Mahesh is a dynamic leader with broad based experience leading digital strategy, digital transformation, analytics, business operations, experimentation, business intelligence, digital marketing, product adoption and finance organizations. He is a highly motivated individual with focus on execution to exceed goals and create the best-in-class customer experience and has a track record of influencing and guiding business strategy and operations for both mature and new business segments. Mahesh prides himself in being strong in communication, team player, interpersonal, influencing and leadership skills.

Mr. Facundo is a Sr. Environmental Consultant with over 40 years’ experience as a Systems Technologist within the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service (NWS) with expertise in meteorological observational systems and data processing platforms. Subject Matter Expert in commissioning major NWS systems and managing a variety of NWS observing programs while working with the FAA, DoD and the World Meteorological Organization at both the national and international levels. Since retiring from Federal Service, Mr. Facundo is serving as an Environmental Consultants to both small and large companies providing insight into NOAA’s mission and supporting the company’s business development efforts. He is an active member of the NWS’ Weather Ready Nation initiative and the American Meteorological Society where he authored extended abstracts, joint journal articles and as a joint author of a chapter within the book, Mesoscale Meteorology. He has received numerous awards as a NOAA employee along with the AMS Certificate for Outstanding Support as a member of the Network of Networks AMS committee responsible for assessing and investigating ways to integrate new observing networks into a cohesive national network. Mr. Facundo has supported the Hispanic Marketing Center for the past several years and is a proponent of its mission and vision of expanding focus on the up and coming field of marketing to multi-cultural groups. He has participated in the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Legislative Session in Washington DC as well as the Maryland Hispanic Business Conference as a panelist. Additionally, He has supported Historically Black Colleges and Universities through direct involvement with the NOAA Center for Atmospheric Sciences-Meteorology (NCAS-M)) advocating the development of students -- including at the Phd level -- for Federal service by creating internships and then recruiting them into NOAA along with assisting NCAS-M with their various academic centers of excellence. Mr. Facundo is a Vietnam-era veteran and graduated from Florida State University in 1978. He began his federal career as an FSU-intern during the mid-1970’s while studying meteorology. Throughout his career and as a consultant, he has supported the FSU Veterans program and worked with meteorological scientists at the university.

My name is Yerddy Lanfranco. I came to New York from the Dominican Republic when I was 10 years old, back in 1994. My mom and I left everything behind in the Dominican Republic to come to NY to chase the American dream. We landed with many dreams and hopes, but nothing material in our hands. Throughout the years we went through many ups and downs, but we always worked with excellence and dedication to achieve our goals. During college while studying at Hunter to pursue my BA/MA in Economics and Mathematics, I received the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Award. This award changed my life forever. With a scholarship, mentorship, and internship, I was able to get into Citigroup and start my career in Analytics. 20 years later, I have been able to accomplish a lot of things, which I am very proud of. Working in fortune 500 companies such as Barclays, TD Ameritrade, Verisk Analytics, Publicis, and now Interpublic Group of Companies. I was also able to obtain my second master’s in Business Analytics from NYU Stern. It has been a beautiful journey, in which I have given back to my community by becoming Board Vice Chair of the Global Connections for Women Foundation, mentoring COOP and Steven Golus Foundation students, and guest lecturing for so many universities including NYU, Columbia, City College, Baruch, and now Florida State University. There is so much work to do ahead, which is why I am honored to be considered for the Advisory Board of the Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication at Florida State University. As I move from New York to Florida this summer, I see the importance in taking a larger role in the community of Hispanics in Florida and how we can help the future generations achieve their own dreams and goals. Thank you in advance for the consideration and for giving me the opportunity to be amongst such a prestigious set of professionals.

Adrien Lanusse is an accomplished marketing executive with 20 years of multicultural and international marketing research and strategy experience. His passion lies in understanding the cultural nuances of diverse ethnic audiences based on extensive consumer qualitative and quantitative research, and translating those insights into solid brand strategy. Mr. Lanusse currently is Director of Consumer Insights at Netflix, where he works with marketing and product teams to understand global and domestic consumers. He previously was the head of Cheskin Added Value’s Intercultural Strategy & Design Studio where he worked across multiple industries with clients such as Time Warner, Wells Fargo, Wrigley, and BlueCross BlueShield to build solid brand strategies targeted to ethnic consumers. Mr. Lanusse is multilingual and multicultural of Mexican and French background, and has lived abroad. He attended the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University (Magna Cum Laude), with graduate studies at the École Supérieure de Commerce in Rouen, France. He also has an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.

