OPIM
Speakers
DEI Forum 2024
Stay tuned for revealing the line up of speakers.
  • Sarah Cordivano (she/her)
    DEI Expert, Author and Strategic Advisor, StartSteps
    Sarah is an expert in the field of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, with a focus on implementing successful DEI strategies and developing initiatives to create more inclusive workplaces. Sarah works with startups in her advisory role with Lunar Ventures, an early stage deep tech VC in Germany. Sarah is also strategic advisor to StartSteps, an organization that helps people start a new career in the world of tech. She brings along expertise in data analytics in order to implement impactful, data-driven DEI work. Sarah is the author of a book 'DEI: How to Succeed at an Impossible Job'.
  • Munir S. Nanji
    Citi - Central Europe Sub-Cluster Head and Citi Country Officer and Banking Head for Czech Republic
    As CEO of Central Europe and Ireland, Munir oversees Citi’s franchises in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Ireland as well as 11 Hub-managed countries in Central Europe. He has previously worked internationally across Asia, Europe and Africa, in various country and regional corporate banking, product management, and legal entity governance roles. Munir is a strong believer in diversity and passionate supporter of male allyship and mentoring. He is a member of Citibank Europe Leadership Committee. Munir also sits on the boards of Junior Achievement and AmCham, Czech Republic.

  • Barbara Wawrzynek
    Diversity Hub Expert on Wellbeing & Culture. Head of External Communications
    Barbara helps individuals, teams and organizations to achieve greater performance, productivity, and social connectedness. She is the co-author of the books: 'Wellbeing in the organization – what? how? why? ', and ‘ A journey through the HR flavors - HR Cookbook’, as well as HR and DEI related articles. Barbara is trained on the psychosocial support and self-care model, and a proud co- host of the D&I Changemakers Conference. She has a strong business background, having performed the roles of an EMEA Wellbeing Consultant, L&D and HR Professional, Communication Lead, and Facilitator across different industries.
  • Ladislav Kučera
    Human Resources Director at SAP
    Ladislav joined SAP in 2020 serving as HRD for Czech Republic and since 2022 as HRD for CR and Slovakia. Throughout his career he held various roles in Recruitment, HR Consulting and Sales & Marketing. Ladislav served 6+ years as HR Committee Chair within American Chamber of Commerce. He is active supporter of diversity and inclusion and recent recipients of “Hero Award” by Pride Business Forum at 2023. He is strong believer in building bridges and breaking silos and living by “keeping the promise” principle. Prior to joining SAP he worked as Managing Director of Hays Recruitment Experts Worldwide for Czech Republic and Romania.
  • Violeta Luca
    CEO at Vodafone
    Violeta Luca has been in charge of Czech Vodafone since January 2024. Before that, she was the CEO of Microsoft Czech Republic and Slovakia. And before that, she was the CEO of Microsoft in Romania. Violeta has managed transformation projects in retail, banking, e-commerce, healthcare and telecommunications. She has long focused on the development of digital skills, innovation and support for start-ups; she also provides active mentoring to empower women in their professional and management careers. She has received numerous awards and was recognised by Forbes as one of the 20 most influential women in Fintech in the CR and one of the TOP CEOs in 2023. In the Manager of the Year 2022 competition, she won in the Foreign Manager category.
  • Denisa Maternová
    Employee Experience & Internal Communication Manager at Albert Czech Republic
    Denisa is a recognized expert in diversity and inclusion, having been a key architect of the DE&I strategy at Albert, where she holds the role of Employee Experience & Internal Communication Manager. Her dedication to enhancing employee satisfaction and strategically managing engagement programs is matched by her strong focus on diversity and inclusion. Additionally, Denisa plays a crucial role in building and developing the employer brand, shaping corporate culture, and advancing HR marketing strategies.
  • Lucie Fuková
    Government Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs
    Lucie Fuková is the first ever Government Commissioner for Roma Minority Affairs in the Czech Republic. Her role is primarily to coordinate the state's policies in the area of Roma integration and to communicate with the public administration and the public. She draws attention to important (and often overlooked) issues, seeks out Romani leaders, pushes for Romani participation, and supports Romani children's access to education. This year, it succeeded in pushing for the adoption of a definition of antigypsyism by the government, the Senate and several subcommittees of the Chamber of Deputies. Now it is time to help put the definition into practice in the judiciary, state and local government, institutions and companies. 
  • Jan Kotík
    Education Project Coordinator at Skoda Auto
    Jan’s DEI journey started in the USA during his MBA studies, where he co-authored a study on the co-activation of identities in a workplace. Later, he launched the DEI program at ŠKODA AUTO and continues to grow his DEI expertise in the automotive industry at SEAT S.A. in Barcelona. High-quality interpersonal relations are Jan’s biggest passion. He has experience in founding employee networks and building healthy communities. Connecting with people and sharing are his superpowers. Jan enjoys giving lectures and training – the topics range from unconscious bias or employee networks to DEI within ESG strategy.
