Diana Ramos MBA '20
California Surgeon General
Keynote
Diana Ramos EMBA '20
California Surgeon General
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Dr. Diana E. Ramos is a well-recognized public health leader dedicated to improving health care quality and equity. She recently served as the Assistant Deputy Director of Chronic Disease Prevention for the California Department of Public Health. Past roles include the Director for Reproductive Health in the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and adjunct Associate Professor at the Keck University of Southern California School of Medicine.
Dr. Ramos currently serves as chair for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist, California & Ecuador (IX) District, secretary for the executive board of the National Hispanic Medical Association, and is co-chair for the Women’s Preventive Service Initiative implementation committee.
She serves on many national and international women’s health improvement and equity committees. Her areas of expertise include health disparities, social determinants of health, preconception/interconception health, preterm birth, contraception and quality improvement in health. Dr. Ramos has written and contributed numerous articles to the obstetrics and gynecology and public health literature and has lectured in Spanish and English, locally, nationally and internationally.
Dr. Ramos received her medical degree from the University of Southern California with honors and completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center. She received her MBA from the UCI Paul Merage School of business with an emphasis in entrepreneurship and innovation and her master’s in public health from the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Ramos completed her undergraduate degree, a BA in Communications, Arts & Science from the University of Southern California.
Pamina Barkow, MBA '16
Owner and CEO
Orange County Pain Management
Keynote
Pamina Barkow, MBA '16
Owner and CEO
Orange County Pain Management
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Pamina is an experienced entrepreneur and Medical Practice Administrator with a Master’s in Business Administration from The Paul Merage School of Business. She started in the field of medicine as both a professionally trained chef and a Clinical Nutritionist (CNC).
Her love of food, nutrition and science led her to connect with her late husband, Dr. Stephen H. Barkow. For a decade, they built Orange County Pain Management and dreamt of ways of making the field more integrated.
Pamina has served as an adjunct faculty member for the UCI Integrative Medicine Department, a board member of the Beall Center for Entrepreneurship, and as Chair of the Dean’s Leadership Circle at the Merage School. She frequently lectures on matters pertaining to business, entrepreneurship, and healthcare administration and operations.
Gary Acosta
Entrepreneur/Advocate
Panelist
Gary Acosta
Entrepreneur/Advocate
MODERATOR
Gary Acosta is an entrepreneur, public policy advocate, and investor. He is the Co-Founder & CEO of The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP®). NAHREP is the largest Latino business organizations in the nation. Mr. Acosta is also the co-founder of L’ATTITUDE, and a major-event he produces with international business executive, Sol Trujillo, former United Airlines CEO, Oscar Munoz, and music superstar, Emilio Estefan. L’ATTITUDE celebrates the key role of Latinos in business, entertainment, sports, tech and politics. Acosta is also a general partner of the L’ATTITUDE Ventures, the nation’s largest venture capital fund exclusively focused on Latino led start-ups. Mr. Acosta writes a weekly blog about business and current events at garyacosta.com.
Carlos Alberto Amaya
Advisory Principal
Deloitte
Panelist
Carlos Alberto Amaya
Advisory Principal
Deloitte
PANELIST
Carlos is a Principal in the Deloitte’s Cyber & Strategic Risk practice, serving clients in the Life Sciences and Healthcare (LSHC) industry. Carlos has over 22 years in combined Professional Services and Industry experience, and currently serves some of the largest healthcare organizations in the United States. Carlos has led a wide range of large-scale cybersecurity transformation projects, confidential investigations, and managed services across the industry. In his free time, Carlos enjoys spending time traveling and finding new adventures with his family. Both Carlos and his wife, Olga, are Merage alumni (MBA ’05 and ’06, respectively). Zot Zot!
Catherine Garcia
Principal/Co-Founder
Aviso Consultants LLC
Panelist
Catherine Garcia
Principal/Co-Founder
Aviso Consultants LLC
PANELIST
Cathy is Principal/Co-founder of Aviso Consultants LLC, a boutique accounting and finance consulting firm where she partners with clients to provide experienced, collaborative solutions for their business needs.
Prior to co-founding Aviso, Cathy spent 7 years in consulting and business development roles, where she discovered a new-found passion for entrepreneurship and fueled the launch of Aviso. From 2011-2014, she was Finance Director at ABC Owned TV Stations at The Walt Disney Company, where she was responsible for reporting financial results and projections for the Owned TV Station group.
