Rekha Chiruvolu is chief diversity officer and executive director, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) at RAND. As a seasoned diversity professional with over a decade of experience advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion across industries, Chiruvolu brings her passion for fostering equitable and inclusive workplaces and communities to RAND. She develops programming, initiatives, trainings, and policies that focus on advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion across the organization, and collaborates extensively with talent management, human resources, employee resource groups, recruiting, development, and the office of external affairs to ensure that DEI is woven into all aspects of RAND.  

Chiruvolu is a frequent speaker on a wide range of DEI topics, including interrupting implicit bias, addressing microaggressions in the workplace, promoting allyship, and best practices for inclusive leadership. Chiruvolu previously served as chief DEI officer at a global law firm, where she directed their DEI efforts firmwide, coled the firm's DEI client services team, and assisted clients across industries and sectors with their own unique DEI challenges and initiatives.  

Chiruvolu is also an attorney who received her J.D. from Rutgers University School of Law and her B.A. in psychology from New York University.  

https://www.linkedin.com/in/an...

Caren has 30 years of management and leadership experience as the head of talent and diversity for many of the world’s top law firms, including Arnold & Porter, Cooley, and Weil Gotshal. After hiring 3700+ lawyers and supporting their advancement to partner and other high-level roles, Caren co-founded Lawyer Metrics (a start-up company later acquired by the Access Group) that pioneered a “Moneyball” data-analytics approach to selecting and advancing high-performing talent. Following that success, Caren founded Diversity Lab to focus on increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion in law and other professions through the use of data, science, and technology.

As Diversity Lab’s CEO, Caren works with more than 20 talent experts and data scientists to create and experiment with innovative initiatives that cultivate diversity in the leadership ranks of top law firms, legal departments, government agencies, and other organizations. Her passion for diversifying these high-level roles is driven in part knowing that many of these leaders will eventually serve in other influential positions – such as judges, C-suite executives, board members, university presidents, and Congress – that impact society more broadly.

Shawn S. McGruder is the Principal EEO Officer and a Senior Associate General Counsel at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. She holds a B.B.A. in Finance and a J.D. (cum laude) from Howard University, where she served on the Howard Law Journal, and an Executive Certificate in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School.

Previously, she was Executive Director of the USDA Center for Civil Rights Enforcement, leading a 75-member team in adjudicating internal and external complaints. As a Senior Executive Service (SES) appointee, she also served as USDA’s Assistant General Counsel for General Law, advising 20 sub-agencies. She began her career in federal litigation and was a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney.

A recognized thought leader and frequent speaker, Ms. McGruder has served on the boards of the National Bar Association and the Association of Corporate Counsel (Baltimore Chapter). A Columbia, Maryland native, she is admitted to practice in MD, PA, DC, and before the U.S. Supreme Court.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnmcgruder/

Mira drives Seyfarth’s efforts to strengthen inclusion, equity, and diversity, ensuring that practices and policies align with the firm’s culture of belonging.

Mira takes a strategic approach to engaging and fostering inclusive leadership. She serves as a trusted advisor to other firm leaders and oversees the evolution and integration of DEIB best practices across the firm. Mira’s focus is on continuously developing Seyfarth’s culture of belonging, where people of all backgrounds can bring their authentic selves and unique experiences to their work. She offers a data-driven approach and a deep, functional knowledge of DEIB best practices, drawing from her experience across several industries.

In this role, Mira leads all inclusion, equity, and belonging efforts with Seyfarth’s Executive Committee, the national Diversity and Inclusion Action Team, and the firm’s Business Resource Groups, as well as the Human Resources, Talent Development, Marketing and Business Development, and Recruiting departments. She also partners with clients and external organizations to drive positive change across the legal profession and beyond.

Mira has over a decade of experience designing and implementing strategic DEIB initiatives at three preeminent law firms, a top law school, and in a business consulting capacity. She has a background in economics and law, having practiced as a corporate transactional attorney at a global law firm in New York.

Mira has been an adjunct professor at New York University since 2016, where she creates and delivers cutting-edge courses to MBA and JD students on topics such as Inclusive & Ethical Leadership; Managing Diverse Teams; Leading Organizational Change; and Work, Wisdom & Happiness.