Individual & Achievement Awards Judging Committee 

Chair: 
Susan Bear, Chief Technology Officer
Grede LLC., Southfield, Michigan, United States.

Susan is responsible for accelerating and ensuring robust processes are available for Engineering, Quality Program Management, and Information Technology (IT) functions and used by the Grede centers of operations and corporate teams. In addition, she provides strategy and vision for new engineering business development and is involved with customer-related concerns in the functions of Quality, Engineering, and Program Management.

Susan joined Grede in July 2018. Prior to that, she spent 14 years at Stabilus GmbH, where she served most recently as Director of Engineering and Program Management. She also held roles in Application Engineering, Program Management, and Sales Management. Susan began her career as a Design Engineer in the manual clutch division at ZF Sachs.

Susan holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, with highest honors, from Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, Michigan, and a Master of Business Administration, with honors, from Wayne State University in Detroit.

Committee:

Suresh Akkemgari, Director, Cloud Security
Hyland Software, Apex, North Carolina, United States
Accomplished Cloud Security Architect and Cybersecurity leader with over 18 years of experience in designing robust security architecture and implementing secure cloud infrastructures and on-premises data centers. Suresh's cyber security work spans securing AI systems, and establishing governance frameworks to manage risks effectively, performing security assessments and audit programs.
 

 
Ashish Anand, Director of Global Network DevOps
Marriott International, Bethesda, Maryland, United States
Ashish is a seasoned technology leader with 18+ years of experience. He drives architecture, automation, and operational excellence for Marriott's global network. Blending traditional networking with DevOps, he's led cloud migrations, built scalable microservices, and delivered enterprise solutions across banking, insurance, and hospitality to boost agility and innovation.
 

Somnath Banerjee, Engineer Lead Senior
Elevance Health, Bridgewater, New Jersey, United States
Somnath Banerjee is an IT leader with 19+ years of expertise in healthcare technology. He spearheads AI-driven data engineering solutions that optimize healthcare systems serving millions of individuals. He is an IEEE Senior Member and Forbes Technology Council member. His award-winning contributions modernize healthcare data frameworks for enhanced patient outcomes.

 

Kingsuk Chakrabarty, Director - Enterprise Architecture, A.I.
Estee Lauder Companies, New York City, New York, United States
A seasoned Technology Leader with proven experience spearheading complex IT initiatives for Fortune 500 corporations. Recognized for exceptional leadership in migrating and modernizing applications to Cloud environments, driving innovation, and consistently reducing technical debt. A champion in creating execution-focused AI strategies and delivering scalable AI solutions that drive business transformation.

Oleg Fleitman, Vice President - Executive and Regulatory Compensation
Citi, Wesley Chapel, Florida, United States

Gaurav Goel, Senior Director Cloud Modernization
NTT Data, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Gaurav Goel is the North America Leader for Cloud Modernization and Global Cloud Consumption at NTT Data. He drives large-scale transformation programs, judges global awards, and has delivered technology sessions across Chicago, Singapore and Japan - recognized for expertise in cloud strategy, innovation, and enterprise modernization.

Srinivas Raju Gottimukkala, Senior Software Analyst
Deere & Company, Johnston, Iowa, United States
Highly accomplished finance and IT professional with 25+ years of experience across diverse industries. Published author in Finance, AI, and ML, and editor on innovation in Data Science. Renowned judge for IEEE, Springer, and he is a renowned judge, leveraging expertise to drive transformation and innovation in finance and technology.

Abhiram Kandiraju, Director, Distinguished Engineer
Capital One, Glen Allen, Virginia, United States
As a Distinguished Engineer at Capital One, Abhiram is focused on reimagining banking through cloud-native solutions and modern architectures. He leads teams focused on scalable technology and a strong engineering culture, delivering impactful results through strategic technical leadership.

Puneet Khatri, Head of Services - Libelle Americas / Senior Technical Consultant
Libelle LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Puneet is a results-driven technology leader with over 16 years of experience in SAP systems, project delivery, and client engagement. As Head of Services at Libelle Americas, he manages complex SAP automation, cybersecurity, and data masking initiatives across North America. Puneet excels in delivering projects from presales through implementation and post-go-live support.


