Advisory Board – Center for Global Business

Michael (Mike) Skelton recently retired after eight years as the Director of the Mayor’s Office of International Business for the Richardson (Texas) Economic Development Partnership (REDP), an outsourcing relationship between the City of Richardson and the Richardson Chamber of Commerce. In that role, his responsibilities included recruitment of foreign companies (via foreign direct investment) into Richardson and assisting local companies with their globalization and export initiatives.

Immediately before joining the Richardson Chamber of Commerce/REDP, he formed an international consulting company in DFW, EstablishUS LLC, to assist foreign-based companies in launching their U.S. businesses.

Before moving his family from California to DFW in 2003, Mike’s career spans 30 years of high-tech executive management experience in Silicon Valley including, being the President and CEO of Caminosoft Corporation, a small public software company in southern California, CEO of three startup software companies as well as VP/general manager-level roles with several high-tech companies. His background also includes interim executive-management-level business consulting positions with two French companies and a Japanese company.

Mike holds a degree in business administration from Western Michigan University.

In this role, Laura works with all departments and business leaders to bring a focus to operational excellence. She is responsible for the Global Learning and Development and Quality Assurance teams at Altair. In addition, she leads projects for Altair 2.0 initiatives, a program that focuses on efficiency, productivity and overall process improvement.

Laura joined Altair’s Global Headquarters and Central Service Center in Plano, Texas, in August 2010 as Vice President of Global Services. In 2012, she was promoted to Senior Vice President, Operations and in 2016, she transitioned to her current position.

Laura began her mobility career in 1998, working for a third-party relocation company where she held management roles providing support for both domestic and global services. She was awarded an Outstanding Achievement Award in recognition of her exceptional contribution to the company.

Prior to joining Altair, Laura worked with patients with traumatic brain injuries and individuals with developmental disabilities.

Laura is a member of Worldwide ERC® and holds the Certified Relocation Professional (CRP) and Global Mobility Specialist, Strategic Talent Mobility (GMS-T) designations. She also serves as a councilperson on the International Business Advisory Council at the University of Texas at Dallas.

Laura earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Central Connecticut State University and a master’s degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology from Fairfield University in Connecticut.

I hold a Ph.D. in “Spanish Linguistics” from the Universidad de Sevilla, Spain, and I joined the School of Arts & Humanities at The University of Texas at Dallas in 2016 as Director of the Spanish Language Program. In 2019, I was named Director of Languages.

Before joining UT Dallas, I taught, coordinated and designed several Spanish Language courses at Princeton University. Over the last two decades, I have had the opportunity to teach, coordinate, design and create a wide variety of specialized Spanish Language, Literature and Culture courses in Spain, Singapore, Slovakia and the United States, and in different teaching contexts. During these years, the invaluable constant interaction and dialogue with students and colleagues has made me grow as a teacher and as an educator.

Learning a foreign language means seeing the world through the eyes of another culture and understanding the differences between both. That is why I believe affective component and motivation are very important elements for both interaction and the teaching/learning process. As a facilitator of the learning process, my goal is to make autonomous learners who can manage their own learning.

My research focuses on the difficulties in the treatment of certain linguistic mechanisms in Spanish for both teachers and learners, as well as the search for more effective approaches and strategies that facilitate the learning process and improve learners’ communicative competence. My areas of interest include Second Language Acquisition, Teaching Methodology, Language Pedagogy, Curriculum Design and Cognitive Linguistics.

Ben Cross is the founder and CEO of GLOMO, a recruitment and strategy firm specializing in the global mobility industry. His team leverages their global reach, relevancy and relationships to connect established brands with talent and create well-deserved opportunities for minority entrepreneurs. He also hosts the daily live show LOVE + RELO on Linkedin and YouTube.

In October 2019, Adriana Cruz was appointed to lead the Governor’s Economic Development and Tourism Office. The Office markets Texas as one of the world’s premier business and travel destinations. As Executive Director, Cruz provides leadership to Business and Community Development, Economic Development Finance, Texas Tourism, Texas Workforce Investment Council, Texas Music Office, and the Texas Film Commission.

Cruz has more than 20 years of leadership experience in economic development, marketing, and international business. Prior to her appointment to lead the Texas Economic Development and Tourism Office, Cruz was President of the Greater San Marcos Partnership, the regional economic development organization established to encourage and nurture economic growth in San Marcos, and Hays and Caldwell Counties. Previously, Cruz was the Vice President of Global Corporate Recruitment for the Austin Chamber of Commerce.

