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Women in Tech Leadership Award

The Women in Tech Leadership Award celebrates outstanding women who have made significant contributions through technical innovation or visionary organizational leadership, breaking barriers and inspiring others.

Use the form below to submit your nomination. Note that there is an option to “Save and finish later” at the end of the form if you need extra time to complete.

Nomination deadline: Sunday, October 26, 2025

Yakov Gradinar

Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer

Yakov Gradinar, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of the Protez Foundation, will share the transformative work of this Minnesota-based organization. Under Yakov’s leadership, the foundation is restoring function to the lives of Ukrainian children, civilians, and soldiers by providing them with state-of-the-art prosthetic limbs, enhanced with cutting-edge robotics and advanced technology. The innovative technology and compassionate services provided by Protez, coupled with the unwavering dedication of the soldiers, have empowered hundreds to return to the battlefield and reclaim their daily lives.

Willie Jett

Commissioner
Minnesota Department of Education

Willie Jett understands the challenges and strengths of all communities, and his career is characterized by a commitment to raising student achievement and closing opportunity gaps. He is committed to preparing our future citizens, growing Minnesota’s workforce and supporting professional educators.

Prior to his appointment as commissioner, Jett served as an instructor in the Education Administration Licensure program in the Department of Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development at the University of Minnesota. He has also taught and led in urban, suburban and greater Minnesota School districts for more than three decades. He earned his master’s degree from the University of Pittsburg and his bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Beth Elliott

Owner | Research & Design
Ellberry Transformation Consultants

Beth has an engaging communication style and will challenge the audience to expand their approach to transformation, based on her expertise as a transformation leader with 20 years of experience putting humans at the center of change. She has led marketing and product development programs and led innovation capabilities for Pega and Ecolab. She is now the owner and principal consultant of Ellbery, serving clients by accelerating digital transformation through design thinking and organizational change management.

Dr. Sean Masterman, Ed.D

Faculty of Practice
Dept. of Computer and Information Science
Concordia University, St. Paul

Dr. Masterman’s background includes delivering technology solutions to Fortune 30, small-to-medium businesses, and start-up organizations for 25 years as well as 15 years of experience in academia, as a Faculty of Practice and course designer at Concordia University- Saint Paul in the Masters of Organizational Management and Masters of IT Management programs and at the University of Sioux Falls, Doctorate of Education Leadership program. In addition, he serves Osseo School District as the Vice Chair of the District Planning Advisory Council – helping lead the effort to advise on programs and services for students and families.

Joseph Block

Senior Engineer, Advanced Aviation
Aerospace & Advanced Transportation
Crown Consulting Inc.

Joseph Block has deep expertise in applying novel aviation technologies to real world transportation challenges – connecting stakeholders at the intersection of technology, policy, and economics. Mr. Block holds a Bachelors degree in Aerospace Engineering and is certified by the FAA as a UAS Remote Pilot and Private Pilot. Joseph is currently a Senior Engineer for Advanced Aviation technologies in Crown Consulting’s Aerospace & Advanced Transportation business unit. He is an expert in the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS) industries with experience working with commercial, state government, and federal government clients.

Joseph’s clients have included large energy utilities, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT), and North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), and vertiport developers.

Notable projects include contributions to NASA’s High-Density Automated Vertiport Concept of Operations, ODOT’s Advanced Air Mobility Framework, NASA Small Business Innovation Research Vertiport Human Automation Teaming Toolbox prototype development, NASA Automated Air Cargo Market Study, and supporting NCDOT’s lead participation in the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) BEYOND Program.

Dave Elliston

Lead Recruiter
SPS Commerce

Dave is a self-professed geek and enthusiastic fan of the technology ecosystem in the twin cities. With more than a decade of experience connecting tech professionals with rewarding career opportunities he has developed a deep understanding of the ever-changing employment landscape. He currently serves as a tech recruiter for SPS Commerce, a Minneapolis-based software company leading the way in retail EDI that takes great pride in delivering a challenging yet rewarding workplace where their employees feel inspired, motivated, and, most importantly, valued.

