Theme: Agility

2020 presented new and challenging barriers, but we are slowly finding our way back. This year, we are able to host our TEDx program live in-person, as well as virtually, to include all Alcon associates worldwide with the help of amazing TEDx volunteers. The theme this year is Agility, and we are excited to bring 13 outstanding speakers to encourage and challenge our associates through curated TED talks. During this event, we will share unique ideas to help spark new innovative thoughts and conversations, and continue to think differently.

Schollmaier Auditorium
6201 South Freeway
Fort Worth, Texas, 76134
United States

Anushree Mohan

Associate Director, IOL Materials Engineering

Anushree is an Associate Director in Surgical R&D. She has held various positions and led technical teams in intra-ocular lens and delivery systems projects. She has PhD in Polymer Engineering from North Carolina State University and is a mother of two, an 8 year old boy and 5 year old girl. She is the only one from her family to move to the United States and the first one to get a college degree. She is passionate about science and engineering, and is constantly thinking of creative ways to connect her kids to science, engineering, and her Indian heritage through fun family traditions.

Carolina Kunnen

Sr CDMA Project Lead, CDMA Vision Care

A familiar face to the Alcon TEDx stage, in 2019, she shared that at age 24, Carolina moved to Ghana to set up The Optical Foundation, a non-government organization aimed at providing eye care for children and educating Ghanaian Optometry students. Carolina, originally from the Netherlands, completed her degrees in Optometry and Orthoptics. She worked in a contact lens specialty clinical practice for over 7 years. Yet, her curiosity and desire to explore drove her to Australia to earn her PhD at the Brien Holden Vision Institute / University of New South Wales. After her PhD, Carolina held a Research Assistant Professor position at the University of Houston. Carolina is a program committee member of the Netherlands Contact Lens Congress (NCC) and leads their NCC conducting research initiatives. Carolina joined Alcon in December 2017 and is a Senior Clinical Development & Medical Affairs Project Lead for Vision Care Global.

Chris Bowman

Sr Manager Global Competitive Intelligence

Chris Bowman leads our Commercial Competitive Intelligence function at Alcon. He has been at Alcon since 1993 and is one of the most noticeable associates on campus because of his use of a service dog for mobility. Only a few short years prior to joining Alcon, Chris lost complete vision while in college and had to activate his individual agility skills to pursue his personal and professional goals. The corporate mission of preserving and restoring vision is what is most special to him about working at Alcon. He has worked in Training & Development, Strategic Insights, and Competitive Intelligence across both franchises. Residing in Benbrook, he is passionate about the outdoors, all sports, and spending time with his wife and son.

David Borja

Principal Engineer II, R&D Research Lens Design

David earned a PhD in Biomedical Engineer from the University of Miami in Coral Gables FL where he studied the opto-mechanical properties of the crystalline lens and its role in accommodation and presbyopia. During his time at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, David was inspired and driven to innovate in vitro and clinical methods, which build a deeper understanding of the human visual system. This led to a position in the Alcon Surgical IOL Research Design group in Fort Worth focusing on design and development of accommodative IOLs. For the past six years, David has been a part of the Lens Design and Metrology group in Vision Care R&D located in Johns Creek GA, where he focuses on designing products that help people with myopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia see brilliantly.

Jordan Ballard

Alcon, MTO Aspex Principal Validation Engineer, Manager of Special Projects

Jordan believes in the possibility of career satisfaction and practicality through the fusion of stimulating activities and business goals. For him, this mentality is what sets individuals and companies up for sustainable success. Jordan holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Delaware. During his time there, he recorded 3 classical albums and 1 gospel album with the respective university choirs. Jordan has worked in the biomedical and pharmaceutical manufacturing industry for over 12 years. He also co-leads the ASPEX Diversity & Inclusion Committee, an employee resource group created to promote and represent a diverse and extraordinary culture through appreciation of differences and purposeful thoughtfulness in regards to representing our diverse workforce.

Justin McCloskey

Sr HR Business Partner MTO ASPEX / FWN / U.S. DCs

Justin is passionate about inspiring others to achieve more, feel valued, and make an impact on the organization. This passion led to a Bachelors in Psychology and Master’s degree in Organizational Psychology. He now seeks to improve the biggest asset to organizations (human capital) by applying a sense of curiosity. For the past twelve years, he has led initiatives in Human Resources including organizational development, talent management, learning, and recruiting across numerous industries including healthcare, food and beverage, energy, and retail. Since joining Alcon in 2016, Justin has worked across numerous manufacturing sites and distribution centers to stand up new processes and ideas surrounding leadership and associate development. In early 2021, Justin developed the MTO Culture Challenge - a competition across Manufacturing to allow associates to see real-world examples of ownership and accountability, speed and simplicity.