In April 2020, Cruz was appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the Strike Force to Open Texas, a team of nationally recognized private and public leaders to advise the Governor on safely and strategically reopening the state of Texas. In January 2020, Governor Greg Abbott appointed Cruz to the Advisory Council on Cultural Affairs for a term set to expire on February 1, 2023. Additionally, he named her vice chair of the council. Cruz serves on numerous boards, including the Texas Economic Development Council and the Texas Workforce Investment Council. In addition, from 2016-2019, she served on the Texas Economic Incentives Oversight Board to review the efficiency of Texas’ incentive programs.

In 2016, she won the Austin Business Journal’s Profiles in Power: Central Texas Women of Influence Award. Cruz holds a B.B.A. in Marketing from the University of Texas at Austin, has been married for 34 years to her husband Rik and has three grown children living in the Austin area.

Adriaan van Eeden has spent his career in financial leadership roles contributing to the growth, expansion, and turnaround initiatives of global organizations operating in the food, food service, logistics, real estate, business services and sales & marketing industries across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia.

Adriaan’s entrepreneurial experience includes being the CFO of a startup which raised $50 million of equity to enabled market entry into 8 countries in South America, Europe and Africa. Adriaan has also been involved in approximately fifteen acquisition and sale transactions valued at more than $1.8 billion in both North America and Europe.

Adriaan earned his MBA in International Business from The University of Texas at Dallas. He also holds dual degrees: Bachelor of Accountancy and Bachelor of Accountancy with honors from the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa and a diploma in Financial Strategy from the University of Oxford (thesis: International Investments). He is credentialed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in Texas and as a Chartered Accountant in South Africa.

Adriaan’s interests include continuing to study topics in international economics, global business strategy, corporate governance in international organizations, as well as corporate entrepreneurship and internationalization strategies to effectively generate profitable business growth. He has done extensive reading on how to use the principles of circular economy thinking to gain a long-term competitive advantage and reduce future business risk.

Neel is President of the US India Chamber of Commerce Dallas/Fort Worth (USICOC). The USICOC is a 501(c)(6) organization made up of more than 3,000 individual and corporate members. It is dedicated to supporting professional, business and economic development throughout the DFW area. The USICOC also facilitates trade between India and North Texas by connecting member companies with resources to aid in their successful expansions.

Prior to joining the chamber, Neel served as president of ReadyToWork, an education and workforce development consulting company. Neel received her bachelor’s in political science from Boston University and her JD/MBA from Baylor University. She is licensed to practice law in Texas and is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the Dallas Bar Association and the Dallas Young Lawyers Association. In her spare time, Neel volunteers with a number of organizations throughout the Metroplex, including Communities in Schools of the Dallas Region, Chetna and others.

Kerwin’s HR journey spans more than 20 years at leading tech organizations, first at Intel and currently at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. He is a fresh voice, a generous contributor and a positive influence in HR and mobility circles; always focused on and demonstrating leadership through change; identifying possibilities in the midst of challenge; building exceptional and unique partnerships; guiding team members and teams to their best performance and career experiences; and helping others find their success in a range of environments.

His work has given him the opportunity to lead through a range of corporate, organizational, and business transitions that include M&As, spin-offs, start-ups, site closures and global crises. He’s earned a reputation for developing significant relationships, delivering point-of-need education and executing innovation at a pace faster than market. He is also adept at discovering new approaches and solutions for attracting, hiring, deploying, engaging and retaining talent.

Kerwin holds a BS in industrial engineering from De La Salle University. He has provided expertise to Worldwide ERC®, a leading global mobility organization, as a panelist, author and thought leader, and served on the Worldwide ERC® Board of Directors from 2018 to 2020. In early 2021, he received a “View from the Top” industry accolade from his peers, first with his induction into an elite industry group, the Global Mobility Top 100, and then was further recognized with the group’s ultimate honor: Most Admired Global Mobility Professional in the World. He writes frequently on talent management issues, career journeys and leadership, and his ingenuity, knowledge and experience are often tapped for HR program collaboration, gracing several global mobility and HR industry gatherings.

