Panelist

Verónica Maldonado-Torres
President & CEO
Georgia Hispanic Chamber

President and CEO of the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. As a highly versatile and visionary Latina business owner and community leader, Verónica brings her entrepreneurial spirt and tenacity, born from over 60 years of generational entrepreneurship on both sides of her family, to the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (GHCC). With over a decade of experience as a small business champion and supplier diversity advocate, Verónica is a catalyst of growth for both small businesses and large corporations, bringing thought-leadership and innovation to the supplier development space. She has also been an avid champion for diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout her career.

Known as the people and business accelerator, Verónica excels at building strategic alliances and fostering win-win relationships between small businesses and corporate America. Prior to joining the GHCC, Verónica successfully guided the development and growth of more than 150 firms across multiple industries ranging from $1M-$100M in annual revenue in her role as Program Director for the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection (MPC). There, she fostered over 131 Fortune 500 corporate relationships, supported the supplier development efforts of more than 41 corporations, as well as created and produced over 85 small- to large-scale business conferences and events including the Georgia Innovation Summit. Before MPC, Verónica served as the Director of Strategic Alliances and Partnerships for the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council (GMSDC) where she fostered partnerships among GMSDC, Minority Business Associations, chambers, and organizations focused on minority small business development in Georgia.
Verónica is also CEO and founder of VMT Consulting and creator of the DRIVEN TO THRIVE™ mindset, model, and way of living where she empowers professionals and businesses to grow, transform and thrive. Through VMT Consulting, Verónica enables small businesses to increase sales, secure long-term contracts, and maximize their growth potential by unleashing the value proposition they bring to corporate America. VMT Consulting also supports large corporations with the creation and implementation of supplier development programs, diversity and inclusion initiatives, cultural mastery trainings, and leadership development programs, with a special emphasis on women and multicultural professionals.

A passionate community leader with a desire to serve, Verónica serves as a board member for the American Heart Association, board director for “The Assembly” Community Improvement District (CID) appointed by DeKalb County, Board member of the Technology Association of Atlanta’s Business Process Management Group, board member of the Hispanic Corporate Council of Atlanta (HCCA). She is a 2016 Graduate of Leadership DeKalb’s Class of 2016.

Verónica has earned several accolades for her leadership in championing small business growth and creating community impact. She’s received the Corporate Diversity Champion Award 2021- Atlanta Business Chronicle DEI, distinction of “Top 50 Most Influential Latinos in Georgia” by the GHCC in 2018, “Diversity Star of Atlanta’ by the Diversity Professional Magazine among Fortune 500 diversity leaders, “40Under40 Atl Mover and Shaker” by the Atlanta Business Chronicle in 2017, “Keep it Moving Forward-Raising Generations” awardee by the Mary Parker Foundation in 2016, “Top 15 Georgia Latina of Excellence-Rising Star Award” recipient by LISTA in 2016, and, Community Builder Awardee – Business Sector” by GHCA in 2015, among other recognitions.

Verónica is also a highly sought-after public speaker, moderator, and frequent radio/TV guest on the subjects of small business, diversity and inclusion, servant leadership, purpose-DRIVEN living, career advancement, work/life/balance, and women empowerment. She has appeared in media such as the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Atlanta Tech Edge, Business Radio X, CIO Magazine, The Dana Barrett Show, and Diversity Inc, among others. Verónica has presented, spoken and worked with Fortune 500s and organizations such as The Coca-Cola Company, Cox Enterprises, SunTrust, Kellogg, Unilever, SC Johnson, Verizon, Fifth Third Bank, VDART’s Global Women Leadership Initiative in India, Cornell University, Kennesaw State University, Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA), DeKalb Chamber, USPAACC, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Mujeres de HACE (Hispanic Alliance for Career Advancement), GMSDC, Georgia Chamber of Commerce, University of Georgia’s Small Business Development Center’s (SBDC) Women Expo, ENRICHER Conference, 100 Female Entrepreneurs, She Leads Conference, the Avanzar Program, the Women’s Multicultural Conference, and countless others.

Panelist

Michael Nail
Commissioner
Georgia Department of Community Supervision

As Commissioner, Michael oversees the day-to-day operations of one of the nation’s largest community supervision agencies and is responsible for the adult felony supervision of over 200,000 individuals. Michael was instrumental in casting the vision for the creation of the Department of Community Supervision and has served as (the first) Commissioner since its inception in 2015. Prior  to his career with DCS, Michael has held multiple senior and executive leadership roles with the Georgia Department of Corrections and the State Board of Pardons and Paroles, including Director of Probation Training, Director of Probation, Corrections Division Director, and Executive Director of the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles.

Notable accomplishments throughout his career include streamlining the prison diagnostic system, starting Georgia’s first Day Reporting Centers, creating the Probation Options Management program, implementing virtual offices and virtual hearings, leading transformative criminal justice reform legislation, contributing to implementation efforts of the Georgia Prisoner Re-entry Initiative, and being the first community supervision agency in the nation to issue body cameras to all community supervision officers. With over 33 years of experience, Michael is nationally recognized as a thought leader in the fields of corrections and community supervision and a recipient of multiple state and national awards, including the 2016 American Probation and Parole Association
Walter Dunbar Memorial Award and the 2017 National Association of Probation Executives Dan Richard Beto Award.

Michael was a member of the three-year Executive Session on Community Supervision at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, which led to the publication of "Less Is  More: How Reducing Probation Populations Can Improve Outcomes."

Michael continues to serve in various roles and capacities on numerous councils and commissions, including the National Steering Committee for Justice Counts and the Advisory Board for Familiar Faces. Additionally, he actively engages with projects sponsored by the National Institute of Corrections and National Institute of Justice. Michael holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Columbus State University, a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice from the University of West Georgia, and is a graduate of the Georgia Law Enforcement Command College.

Panelist

Lakila Bowden
Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder
iSee Technologies, Inc.

Lakila Bowden proudly serves as the Co-Founder and COO of iSee Technologies, Inc, providing DEI consulting & training facilitation for companies and organizations who wish to curate an environment where team members at every level are more wildly motivated to perform at their best. Her company regularly supports organizations such as international consumer brands company, Kimberly-Clark Corporation and PR global tastemaker, Momentum Worldwide, as well as government agencies like the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Within iSee, she delivers results for clients by developing strategic partner solutions. As a former VP of Operations in Corporate America, Lakila's led divisions of over 2,000 people across multiple states and geographies, with her territories ranking #1 or #2 in performance in the nation. Having held leadership positions in Finance and Operations at several Fortune 500 companies, including GE and DaVita Healthcare Partners, she's advanced and developed the careers of over 200 leaders.

Lakila also hosts the “Business Without Burnout Bootcamp” teaching women side hustlers and entrepreneurs to get paid, stay paid, and protect their peace.

She has been featured in Authority Magazine and Black Enterprise Magazine. She also speaks regularly on a variety of topics including mindful relationship development, radical truth in communication, and intentionality as a critical component of DEI.

In addition to driving growth in her thriving enterprise, Lakila currently serves an Advisory Board Council Member for the Georgia Small Business Majority, an esteemed member of the Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Project and a Stakeholder of the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs. Lakila is a graduate of North Carolina A&T State University and completed her MBA at Emory University.

Alongside her passion for iSee Technologies, Lakila is an excited new mom, an extraordinary wife to an amazing husband, and an adventurous world traveler.