Shawn Banerji, Managing Partner – Caldwell

Shawn Banerji is the managing partner for the Data, Digital & Technology Leaders Practice at Caldwell, co-located in the New York and Stamford offices. He is an expert on change management and specializes in the recruitment and assessment of Catalyst Leaders who are resetting value propositions through the power of technology, data & analytics, accelerated software engineering, IoT, and cloud. As a trusted advisor to organizations seeking cultural and commercial transformation by unlocking the latent value of legacy assets and product portfolios, he advises clients on the convergence of talent and innovation across all facets of the evolving digital enterprise.​​

Industry coverage includes retail & consumer, insurance, investments & banking, professional services, healthcare, process & industrial, technology & media, as well as financial sponsors and their portfolio companies. Roles include CIO, CTO, chief digital officer, chief data officer, CISO and the related leadership suites.​​

Shawn joined Caldwell from Russell Reynolds Associates, where he was a leader in the Technology Officers Practice, and a founding member of both the FinTech and Digital Health practices.​​

He is an ex-officio board member of SIM New York and serves on the board of advisors for The Center for Technology Management at Columbia University. He is a regular contributor at MIT’s annual CIO Symposium and an advocate for increasing technology representation and diversity on corporate boards.​​

Shawn holds a BA in speech communications from the University of Richmond, VA and an MA in communications from the University of Westminster, London. He is certified in a variety of assessment tools and methodologies.

David Baruch, Chief Information Officer – Spencer Stuart

David Baruch is the chief information officer for Spencer Stuart and a member of the management team. He is responsible for developing and leading the firm’s overall technology vision and roadmap, including improving operational excellence, setting IT and operations strategy as well as the design, development and maintenance of all business technology systems and market-facing tools and services.

Alex Bates, Chief Executive Officer – HelloSky

Alex spent the last decade bringing artificial intelligence and knowledge management to the forefront of the industrial market. As an undergraduate he authored 5 peer-reviewed publications, performing DARPA-funded research in neural networks, as well as research in memory and computational diagnostics.

Next, he jumped into the private sector, applying analytics on some of the world’s largest data warehouses at Teradata, a pioneer in big data technology. Alex was co-founder and CTO at Mtell, whose machine learning platform is used to monitor global fleets of industrial assets, effectively creating a distributed immune system to protect equipment and personnel. Mtell was acquired in 2016 by AspenTech (NASDAQ: AZPN), the global leader in process optimization software. In the two years following the acquisition of Mtell, AspenTech more than doubled its market cap, adding $4 billion of shareholder value. In June 2018, Barron’s highlighted AspenTech as one of the top three AI investments outside of FAANG (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google).

Alex is the lead inventor on three issued patents in machine learning & equipment taxonomies and received degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science, with a concentration in Neuroscience. His bestselling book, “Augmented Mind,” explores how the combination of AI with human intelligence — Augmented Intelligence — has revolutionary potential, and he is passionate about unlocking human capital to solve the world’s biggest problems.

Kal Bittianda, Partner, Technology Practice – Egon Zehnder

Based in New York, Kal Bittianda is passionate about disruptive technology and digital transformation. He advises Boards, C-suites and Private Equity sponsors on solving their most critical leadership challenges, especially CEO succession planning, Executive and Board recruiting. The Enterprise Software, Tech-Enable Services, Communications and Connectivity sectors are of special interest to Kal. He also enjoys developing and implementing creative leadership advisory solutions for CEOs and their teams.

Before joining Egon Zehnder, Kal led business units for Kyriba (enterprise cloud solutions), EXL (knowledge and business process outsourcing), and Inductis (analytics consulting and services). As a Consulting Partner at Azendant and Inductis, Kal advised C-level executives on growth strategies. Previously he was an Engagement Manager at the Mitchell Madison Group. Kal began his career in technology and leadership roles at Unisys and International Paper.

Kal earned a BTech in naval architecture from the Indian Institute of Technology, in Madras/Chennai, in India, an MA in industrial engineering from Purdue University, and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He advises nonprofit organizations and early-stage companies in the New York area, also investing in some of the latter.

Mercedes Chatfield-Taylor, Co-Founder, CEO – Artico Search

Mercedes is the trusted search partner for top venture capital and growth equity firms and their portfolio companies. As the co-founder and CEO of Artico Search, she leverages her deep expertise and unparalleled network to build scaleup teams for some of the world’s most successful investors and their portfolio companies. Mercedes’ placements are recognized for driving category creation, market leadership, and generating billions in shareholder value through IPOs and M&A exits.

