Empower your Career - Momentum with Mentoring (BWIT)

Description

Birmingham Women in Technology presents a special panel discussion on how to propel your career and leadership with mentoring. Hear the stories of extraordinary women leaders for whom mentoring was a career turning point followed by an interactive audience Q&A.

We will be announcing BWIT's new FREE mentoring program in collaboration with Momentum Leadership and how you can sign up for mentorship as a mentee or a mentor to empower your career momentum!

About the panelists

Darla Morrison has a life-long love for connecting and promoting others. Her education background comes from earning her BS in Psychology from Jacksonville State University, and her Master’s in Communication from University of Alabama in Birmingham. She has been working with nonprofits and small businesses, especially female-owned businesses and entrepreneurs, for over 10 years. She has held the position of executive director, public relations and marketing director, and served on the boards for various organizations and businesses throughout her career. Her passion to connect people and share knowledge led to being the founder of Lioness Summit and is a DISC certified trainer, and mentoring with 4Word women, a business organization for Christian women. She came on as Program and Events Director with Momentum Leaders in 2021, and had recently stepped into the role as Mentor Manager. Darla is the mom of three courageous young women, two incredible bonus-sons, and is Gigi to four adorable grand-loves. She is an avid fan of hiking, volunteering with greater Birmingham Humane Society, and Wildstream, a divorce recovery retreat ministry. 

Kate DeWitt Darden currently serves as an Advanced Technology Account Executive for CDW Healthcare, connecting healthcare organizations with strategic advisory, technology solutions, professional and managed services. Kate leveraged her previous role as VP, Marketing and Communications at Baptist Health System and later Brookwood Baptist Health, to pivot into healthcare technology. Prior to CDW, Kate’s served as Strategic Sales Executive at Stericycle Communication Solutions, helping other healthcare providers solve patient access and engagement issues with software and technology.

Kate began her career in publishing at Southern Progress and Time Inc, and spend time as an entrepreneur as a partner in Darden Tatum, a branding and marketing firm. Kate is a graduate of Momentum Women’s Leadership Program, Leadership Birmingham and the FBI Citizens Academy. Past Board service includes Jones Valley Teaching Farm, Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama and Momentum Alumni Program (MAP). Kate is a native of OKC and a graduate of Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL.

LinkedIn: Kate DeWitt Darden | LinkedIn

Manisha Mishra is the Deputy Director at Alabama Possible and directs all of the poverty education and educational attainment programs. She is instrumental in the launch of Alabama College Attainment Network (Alabama Possible is the backbone agency for this private-public partnership collaboration) whose mission is to increase college and career readiness, access, and completion in Alabama, particularly among low-income students, first-generation college-going students, and students of color. She joins Alabama Possible following 15 years’ service at Miles College as the director of student activities, first-year enrichment program manager, and English instructor.

She also worked as an advertising manager and editor at the Times of India. Manisha earned a bachelor’s degree in English and psychology from BJB College in Bhubaneswar, India, and a master’s in English from Utkal University Bhubaneswar, India. Manisha is on the board of Girls on the Run, which uses a fun, research-based curriculum that creatively integrates running to inspire every girl to reach her limitless potential, not just for the length of their program, but for life. She is also on the Board of GirlSpring whose mission is to provide access to reliable information, inspiring events, and positive role models so girls and (ages 9-18) are empowered to reach their full potential. When Manisha is not campaigning for equitable education/workforce opportunities in Alabama or advocating for Girls on the Run and GirlSpring, she enjoys playing tennis and running. She lives in Homewood, Alabama, with her husband Anoop, and two children Annikah (daughter) and Adesh (son).

Necole Ezell is currently the Vice President, Head of Operations Value Management at Protective Life Insurance in Birmingham, AL. In this capacity, she supervises the Project Management Office, Change Management, Operations Communications, and Business Incident Management. Before her appointment as Head of Operations Value Management, Necole served as the Vice President, Head of Acquisitions Integrations IT, where she successfully managed multiple IT integrations for mergers and acquisitions each worth over $1 billion. Necole has held various leadership positions in the information technology sector and has more than 20 years of experience in planning, developing, delivering, and monitoring technical solutions that cater to her customers’ needs and support their missions.

Necole Ezell earned her bachelor’s degree from The University of Alabama, majoring in Management Information Systems with a minor in Computer Science. She holds several technical and professional certifications, including SAFe Scaled Agilist (SA and PO), Agile Coaching (ICP ACC), Scrum Alliance (CSM and CSP), and IMAA Certified Post Merger Integration Expert (CPMI). Necole has received numerous awards and accolades throughout her career, including participation in the Momentum Leadership Executive Class 18 (2020-2021) and receiving the prestigious Birmingham Business Journal 2023 Women to Watch Award. Necole is also a board member of Momentum Executive Leadership Team.

In her leisure time, Necole enjoys mentoring, indulging in art, reading, and spending quality moments with her family members Roscoe, Amaya, and Anna.

Toni Leeth is the chief of staff for the UAB Health System, a state-wide network of 17 hospitals with an annual economic impact in Alabama of more than $6B. Its flagship UAB Hospital is the 8th largest hospital in the US with more than 1200 beds, 90,000 annual discharges, and 130,000 annual ER visits. Prior to the move to the Health System in 2022, Toni was the Associate Dean for Strategic Planning and Administration in the UAB Heersink School of Medicine. Outside of work, she is active in her community; Toni is currently on the board of One Place Metro Alabama Family Justice Center, an active member of the Downtown Rotary, and a past president of the Junior League of Birmingham. A native of Van Vleet, Mississippi, Toni attended Mississippi State University and UAB. She and her husband Clark have two daughters, Emma and Virginia who are 6th and 3rd graders at Brookwood Forest Elementary in Mountain Brook.