Dr. Gopal Gupta is a professor of computer science at the University of Texas at Dallas, where he also serves as the associate director of the Center for Applied AI and Machine Learning. He served as the computer science department head from 2009 to 2020. His areas of research interest are in automated reasoning, computational logic, machine learning & explainable AI, programming languages and assistive technology. He has published extensively in these areas. His group has also authored many software systems, many of which are publicly available. His research work has also resulted in commercial software systems that have formed the basis of two startup companies. He has won several best-paper awards, including the ICLP 2016 Most Influential Paper award for his work on co-inductive logic programming. He obtained his MS & PhD degrees from UNC Chapel Hill and his B.Tech. in Computer Science from IIT Kanpur, India. His lab is one of nine labs worldwide that was selected for the 2020 Amazon Alexa Socialbot Challenge, which aims to build an Alexa skill that can hold a casual conversation with a random person for at least 20 minutes. Dr. Gupta’s current research is funded by the NSF, US Department of Defense, Amazon and Atos.

Maisie Heiken is a transformational leader with global experience in fields spanning from strategic management and corporate governance to international marketing and wealth management. Born and raised in Hong Kong, her early career included marketing representation for Caterpillar Inc. from its Southeast Asia headquarters in Hong Kong, its EMEA hub in Geneva, and its global headquarters in Peoria, Illinois.

With her move to the United States, Maisie earned a degree in finance from the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, and gained the professional designation, Certified Investment Management Analyst CIMAÒ, provided by the Investments and Wealth Institute. That led to a twenty-seven-year career with Bank of America/Merrill Lynch as a senior vice president of wealth management and portfolio management. In that position, she independently built her book of business from the ground up, using a client contact management system that she developed eight years before Merrill Lynch engaged the services of SalesForce. Her performance metrics consistently ranked among the top 1% of advisors in the industry, and in the first quintile of the firm, and was ranked by BARRON’S among the Top 1,000 advisors in the country.

Maisie’s C-suite executive clients trusted her to achieve their long-term financial goals with an abiding sense of fiduciary responsibility. Her recommendations were based on riskassessment-first, results-secondary, custom-tailored portfolio management models, rooted in qualitative and quantitative economic research. This duty of care was particularly important during the Y2K and 2008 financial crises, when steering away from high-yielding, risky assets was prudent and necessary.

In 2019, applying the same analytical skills to her personal life, Maisie retired from Merrill Lynch and relocated from Scottsdale Arizona to Dallas Texas. Currently, in addition to her professional advisory activities, she provides community service on boards and advisory councils for the Mayo Clinic, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and its Foundation, the World Affairs Council of DFW, and the University of Texas at Dallas, through its Center for Brain Health, Jindal School of Management, and Center for Global Business.

With traits of creativity, enthusiasm, transparency, loyalty, and a strong work ethic, Maisie Heiken’s professional and life experience spans three continents. Her interpersonal and executive skills in marketing, finance, corporate governance, and technical innovation are valued by organizations that seek effective solutions to complex problems.

LAWRENCE P. HOWORTH is the President and Founder of HOWORTH International, LLC, a multinational Advisory Services and Fractional Management firm based in Dallas Texas, USA. Lawrence has over 40 years of multinational business experience in over 25 countries and in multiple industries. As an entrepreneur, private investor, educator and business mentor, Lawrence has held C-level positions in several multinational organizations, has co-founded two multinational start-up companies.

A Canadian and USA Citizen, Lawrence is a Graduate of the University of Saskatchewan (Canada), College of Commerce and a CA/CPA (a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada) and alumni of KPMG. He is a frequent panelist and speaker on multinational economic and business development, international go-to-market and market entry strategies, business combinations and structuring, small business development and entrepreneurship.

Lawrence has been appointed by the US Secretary of Commerce as a Member of the District Export Council of North Texas (Chair Emeritus), lecturer with Exporting with the Experts, International Market Entry strategies with the University of Texas at Arlington and currently active in several organizations including the International Business & Trade Advisory Committee, Dallas College, Dallas, TX, Business Management Advisory Committee, Collin College, Frisco, TX, 1st Vice President and President Elect of the Japan America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth and sits on the Advisory Board for the Center for Global Business, Naveen Jindal School of Management, University of Texas at Dallas.

Robert Horsley is the Executive Director/Managing Director at Fragomen. He has over 25 years of executive experience in nearly all areas of firm leadership, ranging from client service to strategic planning, transformation of practice methodologies, practice area development, innovation of technology tools, finance, industry partnerships and market-making initiatives. Have taken on roles including COO, CMO, CCDO and Practice Leader through the years while the Firm has grown over 30x. Leadership or Membership of the Firm’s Management Committees over the years; Marketing, Corporate Development, Best Practices, Technology, Finance. Travel extensively to meet with clients, potential clients, staff alliance partners and colleagues worldwide. He is based in Silicon Valley, California, and works part-time in the New York office.

