Company/Organization & Achievement Awards Judging Committee
Chair:
Jenny Leman, President
CareerPlug, Austin, Texas, United States
After 20 years in either healthcare or business operations, Jenny Leman is currently the President of CareerPlug, a people operations software platform that helps small business teams grow by hiring and retaining the right people. As an EOS Integrator, she is dedicated to partnering with Founders/Visionaries to help their entrepreneurial dream and vision come to fruition through execution across product delivery, go-to-market strategies, and all internal operations so teams can deliver consistent results that work for the business and its customers.
During Jenny’s 8 years there, CareerPlug’s impact expanded from supporting about 7,000 small business teams to more than 70,000 today, most commonly in the franchising space. The organization was recognized with a Stevie Award for Sustainability in 2024 and recently, Jenny was accepted into the University of Texas ‘Women Who Mean Business’ Fall 2025 executive leadership program, which develops rising executives who are ready to further accelerate their influence and impact.
Jenny’s expertise spans SMB SaaS operations, people-first operations, entrepreneurial organizations, and partner ecosystems with parent-child networks such as franchises. She champions equitable and transparent employment practices and builds systems that make fairness practical, measurable, and sustainable.
As an occasional podcast guest and speaker, Jenny advises early Visionaries, women in tech, and small business leaders on topics such as leading People-First, navigating the volatile North American labor market, shifting applicant expectations, and the responsible use of AI in hiring. She serves as Co-Chair of the Austin Women in Franchising Network and on the board of Protect Young Eyes, a nonprofit helping youth build healthier digital habits. She is a committed advocate for working parents and for workplaces where talent, results and family can thrive together.
As a judge, she looks for organizations with a clear vision, operational excellence, and an unwavering commitment to their values and mission, along with the agility/creativity to stay relevant when competitive markets shift.
Committee:
Pulkit Aggarwal, Senior Product Manager
Workday, Inc., Pleasanton, California, United States
Pulkit, Senior Product Manager at Workday, drives innovation with AI and ML solutions that optimize workflows, deliver actionable insights, and enhance decision-making. Formerly at Gap Inc., he transformed global supply chain operations and is recognized for his strategic vision, leadership, and commitment to advancing the technology community.
Damilola Abiola Akinduro, Global Head of Benefits
Equinix, Milton, Ontario, Canada
Damilola Abiola Akinduro is a global HR Executive specializing in Total Rewards. She has led this sub-function Globally and across regions at Equinix, Barry Callebaut, Nestle and KPMG. A trusted advisor and international speaker, Damilola is known for driving high-impact people practices that elevate employee experience and business outcomes.
Ramya Avula, Business Info Developer Consultant
Carelon Research, Wilmington, Delaware, United States
Ramya Avula has over a decade of experience in healthcare research and analytics, collaborating with pharmaceutical companies, the FDA, and academia. Published in The Lancet and JAMA, she develops industry-standard algorithms and enterprise applications that enhance public health outcomes, improve operational efficiency, and advance the integration of AI in healthcare.
Amy Cannon, Integration Consultant
Commerce Technology, Charleston, South Carolina, United States
Amy has spent the last decade working with a focus primarily on commerce and healthcare technologies, helping multi-billion dollar businesses and healthcare organizations embark on digital transformation projects and optimize use of technology for operational and revenue driving needs.
Cheshta Chauhan, Business Intelligence Reporting Manager
Heico Companies LLC, Warrenville, Illinois, United States
Cheshta serves as Head of Data and Analytics at The Heico Companies, overseeing transformation across a diversified portfolio of 70+ businesses. Holding dual master’s degrees in Finance and Information Technology, she integrates strategic leadership with technical expertise. Cheshta also adjudicates global innovation awards, advancing excellence in business and digital innovation.
Manikandan Dhanabalan, Software Engineering Senior Director
CRC Group, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
A seasoned engineering leader delivering enterprise-scale digital transformation across the financial services and insurance sectors. Led high-impact initiatives involving finance system modernization, large-scale data migrations, mainframe optimization, and the development of secure, cloud-native platforms. Renowned for architecting resilient, scalable solutions aligned with strategic business goals, he thrives in fast-paced environments.
Harshini Gadam, Manager, Cloud EPM Finance
Staples, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Harshini is an accomplished Enterprise Planning Transformation Lead with over a decade of experience in Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) across diverse sectors, including financial services, retail, insurance, and manufacturing. Her expertise lies in leading financial system transformations into cloud-based planning platforms at Staples, McLarens & Dyma brands, specifically Anaplan, Workday and Oracle Cloud EPM.
