Presenters

Moderator

Leighton Kyler

Leighton Kyler, EA, MBA, PMP is Principal Sales & Performance Strategist at Peak Performance Paradigm LLC. Leighton is a subject-matter expert on personal and organizational leadership development. He specializes in Leadership, Behavioral-Change Management, and Business Intelligence. Leighton Kyler works with Leaders, Visionaries and Innovators.

Event Organizer

Carrol Josephs-Marshall

Carrol Josephs-Marshall is the President/CEO of Central Florida Community Planning and Development (CFCPD). Josephs-Marshall has more than 10 years working at the executive level of multiple non-profit corporations and currently serves the ETCRP as a Board Member and Chair of the Economic Development Subcommittee.

Government Speakers

Rita Sauri

Rita Sauri is the Hillsborough County Disadvantaged Minority/Disadvantaged Woman Business Enterprise (DM/DWBE) and Small Business Enterprise (SBE) specialist in charge of reviewing and approving all applications received by Hillsborough County. For the past four years she has worked to help these deserving businesses get certified.

James Chittenden

James teaches seminars and provides consulting in business formation and business finance. He also assists small businesses with business planning, government contracting, marketing, and public relations. He is a former Marine Corps officer who was once responsible for public affairs and marketing for recruiting for half of the United States.

Corporate Speakers

Sean Josephs

Sean Josephs is the Chief Strategist of the Josephs Group; a consulting firm and marketing agency. The company specializes in helping small businesses reach their goals through marketing that can be measures. Amongst the services are marketing consulting, social media consulting, website design and development.

Bill Trotman

Bill Trotman found a successful niche in finance and marketing and is providing his expertise to the Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival. His ten years of experience in the financial industry play a significant role in planning financial and business seminars that the Festival offers. Bill has been a network group leader for the Temple Terrace Chamber of Commerce.

Robert R. West, Jr.

Robert R. West, Jr., EdD(c) is a store manager and assistant vice president for TD Bank in Tampa, FL and has been in retail banking for 15 years. Before banking, Mr. West was in retail management for 5 years with big box and athletic retailers. Mr. West is a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Veteran with 5 years as combat engineer and 3 years active duty as a recruiter.

Ebony Grimsley-Vas

Ebony T. Grimsley-Vaz is the owner and Creative Director of Above Promotions, a digital marketing and publicity company in the Tampa Bay area and the author of the book titled, “Because You’re Small: Effective Marketing Strategies for Immediate Implementation”. For over 15 years and 70+ brands, Ebony has worked with AT&T, AAA, AOL and Verizon Wireless.

Felice Flake

Felice Flake, CEO of ScySec LLC, has extensive experience in both the government and private sectors. She obtained her Master of Science in Cybersecurity in 2016. Felice was one of a few students to complete the program by fulfilling the academic requirements several months in advance of her peers. She is a contributing author to the 2016 book, Women in Security.

Carolina Conner

Carolina Conner is a proud Retired Military Spouse. She is an experienced innovative professional with over 15 years of Customer Relations Management. She has worked for Multinational Companies, U.S Government Contractors and Non Profit Organizations specifically in US, Colombia and other Latin Countries.