Entrepreneur & Thought Leadership Awards Judging Committee
Chair:
Jessica M. Graham, Founder & CEO
Fionix Consulting, Indian Trail, North Carolina, United States
Jessica M. Graham, APR, Fellow PRSA, is the founder and CEO of Fionix Consulting, a strategic communications agency she established in 2017. Leveraging over 30 years of diverse and multifaceted experience in communications, Jessica delivers creative and strategic solutions in public relations, brand positioning, community engagement, social media, and reputation management for a wide range of organizations and industries. Her work moves ideas, people, and businesses forward, creating positive change.
Jessica's extensive career spans various industries, including retail, telecommunications, and education. Before founding Fionix Consulting, she served as vice president, chief communications and community officer for Belk, Inc., where she managed public relations, community outreach, corporate and store events, internal communications, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. Her previous roles include public information officer and assistant to the President for Community Relations & Marketing Services at Central Piedmont Community College, director of public affairs for Time Warner Cable Charlotte, and corporate relations manager for Harris Teeter, Inc.
Jessica is active in the community and has served on more than 20 boards, seven as chair. In addition, she has participated on more than 30 committees for various community organizations. She currently serves as chair of Dress for Success Charlotte’s Board of Directors; marketing chair of the Charlotte Trail of History Board of Directors; secretary and board member of the Union County Chamber of Commerce; and a past chair and board member of the American Lung Association North Carolina’s Leadership Board. A graduate of Leadership North Carolina Class XXI and Leadership Charlotte Class XIX, she is an active member of Women Executives.
Jessica has been deeply involved in the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) since joining in 1999. She has held more than 20 leadership roles in the organization, including Charlotte Chapter chair, Chapter District Council chair, Southeast District chair, chair of the National Governance Committee, and treasurer and member of the National PRSA Board. She currently serves as Vice Chair of the College of Fellows. Named a Top Woman in PR by P R News, Jessica was honored with the PRSA Chair's Award for Exceptional Service to the Society in 2018. She has also been the recipient of three PRSA Silver Anvil Awards, multiple Gold, Silver and Bronze International Business, American Business, and Women in Business Stevie Awards, Leadership North Carolina’s Stanley Frank Award, Mecklenburg Times’ 50 Most Influential Women, and PRSA Charlotte Chapter’s Infinity Award. She holds a B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication from UNC Chapel Hill.
Committee:
Rahul Banerjee, Senior Consultant
VISA Inc., Austin, Texas, United States
Experienced Software Engineer with over 20 years of industry expertise, currently specializing in Artificial Intelligence and Site Reliability Engineering. For the past 4 years, Rahul has focused on AI-driven solutions, leveraging a Master of Engineering in Artificial Intelligence to build and support scalable, reliable systems. At Visa Inc., Rahul serves as a Senior Engineer.
Caner Çakır, Technical Product Owner
Akbank T.A.S., Istanbul, Turkey
Caner is a distinguished Technical Product Owner with over 16 years of leadership in banking and finance technology. An Executive MBA graduate and multi-certified expert, he excels in architecting enterprise-scale solutions, enhancing system resilience, and delivering innovation at scale. Renowned for driving strategic transformation, Caner consistently delivers measurable business value through technology excellence.
Abhishek Garg, Senior Real Estate Development Manager
Amazon Web Services, Seattle, Washington, United States
Abhishek is a dynamic real estate professional at AWS. He has led high-impact initiatives, from securing strategic sites to navigating entitlement processes. Prior to AWS, Abhishek leveraged his skills at Ernst & Young in the Transaction Real Estate team. He holds a master's in Real Estate Development at Arizona State University.
Priscilla Idahosa, Founder
Khyte LLC, Temple Hills, Maryland, United States
A Nigerian-born serial entrepreneur and the founder of Khyte LLC. With a background in the oil and gas industry and business development, she has spent years helping businesses grow across various sectors. She's now focused on her passion, building inclusive platforms like Khyte.com and KhyteAfrica.com to create a level playing field for entrepreneurs worldwide.
Darren Kilbride, Contracts & Procurement Manager
Shell, Houston, Texas, United States
Darren is an expert Contracts and Procurement manager with extensive experience in multibillion-dollar energy projects. He has held supply chain leadership positions for over 20 years across Europe, Asia, South and North America. He is currently C&P manager for Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, LLC (a 50:50 Joint Venture partnership between Shell and EDF).
Arunima Motiwala, Manager
Grant Thornton Advisors, LLC, New Delhi, Delhi, India
Arunima is a CPA with extensive experience in Mergers & Acquisitions and transaction advisory, catering to the US market. She has worked closely with company leadership to evaluate financial performance, assess business viability, and support strategic decision-making. With over a decade of expertise, she specializes in financial due diligence, quality of earnings, and transaction structuring.
Vladyslav Podoliako, Founder & CEO
Belkins, Dover, Delaware, United States
Vladyslav is the Founder & CEO of Belkins and Folderly and a serial entrepreneur and investor with a decade of experience in building and growing service companies and SaaS startups in Sales- and MarTech. He is known for creating successful businesses and building top-notch teams that drive all ventures to the top of their industries.
Ali Shahami, Chief Executive Officer
R&K Immigration Group, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Dr. Ali Shahami is an immigration practitioner and entrepreneur with 20+ years of experience. As CEO of R&K Immigration Group, he specializes in Australian, New Zealand, U.S., and European immigration. Holding a PhD in Business and multiple law degrees, he is a recognized leader in global migration solutions.