As a demonstration of her versality and enthusiasm for new opportunities, Cathy was Chief Operating Officer of the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA) from 2006-2011, responsible for overseeing the execution of the organization’s professional and student programs with its corporate partners, developing strategic alliances with external organizations, and the hiring, development and management of the ALPFA Operations team. Preceding roles in her career include Internal Audit Senior Manager for EMAK Worldwide, leading the company’s Sarbanes-Oxley world-wide compliance efforts, and Beckman Coulter as Corporate Accounting Manager. She began her career with KPMG, LLP in Assurance in its Orange County practice.
Cathy holds a Bachelors of Science in Accounting from California Polytechnic University Pomona. She is a licensed CPA with an active status in the State of California.
Cathy is a lifetime member of ALPFA, where she served on both the Los Angeles and Orange County ALPFA boards, holding several board positions, including Vice President of the Los Angeles Chapter in 2005. She was also a part of Disney ABC TV Group’s Latino Focus Committee, and served on the AICPA Minority Initiatives Committee.
Maria Guerra
Business Owner
Hardcore Fitness Studio
Luncheon Awards Moderator
Maria Guerra
Business Owner
Hardcore Fitness Studio
LUNCHEON AWARDS MODERATOR
Although Maria was born and raised in beautiful Southern California, she comes from a rich Hispanic heritage with her father being from Puerto Rico and mother from Mexico. She currently lives in Orange County and has two adult sons.
Maria has been a successful group fitness instructor for over 15 years. She has since created her own high intensity fitness program called BURN (Bodies Under Renovation No… as in No excuses, No shortcuts, No limits) and has recently opened her own private fitness studio called Hard Core Fitness Studio in Lake Forest, CA. Maria graduated Magna Cum Laude in Business Management & Organizational Leadership from Vanguard University and is a Certified Group Fitness Instructor through AFAA, a Certified Personal Trainer through NASM, and Weight Management Specialist through NCCPT. She is also a certified CPR/AED and First Aid Instructor through the American Heart Associations HeartSaver Program.
Maria has appeared as a trainer on Univision’s weight-loss television program, Dale Con Ganas, from the creator of the Biggest Loser, as well as People en Español (Feb 2012), among others. She is the Resident Fitness Expert for Univision’s Primera Edicion and Telemundos’s Primer Impacto morning news programs and is a National Spokesperson for the American Heart Association. Most recently, she has been a contributing columnist for the Huffington Post and Home & Garden and was featured in American Fitness Magazine Sept/Oct 2015. But what Maria enjoys most is traveling the country as a motivational and keynote speaker, promoting empowerment through fitness, health and overall wellness.
Carlos Herrera
Senior Manager Marketing Operations
Medtronic
Panelist
Victoria Montes
Vice President
Finance, Real Estate Acquisitions, Development, Asset Management, Energy, Technology (MCA)
Panelist
Victoria Montes
Vice President Finance, Real Estate Acquisitions, Development, Asset Management, Energy, Technology (MCA)
PANELIST
Victoria has achieved 20 years of expertise in commercial real estate, energy, and technology overseeing $1B in acquisition, development, and financial capital and operating budgets. She is VP Acquisitions and Development for Management Consulting Advisors, founded by Victoria and has been responsible for major projects at Lennar, Toll Brothers, Edison Western Digital, IBM, AT&T, Yum Brands, and US Navy.
Her degrees include:
MBA, Finance, UCLA Anderson,
BS, Accounting, UC Berkeley Haas,
Project Management Certified,
CA Real Estate Brokers License,
Dept. Of Defense Security Clearance
Gerardo Okhuysen
Senior Associate Dean and Professor
UCI Paul Merage School of Business
Moderator
Gerardo Okhuysen
Senior Associate Dean and Professor
UCI Paul Merage School of Business
MODERATOR
Professor Gerardo Okhuysen’s teaching focuses on Organizational Behavior, Effectiveness of Groups and Teams, and Decision Making. In general, Professor Okhuysen is concerned with improving the leadership and management skills that individuals need to effectively influence group and organizational functioning. His current projects examine group dynamics, group success, and how emotion is embedded in the activities of people in decision making and other contexts.
