2025 Leadership Summit Panelists

Panel: The State of Leadership: Exploring Today’s Public Service Leadership Landscape

Day 1, 10:45 am - 11:45 am

Today’s leadership environment is more complex than ever. New technologies are transforming the way we work, budgets are under pressure and government agencies’ regulatory tools are changing. Understanding this environment and the current issues at hand is the first step in a federal leader’s journey of propelling their teams toward mission success. This panel will explore some of the most critical challenges and opportunities that define today’s public service leadership landscape and how senior executives can set themselves and their teams up for success.

Panelists

Marcus Hill

Marcus L. Hill has served the American Public for over 40 years. Currently, Hill serves as the President of the Senior Executives Association (SEA). SEA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan professional organizations committed to promoting good government and advocating for the interests of Federal career senior executives and other rising and aspiring senior leaders. Hill is also a 2023 National Academy of Public Administration Fellow. In addition, he serves as Principal, Hill Management Consultancy (HMC). HMC shares strategic advice with its clients to achieve their business priorities. Hill retired from Federal civil service in January 2021, following decades of honorable service.

Prior to Hill’s retirement, he served as the Senior Executive Advisor for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC), Department of Homeland Security (DHS). He provided component-level, headquarters strategic planning advice and counsel to FLETC executive leadership. He ensured an enterprise-wide, organizational focus remained on achieving the FLETC Director’s long-range, strategic priorities while operating in the midst of global pandemic. Hill also rendered executive leadership in matters related to FLETC’s mission, long-range law enforcement training plans and executive policy development. In addition, he provided advice and expertise in support of FLETC’s leadership training initiatives.

Hill was appointed to the Senior Executive Service in 2006, after serving senior manager roles within the Departments of Homeland Security, Transportation, Treasury, U.S. Air Force and the Department of the Navy. Simultaneously, he served as a United States Air Force (USAF) Reserves military officer and retired in 2007, from the armed services. Hill has received many awards and honors for distinguished service to include the 2024 African American Federal Executive Association’s Ebenezer Bassett Distinguished Service Award, 2017 Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Service, the 2014 Department of Homeland Secretary’s Under Secretary for Management Partnership Award, DON Civilian Meritorious Service Medal, USAF Meritorious Service and Commendation Medals. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Valdosta State College. He completed leadership training and executive education programs sponsored by the Federal Executive Institute, John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Center for Creative Leadership, Brookings Institute, and Air University. In addition to SEA and NAPA, Hill is a member of the Military Officers Association of America, Reserve Officers Association, American Legion Post 511, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., Prince Hall Free and Accepted Masonic Order, The Shriners, and First African Baptist Church.

Amanda Wellborne

Amanda Wellborne is a dynamic leader with nearly 20 years of experience in Human Capital Management, Change Management, and Learning & Development. As the Manager of Federal Sales Talent Development Solutions at Cornerstone OnDemand, Amanda specializes in creating innovative, human-centered solutions tailored to the Federal and Defense sectors. Her career reflects a deep commitment to empowering organizations to achieve strategic goals by embracing transformation and fostering innovation.

With a strong academic foundation in Leadership, Adult Education, and Human Resources Development, Amanda has worked in diverse roles ranging from academia to corporate leadership. Her expertise spans organizational and technology change management, global training and development, project management, adult learning and development, business strategy, and human resource development. This breadth of knowledge allows Amanda to design and implement impactful talent development strategies that address organizational challenges while fostering innovation and growth.

Amanda's work is fueled by a passion for creating holistic Human Capital Management solutions that drive success for both agencies and individuals. Based in the Austin, Texas metropolitan area, she is an advocate for continuous growth and enjoys making meaningful contributions to the public sector and government channels.

