Ann Kaplan
Chair, WCCLC
New York
Ann Kaplan
Chair, WCCLC
New York
Ann Kaplan is a partner of Circle Wealth Management (CWM) a registered advisory firm. She is also the chair and founder of Circle Financial Group, a wealth management membership group for women. Ms. Kaplan was previously a general partner of Goldman, Sachs & Co. where she served as the head of the municipal bond department. Ms. Kaplan is a Columbia University Trustee Emerita. She currently serves on the Board of Overseers of the Columbia University School of Business, the Board of Advisors of School of Public Health and the Board of Advisors at the Medical Center. Ms. Kaplan also serves as a board member of the Goldman Sachs Bank USA and the Museum of Arts and Design. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York and the International Women’s Forum. Ms. Kaplan holds a B.A. from Smith College and a M.B.A. from Columbia University.
Annette Anthony
London
Annette Anthony
London
Annette is a London-based private investor. She is a Founding Member of Impact X Capital Partners, a double bottom line VC fund focusing on underrepresented founders and innovators in Europe. Her civic interests span the arts, education, and politics. A patron of the arts, she is a Trustee of the Yinka Shonibare Foundation. Annette has served on school boards in England, was a member of Vassar College President’s International Advisory Council, and has lectured on women and the law at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris. Annette's engagement in policy and politics has endured beyond her career start as Counsel for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. She is an active overseas supporter of candidates for elected office, and served on a U.S. presidential candidate's abroad finance committee. Annette is a graduate of Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and Columbia Law School.
Anjali Bansal
India
Anjali Bansal
India
Anjali Bansal is the founder of Avaana Capital, a platform that invests in the scaling up of growth stage businesses, with a gender positive approach. She has recently been appointed non executive Chairperson of Dena Bank by the Government of India.
She was previously global Partner and Managing Director with TPG Growth PE, Spencer Stuart India CEO, and strategy consultant with McKinsey and Co in New York and India. She has also been an active angel investor in India with investments in various early and growth stage consumer companies. She started her career as an engineer. She serves as an independent non executive director on the public boards of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Pharmaceuticals India, Bata India Limited, Tata Power as well as Delhivery. She is on the Advisory Board of the Columbia University Global Centers, South Asia. Previously, she chaired the India board of Women's World Banking, a leading global livelihood-promoting institution and continues to be an advisor to SEWA. She is a charter member of TiE, serves on the managing committee of the Indian Venture Capital Association, angel investor and mentor to Facebook SheLeadsTech, NITI Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission and others.
An active contributor to the dialogue on corporate governance and diversity, Anjali co-founded and chaired the FICCI Center for Corporate Governance program for Women on Corporate Boards. She serves on the managing committee of the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She is a member of the Young Presidents' Organization. She has been listed as one of the “Most Powerful Women in Indian Business” by India’s leading publication, Business Today, and as one of the “Most Powerful Women in Business” by Fortune India She has a Bachelors in Computer Engineering and a Masters in International Finance and Business from Columbia University.
Jewelle Bickford
New York
Jewelle Bickford
New York
Jewelle Bickford joined Evercore Wealth Management in August 2013 as a Partner and Wealth and Fiduciary Advisor. She worked closely with the firm's planning and investment professionals, focusing on family governance, private wealth education, and the Wise Women series.
Jewelle retired as a partner at Evercore Wealth Management on Dec 31, 2020 and became President of Paradigm4parity, a non profit dedicated to achieving gender and racial equality for women.
She joined Evercore Wealth Management from GenSpring Family Offices, where she served as a senior strategist, responsible for cultivating relationships with high net worth families. She also led the company's focus on women and wealth.
Prior to joining GenSpring in 2009, Ms. Bickford was a global partner at Rothschild Group, concentrating on cross-border new business origination, and head of the debt capital markets for Rothschild Inc. She was a member of N.M. Rothchild’s Global Banking and Treasury Committee. She merged her investment banking firm, Bickford & Partners Inc., into Rothschild Inc. in 1994.
