The Chingona Chair

In this episode of The Chingona Chair, we sit down with Karina Martinez, founder of Drafted , the media platform putting Latina sports fans at the center of a booming women’s sports economy. In just three years, Karina has gone from launching Drafted with what she calls a “wild hair of an idea” to building a platform fueled by community, cultural insight and data. Her philosophy is refreshingly si...

Women's sports are no longer a niche movement. They are becoming a cultural and economic force. In this episode of The Chingona Chair , we sit down with Clarissa Flores , former Northwestern basketball standout, Puerto Rican national team athlete, hospitality executive, and founder of Level Sporting Club , Chicago's premier destination dedicated to women's sports. Clarissa shares her journey from...

In this episode of The Chingona Chair , we sit down with entrepreneur, investor, board leader, sailor, and author Lou Sandoval to explore what leadership really looks like behind the titles. Lou shares how his journey through Fortune 500 companies, entrepreneurship, nonprofit leadership, and corporate boardrooms shaped his philosophy of servant leadership, strategic growth, and building consensus....

What does it take to build a successful career in communications while staying true to your voice, your culture, and your purpose? In this episode of The Chingona Chair , Diana Leza Sheehan sits down with communications executive, former journalist, and contributing author of Latinas in Public Relations: Shaping Communications, Communities, and Culture , Brenda Duran. Together, they explore Brenda...

The FIFA World Cup 2026 isn't just going to be the most watched sporting event in history, with over six billion people expected to tune in. It's the biggest marketing opportunity US brands have ever had. And most of them are going to miss it. In this episode of The Chingona Chair, Diana Leza Sheehan of PDG Insights is joined by co-hosts, Alex Garza of AGG Consulting and Lilia Arroyo Flores of Díg...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At the 2026 HACE Summit, our host sat down with Talita Ramos Erickson, Head of Legal Operations and Chief of Staff at McDonald’s. From navigating leadership as an immigrant in environments where few people reflected her identity, to leading at the center of complex, high-stakes decision-making, Talita shares a powerful perspective on...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At the 2026 HACE Summit, our cohost, Alex Garza, sat down with Ashleigh Lyons Marable, VP of Inclusion Strategies at Fifth Third Bank. From recognizing early gaps in workplace inclusion to building a career across industries dedicated to driving change, Ashleigh shares a powerful perspective on what it means to break barriers, focusin...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE's Annual Summit, our co-host Diana Leza Sheehan sat down with Natasha Miller Williams, VP of Talent Management, Culture, and Learning at Ferrera, for a candid conversation on career growth, visibility, and the evolving definition of leadership. In this conversation, Natasha reflects on her journey from data analyst to senior H...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE’s Annual Summit, our host Alex Garza sat down with Holly Sales-Milanese, Director of Consumer Banking Talent & Development at Ally Financial, for an inspiring conversation on career growth, courage, and authenticity. In this conversation, Holly shares her non-linear career journey across multiple industries and reflects on...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE’s annual conference, our co-host Diana Sheehan sat down with Dr. Robert Rodriguez, Founder & President of DRR Advisors and a leading voice in advancing Latino leadership. In this conversation, Robert shares insights from over two decades of research and experience, exploring where organizations still fall short—and what it...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE’s annual conference, our co-host Diana Leza Sheehan sat down with Steven Brown, VP of Culture and Engagement at Molson Coors. In this conversation, Steven shares his perspective on what it truly takes to build connection and belonging in today’s workplace, especially in a time where connection has become harder than ever. From...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE’s annual conference in Chicago, our co-host Alejandra Garza sat down with Pattie Amaro, Director of Talent Acquisition at Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. In this conversation, Patty shares her journey from growing up in Pilsen to leading talent strategy at one of the largest healthcare organizations in the country—along wi...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At the 2026 HACE Summit, our host, Diana Leza Sheehan, sat down with Silvana Montenegro, Global Head of the Office of Hispanic & Latino Affairs at JPMorgan Chase. From walking into her first role in Brazil feeling fear and uncertainty to becoming one of the most influential Latina leaders in corporate America, Silvana shares the m...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At the 2026 HACE Summit in Chicago, our host sat down with Marissa Solis, SVP of Global Brand and Consumer Marketing of the NFL. She is the Latina architect behind some of the league's most culturally defining moments, including Bad Bunny's record-breaking Super Bowl halftime show. A short but powerful conversation about claiming your...

