Career Panel: Dine + Connect
JUMPSTART YOUR CAREER IN 2025 – Insights to Get the Offer in Today’s Technology Job Market
About The Event:
- Ben Grodsky – Senior Product Manager | ROKU
- Derek Cotton – Talent Acquisition Manager | Capital Group
- Rowdy Sampietro – Talent Acquisition Consultant| Panda Express
- Katie Duvall – Vice President Talent Acquisition | FOX
- Carole Schlocker – Queen of iSpace | iSpace as moderator
Kick off 2025 with expert advice on how to jumpstart your career!
Listen to a panel of expert Talent Acquisition Managers discuss how to jump start your career in 2025. Learn insights on the job market, areas where there’s strong and growing demand and how their firms are going about recruiting for those skills. Discussion will also include how to best write your resume/cover letter, styles of interviews and how to adapt, proper follow up and all the right steps that lead to an offer letter. The panel will be recruiting for positions at their companies and will answer your questions during the Q & A portion of the panel.
Don’t miss this chance to get insider tips and connect with top recruiters!
This event is offered at a major discount to provide valuable tools and actionable takeaways for managing your career. If you’re not a member yet, now is the perfect time to join or renew your AITP-LA membership and unlock the full range of benefits.
Don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to invest in your career and network with industry experts!
AITP-LA Member-Only Meeting
Before the panel, we will hold a special members-only meeting at 6:00 PM to discuss our 2025 plans and gather input on AITP-LA’s strategic initiatives.
Date: Thursday, January 30th, 2025
Time: 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM (Pacific) Networking, Member Meeting, Panel Discussion and Q&A
Place: Accenture 1003 East 4th Place Los Angeles, CA 90013
Cost:
Registration in advance IS REQUIRED.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Use this link to register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1141422127309
Register now! The earlier you register, the more you save.
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ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS:
Rickey Archangel – Technical Talent Acquisition | CAA
Rickey Archangel is a seasoned recruiting professional with extensive experience partnering with business leaders to address critical business challenges and deliver impactful talent solutions. He has a proven track record in developing and implementing programs, processes, and policies that promote leadership and talent development, drive change management initiatives, and create growth opportunities for employees.
Rickey’s expertise includes recruiting for emerging technologies such as Cloud Computing (XaaS), Data Science, Java Development, Machine Learning frameworks, Big Data, DevOps, and API Integration.
Rickey’s engaging and innovative approach makes him a trusted advisor in aligning talent strategies with organizational goals.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rcarchangel/
Derek Cotton – Talent Acquisition Manager | Capital Group
Derek Cotton is with Capital Group where he serves as a Manager of Talent Acquisition, responsible for a team of four, which handle the recruitment for the Summer Internship and Early Career Hires. Derek has over 18 years of recruitment experience including his previous employment with TPx Communications, Farmers Insurance and Egon Zehnder International, a global retained search firm where he identified top candidates for some of the world’s leading firms.
Derek has an International MBA from Pepperdine University, which included a year of study at Mexico’s Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Economics from San Diego State University where he also earned a minor in Naval Science.
Derek is on the Local Advisory Board for the Posse Foundation and formally sat on the Board of Southern California Leadership Network and served as the Chair of the Marketing Committee. He previously was a founding Board member of the Southern California Diversity Council, a membership organization committed to advancing the diversity and inclusion conversation.
Derek is deeply involved in the Olympic sport of fencing, has sat on the Board of Directors, been the US referee to three Olympic games and was elected to an International Commission overseeing referees.
Derek is married and is the proud father of one son.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/derek-cotton-626407/
Rowdy Sampietro – Recruiting Enthusiast & Talent Matchmaker | Panda Express
Rowdy Sampietro is a passionate recruiter with years of experience connecting exceptional talent with organizations that thrive on great people. Specializing in building relationships, refining hiring strategies, and creating positive candidate experiences, Rowdy brings energy and expertise to every step of the recruitment process.
Currently, he’s part of the Panda Restaurants team, working closely with hiring managers to find the perfect fit for their growing organization. Rowdy loves what he does and believes that finding the right talent isn’t just about skills—it’s about building futures.
When he’s not recruiting, you’ll find Rowdy spending time with his family, enjoying good food, and sharing laughs along the way.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rowdylee/
Katie Duvall – Vice President Talent Acquisition | FOX
Katie Duvall is the Vice President of Talent Acquisition at Tubi Media Group, where she oversees recruiting efforts for Tubi, Fox Tech & Digital, and affiliated brands within the organization. With over 15 years of experience in talent acquisition and workforce strategy, Katie is passionate about connecting exceptional talent with innovative opportunities that shape the future of media and technology.
Katie specializes in leading high-performing recruitment teams, developing AI-driven talent acquisition strategies, and fostering cross-functional collaboration to drive business growth. She is dedicated to reimagining the candidate experience with an AI-first mindset, ensuring that human connection and empathy remain central to the hiring process.
Katie is also a board member of Fox Corporation’s ABLE Employee Resource Group, where she champions diversity and inclusion initiatives.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/katieduvall/
Moderator: Carole Schlocker – Queen of iSpace | iSpace as moderator
Carole Schlocker has been with iSpace since it was founded and has been instrumental in building their foundation base of clients and in helping to further the careers of countless IT Professionals. Among her many accomplishments in the IT community, she serves as the Program Chair for AITP-LA and is Chair of the Speakers Committee for the annual Southland Technology Conference (SoTec). Prior to joining iSpace, Carole was Sr. Vice President of D.P Specialists where she was one of the principal contributors in building the company into one of the premier IT Staffing and Solutions companies in S. California. Carole started her IT career as Manager of West Coast Technical Support at Candle Corporation.
Carole also serves on the board of The Disability Community Resource Center (dcrc.co), and is a long time member and former board member of the UCLA I.S. Associates. She is a past Board Member of Tech Serve Alliance. She was the Co-Director of the Los Angeles Chapter of Women in Technology and helped to build the chapter from the ground up. Carole holds a Bachelors Degree in Social Work from Temple University.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/carole-schlocker-50696091/
About AITP-LA:
AITP-LA is about technology – bringing experts in their field to share cutting-edge ideas with members. Helping members connect the dots, take the next steps, grow in their ability to apply technologies to competitive advantage.
AITP-LA is part of a national organization that provides leadership, professional development, certification and personal growth opportunities to IT managers and technologists. The core of the AITP experience is the chapter network, with 400 professional and student chapters throughout the country.
For more information, call the chapter telephone at 562-928-5353 or contact Roger Lux at 562-964-1888.
CONTACT INFO:
AITP-LA website: https://aitp-la.org.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/1846745, login and search for “aitp-la”.
Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/AITP-Los-Angeles
Twitter: @AITP_LA