Ron Huesman

Senior Analyst | Institutional Analysis
University of Minnesota

Ronald Huesman, Ph.D., is a Senior Analyst with the Office of Institutional Analysis at the University of Minnesota. He has worked in higher education for 30+ years. In addition to his role at the U, Ron is a Principal Researcher with the Student Experience in the Research University (SERU) Consortium, a partnership between the University of California, Berkeley Centers for the Studies of Higher Education, and the University of Minnesota. The SERU consortium is a collective of leading research universities in North America made up of researchers and scholars who collaborate to generate institutional, comparative, and longitudinal data on the student experience in the research university. Ron received his doctorate degree in educational measurement and statistics from the department of Quantitative Psychological Foundations at the University of Iowa. Ron has more than 60 peer-reviewed journal articles, chapters, and professional presentations over his career. His research interests in the past have primarily focused on 1) factors and policies related to student success (i.e., retention and graduation) in higher education; and 2) factors/experiences promoting sense of belonging and its relationship with the success of marginalized and underrepresented students. He currently leads a University of Minnesota System-wide effort responsible for collecting and analyzing data on alumni outcomes for compliance and internal reporting, institutional planning, and policy-relevant research to help inform senior-level decision makers.

Al Porter

Al Porter has been actively involved with fine art and commercial visual arts for more than four decades. Al began his career and worked for 15 years as a graphic designer and representative for a large high-quality commercial printer in San Francisco in the 80’s and 90’s. He then formed a print brokerage with a partner. Clients included Apple, Adobe, and many Bay Area top designers and agencies. Because of his comfort in the technical aspects of art and graphic design, his close relationship with Adobe, and his deep participation in the digital shift in the graphic arts industry, Al was keen to engage with emerging technologies and to discover for himself how they might aide in his creative process.

A full-time artist since 2000, Al has been a Minnesota resident since 2007 and has held studio space since 2016 in Northrup King Building in Northeast. Al received his bachelor’s degree in Graphic Communications (Design and Print) from Cal Poly in 1984. He also has a formal education in painting and drawing including attending Academy of Art College in San Francisco. He has shown his art in group and solo shows. His abstract painting media has historically been oil and acrylic, and more recently digital. In 2023, his digital painting called “Side View” was accepted in the MN State Fair fine arts exhibit and won the C. Crist Delmonico Memorial Award.

Karen Hildebrand

Technical Leader, Amazon Web Services

Dr. Karen Hildebrand is responsible for Partners at Amazon Web Services (AWS) within the Financial Services, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Telecommunications, Media & Entertainment, Games and Sports where she leads the development of novel solutions, algorithms and architectures including Gen-AI. In her global role, she focuses on finding technical novelty in natural language processing and computer vision and simple to use solutions for repeatable tasks. Prior to joining AWS, Dr. Hildebrand has worked across public and privately held companies from CancerCare Manitoba, Target to Digi-Key to Texas Instruments building Data Science teams and capabilities. She holds a Ph.D. in Information Systems specializing in Machine Learning from Dakota State University, where her thesis was on machine learning to predict career path outcomes for internal and external talent. Dr. Hildebrand has published over 20 peer-reviewed papers in top conferences and speaks regularly about how industries are applying Gen-AI, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence more broadly within their organizations (and at home). In addition to her commitment to AI, Dr. Hildebrand is passionate about legacy businesses and entrepreneurship. She is a 4th generation farmer, farming alongside her parents in Manitoba, Canada and proudly raising two teenage boys alongside her husband, who owns his own small business. When not at work, they are often found at a hockey rink, basketball court, rowing regatta or playing pickleball.

Rosie Nestingen

Rosie Nestingen is a Fargo, ND native and South Minneapolis resident. Her experience focuses on workforce and program transformation across technology, marketing, management consulting, nonprofit, and hospitality spaces. Rosie represented her home state of North Dakota at the Miss America Competition where she received the top score talent award. Her duties included delivering presentations and training on DEI which continues to fuel her passion to be an inclusive leader. Rosie has been highlighted in Fast Company, Twin Cities Business Magazine, Wall Street Journal, and Cosmopolitan, and has been a featured speaker for The Knot, and on the podcast Terrible, Thanks for Asking. 