With over 75 high-impact CEO placements and hundreds of fund partner, principal, and other C-suite assignments, Mercedes has earned a reputation for delivering transformative talent to fuel growth and success.

Previously, Mercedes led the venture capital & private equity practice at prominent global firms, including Caldwell Partners and Heidrick & Struggles, and founded boutique search firm iCOM. A graduate of Boston University, Mercedes operates out of San Francisco, with additional offices in Austin and New York.

Surojit Chatterjee, Founder, CEO – Ema Unlimited

Surojit is the founder and CEO of Ema. Previously, he guided Coinbase through a successful 2021 IPO as its Chief Product Officer and scaled Google Mobile Ads and Google Shopping into multi billion dollar businesses as the VP and Head of Product. Surojit holds 40 US patents and has an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, MS in Computer Science from SUNY at Buffalo, and B. Tech from IIT Kharagpur.

Matt Dreyer, Head of Talent Management – Prudential

Matt leads the Talent Management center of expertise and Talent Partner team at Prudential. The team is responsible for the development and execution of our talent processes, including succession management, performance management, assessment, and executive coaching. This includes ensuring adoption of simple and impactful approaches to providing feedback, setting goals, creating and executing on meaningful development plans, and enabling leaders to sponsor and coach our talent to accelerate development. The Talent Partners act as talent consultants to adapt and execute our talent strategy with the businesses and functions and are executive coaches to our top talent.

With a background in Industrial & Organizational Psychology, Matt has held a variety of roles in Human Resources as an internal and external consultant. Prior to his current role at Prudential, Matt held a variety of roles in talent management with responsibility for succession management, executive coaching, and assessments used to select and develop talent, as well acting as Lead Talent Partner for PII and the Customer Office. He also played a key role in the development and design of the Talent Marketplace and in the configuration and launch of talent processes in Workday. Matt is also a certified executive coach. Before joining Prudential, Matt spent ten years working in various areas of HR at Verizon, including assessment and selection, diversity and inclusion, executive coaching, performance management, leadership development and succession management. Matt also spent five years working with Aon Consulting in the Washington, DC area. He worked with a wide variety of public and private sector clients on projects ranging from assessment design and validation to leadership assessment and development.

Susan Gunn, Partner – Bain & Company

Susan Gunn is a Partner at Bain & Company, based in the Washington, DC office, where she leads human capital and talent strategy initiatives as Bain’s global product leader for its Human Resources offerings. Recognized as a thought leader in HR and talent management, Susan leverages her extensive expertise to advise global clients on strategies spanning HR transformation, generative AI adoption, labor and talent strategy, compensation, and more.

A sought-after industry expert, Susan has been cited in leading publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and Fortune for her insights on critical HR and talent topics. She is widely recognized for her thought leadership on managing the U.S. labor shortage, as well as the implications and applications of generative AI in HR and the workplace.  She recently co-authored a brief on the impact of Generative AI on the HR Operating Model which is getting a lot of attention in HR circles, including from Dave Ulrich.

Before Bain, Susan built a distinguished career in senior HR leadership roles across various industries. She served as a Managing Director within EY’s People Advisory Services, spearheading initiatives such as COVID-19 workforce strategies and transformative HR technology implementations. Prior to EY, she held pivotal roles, including CHRO at Gardner Denver and Willis, and SVP of Global Talent & Compensation at Aramark, where she drove significant innovations in HR operations, talent acquisition, succession planning, and people analytics.

With nearly three decades of HR leadership, Susan’s experience spans overseeing mergers and acquisitions, revamping global operating models, and delivering cost savings through HR optimization. She has been celebrated for her contributions, receiving awards such as Pennsylvania’s Most Powerful & Influential Women and EY’s Innovator of the Year.

Susan served as a board member at Leadership Philadelphia for over a decade and is a graduate of McGill University.

Kevin Hornish, Head of Global Talent Acquisition – LexisNexis

Fahad Jalal, Founder & CEO – QLU.ai

Fahad Jalal is a leading expert in leveraging artificial intelligence to transform executive search processes and outcomes. As the Founder and CEO of QLU.ai, Fahad has pioneered innovative AI solutions designed to significantly improve the precision, speed, and effectiveness of executive search, enabling recruiters and consultants to achieve higher market share and dramatically reduced search times. With extensive experience scaling technology ventures, Fahad notably grew a business unit at Mentor Graphics from $0 to $100M ARR in just two years and has successfully exited multiple startups to Fortune 100 companies, creating over $1 billion in shareholder value. He holds a Master’s in Computer Science from Stanford University and an MBA from The Wharton School, specializing in Finance (Financial Derivatives). Fahad regularly speaks about AI’s transformative impact on executive search and talent acquisition, emphasizing the strategic advantages that AI-driven insights and data analytics bring to talent and leadership decisions.

