Practitioners, not theorists

Dr. Kimberly "KJ" Haywood

Dr. Kimberly KJ Haywood is a seasoned executive with more than 25 years of experience leading innovation, governance, and risk initiatives across the finance, technology, healthcare, and government sectors. A serial entrepreneur and founder of two companies, she currently serves as CEO of Nomad Cyber Concepts, where she leads a team of advisors specializing in AI governance, cybersecurity, and enterprise risk management.

Throughout her career, Dr. Haywood has held leadership and advisory roles with organizations including Wells Fargo, CBRE, Bank of America, L3Harris Technologies, and Deloitte, with a focus on cybersecurity, governance, compliance, and strategic risk oversight.

She currently serves on multiple advisory boards focused on AI governance, ethics, and education, and teaches as an adjunct professor in cybersecurity. Dr. Haywood has authored and contributed to numerous articles and white papers on AI governance, including co-authoring a governance framework presented to the United Nations. In December 2025, she released her book, Here We Go Again… Except It’s AI, Volume I, which explores the evolving landscape of AI governance and its growing impact on organizations and society.

Recognized as a thought leader in AI governance, Dr. Haywood is known for helping organizations translate complex regulatory, cybersecurity, and operational risks into practical, scalable governance strategies that support innovation and long-term business resilience. She holds a doctorate in Ethics and Business Management.

Antoine Duncan

Certified Public Accountant with over 18 years of combined public and industry accounting experience, including three years in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ financial services audit practice. Background spans pharmaceutical and banking sectors, with expertise in SOX compliance, internal controls, and financial reporting. Former auditor at McKesson Corporation, specializing in accounts receivable and operational controls.

Founder of an accounting, tax, and advisory firm established in 2012, serving individuals and small businesses with a focus on proactive tax strategy, financial planning, and business consulting. Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor with a client-centered approach to delivering practical, year-round guidance.

Holds a Master’s degree in Accounting and Information Management from University of Texas at Dallas and a bachelor’s degree from University of Missouri.

Kelly E. Smith

Kelly E. Smith joined Nomad Cyber Concepts in March 2025. She is a dynamic executive strategist and operational leader serving as Chief Operating Officer and Interim Chief People Officer at Nomad Cyber Concepts. With more than two decades of experience at the intersection of equity compensation, compliance, governance, and human capital development, Kelly is advancing scalable infrastructure, modernizing systems, and architecting people-centric strategies that accelerate innovation and operational integrity in the AI governance and cybersecurity sectors.

As COO, Kelly leads cross-functional initiatives to modernize Nomad’s infrastructure, scale its systems, and embed data-informed KPIs that drive performance and accountability. In her Interim CPO capacity, she brings cultural fluency and leadership development to the forefront, aligning talent strategies with business outcomes while safeguarding compliance and ethics at every level of workforce engagement.

Kelly is also the Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Smith Equity & Financial Consulting Group, Inc. (fka: Smith Equity Consulting, LLC), a boutique consultancy firm she launched in 2007 that has redefined service delivery for equity compensation, corporate governance, and specialty legal operations. Under her leadership, SEFCG expanded to include dedicated corporate paralegal services and bespoke human capital consulting solutions, serving Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 clients with precision, confidentiality, and insight.

Renowned for her strategic foresight and precision, Kelly excels at guiding organizations through complex transformations, from post-merger integrations and broker transitions to data migrations and regulatory audits. With a reputation for bringing clarity to ambiguity and structure to scale, she operates at the nexus of compliance, equity administration, and governance. Her expansive network, spanning brokers, global corporations, legal advisors, and software innovators, reinforces her role as a trusted advisor across both emerging tech ecosystems and established industries.

Based in the beautifully diverse San Francisco Bay Area, Kelly is also a devoted wife and mother, bringing both discipline and grace to every facet of her professional and personal journey.

Candice Teague

Candice Teague is a cybersecurity executive and technology risk leader with 18+ years of experience securing enterprise environments across government, financial services, healthcare, telecommunications, real estate, and global consulting at Big 4 companies. She specializes in cybersecurity risk assessment, information security program governance, and NIST Cybersecurity Framework implementation and compliance, with a proven track record of building security programs from the ground up across complex, multi-site organizations.

Candice is known for translating technical risk into executive-level strategy, and she brings both the boardroom presence and hands-on depth that modern security leadership demands. She holds advanced cybersecurity certifications and leads with a mission-driven approach to protecting the institutions she serves.

