Winnie Hurston is a 37 year veteran of the Administrative Profession most recently as Board Liason and Senior Executive Assistant to the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Carriage Services. With an extensive background as a Legal Secretary, Office Manager, and Executive Assistant, Winnie has shouldered many responsibilities, ranging from administrative support to managing financial affairs and intricate legal matters. She’s successfully navigated the complexities of Carriage Services' decentralized structure, facilitating seemless communications between HQ and its 200 subsidiaries nationwide, significantly enhancing the company's operational efficiency. Winnie's commitment to excellence has earned high praise and her executive shared, Winnie is ‘the highest-level Executive Admin I’ve seen in my 35-years of experience across four publicly-held companies”. She is counted on for her insightful perspectives and comprehensive knowledge of corporate affairs and has lived the Carriage Values for 17 years straight, every single day.

As Administrative Assistant Lead IV at KBR, Lorna DeArmond not only embodies all the qualities of a great Admin but inspires those same qualities in the Admin team she leads. She has supported the Human Space Flight program for 17 years and models the five keys of the Johnson Space Center Flight Operations Division Foundations of Flight Operations credo including discipline, competence, confidence responsibility and teamwork. She is always available to offer guidance or advice, whether for one of her Admins or a fellow Admin, and takes pride in sharing her knowledge and helping fellow team members. Additionally, Lorna publishes an Admin newsletter that offers insight into the skills essential to being a great Admin, and she created and leads the MSOC Admin Study Group that to date has delivered over 17 hours of skills training to Admin teams across the Human Exploration Division departments. “Loyal Lorna is dedicated to all who truly make NASA work,” her colleague said, “and without them we would never make it in space, never reach for the stars — and for the most part, many of us would be a complete wreck.

Rika Tanaka is Executive Administrative Assistant at Applied Materials, and in her nearly three decades at the company, she has built a reputation as a consummate learner. She is a member and leader in the company's Quality in Administration (QIA) organization, continually partners with functional teams to keep apprised of the latest and greatest methods in technologies, methodologies and practices, and consistently exceeds the annual training requirements by identifying ways to bolster critical skills such as communication, problem-solving, project management and leadership. But Rika’s not just an incredible student – every day, she teaches others what it means to live the company’s core values. She is a committed, proactive and responsive partner to her leader’s needs; collaborates closely with other Executive Assistants across business groups to gain alignment and train and share best practices to enable flawless execution; and goes above and beyond without complaint or hesitation when challenging situations arise. Whether internally or externally, Rika always leaves people feeling good about their interaction with her and Applied Materials in general.

Biography – Debbie Gross