The Financial Women of San Francisco is governed by a board of directors comprising the executive board and committee chairpersons.
Please click on the board member's photo to read the biography.
Mona Ahmadi is a seasoned finance professional with 16 years of experience in financial planning and analysis (FP&A). Her journey with Financial Women of San Francisco began in 2014 when she was awarded an FWSF scholarship while pursuing her MBA.
Currently, Mona works at a leading Fintech startup in Silicon Valley, where she continues to excel in her field. Her passion for finance, combined with her commitment to empowering and educating her community, led her to teach finance at Menlo College.
Mona also dedicates her expertise to nonprofit work. She has served as Treasurer and is currently a board member at TMC Community Capital, an organization providing affordable loans to small businesses, particularly those historically excluded from traditional financing. Through her professional and community work, Mona strives to create meaningful impact and promote financial inclusion and education.
As one of the co-founders of Quorum Private Wealth, Sue brings a decade of wealth management experience at Merrill Lynch and a decade of public accounting experience at Ernst & Young to her team and clients. Sue serves as a client relationship manager focused on developing financial strategies and advice for individuals, their families, and their businesses. She has a particular passion for working with women, to empower them with financial literacy. She works closely with her clients’ full team of advisors, including attorneys and accountants, to provide a coordinated approach to wealth management, including wealth transfer, tax minimization and estate planning.
She holds a BS in Accounting from Boston College and an MBA in Finance from Columbia University.
Karen Crowley is a Salesforce solutions engineer for ICONIQ Capital. She has designed and implemented Salesforce solutions for private equity and family office firms. She has 15 years of experience leading systems projects through their full development life cycle — requirements gathering, design, development, testing, training, implementation, ongoing enhancements and user support.
Karen also worked in regulatory and systems (SAP) roles at Pacific Gas and Electric Company. She has provided written and oral testimony before the California Public Utilities Commission. She started her career assisting businesses and outside counsel to resolve complex business and litigation challenges.
Karen holds a BA in economics from Pomona College. She is a Certified Salesforce Administrator.
Karen joined FWSF in 2014 and began serving on the board in 2017.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenjcrowley/
Kim Scala, Scala Law, is an attorney with an MBA who represents privately-held companies, individuals, investor groups, and nonprofit organizations in business and real estate transactions. She also serves as strategic general counsel to emerging growth and middle-market companies, as well as pro bono counsel to several non-profit organizations. Kim left a large firm to start her own law firm in 2014 and previously served as inhouse counsel to a Silicon Valley tech start-up.
Kim is a long-time member of the Board of FWSF. She has served as a Programs co-chair, participated on the Scholarship abd IWD committees, and spearheaded the inaugural DEIB committee. Kim is a past president of CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women, East Bay) and a former member of the Advisory Board of Alliance for Girls, which champions the leaders and voices that support young women and girls.
Kim was honored as one of the “Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business” by the San Francisco Business Times and has been on the “Forever Influential Honor Roll” starting in 2015.
Kim is certified as a Master Gardener by the University of California UC Master Gardener Program.
Sandra is a Director, Finance/Controller at BTIG, LLC a global financial services firm specializing in institutional trading, investment banking, research and related brokerage services. Given over 20 years in experience in the finance industry and in the accounting field, she is well placed to provide senior level accounting guidance and expertise.
Prior to BTIG, LLC she was the Controller of an affiliated entity, Pacific View Asset Management, LLC, and prior to that she worked at Babcock & Brown LP, a global investment and advisory firm, where she held various roles culminating in the Assistant Controller of the U.S. Corporate and Structured Finance division.
She holds an MBA with a focus in international business and a BS in finance from California State University.
Sandra served in the U.S. Army Reserve for 21 years where she was an Adjutant General branch officer. She graduated from various leadership development training courses.
Sandra has been actively involved in Financial Women of San Francisco since 2012. Her prior board roles were as Marketing and Communications Co-Chair and Scholarship Co-Chair. She was also a Financial Woman of the Year and International Women's Day committee member.
