Employer of the Year Awards Judging Committee

Chair: 
Grace Mackinnon, Head of People Operations 
The Energy Collective, Auckland, New Zealand

With a wealth of experience in organizational development and people operations across the technology, energy, and finance sectors, Grace is passionate about fostering a human-centered workplace culture where care for people and the planet are at the center of business decisions. 

In her role leading People Operations at The Energy Collective, a global retail utilities and technology business, she oversees various functions, including people technology, business partnering, data, change, remuneration and benefits, workplace experience, recruitment, and people practices and guidelines. 

Grace is a strategic leader with a proven track record of successfully spearheading large-scale initiatives and driving organizational change through complexity.

Committee:

Shalini Ajayan, Director - Data Analytics and Strategy
ICF Inc., Lorton, Virginia, United States
Shalini is a results-driven Data Strategist with 16+ years of experience leveraging analytics for business growth. She focuses on using data strategy, management and governance to drive transformative solutions from the ground-up at an enterprise level.

Ravi Ambati, Director Software Engineering
ServiceNow, Santa Clara, California, United States
Ravi is an experienced engineering leader with over 20 years of experience in building and managing scalable web applications. He excels in agile methodologies like Scrum and Kanban, driving team growth and success. Ravi leads Software Engineering at ServiceNow and has held senior leadership roles at Checkr, Workday, Visa, and BlackRock.

Heather Barton, HR Consultant
Freelance, London, United Kingdom
Heather is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. After graduating from Oxford, she worked in education, and was a College Vice Principal. She qualified in Human Resources and held Director posts in the Probation Service, Housing and cultural exchange.  She is now an HR Consultant.
 

Katelyn Baxter, Strategy Consultant
Shell USA, Houston, Texas, United States
Katelyn is a dynamic and highly motivated strategic problem solver with experience leading sustainable and transformational change within the energy sector.


 

Shruthi Boosey, Managing Partner
Jana Consultants, JUS General Trading, Truth Eventz and WalkAhead Sports      
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Shruthi, an American HRM MSc, is an entrepreneur with a 2.5-decade background in airline GSA. Jana Group, founded in the U.A.E., includes Jana Consultants, B2B Consulting, and JUS General Trading LLC. She is Executive Director of Truth Eventz, Director at WalkAhead Sports Services, and Advisor at Al Triune Consulting.
 

Surendra Reddy Challapalli, Vice President of Technology
Citi Group, Tampa, Florida, United States
 Surendra is a seasoned Technology Professional, Thought Leader with 16 years  experience in FinTech space. In addition to his role as Vice President, delivering multimillion-dollar engagements at a leading financial institution in North America, he is highly regarded as a mentor, author, speaker, and jury panel member for industry awards.

 

Maureen Clayton, President
Nest Egg Communications, Roswell, Georgia, United States
Maureen Clayton, president of Nest Egg Communications, is a communications expert with degrees from the University of Georgia. She serves on the Entrepreneurship Program Board of Advisors and co-chairs Grady College's Ad/PR Advisory Board. Clayton is a frequent speaker on communications strategy, marketing alignment, employee engagement, and leadership communications.

 

Nyra Colinares, Co-Founder and Board of Directors
Health Carousel Philippines Inc., Pasig, Metro Manila, Philippines
Nyra, RN, is Co-Founder and Board of Director of Health Carousel Philippines, helping Filipino healthcare professionals secure US employment. She worked for the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Health. Retired after 20 years as Vice President, she is now a consultant and member of Sigma Theta Tau International Society of Nursing. 

Ankur Goel, Head of Business Strategy & Operations
Confluent, Mountain View, California, United States
Ankur is passionate about scaling and transforming businesses and is experienced in leading high-performing teams that leverage data, insights, operations, and systems to drive business and revenue growth.

Claire Hanley, Co-founder, Head of Finance and People 
The Content Engine, Geneva, Switzerland
Claire, co-founder and Head of People and Finance at The Content Engine, has significantly contributed to the agency's rapid growth. The Content Engine, a global startup with 45 employees, focuses on innovation, collaboration, and employee well-being through data-driven technology and a world-class creative team.

