Speakers

Tienne Anderson
Managing Counsel
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Memphis, TN

Tienne Anderson is Managing Counsel at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Inc. in Memphis, TN.  She supports the Global Pediatric Medicine Department, which is dedicated to bringing St. Jude’s lifesaving treatments to all children around the world; co-chairs the Office of Legal Service’s International Affairs & Compliance Practice Group; and is intrigued by all questions at the intersection of philosophy and the law.  She can be reached at [email protected].

Melanie Sanders
Executive Coach, Award-winning Executive Video Producer, Emmy-Nominated Journalist, Passionate DEI Advocate,
The Diversity Movement, LLP
Raleigh, NC  

Melanie (she/her) is a Certified Diversity Executive and Senior Consultant at The Diversity Movement. Previously, she spent more than 20 years as a television journalist in markets around the United States. Drawing on her years of broadcast experience, Melanie facilitates executive media, presentation, and workplace communications trainings with organizations of all sizes from Fortune 500 companies to start-ups in the U.S. and across Europe. As an expert communicator, Melanie trains our clients on equity, inclusive language, unconscious bias, and more. Melanie was the executive producer of our award-winning music video and anthem “Who We Are.” Of all the videos she has produced over her career, Melanie says “Who We Are” is the body of work she is most proud of because of the amazing people who are featured throughout.

Dru Bhattacharya
Chief Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Officer
Banner Health
Phoenix, AZ

Dru Bhattacharya, JD, MPH, LLM, EMBA is the Chief Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Officer at Banner Health. He has training in clinical epidemiology, health law, population health, diversity and inclusion, clinical operations, and patient safety.

At Banner, he has created a new DE&I strategy and scope; developed new homegrown trainings for healthcare professionals; established multiple community partnerships and business development opportunities; secured federal grants to promote gender-inclusive care; integrated DE&I with workforce development and talent acquisition; drafted corporate policies; and coordinates language and assistance services to support patient care and health equity. In 2023, he was named among the nation’s top 39 Chief DE&I Officers by Modern Health Care.

He continues to work closely with system and facility leadership to advance DE&I for patients, team members, and communities. 

Jean Kuei
Labor & Employment Practice Group Leader
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
Minneapolis, MN

Jean Kuei is Pillsbury’s Labor & Employment Practice Group Leader. As a bi-coastal labor and employment attorney, she partners with employers nationwide to craft creative solutions to workplace disputes. Jean is a tenacious litigator, highly skilled negotiator, and trusted business advisor.  Jean advises clients from small businesses to Fortune 15 companies in the financial, insurance, pharmaceutical, retail, technology, and manufacturing services.  Her work covers many employment cases, from single-plaintiff retaliation, discrimination, harassment complaints, and charges to wage and hour class and PAGA representative actions.  In addition to conducting corporate investigations and management training, Jean leads her Firm’s DEI task force and regularly advises employers on ESG and pay equity audits, diversity-washing and activist shareholder lawsuits, restrictive covenants, and trade secret matters.  Jean is also passionate about advancing diversity in various professions and travels around the country in her spare time, supporting her husband, an NFL coach.

Nakimuli Davis-Primer
Shareholder
Baker Donelson
Jackson, MS

Nakimuli Davis-Primer's practice focuses on partnering with clients to create respectful workplaces that comply with federal, state, and local laws. She regularly counsels and advises clients on workplace issues; reviews, revises, and creates employee handbooks and policies that align with the client’s mission and goals; creates and conducts training programs for executive leaders as well as management- and non-management-level employees; and assesses risk associated with employment-related decisions. Clients also call on Ms. Davis-Primer to conduct internal investigations, defend them against claims before administrative agencies and in ongoing litigation, and for guidance on workplace matters, including guiding employers through reorganizations, reductions in force, restructuring, voluntary buy-out programs, and internal audits of position classification to ensure compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Ms. Davis-Primer is passionate about empowering others with resources and strategies to create environments that are not only diverse and inclusive but also foster belonging. Accordingly, her employment practice includes collaborating with clients on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. She works with clients on various issues ranging from assisting with cultural  audits and employee surveys and analyzing the results; developing DEI initiatives and goals including diversity supplier programs and employee resource groups; creating and evaluating policies and procedures related to DEI and metrics; assessing legal risk related to DEI programs; and identifying communication strategies when discussing and rolling-out DEI programs. Ms. Davis-Primer frequently partners with clients to create ongoing training and professional development curriculums that raise awareness of, identify tools and strategies for, and reinforce best practices to create sustainable inclusive workplaces, including training on leading across generations, inclusion, disability and accommodations, leadership communication strategies, implicit bias, and other employment and DEI related topics.

Ms. Davis-Primer serves as Editor of Baker Donelson’s Diversity Matters Newsletter, Co-Chair of BakerBridge (a program that provides legal counsel to minority owned businesses), a member of the Firm’s Nominating Committee, a credit mediator for the Firm, and Co-Chair of the Diversity Committee. Ms. Davis-Primer leads Baker Donelson’s diversity podcast, Diversity Ever After, which creates a safe space for legal and other professionals to engage in difficult but necessary conversations about diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging not only in the legal profession but in all workplaces.