Viola Maxwell-Thompson

Viola Maxwell-Thompson is President of Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF), a national non-profit membership organization for IT executives of color at Fortune 500 global companies. A nationally recognized thought-leader in business transformation and process re-engineering, Ms. Thompson, who is a former IT management consultant, joined ITSMF as a member in the late 1990s, became Executive Director in 2004 and President in 2016.

Ms. Thompson’s business acumen and technical know-how—she’s fluent in everything from “assembler programming” to tweeting on her iPad—have positioned her to lead ITSMF as it raises its visibility, makes its mark on the IT industry and becomes a Web-page “favorite place” for technology professionals.

Ms. Thompson has drawn on her vast experience in program management and career training to transform ITSMF into a professional development organization with the fiscal soundness and infrastructure to prepare the next generation of African-American technology leaders for the executive suite.

Prior to joining ITSMF, Ms. Thompson was a partner with Ernst & Young LLC’s Management Consulting Practice in Chicago and Atlanta, where she specialized in organizational development, process re-engineering and technology deployment. Her expertise in sales and customer-management, combined with her technical proficiency, contributed to her success directing some of Ernst & Young’s largest implementation projects.

Ms. Thompson is often featured in the media for her expert insights on a variety of business topics, including diversity and the retention of executives; work-life balance issues; and career management as a female executive of color. She has been quoted in numerous leading industry and consumer publications.

Ms. Thompson received her B.A. in Psychology and Education from Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Illinois. She also holds certifications in Project Management and Systems Methodology.