15 local leaders selected as GET Cities Champions for gender equity in tech. Let’s meet them

Fifteen people from businesses and organizations throughout South Florida were selected to participate in the GET (Gender Equality in Tech) Cities’ GET Champions initiative in Miami. GET Champions Miami, designed by GET Cities and powered by Radical Partners, aims to build a culture of inclusivity and diversity within the tech industry.

“Miami’s tech industry is growing rapidly right now while the pressure to stop or scale back diversity, equity and inclusion efforts is increasing too,” said Toia Santamarina, GET Cities Miami Director. “This is an important moment to take a stand and defend the importance of this work while also making sure leaders in our city are prepared to hire, retain and support diverse teams.”

The GET Champions program is a six-week-long sprint for tech leaders looking to increase support for women, trans and nonbinary employees within their companies. The cohort will receive exclusive executive coaching, DEI initiative analysis, virtual training, and in-person networking, mentorship, and hiring events in an effort to equip participants with the tools and strategies needed to become effective managers for marginalized groups in their companies and grow and retain diverse, high-performance teams.

The 15 participants were selected for their leadership and commitment to diversity and equity in the tech industry, the organizations said. “The selected participants represent a range of companies and sectors, and we are excited to work with them to deepen support for marginalized groups in tech,” said Joan Marie Godoy, Executive Director of Radical Partners.

The Champions are:

•           Anais Aguero, Ironhack, Student Success Senior Manager

•           Brittany Fox, Focus Global Talent Solutions, Owner, Co-founder, Chief Operating Officer (COO)

•           Chuck Walter, FriendApp, Founder

•           Inigo Quejigo, Mastercard, Senior Vice President Operations & Technology Lead, LAC region

•           Julie Vallejos Pasco, INIT, Executive Director

•           Michelle Mora, Restaurant Brands International (RBI), Manager of Diversity and Inclusion

•           Kelsey Rumburg, FloatMe, Director of Operations

•           Lesly Simon, South Dade Toyota and South Dade Kia, Senior Consultant for Public Affairs and Corporate Responsibility

•           Lisa LaCascia, Betr, Head of People

•           Maria Paula Dominguez, CIC, Head of Special Programs, Global

•           Sandra Benedicto, Hiberus International, COO and Business Development, Vice President

•         Tena Palomino, TempMee, Director of People Operations

•           William Byatt, Kaufman Rossin, Software Engineering Manager

•           Stefania Gioino, Paramount, Project Manager

•           Dana Wheeler, Oracle, IT Director

GET Champions Miami’s cohort will continue with hiring fairs and platforms beyond the sprint in order to support the participants’ goal of creating inclusive workspaces and increasing their marginalized talent by 13% by 2025.

GET Cities announced its new Miami chapter in 2021 and launched in early 2022, The nonprofit organization also has chapters in Chicago and Washington, DC. For more information about GET Cities and the GET Champions program, please visit www.getcities.org/get-champions

This photo was taken during a launch event for GET Cities Miami last year.

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Nancy Dahlberg