Latha is an AVP at Infosys, leading a large telecommunication engagement for Infosys. She has over 25 years of IT experience, focused on telecom and CPG industries. In her role as a client partner for a large telco, she is responsible for C-level relationships, client engagement, innovation, P&L and go-to-market strategies. She also worked for IBM as an Associate Partner, responsible for leading several large complex deals in the CPG industry. She has built her career internationally and worked across multiple countries including India, Middle East, UK and the US. Latha holds a MBA in Corp Finance from University of Dallas, a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and a master’s degree in Public Administration from University of Madras.

Dennis M. Kratz is the Ignacy and Celina Rockover Professor of Humanities, Senior Associate Provost and Founding Director of the Center for Asian Studies at UT Dallas, where previously he served as Dean of Undergraduate Education (1994-97) and then Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities (1997-2019). As Dean, he emphasized the development of programs that transcend conventional disciplinary boundaries and that nurture the convergence of the humanities and creative arts with the scientific practice. His research focuses on the evolution of ethical concepts across cultures and, within the same culture, over time. He has published four books and multiple articles on subjects including heroism, epic poetry, the medieval reception and transformation of the Greco-Roman heritage, translation, science fiction and the interaction of Western with Chinese cultural traditions. Dr. Kratz received a BA (Classics) from Dartmouth College and PhD (Medieval Latin) from Harvard University.

1717 Main Street
Dallas, TX 75201
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michaelmassiatte@andrewskurth.com

Michael focuses his practice on labor and employment matters and commercial disputes and litigation. He also counsels clients on risk management, commercial transactions, corporate compliance and ethics matters. Michael has significant experience serving as a corporate in-house attorney, most recently serving as the associate general counsel for a Dallas-based technology company. As a result, Michael serves as outside general counsel for several companies in various industries. Michael earned his JD from St. Mary’s University School of Law and his BA from UT Austin.

Javier is a senior executive who has worked for domestic and international high-tech corporations. His range of experience includes general management, consulting, business development, relationship management, sales/marketing leadership, international board of directors, external relations and operations in the United States and Latin America. He has held executive assignments with Texas Instruments and Oki Data Americas.

Javier is currently the founder, president and managing director of Group Lamerica LLC, Dallas. He previously founded his own company, Troncoso International.

He is a member of the World Affairs Council of DFW, Tech Titans Advocacy Committee, Trust, North Texas District Export Council Executive Board of Directors, Youth Achievement Foundation Board of Directors and University of North Texas College of Business Advisory Board. Javier graduated from the University of Arizona. He is married and has four children.

Jennifer Hilton Montero, Ph.D., is the Director for International Initiatives at the University of Texas at Dallas. She serves as the new strategic thought-leader and visionary responsible for developing an integrated and cohesive approach to all of UT Dallas’ global partnerships and programs. Dr. Hilton Montero is an international collaboration expert and scholar-practitioner “pracademic” with over 10 years of executive and management experience in international higher education and public & international affairs. Dr. Hilton Montero received her Ph.D. from the Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs Department of Public Policy and Administration at Florida International University. Dr. Hilton Montero’s research is positioned across the fields of public administration, political science and policy studies, connecting collaborative processes to collaborative outputs/outcomes, identifying its limitations and tracing a research agenda for a better understanding of how organizational processes influence collaborative results across different public policy areas.

Dr. Hilton Montero previously served as the Director of the Office of Global Initiatives, the grant writer, and the Associate Director of the Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) at the College of Business, Florida International University located in Miami, Florida. She served in this executive director-level role, managing a diverse global portfolio of international education programs with over 60 partners in more than 30 countries. Dr. Hilton Montero was the lead grant writer and director of the Title VI CIBER Grant, bringing in $1.13M and $1.33M during the 2018-2022 and 2022-2026 grant cycles, respectively. She also co-chaired and led the strategy committee for the FIU Global Strategy 2025 Framework. Dr. Hilton Montero has worked for companies such as Ernst and Young Chile as well as for AACSB International in global professional development and international project management roles. She also has experience in nonprofit organizations in the diversity and inclusion sector as well as in professional cultural and business associations such as the Chile-US Chamber of Commerce.

Dr. Hilton Montero received her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and Spanish with honors in 2004 from Austin College in Sherman, Texas. She completed her Master of Arts in Intercultural Relations with specializations in International Education and Intercultural Training and Consulting in 2006 from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Jennifer has lived and worked in Chile for three years, has traveled extensively internationally, including across South America, Europe and Asia, and is fluent in Spanish and English. Dr. Hilton Montero is passionate about collaboration and the role of cross-cultural understanding in fostering a united world community.