Ms. Bickford is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the founder of Women and Foreign Policy, the Council's task force on the role of women in economic and political development in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
She currently serves as co-chair on the board of directors of MasterVoices. She also serves on the board of directors of Women for Women International and the Women's Media Center, and on the Business Committee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is a board member and the past president of the Trisha Brown Dance Company and is a Trustee Emeritus of the Randolph-Macon Women's College. From 2003 to 2010 she served on the board of directors of the SEC-registered Torrey Funds. Continuously from 2003 through 2007, she attended Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Conference.
Additionally, Ms. Bickford is a member of the Committee of 200, the Women's Forum and the co-chair of the Paradigm for Parity Movement, and currently President of the Paradigm4parity nonprofit.
She earned her B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College in 1977, and is a graduate of The Fuqua School of Business Executive Education program at Duke University.
A'lelia Bundles
Washington, DC
A'lelia Bundles
Washington, DC
A’Lelia Bundles is the author of four biographies about the women in her family. On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C.J. Walker, which she began researching while a student at Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism, was named a New York Times Notable Book and was the inspiration for Self Made, a 2020 Netflix series.
She was a network television news executive and producer for three decades. After thirteen years as a producer with NBC News, she joined ABC News where she served as a producer for World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, as Washington, DC deputy bureau chief and as director of talent development in New York.
She is Chair Emerita of the National Archives Foundation and on the advisory boards of the Schlesinger Library at Harvard’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, the March on Washington Film Festival and the Smithsonian’s American Women’s History Initiative. A recipient of an Emmy and a du Pont Gold Baton for her television journalism, she has participated in writing residencies at Yaddo and the MacDowell Colony. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
She is a Vice Chair of Columbia’s Board of Trustees and Co-Chair of the Public Affairs Committee. She is a former Vice Chair of the Columbia Alumni Association, former Co-Chair of the CAA Strategic Planning Committee and served two terms as a du Pont Broadcast Awards Juror. She is a recipient of a Columbia Medal for Distinguished Alumni Service.
Harvard A.B., 1974
Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, M.S., 1976
Lisa Carnoy
New York
Lisa Carnoy
New York
Lisa Carnoy is the Chief Financial Officer for AlixPartners, the global consulting firm. She leads the finance, acquisition, and procurement functions and serves on the Management Committee. AlixPartners focuses on high impact client work in four areas: Turnaround and Restructuring, Enterprise Improvement, Financial Advisory, and Digital – and has 26 offices in 14 countries.
Prior to joining AlixPartners in 2018, Lisa spent 23 years at Merrill Lynch/Bank of America, most recently as Division Executive for USTrust, the private bank within Bank of America, and as BoA’s New York City Market President. She served on the Global Wealth and Investment Management leadership team, as well as Bank of America’s Operating Committee. Prior to her move to Global Wealth & Investment Management, Lisa served as Head of Global Capital Markets for Bank of America Merrill Lynch and was a member of the Global Corporate and Investment Banking Operating Committee. In this role, she led Capital Markets Professionals across Equity Capital Markets, Debt Capital Markets, Leveraged Finance, and Origination of Corporate Derivatives and FX.
Lisa has been a passionate advocate for diversity – and co-founded several organizations including the Women’s Leadership Council at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and at Columbia, both the Women’s Leadership Council for Athletics and the Dean’s Advisory Circle. She was named among the 25 most influential women for the 25th anniversary of the Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium, and Women in Science at Columbia have named a leadership award in Lisa’s honor. Prior to becoming a Trustee, Lisa was actively engaged as an alumna, as a board member for the Columbia College Alumni Association and Board of Visitors.
Carnoy is an independent director of the U.S. Soccer Federation and serves on the boards of the United Way of New York City and Rodeph Sholom School. She has been named to American Banker’s list of “Most Powerful Women in Finance,” and in 2013, she received the Merit Award from the Women’s Bond Club. She also has received Columbia’s John Jay Award for professional achievement, the College’s Alumna Achievement Award, and the University’s Alumni Medal.
