Based in New York City, The Sophia Consulting Firm LLC (SCF) is a strategic scientific marketing and communications consultancy that partners with global emerging and established life science organizations with the goal of amplifying scientific innovation. Key therapeutic areas of focus include oncology, women’s health, regenerative and aesthetic medicine.

SCF was founded in 2017 by Dr. Sophia Ononye-Onyia, a scientist, entrepreneur and strategic communications leader with over 15 years of cross-functional experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. While Dr. Ononya-Onyia has worked in many disciplines and acquired many honors and affiliations, her main focus is on areas of drug discovery, clinical development, medical affairs, commercial development, strategic marketing and corporate communications. Dr. Ononye-Onyia is also a leading STEM and diversity advocate with frequent speaking engagements and editorials in top media outlets. You can follow her on Twitter at @drsophiao to keep up on her busy schedule.

Amplifying Scientific Innovation®

The Sophia Consulting Firm’s proprietary Amplifying Scientific Innovation® platform utilizes a three-pronged approach to maximize visibility, scientific credibility and thought leadership for client partners via the curation of advisory services, an influential video podcast series and thought leadership pieces in leading media outlets.

In addition to its scientific strategy core, SCF also supports the amplification of credible scientific information via its acclaimed Amplifying Scientific Innovation Video Podcast. Since its launch on YouTube in June 2020, the series has received close to 1M views and showcased luminaires like the CEO of the American Cancer Society.

For more information, visit their website at sophiaconsultingfirm.com, or contact Dr. Ononye-Onyia at sophia@sophiaconsultingfirm.com.

As the Procurement Outreach Partner at  the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York (FHLBNY) for over four years Navin Persaud has been responsible for procurement, supplier diversity and facilities management in the Corporate Real Estate department.

Navin’s primary role is to support the procurement function, which includes supplier diversity initiatives under the pillars of governance, internal and external outreach, and education. In this role, Navin serves as a trusted adviser to the various business areas to ensure that policy requirements are met and procurement opportunities are provided to diverse suppliers whenever possible. Navin also partners with external organizations to promote the FHLBNY Supplier Diversity Program. 

In addition to Navin’s role at FHLBNY, he has served as the President of the Institute for Supply Management in New York and as the Director of Supplier Diversity. Navin was awarded the “Champion for Industry” award by Thomas Net in 2020 for his work in Supplier Diversity.

Previously, Navin worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, also in the procurement department,  where he developed his passion for promoting Supplier Diversity. 

What does AAPI Heritage Month mean to Navin?

It is commendable to be able to celebrate AAPI Heritage month as part of the larger Supplier Diversity initiative. It is also equally important to be able to recognize the contributions of AAPI businesses and the positive impact on organizations and the American economy as a whole. 

AAPI businesses have been making great strides in bringing diverse perspectives, different cultures and business practices to organizations to enhance efficiency, promote cultural tolerance and acceptance, and to drive overall progress in advancing Supplier Diversity.

It is in this spirit that I would like to encourage AAPI businesses to continue to deliver on commitments, be innovative and to prove to organizations that Supplier Diversity is a true success, as Lamar Alexander puts it: “We are the only country in the world that has taken people from so many different backgrounds, which is a great achievement by itself, but an even greater achievement is that we have turned all of that variety and diversity into unity.” 

Azra Khalfan-Kermali, is the founder and CEO of Away in a BOX, a division of Plaques by Azra and Signs and Lucite Products. Plaques by Azra is a trusted supplier for awards and signs and recently expanded to offer a Cultural Intelligence Training Program for employee engagement and leadership development.

Azra was born and raised in Queens, New York but has lived in Tanzania, UAE and has traveled the world extensively. She brings over two decades of entrepreneurial spirit, life experiences, education and passion into her new company— aimed at increasing diversity, equity and inclusion and helping with unconscious biases towards marginalized communities. Away in a BOX brings the world to you, one nation at a time through an experiential sensory BOX and educational culture training. 

Azra has been actively building her businesses through educational programs with organizations like the Dartmouth-Tuck School of Business – Minority Business Program and the Goldman Sachs 10K Small Business Program through the Tory Burch Foundation

Azra now lives in New York and Dubai with her husband Kazim and her parents. She has been actively involved with community fundraising and awareness towards assisting orphans, widows, empowerment through education and the building of wells in Africa, South Asia and the Middle East.  

With her passion for advocacy, Azra sits on the NYNJ Council’s MBE Input Committee, the Queen’s District Attorney South Asian Advisory Committee and a co-chair for the Manufacturing Committee at the Queens Chamber of Commerce. She has also served on the Board of TPNY, a non-profit organization advocating for victims of Domestic Violence. In 2016, Azra was awarded the MBE Catalyst Award by the NMSDC. In 2019, Azra received the ACCION Award for Integrity.

She has been featured in four books including a New York Times bestseller: Tory Burch: In Color.  She is also a contributing writer for an industry specific online platform GraphicsPro and was featured on The Story Exchange, an online media outlet showcasing women entrepreneurs. In 2011, Azra and her mother were featured as the cover story for Azizah Magazine, which highlights the achievements of Muslim women around the world. 

In what little spare time she has, Azra enjoys hiking, kayaking and traveling. She is particularly intrigued by Middle Eastern architecture and enjoys learning about different cultures and visiting churches, temples and mosques.