Nikunj Nirmal is a business executive, technology enthusiast and an accomplished leader with extensive experience in digital strategy, brand and customer experiences, Intellectual Property acquisition, product management, enterprise architecture and technology roadmap for Fortune 100 organizations. At Amazon, Nikunj heads the international expansion engineering to launch Amazon’s e-commerce business in new countries.

Nikunj has worked in several leadership roles, such as Chief Technology Officer, Head of Digital Transformation, Head of Innovation Labs (USA), IT Delivery Head and Shadow Board Member. With a strong focus on customer experience and innovation, Nikunj has extensive experience in leading large-scale digital transformation programs and delivering CX-centric solutions to drive sustainable growth. Nikunj serves on the Forbes Technology Council and is a Mentor for WingsForGrowth. He has been on the Technical Advisory Council for Linux Foundation for Artificial Intelligence and serves on two Advisory Boards at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) – Global Business and Retail Innovation and Strategic Excellence (RISE), Advisory Board for the University of Houston’s Customer Experience Program, Texas A&M Digital Marketing Advisory board and has worked as Adjunct Faculty at UTD. Nikunj is passionate about mentoring and building high-performance teams.

The O.P. Jindal Distinguished Chair in the Jindal School at UT Dallas, Mike is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Career Award winner and a fellow of the Academy of International Business (AIB). Mike joined UT Dallas in 2005 and founded the Center for Global Business in 2006. At the Jindal School, he directed the restructuring of the PhD program in international management studies. He also served on the committee that launched the BS in Global Business degree and restructured the MS in International Management Studies degree.

Global in scope, Mike’s research has investigated firm strategies in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. As one of the most prolific and influential scholars in global strategy, he has published more than 140 articles and five books. Used in over 40 countries, his textbooks, Global Strategy, Global Business and Global, are global market leaders that have been translated into Chinese, Portuguese and Spanish.

In consulting engagements, Mike has worked with multinationals such as AstraZeneca, Safran and Texas Instruments, and such national and international organizations as the Natural Science Foundation of China, UK Government Office for Science, U.S. Navy and World Bank.

Mike received his BS from Winona State University, Minnesota; and his PhD from the University of Washington, Seattle. He is honored by Who’s Who in America. He has been quoted by The Economist, Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, Dallas Morning News, Texas CEO, Business Times (Singapore), CEO-CIO (Beijing), Sing Tao Daily (Vancouver) and Brasil Econômico (São Paulo), as well as on KERA/PBS TV, National Public Radio and Voice of America.

Aleksander leads the Operational Technology and Internet of Things (IoT) practice for EY’s EMEIA Advisory Center. He is a senior partner and strategic advisor to major international clients and government bodies on digital transformation, technology risk, information and operation security advisory. Aleksander is providing regional teams with IoT strategic vision, guidance, QA and support with key digital transformation bids and project delivery. He has built a strong IT advisory practice in Poland and Central and Southern Europe.

Prior to EY, Aleksander was responsible for managing IT and IT security teams for fixed and mobile telecom operators. Aleksander has a special interest in cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection. He has significant experience and knowledge in strategy development, execution and business modelling in technology intensive organizations (IT/OT convergence). He also specializes in risk management and security improvement transformations of large-scale organizations. He has authored many publications as well as participated in numerous conferences related to security and IT/OT.

Aleksander holds a bachelor’s degree from Upper Silesian University and a PhD in economics from Poznań University of Economics. He has participated in executive programs organized by Harvard Business School, Carnegie Mellon University and IMD Switzerland.

Monica Rankin is an Associate Professor of history at UT Dallas, where she is also the director of the Center for U.S.-Latin America Initiatives. Her research focuses on the history of Mexico, Latin America, and U.S.-Latin American relations. Among her published works are ¡México, la patria! Propaganda and Production during World War II (University of Nebraska Press, 2009); The History of Costa Rica (Greenwood Press, 2012); and Exploitation, Inequality, and Resistance: Three Centuries of Latin American History (Oxford University Press). Her work considers propaganda studies in Latin America/World War II history and has resulted in the publication in the Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American with the University of Nebraska Press. She is the recipient of research grants through the Fulbright Program, the Roosevelt Institute, the Truman Institute and the UT-Dallas Center for U.S.-Latin American Initiatives. Dr. Rankin has won numerous teaching awards, including the 2015 Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award for the University of Texas System. Currently, she directs study abroad programs in Mexico and South America for UT-Dallas students.