Bienvenidos to Cafecito Con HACE, hosted by The Chingona Chair. At HACE’s annual conference in Chicago, our co-host Alejandra Garza sat down with NASCAR driver Daniel Suárez, the first Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race. They talk about his journey from Monterrey to racing at the highest levels in the U.S. A short but powerful conversation about breaking barriers, betting on yours...

What does it really take to start—and sustain—a small business? In this episode of The Chingona Chair , hosts Alex Garza and Diana Leza Sheehan sit down with two Little Village-raised, Chicago entrepreneurs, Daniel Silva (Te-Qu) and Roxy Delgado (Marketing Rocks) to unpack the real journey behind entrepreneurship, especially as Latino founders rooted in community. From taking that first leap of fa...

This National Small Business Week, the Chingona Chair podcast is celebrating the entrepreneurs who make their communities come alive. Lilia Arroyo Flores of Digame Consulting, sits down with two incredible Berwyn, Illinois business owners whose stories you won't forget. First, Alex Herrera of Pink Owl Café shares how he went from immigrating from Mexico, to working factory jobs, to becoming a phot...

This episode of The Chingona Chair is a special and deeply personal conversation about leadership that moves beyond theory into action. Hosts Lilia Arroyo Flores and Alex Garza sit down with Devin Theobold , Director of Operations and Special Projects at HACE (Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement) , and Bobbi Venegas , Executive Operations and Special Events Manager at HACE , to discuss the or...

The old playbook is dead. For decades, brands controlled the narrative — building awareness through campaigns, shaping demand through careful planning, and earning shelf space through forecasts and brand equity. Not anymore. In this episode of the Chingona Chair, Alex Garza sits down with Lilia Arroyo-Flores of Digame Consulting and Diana Leza Sheehan of PDG Insights to dig into a fundamental shif...

In a moment defined by economic volatility, policy shifts, and rising costs, brands are being tested—and telling on themselves. In this episode of The Chingona Chair , hosts Lilia Arroyo Flores , Alex Garza , and Diana Leza Sheehan unpack what happens when pricing pressures, tariffs, and uncertainty force companies to make hard decisions. From Chipotle and Walmart to Costco, Apple, and McDonald’s,...

The cultural ripple effects of Bad Bunny’s record‑breaking Super Bowl halftime show didn’t end when the lights went out. In this episode of The Chingona Chair , Diana Leza Sheehan, Lilia Arroyo‑Flores, and Alex Garza dig into what happened after the performance — the pride, the backlash, and the revealing national conversation about representation and identity in America. With over 128 million vie...

The Monday after the 2026 Super Bowl, the Chingona Chair is back — and this halftime show wasn’t just performance. It was a cultural reset. In Part 2 of our NFL + Bad Bunny special, Diana, Lilia, and Alex unpack the moment the world watched Latino culture not just appear on the biggest stage in America — but lead it. We get into: 🌴 How Bad Bunny told a story of Latino neighborhood life — not ster...

The Super Bowl. Bad Bunny. Cultural backlash. Global expansion. This episode of The Chingona Chair breaks down one of the most important brand strategy moments of the year: the NFL’s decision to place Bad Bunny — the world’s most‑streamed male artist and the first Spanish‑language Album of the Year winner — at the center of its biggest stage. Marketing experts Lilia Arroyo Flores (Dígame Consultin...

Fear isn’t just influencing Latino communities anymore — it’s becoming a mainstream economic force. In this powerful episode of The Chingona Chair , Lilia Arroyo Flores, Diana Sheehan, and Alex Garza break down brand‑new data from PDG Insights revealing that 6 in 10 Americans — across all races — now believe ICE is active in their neighborhoods , even in places with no confirmed enforcement presen...

In this powerful episode of The Chingona Chair , host Alex Garza is joined by co-hosts Lilia Arroyo Flores and Diana Sheehan for an intimate conversation with Dr. Elena Gonzales, curator of the groundbreaking exhibit Aquí en Chicago at the Chicago History Museum. Together, they explore the exhibit’s origins—from student activism to cultural reclamation—and the stories of resilience, rebellion, and...