Isobel Coleman
New York
Isobel Coleman
New York
Isobel Coleman is an author, foreign policy expert, consultant and former diplomat who served as one of the United States’ ambassadors to the UN during the Obama Administration. For decades, her research, writing and public speaking have focused on the economic, social and political benefits of empowering women and girls. She is the author of numerous publications, including the critically acclaimed book Paradise Beneath Her Feet: How Women are Transforming the Middle East (Random House, 2010). Prior to her time with the State Department, Isobel was a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) where she was the founding director of CFR’s Women and Foreign Policy Program. She started her career with McKinsey & Co., providing strategy and management consulting to leading global financial institutions and becoming a partner in 1998. She holds a BA degree from Princeton University and MPhil and DPhil degrees from Oxford University which she attended as a Marshall Scholar. She serves on several boards and advisory councils.
Georgina Cullman
New York
Georgina Cullman
New York
Georgina Cullman is an Ecologist for New York City's Department of Parks & Recreation. As part of the Natural Resources Group, Dr. Cullman conducts research and provides advisement on the city's natural areas and biodiversity. Prior to working at Parks, Dr. Cullman was a biodiversity scientist at the American Museum of Natural History's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation and implemented applied conservation research in such diverse locations as Madagascar, Solomon Islands, Bolivia, Panama, and New Jersey.
Abigail Elbaum
New York
Abigail Elbaum
New York
Abby Elbaum is a Co-Founder and Principal of Ogden CAP Properties, a real estate management, development and investment firm with assets in New York and Washington, D.C. She began her career at JPMorgan Chase in the Private Bank. Abby is a Trustee of Columbia University and a member of the Steering Committee of Columbia College's Core to Commencement Campaign. She is also active in other organizations including The New York City Police Foundation and the Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter.
Janice Reals Ellig
New York
Janice Reals Ellig
New York
As the head of the Ellig Group, Janice is dedicated to increasing the placement of women and diverse candidates on corporate boards and in C-suites by 2025. Janice joined the legacy firm in 2000 and became Co- Chief Executive Officer in its transition to Chadick Ellig in 2007; she assumed sole ownership of the company as the Ellig Group in 2017 with a new focus on Reimagining Search. Prior to her career in executive search, Janice spent 20 years in corporate America at Pfizer, Citi and Ambac Financial Group, an IPO from Citibank, where she was responsible for Marketing, Human Resources, and Administration.
Heralded by Bloomberg Businessweek as one of “The World’s Most Influential Headhunters,” Janice is often consulted for her expertise and her commitment to gender parity, inclusion, and diversity. She frequently appears at speaking engagements and as a media guest, and she has penned multiple articles for outlets such as Directors & Boards, Directorship, Corporate Director, The Huffington Post, and Forbes.com. Janice also co- authored two books: Driving The Career Highway and What Every Successful Woman Knows, acknowledged by Bloomberg Businessweek as “the best of its genre.”
A tirelessly active member of the industry and champion of her causes, Janice is Founder of the Women’s Forum of New York’s Corporate Board Initiative and its signature event, Breakfast of Corporate Champions. Since 2011, Janice continues to spearhead this event to honor companies committed to board diversity and to encourage CEOs to sponsor board-ready women for the Women’s Forum database. (LINK: www.womensforumny.org).
Janice is personally committed to several NFP organizations: Chair (2020) of the University of Iowa Center for Advancement (UICA); Board Director of the National YMCA and Past Chair of the YMCA Board of Greater New York; Trustee Emeritus of the Actors Fund and Committee For Economic Development (CED); Women’s Forum of New York Past President and Chair of the Corporate Board Initiative; member of the Steering Committee, US 30% Club and The Economic Club of New York.
In recognition for her many philanthropic activities, Janice received the University of Iowa Distinguished Alumni Award in 2011 and the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC) Eleanor Raynolds Award for Volunteerism in 2008. Named one of the “21 Leaders for the 21st Century” by Women’s eNews, she was also a recipient of the Channel 21 Award In Excellence for her contribution to “Excellence in the Economic Development for Women.”