Marketer, entrepreneur and thought leader. Currently president of a full service advertising agency specialized in helping brands understand and market to U.S. Multicultural and Hispanic consumers. Frequent speaker sharing expertise in marketing and the U.S. Hispanic segment. Specialties: Full service advertising and marketing communications; specialized in helping companies market to HISPANIC and MULTICULTURAL consumers. Strategy, creative development, broadcast production , market research, experiential marketing. Our client experience includes NAPA AUTO PARTS, Cox Communications, Starz, Encore, Discovery Channel, ING, Beazer Homes USA, Georgia Lottery, American Cancer Society, AutoTrader.com, Pollo Tropical, and Wachovia.

Yesenia Reyes is a Managing Director in Accenture’s Health & Public Service practice. As a project leader and change practitioner, she brings her public sector clients deep experience in the areas of project management, organizational change management on large financial transformations, design and customer-centered innovation initiatives, workforce and leadership learning and development, and strategic communications. Yesenia has worked with public sector clients in Texas, New York, California, and Florida. In addition to her client work, Yesenia has a passion for coaching and mentoring. She serves as the Executive Sponsor for Accenture’s North America Hispanic American Employee Resource Group (HAERG). Yesenia also works with individuals in career development and coaching, and in her community with local non-profit organizations. Yesenia came to Accenture from a career in non-profit organizational management and leadership. For 12 years, Yesenia led family assistance and education programs and organizations in Dallas, Texas. Her educational background is in Medical Anthropology and Community Health Programs, having attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and the University of Texas, School of Public Health, in Houston, Texas. Yesenia lives in Tallahassee, Florida. She enjoys travel, reading, cooking, and music.

As Executive Director of ELEVATE at Omnicom Media Group, Michael Roca advocates for a more equitable media and marketing ecosystem by highlighting the business imperative of engaging diverse segments.  He has also helped marketers such as Diageo, Google, and P&G diversify the mix of their media partnerships by shining a light on the capabilities of diverse owned, operated, and targeted media.  He has a proven track record of success in building culturally relevant and effective media strategies that drive brand growth and loyalty among diverse segments. He holds a BA in Communications from St. John’s University and an MBA from Nova Southeastern University.  Michael also advances DE&I causes on the corporate front as the executive sponsor of OMG’s Hispanic/Latin BRG while also sitting on the board of directors of the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE), Hispanic Marketing Council (HMC), and the advisory council of the Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF). Michael resides in America’s most vibrant and eclectic city, Miami, with his wife and their three children.

Leif Roll is Vice President of Marketing at State Farm's corporate headquarters in Bloomington, Illinois. He is passionate about product development and innovation and committed to my team and their development. As an executive, Leif is known for his creativity, technical knowledge, and getting things done through his highly engaged and competent team. Leif joined State Farm in 2000 as an Assistant Vice President of Marketing, where he helped launch State Farm’s foray into banking and mutual funds. In 2004, he was promoted to Vice President of Marketing Strategy and Marketing Communications. He assumed his current position as department head for Enterprise Marketing & Sales in 2013. Prior to coming to State Farm, Leif spent 18 years in the banking industry, working for Mellon Bank, First Union Bank, and KeyBank, where he focused on marketing and product development. In this capacity, he specialized in building credit, deposit, and investment products for the retail, small business, and private banking lines of business. Leif received his undergraduate degree from Denison University, in Granville, Ohio, and his MBA from the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, in Durham, North Carolina. Leif lives with his beautiful wife, Ginia, in Bloomington. They have three wonderful children: Jensen, Giles, and Georgi, two dogs, one cat, and many fish.

Luis Omar Tapia is an On Air Soccer Personality for Univision and famously known for his phrase “90 minutos del deporte mas hermoso del mundo”. He is from Santiago, Chile began his career in 1991 where Tapia was a narrator of prestigious leagues such as the Champions League, the Spanish League, the Italian Serie A, the Mexican League, the Mexican Cup, among others. In the early 2000s, he narrate many official matches of the Mexican National Team and First Division games of the Mexico league.  Tapia has also worked with Fox Sports Latin America, GolTV, ESPN, TV Azteca, and beIN Sports throughout the years. Then in 2013, Tapia joined Univision where he is named the best narrator of the best games for the Mexican League, Mexican Cup, MLS, Bundesliga, and much more. Tapia has truly showcased his passions through his career and spreads his expertise to the world.

