Roadshow: Charlotte
North Carolina Veteran & Military Spouse Talent Roadshow: Charlotte
Date: July 22, 2026
Location: Lowe's Tech Hub, 100 W. Worthington Ave, Charlotte, NC 28203
Guest Speakers
Secretary Jocelyn Mitnaul Mallette
Jocelyn Mitnaul Mallette is the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and is a third-generation service member. As Secretary, Jocelyn leads the Department in its mission to support the military and veteran connected communities in North Carolina.
As the daughter of Goldsboro natives, Jocelyn received her nomination to the United States Air Force (USAF) Academy from North Carolina Congresswoman Eva Clayton. After graduating, Jocelyn served for ten years in the USAF. First, as an Admissions Officer at the Air Force Academy. Then, she secured a mission critical assignment as an intelligence officer, during which she briefed pilots in South Carolina and in Germany. Jocelyn cross-trained into the Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps after graduating from the University of North Carolina School of Law.
Jocelyn served as a prosecutor and general practice attorney in the JAG Corps at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. After ten years of active-duty military service, Jocelyn started her civilian career as an attorney by clerking for the Honorable Barbara A. Jackson of the North Carolina Supreme Court. Following her clerkship, Jocelyn spent six years at the international law firm of McGuireWoods, where she represented Fortune 500 companies in complex commercial litigation and became partner.
As an active member of her community, Jocelyn currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Southeast Raleigh YMCA. She also is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and the Junior League of Raleigh. She is married to Harold A. Mallette, who is a licensed architect, and she is the proud mother of two hilarious and lively children.
Kenny Flowers
Kenny Flowers serves as the Chief Deputy Secretary at the North Carolina Department of Commerce, where he leads teams in operational areas and provides strategic leadership for the agency on issues related to economic development and external affairs.
From 2017 to 2025, Kenny served as Assistant Secretary for Rural Economic Development at N.C. Commerce. In that role he provided guidance for the Department in its efforts to support rural communities and help foster rural prosperity. Mr. Flowers led a team of community and economic development professionals that helps communities make the preparations and infrastructure investments needed to increase competitiveness, attract businesses, and spur economic growth. Under his leadership, the Rural Economic Development Division generated more than $715 Million in grant awards that support over 2000 projects and 28,000 jobs throughout the state.
Prior to his employment with N.C. Commerce, Kenny was the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Community and Regional Development at East Carolina University. In that role he provided leadership and direction for the university's state-wide outreach and engagement programs.
Kenny previously served as Director of Rural Development at the North Carolina Department of Commerce, and as Fiscal Analyst to the Appropriations Subcommittee for Education at the North Carolina General Assembly.
Kenny received his Master of Public Policy from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and his bachelor’s degree in Public Policy and Political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Raquel Ettrick Thompson
Raquel Ettrick Thompson is a Senior Vice President who serves as the Chief Technology Risk Officer at USAA. In this role, she establishes and oversees all aspects of USAA’s Technology, Security, Data, Business Continuity, Privacy, Technology Compliance Testing, and Third‑Party risk management programs to effectively analyze and oversee all aspects of the related risks.
Raquel is responsible for building and maintaining a robust IT/Cyber risk management program and strategy that drives an effective IT control environment and governance process. In her role, she collaborates with functional leaders and key stakeholders to assist in identifying, assessing, and mitigating all relevant IT risks for all USAA products and processes across all distribution channels related to the aligned operational risk stripes. She has over 20 years of experience in technology and cyber audit, risk, and compliance, with global leadership roles across all three lines of defense, including Big Four public consulting, financial services, and IT communications.
Prior to USAA, Raquel was a Managing Director and Global Head of Technology & Cyber Risk Management at Bank of New York (BNY), overseeing risk governance for over 500 applications and more than 200 third‑party vendors. In 2024, she founded the Cyber Vulnerability Remediation Center of Excellence and Cyber Risk Adjudication function. Raquel was also responsible for the oversight and governance of all artificial intelligence initiatives across all BNY business functions, including establishing the governance policy, frameworks, and standards for the enterprise. In this role, Raquel also served as the Global Co‑Chair for the Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) – the largest employee business resource group in the company, which focused on the development, advancement, allyship, and retention of women globally.
