excelled in the business of IT, are role models who inspire young people to pursue careers in technology and motivate professionals to continue to excel and connect with the Hispanic community. We are proud to highlight the careers and achievements of the following HITEC 100 leaders.
CARLOS AMESQUITA
ENCOURAGING LEADERS TO EMPOWER OTHER LEADERS
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arlos Amesquita is the VP Chief Information Officer, Knowledge & Technology, The Hershey Company. For nearly 30 years Carlos held a prominent career with with Procter & Gamble, where he held several IT and Shared Services leadership positions. His last position was Director, North America Global Business Services & IT. Carlos actively participates in the Board of Directors of HITEC since 2011, and has been a member of the organization since 2008. In this Q&A Carlos addresses the Hispanic technology pipeline shortage, the challenges and opportunities ahead for the company, the philosophy he applies to lead his team, among other important information.
How did you get to this position and what was given to you in terms of advice or mentorship that pushed you to where you are today? What are your most important work and professional values? And what is the philosophy you lead your teams with? I have prepared my entire professional life for a CIO position. Early in my career, I started looking for opportunities to manage teams, lead critical projects, lead a small IT organization, and then eventually lead an entire region and global IT organization. Having the willingness to take these growing responsibilities, including facing many family relocations, allowed me to have the privilege of learning and preparation to grow my career. I also was privileged to have influential mentors at different stages of my professional life. Mentorship has been a key component to my personal success, and now I feel an obligation to give back to other IT professionals. Along this journey, I embraced and nurtured the values of principle-based leadership, courage, honesty, and hard work. My main philosophy is to continually challenge people through increasing responsibilities, while providing a supportive environment to maximize possibilities for success. I always encourage talented people to take risks and be bold. This accelerates development and more often than not, pays dividends. Therefore, trust, openness and straight-talk are also important elements of my personal philosophy. What steps do we need to take to address the Hispanic technology pipeline shortage? It all starts with education. Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) training is the cornerstone for all technology-related careers. First, we need to not only encourage, but mentor and sponsor younger Latinos in the technology field. Then, we need to make a concerted effort to bring diverse talent into corporations. Lastly, we need to sponsor and mentor this talent so they can develop to the fullest of their potential. This will not happen by chance. It takes a deliberate and concerted effort to achieve this. How can we improve Latino representation in the technology industry at the C-suite level and how can we instill a culture that considers Latinos for these positions? It all starts with availability. We can only increase Latino representation in C-suite positions if we increase the odds, which is about having enough Hispanics to choose from. For example, I believe if each of the Latinos in high-level positions sponsors and develops three high-potential technology leaders in the next few years, and these new leaders gain higher positions and do the same for another three technology 60 • July / August 2016
leaders each, we can achieve increased representation over the next decade. But to realize this goal, we all must continue to do our part. How can we have more tech leaders get involved in their communities so that they serve as a point of inspiration? It all starts with the passion to serve others, and the desire and leadership required to continually improve the communities in which we work and live. What role do you see Latinos playing for your corporation’s future and how important is this segment for the business? At Hershey, diversity and inclusion are part of a global commitment that is engrained in who we are. We know having a diverse workforce is critical to our success. We can only aspire to make products and services that are relevant to our consumers if we understand who they are. Our customers are diverse and they expect our workforce to mirror the marketplace. With the number of Hispanics growing among the U.S. population, finding better ways to reach them continues to be vital to the future of corporations and government. What advantages do you see in working with HITEC (Hispanic IT Executive Council)? Primarily, I play a role in elevating the visibility of Hispanic leaders in technology. This is not only about creating awareness of the growing numbers of Latino leaders in technology, but also about playing a key role in developing future leaders through mentorship, coaching, and providing opportunities through our growing network of professionals. HITEC is the premier organization for Hispanics in Information Technology. What challenges and opportunities do you see ahead for your company and in the industry? The main IT challenge for my company and the industry in general is to be ready to lead, grow and profit from the “digital disruption” taking place in the world now and accelerating exponentially in the coming years. Today’s environment has morphed from being a purely physical world to a more integrated digital-physical experience, which poses both huge opportunities and new challenges. Information Technology is at the center of this revolution, and those who smartly invest in this area of business will win in the end.
