Meet the Diversity & Inclusion Officer Candidates
Click the names below to view their bios and statements.
Sophie A. Kay
Biography
Sophie A. Kay, PhD, is a people analytics research scientist at Meta, where her applied research uses quantitative and qualitative methods to study employees' experiences at work, including research related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. At Georgia Tech, she was the last doctoral student of Howard Weiss.
Sophie has been a SIOP member for over a decade. She has served on the Education and Training Committee since 2024, including helping author the updated Guidelines for Education and Training (currently under review at APA). She chaired the Practitioner Resources subcommittee in 2025 and is cochairing the Instructor Resources subcommittee. She has helped lead Asians in I/O for several years and currently serves as chair of its Professional Development committee. At SIOP 2025, she was a speaker for a community interest session on neurodiversity.
Alongside her research role, Sophie is an executive function and leadership coach who advises leaders on inclusive practice. Across her research, service, and coaching, she works from a person-centric view of work psychology: Workers are whole people first, and their daily experiences at work are worth taking seriously.
Statement
As Diversity and Inclusion Officer, I would bring an inclusion lens to the Executive Board's work: asking, for every decision, who it reaches, who it might miss, and what evidence we have. That is the lens I use in my own work at Meta, where, as a People Analytics generalist, I study employees' experiences at work with quantitative and qualitative methods, including research on diversity, equity, and inclusion, and in my service on the Education and Training Committee since 2024. That lens matters even more as AI changes work -- not only our tasks and roles, but our daily experience of work, and who feels its benefits and its costs.
Three priorities would guide me. First, protect and strengthen the programs that make SIOP more welcoming and accessible, including the  Diversifying I-O Psychology(opens in new tab) (DIP) program, so that inclusion work survives leadership transitions and budget pressure. Second, make inclusion practical for committees and conference planning: clear guidance, early input rather than late review, and attention to accessibility, including neuroinclusion and the costs of participation -- dues, travel, time -- that quietly decide who can take part. Third, keep the role grounded in evidence and in members' lived experience: I-O psychologists should hold our own society to the standard we recommend to employers.
I have helped lead Asians in I/O for several years and chair its Professional Development committee, and I coach leaders on inclusive practice. I would be glad to bring that mix of research, service, and practice to the Board.
Meisha-ann Martin
Biography
Dr. Meisha-ann Martin is an industrial-organizational psychologist and employee experience researcher with nearly 20 years of experience helping organizations better understand and improve the workplace. She earned her PhD in industrial-organizational psychology in 2006 from the University of South Florida, with research focused on diversity attitudes in the workplace.
As vice president of People Research at Workhuman, Dr. Martin leads research examining how positive work experiences influence employee well-being, engagement, inclusion, and organizational performance. She has a particular passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion and for using data and analytics to identify gaps in the employee experience and inform meaningful change.
Throughout her career, Dr. Martin has led people analytics, employee experience, and talent initiatives at organizations including Workhuman, Flex, JetBlue, Raymond James Financial, and ServiceMaster. Her work sits at the intersection of rigorous research and practical application, with a focus on translating evidence into insights leaders can use.
Dr. Martin is a frequent speaker at conferences, webinars, and podcasts, and her thought leadership has been featured in outlets including Forbes, HR Dive, and BenefitsPRO. She has also been recognized by HR Executive as one of the Top 100 HR tech influencers.
Statement
I believe in the power of work to make life better for individuals, strengthen economies, and ultimately make the world a better place. But none of that happens if work doesn’t work for everyone. As an immigrant and an I-O practitioner, I know that good intentions do not always lead to good outcomes. That is why I have spent my career examining organizational systems, structures, and processes, identifying where bias and inequity can show up, and advocating for evidence-based improvements. Across roles at Workhuman, Flex, JetBlue, Raymond James Financial, and ServiceMaster, I have used data and evidence to identify inclusion gaps and help build workplaces where more people can thrive.
I am running for SIOP Diversity and Inclusion Officer because I want to bring that same systems-oriented, evidence-based approach to our community. I have been a longtime SIOP member, led the Local I-O Groups committee, and twice volunteered on the program committee for the Leading Edge consortium. I am excited to continue to deepen my involvement, marrying my knowledge of SIOP with my professional expertise to help SIOP become even more welcoming and accessible to all members. If elected, I will focus on the structures and processes that shape access, participation, belonging, and opportunity within SIOP; use data to identify where gaps exist; and partner with members to turn insight into meaningful action.
For me, DEI is about creating the conditions for people to contribute, connect, and succeed. I would be honored to help SIOP build those conditions for all our members.
Katina Sawyer
Biography
Katina Brynn Sawyer, PhD, is an associate professor of Management and Organizations at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management and a SIOP Fellow. She cofounded Workr Beeing and co-authored Leading for Wellness. With a dual PhD in industrial-organizational psychology and women’s studies from Penn State University, her teaching, scholarship, and service focus on inclusive, equitable, and human-centered workplaces.
Dr. Sawyer’s research examines marginalized employees, including LGBTQ+ workers, women, and racial minorities. She has published in leading journals, including the Journal of Applied Psychology, Administrative Science Quarterly, and Personnel Psychology, and translated research for practitioners through Harvard Business Review. Her SIOP awards include SIOP’s LGBT Research Award, Presidential Scientist-Practitioner Distinction, and Joel Lefkowitz Early Career Award for Humanistic I-O Psychology.
For over a decade, Dr. Sawyer has developed and taught diversity-focused courses across undergraduate and graduate programs. Her teaching and mentoring have earned multiple awards, including a student-choice award for mentoring underrepresented undergraduates.
Her SIOP service spans over a decade, including chairing the LGBT and Humanitarian Award Committees, co-chairing the Theme Track Committee and Junior Faculty Consortium, and mentoring through SIOP’s Committee on Ethnic & Minority Affairs and Diversity and Inclusion in Psychology programs.
Beyond SIOP, she serves as vice president of the board of an organization supporting human trafficking survivors. Her community outreach has earned a Powerful Voice award for gender equity and recognition as Philadelphia Business Journal’s 40 Under 40.
She is committed to strengthening SIOP as a community where diverse perspectives are valued and inclusion is embedded in our everyday practices.
Statement
I am running for Diversity and Inclusion Officer because I believe SIOP can—and should—be a professional home where people from all backgrounds contribute, thrive, and shape the future of our field. My commitment to this work is grounded in my scholarship on diversity and inclusion, my teaching of future I-O psychologists, and more than a decade of service to SIOP.
If elected, I would focus on three priorities.
Inclusion as an ongoing, collective responsibility: D&I should not rest on one committee or individual. I would work collaboratively across SIOP leadership, committees, and member communities to identify opportunities to integrate inclusion into SIOP's programs, decisions, and practices.
Strengthening access, mentorship, and belonging: Building on my prior service to SIOP, I would seek to expand meaningful opportunities for members across career stages and backgrounds to connect, contribute, and lead. I want to ensure that the full potential of our membership is unlocked.
Connecting evidence to action: As a scholar and educator, I believe our field is strongest when we use rigorous research to understand barriers to inclusion and translate those findings into practical change. I would champion opportunities for SIOP to learn from its members, elevate diverse perspectives, and share evidence-based approaches to creating more equitable organizational environments.
I would bring to this role a deep commitment to SIOP, a record of service, and a collaborative, research-informed approach. My goal is to help make inclusion not simply an aspiration but a lived experience throughout SIOP.
