Breakfast of Corporate Champions

Gloria Lin is a Senior Managing Director in Evercore’s Strategic, Defense and Shareholder Advisory Team.

For over 15 years, she has advised companies and their board of directors on activism defense, hostile takeovers, strategic alternatives, corporate governance and shareholder engagement. 

She counsels clients on implementing best-in-class shareholder engagement and defense practices as part of Board and company’s proactive risk management – often times taking an offensive approach to avoiding hostile escalation. 

Prior to joining Evercore, Ms. Lin was at Citi in the Mergers and Acquisitions group.  She has successfully defended clients in private and public situations against Ancora, Elliott, JANA, Legion, Sachem Head, Scopia, Starboard, Standard General, ValueAct and Third Point, among others. 

Ms. Lin holds a B.S. degree from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and frequents as a guest lecturer on various finance and M&A related topics.

Shannon Nash is a global C-suite leader, Qualified Financial Expert, attorney, and CPA with more than 30 years of experience across technology, finance, and governance. She currently serves as a Partner at Alpha AI, where she helps boards and executive teams strengthen AI governance, risk oversight, and strategic decision-making.

Shannon was formerly the CFO of Wing, an Alphabet company, where she led global finance, operations, and partnerships for the autonomous drone delivery pioneer, scaling the organization through a period of significant global expansion and regulatory milestones. Her executive track record also includes CFO roles at Reputation.com and Inside Source, and senior finance leadership at Amgen and Cumulus Media. She began her career at KPMG and Cooley LLP.

An experienced independent board director, Shannon is a 2025 NACD Directorship 100 honoree and one of Silicon Valley’s 100 Most Influential Women. Shannon was recently appointed to the Advisory Council of the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence, joining 12 accomplished public company board directors helping shape the future of corporate governance. She serves on the boards of NetScout Systems (NASDAQ: NTCT, Audit Committee), SoFi Bank (subsidiary of NASDAQ: SOFI, Chair, Compensation Committee), and Lazy Dog Restaurants (Chair, Audit Committee). She also chairs the Audit Committee of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, overseeing more than $16B in assets.

Shannon is also the creator and host of No Boxes: Just Verses, a globally acclaimed leadership podcast that ranks in the Top 5% of all podcasts worldwide and has charted internationally. She brings a distinct vantage point to the microphone: that of a fellow operator and C-suite peer. Leveraging her decades of operational experience, Shannon facilitates high-level strategic dialogues that blend deep business relevance with the personal stories—the “verses”—that shape great leaders.

In addition to her podcast, she is an award-winning film producer with premieres at numerous festivals, including Tribeca (OnBoard) and a win at the American Pavilion in Cannes (Colored My Mind). She holds both a BS in Accounting and a JD from the University of Virginia.

Laysha Ward is an accomplished C-suite executive with a demonstrated ability to lead through rapid change, solve problems, build innovative community programs, and collaborate with key stakeholders to support organizational goals and objectives. The stories and lessons in her book, Lead Like You Mean It: Lessons on Integrity and Purpose From the C-Suite, inspire readers to embrace their purpose, make intentional choices, nurture relationships, and champion and sustain themselves and others.

Laysha held numerous roles during nearly 33 years at Target Corporation, a Fortune 50 company with $100+ billion in annual revenue. 

In 2008, President Bush nominated and the U.S. Senate confirmed Laysha as a member of the board of directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service, the nation’s largest grantmaker for volunteering and service. Under the Obama Administration, she served as board chair. 

She is a member of the Economic Clubs of Chicago and New York, Executive Leadership Council, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Black Women on Boards and Women Corporate Directors – Tampa Bay Chapter. She serves on the nonprofit boards of the Minnesota Orchestra and the Northside Achievement Zone, as well as the board of Minnesota Sports and Events and the for-profit boards of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. and MACRO. 

Laysha received a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University, Master’s degree from the University of Chicago, and an Honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs.

Sonita Lontoh sits at the intersection of AI governance, board leadership, and sustainable growth. Currently, she serves on the boards of Sunrun, the largest U.S. consumer solar and battery company, and TrueBlue, a global workforce-solutions leader. She is also a Partner at Alpha, an AI governance firm, and an advisor to the Responsible AI Institute, Kearney and Sway Ventures. Previously, Sonita held C-suite roles at HP, Siemens, PG&E and at venture-backed Silicon Valley firms. A champion of technology for humanity and increasing women in leadership, she has been recognized by the White House, the U.S. State Department, the Wall Street Journal, and the Financial Times. Sonita is a graduate of MIT, UC Berkeley, and Northwestern’s Kellogg.

