Profiles in Leadership - Hispanic Heritage Month
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we would like to take this moment to recognize Leaders who have promoted the advancement and development of Latinos and other minorities in the transportation industry.
Profiles in Leadership – Hispanic Heritage Month spotlights the accomplishments of transportation leaders and their commitment to inclusion within the transportation industry.
Debra R. Avila
Supply Chain Management Executive Leader
What advice would you have for others who want to follow in a similar direction?
“Be patient and be true to yourself. As you begin your journey, listen and observe as much as you can. You will not always have all the answers and it’s ok, ask questions and don’t be afraid to take on new and challenging assignments. That’s how you learn and grow. While you may not initially like each new role you take on, always remember you have the power to change that, and in the end you should always enjoy what you are doing...you will perform better if you do! In addition, know that there are people out there that want to assist and help you grow. Don't be intimidated by others who appear to have a deeper knowledge than you do, learn from them. Seek out a mentor who can guide you and provide advice when you stray “outside the lines.” A good mentor can stretch you to achieve new and better things.”
Debra is a multi-faceted leader in supply chain management with 25 years of comprehensive experience and expertise streamlining supply chain operations and logistics. As the Director of Supply Chain Management at Southern California Edison (SCE), one of the largest investor owned utilities in the United States, she oversaw the strategic direction and operation of over $4B in annual spend. Debra’s extensive skills creating and deploying integrated supply models and high-efficiency processes helped her to achieve significant cost savings based on the successful implementation of a Category Management strategy for SCE. Debra has also led key technology initiatives such as an Ariba software implementation achieving annual savings of $11M, and implementation of an integrated supply model that increased the productivity of her team. She has held various senior positions within Supply Chain Management overseeing strategic initiatives and managing spend. Debra’s cross-functional leadership and collaboration with team members and stakeholders consistently results in improving efficiency and/or reducing costs.
In 2016 Debra was appointed Chief Vendor/Contract Management Officer to lead LA Metro’s Vendor/Contract Management (V/CM) business unit comprised of Procurement, Supply Chain Management, Diversity & Economic Opportunity, and Support Services departments. Debra is a champion of small business and diversity inclusion initiatives and is working to fulfill Metro’s mission to ensure that small and historically underutilized businesses are provided a level playing field on which to compete and be awarded contracts. At Metro she has already begun to support the vision of the CEO, making the culture of procurement customer focused and cutting edge. As Metro reshapes the way people travel to work and to play, she sets a measurable standard of excellence for the entire agency.
Debra is committed to seeing all sectors of the County benefit from the major transportation infrastructure improvement initiatives. Under her leadership at Metro, the small business community has experienced marked improvements in contracting opportunities. The Construction Career Policy that her department administers, has been responsible for a marked increase in minorities and women working on Metro’s construction projects. In addition, she is a champion of the Agency’s efforts to create pathways for young people seeking a career in the transportation industry. Her passion for inclusion is one of her most notable professional and personal characteristics.
Debra’s early career experience includes the City of Los Angeles Council District 14 as an assistant to the Chief Legislative Deputy and Press Deputy. She grew up in Rosemead and went to high school in Montebello. Debra has a Bachelor of Science degree from California State University, Los Angeles, and has been a board member of the Utility Supply Management Alliance (USMA) and an advisory board member of the University of San Diego Supply Chain Management Institute.
Milo Victoria
President and CEO of Victorious Gold Partners, LLC
What advice would you have for others who want to follow in a similar direction?
“Several pieces of advice:
- Have a dream
- Believe in your dream and your self
- Find a leader who is worth following
- Find a mentor whom you admire; a mentor who will believe in you and sponsor you to develop your full potential.
- Develop others, be a mentor and a sponsor.
Mr. Milo Victoria, President and CEO of Victorious Gold Partners, LLC, has forty-three years of experience in the transit industry and is an established national leader holding top executive level positions at Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in Washington D.C. He retired as the Chief Executive Officer at Omnitrans (San Bernardino, California) to focus his career on his passion; to share his knowledge and expertise with his transit colleagues and mentor future leaders.
