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Please join Disability:IN North Texas for our Q3, 2019 Meeting
Topic:
Panel Discussion Accessibility and Best Practices in the Workplace: Panel will include James Ashworth (Southwest Airlines), Jamie Hold, Director EEO & Diversity (BNSF), additional panelists tbd.
Kevin Phelan: Overiew of AIRA, a technology that connects people who are blind/low vision to a trained agent.
Presenters:
James Ashworth is the Managing Director of Operations for Southwest Airlines Customer Support and Services (CS&S). His primary focus is working closely with Executive Leaders and frontline Employees to ensure a high-level delivery of Customer Service and Hospitality for CS&S, as well as strategically planning and developing Southwest Contact Centers of the future.
He has been responsible for projects such as the launch of an interactive voice response system to deliver flight information statuses to customers, improving support automation for email communication to customers for advanced and real time schedule changes, as well as heralding new processes for delivering Group ticket contracts, TSA security requirements, and Customer Experience Surveys. Diagnosed with an eye condition akin to Macular Degeneration in 2000, another project James has championed is a joint venture with the Georgia Department of Labor to hire individuals to work in Southwest Contact Centers who are blind and visually impaired.
James has over 25 years of experience in the airline industry and has also worked with Ogden Aviation Services, ValuJet Airlines and AirTran Airways. He has held several positions such as Aircraft Appearance Tech, Reservation Agent, Reservations Supervisor, Call Center Scheduling Manager, Call Center Operations Manager and General Manager, Customer Contact Centers.
James, his wife Precious, and their two children; James Jr. and daughter Skylar enjoy family vacations and hosting family and friends at their home in Plano, Texas.
Kevin Phelan is the Global Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Aira, the fastest growing assistive tech community in the world. They combine the power of Artificial
Intelligence and Augmented Reality with wearable technologies to provide the 300 million blind and low vision people around the globe immediate access to information
and assistance. After starting his career as a journalist, Phelan has worked as a digital strategist for leading global brands such as Guinness, Red Bull and EA Sports. He
spent the last decade in future tech with high impact companies like Bill Gates backed Evolv Technology and CyPhy Works, where they performed the first drone delivery in the United States. Kevin frequently contributes to The NY Times, Forbes and Wall Street Journal on the intersection of emerging technology, inclusion and corporate social responsibility. He resides is Boston, MA and is a lifelong Red Sox fan.