I am deeply humbled and honored to share that tonight I will be recognized as the 2024 Diversity Champion Award Recipient at St. John’s University School of Law‘s Annual Diversity and Inclusion Gala. As a proud alumna of this highly esteemed institution, this recognition holds a very special place in my heart.

Throughout my career, diversity, equity and inclusion have been my guiding principles, not as an expert in the field, but as a steadfast advocate of the philosophy that #DEI as a function of finding and supporting excellence is the pathway to sustainable success for teams, organizations, and businesses. I firmly believe that ensuring that excellent talent has equal access to opportunity is the fastest and most efficient way to achieve sustainable and scalable success.

My career has been driven by a commitment to seeking out and championing excellent talent, regardless of background, circumstances or title and my career has benefited greatly from this philosophy. All of my professional successes can be tracked directly to building and supporting excellent teams, identifying excellent talent even when they did not recognize the excellence in themselves, and empowering these teams to use their diverse perspectives to collectively solve problems that were roadblocks to success. (Unsurprisingly, there is an entire chapter devoted to #Excellence in my book #QuantumProgression)

Once again, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to St. John’s University School of Law for this incredible honor. I look forward to celebrating with you all tonight!