Mr. Victoria has achieved many successes, from reducing organizational levels and re-gearing culture, to leading the most efficient and cost effective transit agency in the Western United States. Through his mentorship and inspiration, numerous industry members now hold top leadership positions throughout the US and Canada.
A Mexican immigrant, Mr. Victoria began his transit career as a bus mechanic and rose through the ranks to Chief Executive Officer. He is a member of several civic and professional organizations including Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Rolling Deep 4 Charities, Board Chair of Latinos in Transit, and past Board Chair of the Southern California Regional Transit Training Consortium.
Mr. Victoria earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from the University of Phoenix in 2004, graduating Summa Cum Laude, with a 3.96 GPA.
Raymond Lopez, MBA, CSSD
Deputy Executive Officer Corporate Safety, LA Metro
What advice would you have for others who want to follow in a similar direction?
In my career in transit I have always tried to find people who have answers to my questions. I have been very fortunate to have mentors who support and guide me in the right direction. My career has been molded by these mentors and influencers. Continuous communications with experienced individuals in the industry have allowed me to emulate their success while learning what hazards to avoid along the way.
As a bus operator in San Antonio, I was influenced by professionals who told me to move on to higher levels in the organization. The guidance I received, led me to completing an associate degree while I was a bus operator and later both a bachelor's and a master's degrees. Without the direction I was provided on how important education is for progression of my career I would not have been able to elevate to where I am today. Mentors are an important part of everyone's careers, I make it a point today to influence and guide those who are in the early stages of their career or who are seeking a change of career path.
As a transportation professional, Raymond Lopez holds over 28 years’ experience in transit including over 3 years at Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Agency (LACMTA). Raymond has consistently expanded his range and scope of responsibilities within the transit industry. Beginning his journey as a part-time bus operator, he has advanced to Deputy Executive Officer in Corporate Safety at Metro and is responsible for programs related to industrial safety, accident prevention, job safety analysis and industrial injury prevention.
Raymond completed an Associate Degree while he was a bus operator and has also completed both a Bachelor’s in Business Administration (BBA) and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA). Raymond is a Certified Safety and Security Director (CSSD), holds an Advanced Safety Certificate (ASC) and has completed Safety/Security Certification through the Transportation Safety Institute (TSI). Raymond is well experienced in bus operations, training, safety, security, project management, emergency management, and accident/incident investigations. Raymond is also experienced in environmental programs, regulations, monitoring and recycling.
Raymond is past President of the Texas Transit Safety Professionals Association (TTSPA) and is a member of APTA’s Bus Safety, Bus Operations and Risk Management Committees. Raymond is a member of APTA’s Standards Program - Bus Safety Working Group and contributed to the writing of both the Operator Controlled Distractions and Agency Controlled Distractions-Recommended Practices.
Raymond has been involved with COMTO in varying capacities since 2001. He was awarded the Robert Prince Scholarship in 2013 which lead Raymond to participate in the Eno Transit Executive Seminar that same year.
Raymond is a United States Army veteran who served during the Desert Storm campaign.
Flora Castillo, C.H.I.E.
President, Pivot Strategies, LLC
A Certified Health Insurance Executive (CHIE), Ms. Castillo is a dynamic nationally recognized health care executive and transportation thought leader dedicated to improving individual’s quality of life and building leaders at all levels through her public and private sector service that spans more than 25 years.
Reliable and dependable transportation is an important enabler of health care access and foundational to achieving self-sufficiency and optimal well-being, while lack of transportation access can create a barrier for treatment, aging in place and accessing needed wrap-around support services. No one knows this better than Flora, who has a unique understanding, perspective and practical experience of the nexus between health care and transportation and how critical it is for payers and providers to achieve both improvements of individual’s quality life and better outcomes in patient management. This led Ms. Castillo to pursue her passions as President of Pivot Strategies, LLC, a health care, logistics and infrastructure consulting firm helping businesses, community health providers, public-sector clients and individuals create high quality customer-centered strategies and solutions that drive engagement, enable optimal well-being, support talent and board development, address social determinants of health and enhance smart mobility systems for individuals and communities.