Melissa Fisher
New York
Melissa Fisher
Visiting Scholar, New York University Institute for Public Knowledge
New York
Melissa Fisher, a cultural anthropologist, is a Visiting Scholar at New York University’s Institute for Public Knowledge and a Principal Research Fellow at the Conference Board. She is also an adjunct professor in International and Public Affairs at Columbia University. Her first book, a co-edited volume, Frontiers of Capital: Ethnographic Reflections on the New Economy (Duke University Press, 2006), explored the social and cultural landscape of business. Wall Street Women (Duke Press, 2012), her second book, examines the first generation of women in finance (1956-2010). Her current book project is on the future of work in the wake of social movements (such as Me Too and Black Lives Matter) as well as crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
Melissa has given numerous key notes talks nationally and internationally. Her book on Wall Street women received over 25 reviews in academic journals. In addition, her research has been profiled by The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, CNBC, NPR and the BBC. Her writings have appeared in publications such as Bloomberg and Bill Moyer’s Group Think. She appeared in the 2014 PBS documentary Makers: Women in Business. She also played an advisory role in the first female financial thriller film, Equity, a 2016 Sony Classic Pictures release. She is currently a US Delegate to the Women’s 20 that advises the G20 on gender issues.
Prior to joining the faculty at Columbia, Melissa was the Laurits Andersen Professor in Business and Organizational Anthropology at the University of Copenhagen. She has also been a faculty member in the Department of Social and Cultural Analysis at NYU and the Department of Anthropology at Georgetown University. She earned her Ph.D. and M.A. in Anthropology at Columbia University and her B.A. in English at Barnard College.
Working Group Affiliation
Amal Ghandour
Lebanon
Amal Ghandour
Lebanon
Ms. Amal Ghandour’s career spans more than two decades in the fields of research and communication. An author (About This Man Called Ali) and a former blogger (Thinking Fits), Ghandour is Senior Strategy Adviser to Ruwwad al Tanmeyah, a regional community development initiative, a position she has held since 2009. Ghandour, who was special adviser to Columbia University Global Centers, Middle East, from 2014 to 2017, sits on the Board of Trustees of International College, the Board of Directors of Ruwwad, Lebanon, and has served on the Board of Directors of The Arab Human Rights Fund (2011-2014). She holds an MS in International Policy from Stanford University and a BSFS from Georgetown University.
Deborah Jackson
New York
Deborah Jackson
New York
Deborah Jackson is a founder and entrepreneur, early-stage investor and former investment banker. She has served on the Boards of numerous non-profit organizations and is a proud supporter of Columbia Business School and Columbia entrepreneurs. Deborah founded Plum Alley as a solution for individuals, families and corporations to make direct investments in dynamic women entrepreneurs. Plum Alley Investments forms syndicates to invest in companies building medical solutions and transformative technology that will positively impact society.
Carolee Lee
New York
Carolee Lee
New York
AccessCircles was founded in June of 2008 by Carolee Lee, the former CEO and founder of Carolee Designs, one of the world’s leading accessories brands. Carolee’s vision is to create a by invitation network to enrich the health, wellness and financial expertise of women through informative gatherings, transformative knowledge, unique experiences and access to leading authorities and alliance partners in the fields of health and wellness, financial expertise and life balance.
Carolee is founder and CEO of Women's Health Access Matters (WHAM), https://whamnow.org/
Safwan Masri
New York
Safwan Masri
Qatar
Professor Safwan M. Masri is Executive Vice President for Global Centers and Global Development at Columbia University and a Senior Research Scholar at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). He joined Columbia University in 1988 as a member of the faculty of Columbia Business School and served as Vice Dean from 1993-2005. He previously taught engineering at Stanford University and was a visiting professor at INSEAD (Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires) in France. Masri is the author of Tunisia: An Arab Anomaly (Columbia University Press, 2017). He is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations and an honorary fellow of the Foreign Policy Association.