In 2016, Rosie debuted a new work musical as the composer-lyricist, co-creator, and co-producer of a show titled Right, Wrong or Bomb: A Dating Musical! and is always looking for her next creative project. In her spare time, Rosie volunteers for The Link, a nonprofit in North Minneapolis, and spends time around Lake Harriet with her husband Hans, their daughter, Raine Moses, and dog, Oakland. 

Garret Anderson

AI Practice Leader, Digineer

Garret Anderson, AI Practice Leader at Digineer, will show participants how to win and keep customers with machine learning, including a real-life example that is valuable, accessible, and grounded – free of jargon or complex math. Attendees can take the methods he shares and apply them to their own organizations in short order. Garret is an innovative leader with a proven track record of delivering consistent return on investment with Machine Learning and AI over the last 8 years. In his most recent role as the Director of Strategic Planning, he served as the Chief Business Product Owner of Machine Learning and won the 2023 Innovation of the Year Award for developing the most innovative and valuable machine learning solution across the Fortune 15 enterprise. His expertise was further solidified with his certification from MIT in No Code Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Garret is a Citizen Data Scientist and Inventor as a holder of multiple machine learning patents. With over 15 years of experience in strategic planning and leadership roles, Garret brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table.

Dave Neville

President, Co-Founder, Infinity Robotics

Dave Neville, President and Co-founder of Infinity Robotics, boasts a rich career shaping the trajectory of technology. He pioneered careers for mathematicians and engineers in prominent companies like General Dynamics, Lockheed, and BAE, contributing to projects such as the F-35, F-22, and the US Navy railgun. After spending years in logistics and sales from his tenure at Sears and Roebuck and UPS Air Cargo, Dave founded Coonan, Inc., manufacturing military firearms.

In 1985, he initiated one of the first US robotics clubs, marking the beginning of a lifelong passion. Dave founded Minnesota Innovates, a nonprofit fostering education and entrepreneurship, organizing events like the MN Entrepreneur Kickoff. In 2019, driven by his passion for AI and machine vision, he co-founded Infinity Robotics, aiming to revolutionize life on and off Earth. His expertise spans grid-level energy storage, material handling, and advanced assembly systems.

Dave’s vision extends beyond Earth, toward off-planet mining robots and processing facilities. His charismatic speaking style has inspired industry professionals and local youth alike. Currently, he leads Infinity Robotics, a testament to his ability to integrate existing and near-future technologies into cutting-edge systems. Dave’s next frontier involves building Space Ports and establishing a Native American Astronaut Training School through Minnesota Innovates. With a vast network of experts, he continues his mission: changing lives through automation, making an impact both on Earth and beyond.

Rep. Kristin Bahner (DFL)

District: 37B, Minnesota House of Representatives

Kristin is a Small Business Owner and IT Consultant, specializing in team based project management that delivers solutions faster and more efficiently. Every day Kristin leads teams to get jobs done on time, on budget, and most importantly, do it together.

This past session Kristin brought her collaborative style to the capital in St. Paul and advocated for the common good of all Minnesotans. This translated into a record 32 bills this past session, with over half making it to the finish line, all with full bi-partisan support in both parties and both chambers, a rare feat derived from deep collaboration and the ability to work across the aisle.

Kristin has lived in Maple Grove for over 14 years and is active in the community. Meeting her neighbors out in the community is the favorite part of her job. She can be found attending the Maple Grove Farmers Market and a whole host of community events. Kristin periodically meets neighbors out in the community to discuss issues and craft legislation on behalf of constituents. She has completed the Maple Grove Citizens Police Academy and volunteers periodically for various causes and organizations.

Kristin continues to be a tenacious advocate for her community, putting people first, fighting for the issues important to her neighbors and her community. She is honored to have the opportunity to work in service to you.

Renee Edwards, Senior Vice President, Consumer Engineering, Optum

Renee Edwards

Optum

As the Senior Vice President at Optum, part of UnitedHealth Group, Renee leads enterprise initiatives focused on advancing healthcare through technology, data, and innovation. With more than two decades of experience in healthcare operations and strategy, Renee has held leadership roles driving transformation across clinical, digital, and consumer engagement platforms.