Karis Youngblood

Sr Mgr Surgical Omni Channel Strategy Planning

Karis joined the US Surgical Sales team in January of 2019. It was the perfect next step in her 15-year career in eye care. Since joining Alcon, she has worked as a Cataract Refractive Manager and is currently the Omnichannel Strategy Planner. Karis’ passion for eye care is driven by her first-hand experiences of how precious our sight is and its impact on our quality of life and independence. When she’s not championing vision at Alcon, you can find Karis volunteering with the Chicago Lighthouse for the blind or the Dare 2 Tri Athletes with disabilities. Karis’ formal education includes a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Georgetown University and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Business. Informally, she loves to dance salsa, barely play the piano, and apply paint to canvas (she dare not call it painting). At home, Karis is extremely busy chasing after her 3 dogs and her large extended family. She loves the sport of triathlon and is a 5-time Ironman.

Nerea Garcia Ramila

Alcon Engineer R&D, Implantables

Nerea is an Engineer in Surgical Research & Development. She has been with Alcon for 2 years, and has worked in product development for the IOL Delivery Systems group. She was born and raised in a small city in the northern coast of Spain and moved to the United States to attend university. Throughout her life experiences, Nerea realized the importance of being emotionally agile to navigate life’s obstacle course, and she is passionate about sharing this small but life-changing approach called Emotional Agility.

Niels Abt

Alcon, Director, Research & Development

Niels manages Alcon Grieshaber’s Research & Development team in Switzerland, which specializes in the development of microsurgical hand instruments. With this comes the heritage to further push innovation at a company known for instruments made to perfection for more than a century. Niels is a trained mechanic, has a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and a Master of Advanced Studies in Medical Physics. Since joining Alcon in 2007, he has made a habit of questioning the status quo, thinking outside the box, continually improving surgical micro-instruments, relentlessly looking for better ways of working, and figuring out how Alcon can serve patients and customers the most.

Nishant Maller

Sr Brand Manager, US Surgical Retina, Alcon Sr Brand Manager, Monofocal and Delivery Systems (interim)

Nishant is probably the ONLY ballroom dancing, horse-riding marketer you will meet. Originally from India, Nishant moved to Texas to pursue his education before entering ophthalmology as a marketer. A Senior Brand Manager in the US Surgical business, he began his ophthalmic career at Alcon as a marketing intern 9 years ago. During this time, he has received multiple awards in the healthcare market, most notably – 40 Under 40 Marketers to watch in 2020 (MM&M), Young Marketer of the Year in 2019 (MM&M) and is a current finalist for the 2021 Rising Star in Ophthalmology Award (OWL). His experience in ophthalmology spans across cataract, refractive, glaucoma, and surgical retina. Having grown up and worked in different countries with different cultures, he doesn’t fit many stereotypes. So, it’s no surprise that outside of Alcon, Nishant actively competes and medals in the world of Amateur Competitive Ballroom and has been doing so for the last 7 years.

Ravaughn Williams

Head, CDMA Vision Care Franchise, Clinical Research & Development

Ravaughn is an island girl at heart as she is originally from the Caribbean country of Trinidad and Tobago. Despite the love for her country and her family, still mostly residing in Trinidad, she migrated to the United States 23 years ago and has made a great life for herself here. Thankfully, she and her family have been able to stay connected through frequent visits to each other and amazing phone technology. An optometrist by training, Ravaughn practiced part-time on weekends for 12 years whilst enjoying her full-time job at Alcon on weekdays. She has had a productive career at Alcon and currently is the Head of Clinical Development and Medical Affairs for Vision Care. Over the past two years, Ravaughn and her team have contributed significantly to recent contact lens launches, such as Precision1 and Total30, by generating clinical data to support registration with regulatory bodies and for promotional claims.

Souheil Elkhoury

Head, Clinical Applications, GEM Region

Based on personal experience, how sight affects quality of life and people around, Souheil decided to join the Optometry School to better explore the human eye and sight. After earning two degrees in Optics and in Optometry, his career started in medical device companies, specifically with vision care. Since then, his main motivation is to invest time and knowledge on helping patients and improving processes and outcomes. He has conducted many courses on IOLs, was key speaker for national & regional congresses, and has spent much time working closely with talented and skilled HCPs. Throughout his career, he has seen first-hand and how patients’ lives can be changed with the right processes, as well as finding answers and clues in small details, and the impact of dedication and passion.

TJ Johnson

Associate Director Learning & Development

TJ, mother of 2, grew up as an only child with a father who served in the US Air Force and a mother who was largely a stay-at-home mom. TJ also served in the military before later accepting roles in mortgage banking and healthcare. As a working adult, she earned her undergraduate degree in Business Administration and, inspired by her role as a Performance Consultant for a mid-sized mortgage company, went on to earn a Master’s Degree in Instructional Design & Technology. TJ also holds a certification in Human Performance Improvement. Before joining Alcon in 2020, TJ worked at a large Florida-based healthcare company, where she achieved a 6-point increase in overall team engagement scores in one review cycle, and slashed operating costs by more than 20%. She thoroughly enjoys learning and aspires to cultivate the same passion in others through her work in Instructional Design.