Lorretta Gasper, Principal
Wind Rose Communications, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Lorretta Gasper founded Wind Rose Communications, a public relations and marketing consultancy specializing in B2B technology. She has more than 35 years of experience as a financial journalist and corporate communications/investor relations executive, including at the Wall Street Journal and publicly traded corporations.
Ibrahim R A Harara, Service Management Specialist
Government Organization, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Ibrahim has over 7 years of project experience in Management consulting, Public Service Performance development, Models Implementation & Channels Assessment and Improvement. He has worked with many UAE Government Organizations to achieve both locally & globally identified accreditation, including the Global Star Rating Program "7 Star," Management Standards "ISO," Strategic Planning and Future Foresight, and the Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award "SKEA."
Alison Higgins-Miller, Chief Executive Officers
SalesonQ, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Alison Higgins-Miller is a global executive coach and strategist, driving growth, transformation, and leadership excellence across startups to $100B enterprises in 40+ countries. She empowers leaders and teams to achieve breakthrough outcomes through frontline experience, insight, and execution.
Jiayuan Huang, Quantitative Strategist
Deutsche Bank, New York City, New York, United States
Jiayuan is a Credit Desk Strategist at Deutsche Bank, where he develops pricing and risk analytics, conducts research, and models trading strategies for the credit trading business.
Jenna Joseph, Commercial Manager - PCRO Americas
Shell, Katy, Texas, United States
Jenna Joseph has 25 years of experience in the energy industry, 22 of those years with Shell. A certified accountant, Jenna has held various leadership roles within Finance, Commercial, Asset Management, and Business Transformation. Jenna is passionate about people and co-creating high-performing team cultures founded on trust and collaboration.
Nupur Joshi, Venture Development Lead
ADL Ventures, New York City, New York, United States
Nupur Joshi is a venture builder and finance strategist in climate tech and fintech. At ADL Ventures, she led market entry, fundraising, and product strategy for sustainable technologies; previously, she built underwriting and fraud controls for fintechs. She advises founders on go-to-market, analytics, and capital strategy.
Rose Jurczewski, Portfolio Manager
Associa, Schaumburg, Illinois , United States
Rose Jurczewski, received her AA in Business Management Computer Analysis with a Minor in Accounting from the University of Pennsylvania. Rose is a Portfolio Manager for several homeowner associations in Illinois and an active member of the Illinois Legal Action Committee for the Illinois Chapter of Community Association Institute (CAI).
Durga Prasad Kare, Project Delivery Lead
Deloitte Consulting LLP, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Durga, a distinguished innovation leader at Deloitte Consulting LLP, has carved an exceptional path in the enterprise application industry. With 19 years of tenure, he's led various global teams and currently heads the cloud ERP practice for the Value Advisory team and is driving digital transformation for numerous Fortune 500 companies.
Palak Mittal, Senior Manager, Product & Engineering Management
Align Technology Inc., San Jose, California, United States
Dr. Palak Mittal is a Senior Manager of Product & Engineering Management at Align Technology (the makers of Invisalign). With a Bachelor’s degree in Dental Science, followed by MS in Healthcare Management, Palak has over 10 years of experience in product development in the healthcare and medical devices industry.
Rachita Naik, Machine Learning Engineer
Lyft, Inc., Jersey City, New Jersey, United States
Rachita Naik is a Machine Learning Engineer with expertise in building large-scale AI systems. She holds a master's in Computer Science from Columbia University. Her work spans applied machine learning, real-time decision systems, and published research in medical imaging and AI.
Sayaka Ohshima, Audit Associate
Haskell & White, Irvine, California, United States
Sayaka Ohshima is a U.S.-based auditor and business writer specializing in cross-border accounting, contributing to numerous international publications. She holds an MBA from Utica University, with her work focused on SEC compliance, economic policy, and global capital flows, promoting financial transparency and innovation through public accounting and thought leadership.
Ozioma Onyeibor, Vice President
Iroko Capital, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria
Accomplished finance executive with nearly 20 years' experience guiding investment strategy, corporate governance, and portfolio performance across multiple sectors, including healthcare, power, infrastructure, and financial services. Skilled in overseeing complex, high-value transactions—recapitalizations, M&A, capital raising, and strategic investments—while driving operational growth and shareholder value.
Zeel Patel, Engineering Manager
Amazon, Allen, Texas, United States
Zeel is a results-driven Engineering manager with 8+ years of experience driving cloud innovation, improving operational efficiency, and driving customer success. Currently spearheading a dynamic team of 23+ engineers at AWS, overseeing critical big data services including EMR, Bedrock, Sagemaker, DynamoDB. Deep technical proficiency in AWS ecosystem including Devops, Bigdata, Compute, Storage, Database.