Kyle Langworthy, Partner, Head of AI, ML & Data Practice – Riviera Partners

With over 15 years of recruiting experience, former founder Kyle Langworthy is a driving force in innovation and executive talent placement at Riviera Partners. Leading global AI, ML & Data efforts, he shapes the modern era of executive recruiting. Passionate about entrepreneurship, Kyle aligns seamlessly with Riviera’s mission to provide top-tier talent for innovative companies. Through the strategic acquisition of WorthyWorks, he integrates cutting-edge practices, ensuring a perfect match between exceptional talent and transformative companies. Specializing in AI/ML technology, Kyle advises clients, from private equity to Fortune 100 technology leaders, on recruiting executives for lasting impact.

Denis LaPolice, President & Founder – Resource Management Group

Denis founded Resource Management Group in 1993. He has over 30 years of experience in executive search and advising clients on talent selection. Denis is an industry leader, recognized nationally as one of the leading search professionals, recruiting the best and brightest CFO’s and Financial Officers, placing RMG on the Hunt Scanlon PE Recruiting Power 100 list.

Denis leads Resource Management Group’s CFO and Private Equity practices focusing on Chief Financial Officer assignments for a broad range of industries such as consumer products, industrial manufacturing, technology, distribution, business services, media and healthcare services.

He has worked with the world’s greatest public companies including Honeywell, General Electric, Pepsico and Amazon. In addition, he partners with top tier Private Equity firms helping them attract CFO’s and building finance teams for high growth companies.

Denis has been instrumental in building finance organizations across all functions and spearheads new business development. He began his search career with a small boutique firm which also focused on Financial Officers. Prior, he worked for Calvin Klein Jeans as a National Sales Manager.

He has been a board member of the David Wright Foundation, buildOn, Kids in Crisis, New Canaan Youth Football, and is President of the New Canaan Football Alumni Association. He was given the Volunteer of the Year award for his work with Kids in Crisis.

Mina Morris, Managing Director, Head of Assessments – Accenture

Mina Morris leads Accenture’s global leadership assessment capability, shaping the future of executive talent and succession. As the architect of Accenture’s internal leadership assessment and development strategy, he integrates cutting-edge behavioral science, data analytics, and technology to build high-impact succession pipelines that drive business performance.

With over 20 years of experience in leadership consulting, Mina has advised Fortune 500 CEOs, C-suite executives, and Boards on leadership transitions, succession strategies, and large-scale talent transformation. Prior to Accenture, he held senior leadership roles at Aon and Korn Ferry, where he specialized in executive assessments, leadership development, and coaching.

Mina has a background in Industrial/Organizational Psychology and a truly global perspective—having lived and worked across North America, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. His expertise lies in unlocking leadership potential, future-proofing organizations, and fostering high-performance cultures at the highest levels.

Angela Navarro, CEO – Kinavic

Angela is the spark behind Kinavic’s global expansion and core offering development. She has a true passion for maximizing the potential of executive talent, and she is dedicated to bringing this to life for our clients, enabling practice growth and measurable performance acceleration.

Angela currently serves as a board member and Senior Strategic Advisor to Beecher Reagan. She previously served as the President & COO of Beecher Reagan, joining directly from the Management Consulting industry. Prior to joining Beecher Reagan, she served as Senior Vice President of Global Operations at North Highland Worldwide Consulting. As Global SVP, Angela oversaw workforce solutions, talent attraction, and resource deployment for the global consulting firm.

Before North Highland, Angela spent 20 years within the Professional Staffing and Search industries, earning a strong and consistent legacy of developing internal teams and external alliances to stimulate and deliver year-over-year growth and profitability. She has a proven track record in strategic planning and sustainable continuous improvement.

Having spent her entire career in human capital, Angela brings a unique track record of building talent strategies to maximize leaders and teams. Angela serves as a senior leader working directly with our clients at Kinavic to radically amplify leadership potential.

John "JP" Patterson, Head of Talent – Macy's

John Patterson has over 35+ years of Global HR Leadership Experience in a diverse set of industries ranging from Specialty and Large-Scale Retail, Global Luxury Brands, Consumer Packaged Goods, Aerospace (Lockheed Martin), and Internet / E-commerce.