Moderator

Lauren Anstey

Lauren leads the Public Service Leadership Institute, collaborates across teams to ensure public service leadership is a guiding model throughout the organization’s work, and serves on the Management Team. Through her experience at Goldman Sachs and Skadden Arps and her studies at Williams College and Harvard Law School, Lauren brings a broad range of experience across fields. Her passion for bridging strategy and implementation – and belief that good leadership is at the center of creating positive change – has been the thread throughout her career. Lauren has a deep appreciation for leadership education and training, having taught a course on leadership at Williams College. Her favorite public servant is Abraham Lincoln, whose profound words and actions continue to inspire her to serve and strengthen our democracy.

Panel: The Long Game: Wisdom on Navigating the Civil Service Leadership Journey

Day 2, 10:15 am - 11:15 am

When disaster strikes, challenges arise or opportunities unfold, public service leaders rise to the occasion and are responsible for many noteworthy and inspiring accomplishments that protect the nation and more effectively deliver services for the betterment of the nation and society. This panel will explore how leaders have navigated various challenges and opportunities to achieve meaningful results for the public. They will share valuable wisdom on how to be an effective public service leader by meeting the moment during periods of change and uncertainty.

Panelists

Mark Peterson

Mr. D. Mark Peterson, is a retired member of the Senior Executive Service. In his last assignment he served as the Chief Financial Officer for U.S. Special Operations Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. He was the principal financial adviser to the USSOCOM Commander, and the chief spokesperson for special operations budget and execution issues totaling more than $13 billion annually. His office provided fiscal direction and guidance to the four USSOCOM component commands, a sub-unified command and seven Theater Special Operations Commands. He regularly interfaced with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Military Services and Congressional staffs. During his tour at USSOCOM, he was deployed to Afghanistan where he served as the Director of Resource Management for the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC-A).

Mr. Peterson entered the Navy in 1980 upon graduation from Virginia Tech. After commissioning, he was designated a Naval Flight Officer in the E-2C Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft. As a combat information mission commander, he deployed aboard the USS Ranger and USS Kitty Hawk. He also completed numerous squadron deployments supporting counterdrug operations for U.S. Southern Command and the Joint Task Force Commander. Early in his career he was selected into the Joint Chiefs of Staff intern program where he served in the Plans and Programs Directorate. He was subsequently assigned to the Chief of Naval Operations staff where he was the Head of the Cryptology, Information and Electronic Warfare Branch. After completing his graduate education in Finance, Mr. Peterson served on the Chief of Naval Operations staff in various appropriation and resource sponsor assignments in the Pentagon. He completed a 20-year Navy career, retiring at the rank of commander.

Mr. Peterson entered federal service in October 2000 as a program director in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. While in OSD, he was the Director of Program Resources and Integration for the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, Advanced Systems and Concepts, as well as Associate Director, Investment, Office of the Secretary of Defense (Comptroller). Prior to his assignment at USSOCOM, he was Associate Director, Air Force Quadrennial Defense Review, Office of the Air Force Vice Chief of Staff.

Beverly Ortega Babers

Beverly Ortega Babers is a seasoned organizational strategy and human capital professional with 30-plus years of hands-on experience leading in large scale government agencies across organizational lines to design, implement, and oversee complex enterprise-wide programs. Previously she served as an SES in the roles of Deputy Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget (US Treasury), Chief Administrative Officer (US Mint), Chief Human Capital Officer (IRS), Assistant Deputy Commissioner for Operations Support (IRS), Performance Improvement Officer and Chief Administrative Officer (Dept of Education), and Transition Director (US Treasury). Beverly was a Senior Principal and Domestic Policy Lead at The MITRE Corporation before joining AvantGarde, LLC as its Chief Operating Officer.

A 10-year Justice Department litigator, Beverly holds a law degree from the University of California at Berkeley and a BA from Haverford College. She serves as a Human Capital SAGE for the Partnership for Public Service and was recognized with a Presidential Rank Award.

Gary Wang

Mr. Gary Wang is a senior information technology (IT) and cybersecurity business leader with more than 30 years of experience in cross-functional, cross-industry team building in public sector defense-related organizations. He has managed large programs in support of the Department of Defense (DoD) enterprise.

