Zamena Headshot 2024 1

How I use #Candor: I help others approach DEI authentically by helping them come to terms with their own biases and roadblocks that may be holding them back.

How I use #Courage: Conversations around DEI can be highly sensitive and emotional, but they need to happen. I am there to make sure that they DO happen.

How I use #Care: Empathy is my superpower and use it to help others feel seen and heard.

#whatmattersmost to me: Showing my kids what’s possible when our uniqueness is embraced, my family, and having a positive impact on others.

Meet Zamena Ladak

Senior Vice President, Head of DEI & Business Development

Zamena Ladak, Senior Vice President, Head of DEI & Business Development, is a well-known expert in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, with experience creating thoughtful and impactful programs that have touched over 100,000 employees nationally. Zamena works with our clients in groups, 1:1, or at the enterprise level to integrate DE&I in authentic, meaningful, and sustainable ways. She also provides Talent Strategy and advisement by partnering with Assemble clients to help build cultures of accountability, focus on talent development and growth, and coach leaders on delivering feedback with #CandorCourageAndCare™.

Zamena brings over 14 years of expertise in talent management, leadership coaching, talent acquisition, organizational design, training & development, employee relations, and labor relations. She is also overflowing with empathy, humor, warmth and a fabulous sense of fashion!

Zamena began her career with the Visiting Nurse Service of New York in Employee Relations where she focused heavily on union negotiations, performance management, and conflict resolution. In 2015, she followed her “passion for fashion” and joined Macy’s as an HR Business Partner. In her five years at Macy’s, Zamena served in several HR leadership roles, partnering with executives and their teams in both corporate and retail environments. She led efforts in areas of leadership development, culture, and engagement.

In 2017, Zamena led an event at Macy’s called “Can We Talk: Being Muslim in America,” which provided colleagues with an open forum to share personal experiences about being a Muslim in the United States. Based on its success, the event was implemented throughout all of the Macy’s corporate U.S. locations.

Zamena holds a Master’s in Psychology from Pace University and completed a Masters Certificate in Human Resources Management from Villanova University. She is a proud graduate from the University of Central Florida where she loved studying under palm trees.

Zamena lives with her husband and three children on Long Island, NY. She is an avid Peloton user, loves pineapples, and has a passion for cooking.