LATIN O LE A D E R S IN TE CH N O L O GY
GUILLERMO DIAZ
CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER & SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, CISCO SYSTEMS
INVESTING IN THE NEXT GENERATIONS Story by: Mariana Gutierrez Briones How did you get to this position? I strongly believe that a foundation of family, relationships, and a constant aspiration to never be satisfied with current success got me to where I am today. I started my career in the US Navy right out of high school with one goal – getting my college degree – but I didn’t quite have the means to get there through a traditional route. So I saw the military as a way to get that opportunity. This path also leveraged what I learned about my foundation of strengths – my family was always supportive, I built strong and diverse relationships, and tested the limits of my physical, mental and creative abilities; this is the way to achieve what you aspire. And go to places where you never thought possible. What was given to you in terms of advice or mentorship that pushed you to where you are today? There are a few things that I learned along my journey. First, my mom taught me to “never forget where you came from, to know where you are going.” Being in tough jobs, like in the Navy, I also learned what I never want to do. Finally the power of relationships and “ROI – Relationships Over Issues.” By this I mean when you invest in relationships, the dividends and returns can be very rewarding. And always look at different sides of the coin “Look across the bridge from both sides” to understand the other perspective. Now that you have achieved much success - what advice can you give to the upcoming generation? Build your own human network as there are very few things that can be done alone, especially in business. And be comfortable being uncomfortable. If you are in your comfort zone then you are not learning enough or pushing yourself. In today’s technology and digital age, we must remain more than competitive and push ourselves constantly to improve our skills. Right when you feel comfortable with your skills, get uncomfortable. What steps do we need to take to address the Hispanic Technology pipeline shortage? We must look to hire and build the pipeline of future talent by focusing on going after diverse candidates. At Cisco, our main hiring pipeline is the great University Program that we have established. In the past couple of years we have grown the number of women and minority students in both our hiring and intern programs. We not only look for these candidates but also have specific relationships with key minority accredited colleges and universities, and even go a step further into the high school level. Every year we hire interns from high school’s like Cristo Rey, which serves underrepresented minority students. When you see these kids in action and giving their end of year readouts, trust me, you will be in tears. How can we improve Latino representation in the Technology industry at the c- suite level? How can we instill a culture that considers Latinos for these positions? I am blessed to know quite a few key Latino/Hispanic leaders that have given me support and guidance in my journey. For example, in the Hispanic IT Executive Council that I have been engaged with since 2008, not only do we have some of the top Latinos in industry but top leaders in the world. They have all gained success in their careers because of some of the same reasons I have described in my journey. They have worked hard and developed relationships to be at the top of their respective industries and companies. But I do strongly believe
that we have to inspire, enable and help build the path for others that are to follow in our footsteps. We have an organization at Cisco called Conexion, which I have been engaged with for 16 years, where I am constantly pushing our leaders in the same manner that I received advice - “Remember where you came from “; “ROI” ; “Comfortable being uncomfortable”. Never use race or gender as a reason not to get a promotion or success. Work hard and build others and you will gain success in both your career and fueling your soul.