Her work centers on leveraging technology to improve health outcomes, enhance patient and provider experiences, and create scalable solutions for complex healthcare challenges. Renee is passionate about fostering collaboration and innovation to strengthen Minnesota’s position as a leader in health technology.

Senator Eric R. Pratt (55,R)

Assistant Majority Leader of the Minnesota Senate

Minnesota Senator Eric Pratt (55, R) is Assistant Majority Leader of the Minnesota Senate, where he was elected in 2012 and is serving his second term. He has served on the Council’s Board since 2019.

Sen. Pratt’s district covers areas of the south Metro including Shakopee. He sits on the Capital Investment Committee and the Jobs and Economic Development Committee, and is the ranking minority member of the Finance Committee.

Commissioner Tarek Tomes

Commissioner and Chief Information Officer, Minnesota IT Services (MNIT)

Tarek Tomes serves as the Commissioner of Minnesota IT Services (MNIT) and the State of Minnesota’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), leading state efforts to provide the best possible IT solutions and customer service to the people of Minnesota and our business partners.

As a recognized industry leader, Tomes brings over 25 years of experience in managing technology innovation across diverse industries, both in national, international, and public and private sector operations. Throughout his career, he has facilitated data-driven decision making, implemented many critical enterprise projects, and improved workforce diversity and inclusion.

Before becoming Commissioner, Tomes served as the Chief Innovation Officer and former Chief Information Officer at the City of St. Paul, where he was responsible for managing ongoing process improvements, supporting human-centered design, and increasing the overall effectiveness of city services and resources. While in St. Paul, Tomes facilitated a digital transformation at the city level, pioneering the use of mobile applications to improve resident opportunities. This work allowed the city to leverage deep data insights while promoting and supporting equitable service delivery. During his time as St. Paul’s Chief Information Officer, Tomes oversaw the launch of St. Paul’s Open Information Portal, which serves to promote and encourage innovative uses of data and transparency in government services.

Tomes’ prior work experience also includes six years as an Assistant Commissioner of Minnesota IT Services, where he created several nation-leading Information Technology sourcing agreements for 33,000+ user utility services statewide – including the first cloud-based public sector statewide service offering in the nation. While Tomes was serving in this role, Minnesota became the first state in the country to manage all Information Technology through service level agreements, a model that was recognized with a national award. Before joining state service, Tomes spent 13 years working for British Telecom.

Tomes received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and attended Graduate School for Business Management at Boston University.

Steve Grove

CEO and Publisher of The Minnesota Star Tribune

Steve Grove is CEO and Publisher of The Minnesota Star Tribune, where he leads the company’s operations and directs its strategy. Alongside a new management team, he is leading the transformation of storied Minnesota institution towards a new vision – to become the leading model for local news in America.

Before becoming CEO in April of 2023, Grove served as Gov. Tim Walz’s commissioner of employment and economic development, where he led the administration’s efforts to grow and protect the Minnesota economy during a dynamic and challenging four years in state history.

Prior to that, Grove spent 12 years as an executive at Alphabet’s Google and most recently was the founding director of the Google News Lab, which he developed to help media companies and startups drive innovation in the news industry.

Grove also led Google’s civic engagement work, including the company’s nonpartisan voter information and get-out-the-vote efforts. He previously built YouTube’s news and politics team, launching the first partnership programs for news organizations, nonprofits, and political candidates. Before that, Grove was a journalist for The Boston Globe, ABC News, and the Northfield (Minn.) News, his hometown newspaper.

A Minnesota native and a graduate of Northfield High School, he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and economics from Claremont McKenna College and a master’s degree in public policy analysis from Harvard. Steve and his wife Mary are the co-founder of Silicon North Stars, a nonprofit that helps underserved youth find career pathways in technology. They moved to Minneapolis from Silicon Valley in 2018 and are the proud parents of seven year old twins, a yellow lab, and two farm cats.