Andy Paz MBA'07
Senior Vice President
Analytics/Decision Science, Experian
Panelist
Andy Paz MBA'07
Senior Vice President Analytics/Decision Science
Experian
PANELIST
Andy Paz is the Senior Vice President and Head of Analytics for Experian’s Decision Analytics business. She and her team of analysts, scientists, credit, fraud, and risk management experts provide results-driven consulting services and state-of-the-art advanced analytics, science, and data products to clients in a wide range of businesses including banking, auto, credit, health, utility, marketing, and finance.
Andy began her career in banking operations and transformational initiatives, and spent a few years in the mortgage industry as well in marketing and enterprise risk. She has been with Experian for many years, working in a variety of roles in the Credit Information Solutions division, including a secondment in Experian Australia, and a few years in Experian Health, leading Data Management and Analytics. She is a co-sponsor of the company’s Juntos Hispanic employee resource group.
Andy was born and raised in Argentina, completing her bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing, and earned an MBA at the University of California, Irvine.
Ileana Prado
Vice President
Human Resources West Coast, NBCUniversal
Moderator
Ileana Prado
Vice President
Human Resources West Coast, NBCUniversal
MODERATOR
Ileana Prado is a dynamic HR leader with 20+ years of experience. In her current role, Ms. Prado is responsible for guiding the NBCU West Coast television stations’ overall human resources strategy, leadership development, diversity, inclusion and equity, employee development, employee relations and security. Her strategic direction has changed the approach, culture, and impact of the regional HR team to better support the business objectives ability to meet the needs and aspirations of over 1700 dedicated employees.
Ms. Prado loves to play the piano and collect wines made by female winemakers. She has a BS in Business Administration from Loma Linda University, Loma Linda CA.
Anthony Rodriguez, MBA ’14
Senior Vice President
Multifamily & Commercial Real Estate
Panelist
Anthony Rodriguez, MBA '14
Senior Vice President
Multifamily & Commercial Real Estate
PANELIST
Raised in a military family he grew up in the greater Los Angeles area where he earned an Associate’s Degree in Design from Don Bosco Technical Institute. As the oldest of five, he joined the Air Force (Air National Guard) in order to pay his way through college at San Diego State University, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Finance.
After his Bachelor’s degree, he moved to Orange County where he later earned his Master’s Degree (MBA) with a concentration in Real Estate at UCI’s prestigious Paul Merage School of Business where he has been a frequent guest lecturer since 2016 and started teaching a full course in 2022. As a 17-year Air Force veteran, Anthony, a seasoned commercial real estate professional who specializes in investment real estate, lives by the core values he swore to; Integrity, Service before self, and Excellence in all we do. A licensed Commercial Real Estate agent since 2010, Anthony’s experience and background allows him to take a consulting approach with his clients advising family private offices and some of the largest multifamily investors in California. While understanding their real estate portfolio goals, he identifies options and solutions to best fit their current situation while putting a strategic plan in place to exceed their objectives.
If Anthony is not helping clients expand their multifamily or commercial real estate portfolio, you can find him enjoying the Southern California outdoors or volunteering at a local charity event. He is very involved in the community supporting organizations such as Padres Contra El Cancer, Mended little Hearts, and is the founder of Thanksgiving Goodness; an annual event feeding over 20,000 homeless in Downtown Los Angeles since 2008. Anthony recently became a board member of a non-profit, Pathways LA, an organization supporting early education and childhood development for 4,000 families in Los Angeles county.
Anthony is a Senior Vice President for a real estate firm specializing in multifamily and commercial real estate. As an active commercial real estate agent he facilitates and consults private investors and family offices in acquisitions and dispositions of investment property.
Ian O. Williamson
Dean
UCI Paul Merage School of Business
Moderator
Ian O. Williamson
Dean
UCI Paul Merage School of Business
MODERATOR
Ian Williamson is Dean of The UCI Paul Merage School of Business. During his 20-year career, Williamson has served on several academic committees and on the boards of directors for a variety of nonprofit organizations. In addition, he has provided expert insights in the areas of organizational innovation and employee recruitment and retention to executives in more than 20 countries across six continents for companies such as CBRE, PwC, Lockheed Martin, Nestle and Accenture.