Lupe began her career with State Farm® as an Auto Field Claim Representative in Moline, Illinois. Throughout her 25 years with the company, she has held various leadership roles in claims, customer response center, auto and commercial underwriting, Purchasing, Risk and Compliance, Workplace Protection, and Process Improvement. She is currently an Assistant Vice President in Marketing.
Lupe has a strong passion for lifelong learning. She graduated from Augustana College, Rock Island, IL. She received her CPCU insurance designation in 2007 and completed the CLU insurance designation in 2013.
Throughout her career, she has leveraged her cultural background to help the company better meet the needs of the Hispanic community. Lupe is active in her community and served on the National Hispanic Corporate Council Board of Directors as the elected representative for State Farm Insurance and served two terms as Chair.
She currently sits on the UnidosUS board representing State Farm Insurance.
Maria Fernanda is a highly accomplished communications and marketing manager who works closely with regional clients, particularly in the healthcare and technology sectors. With a strong emphasis on digital engagement strategies, she leads the execution of regional initiatives, ensuring seamless collaboration among all stakeholders within an organization. Maria Fernanda's expertise lies in creating captivating content, crafting compelling narratives, analyzing digital data, and implementing innovative and strategic processes.
Boasting a decade of experience in external and digital communication within the healthcare industry, Maria Fernanda possesses a unique versatility to effectively execute communication strategies. Her dynamic and holistic approach to her work has been instrumental in her success. Throughout her career, she has spearheaded impactful digital strategies for renowned brands such as Novartis, Janssen, Astellas Farma, Medtronic, GSK, Diageo, Pernod Ricard, and many others.
Maria Fernanda holds two professional degrees—a bachelor's in Social Communication with a specialization in Corporate Communication, and a second degree in Marketing and Advertising. Additionally, she has achieved a Master's degree in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) from Florida State University, specializing in Multicultural and Hispanic Marketing.
With her extensive background and diverse skill set, Maria Fernanda brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her role, making her an invaluable asset in driving successful communication and marketing initiatives.
Lane Blackmer has a decade of marketing experience, with a focus in campaign development, growth marketing, social media strategy, and B2B marketing strategy. She’s passionate about making the change in B2B marketing from brands simply talking about themselves to presenting themselves as a customer solution. Blackmer thinks using data to support the rationale of any marketing decision is essential.
She’s an alumni of Florida State University and the Center for Hispanic Marketing, holding a B.S. in Integrated Marketing Communication and a certification in Hispanic & Multicultural Marketing. In her previous career, Blackmer was a journalist and covered local business and government beats in Philadelphia. She holds a B.A. in Journalism and an external specialty in Philosophy from Michigan State University.
After years in the travel industry, Blackmer is on sabbatical from her corporate life to focus on launching a passion project. The project, Mapping Anxiety, uses storytelling as a means to explore mental health from a global, cultural lens. Her goal is to amplify diverse perspectives on mental health and shed light on where care falls short.
Millie Carrasquillo is one of the leading Hispanic market experts in the marketplace today. Millie has over 30 years' experience working in Spanish language media having led the research efforts for the two major Spanish-language broadcast networks. She is a respected expert in research design to properly measure Hispanics and multicultural audiences. Millie is highly regarded in understanding the Hispanic consumer and is sought after to address agencies and advertisers. Millie is considered an innovator embracing new techniques to better understand deeper consumer dynamics. She is an advocate for the Hispanic consumer giving them a voice inside the corporate hallway.
Millie is part of LatinUs Beauty, a hair care brand and entertainment company focused on the Latina community in the U.S. Millie serves as the Chief Research Officer for LatinUs since inception in 2017.
Results-driven marketing professional with a deep passion for brand strategy and digital innovation. With a strong track record of success both in the Dominican Republic and the USA. As a bilingual professional bringing a unique perspective and expertise to my clients, engaging the vibrant Hispanic consumer market, and leveraging my cultural understanding to create meaningful connections and drive business growth.
Throughout my career, I have spearheaded marketing initiatives for renowned brands across diverse industries, including Tech, Retail, CPG, Non-profits, and Entertainment, generating impressive results, tapping into innovative integrations, and driving awareness.
José Luis is Vice President of Lenovo Telco Vertical worldwide where he leads the evolution of our Global Accounts sales team covering the largest telco providers around the world. He has dedicated teams in each geography working with telcos to build partnerships that leverage Lenovo industry leading hardware and services. He has been with Lenovo since January 2018.