What role do you see Latinos playing for your corporation’s future? How important is this segment for the business? Globalization, more diverse customers, and the changing composition of the workforce mean that Latinos, and all underrepresented groups will continue to become increasingly important for the future of corporations and the public sector. At Cisco we believe a diverse workplace leads to innovation, better collaboration, and a vibrant culture where everyone is welcomed, respected, valued, and heard. How do you see the challenges ahead for your company and in the industry? Technology is no longer an isolated industry. Today, the rapidly changing technology landscape impacts everyone and every business, both in the public and private sector. Technology is creating huge opportunities, but also huge challenges for all of us. And, these opportunities and challenges are coming at us at an increasingly rapid pace. We, and our workforces, need to be more agile than ever before and that is where a diverse workforce becomes critical. We need diversity of ideas. We need people who have energy, passion and who aspire to add value wherever they can. What is the philosophy you lead your teams with? The world around us is already extraordinarily complex so I like to keep things simple. It’s as easy as ABC for me. A is about aspiration. Aspire to be a leader, to break through barriers, and to be the best version of yourself that you can be. B is about bold. Be bold in your thinking, be bold in your willingness to bring your ideas to the table, and be bold in supporting your teammates around you. C is about challenge. Challenge yourself every day. Be comfortable being uncomfortable, and try new things. Sometimes you may fail, but if you don’t try you can be assured that you will be obsolete at some point in the near future. latinoleaders.com
LAT INO LE ADERS I N T ECHNO LO G Y
RAFAEL MENA
USING INFOTECH TO IMPROVE LIVES
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Story by: Chriss Swaney
afael Mena cuts through the confusion and draws out the lessons from the halting, often painful journey through the jungles of the information age. Mena, chief technology officer for Orange County, Florida, warns that the unanticipated and unintended consequences of new technology can be as significant as its potential rewards, especially if we proceed without comprehending the scope of technology’s impact on humanity and the planet. That’s why Mena and his team of infotech experts work tirelessly to develop IT tools that will ensure better management of public technology and computer systems so critical to the safety and success of running Orange County. Their work has been valuable to first responders like those involved in the recent terrorist attack at an Orlando nightclub, as well as officials who track hurricane activity. “I’m in charge of maintaining Orange County government needs from the region’s 911 fire and rescue call system to the security systems at Corrections and the 311 non-emergency community service,’’ said Mena, who earned a computer science degree at the University of Kansas and has spent more than 25 years in various roles for Orange County. Located in Central Florida, Orange County is home to 13 municipalities, several theme parks, the world’s second-largest convention center and a life science research park. In 2011, Mena and his team introduced an app called OCFL Alert. Developed in-house by the county, the Web and phone app gives people all the vital realtime data they need before and after a hurricane: where better sandbags are developed, a map of shelters, and where to locate drinking water. “What makes our applications so unique is that they are tied to a backend. When you submit something to us, in real time, the information creates a work order or a ticket incident. Then, it’s delivered to the proper department so they can start working on the issue,’’ said Mena, who spent some of his youth in Venezuela. “The real test in my profession is when things happen.” That’s why Mena has always tried to be on the leading edge of developing ITsavvy tools. Some 70 million tourists visit Orange County every year and they have a wealth of e-government and other computer interactive apps available to them. Mena is a stickler for ensuring that technology is scalable, and he argues that it all comes down to people and customer service. “It’s all about explaining in nonbusiness terms how a system works. You have to develop trusted relationships to make it all work,’’ Mena said. His office handles more than 2 billion emails and 33,000 public records requests a year. One of those teachable moments came at the White House in 2014, when Mena was invited to show President Obama and a Homeland Security official some of Orange County’s novel interactive smartphone applications that provide critical information during emergencies. His influence has also been felt in some foreign countries. Mena reports that he is helping implement a new 911 system in the Dominican Republic. Mena, whose father was born there, was in the country on vacation visit62 • July / August 2016
ing family when he was contacted by the Ministry of the Presidency. He provided guidance on the new 911 systems during his initial trip and has done additional pro bono work in his personal time over the past three years to help complete the multi-phase system. “We need more qualified people in IT,’’ he said. “I have 30 openings for IT jobs, and I’m extremely interested in getting folks with security IT expertise,’’ Mena said. About 45 percent of his more than 200 employees are from diverse backgrounds and countries, including some in South America. Industry reports conclude that by 2018, the U.S. could face a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 IT professionals and analysts. Mena points out that the industry needs professionals who understand that today’s fast-paced technology can connect teams across the barriers of specialty, rank and geography, and forge closer strategic relationships with consumers and suppliers. “You need to sit down and find out what the customer wants to develop the right solutions. It is all about using communication to merge business and technology,’’ said Mena, recently recognized by the Hispanic IT Executive Council as one of the nation’s most influential and notable Hispanic IT professionals. Mena is emphatic about the notion that government’s main responsibility is to protect and serve citizens. A leader in developing innovative approaches to disaster preparedness, Mena has led several technology projects to prepare his county for the next megastorms in a decade that saw Charley and two other hurricanes make landfall in the Orlando area. “What better system exists that embodies that responsibility than 911? It is the definition of what a government is supposed to do, while directly and indirectly improving all other public services and how they work together. That’s why I’m so passionate about my work in Orange County and my involvement in the Dominican Republic,’’ Mena said. Mena is always excited to share Orange County’s success and lessons learned from his many initiatives. “Public safety is always our top priority. There are no dressed rehearsals when it comes to emergencies,’’ he added.