He joined Macy’s in February 2019 and led the Stores HR Function and Talent Acquisition across Macy’s nameplate. In 2022, he became the Head of the Talent COE leading Talent Acquisition, Culture, Talent Management, Performance Management, and Learning and Leadership across Macys Inc. His retail experience spans specialty, with Sycamore-backed Talbot’s, and luxury retail with the Swatch Group as SVP of HR of North America and Chief HR Officer of Harry Winston Diamond Corporation.

JP has extensive international experience and worked overseas for 6 years leading HR functions in both Asia Pacific and the Sub-Saharan Africa Regions for Diageo, where he was responsible for developing Human Capital strategies in emerging markets of China, India, Southeast Asia and more developed markets in Korea, Japan, and Australia and 40 countries in Africa. Prior to joining Diageo in 2001, Mr. Patterson was a part of the start-up team that built out the priceline.com brand as the Vice President of Talent from 1999 – 2001. Early in JP’s career, he worked with PepsiCo in New York and Lockheed Martin Aerospace in Southern California, where he focused on Labor Relations.

Prior to the Global Pandemic, JP was active in Parish life, serving as a Parish Council Member, regular Lector, and long-term Catechist. He has been a long-term supporter and volunteer with Dress for Success, an organization that is committed to helping women find dignity and purpose through meaningful employment, serving on the Global Board of Directors from 2014 – 2016. An avid cyclist, JP completed his fourth consecutive Pan Mass Challenge, the largest athletic fundraiser that benefits cancer research by participating in “double century” road cycling rides, personally raising over $45,000 for Dana Farber Cancer Research Foundation. This year, the Charity surpassed the $1 Billion giving threshold in the Ride’s 44-year history.

JP holds a BS Degree in Business Administration and Labor / Industrial Relations from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo.

Dr. Andrew Quinn, Chief Technology Officer – Ezekia & Hylark

Andrew Quinn holds a PhD in Advanced Robotics (AI) and began his career at Microsoft, where he worked on a range of complex software systems. As co-founder and CTO of Ezekia (ezekia.io), he has led the platform’s technical vision and development, helping to establish it as the leading business development and assignment management solution for executive search firms.

Andrew is passionate about the real-world applications of AI in and has recently overseen the launch of Hylark (hylark.com), a next-generation platform offering AI-powered, customizable workspaces for complex team collaboration.

Kristen Roby Dimlow, Corporate VP, Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards & Performance – Microsoft

Kristen leads the Global Talent Acquisition and Total Rewards organizations inclusive of the global strategy and execution of Microsoft’s early in profession, industry, and executive level talent acquisition, executive and employee compensation, benefits, mobility, performance and development, mergers and acquisitions, and stock design and administration. She also plays a key role on the Microsoft Compensation Committee and is a member of the HR Leadership Team.

She is a 26-year Microsoft veteran who spent the first half of her Microsoft career in corporate finance controller positions across several businesses and product groups. She moved to HR to lead University Recruiting before transitioning to HR leadership roles serving several divisions including Windows and Entertainment + Devices. Kristen briefly left Microsoft in 2015 to become the EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer of F5 Networks, leading all HR functions at the company.

Prior to her Microsoft career, Kristen held finance leadership roles at The Walt Disney Studios, most recently as VP of Finance for Walt Disney TeleVentures. While at Disney, Kristen lived in Amsterdam serving as the Benelux Finance leader. She also completed the Financial Management Program (FMP) while rotating through financial analyst positions at General Electric (GE).

Kristen is a proud graduate of The College of William & Mary in Virginia where she holds a BBA in Management.

Ajay Sah, VP - Global Head of Digital and Customer First Partner Ecosystem, Capgemini Financial Services Strategic Business Unit – Capgemini

Ajay Sah leads Talent Acquisition Globally for Capgemini Financial Services Business Unit.

Capgemini is a global leader in partnering with companies to transform and manage their business by harnessing the power of technology. The Group is guided everyday by its purpose of unleashing human energy through technology for an inclusive and sustainable future. It is a responsible and diverse organization of 340,000 team members in nearly 50 countries.

Ajay is responsible for leading and developing Capgemini`s FS talent strategies and delivery programs across 20 countries (NA, UK, EMEA, APAC)

A business partner driving near-term operational results, long-term strategic value creation, and supporting profitable growth.