Lynn Mestel
New York
Lynn Mestel
New York
Lynn Mestel, Esq. is Non-Executive Chairman of the Board at Mestel & Company. She founded the company in 1987 and served as its CEO, President, and Chairman of the Board through February 2017. Lynn expanded Mestel & Company in 1993 by establishing Hire Counsel to meet the high business demands of the ever-evolving legal industry.
The National Law Journal named Lynn in their inaugural list of “50 Business of Law Trailblazers & Pioneers,” and she was honored by The Women’s Venture Fund in 2013 as one of the leading women entrepreneurs in the U.S. Lynn was named in Law Dragon’s “100 Leading Legal Consultants and Strategists” twice, most recently in 2016. She is a recipient of the Brava Award from Smart CEO honoring top female CEO’s for entrepreneurial leadership and social commitment. The American Lawyer, Crain’s, Forbes, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal recognize her as one of the preeminent professionals in her field.
Lynn holds a J.D. from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and a B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, where she was elected Phi Beta Kappa. She is a member of The Economic Club of New York and the Women’s Forum of New York. Lynn also studied music at The Juilliard School. She lives with her husband in New York City near her children and grandchildren.
Cynthia Moses-Mano cherian
New York
Cynthia Moses-Manocherian
New York
Cynthia Moses-Manocherian is a partner at WAM Equity Partners, a New York real-estate company specializing in residential properties. A native New Yorker, she received her BA from Smith College. She was a member of the Smith College President’s Council and is currently a member of the President's Library Roundtable. At Columbia, Cynthia received an MS in Real Estate Development and has chaired the Columbia MSRED Alumni Council. She also serves on the Columbia Alumni Trustee Nominating Committee (ATNC). She is as a longtime Trustee of UrbanGlass, a Brooklyn based non-profit arts organization dedicated to the use of glass in contemporary art. More recently, she has become involved in environmental protection and land use issues in Westchester County. Ms. Moses-Manocherian and her husband Jeffrey reside in New York City and have three daughters.
Molly Mathews Multedo
Rio de Janiero and New York
Molly Mathews Multedo
Rio de Janiero and New York
Molly Multedo has over 30 years of experience in pre-college science education and Spanish language media as well as environmental communication and science outreach. She has lived in Brazil, where she and her husband, Fernando, raised their three children, both part and full time since 1998. Molly holds graduate degrees in international affairs and journalism from Columbia University. She is a President and Founder of Acquazul, a 501 c 3 nonprofit focused on multilingual environmental media, education and impact and a regular contributor to the Yale Climate Connections, at the Center for Environmental Communication (YCEC), an initiative of the Yale
Diana Moreinis Nasser
São Paulo, Brazil
Diana Moreinis Nasser
São Paulo, Brazil
Diana Moreinis Nasser is a Co-Founder and Director at Macro Fund, a factoring firm in São Paulo, Brazil. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Columbia College, is the founder and Chair for ARC Brazil (Columbia's Alumni Representative Committee), President of the Columbia University Alumni Club of São Paulo, and serves on the Board of Directors for the CCAA (Columbia College Alumni Association). She also serves on the Board of the Women's Division of Keren Hayesod and is active in organizations such as Mulheres do Brasil. She was born in Bogota, Colombia, has lived in the United States and Switzerland, and currently lives in São Paulo.
Alyson Neel
New York
Alyson Neel
Baton Rouge
Alyson Neel is the Director of Communications for the Louisiana Department of Health. She is a gender policy specialist with journalism, research, and advocacy experience in Turkey, the United States, and most recently Myanmar. In Istanbul, Turkey, Neel spent 2.5 years reporting on a range of gender inequities for Today’s Zaman, the then-largest English language daily; The Washington Post; and other international publications. She then worked on global and domestic health policy for U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and supported U.S. and global civil society leaders in their advocacy for the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the UN Foundation. After being selected as a 2016-17 Luce Scholar, Neel spent 15 months in Yangon, Myanmar, where she supported a local women's organization while authoring a bilingual children's book, entitled Girl Power in Myanmar, about pioneering women throughout Myanmar history. Neel received her BA in Political Communication at Louisiana State University, and her MPA in International Development at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.