Kim Pugh is founder and principal of YurPath Solutions and has over 30 years’ experience in financial services and other industry groups. YurPath Solutions is a boutique consulting practice that guides clients in enhancing customer and employee experience, creating product solutions, improving processes, and developing post-merger strategies that mitigate customer impact and increase revenue.
Prior to launching YurPath Solutions, Kim held several positions at Wells Fargo Bank. As a senior vice president, Kim frequently built and managed groups from the ground up and delivered results in areas ranging from customer experience & research, business development, and corporate relationship management to digital channels, process re-engineering, and merger integration. While at Mellon Bank (BNY Mellon), she had roles in funds positioning and financial analysis, managed various Operations groups, and as a manager of product design, led cross-functional teams to develop new or improved products and systems.
Kim earned her MBA and her BA in Economics from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, PA. In addition to serving on the board of Financial Women of San Francisco, Kim has had a number of other professional affiliations, including being a member of the Association for Corporate Growth, San Francisco (ACG SF) board of directors and serving as the 2018 President.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimpugh/
Denise is an attorney and Shareholder of the San Francisco office of Buchalter. She is a Co-Chair of the Firm’s Equipment Leasing Industry Group.
Denise represents financial institutions, including banks, equipment lessors, commercial lenders, fintech companies, and mortgage lenders in commercial, business, and bankruptcy litigation and matters. She also represents a wide variety of businesses, including manufacturers, transportation companies, and technology companies.
Denise has extensive experience handling matters including contract, creditors’ rights, fraud claims, business torts, fraudulent transfers and disputes relating to secured and unsecured lending. Her practice also includes defending financial institutions in complex litigation, consumer class action and litigation involving fraud claims, federal consumer credit laws, unfair business practices and other commercial matters.
She also provides preventative advice and creative optionsto successfully resolve business disputes. Denise also has extensive experience resolving disputes through alternative dispute resolution procedures, including mediation.
Shay Phillips, regulatory compliance consultant, and seasoned banking officer with over 20 years’ experience in financial services and business operations specializing in regulatory compliance of private equity firms and commercial real estate lending institutions. Experienced in BSA/AML operational risk and data management that includes performing periodic examination reviews of processes, monitoring and investigations of alerts generated through suspicious transactions and extensive due diligence management on medium and high-risk clients.
Prior to dedicating her experience in independent consulting, Shay served as a consultant with Wells Fargo, and served as an Assistant Vice President for MUFG Union Bank, N.A. In her roles with both Wells Fargo, N.A. and MUFG Union Bank, N.A., Shay was able to successfully blend the ability to interpret complex and ever-evolving global and division-wide policies and best practices and she continues to advance in the field of regulatory compliance through independent consulting and staying abreast on the latest regulatory and due diligence practices in banking products, services and acquisitions.
Shay holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Saint Mary’s College; as well as certifications in Project and Financial Management from Cornell University; and Risk Management from Stanford University. Currently serving on the Diversity & Inclusion Committee of Financial Women of San Francisco; member of the American Heart Association and previously held positions on the board of directors of the Girls Scout of the USA and liaison to Vison 20/20 of the city of Fairfield, CA.
Shay enjoys family-time, cooking, gardening, hiking, traveling; has an overwhelming enjoyment of all sports and will forever find admiration and love in performing arts and music.
Tamarra L. Brown, MBA, CPA, is Administrative Services Director for Alameda County Public Health Department, Health Care Services Agency. There she leads all aspects of Finance and Administration for the Department.
Prior to that, Tamarra served in the Office of the Agency Director, where her responsibilities included the Single Audit process, internal control assessment, leadership in budget development and implementation and supervision of Finance staff across multiple programs.
A licensed CPA, Tamarra served as an audit professional in public accounting for three years. Her portfolio included banking, non-profit and financial services clients.
Tamarra holds an MBA from the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business where she was a Consortium for Graduate Studies in Management Fellow, a merit-based, full tuition, academic award. She is a lifelong learner and teacher who is passionate about financial literacy and education as a means to empower women.
A FWSF member since 2013, Tamarra was an East Bay Programs committee member and served as the 2022 VP of Scholarship and Mentoring. She has also served as a Scholarship Committee Team Lead for Stanford and concurrently for Santa Clara University.