Moderator

Kelly Shih

Kelly Shih is a Senior Manager and the strategy lead for the Public Service Leadership Institute at the Partnership for Public Service. She leads strategy development and implementation for the Institute to achieve its goals of amplifying the importance of public service leadership, developing world-class leaders and unifying government around a single leadership standard. Her work oversees efforts from advocating for leadership standards in policy and building cross-sector partnerships to furthering research and amplifying public service leadership topics in external campaigns. Prior to this role, she managed the Excellence in Government Fellows (EIG) program, the Partnership’s flagship leadership development program, and the Strategic Advisors to Government Executives (SAGE) program, a volunteer community of former federal executives supporting current government leaders. Prior to joining the Partnership, she was a human capital consultant with Deloitte, working with federal agencies on strategic planning, employee engagement and technology modernization. She has a B.A. in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland.

Panel: The Next Frontier: The Future of Leading in Public Service

Day 3, 9:45 am - 10:45 am

Advancements in technology, shifting expectations of work and complex societal issues are changing the leadership landscape. What are the trends leaders need to look out for moving forward? How can leaders stay agile, mindful, responsive and innovative when facing new opportunities and challenges? What are the skills leaders need to venture with confidence into the unknown? This panel will explore these questions and provide direction, advice and inspiration for participants embarking on the next steps of their leadership journey.

Panelists

Caroline Star

Caroline’s career has focused on social purpose and intergenerational fairness. She started as a strategy consultant at Boston Consulting Group then moved into the UK government to work in the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit. As a Senior Civil Servant Caroline’s responsibilities included setting up the first cross Whitehall Child Poverty Unit, leading on Child Safeguarding and leading on Adoption and Family Law. After more than a decade leading on children’s services policy and implementation in government Caroline joined NCT – the UK’s largest parenting charity – to lead on operations and income generation.

She joined School of International Futures in 2022 as Operations Director to pursue her dual passions of making systems run smoothly and making the world a fairer place. In this role she oversees a portfolio of projects and programmes using futures thinking across public sector organisations internationally. School of International Futures (SOIF) is a global non-profit group of practitioners that uses futures and foresight methods to improve strategy and policy.

Asha Aravindakshan

Asha Aravindakshan (@dcasha) serves as the COO for GlobalGiving. Previously, she streamlined business operations to maximize accountability, growth and strategic alignment for public and private stakeholders. She brings an entrepreneurial agility with an unwavering commitment to amplifying impact. She is also the bestselling author of Skills: The Common Denominator, a book that explores the essential skills for the 21st century. Asha serves on the Board of Directors for MIT Sloan Club of New York, the Alumni Leadership Council for Forté, and as a Venture Partner for Verve Ventures. She’s presented at conferences in the Americas and is the recipient of awards on digital transformation and future of work. Asha studied business at The George Washington University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Danielle Kavanagh-Smith

Danielle Kavanagh-Smith is a Senior Data Scientist at LinkedIn’s Economic Graph Research Institute, specializing in uncovering insights into U.S. macroeconomic labor market trends and network disparities. Prior to joining LinkedIn, Danielle led impact measurement initiatives for Procurement and Economic Mobility projects in collaboration with local and state governments at the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab. She also previously managed a federally funded commercial revitalization grant program at the New York City Department of Small Business Services, where her work helped foster economic growth. Danielle holds a B.A. in International Political Economy from Fordham University and a Ph.D. in Economics from the New School for Social Research.

Moderator

Jennifer Ives

Jennifer leads cross-functional initiatives to enhance executive leadership and knowledge across the federal government in areas such as AI strategy, governance and ethics. A globally recognized AI strategist and award-winning technologist, Jennifer's ability to connect artificial intelligence with real-world needs has established her as a sought-after advisor and board member for organizations worldwide. As a cofounder and thought leader, her accolades include being named one of the 43 Must-Follow Women Leaders in AI and one of the Top Five Inspiring Women Leaders Revamping the Future by CIO Times. Additionally, she has been honored as a Business Transformation 150 recipient and named Connector Extraordinaire by Forbes.