Raghavender Reddy Puchhakayala, Senior Quant Analytics Associate
JPMorgan Chase / Senior Member IEEE, Dallas, Texas, United States
Raghavender Puchhakayala is an accomplished Analytics Solutions Associate Senior at JP Morgan Chase, with over a decade of expertise in data warehousing and business intelligence. Based in Dallas, he holds a Master's degree in Computer Science from UMKC and actively contributes to the IEEE, advancing technology discourse and professional networking.
Atul Punj, CEO
IBSFINtech USA Inc. Bridgewater, New Jersey, United States
With over 30 years of experience in the IT industry, Atul is passionate about delivering innovative solutions that empower businesses to achieve their goals. As the CEO of IBSFINtech USA, Atul led the expansion of his corporate finance platform, the TMS, into the US market, a strategic move to revolutionize global treasury operations.
Devanand Ramachandran, Senior Manager
DXC, Chantilly, Virginia, United States
With over 20 years of IT experience, Devanand specializes in Salesforce implementation and sales operations support. He has successfully led complex integration initiatives, navigating the intricacies of combining systems and processes during mergers and acquisitions. He excels in crafting innovative solutions that drive organizational growth and facilitate seamless transitions.
Hitali Shah, Advanced Analyst
Electronic Arts Wesley Chapel, Florida, United States
Hitali Shah is an Advanced Analyst at Electronic Arts with expertise in data analytics, business strategy, and innovation. She holds two master's degrees and has worked at LinkedIn and Oracle. Passionate about leveraging data for decision-making, she holds multiple certifications and thrives on solving complex problems to enhance user experiences.
Anastasii Shakula, Senior Staff Accountant
Ashton Woods Homes, Alpharetta, Georgia, United States
Anastasiia Shakula is a Senior Staff Accountant at Ashton Woods Homes with international experience in audit and accounting. She holds a Master’s degree in Accounting and Taxation and specializes in financial reporting, corporate accounting and process improvement, bringing both strong analytical skills and a global perspective to her professional expertise.
Dhanveer Singh, Senior Manager, Software Engineering
Capital One Financial Service, Richmond, Virginia, United States
Technology leader with more than 17+ years of experience and expertise in Software Engineering, building products and platforms from the ground up with an excellent track record of architecting and delivering highly reliable and scalable systems with a security-first mindset. An exceptional leader and mentor with skills to motivate peak individual performance of team members.
Vijaya Singh, Senior Manager BI and Analytics
American Express, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Vijaya, Senior Manager of BI and Analytics at American Express for three years, has over 15 years’ experience in finance, supply chain, and telecommunications analytics. An MBA graduate and Outstanding Student Award honoree from KSU’s Coles College, she enjoys creating abstract and dot art and cherishing time with her children.
Lucia Stoicescu, Country Manager Wonderful
Bucharest, Romania
Lucia is an IT Leader and Board Member with 20 years of expertise in software and consultancy. Harvard alumni are driven by purpose and committed to operational excellence, building high-performance teams, advancing ethical AI and responsible innovation.
Alla Stozhok, Founder & Director, Cello Story LLC and Music Educator
Cello Story, Pomfret Center, Connecticut, United States
Alla is a music director, orchestra artist, and educator with over 7 years of experience, a researcher in the field of the impact of music on child brain development, and the founder of an innovative music school. She created a unique author’s music education methodology that combines classical music education and psychological-pedagogical principles of development.
Anuj Tandon, Executive Director
JP Morgan Chase, New York City, New York, United States
Anuj Tandon is a seasoned Risk professional who is currently the head of Liquidity Risk Oversight at State Street. Prior to this he has worked with JP Morgan for 10+ years.
Dipasnigdha Tapadar, Senior Technical Program Manager
Cognizant Technology Solutions, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Dipasnigdha is a visionary and collaborative Technology & Data Product Leader with 15+ years of experience delivering digital transformation, omnichannel engagement, and data product platforms across life sciences, healthcare, and higher education. Adept at leading global product teams, managing agile data product portfolios, and integrating commercial data from SP/Hub, field force, and patient journey sources.
Shruti Worlikar, Senior Manager Analytics Specialist SA
Amazon Web Services, Herndon, Virginia, United States
Shruti is a cloud technology leader with expertise in AWS, data analytics, and AI/ML. She has scaled global teams, driven cloud transformations, and authored works on technology innovation. A mentor and advocate for women in tech, she blends technical depth with impactful leadership.