LATINO LE A D E R S IN TE CH N O L O GY
MARIA MARTINEZ PASSIONATE ABOUT DEVELOPING THE NEXT WORKFORCE GENERATION Story by: Latino Leaders Staff Writers How did you get to this position and what advice or mentorship did you receive that helped you get to where you are today? Please answer the following questions: What are your most important work and professional values? What is the philosophy you lead your teams with? I started my career at AT&T and Motorola, and then eventually became CEO of Embrace Networks, before joining Microsoft and now Salesforce. I’ve been lucky to have many amazing mentors during my career, and I’ve learned from them that it’s important to take risks and not be afraid to fail or “re-calibrate” along the way. Every failure is an opportunity. Bold thinking and risk-taking have led to some of my most memorable professional achievements. I’ve also learned, especially in the tech industry, that being nimble goes a long way. Being open to new ideas, roles and challenges has opened up tremendous opportunities for me and has shaped me as a leader. Lastly, and most importantly, I’ve surrounded myself with people who support me and want me to succeed. In turn, I’m motivated to do the same for others. Building an amazing team is the most critical lesson, in my mind. What steps do we need to take to address the Hispanic Technology pipeline shortage? I see this as both a supply and demand issue. On the supply side, this is fundamentally a matter of removing stereotypes that are still associated with certain subjects or fields. We need to change the “STEM story” for Latin Americans – and women in particular – and early education is the place to start. This means making sure all K-12 schools are invested in a STEM curriculum and offering courses like computer programming to under-served populations. Young girls and minorities need to know that STEM careers are a possibility before it’s too late to alter their trajectory. On the demand side, those of us in STEM fields today have an obligation to connect the dots for them. Creating internships and formal mentoring opportunities, as early as high school, can give this group the access and confidence they need to pursue STEM careers. How can we improve Latino representation in the technology industry at the C-suite level and how can we instill a culture that considers Latinos for these positions? I think this a generational issue in many ways. We need to develop a pipeline of future Latino leaders, as well as promote more examples of successful Latino leaders and hold them up as examples in the tech industry. For me, at the end of the day, I’m passionate about developing the next generation of our workforce, hopefully fostering the C-level Latino leaders of the future. I’ve been fortunate enough to explore and realize several of my own passions, and I believe it’s my duty to support others in doing the same. With the right access and support, the ideas that will be brought to life by this generation are endless. How can we get more tech leaders involved in their communities so that they serve as a point of inspiration? Well, I think that often when communities request support of local tech leaders, it’s about their money or connections. But I think the most critical thing is their time and expertise. If you engage leaders in their areas of interest, and get them to apply their own personal energy toward a community project or issue, the return is astronomical compared to other ways of contributing. Currently, I am fortunate to work for someone like Marc Benioff, who is passionate about diversity, equality and making the world a better place for all – that serves as a daily inspiration for me and a reminder to do the same. What role do you see Latinos playing for your corporation’s future and how important is this segment for the business? Super critical for our business. Diversity is a core value at Salesforce – in terms of employees, the vendors we use and the companies we engage with. It’s also incredibly important to me. In fact, I’m currently the executive spon-
