Zaka Presents: My Journey

Eli Cherenfant is an Attorney and experienced Human Capital Executive with a demonstrated history of working in the Entertainment & Sports industry. He is skilled in C Level executive recruitment, corporate structuring, compensation review and negotiation. Eli speaks about his upbringing and career breakthrough working for  Creative Artists Agency (CAA),  the world's leading full service...

Shaïna Silva   joins us to speak about the balance of balancing working for an enterprise while being an entrepreneur and the inspiration behind her company, SheBuilds Global Initiative . The award-winning entrepreneur, ecosystem architect, and digital transformation strategist is passionate about advocating for more women working in tech. She currently works on Market Strategy at Facebook leading...

Growing up as the son of a famous and successful politician can be a burden. Kevin Valley, a native of Trinidad is making a name for himself outside of his father's shadow as a qualified Chartered Business Valuator. As a young boy he learned this valuable quote from his father "Life is a loan that you repay through your service to others". It inspires him to be the leader that he is...

As an immigrant who moved to the US at the age of 17, Bhawna Sharma Puri does not take her career success for granted. She is passionate about giving back to fellow immigrants and other women in tech because she understands that she did not have a blueprint to navigate in her career when she moved to the United States. She is on the chair of California State University as a board council member of...

Ricardo Acevedo is a Mexican American who works in Human Resources as the Senior Manager of HR Business for CDW. In this episode, Ricardo will answer the question most employees have in the workplace, "How can I leverage HR to make my workplace experience better?" Ricardo also touches on the struggles of navigating both American and Mexican cultures in the workplace while remaining authe...

Azher Ahmed left Pakistan at the age of 3. He ultimately grew to build his career in overseeing the digital marketing and transformation initiatives for top marketing agencies and Fortune 500 companies. Azher speaks about the impact  his Pakistani culture and Islamic faith had throughout his career. His expertise includes:  brand strategy, sponsorships, data-driven personalization, performance mar...

Sharon Gai is a China-born Canadian who has 10+ years of experience in e-commerce, digital transformation and AI. The former Head of Global Key Accounts at Alibaba has written a successful book called "E-Commerce Reimagined" and advises organizations on innovation practices and helping them become culture fluid.  Her expertise in e-commerce and culture has led her to become a Keynote Spe...

Annie Jean-Baptiste is one of the most recognized women in tech. Her contribution to Product Inclusion & Equity has led her to be featured in Vogue, Essence Magazine, Business Insider, Teen Vogue, MSNBC, CNBC, ABC, Cheddar, and the Huffington Post. The "Building For Everyone" author speaks about the value of corporations will create by focusing their core strategies around equitable...

"Data is the new gold", was the phrase that changed Iman's life forever. It was uttered to him by a Customer who owned an exotic car when he was working as a Valet Attendant. His curiosity and drive pushed him to pursue a career working on digital engagement, creative media, and understanding trends through data. Iman has contributed to corporations such as Fox, Redbull and Giant Sp...

Edgar Palacios from Eightfold AI speaks to our audience about his rise in corporate as a Latino leader and how he’s utilizing the life lessons he learned form his Costa Rican parents to his benefits. Edgar received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at Sacred Heart University and 2 Masters in Computers and Information Systems at Sacred Heart and his M.B.A at Cornell Johnson Graduat...

Rhonda Binda is currently the Executive Director of the Gracie Mansion Conservancy where she utilizes her private and public sector experience. She credits her legal background to her Guyanese parents who taught her to always stand up for herself and expect respect from others. Rhonda has a long and distinguished history of public service, most recently having launched and served in the Obama Admi...

Karen Ndegwa is a proud Kenyan-American and  Vice President at The Carlyle Group, heading up the US CLO Compliance function. The function is responsible for maintaining the protections built into the Collateralized Loan Obligation (CLO) structure to ensure the funds are investing in eligible investments. Before accomplishing this critical and high impact position, Karen left Kenya for the U.S., af...