Dr. Sylvia Johnson is a Senior executive and Presidential appointee to the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board with nearly 20 years of leadership experience spanning federal oversight, public policy, workplace safety, complex investigations, and stakeholder governance. Johnson has a proven track record guiding organizations through operational transformation, regulatory scrutiny, crisis response, and reputational risk management. Expertise includes human capital, government affairs, and strategic stakeholder engagement, with a strong history of bipartisan influence and executive-level decision-making.

As a presidential appointee, Johnson Provides governance oversight for national investigations into major industrial chemical incidents and safety failures. Eliminated a historic investigative backlog, strengthened public trust, supported a 400% increase in investigative staffing, modernized investigative operations, accelerated report completion timelines, and engaged regulators, industry leaders, labor organizations, and communities on risk mitigation and safety standards.

Prior to joining the CSB, Johnson advised executive leadership of the National Education Association (NEA) on federal policy and enterprise risk issues impacting more than 3 million members. Influenced legislative outcomes related to healthcare, labor standards, retirement security, and workplace safety, while leading stakeholder engagement and COVID-19 workplace safety response efforts.

Before joining the Led national advocacy strategy on healthcare, workplace safety, trade, and tax policy affecting 1.5 million members for the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, & Agricultural Implement Workers
of America, (UAW). Contributed to passage of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act and advised leadership on policy, governance, and stakeholder engagement strategies.

Johnson initially joined UAW and led workplace hazard and disease investigations, developed occupational risk analytics systems, and advanced enhanced safety protections across manufacturing environments. She has served on several boards including the Board of Trustees at Meharry Medical College; the UAW and General Motors Occupational Health Advisory Board; the UAW and Chrysler Scientific Advisory Committee; and the Board of Editors for the American Journal of Industrial Medicine.

She holds certifications in Executive Leadership from the Harvard Business School — Preparing to Be a Corporate Director (2026); Columbia University Executive Education — High Impact Leadership (2024); Columbia University
Executive Education—Developing and Leading High Performing Teams (2023); a Ph.D., Urban Health Services Research from Old Dominion University; M.S., Biomedical Engineering (Industrial Hygiene) from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a B.A., degree in Geography (Mathematics & Physics Minors) from Fayetteville State University.

Lori Keith has extensive experience as an institutional investor combined with in-depth knowledge of corporate governance and sustainable investing. She is a Portfolio Manager at Parnassus Investments, a socially responsible asset management firm, where she manages the Parnassus Mid-Cap Fund.

She also serves on the Board of Directors at e.l.f. Beauty and currently sits on the Audit and Nominating & Corporate Governance Committees. Previously, Ms. Keith held the position of Vice President of Investment Banking at Deloitte & Touche Corporate Finance LLC and was a Senior Associate in the Investment Banking division at Robertson Stephens & Company. She started her career as a management consultant at Ernst & Young. She earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of California, Los Angeles, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

June Yang is a seasoned technology and business executive with an extensive track record of scaling multi-billion dollar businesses, building high-performing teams, and driving innovation in AI, cloud infrastructure, and data analytics. She is recognized for her strategic vision in helping global enterprise customers navigate complex digital transformation journeys.

Currently, June serves on the corporate boards of UiPath, NetApp, and MSCI, alongside various private company boards.

Previously, June held key leadership roles at Google Cloud, serving as the Vice President of Cloud AI and Industry Solutions, where she led the portfolio of AI products and services. Prior to that, as the Vice President & General Manager for Compute & AI Infrastructure, she managed a multi-billion dollar P&L and a broad portfolio of cloud computing and storage services.

Earlier in her career, June served as Vice President of Product Management and Engineering at
VMware, where she was responsible for vSphere, the company’s flagship multi-billion dollar revenue product. Her background also includes leadership positions at Oracle and extensive experience across high tech, strategic consulting, and investment management.

June holds an M.S. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, an M.S. from UC Berkeley, and a B.S. from Caltech.

Ed Magee is an award-winning corporate director, C-suite executive, and combat veteran. He was named to Directors & Boards magazine’s Directors to Watch 2026, extending a run of national governance honors: the 2025 NACD Directorship 100, the profession’s most selective recognition; the Corporate Directors Forum’s 2024 Director of the Year, Emerging Board Leader Award; and a place on Savoy Magazine’s 2024 Most Influential Corporate Directors list.

Ed serves on the board of WD-40 Company (NASDAQ: WDFC), contributing to its Audit, Compensation, and Finance Committees, and chairs the Nashville chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors. He is Chief Operating Officer of Belmont University’s Thomas F. Frist Jr. College of Medicine and a Professor of Practice in its Massey College of Business, following EVP- and president-level operating roles at Harley-Davidson, ABB, and Fender. A 2025 Presidential Leadership Scholar, he holds degrees from the U.S. Naval Academy, Duke, and George Mason.

