PRSA, the nation’s leading professional organization serving the communications community, announced a keynote panel featuring leaders from two of the world’s largest employers – the Department of Defense and Amazon – who will explore diversity, equity and inclusion best practices. The panel will be moderated by public relations strategist and PRSA Military Task Force Chair Paula Pedene, APR, Fellow PRSA during ICON 2022 taking place November 13-15 at the Gaylord Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas.
Panelists include:
- Dr. Charles “Chuck” Barber, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Program Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs
- Anselm A. Beach, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Army for Diversity and Inclusion; Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Equity and Inclusion Agency), Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs)
- John Quintas, Managing Director, Global Military Affairs, Amazon, Brigadier General (Retired), U.S. Air Force
“Being able to recruit, attract and retain diverse talent is critical to organizational success, and with employees stationed across the globe, our military branches and Amazon have their own unique set of needs that they tailor their strategies to,” said Dr. Felica Blow, APR, 2022 PRSA Chair. “As PRSA continues to promote important conversations around diversity, equity and inclusion, I’m thrilled to be able to learn from these top military leaders as they offer their fascinating insights and perspectives.”
Dr. Charles Barber assumed the role of Director of the Department of the Navy’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Program Office in September 2021. In this position, he is responsible for the integration and implementation of strategic DE&I initiatives into Department of Navy culture, policies, programs and core functions. With more than two decades of experience, Dr. Barber has led a broad range of diversity efforts, development of culture intelligence capabilities, strategy, organizational leadership, critical data analysis and business transformation initiatives that have provided world class human resource and transformational leadership support to a dynamic range of public and private sector clients to include military service members, civilians and their families. Dr. Barber is a U.S. Army veteran with deployments to Kosovo and Iraq.
Anselm A. Beach has served as the Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Army for Diversity and Inclusion since April 2021 and assumed the duties as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Equity and Inclusion) in 2019. In his role, he serves as the Secretary of the Army’s designated proponent for diversity and inclusion, civil rights, equal employment opportunity, military equal opportunity, and oversight of Army command policy and programs. Beach previously served as the Acting Executive Director, Privacy and Diversity Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security. In this Senior Executive Service position, he served as a principal advisor to the commissioner on highly sensitive and complex workforce issues including diversity and equal employment opportunity for over 60,000 employees. Beach is an Army veteran and previous White House Fellow.
As Managing Director for Amazon’s Global Military Affairs, Quintas is committed to addressing the unique challenges facing the military community. His strategy at Amazon focuses on providing rewarding, flexible careers; supporting the acculturation, development, promotion and retention of military talent; and helping Veterans and military families live a better life by addressing mental wellbeing, suicide, homelessness and hunger. Quintas began his career with Amazon in 2017 as Regional Director of Reliability & Maintenance Engineering. He served 29 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a Brigadier General. In his final assignment, Quintas was the senior advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Asia military policy and strategy, where he participated in Secretary-level dialogues with key nations, such as Japan, Republic of Korea, India and China.
Registration is open for PRSA’s annual conference, which will feature an innovative lineup of keynote speakers, panel discussions and networking opportunities. Previously announced keynote speakers include award-winning journalist and anchor Katty Kay, Academy-award winning actress Marlee Matlin, and Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith. For additional details and to register, visit the ICON 2022 website.
Media interested in attending the conference should contact Vinica Weiss at vinica.weiss@prsa.org.
About PRSA
The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) empowers its members to succeed at every stage of their careers through a wide breadth of professional development, networking and leadership opportunities. Guided by its Code of Ethics, PRSA is collectively represented by 110 Chapters and 14 Professional Interest Sections, as well as on nearly 375 college and university campuses in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Argentina, Colombia and Peru through its student organization, the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). PRSA’s signature events include the Anvil Awards and ICON, the premier annual gathering for communications professionals and students. For more information, visit www.prsa.org.