sor of a leadership development program within Salesforce that fosters many of our high-potential female and minority employees. I believe that formal mentorship and development of any under-represented group is critical to creating a next-generation workforce that brings a more complete perspective to the workplace … and the world. What advantages do you see in working with HITEC (Hispanic IT Executive Council)? HITEC is a powerful community of Hispanic leaders who take pride in where they’ve come from and where they are going. More than a just a group of members, HITEC operates like a family, with a unique brand of collaboration and commitment to the success of one another. Members benefit from an extended network that acts as a support group, a thinktank and a group of cultural champions determined to pay it forward. HITEC partners have access to a community of passionate executives who help them drive diversity and development initiatives inside their own companies and communities. And the organization provides global thought leadership across all industries and functions, helping members and partners successfully navigate today’s workplace environments. What challenges and opportunities do you see ahead for your company and the industry? The possibilities are endless and, I think, often unimaginable from where we stand now. Clearly, there are massive forces impacting our industry, whether it’s the Internet of Things, data science, wearables or predictive intelligence. But I think it ultimately comes down to what customers need, what they are trying to do, and how they are trying to create compelling experiences for their customers. It’s amazing because we are now doing the very things that were considered impossible just five years ago. Just imagine how things will look five years from today. It’s exciting, and that’s what I love about technology. With more than 30 years of experience in business and technology leadership roles, Maria Martinez leads Salesforce’s Customer Success Group and is also GM of the company’s Latin and Central America business. Her primary focus is helping customers transform their businesses and realize their ambitions faster. Martinez’ organization encompasses the company’s Success Programs and Products, including Customer Success Managers, Architects, Cloud Implementation Practices, Accelerators, Innovation and Transformation Consulting, Renewals and more. Martinez has a Master’s degree in computer engineering from Ohio State University and a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Puerto Rico.
Source: Salesforce
LATINO LEADERS @JFerraez_Latino
MICHAEL TRUJILLO
M
ICHAEL TRUJILLO is one of the iconic Latino winemakers in Napa Valley, California. I met him some years ago when I stopped at the Sequoia Grove tasting salon to try some of their wines. He immediately impressed me with his passion for wine and conversation. As Director of Winemaking, he has done a tremendous job at Sequoia and recently was appointed as CEO and President. His mission is to continue producing 38,000 cases of high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon. Through his success with the Karl Lawrence label, Trujillo has developed a reputation for serious winemaking. After he dissolved his partnership in 2013, he went on to start his own label, “Trujillo Wines,” another rising star among the Hispanic wine labels in Napa. “I’m trying to do a Cult Wine without the Cult Wine price,” he told me. He’s making 600 cases of a fantastic and fruit-forward Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon with elegant notes, as well as 180 cases of a Bordeaux-style blend he calls “Madelynne” (paying tribute to his daughter’s and wife’s names). “I think my reputation comes from my tradition of cellaring wines, being patient.” He’s in the process of starting a line of white and rosé, and he spends most of his time promoting and marketing his labels, which for now are only available through small boutique retailers and restaurants. When I had the opportunity to taste both the Cabernet Sauvignon and the Madelynne, I couldn’t help but think about the great wine some Latinos are making in California and how this is impacting the footprint of our community in the wine industry.
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CELLAR
Trujillo Wines “Madelynne” Red Wine Cuveé 2013 Region: Napa Valley Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc Price: $45 Aromas: Red fruit, raspberry and blueberries Flavors: Ripe fruit, vanilla, red currant Impression: Approachable, easy to drink Structure: Balanced, versatile Drink with: Beef fajitas, pizza, barbacoa Why I loved this wine? This wine has a great, fruity flavor My Rating: 90 pts.
Trujillo Wines Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 Region: Napa Valley Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon Price: $75 Aromas: Grape candy, dark cherries Flavors: Ripe fruit, vanilla and fig Impression: Classy, complex, elegant Structure: Big and deep with spiced finesse Drink with: Filet mignon, ribeye Why I loved this wine? Succulent and distinctive My Rating: 95 pts.
Cava Maciel “Apogeo” Nebbiolo 2012 Region: Baja California, Mexico Varietal: Nebbiolo Price: $39.95 Aromas: Red fruit, oak, red currant, cherries Flavors: Autumn spices, dark chocolate, cocoa powder Impression: Bright and intense Structure: Medium to full body Drink with: Chipotle-inspired dishes, Brazilian beef cuts Why I loved this wine? Fruity and balanced My Rating: 90 pts.