Kristen Thomas

Kristen Thomas, JD, is a legal and business professional focused on delivering practical, results-driven counsel across complex regulatory and operational environments. She brings a strong foundation in legal analysis, risk assessment, and strategic advisory, partnering with stakeholders to navigate evolving challenges and drive informed decision-making.

Kristen is known for translating legal concepts into clear, actionable guidance that supports business objectives while maintaining compliance and integrity. Her experience spans cross-functional collaboration, policy development, and issue resolution in fast-paced settings. She is passionate about building strong relationships, fostering accountability, and creating sustainable solutions that balance legal risk with organizational growth. Kristen remains committed to continuous learning and delivering meaningful impact in every role she serves.

Ryan Hughes

Ryan Hughes leads the firm’s go-to-market efforts at Nomad Cyber Concepts, Inc., guiding commercial and defense clients through the fast-moving landscape of AI governance, risk, and compliance. His focus is translating emerging obligations into clear, actionable programs that let organizations adopt AI with confidence rather than fear.

Ryan brings over 12 years of experience spanning sales/business development, account management, and recruiting across technology, healthcare, aviation, AEC, and federal sectors, with a track record of exceeding targets and expanding into new markets for organizations ranging from Fortune 500s to start-ups.

Known as a trusted executive partner, he prides himself on building relationships and making connections that improve society. That background shapes how he works today: listening first, tailoring solutions to the client’s real constraints, and delivering insight that drives measurable growth. At Nomad, he channels that same drive into helping clients stand up the AI governance capability they need without carrying the full cost of building it in-house.

Ryan is a proud husband and father from Dallas, Texas. He holds a Bachelor of Marketing from the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, and is a brother of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.

Jodi Washington

Jodi Washington runs marketing as a revenue function. Her work starts from the pipeline a business needs and works backward into positioning, messaging, and the systems that make demand repeatable, not campaigns that generate attention and stop there.

She has built that discipline as an operator rather than an observer. Jodi built a multi-six-figure business of her own, owned and operated a wedding venue, and helped rebuild the marketing function inside a NASDAQ-listed company. Her experience spans entrepreneurship, luxury branding, corporate events, sales enablement, and cybersecurity, which means she is equally comfortable with a brand problem and a sales-cycle problem.

At Nomad, she sharpens how the firm explains what it does to the executives, boards, and compliance leaders who buy it, and builds the marketing and sales infrastructure that turns that clarity into measurable business opportunities.

Melissa Gray

Melissa H. Gray is a trusted legal strategist with over a decade of experience advising founders, operators, and investors at the intersection of innovation, intellectual property, and scalable business infrastructure. As founder of The Law Spot, Melissa counsels emerging companies and investor-backed ventures on how to protect core assets, minimize legal exposure, and establish the operational clarity needed for growth and exit-readiness.

At Nomad Cyber Concepts, Melissa serves in a project-based general counsel capacity, supporting the company’s legal foundation during its early-stage buildout. Her work includes structuring IP protections, drafting mission-critical agreements, and advising on compliance frameworks that align with regulatory expectations and investor diligence standards.

Melissa has been recognized as a D Magazine Best Lawyer and is an active member of the Dallas Women Lawyers Association, where she advocates for leadership and equity in the legal profession. Her strategic insight helps de-risk innovation pipelines and ensures legal alignment with Nomad’s long-term vision, making her a key partner in building investor confidence and institutional readiness.

Jenna Gallagher

Jenna Gallagher is a cybersecurity and risk executive with more than 20 years of experience across American Express, PayPal and Upwork. She has led global programs in highly regulated environments spanning governance, risk and compliance, product security, identity and access management, operational resilience, privacy, security awareness and third-party risk.

Throughout her career, Jenna has focused on translating complex risk, global regulatory requirements and industry frameworks into practical business decisions. She has led large-scale security and regulatory programs, managed portfolios exceeding $15 million and built balanced solutions that strengthen security, support innovation and maintain customer trust. Today, she advises organizations on cybersecurity governance, risk, resilience, compliance and emerging technology.

Radha Sathe

Radha Sathe is a Technology & Operations Executive with extensive expertise in enterprise-scale digital transformation and M&A integration across federal government and Fortune 500 organizations. She drives strategic transformation initiatives for complex business segments, directing acquisition integrations and operational excellence across large-scale, distributed operations.