Jan Harling, Chief Executive Officer
Virtus Asia Consulting, Hong Kong, Greater China
Originally from Germany, Jan has spent over 15 years in Asia and has successfully developed and implemented holistic data-driven campaigns for world leading brands of various industries throughout China, Asia Pacific and Western Europe. He is an expert in communications and marketing and has had local, regional, and global roles in both international 4A agencies as well as on the client side. He specializes in driving measurable business results through strategic campaigns and effective leadership.

JoAnn Hizon, Vice President for Human Resources, Admin & Facilities
SM Investments Corp., Quezon City, Region, Philippines
Ann has 25 years of leadership experience in HR, Training, Operations, and Facilities, with expertise in various industries. She is a seasoned resource speaker on career counseling, succession planning, workforce diversity, organizational transformation, crisis management, business continuity planning, and sustainability. Her employers have won Employer of the Year awards, including Hewitt and Forbes.

Venkata Krishna Sai Subhash Kuricheti, Director - Finance
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Inc., Princeton, New Jersey, United States
Chartered accountant with expertise in financial reporting, planning and analytics, finance control, factory costing, and management reporting. Industries that worked: Health care, FMCG, engineering.

Tanmay Mathur, Senior Vice President, Linehaul
XPO Logistics, Seattle, Washington, United States
Tanmay, a supply chain professional, optimizes transportation networks for major companies, starting at Shell and later joining Amazon as operations manager, regional operations director, and transportation director. Tanmay has a B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Roorkee and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is currently the SVP of Linehaul at XPO Logistics.

Monika Mishra, Senior Business Application Developer
Beckman Coulter, Inc., Brea, California, United States
Monika Mishra is an experienced Software Engineer with over 10 years of rich industry experience. She's carved a niche for herself through her innovative acumen, proven ability to fix issues, and ability to design solutions as per the customers' needs. Her comprehensive expertise encompasses data visualization, data modeling, and database development.
 

Anthea Morris, Finance Director 
Better2Know, Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria, United Kingdom
Anthea is a Chartered Accountant and a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development in the UK. She is currently responsible for finance and HR at Better2Know, the world's leading private provider of sexual health testing services. Better2Know offers fast, accurate testing in 20+ countries, earning Gold Stevie awards.


 

Manish Mradul, Director Of Engineering
Paloalto Networks, Santa Clara, California, United States
Manish, Director of Engineering at Paloalto Networks, has 20 years of experience in network and cloud security, malware detection, SIEM, Big Data, and security analytics. Manish, a computer science and engineering graduate, is dedicated to accelerating cloud and SaaS adoption and enhancing AI and machine learning usage in business.
 

Param Singh, Vice President 
Oberon Securities LLC, New York City, New York, United States
Param, Vice President of Investment Banking at Oberon Securities, has over 12 years of experience in cross-border M&A Advisory for chemicals, paper and packaging, building products. Param holds an MBA, a Master of Science in Environment and Sustainability, an alternative dispute resolution diploma, and a background in empowering clients and teams.

 

Latha Thamma Reddi, Program Manager ERP Transformation Automation & Innovation
DXC Technology, Plano, Texas, United States
Latha is a seasoned Program Manager with a twenty-year track record in Edge & ERP Transformation, focusing on automation and innovation. She excels at creating Greenfield solutions using ERP and Automation components. Latha serves as Director for Volunteer Management at FWPMI and contributes to HP and Philips Clients' Technical Steering Committee and open-source initiatives.

Cornelius van Tonder, Chief Engineer and Managing Director
Bara Consultants, La Lucia, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
An accomplished, professionally registered, chemical engineer, Cornelius van Tonder is regarded as a subject matter expert in the fields of Renewable and Energy Engineering. Cornelius currently fills a Chief Engineering Position and Managing Director Position at Bara Consultants. Some of his achievements include design and commissioning of a large-scale waste beneficiation plant.

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