Ruth Cotter is senior vice president and chief administrative officer at AMD, leading the company’s integrated, enterprise-wide corporate operations organization. She oversees marketing, communications, human resources, corporate security and information technology, aligning these functions to support the company’s growth and business strategy. With more than 30 years of experience, Cotter has played a central role in scaling AMD during hypergrowth, bringing a strong focus on strategic planning, execution excellence and people-centric leadership.

Under her leadership, AMD has significantly expanded brand awareness through its “together we advance” campaign, strengthened the AMD executive team’s thought leadership and increased engagement across its more than 30,000 employees. She has also led major integration efforts, including the Xilinx acquisition, the largest semiconductor transaction of its time, and continues to play a key role in companywide transformation initiatives. In her previous role, she led investor relations, where she drove a proactive investor outreach campaign that contributed to AMD becoming one of the best-performing stocks on the S&P 500.

Cotter serves on the board of directors of the Ireland Funds America, Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) Women’s Leadership Council and the National Academies Committee on Women in Science, Engineering, and Medicine. She has received recognition in PRWeek’s U.S. Power List, Technology Magazine’s Top 100 Women in Technology, the National Diversity Council’s Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Tech and Top 100 HR and Communication Professionals.

Davis joined Make-A-Wish America in January 2019, where he served as the President & CEO until November 2022. Previously, he served as the executive chairman and CEO of U.S. Bancorp, a financial service holding company with more than $460 billion in total assets and businesses across the United States, Canada and Europe.

Davis began his banking career as a teller at age 18 and worked his way through college. He became CEO of U.S. Bancorp in 2006 and chairman of the board in 2007, previously having been a senior executive with the organization and its predecessors since 1993. His outstanding leadership skills were recognized as he was named the “2010 Executive of the Year” by the Twin Cities Business Journal and “2010 Banker of the Year” by the American Banker.

During his career Davis has held executive level positions with Bank of America and Security Pacific Bank, both in Los Angeles, and with legacy organizations of today’s U.S. Bancorp, which include the former Firstar Corporation in Milwaukee and Star Banc Corporation in Cincinnati. Davis’ enthusiasm for his industry is equally prevalent in his civic and philanthropic commitments. In addition to having served as Executive Chairman of U.S. Bancorp’s board, Davis currently serves on the boards of Mastercard, Mayo Clinic, Dow Chemical, Wells Fargo, and Scholars of Finance. He has served on the boards of numerous industry and non-profit organizations, including the American National Red Cross, the Twin Cities YMCA, and the University of Minnesota Foundation. He also served as the co-chairman for the 2018 Super Bowl Host Committee.

Davis has been honored by the Banking and Finance Division of the UJA- Federation of New York and has been the recipient of the President’s Lifetime Volunteer Service Award. In 2011, he received the Henrickson’s Award for Ethical Leadership. Davis was also named one of the 100 Most Influential People in Business Ethics by the Ethisphere Institute in 2015.

Davis earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from California State University at Fullerton. He is married and has three adult children and seven grandchildren.

Kirsty Graham is a seasoned leader with a 30-year career in policy, communications, and public relations, spanning senior roles in government, Corporate America, and the agency world.

Kirsty began her career in international diplomacy, serving 16 years in the New Zealand Foreign Service where she worked on a range of economic, trade, and political issues. Her diplomatic assignments included a secondment to support Foreign Minister Sir Don McKinnon (1994–1996), a five-year posting to Washington, D.C. (1996–2000), a secondment as Deputy Spokesperson at the British Embassy in Washington (2001), and five years as New Zealand’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations (2006–2010).

Following her government service, Kirsty spent a decade at Pfizer Inc. in a series of senior leadership roles. Most notably, she served as Head of Global Policy and later as Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs for the Biopharmaceuticals Group, where she directed global public affairs, communications, and policy across more than 125 markets.

In March 2020, Kirsty joined Edelman and has since held four leadership roles, including Global Chair of the Health sector and Global President of Practices and Sectors. In these positions, she led strategy for the firm’s largest practice areas, spearheaded award-winning global client work, and guided the development of Edelman’s corporate and brand communications, ESG, and industry sector strategies.

Today, as CEO of Edelman U.S., Kirsty continues to serve on Edelman’s Executive Leadership Team, bringing together her deep expertise in diplomacy, corporate affairs, and communications to help clients navigate the intersection of business, policy, and society.