Tom is a Vice President at Equus Software, where he specializes in Solutions Consulting for the world’s leading technology provider in the Global Mobility industry. He is dedicated to driving innovation, and his impressive track record of designing and delivering successful technology solutions has helped global mobility programs around the world provide value to their business, corporate strategies, and employees.

With experience supporting employee relocation programs both domestically and internationally, Tom excels at building high-performing teams to tackle complex global challenges using technology. He is an advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and his career across the UK, USA, and The Cayman Islands provides him with a unique perspective on the Global Mobility Ecosystem. Currently based in Dallas, Texas, Tom enjoys spending quality time with his family, engaging in community projects, and exploring new cultures. His dynamic insights and engaging style make him a sought-after speaker at global mobility industry conferences.

Ian Robinson leads Vialto Partner’s UK and Ireland immigration practices, having previously been a Partner of Fragomen Worldwide. He held six posts in the UK’s Home Office, including taking charge of the UK’s economic migration policy between 2009 and 2011. Ian has been called to provide evidence to three Select Committees in Parliament’s House of Commons and House of Lords, represented the UK at the European Commission, spoken at events organized by the UN and other international organizations and advised governments of the US, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, the EU and others. He is a regular commentator on economic migration and has appeared on the BBC, ITV, Sky News, LBC, Radio 4, and in the Times, Guardian, FT, and other online and print, UK and international media. He is on the Board of RAMP, Focus on Labour Exploitation, Talent Beyond Boundaries, Reunite Families and an advisory board member of Justice Together and Global Future. These pro bono positions follow two broad themes: using immigration as a force for social and humanitarian good and challenging barriers that could otherwise worsen the already difficult conditions of migrant communities in the UK.

Moises has over 25 years of experience driving Supply Chain and Operational Strategy initiatives, leading Global Supply Chain Planning & IT Teams and managing P&L/Balance Sheet goals. He has led Lean Kaizens and Six Sigma projects, SAP S/4 and Oracle r12 workstreams, driven major material cost reduction and inventory optimization efforts and presently program manages strategic roadmaps to transform Global Footprints and IT platforms.

He is currently a management consultant at PwC, leading business integration and testing strategy workstreams for an SAP S/4 transformation at a major client in the food and beverage distribution space. Before PwC, he was the SVP of Supply Chain Strategy & Planning at NCH, leading its Global Supply Chain Team and initiatives. Before that, he was a management consultant at PRTM (now part of PwC), where he also drove operational strategies for clients in the medical device, biopharma, electronics, retail and plastics industries. He consulted for a wide range of companies, including Fortune 500 firms and start-ups. He started his career at GE as a graduate of the rotational Operations Management Leadership Program (OMLP), then became a Six Sigma certified Black Belt and later a Manufacturing Leader for the CT/X-Ray Tubes business.

Moises was trained in Lean by Shingijutsu, CPIM certified by APICS and is fluent in Spanish. He co-authored the articles “Delivering on Data” and “Factoring Singapore into the Biopharmaceutical Expansion Equation.” He got his MBA from the University of Texas at Austin (McCombs), has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Monterrey Tech (ITESM) and has attended Supply Chain Strategies executive education at Stanford GSB.

Hjo Siemers is an effective Strategy and Operational Excellence Executive with strong P&L experience delivering profitable growth for businesses. He increases revenue sustainably through deliberate strategic planning and thoughtful execution. Hajo drives leverage through innovation and by streamlining cost structures and operations using a collaborative style. Fluent in English, German, Dutch, French and Italian, and having lived in multiple countries, Hajo is an internationally experienced and culturally savvy Change Agent who drives organizational consensus and strategy adoption. A respected leader who builds, challenges and empowers diverse teams to perform beyond their comfort zones to achieve extraordinary results. As general manager, sales & marketing executive and product portfolio leader with full P&L responsibility, Hajo Siemers successfully implemented initiatives delivering significant growth, strategic pricing and cost initiatives contributing directly to the bottom line. He has led organizational change programs, automating sales and engineering processes, optimizing customer-facing programs, centralizing finance functions and accelerating product-development cycles. Coaching, mentoring and developing people have always been important to him, and he has had the privilege to lead development programs for high-potential leaders, preparing them for future assignments. As the Managing Partner at Panoramic Advice, Hajo helped business leaders, owners and boards clarify their company vision, formulate a business or marketing strategy as well as prioritize and execute implementation plans to deliver results on time and under budget. Currently, Hajo serves as the Managing Director of Dover’s Food Retail Case division.