Ever since she was a child growing up in Haiti, Krista Saint Dic loved airplanes. That lifelong love led her to fulfill her dream flying for Republic Airways.  When Krista moved to the United States, it took her a while to identify her true passion. Like most immigrants who move to a new country, she tried to please her parents by focusing on Biology and Economics until she ultimately found her tr...

Cindu Thomas-George is an award winning tenured professor of Communication Studies at the College of Lake County (CLC) specializing in Intercultural Communication, Public Speaking, and Online learning.  Simultaneously, she is the Founder and Principal Trainer of Shakti Diversity and Equity Training where she designs and facilitates professional development experiences that promote equity, inclusio...

Alex Labidou is an Emmy-winning journalist and social content producer who has worked for several media outlets, including NBC Sports, ESPN, Brooklyn Nets, Denver Nuggets - NBA Basketball Team. He has also made TV appearances on CNN International Commercial and have appeared on various radio programs from talkSPORT to FOX Sports Radio. He educates us on the value of having representation in sports...

Garaudy Etienne is the Lead Product Manager for the world's most popular next-generation database, MongoDB. As an immigrant from Haiti, he obtained his Aerospace Engineering degree from Princeton University and his MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Garaudy speaks about the lack of diversity and representation in the Aerospace and Technology space and how he is makin...

Raquel Serrato doesn't take anything for granted. She embraces her leadership and voice as a Latina working in Sports Marketing for one of the most recognizable brands in the world. Raquel was born in Spain of Spanish and Columbian parents which helped her resonate with several cultures growing up in North Florida.  In this episode, Raquel highlights how cultivating authentic relationships he...

Marielle Legair felt she never fit in. Born to immigrant parents from Saint Vincent, she learned to put her head down and work hard from an early age. This well-meaning advice, didn’t serve her well. She thought meritocracy was enough and that her work would speak for itself. She didn’t speak up or promote her work early in her career. That feeling of hopelessness drove Marielle to become a Person...

Zena Tuitt Collins is an Emotional Intelligence Trainer who leverages her unique experience working in finance, publishing, business and television to create tailor made training and inclusiveness programs for large corporations. Her Emotional Maths ™ program applies the science of Emotional intelligence (MSCEIT) to train, coach and consult in a human centered way that removes the emotional and co...

Simone Ince leverages her fifteen years of strategy, marketing and communications experience to drive success within her corporate career at Sun Life Financial and her digital production company, 43° North Productions Inc. Simone  shares her journey in balancing her leadership role in her "9 to 5" and while creating capacity to tap into her passion, producing film projects that have been...

Dean J. Flowers' trajectory to the top of commercial real estate industry is nothing but spectacular. He grew up in Belize and migrated to Los Angeles at a young age during the busing desegregation  in the US. He educates us on the ins and outs of  the industry and how future agents can succeed in the market. His diversified resume of acquisition and management experience coupled with years o...

Sharif Abou Sabh's overall success in the Engineering field has inspired Fikry F. Andrawes and Mahmoud A. Elshazly to include Sharif as one of the featured  contributors on their book "Egyptian American Journeys". During this episode, Sharif speaks about his upbringing in Egypt and his adjustment to his new life in the US. In his 40 years of diverse engineering experience, he has ma...

The Aequo Fund is an initiative that is focused on providing opportunities and financial support to people who are traditionally underrepresented in real estate development. One of their Developers is Rian Hargrave who is taking a holistic approach to providing Residential Development and Home Ownership to change the narrative of Baltimore City. Rian's career journey started in college where...

Growing up in a Mexican household in Orange County, California, Cristina Saralegui and Oprah were favorites on the household TV. These two legends inspired Jeannette Ceja to become an Award- Winning Bilingual On Air TV Host and Travel Journalist. She was recently named as one of "20 Latina Business Influences to Follow Today" according to Hispanic Executive Magazine. Jeannette highlights...

Over 15 years of experience working in the staffing and recruiting industry has propelled Benny Mathew to generate a vast networking community. Because of his passion to bring people together, Benny launched Orion 3 which connects people to build  authentic relationships and intentional community. Benny shares the challenges that he faced assimilating to American culture when he first moved to thi...