A pioneer in leading organizational change through diversity will be the keynote speaker at this year’s INTEGRATE conference at West Virginia University. Nzinga Shaw is the Atlanta Hawks’ chief diversity and inclusion officer and the first person to hold the position in the National Basketball Association or any major North American professional sports league.

INTEGRATE 2016 will be held June 3-4 and is hosted by the WVU Reed College of Media’s online Integrated Marketing Communications graduate program. IMC students and marketing communications professionals will have the opportunity to learn from industry leaders, network and collaborate.

Shaw will deliver her address, “Home Court Advantage—Promoting Pro-Level Diversity,” at the keynote dinner on June 4 at the Erickson Alumni Center. Shaw’s address will focus on how the Hawks rebuilt a tumultuous relationship with Atlanta by creating a brand platform that incorporates diversity and inclusion as a core business function.

As a member of the Atlanta Hawks’ Executive Committee, Shaw provides guidance to the leadership team so that they can engender inclusivity in every facet of the business. She is focused on building a foundation that will resonate throughout the company culture extending to fans, customers, community partners and every employee within the workforce.

Prior to joining the Atlanta Hawks, Shaw served as senior vice president, diversity and inclusion at Edelman, a leading global communications marketing firm.

“We are excited to have a chief executive involved in such a prominent brand meet with our attendees,” said Chad Mezera, director of online programs at the College of Media. “Nzinga’s keynote address will be an incredible opportunity to hear from a diversity and inclusion pioneer in professional sports.”

Additional featured speakers at INTEGRATE 2016 include Joe Cohen, senior vice president of communications for KIND Healthy Snacks; Geno Church, word of mouth inspiration officer at Brains on Fire; Greg Stroud, former vice president of programming integration and Julie Link, director of research and consumer insights both with HGTV and DIY Network; and Matthew Pye, vice president of corporate affairs at Just Born Quality Confections.

The conference and keynote dinner are open to registered conference attendees only. Details on how to register and more information about the INTEGRATE 2016 conference are available at http://integrate.wvu.edu/. A discount for WVU employees is available by contacting Nicole Beason at Nicole.beason@mail.wvu.edu or 304-293-5685. For more information on the IMC program, visit http://imc.wvu.edu/.

-WVU-

ak/05/23/2016

CONTACT: Christa Currey, Reed College of Media
304.293.7016, Christa.Currey@mail.wvu.edu

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