Anbu Subramaniyan is the Engineering Lead for the Systems and Innovation workstream in General Motor’s Global Quality Organization. With over 25 years of experience in the automotive manufacturing industry, Anbu has expertise in diverse areas, including assembly, metal stamping, supply chain, manufacturing optimization, robotic integration, and quality assurance. A recognized leader in innovation, she currently oversees a quality application implemented at 70 manufacturing sites worldwide, encompassing assembly, powertrain, casting, and electric vehicle battery production.

Anbu is deeply passionate about STEM education. As the Chair of GM’s Women in Manufacturing employee resource group, she has successfully led numerous initiatives, including career fairs, robotics workshops, and virtual learning sessions focused on automotive manufacturing. A committed STEM mentor, she offers hands-on learning experiences for middle school, high school, and college students, and frequently speaks at career events. Additionally, Anbu serves on the Board of Directors for Junior Achievement of Chisholm Trail in Fort Worth, TX. She also founded and leads the ArutKudumbam Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to hunger relief and educational initiatives in India.

Anbu holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology in India and a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma.

A native of France, Matthieu is an accomplished marketing executive who has dedicated his professional career to fostering the success of rapidly expanding, globally leading organizations in the vision care industry. Holding a Master’s degree from the Grenoble School of Management, he has cultivated his career with an international perspective, originally launching it in the United Kingdom before ultimately settling in Dallas.

Riki Takeuchi currently holds Dr. Joseph Picken Distinguished Chair in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Naveen Jindal School of Management. He received his Ph.D. from the Robert H Smith School of Business, University of Maryland at College Park in December 2003.Prior to this appointment, he was a full professor at the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, where he started his career in January 2004. His research theme revolves around understanding social exchange relationships among various organizational constituents, including expatriates and their spouses on international assignments. He is an elected fellow of the American Psychological Association, Association for Psychological Science and Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Prior to this appointment, he was a full professor at the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, where he started his career in January 2004. He received his PhD in Human Resources Management from the University of Maryland, College Park, in December 2003 and received the Early Career Contribution Award from SIOP in 2010. He also served as an associate editor for the Academy of Management Journal (2013-2016). His current research revolves around strategic human resource management/human capital, international/cross-cultural adjustment and social exchange relationships at work.

Rajiv is a global engagement lead for various technology clients in KPMG’s Bay Area office. He joined KPMG in 2001 having previously worked with Arthur Andersen. He has more than 25 years of experience providing a vast array of international tax and human resources services. Prior to relocating to the United States, Rajiv has had worked in Belgium, United Kingdom, and India, and is familiar with the tax and HR challenges that accompany the international assignments

Tom is an International Partner with the law firm of Locke Lord LLP and is the current President of U.S. China Chamber of Commerce, Dallas. Leveraging his language skills and cultural sensitivity, Tom advises American and Chinese clients in cross-border corporate M&A transactions and international dispute resolution matters. Tom holds a B.A. from Shandong University in China, an M.B.A from Rollins College and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law.

Dobrina Ustun is a highly regarded attorney with over a decade of experience in U.S. immigration law. She holds a license to practice law in the District of Columbia. She has represented numerous companies in front of various government agencies, including the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, the Department of Labor and U.S. Embassies and Consulates. As General Counsel for RiseIT Solutions Inc., Dobrina oversees the company’s immigration and compliance program and provides legal advice to the Board, HR, and business units within the organization. She is also the founder and managing partner of Ustun Law Group, PLLC, a US-based immigration law firm that specializes in employment-based immigration, representing foreign investors, entrepreneurs and individuals of extraordinary ability. Before that, Dobrina was a key member of the immigration team at Infosys Ltd, one of the world’s largest IT consulting firms. In addition, Dobrina serves as a Chief Council Officer for the DOBIZZ Business Council. This women-led non-profit focuses on educating and connecting diverse founding teams to fuel economic growth globally. Dobrina is a sought-after speaker in the field of immigration law, having presented at conferences across the world, including HRSouthwest in Dallas and the Global Immigration Summit in Mumbai. She has been featured as an expert in immigration law in major publications such as Le Monde, Mother Jones and Outlook India. Additionally, Dobrina is a guest lecturer at several universities, including the University of Texas in Dallas and the University of North Texas.