Ron began his career in 1982 with the Price Company in the Phoenix, Arizona market, holding several management positions in operations before being promoted to Warehouse Manager in Colorado in 1992.

After seven years as a Warehouse Manager across both Colorado and Arizona, he was promoted to Vice President of Operations for the San Diego Region in 1999. In 2010, Ron relocated to Washington upon his promotion to Senior Vice
President of the Northwest Region.

In August 2015, he transitioned to the Real Estate department, where he focused on international and domestic new markets and expansion. Shortly thereafter, in July 2016, Ron became the Executive Vice President of Merchandising.

In February 2022, Costco’s Board of Directors appointed Ron as President and Chief Operating Officer, and he was elected to the Board of Directors. In January 2024, Ron became the third Chief Executive Officer of Costco Wholesale.

Jim Fitterling is Chair and Chief Executive Officer for Dow Inc., one of the world’s leading materials science companies with 2025 sales of approximately $40 billion. He became CEO in July 2018 and was elected Board Chair in April 2020. Previously, he served as Chief Operating Officer for the Materials Science Division of DowDuPont, an $86 billion holding company.

Fitterling has played a key role in Dow’s transformation from a lower-margin, commodity company to one deeply focused on higher-growth markets that value innovation – with the ambition to be most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive, and sustainable materials science company in the world.

He joined Dow in 1984 and served in a variety of sales, marketing, supply chain, corporate development, and business operations positions, including spending more than 10 years in leadership roles across Asia.

At his direction, Dow became a founding member of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW) to drive innovation, increase much-needed resources, and take decisive actions to put an end to plastic waste in the environment. Additionally, he served as the business lead in Dow’s launch of its next-generation sustainability goals and drove the introduction of its accelerated plastics circularity and climate and greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.

A passionate advocate for inclusion, Fitterling leads Dow’s drive to diversify its global talent and is widely recognized for his work supporting non-discrimination and workplace equality.

Martina L. Cheung is President, CEO, and a member of the Board of Directors of S&P Global.

Previously, Ms. Cheung was President of S&P Global Ratings and served as the Executive Lead of S&P Global Sustainable1. Earlier, she was President of S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Ms. Cheung joined the Company in 2010 as Vice President of Operations for S&P Global Ratings and went on to serve as S&P Global’s Chief Strategy Officer. She also was Head of Risk Services for S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Prior to joining S&P Global, Ms. Cheung worked for Accenture’s Financial Services Strategy group and later as a Partner at Mitchell Madison Consulting.

Barron’s recognized Ms. Cheung as one of the 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance in 2025. Ms. Cheung was named one of the Most Powerful Women in Finance by American Banker and included on the list of Influential Women  in Institutional Investing by Pensions & Investments in 2024. Also in 2024, INvolve named her to its 100 Empower Executives list for the second consecutive year. Ms. Cheung received the Merit Award from The Women’s Bond Club in  2022.

Ms. Cheung is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Economic Club of New York.

Ms. Cheung served on the Board of Trustees for Catholic Charities New York and was a member of the Board of CRISIL, a global analytics company and India’s leading credit ratings agency.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and a master’s degree in business studies from National University of Ireland, Galway.

Maggie Wilderotter is a seasoned executive who, as CEO, has led both Fortune 500 companies and start-ups in her career. In addition, she has extensive Board leadership serving on over 35 public company and 14 private company Boards of Directors.

Today, Maggie serves on the public boards of Costco Wholesale Corporation and DocuSign. She serves on the private boards of Tanium, and Sonoma Biotherapeutics. In addition, Maggie is also a Senior Advisor to a number of companies  including Accenture, the Blackstone Group, Atairos Private Equity, American Century Investments, Celonis, Garden City, GEP, and SHRM. Currently, she is one of the top 20 ‘2024 Value Creating Corporate Directors’ in America by the
Chief Executive Group.

Maggie was Chief Executive Officer of Frontier Communications from November, 2004 to April, 2015, and then Executive Chairman of the company until April, 2016. During her tenure with Frontier, the company grew from a regional telephone company with customer revenues of less than $1 billion to a national broadband, voice and video provider with operations in 29 states and annualized revenues in excess of $10 billion.

Previously, her career included being the Senior Vice President of Global Business Strategy and ran the Worldwide Public Sector at Microsoft. Before this, she was President and CEO of Wink Communications Inc., Executive Vice President of National Operations for AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Chief Executive Officer of AT&T’s Aviation Communications Division, and a Senior Vice President of McCaw Cellular Communications Inc. Maggie previously served on the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC) as both Vice Chairman and Chairman during her 4-year tenure ending in 2014. Mrs. Wilderotter also served until January, 2017 on the President’s  special Commission responsible for a recommendation report to the new President of the United States on Enhancing National Cybersecurity.