Before starting Pivot Strategies, Ms. Castillo held executive leadership roles with some of America’s leading health care insurance companies including her recently unique role as National Vice President of Transportation for UnitedHealthcare Community & State (UHC) myConnections™. UnitedHealthcare Community & State proudly serves over five million Medicaid members in 24 states, plus Washington D.C. UnitedHealthcare is a division of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) which is a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company with a mission to help people live healthier lives. She led UHC’s first transportation service line and co-led an acquisition strategy that created a new line of business and achieved UHC’s goal of being the first insurer to enter the 3-Billion Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) benefit management market. She is proud of the innovative quality transportation strategies, solutions and pilots that she created to address social determinants of health for members and high utilizers that led to improved access and engagement for housing, jobs, health, mental health services, food services and social support services.
In addition, Flora has served almost two decades as a senior policymaker and member of the Board of Directors at the New Jersey Transit Corporation. In 1999, she was recognized for her community and civic work and was appointed to the board by New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman – making her the first Latina and the youngest member. Three subsequent Governors have reappointed her. She chairs the Board’s Customer Service Committee and is a member of the Safety and Administration Committees overseeing an annual budget of more than $3.5 billion and 10,978 employees. NJ TRANSIT is the nation's third largest statewide public transportation system linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia and providing more than 924,159 weekday trips on 261 bus routes, three light rail lines, 12 commuter rail lines and through Access Link paratransit service.
During her tenure, Ms. Castillo has worked diligently to helping to shape policy for thousands of daily transit riders—many who are transit dependent. She knows firsthand the value that reliable public transportation meant to her mother and the lifeline that is for so many of our customers, especially elderly, disabled, and poor people—many of whom would be stranded without it. An ardent transit advocate, Ms. Castillo has played a vital role in ensuring quality services for NJ TRANSIT customers, including championing development of a new scorecard to measure the quality service for customers, including seating capacity, cleanliness of stations, trains and buses, communication during service disruptions, and overall customer satisfaction. She’s advocated for mobility integrated options, the expansion and adoption of new technologies such as myTix, Access Link Cashless Payment for transit dependent, mobility impaired customers and unbanked and underbanked fare payment programs. She has supported the implementation of important infrastructure projects and service reliability/resilience programs including two new light rail lines, the purchase of the groundbreaking multilevel rail cars, complete replacement of the statewide bus fleet and continued engineering for trans-Hudson capacity projects including new rail tunnels and an expansion of the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Flora’s advocacy for diversity and inclusion led to the creation of a chief diversity officer role, establishment of a succession plan and enhanced strategies in support of small disadvantaged business enterprises. She launched the corporation’s first-ever Transit Academy Workforce Awareness and Readiness Program, to introduce high school students to career opportunities within the public transportation industry. Now in its 14th year, the program introduces students to the careers available in the public transportation industry.
A servant leader, Ms. Castillo has an extensive record of paying forward and non-profit service, and has built strong, long-lasting relationships in the health care, public transit, government and non-emergent medical transportation sectors. She serves on the board of directors of Greater Philadelphia Health Action, Inc., United Way of Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, National Urban Fellows, LUPE PAC, Women’s Political Caucus of NJ PAC and as honorary member of the American Public Transportation Association. She is an advisory board member of Measure of America, The Alan Voorhees Transportation Center, National Senior Campuses’ Diversity, Inclusion and Sustainability Committee, and recently completed 4 years of service as a member of Women’s Transportation Seminar board. Ms. Castillo was selected as an Open Streets Network of Champion, a national initiative of 8-80 Cities and ‘Bringing Open Streets to America' grant with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
She coaches and sponsors young professionals, women and minorities across the US, and has received numerous awards including The Women’s Transportation Seminar Greater New York Chapter 2018 Rosa Parks Diversity Leadership Award; LUPE PAC 2017 Latina Pioneer Award; Conference of Minority Professional Officials 2016 Women Who Move The Nation Award; Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey Latina Trailblazer Award; Hispanic Business 50 Influentials; Philadelphia Business Journal Minority Business Leader Award; and Newark Regional Business Partnership Transportation Leadership Award. Metro Magazine recognized her as one of public transportation’s Movers and Shakers and APTA honored her as the Outstanding Public Transportation Board Member for her contributions to the industry.