In addition to her professional accomplishments, Dobrina is dedicated to giving back to her community. She volunteers as an attorney for the Human Rights Initiative in Dallas, representing victims of domestic violence and crimes. She also serves as an Advisory Committee Member for the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, Texas Chapter and is a Board Member of the American Bulgarian Business Association (ABBA) in Bulgaria.

Brewster is a professional who has enjoyed successful parallel careers in international sales and philanthropy. His international background includes having lived in Italy for 15 years, and he speaks Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese. He has more than 26 years of experience establishing profitable business channels for U.S. high-tech/financial service and technology companies throughout Latin America. Prior to his international sales career, he served as international trade director and director of Mexico for the Texas Department of Commerce under then-Governor George Bush, roles in which he oversaw all international trade activities for the State of Texas.

Brewster is also passionate about his involvement in philanthropy, in which he has been active since 1998. He serves as trustee and prior to that, two terms as a resident of the Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Foundation. He also serves as an advisory director on the Latin America Committee for the Grameen Foundation; advisory director of the Global Dallas Chamber; founder of a nonprofit in Santiago, Chile (Fundación Alianza por Control de Enfermedades Crónicas no Transmisibles); and president of the Stone D’Arcy Waddell Memorial Fund, which was established in the name of his son Stone, who passed shortly after birth. Brewster holds a BA in international affairs and languages from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Robert Wirick is an accomplished leader with over two decades of experience in government affairs, regulatory strategy, and international relations within the airline industry.

Robert specializes in building and maintaining critical relationships with U.S. and foreign government officials, shaping advocacy agendas, and securing key regulatory approvals to advance corporate objectives. He played a pivotal role in overseeing major restructuring and M&A efforts, including the post-merger integration of American Airlines with U.S. Airways, as well as regulatory approvals for American’s strategic partnerships with other airlines including British Airways, Japan Airlines, and Qatar Airways.

Throughout his career, Robert has led high-impact initiatives that consistently drove revenue growth, enhanced productivity, and improved operational efficiency.

In addition to his corporate leadership, Robert has held key industry positions, including Chairperson of the Airlines for America (A4A) International Affairs Committee, and Board Member of the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth and the International Aviation Club of Washington, D.C.

Robert is also a certified private pilot. He resides with his wife in Grapevine, Texas, enjoys golfing, outdoor activities, and is an avid sports fan, particularly the Texas Longhorns.

He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and International Business from the University of Texas at Austin.

Paul Xiao finished both his Bachelor’s degree in Accounting(2007-2010) and Master’s degree in International Management Studies(2011-2013) at UT Dallas. He joined Samsung Electronics America as an Inventory Accountant in May 2010, which was two months before Samsung launched its first Samsung Galaxy Smartphone. Paul has been working at Samsung for every generation of their smartphone launch and was promoted to Senior Auditor, Business Planning Manager and now Manager II for Supply Chain Management. He currently works with Samsung’s global supply chain management and logistic team for business planning, inventory allocation, and process innovation. Paul was one of the founders of the ASCEND UTD chapter when he was at UTD, and he has a great passion for supporting the university’s activities as an Alumni.

Sam Yang is the founder and CEO of Galaxy Electronics Company, a Richardson manufacturer of custom fiber optic and copper cable assembly products that supply data and telecom communication companies. He also served as the chairman of the board of Phase Dynamics Inc., which designs, manufactures and markets oil field measurement instrumentations for oil companies throughout the world.

In 2011, he co-founded and served as the first chairman of the board for the ECLAT Foundation, which is dedicated to helping disadvantaged and deserving students with their educational needs. In 2021 ECLAT established an endowment to UTD Jindal School of Management for providing scholarship to the qualified students.

Sam holds a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from UT Austin. My main interest now is to promote education and help youngsters to reach their maximum potential.

Hubert serves as director of the Center for Global Business and director of the Bachelor of Science in Global Business program at UT Dallas. In these roles, he partners with students, faculty, businesses and communities to promote global business initiatives.

Hubert has 18 years of experience in international consulting, academic teaching and management of design, development and delivery of blended-learning solutions for international clients. Prior to joining UT Dallas, Hubert worked for Intellinex, an e-learning venture of Ernst & Young and Xerox Learning Solutions, where he led global teams to create multilingual and customized learning programs. He has lived and worked in various countries across Europe and Asia.

Hubert received his BA in international relations and business and his MBA from Cleveland State University, and his MA in finance and investments from the University of Nottingham, Ningbo, China. He currently serves on advisory boards of academic institutions and international companies.