Board of Directors

Olessia Tchikounova
Chair, Corporate Partnerships & Marketing

Olesia has made enough mistakes running a marketing department to know that marketing is the sum of what the whole company does, not one department.
Extensive experience in managing geographically and functionally diverse teams with measurable results makes her value structure and accountability.

Cares about trust and reputation to the extent that was nicknamed company's conscience once.  Her favorite HR policy is to be fair.   Marketing is her favorite game.

She is also a homemaking freak - on her 5th new house construction project and on 4th remodeling project, and making it her business to share the knowledge.
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​Anu Keshavan,   PhD
Chair, Capacity Building

Anu is passionate about social enterprise management and impact investment to tackle societal problems and empowering BoP entrepreneurs. She serves as a mentor at the    Mentor Capital Network    and   was a   Frontier Market Scout Fellow.   Her interest in solving social problems originates from her childhood exposure to inequalities the poor face in different shapes and forms, and her continuing backpacking travels to more than 107 countries around the world.    

Anu holds a PhD in Social Innovation from the International School of Management, in Paris. Topic of research is 'A Gendered Perspective on Leveraging Technology for Sustainable Social Enterprises'. Additionally, she holds   an  M.B.A and Masters in  Computer Applications.

Dr. Steven L. Siegel
Treasurer, Board Member

With a track record that includes growing a company from $1 million to $800 million in three years, and serving as first chair for over one hundred mergers and acquisitions of public and privately held domestic and international companies valued between $1.5 million and $110 million, Steven provides Empowerment WORKS with the kind of innovative thinking that has justified publication.

From 25+ year international career (10+ years as an investment banker and another 15+ years at the C level), Steven brings a valuable list of contacts for strategic partnerships with companies and governments around the globe. His goal is always to help the company be more efficient, cost conscious and revenue focused, providing advice on the financial implications of business activities, credibility by producing timely and accurate analysis of budgets, recommendations to strategically enhance financial performance, operations and global business development opportunities for top line growth.
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Linlin Wills
Chair, PR & Community Events

Linlin is passionate about effecting changes especially to preserve the environment and the vanishing tribal cultures of distinctive lifestyles, art and traditions around the world.

She has been the Principal of THE POP AGENCY. Specially, she orchestrates the “brand engagement party” and is a catalyst for brand development. She has worked with clients in global consumer brands, media, and high-tech industries such as ESPN Star, MTV Asia, Nokia, the Singapore Navy, EMI, KIZZ-ME Beverage, Tiger Beer, HP, and Visa to launch online and on mobile viral marketing campaigns and brand engagement parties when she co-founded Sky Intermedia digital agency.  

Prior, she held executive positions in Arthur Andersen and ADC Telecom. She has spoken publicly on entrepreneurial leadership and published articles in INSEAD IQ. She received an executive MBA from INSEAD, an MS in MIS from the University of Arizona, and a BA from the University of Science & Technology of China.
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