Outside of work, Tamarra enjoys faith, family, fitness, and cooking.
Tabitha Florence Shikuku, a Certified Public Accountant, brings expertise in sustainable financing, international development, and project management. With a global perspective cultivated through her work with the private-public sector, governments, international organizations, and academia, she leads projects and conducts research aimed at analyzing and providing practical solutions to foster policy development.
In addition to her professional career, Tabitha is a dedicated volunteer who promotes women in finance, economic development, and clean energy sectors. Her areas of expertise encompass finance sustainability, climate and environmental affairs, donor relations, policy development, resource mobilization, and the implementation of corporate social responsibility initiatives.
Tabitha holds a BBM in Finance and Banking from Moi University, Kenya, an MBA in Marketing and Finance from Holy Names University in California, and has pursued additional studies in Social Innovation at the University of San Diego and Global Diplomacy for Energy Transition in Africa at the University for Foreigners Perugia in Italy. Currently, she is completing her MPA with a concentration in Policy Analysis from Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis.
Tabitha is leveraging public and private finance to reduce poverty and support local economic development.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/tabitha-florence-shikuku-cpa-8a745444/
Wealth Advisor, Eagle Strategies, LLC
Financial Advisor at Eagle Strategies, LLC: specializing in retirement, estate, distribution planning, insurance protection, business planning — helping families and business owners.
Maureen A. Young is senior regulatory counsel and senior vice president at Bank of the West. She advises the bank on a wide range of financial services regulatory, compliance, examination, and corporate governance matters, as well as regulatory strategy and policy issues. Prior to joining Bank of the West in 2016, Maureen was managing director and associate general counsel at MUFG Union Bank, supporting key regulatory and implementation projects and serving as the lead lawyer on numerous initiatives. Before joining MUFG Union Bank in 2012, Maureen was a partner at a large international law firm, where she was a member of the Financial Institutions Corporate and Regulatory group and the Commercial Technology group. She was also co-chair and co-founder of the firm’s Privacy and Security group. Prior to joining the firm in 2003, she was assistant general counsel at Bank of America in the Legal Department’s Regulatory and Corporate Services group. Maureen is a recent past chair of the Banking Law Committee of the American Bar Association Business Law Section.
Maureen holds a JD from University of California, Berkeley School of Law, and a PhD and Master’s degree from University of California, Berkeley, Jurisprudence, and Social Policy Program. She is certified as a Privacy Professional (CIPP/US) by the International Association of Privacy Professionals.
Finance Strategy Geek
My areas of expertise:
-All things P&L: annual budget planning, quarterly forecast development, monthly business reviews, weekly KPIs
-All things revenue: ROI and sensitivity analysis, dashboard development, margin analysis
-All things reporting: strong processes, consolidated and refined business analysis and reviews that provide strategic insight
-All things teamwork: collaborative relationships, the more cross-functional the better
Minako Steel is a senior tax manager at Moss Adams, LLP. She is a tax professional with over 15 years of public accounting experience and handles all tax services, including tax compliance and tax planning. She provides services in a multitude of industries such as life sciences, technology, manufacturing, and retail. She focuses on C-corporation issues and serves pre-IPO and public companies including privately held middle-market companies.
She likes teaching/coaching young professionals and playing tennis during weekends.
Bio to come
Sandra Wasicek is the CEO and Co-founder of ZorroFi, a fintech startup bridging the gap between customer engagement and risk intelligence for financial institutions. ZorroFi helps financial institutions grow deposits, prevent fraud, and streamline compliance - all without compromising customer trust. By leveraging AI-driven behavioral insights and real-time engagement signals, ZorroFi turns compliance from a regulatory burden into a competitive advantage.
Sandra brings extensive experience in fintech innovation and digital transformation, with a passion for modernizing traditional banking through AI-powered solutions. She is particularly committed to enhancing security, customer experience, and financial inclusion through technology.
She also serves as this year’s co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) team for the Financial Women of San Francisco and actively supports the Programs Committee in planning industry events. Sandra is dedicated to fostering a more inclusive and relationship-driven financial industry.