Raquel is a strong advocate for inclusion and leads by example in driving positive workplace change. Recognized for her career achievements and commitment to future talent, Raquel was named a HITEC awardee in 2022 and 2023, honored as a 2024 Empower Role Model sponsored by YouTube, and was a finalist for the 2024 Technology Executive of the Year – Enterprise Edition. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University and a Master of Science from Nova Southeastern University. In addition, Raquel has completed Executive Education Programs at Carnegie Mellon University and holds Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) certification. Raquel is a proud USAA member through the military service of her father and thankful for the military service of her sister and uncle.
James E. Banner
James E. Banner is currently the Senior Vice President of Administration & Safety of Pike Corporation. His responsibilities include safety, compliance, and all human resource activities, including the recruiting, onboarding, employee engagement, and overall employee relations for over 12,000 Pike employees. James reports to James R. Wyche, CEO.
Mr. Banner joined Pike in 1998 as a groundman in Charleston, SC and progressed through the ranks until reaching an A-class lineman status in 2002. James was brought into the corporate office in 2003 as an Operations Supervisor and promoted to an Operations Manager in 2006. In 2007, he left Pike to explore management opportunities at Primo Water and the law firm of Brock & Scott, before returning to Pike in 2015 as a Director of Financial Planning & Analysis. In January 2016, James became the Director of Pike’s Employee Relations and was promoted to Vice President of Human Resources in December 2016. In January 2018, Government Relations were added to his areas of responsibility and in July 2020, the areas of Safety, Compliance and Leadership Development were included.
Mr. Banner attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on a John Motley Morehead scholarship and upon graduating with a business degree, obtained a Masters of Accounting from North Carolina State. He holds electrical contractor license(s) in North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. He is a high school graduate of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics where he was an All-State wrestler and All-Region cross country runner. He currently lives in Cornelius, NC with his wife Claudia and three children – Blake, Barrett, and Bradshaw.
Maggie Pollard
As a Managing Director with Accenture Federal Services, Maggie currently oversees Accenture’s work with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) where she is a trusted client advisor, introducing data-driven insights, new ideas, industry expertise, and end-to-end solutions from across the Accenture ecosystem. She has over 18 years’ experience in measurement, software implementation, operations, healthcare, and human services within the Department of Defense, institutes of higher education, state government, and various nonprofits.
Maggie formerly served in a series of delivery leadership roles that include modernizing Air Force’s weapon system supply chain and secure cloud capabilities, the VA’s GI Bill® benefit and advancing the accessibility of civilian health care providers across VA and the Military Health System.
Prior to joining Accenture, Maggie served as a U.S. Air Force nuclear launch control officer. Attaining the rank of captain, Maggie held roles that required commanding a fleet of 150 missiles, overseeing the health and readiness of hundreds of other nuclear weapons officers, and ensuring that personnel in the entire wing remained compliant with rigorous training standards.
Maggie is an active board member with the nonprofit Veterans Bridge Home. She serves as an Executive Sponsor for Accenture’s Military Employee Resource Group, and she was named as a ’40 Under 40’ recipient by the Charlotte Business Journal (2020).
Maggie earned her Air Force commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She received a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Marist College, where she successfully lobbied for a Military Incentive Scholarship Program for Active-Duty Military students.
Maggie lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her husband and eight year old twins, Woodson (Woody) and Virginia (Ginny). On weekends, you can usually find her at the starting line of Charlotte’s thriving road race scene. She is most proud that she now gets to line up right alongside her husband and kids, even if she occasionally has to drag them there.
Sean Passmore
Sean Passmore serves as Head of Enterprise Military and Veteran Initiatives and Disability Hiring Strategy at Wells Fargo & Company. He leads the company’s enterprise strategy supporting the military community through housing affordability, financial wellness, small business engagement, and career transition initiatives. Sean oversees strategic partnerships with military, nonprofit, and veteran serving organizations, directs military focused talent sourcing and retention strategies, and is responsible for Wells Fargo’s disability hiring strategy, including the Neurodiversity Program. He is a recognized subject matter expert in military and veteran employment, transition, and workforce integration.
A retired U.S. Army officer with more than 22 years of service, Sean concluded his military career as a senior Presidential Communications Officer with the White House Communications Agency, providing direct support to the President of the United States and leading teams supporting Presidential events worldwide.
Prior to joining Wells Fargo, he held senior executive roles at Perfect Technician Academy and USAA, where he led enterprise wide veteran and military spouse hiring efforts. Sean holds a master’s degree in project management from The George Washington University and maintains SHRM professional and talent acquisition certifications. He serves on multiple national boards and advisory councils focused on veterans, military families, and workforce opportunity.