José Luis is responsible for leveraging Lenovo’s portfolio of PCs, smart devices, Moto phones, and Data Center infrastructure to build solutions for Telco internal use and to provide connectivity solutions for their customers.
Prior to his current assignment, José Luis was Vice President of Global Channels International Markets for Lenovo, where he led the worldwide sell through RTM for Telco, GSI and MSPs. Prior to this, he was the Latin America Geo President where he led one of the fastest growing geographies and the greatest market share for the Infrastructure Solutions Group. This led him to take global responsibilities in channels for the Infrastructure Solutions Group.
José Luis has over 30 years in the IT industry working in strategic roles for major companies such as HPE, Cisco, and Arista Networks before joining Lenovo. He holds a Systems Engineering and an MBA title and he is based in the United States, where he has lived most of the past 25 years. José Luis completed special assignments for four years in Houston, Texas and Sao Paulo, Brazil. He started his career as a field engineer, then moved to presales and sales management roles, to his current channel role with global responsibilities.
José Luis is from Colombia. He lives in Key Biscayne, Florida and is married and has two sons. José Luis is fluent in five languages. He enjoys standup paddle boarding and cooking.
Arminda “Mindy” Figueroa
Founder and CEO at Latin2Latin Marketing + Communications (L2L) & Advisory Board Chair
Founder and CEO, Latin2Latin Marketing + Communications (L2L) is celebrating her 12th year at the helm of L2L, a multiple award-winning engagement solutions agency headquartered in downtown Fort Lauderdale with satellite offices in NY, NC and Puerto Rico. A true maverick, Figueroa is a long-recognized leader in the traditional, multicultural, direct and digital marketing fields. She has built a successful career focused on generating awareness of the essential role of the multicultural market in corporate America. Prior to launching L2L, Figueroa was Project Director for Scholastic Media, and oversaw the launch of the #1 ranked PBS children’s television series, Maya & Miguel. Previously, she held senior marketing positions at The Bravo Group (a Young & Rubicam agency), Univision.com, Verizon and Anheuser-Busch.
Figueroa is the published author of An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Surviving a Business Implosion featured in Money Matters Top Tips To Success – Volume 2; and, sought-after presenter at industry seminars and conferences. Most recently, she served as one the two featured speaker at sold out Customer Experience and The New Majority Trends for 2020, guest panelist for Women In Business Roundtable of South Florida Business & Wealth; Latinas & Power Symposium in Connecticut, Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce – Women’s Council & Digital Marketing Seminar, Fort Lauderdale Hispanic Business Group, CHAT Summit (Cultural Heritage Alliance for Tourism), Radio Ink, The Conference Board on Diversity & Inclusion; and Hispanic Unity of Florida’s E Summit on women entrepreneurs. She has written, co-authored and published several articles related to healthcare patient education and other topics in multiculturism in Portada, Huffington Post Latino Voices and has been quoted in Adage, Billboard Magazine, Miami Herald, Money Matters, HearPreneur, Bloomberg SFL, Telemundo, Univision, Sun Sentinel among other publications.
Following the devastation of Hurricane Maria, Figueroa served as an advisor to Gov. Rick Scott for the South Florida relief efforts for Puerto Rico and is the proud founder of the philanthropic grassroots organization, Adopt a Puerto Rican Family. Figueroa served on the board of the Hispanic Federation for 16 years and helped raise more than $25M as part of the gala committee.
Today, she serves on the board member of the Tower Club of Fort Lauderdale, member of the Corporate Advisory Council of Hispanic Federation, Hispanic Leadership Council of Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau; a founding member of the Women’s Council of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce and serves on the Marketing Council of Hispanic Unity. She has been recognized by El Diario/La Prensa as one of the “50 Most Influential Latinas,” by South Florida Business Journal as one of the top “Influential Business Women of 2017,” and she also received the Golden Mouse Award for Multicultural Marketing Leader of the Year by the Florida Chapter of Women in Ecommerce. In 2018, she was awarded the Diversity in Business by the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce. Most recently, she was selected as one of the FACES of Latin Marketing by the 50 FACES of Gold Coast Magazine.