 

Nitin Kumar, Director Data Science
Marriott International, Lewisville, Texas, United States     
Nitin Kumar, Director of Data Science at Marriott International, has over 20 years of IT experience. He specializes in generative AI and machine learning research, with publications in leading AI journals. He is the author of an upcoming book on LLM agents.

Vivek Madan, Director of IT Security, Governance, Risk, and Compliance
Fortinet Inc., Mountain House, California, United States
Vivek is an accomplished cybersecurity executive with over 16 years of experience in leading global governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) programs across complex, enterprise-scale environments. A global cybersecurity leader trusted by over 660,000 organizations worldwide, Vivek oversees security compliance across multiple regulatory frameworks, including ISO 27001, SOC 2, NIST 800-53, and NIST 800-16.

Nidhi Mahajan, Director, Program Management
VISA, Austin, Texas, United States
Seasoned fintech leader with 17+ years in program and portfolio management, specializing in AI-driven transformation, strategic delivery, and enterprise PMO governance. Recognized for driving innovation and operational excellence. Actively engaged in the tech ecosystem through mentorship and judging global hackathons focused on emerging technologies, digital innovation, and real-world impact.


Aniket Mishra, Founder & CEO
Born21 Media LLC, Albany, New York, United States
Aniket Mishra is the founder of Born21 Media, a New York-based YouTube growth agency. He partners with brands and media companies to build distribution engines, expand their presence, and drive meaningful audience growth and revenue on YouTube and beyond.

Abdul Muqtadir Mohammed, Senior Software Engineer
Amazon, Austin, Texas, United States 
Abdul Muqtadir Mohammed is a Senior Software Engineer at Amazon, specializing in AI-powered cloud infrastructure. He has led innovations in EC2, Terraform, and Auto Scaling, with a focus on intelligent instance provisioning. His open-source and production-scale work supports mission-critical systems across healthcare, logistics, and AI platforms worldwide.
 

Anastasiia Nosova, Host of "Anastasi In Tech" YouTube Show & CEO Cyrillic
Deep In Tech GmbH, Villach, Carinthia, Austria
Anastasiia is a tech influencer and entrepreneur specializing in computing hardware and AI. She is the creator and host of "Anastasi In Tech", a leading YouTube show dedicated to the future of computing and artificial intelligence. With over 20M views across social media, Anastasiia has built an impactful platform at the intersection.

Sudheer Obbu, Vice President, Senior Lead Software Engineer    
JPMorgan Chase, Delaware, Ohio, United States 
Sudheer is an accomplished DevSecOps, Cloud, and platform engineering service lead with 19 years of expertise in optimizing complex multi-cloud infrastructures. His focus includes innovating FinOps solutions, integrating advanced technologies like GenAI for AIOps, and driving efficiency through automation initiatives. He has a proven track record in enhancing security, reducing costs, and achieving operational excellence.

Benjamin Sisima Ofuru, Head, Corporate Planning Division
National Bureau of Statistics, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria
Benjamin is a product and service specialist, multiple award winner, gold prize winner for Best Partner for exceptional customer service delivery/quality compliance (2011 & 2012), and winner of Best Walk-In Center Customer Service Delivery South-South (2011), Highest revenue/turnover, Outstanding award for innovation, Distinguished award for leadership, integrity, and team building.
 

Dippu Kumar Singh, Senior Solutions Architect For Emerging Data & Analytics
Fujitsu North America Inc., Irving, Texas, United States
Dippu is an experienced professional and thought leader in emerging data and analytics solutions, specializing in areas like Computer Vision and Generative AI/LLMs. He has extensive experience in designing and implementing comprehensive data and analytics solutions, utilizing big data technologies like Hadoop, Kafka, and Spark. He focuses on North American sales opportunities and service development.

Naveen Thangaraj, Delivery Executive – Application Managed Services
Capgemini America Inc, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Delivery Executive with 18 years in IT, holding a Bachelor's in Computer Science Information Technology from India. Experienced across Oracle and SAP ERP systems, led 4 greenfield implementations, digital transformation, and managed services. Progressed from Programmer to Delivery Executive, mentoring grads and delivering value across diverse client engagements since relocating to the U.S.

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