Peter R. Villegas is Co-Chairman of Mercury, an international public strategy firm focused on providing results for the world’s most successful companies, leading advocacy groups, governments, political parties, NGO’s, and prominent and political figures. Peter serves as a national leader, developing and managing the execution of local, regional and national strategies that position companies as a leading corporate citizen across the U.S. with a focus on the multi-cultural communities. Peter’s responsibilities include managing relationships with key local, state and national political, community, business and civic leaders. Recognized as a regional and national corporate leader, Peter has led various corporate, civic, political, and community issues and initiatives, totaling 30 years of experience in corporate America including subject matter expertise in the financial services and consumer goods industries. In 2019 & 2020, Peter was recognized by Latino Leaders Magazine as one of the Most Influential Latinos in the country. Peter is also a Board member of the following organizations: • California State Athletic Commission, Vice Chair • Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Secretary • Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute • National Association of Latino Appointed & Elected Officials • U.S. Conference of Mayors Business Council • Delta Aeroméxico Corporate Leadership Advisory Council • Hispanas Organized for Political Equality Advisory Board • Florida State University Center for Hispanic Marketing • UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Senior Fellow • Inland Empire Economic Partnership, Chairman • Latino Leadership Institute • Georgia Association Latino Elected Officials • Orange County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Advisory Board • CHOC, Latino Advisory Board

Mayte Sera Weitzman is an award-winning communications professional with more than 30 years of experience in strategic public relations, brand development and community relations. Today she runs the public relations efforts at Goya Foods of Texas managing the many media and community promotions throughout Texas and is responsible for both diversity initiatives and community outreach in the United States, Texas, and in Latin America. Prior to joining Goya her boutique Public Relations firm, the W Group, was Goya’s agency of record in Texas. She oversees the media and community public relations efforts like the Goya Gives Program and coordinates donations and aid in Texas, Mexico, Venezuela and Central America. She is also part of the team that handles internal communication While still in college, Mayte began her career in public relations and internal communications at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in 1989. When she graduated, she became a senior account executive at De La Garza Public Relations in Houston, where she successfully opened the firm’s offices in Mexico City. Given her success with De La Garza Public Relations, which created a higher profile for her, she then worked for Pierpont Communications. At Pierpont she began and grew the Hispanic division for the agency. As her professional reputation grew, so did her responsibilities. Mayte then became the U.S. Public Relations Manager for AeroMexico. She is proud that she was instrumental in implementing the airline’s first worldwide public relations policy and crisis plan. As the official media spokesperson for AeroMexico in the U.S., Mayte was also a key in implementing the public relations efforts for the Sky Team global airline alliance. In 2003 Mayte founded her own public relations firm, The W Group. During her 17 years as an entrepreneur, she was the liaison between corporate America and the Houston Hispanic community. Mayte is proud that she created opportunities for the Hispanic community while representing firms and non-profits. She oversaw a number of successful diversity initiatives, multicultural projects and media campaigns. Mayte served as a bridge between her clients and the community, helping her clients grow and enhancing their reputation. The W Group was the agency of record in Houston for numerous large multicultural groups. Her impact and service to the community was recognized which allowed her to assume projects and clients that she believed in. Mayte has been recognized with many awards for her work and civic contributions. She has spearheaded several educational initiatives including serving as the Chairman and founder of the Cy-Fair Independent School District Hispanic Parent Advisory Board; she served on the Houston Drop-Out Task Force and established for the Houston Super Bowl XXXVIII the Super Quiz Super Challenge program. Mayte is currently the President-Elect of the Institute of Hispanic Culture of Houston and looks forward to her presidency in 2021. Her longstanding service to the community is reflected by the many organizations she has served among some of the recognitions she has received, Senior Female Corporate Executive of the Year in 2002, by the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Her efforts in behalf of the community were noticed and she was honored in the Tributo a la Mujer Hispana by Sucesos Newspaper in 2010. Other awards and recognition came from the American Heart Association, Empresaria del Año; by the Cámara de Empresarios de Houston in 2017 and recently the Latino Leaning Center honored her in 2019 with the Legacy Barbara Bush Humanitarian of the Year Award which received Congressional recognition. She has served the Houston Food Bank Hunger Relief Advisory Board, the Houston Texans Hispanic Advisory Board, the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board, the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau Board; the U.S. Mexican Chamber of Commerce serving on the Executive Committee and as Transportation Chair, Latin Women’s Initiative, Collaborative for Children and La Rosa Family Services. She is a graduate of The Center for Houston’s Future and United Way’s Project Blueprint and is a sustaining member of the Junior League of Houston. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism/Public Relations from the University of Houston and an Executive Community MBA from the University of Texas at Austin. A Cuban but born in Mexico, she has lived in in Mexico, California and Texas while also studying in France. Because of her own multi-cultural background, Mayte is proficient in three languages and understands multi-cultural issues and diversity. Mayte lives in Houston with her husband Javier Weitzman and two children.