Philly Tech Week 2018

Sylvester Mobley is the founder and CEO of the youth tech education nonprofit, Coded by Kids. Through Coded by Kids, Sylvester works to increase access to tech education opportunities for those who are underserved, especially children of color and children who come from underserved communities. Sylvester’s mission is to ensure that every child has the support, resources, and opportunity to build the next Google, Microsoft or Facebook, regardless of what they look like or where they come from.

Because of the dominant role technology plays in our society, Sylvester believes that building a tech industry that is diverse, inclusive and equitable is one of the most pressing issues we face today.

Under his leadership, Coded by Kids has grown from an organization that served fewer than 15 children in one Philadelphia recreation center to serving more than 200 students per week in schools and community centers in three states. Sylvester has received awards for his work from several organizations including Philadelphia City Council, the Philadelphia Business Journal, The Philadelphia 76ers, Billy Penn, and Philadelphia Academies.

Sylvester got his start in technology while serving in the United States Air Force. He is a veteran of the war in Iraq, who served in three branches of the United States military over 12 years. Sylvester is also a graduate of Temple University’s Fox School of Business.

Jon Biedermann, VP of Fundraising Solutions for SofterWare, has served the nonprofit community for over 22 years. In 2001, he launched the online version DonorPerfect, which pioneered SaaS (Software as a Service) fundraising solutions for nonprofit organizations. In 2006, he helped form the Fundraising Effectiveness Project and in 2012, he spearheaded the formation of the Growth in Giving Initiative with AFP and the Urban Institute. He has conducted dozens of sessions about nonprofit technology both in the US and Internationally. Jon currently sits on the boards of several youth-oriented charities and serves as a board member for both the The Giving Institute and The Giving USA Foundation.

Leslie Zacharkow is a designer/developer living in Berkeley, California. She studied Industrial Design at the University of the Arts and spent 8 years in Philadelphia before moving west. Her hobbies include leaving work early to spend time outside, planning her escape back east, and working on Tabby Cat (of course).

A lifelong city resident, Jim Kenney grew up the oldest of four in a South Philadelphia rowhouse neighborhood. His father, a firefighter, and his mother, a homemaker, worked second jobs at The Inquirer and The Spectrum to put Jim and his four siblings through parochial school.

In high school, Jim delivered the paper in the morning and washed dishes after school as a member of Local 274, earning his first union card at 17.

After graduating from St. Joe's Prep, Jim worked his way through La Salle University and became the first in his family to graduate from college.

Jim was elected in 1991 to serve as a Democratic City Councilman-at-Large. In City Council, Jim stood up for Philadelphia's working families—fighting for a real living wage, increased funding for public education, and to protect the rights of firefighters and police.

A proud progressive, Jim led the way on broader protections for LGBTQ Philadelphians, marijuana decriminalization, and a more sensible immigration policy by ending ICE holds that tear families apart.

Jim served as Chairman of the Committee on Labor & Civil Service, the Committee on Law & Government, the Committee on Environment as well as a member of the Public Health, Fiscal Stability, Technology, and Ethics Committees. Jim resigned from office to run for mayor after serving six consecutive terms in 2015.

Nicole Pumphrey has dedicated her career to fostering cultural understanding and promoting inclusion through education and workforce development. Nicole joined the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians as director of strategic partnerships in 2014, where she leads the organization’s external engagement strategy, building collaborations and advocating for the valuable contributions of immigrants to the region’s social stability and economic prosperity.

An energetic and experienced international executive, Chris is committed to making fundamental change through the ubiquitous development of social impact organizations like Communally. He joined the company in 2007 as Chief Operating Officer bringing a track record of designing and delivering high quality, high impact programs in Fortune 100 companies, entrepreneurial ventures, international consortia and voluntary organizations in Eastern & Western Europe, Asia, Australia and the U.S.

Immediately before joining Communally, he was the founder and principal of a strategic marketing and business development company that specialized in moving innovative ideas to sustainable revenue. Before establishing his own business, Chris spent 15 years with Sperry Univac/Unisys rising to Vice President, Corporate Product Strategy, and Integration.

Chris is a member of the Board of Directors of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia. This organization reflects his active involvement with moves to ensure that "sustainability" encompasses the economic needs of low-income urban and rural communities, the equitable capital requirements of social impact companies and the recognition that workers must balance effort with replenishment to avoid burnout.

Chris is a successful author and speaker with a recognized ability to render complex issues understandable to a broad range of audiences. He has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Wolverhampton (U.K.).

Damian D. “Skipper” Pitts, PhD is a U.S. Marine turned business owner and the Founder/CEO at FlexRight Solutions™, a consulting, technology integration and manufacturing firm with several patents serving business, public safety, law enforcement and the federal government. Skipper’s expertise has allowed him to provide training and consulting as an SME on strategic execution and the integration of small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) to business, local law enforcement and government agencies since 2014. Skipper is the author of 19 books with his upcoming title, Disruptive Innovation-THINK that focuses on adaptability to future-proof your projects, businesses and organizations, scheduled for release in the fall 2018.

Commitment to community and hunger for challenge have lured Keenan up and down the East Coast for most of her life. Her professional journey has taken her from the classrooms of Duke University to a Department of Defense Counterterrorism Center in Washington D.C. to the wild places of the Mid-Atlantic, where she led both outdoor expeditions and fundraising campaigns for Outward Bound. Now, as Venture for America’s Director of Philadelphia, Keenan supports the local talent pipeline by bringing the next generation of entrepreneurs to Philly to work for startups and get the skills and resources they need to one day start companies of their own.