  • Petra Ondrušová
    Chief Sustainability Officer at Česká spořitelna
    Petra Ondrušová currently holds the position of Chief Sustainability Officer at Česká spořitelna. With a career filled with key managerial roles, such as the position of regional director of retail banking and director of Erste Premier, Petra
    is a true professional in the field. In April 2021, she took on the role of Chief Diversity Officer, where she successfully implemented strategies to increase diversity and inclusion. She later expanded this in her current role, focusing on integrating environmental, social, and governance criteria into corporate strategies. Petra is known for her pragmatic approach to implementing sustainable initiatives and her courage to openly discuss important topics. Her work and commitment to sustainability are key to transforming Česká spořitelna towards a more ethical and socially responsible business model.
  • Eva Lebedová
    Country Lead for SAP Ariba Czech
    Eva comes originally from Pilsen and has been living in Prague for 20 years. She has been working as a project manager for more than 14 years. Her career started in Human resources before moving to the project manager role. In the early career as a project manager for various NGO’s she focused preliminary on the educational projects for the disadvantaged groups. Eva joined SAP Ariba 5 years ago and since then is managing the supplier enablement on SAP Business Network. Eva holds a master’s degree in psychology, is a professional Coach and PMP® certified.
    She is passionate about Servant Leadership, Growth Mindset, Lifelong learning and Coaching. She is a promoter and supporter of Health & Well-being. Outside of work she enjoys running, climbing, skiing, and travelling with her family – 1 husband and 3 sons.
  • Anna Palacká
    Customer Service Training Specialist at Thermo Fisher Scientific
    You can call me a 'star wanderer'. Why? I've worked in various roles in the non-profit and for-profit sectors and in academia. I've worn the shoes of employee, freelancer, and employer. I've gathered skills in the technical profession, education, fundraising, and international projects, worked with different groups of people - people with disabilities, drug addicts, disadvantaged youth, academics, investors, colleagues with and without a sense of humour, autistic geniuses, modest people and boasters, and I've also lifted officials and councillors out of their chairs (hopefully in a good way). Along the way, I've found that transferable skills are not enough and that it's good when a company encourages a culture of peer learning. The real improvements are made by people who can step outside the vicious circle of ever new terminologies and technologies, roll up their sleeves, put their hands to work and talk while they do it. Being yourself is the best solution for everything, but first you have to beat the three-headed dog of fear.
  • Jakub Lukeš
    HR Business Partner at Microsoft
    Jakub Lukeš is an experienced professional working in the field of human resources, with a strong background in engineering focused HR. Jakub has worked in Microsoft for the past six years, taking on various roles within the HR profession and the last 3.5 years working as an HR Business Partner for the Prague Development Center. His journey in D&I started with locally organized employee resources groups and their journey of effectiveness and securing budgets, and continued to now implementing his experience in change and project management as an HR D&I Champion for the Central Europe, Middle East, and Africa region supporting the effectiveness of the Network of Employee Resource Groups as well as the efficiency of their Executive Sponsors across the area to contributing to the D&I efforts of Microsoft.
  • Andrea Černá
    Manager at Human Capital Advisory at Deloitte
    Andrea works as a manager in the Human Capital Advisory Services team at Deloitte. She focuses on DEI topics, especially gender balance, women in management, and age management for clients across Central Europe. Andrea has an evidence-based perspective on the desires and requirements of Gen Z and Millennials, derived from Deloitte’s annual study. Additionally, she has extensive experience in change management and workforce transformation.
  • David Vochoč
    Customer Renewal Executive at SAP
    David Vochoč is a veteran in the tech industry, boasting over 20 years of experience with SAP, where he has played a pivotal role in driving the partner channel and shaping inclusive work cultures. His deep commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion is not just professional but profoundly personal. As the father of two autistic children, David and his wife Kristina are passionately committed to creating a brighter future for their kids and advocating for the broader neurodiverse community. This dual perspective—both as a parent navigating the challenges and triumphs of raising neurodiverse children, and as a professional committed to fostering inclusive workplaces— uniquely position him to speak on the importance of resilience and persistence in advancing DEI initiatives.
  • Michaela Kostelníková
    Project Manager and Trainer at Age Management z.s.
    For the last 12 years Michaela has been working in the Age Management z.s. organization to spread the concept of age management exclusively on scientific grounds and to transfer good practice from abroad. She implements the measurement of work ability in relation to the optimization of the setting of HR processes. She also participates in the implementation of projects as a project and financial manager, lectures at Masaryk University and Mendel University, lectures and participates in professional seminars and conferences focused on age management and population ageing. Until August 2023, she led the international Erasmus+ project "Work Ability Management".