Ms. Gianni has 15+ years of global experience in digital strategy, marketing, and operations. Her passion lies in instilling a people-first perspective into the heart of global operations and executing strategies that position organizations to meet their goals. In her current role at Bixal, Erika is VP of Operations, where she is combining a data-driven mindset with state-of-the-art digital practices to lead the organization through an ever-evolving marketplace and streamline operations. Previously, at a large, global technology company Erika transformed the way customers tried, purchased, and used solutions by leading a team of user experience designers to redefine the customer buying experience. In addition, at a global footwear company, she developed the Americas eCommerce division from the ground up. Erika also served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Honduras where she collaborated with community leaders to plan and conduct small business training. As an alumna of FSU for both her undergraduate and graduate degrees, Erika is proud to serve on the advisory board for the Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication. She also holds an MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and an M.S. in User-Centered Design from Brandeis University.
Ivan Heredia is a brand and growth executive with experience across Disney, Paramount/Nickelodeon, Warner Music, and 4-H, where he built brands, partnerships, and audience platforms that drove cultural relevance and commercial growth — including with one of the most discerning audiences on the planet: kids and teens. He specializes in integrating brand, culture, partnerships, and storytelling into scalable growth systems, with achievements including unlocking the largest single donation in 4-H's history and generating hundreds of millions in incremental revenue through IP extensions, licensing, and branded content. Ivan is especially drawn to businesses at the intersection of youth and family, lifestyle and consumer platforms, media and entertainment, and tech-enabled consumer experiences.
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.
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.
Alicia “Ali” Peschiera
CEO and President at Divorce Coaching Latino® + Atlantis Capital International Inc.
Alicia Peschiera is a CDC Certified International Divorce Coach®, CDC Certified Transition & Recovery Coach®, and holds a certification in Conflicted Co-Parenting. She serves as Lead Instructor and President of Divorce Coaching Latino. An accomplished C-suite executive and entrepreneur with over 39 years of experience across the private and public sectors, Alicia brings multinational expertise in business development, management, sales, marketing, market research, and real estate. Her background spans industries including construction, engineering, transportation, technology, higher education, and multinational distribution, with a strong strategic network across Latin America (particularly Panama and Peru), Spain, and Florida.
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.
Based in Miami and leading operations at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Guillermo is an Emmy Award-winning media and sports executive with extensive experience in production, content creation, sales, and business development. Throughout his career, he has managed diverse portfolios spanning premier live sports and entertainment, including the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, Copa Libertadores, Ryder Cup, PGA Championship, Roland Garros, ATP Tennis, and acclaimed scripted content. With deep expertise in the Latin American and U.S. Hispanic media landscapes, he has built strategic partnerships, driven revenue growth, and identified opportunities across dynamic and diverse markets.
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
Michael Walsh is a self-motivated marketing specialist and storyteller with a passion for bringing brand narratives to life through coordinated marketing efforts across multiple touchpoints.
Mayte Sera Weitzman is an award-winning communications professional with more than 30 years of experience in strategic public relations, brand development, community relations, and multicultural communications. She currently leads public relations efforts for Goya Foods of Texas, overseeing media and community initiatives, diversity programs, internal communications, and the Goya Gives program across Texas, Latin America, and other communities. Throughout her career, Mayte has held leadership roles with the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, De La Garza Public Relations, Pierpont Communications, and AeroMexico, where she helped establish the airline’s first worldwide public relations policy and crisis plan. In 2003, she founded The W Group, a public relations firm that served as a bridge between corporate America and the Houston Hispanic community through multicultural campaigns, diversity initiatives, and community outreach. Her contributions have earned her numerous awards and recognition, including the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s Senior Female Corporate Executive of the Year and the Latino Learning Center’s Legacy Barbara Bush Humanitarian of the Year Award. She has also served on the boards and advisory committees of numerous community organizations, including the Houston Food Bank, Houston Texans Hispanic Advisory Board, Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau. Mayte 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. Born in Mexico to a Cuban family and having lived in Mexico, California, and Texas, she is proficient in three languages and brings a strong understanding of multiculturalism and diversity to her work.
Joe Zubizarreta is a nationally recognized leader in the Hispanic marketing arena, with expertise that extends well beyond a single sector. His leadership and strategic skills have driven success for every organization he has been associated with. Joe believes the key to success lies in understanding the consumer and finding unique ways to build long-lasting relationships with them.