Her competitive advantage is rooted in federal and Fortune 500 IT leadership: managing multimillion-dollar enterprise contracts while championing enterprise-wide modernization programs has provided her with distinctive expertise in regulatory compliance, enterprise architecture, organizational design, and large-scale cross-functional execution.

Radha specializes in translating complex technical and organizational challenges into governance-driven solutions that de-risk high-stakes initiatives and accelerate business value. She brings recognized thought leadership in enterprise AI and emerging technology strategy, architecting AI-driven solutions that enhance organizational decision velocity and competitive positioning.

Bernard Joseph

As a Principal AI Governance Advisor with 24 years of experience in technical leadership and internal controls, Bernard Joseph is committed to establishing robust governance frameworks for Artificial Intelligence. He possesses a proven track record in client engagement and team-oriented environments, specializing in risk management, vendor technology risk, and regulatory compliance.

Bernard’s expertise extends to vulnerability assessments and strategic risk remediation solutions, which he now applies to the unique challenges of AI implementation. His current role involves leading sustainable risk management processes and identifying high-impact risks, with a particular focus on leveraging AI to streamline analysis and enhance visibility into critical exposures.

He has extensive experience directing risk strategies, overseeing comprehensive risk assessments, and advising executive leadership on risk management and compliance. Bernard is adept at collaborating with stakeholders to integrate security and governance measures into new technologies and has a history of implementing continuous enhancement processes to bolster security and compliance.

Charlie Flores

Mr. Flores is a retired USAF Colonel with extensive experience in mission-based cybersecurity and systems security engineering. A combat veteran, he led operations across four USAF cyber weapon systems and supported security engineering programs for three Fortune 500 aerospace firms.

He holds advanced degrees in Mathematics and Systems Engineering and is a graduate of key USAF and cyber warfare schools. His leadership includes commanding cyber units and establishing major operational directorates.

His many honors include the STEM Luminary Award and the Simon Ramo Award for Systems Engineering Excellence.

Wayde Burchfield

Wayde Burchfield is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of experience in the Information Technology sector. His background includes consulting, sales, business partner development, management, and staffing across a range of industries.

He is known for his ability to cultivate strong client relationships, design strategic plans, and lead entrepreneurial initiatives. Wayde is passionate about helping organizations meet their goals by leveraging technology and optimizing business processes to solve complex challenges and build innovative, scalable solutions. His work consistently drives business growth, enhances efficiency, and promotes long-term sustainability.

Pratyoosh Patel

Pratyoosh Patel is an Emerging Technologies leader with extensive experience driving innovation, strategic transformation, and enterprise technology initiatives across multiple industries. As the Emerging Technologies Practice Lead at InfoVision, he leads the vision, strategy, and execution of next-generation solutions focused on Generative AI, Agentic AI, XR (AR/VR/MR), and intelligent digital experiences. He has consulted with organizations across multiple industry verticals, including three Fortune 20 enterprises, helping leadership teams evaluate, adopt, and operationalize emerging technologies to address complex business challenges.

Known for bridging emerging technologies with practical business outcomes, Pratyoosh specializes in transforming complex ideas into scalable, enterprise-ready solutions that align technology innovation with organizational goals. Bringing cutting-edge knowledge of rapidly evolving technologies, he remains deeply hands-on with engineering and innovation teams, leading the development of real-world solutions designed to solve impactful, multimillion-dollar operational and enterprise challenges.

Pratyoosh combines deep technical expertise with strong strategic leadership and remains actively involved in research, solution architecture, and emerging technology exploration. His work spans enterprise AI modernization, immersive technologies, intelligent automation, and next-generation digital experiences, with a strong focus on delivering measurable impact and long-term value.

As a leader, Pratyoosh is passionate about building innovation-driven cultures, mentoring future technology leaders, and helping organizations navigate the evolving landscape of emerging technologies with clarity, agility, and purpose.

James Johnson

James Johnson is an experienced risk professional serving as SVP, Senior Director, Business Risk and Controls Officer at Comerica Bank (acquired by Fifth Third Bank, 2025). He leads non-financial risk management overseeing Consumer Product Management, Retail and Small Business Banking, Marketing & Customer Experience, and Customer Contact Center divisions. He serves as first line executive for the Enterprise Risk and Control Self-Assessment Transformation Program, overseeing governance, assessments, lifecycle, training, and reporting, and leading integration with enterprise programs and remediation efforts. Previously, he was Head of Digital Risk and Operations at First Republic Bank. He holds an MBA and risk certifications.