Srini Somayajula

VP, Global Technology Partnerships & Development
Ecolab

A chemical engineer by training, Srini Somayajula started his career with Ecolab in 2001 as a researcher in Institutional new business opportunities, working on water purification and air filtration using polymeric sequestration of volatiles.

During his tenure in research, he played a leadership role in establishing Ecolab’s Corporate Licensing Program and rose to his current job as Vice President, Global Technology Partnerships. Over the years, Srini has structured and successfully negotiated collaborations with Fortune 500 companies, startups and Venture Capital groups.

As the lead technology-centric deal negotiator for Ecolab, he has in the past and is currently working on a broad range of opportunities spanning oil & gas, industrial water treatment, IoT/automation, sensing & detection, infection prevention and advanced materials technologies.

Martha Cotton
Managing Director and Global co-Lead

Fjord Trends is Accenture Song’s annual report that looks at human and consumer behavior changes over the past year, and maps the trends we believe will impact business, design and tech in the next 12 months and beyond. An exploration of opportunities, we examine the changes thrust upon us, the innovations we’ve seen emerge, and set out how we move forward from here.
Fjord Trends 2022 collectively tell a story of people and their relationships with the planet, technology, brands, and each other. A unique set of challenges and opportunities arose for businesses in 2021, including supply chain issues, explosive new technologies, dramatic evolutions in people’s view of themselves and their priorities, and the realization that we can no longer behave as though people were separate from nature.
What matters now is how organizations respond to the evidence-based observations we’ve crowdsourced from more than 2,000 designers and innovators in Fjord studios around the world.

Jayshree Seth
Corporate Scientist, 3M

Jayshree Seth is a Corporate Scientist at 3M and currently holds 77 patents for a variety of innovations, with several additional pending. She joined 3M in 1993 after an MS and PhD in Chemical Engineering from Clarkson University, New York. She is a Distinguished Alumni Award recipient from her alma mater REC Trichy India, now NIIT Trichy, where she earned a B. Tech. in Chemical Engineering.

Jayshree was appointed 3M’s first ever Chief Science Advocate in 2018 and is using her scientific knowledge, technical expertise and professional experience to advance science and communicate the benefits of science and the importance of diversity in STEM fields. She is also a member of Carlton Society which is the 3M Science and Engineering “Hall of Fame.” Jayshree is the fourth woman and first female engineer to be inducted. In 2020, she was awarded Society of Women Engineers (SWE) highest Achievement Award. She is also the first-ever winner of a Gold Stevie® Award in the new Female Thought Leaders of the Year – category in the 18th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business in 2021. Jayshree was featured in a docuseries titled Not the Science Type that premiered during the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival and accepted for Brand Storytelling Showcase, a sanctioned event at Sundance Film Festival. She is the author of the books, The Heart of Science – Engineering Footprints, Fingerprints, & Imprints, and The Heart of Science – Engineering Fine Print published by the Society of Women Engineers, and all sales proceeds go to a scholarship for underrepresented minority women in STEM. She is a sought-after speaker, globally, on a multitude of topics such as innovation, leadership and STEM advocacy and has featured in local, national and international media.

Jayshree has served on the CEOs Inclusion Council, chaired the 3M Asian Employee Resource Group A3CTION and serves on the Steering Committee for 3M Technical Women’s Leadership Forum (WLF). She also serves on the Board of the Science Museum of Minnesota, Engineering Advisory Council for Clarkson University, AAAS Committee on Science, Engineering and Public Policy (COSEPP), Advisory Board for Innovation – The Conference Board, and Advisory Group of Aspen Institute Our Future is Science program.

Jayshree has two adult kids, and her husband also works at 3M.

Matt Versaggi

fmr Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Technology + Distinguished Engineer – Optum Technology

Matt Versaggi is a senior leader in the AI Space with Fortune-5 healthcare experience who possesses a unique blend of business, technology, entrepreneurial, and academic backgrounds. Matt is an experienced public speaker, strategist, and mentor; holds multiple patents; is a distinguished engineer and has international business experience. He built the organization’s “College of Artificial Intelligence”, introduced, and matured both Cognitive Technology and Quantum Computing, and has chaired multiple Patent Review Boards. Matt is a seasoned pole vault coach of 15+ years, on 2 continents, 3 states, 4 clubs, and 1 high school, who has produced national, state, regional, and local champions. He is a former D3 NCAA decathlete, and current USATF master’s Athlete.