Her educational credentials include a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the College of the Holy Cross. She has been awarded an Honorary Doctor of Engineering degree from the Stevens Institute of Technology and an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Rochester.

Suzan Morno‐Wade is a board director and strategic advisor with experience across public, private, and private‐equity‐backed companies in the industrial, manufacturing, technology, consumer, and health technology sectors. She serves as an Independent Director and Compensation Committee Chair for Latham Group (NASDAQ: SWIM) and Veritiv Holdings, and advises early‐stage technology companies leveraging AI to drive disruption.

Her board work spans strategy, financial oversight, enterprise risk, CEO and leadership succession, M&A, and organizational health. Suzan also contributes to boardroom readiness as a member of the University of North Carolina Director Development Initiative Advisory Board.

Previously, she served as Chief Human Resources Officer of Xerox, partnering with the executive team through a global enterprise transformation. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Illinois and is NACD Directorship Certified.

Kimberly Petillo-Décossard is Co-Head of White & Case’s Global Mergers & Acquisitions Practice and a partner in the firm’s New York office. A trusted advisor to the boards and C-suites of leading U.S. public companies, Kimberly advises on complex business law matters, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions, strategic transactions, governance, disclosure, and compliance. Clients describe Kimberly to Chambers USA as “the finest lawyer I’ve worked with in my career — brilliant, approachable and business-minded,” and praise her as “extremely knowledgeable and a tremendous advocate” whose approach is “always thoughtful, considered and nuanced.” With a versatile practice spanning industries and geographies, Kimberly brings exceptional confidence, efficiency and judgment to her clients’ most consequential decisions. She is consistently recognized among the leading M&A lawyers in the United States, including as a Chambers USA Leading Corporate/M&A Lawyer, a Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyer, an American Lawyer “Dealmaker of the Year,” and a Law360 M&A MVP.

Hema Widhani is a principal with Edward Jones and the firm’s chief experience, brand and marketing officer. In this role, she leads brand, advertising and marketing teams in addition to leading client experience and insights across the enterprise. Hema is charged with reimagining how the firm engages with clients and how to deepen the client experience through human-centric design.

She serves on the Enterprise Leadership Team, which is responsible for providing advice and counsel to the managing partner in helping the firm to grow its impact and create value for clients, colleagues and communities today and in the future.

Prior to joining the firm, Hema spent 10 years at Prudential serving in various leadership roles in digital, marketing and customer experience including the roles of chief customer officer and chief digital and marketing officer. Prior to Prudential, Hema was head of customer engagement at E-Trade Financial and led digital customer experience at Citigroup.

Hema has deep leadership and domain expertise across consumer products and financial services. She has spent her career at the intersection of digital, data, marketing and technology. She holds an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University and a master’s degree in econometrics and international business from Lancaster University in the United Kingdom. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Delhi in New Delhi, India.

Hema serves on the board of directors for AAR, a public company and leading provider of aviation services to commercial and government operators.

Dambisa Moyo, a member of the UK’s House of Lords, is a principal at Versaca Investments, a family office focused on global growth investing. She sits on several corporate boards, including Chevron, Condé Nast, and Starbucks, along with non-corporate boards like the Economic Club of New York, National Geographic Society, and Oxford University Endowment.

Dambisa has authored five bestselling books on the global macroeconomy and geopolitics. She holds a PhD in economics from Oxford University and a master’s degree from Harvard University. She is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Byron Loflin is the Global Head of Board Advisory at Nasdaq where he leads the governance team in driving board and governance effectiveness. Byron founded Center for Board Excellence (CBE) in 2010 and was CEO until it was acquired by Nasdaq in 2019. Prior to CBE, Byron was the CEO and president for two private companies between 1992-2009. Byron is the architect and developer of a governance platform and tools used by thousands of board members globally.

Along with speaking on and teaching corporate governance effectiveness, Byron has co-authored the book CEO Ready with Mark Thompson and being published by Harvard Business Review, November 2025. The book draws insights from their over 25 years of experience with board dynamics including CEO succession. Byron is a graduate of James Madison University (BA) and Harvard Business School (OPM) and an active learner with several HBS Executive Education Certificates including Havard’s Board Effectiveness program.

Recently published:
Driving Excellence: Redefining AI Governance videocast with Steven Wolfe Pereira, July 2025
“Trust and the Interplay of Confidence and Accountability”, International Banker February 2025
“Enterprise Risk Management for Next-Gen Boards”, Nasdaq January 2025