Keynote Speakers

Axel Leblois is the Founder and Executive Director of G3ict -- the Global Initiative for Inclusive Technologies, an Advocacy Initiative of the United Nations Global Alliance for ICT and Development promoting the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in matters of accessible and assistive ICTs.

Prior to creating G3ict, Axel Leblois spent over 20 years at the helm of information technology companies in the United States including as CEO of ComputerWorld Communications, CEO of IDC -- International Data Corporation, President & CEO of Bull HN Worldwide Information Systems -- Formerly Honeywell Information Systems, CEO of ExecuTrain and co-founder and President of W2i, the Wireless Internet Institute. Axel Leblois is a Fellow of UNITAR, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, and founding trustee of its North American affiliate CIFAL Atlanta. Axel Leblois holds an MBA from INSEAD and is a graduate of Sciences Po Paris.

Dr. Nicholas (Nick) Bowen is the Vice President of Technology, reporting to Linda Sanford, Senior Vice President, Enterprise On Demand Transformation & Information Technology. Dr. Bowen is responsible for driving the Technology Team topics, assessments and studies that shape the technology strategy and business opportunities for IBM. These are linked to the Corporate Technical Milestones, which set and track IBM's technology commitments and progress. He has leadership roles in the Technical Leadership Team, and Technical Review Team. At the same time, he has responsibility for managing the corporate nomination, selection and evaluation processes for employees to be named IBM Fellow or Distinguished Engineer, in addition to determining what technical contributions warrant a Corporate Award. Another key responsibility Dr. Bowen has is overseeing of the annual Corporate Technical Recognition Event.

Prior to his current position, in January 2007, he was appointed Vice President of Technical Strategy and Worldwide operations for IBM’s Research Division which include driving the creation of the Global Technology Outlook, leading the worldwide operations and I/S teams, and driving the research strategy, plan and measurement processes.

Prior to that role current position, Nick held several executive positions within the IBM Systems & Technology Group (STG) including: vice president, software development, with responsibility for all server operating systems (zOS, AIX, i5OS, zVM, VSE, Linux), firmware development for IBM Systems z, i, p, and x, management software (IBM Systems Director) and hardware management systems (HMC, FSP); chief technology officer and vice president of software architecture for the same group of products; vice president of UNIX and IBM xSeries software for the server division with responsibility for driving eServers into growth markets for UNIX, Linux, Windows, GRID, and High Performance Computing where he was responsible for delivering leadership management solutions for key emerging technologies such as BladeCenter and Linux Clusters; and vice president of xSeries software and performance, responsible for all software development, performance, and hardware service processor development for xSeries, including responsibility for the IBM Center for Microsoft Technologies in Kirkland, Washington.

Prior to his positions with STG, he was with IBM Research. Nick was director of computing utilities, where he spearheaded the definition of the "intelligent infrastructure" research program, and he was director of servers with worldwide responsibility for the Research programs in servers. This group had many exploratory system projects in addition to making contributions to AIX, OS/390, AS/400, and xSeries servers as well as many products within the IBM Software Group. He made technical contributions to the S/390 Parallel Sysplex effort and led several of the OS/390 initiatives to embrace Internet and object technologies.

He joined IBM at East Fishkill, New York where he worked in a datacenter and learned the trials and tribulations of maintaining a 24x7 datacenter. He is a senior member of IEEE and a member of ACM. His research interests are operating systems and fault-tolerant computing.

Nick's career with IBM spans over 25 years and he has expertise in high availability, memory management, and parallel processing. He received the B.S. degree in computer science from the University of Vermont, a M.S. degree in computer engineering from Syracuse University, and the Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a member of Association of Computer Machinery. He served on the Computer Science Advisory Boards of Florida International University and North Carolina State University and helped found the Computer Science Advisory Board at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez. His research interests are operating systems and fault-tolerant computing.

John D. Kemp is executive director and general counsel of the U.S. Business Leadership Network. He is also a principal in the law firm of Powers, Pyles, Sutter & Verville with a federal law and legislative practice in the areas of disability, rehabilitation, health care, and nonprofit organizations. Mr. Kemp graduated from Georgetown University in 1971 and from Washburn University School of Law in 1974. Mr. Kemp was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Law from Washburn University School of Law in May 2003.

In 2006, Mr. Kemp received the Henry B. Betts Award, the most prestigious award within the national disability community which honors an individual whose work and scope of influence have significantly improved the quality of life for people with disabilities. In 2003, Mr. Kemp received a special New Freedom Initiative award from the US Department of Health and Human Services in recognition of his "ongoing commitment and strong leadership in improving the quality of life for persons with disabilities."

Mr. Kemp has served as Chief Executive Officer of United Cerebral Palsy Associations, VSA Arts and Half the Planet Foundation, and serves in that capacity for Disability Service Providers of America, a lobbying trade association. He has served as General Counsel and Vice President - Development for the National Easter Seal Society and managed a law firm that advised companies on state and federal civil rights, employment and education laws and policies regarding persons with disabilities. Kemp & Young, Inc. developed management training programs, offered consulting services, and edited and published Disability & Employment Reporter, a monthly legal and legislative newsletter for employers.

Mr. Kemp currently serves as a member of the nonprofit Boards of Directors for several organizations, including: the United States International Council on Disabilities; the National Rehabilitation Hospital of Washington, DC; and CAST of Wakefield, MA. Mr. Kemp served as a presidential appointee to the National Council on Disability for six years ending in early 2002. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), serving as its Chairman for three years; Independent Sector, serving nine years and as its Vice Chairman; the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA); the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago; and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), of which he is a co-founder.

Mr. Kemp has personal experience with disability. Having been born without arms below the elbows and legs below the knees, Kemp uses four prostheses in living an independent, productive life. In 1997, he was recognized as Washburn University Law School's Distinguished Alumni Fellow, and in 1991 was inducted into the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, an honor extended to singularly accomplished individuals in recognition of their achievements in the face of extraordinary challenges. A frequently requested Keynote Speaker and humorist, Kemp delivers 20-30 major addresses annually before conferences, conventions and annual meetings. He is admitted to practice in Kansas and the District of Columbia.

Randy Cooper has served as a Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Disability Employment Policy since its formation in 2001. He is responsible for providing advice on developing policy under the following Legislative Acts: Workforce Investment Act, Civil Service Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act, Technology Act, Vocational Rehabilitation Act, and the McKinney Vento Act.

In 1998 the Office of the Secretary of Labor turned to Randy to assist in the establishment of the Presidential Task Force on the Employment of Adults with Disabilities (PTFEAD), where he assisted in the implementation of Presidential Executive Order 13078-- a bold initiative to increase the employment rate of adults with disabilities to that of the general population. Prior to the PTFEAD appointment, Randy served as a Policy Advisor in the Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).

As a person with a disability, Randy is a strong advocate and proponent of community participation, competitive employment opportunities, and civil rights protections for people with disabilities. He actively engages with local organizations in the Washington Metro area to advance people with significant disabilities in all aspects of community life.