Maria Vittone

Career Advisor & Director of Nontraditional Programming – North Hennepin Community College and Hennepin Technical College

Though Career Advisor & Director of Nontraditional Programming is Maria’s official title, she wouldn’t feel complete without adding a few more descriptors: Student Retention Champion, Workforce Connector, Mentorship Matters Spokesperson, and ‘Bloom Where You are Planted’ Coach. Maria finds her passion in places where change and reinvention are happening. She currently holds that space for her students, where she supports those who find themselves as ‘one of few’ in their newly chosen careers.

Maria’s gender equity program, Be Bold- Break the Mold: Women Succeed in Nontraditional Careers, was a notable program singled out at North Hennepin Community College for the National HEED Award in 2021 (Higher Education Excellence in Diversity). As a contractor with Hennepin Technical College & North Hennepin Community College, Maria recently received a MnACTE (MN Association for Career and Technical Education) Partnership Award for her mentoring and empowerment initiatives. In conjunction with Women’s History Month, she was co-awarded Campus Program of the Year. She was also the recipient of the National Academic Association for Academic Advising for an adult-learner orientation program.

Chakra Sankaraiah

Sr. Director of Technology
Land O’Lakes

Chakra is a visionary Technology leader with a proven track record in driving strategic business growth. As the Sr. Director of Technology at Land O’ Lakes for the past 7 years, he has successfully built and implemented ROI-driven data science solutions, including propensity modeling, churn analysis, quality prediction, pricing strategies, and cross-selling opportunities.

In his current role within the office of CTO/CIO, Chakra focuses on three key areas: leading the digital transformation of the Digital Ag Products family, establishing a strategic partnership with Microsoft to drive water and soil stewardship, food supply security, and vibrant communities, and driving digital innovation through emerging technologies such as AI, AR/VR, IoT, Blockchain, and Generative AI.

With prior experience at notable organizations, including Cloudera, Target, IBM, and Capgemini, Chakra brings a wealth of expertise in building data and digital products.

Chakra holds an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering, an MBA from the University of Minnesota, and has completed an executive CTO program at the University of California, Berkeley. Based in south Minneapolis, MN, he enjoys boating, fishing, and golfing in his leisure time.

Marcus Johansson

Director of Advanced Metering Infrastructure Delivery Program
Xcel Energy

Marcus Johansson is director of the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) Delivery Program within Xcel Energy’s Advanced Grid Intelligence and Security (AGIS) initiative. AGIS is a multi-year initiative that impacts all of Xcel Energy’s customers. Marcus works with his team and enterprise partners to enable the technology to implement Xcel Energy’s grid modernization strategy, and focuses on modeling what builds a highly motivated, effective, and successful team: collaboration and forward-looking leadership.

Marcus’ most recent focus has been to transform the Operating Model within the Customer Portfolio – Meter Data Insights group with a keen focus on Innovation and Sustainability.

Marcus has led digital strategy transformation in hospitality, earned leadership awards in the medical device and health insurance industry, and Chairman Awards in the financial services industry.  Career highlights include divestiture initiatives at Ameriprise Financial, Pricing strategy play at Best Buy, digital transformation at Marriott and Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. At Xcel Energy, prior to his work on the AGIS initiative, Marcus has led Cyber Security initiatives and Data and Analytics projects.

Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and executive education on Digital Strategy and Innovation in Medical Devices from University of Minnesota – Carlson School of Management.

Dave Rummler

Vice President of Sales
EOS IT

Dave Rummler is a 25-year veteran in collaboration and video deployments. David is currently acting as Vice President of Sales for EOS IT Solutions.​ EOS is a global systems integrator operating in 195 countries who has a specialty practice around smart and sustainable workspaces.​ Prior to EOS, David ran Cisco’s Enterprise Video business in North America and has held leadership positions at Tandberg, Acano and Pexip; bringing collaborative solutions to large enterprise customers in North America. ​