Leading TA driven by culture of empathy & accountability and by building a modular industrialized framework, automating critical components across TA from candidate identification to engagement to assessment and onboarding – “Enabled by a technology platform”

Ajay believes “Talent branding and engagement, enabled by technology at scale is the future of TA” & TA has the most integral role driving D&I across our organizations and is passionately working on driving that vision.

Nat Schiffer, CEO – The Christopher Group

Nathaniel (Nat) Schiffer has held virtually every job at The Christopher Group. Today he is TCG’s Chief Executive Officer. Nat has played a key role in the rebranding of TCG as an Agile HR & Business Solutions company that includes the launch of the firm’s Interim HR Leader and Consulting Divisions. Among his many accomplishments at TCG, he is most proud of TCG being recognized in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 by Forbes as one of the nation’s top executive search firms.

With over 30 years of experience in Human Resources, Corporate Executive Services, and Executive Search. Nat has a keen understanding of business strategy and operations, organizational structure, and talent acquisition/assessment/development. This unique combination of experiences enables him to play a pivotal role in partnering with senior executives at Fortune 500 firms, start-ups, P/E Backed as well as private and closely held companies. Nathaniel specializes in all levels of HR search but frequently leads the firms most senior-level searches to Include CHRO, VP, and other levels with critical succession implications. He has recently completed searches across multiple industries and HR verticals with the likes of Phillips 66, Lamb Weston, Parker Hannifin, Air Products, Altria, SC Johnson, Delta Dental, VCA/ Mar’s Pet Care, Alcon/Novartis, Cal State Fullerton, and Acorn start-ups such as OYO Rooms.

Matt Shore, CEO – StevenDouglas

Matt Shore joined StevenDouglas in 2006, with a focus on maintaining the firm’s great culture and boutique approach. As CEO, he oversees all operations, garnering honors from various publications for StevenDouglas, and serving as a catalyst for the firm’s 2000% growth since 2005, making StevenDouglas one of the fastest-growing firms in America.

Initially a Senior Vice President, Matt launched the successful Interim Resources Practice and was soon promoted to President, instrumental in scaling the Search business. StevenDouglas has expanded from 1 office and 15 employees to a national presence with 26 offices and over 175 professionals, offering Executive Search, Professional Recruiting, Technology Staffing, and Interim Resources across various industries.

Matt has been a leader in Executive Search for over 25 years, previously heading StevenDouglas’ CFO Search practice while directing the Executive Search practice company-wide. He holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Accounting degrees from the University of Florida and began his career as a CPA.

Matt is a former Board Chairman for YPO Palm Beach and United Way of Broward County. Additionally, Matt has made a significant impact on many civic organizations including the Jason Taylor Foundation, LifeNet4Families, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Elizabeth Tyndell, VP, Head of Talent Acquisition – New York Life Insurance Company

Elizabeth Tyndell is a Vice President in the Human Resources Department at New York Life, a Fortune 100 financial guidance provider in protection first planning. She currently serves as the Head of Talent Acquisition, responsible for creating an innovative and competitive enterprise talent acquisition strategy that promotes New York Life’s employment brand and competitive position in the market.

Prior to joining New York Life, Elizabeth worked at Goldman Sachs for over 15 years in various leadership roles within Talent Acquisition; most recently, as the Chief Operating Officer of the Global Recruitment team. Throughout her career at Goldman Sachs, Elizabeth has partnered with leaders in Investment Banking, Investment Research and Asset Management to achieve commercial business outcomes through talent. She was also part of the small program team to launch the GS Veterans Integration Program (GS VIP), the first program of its kind on Wall Street to offer support for transitioning military service persons into civilian careers in financial services.

At New York Life, Elizabeth serves as a member of the Advisory Board for ENABLE, an employee resource group for employees and allies with disabilities. In the community, she serves on the board of a local preschool and as an Enterprise Program Advisor for People Tech Partners.

Elizabeth received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Hope College.

Josh Withers, Co-Founder – True

Josh is a co-founder of True, and passionate advocate for revolutionizing the executive search industry with data- and tech-driven strategies. He is committed to delivering superior results by building a strong internal culture and fostering lasting relationships, both within the company and with a network of loyal clients and partners.

Over the years, Josh has held various leadership roles at True including General Manager of North America search, leader of the CEO and Board practice, and initiator of the client services program. He also played a key role in shaping the platform strategy and product development.

Prior to founding True, Josh gained experience at both global and boutique executive search firms. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in communication from San Diego State University.