  • Dennis Vymer
    Staff Program Manager at
    Thermo Fisher Scientific
    Dennis, although relatively young at 25 years old, has been afforded a unique opportunity to contribute to a highly influential project within his division.
    His professional life encompasses a diverse range of daily experiences, spanning three continents and encompassing interactions with individuals from various cultural backgrounds and age groups. In his role, he is responsible for leading a project that involves coordinating the efforts of youthful software developer teams, seasoned hardware teams, and even more experienced executives. This multi-faceted exposure has provided him with valuable insights into different work methodologies and the ability to navigate challenging environments characterized by diverse age groups and cultural perspectives.
  • Jana Chodorová
    Financial Analyst at Philip Morris Czech Republic
    Jana Chodorová works as a Financial Analyst at Philip Morris Czech Republic. In addition to her regular agenda, she has been leading the ERG PMrodina group since May 2023. Its mission is to create a community in which group members inspire each other, support each other, and gain new information, while together make working environment more pleasant. Jana is married and has two children.
  • Dinah Richter Spritzer
    CEO Media Confident
    Dinah is the founder of Media Confident, which unlocks the secrets of how to build long-lasting, positive relationships with journalists and social media. She is a top-ranked journalism professor in Europe with more than two decades of writing, reporting and lecturing experience. As a journalist Dinah has covered a host of crises such as human trafficking, telecoms, educational inequality and terrorism. Dinah is a contributor to New York Times, USA Today, Conde Nast Traveler, Women's E-News, Canadian Medical Journal, San Francisco Chronicle and Jerusalem Post and an author of "Global and Intercultural Communications", a 434-page interactive academic book/course (2021) for University of Phoenix business students.
Workshop Facilitators
Stay tuned for revealing the line up of speakers.
  • Katarína Kabáth
    Cross Culture Expert, Leadership Consultant, Team Coach and LSP Facilitator
    Katka is a passionate facilitator and coach, a guide through individual and corporate change with over 20 years of experience in the business field, focusing on supporting, training and coaching adults in multicultural and diverse environments of about 50 countries and different corporate or organizational cultures. Katka is certified in e.g. Cultural Intelligence, Game Changing Index, LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® facilitator, Points of You® trainer, Sociomapping® facilitator.
  • Hana Müllerová
    Co-owner of Baby Office
    Hana Müllerová is a key figure in the Baby Office team, where she is dedicated to the overall project concept and the search for new opportunities. With her strategic vision and innovative approach, she helps companies to effectively implement childcare programs that support the work-life balance of employees. She has over 12 years of experience in supporting women. Her goal is to inspire other companies and show how such initiatives can positively impact not only employee satisfaction, but overall company performance.
  • Pavlína Bandrowská
    Partner and Project Manager at Baby Office
    Pavlína Bandrowská is the managing director and project manager at Baby Office, where she and her team focus on organizing children's play areas and experiential events. With a passion for creating positive change in corporate childcare, Pavlína is actively involved in developing projects that benefit employees and employers. She has been supporting women on maternity and parental leave for over 15 years.
  • Jana Kyriakou
    CEO of SEMwell, wellbeing expert, yoga and mindfulness teacher
    Jana is an internationally certified and experienced mindfulness, pilates and yoga teacher with specialized training in mindfulness development in education, trauma informed care, mindfulness and yoga approaches to working with stress, anxiety and eating disorders. She has over 25 years of experience delivering courses and workshops to individuals, groups, schools and businesses. She has experience from national and European research and training projects in social-emotional learning and mental health, and is a former member of the Prevention Expert Group at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Jana is the founder and CEO of SEMwell, an organization that brings social-emotional development and mindfulness-based learning programs to schools, youth organizations and businesses.
  • Michaela Raiserová
    Business Development & Facilitation at School of Improvization
    Míša has a rich background in leading internal communications, employee experience and talent management at top tech companies like Avast, Emplifi or Ataccama. She is a certified Applied Improvisation trainer and a big promoter of using improv principles to help build high-performing teams, drive change and foster a thriving company culture. She is a mentor in “DoToho” and “DenProSkolu” programs. Misa is a passionate DEI & anti-ageism advocate.
  • Ondřej Nečas
    Founder of School of Improvization
    A warrior against boring development who has been dedicated to improvisation for the past 12 years. During that time he has trained thousands of hours for both our students in our self-development semestral programs as well as corporate teams. He focuses on authenticity, playfulness in expression, communication and overall imparting of the essential skills that improvisation offers. His passion is personal coaching and creative process facilitation. Ondra is the founder of the School of Improvisation and projects: www.itworks.guide , improcentrum.cz or the theatre company Pade na Pade.