DEIA in 2025: Where is it heading and how it will affect the workforce and all of us in the coming years

Panelists

John Spencer John, a nationally recognized speaker on soft skills, brings a valuable perspective to this topic, particularly emotional intelligence. His insights, refined over years of experience, have established him as a trusted speaker at ARMA's chapter meetings and national and regional conferences. He has also been a guest speaker at colleges and universities, offering his unique insights to a diverse audience.

With a career spanning over 30 years in corporate America, John has worked for renowned companies such as Ernst and Young (EY), The Coca-Cola Company, The Home Depot, and DuPont. He's currently the Enterprise RIM Manager for Kemper Insurance.

His extensive experience in team leadership, people management, and leading projects while collaborating in matrixed environments has given him a deep understanding of soft skills, particularly emotional intelligence, and their crucial role in the workplace.

John's expertise in soft skills has been widely acknowledged, particularly at the 2018 ARMA International Conference. His presentation, which garnered the highest ratings for Top Education Session and Presenter, solidified his standing as a leader in the field. His role as the keynote speaker for the 2019 ARMA InfoCon Leadership Summit further attests to his recognition and influence.

John's leadership roles within ARMA since 2008 are a clear demonstration of his commitment and influence in the RIM industry. In the Dallas ARMA Chapter, he served multiple terms as the Chapter President and held various roles on the Chapter Board. His contributions extended to the ARMA Southwest Region Board, where he served as the Chapter Advisor for Marketing and Membership and as a Senior Chapter Advisor. Currently, he is a member of the ARMA National Chapter Advisory Committee, a position that further solidifies his recognition in the industry.

Andre Rivera, is the Information Management Team Leader in the New York Office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.  With over 30 years of Records experience at Skadden, Andre has been touted as the "historian" due to his knowledge of the old Records policies that predate the current Records Management system.  Andre has been key in the development of staff throughout all offices, providing Records training, support, and guidance on all tasks and protocols.  He is proficient in various legal software applications, and has been recognized for his exceptional support during complex and high-pressure situations.  Outside of work, Andre is a self-professed "nerd" of all things pop culture, an organizer of social events, and travels with his fiancé as often as possible.  You can reach Andre via email at [email protected].

Zully Mendez is a daughter, wife and a mother of two and a Records Manager.  I am the daughter of Dominican immigrants.  I was born in New Jersey and my family moved to Rhode Island in May of 1981 (I was 10).  My passions are my children, mentoring and cruising.  I have been married for 26 years and we enjoy doing outdoor activities. 

I have been in the financial sector for almost 30 years.  I started in operations while going to school nights.  As I progressed in my educational career, I moved around professionally, working in Accounting, Internal Audit, and eventually landing a position in Project and Program Management.  I managed many initiatives, but the pivotal initiative was the replacement of the Commercial Servicing platform.  It was pivotal because when the implementation was completed, unbeknown to me, I was losing my job!  However, by that time I had been with Citizens for almost 20 years and had a vast network.  I reached out to my network and a Senior Leader offered me a role in Records Management, and that’s all she wrote.  I have been in Records Management for 12 years and in that time, I have worked on initiatives that govern and evidence compliance with Records Management and am currently working to develop an Information Governance Committee that will drive Information Governance to reduce “big data”, allow for defensible deletion, secure our information, and provide better information for our Businesses and Leadership teams.  

Date: February 27, 2025

Time: 1 pm to 2 pm EST

Register here!