About Us

Alexia Bass builds strategic partnerships across California to expand employment opportunities for neurodivergent individuals. At Zavikon, she collaborates with universities, businesses, and nonprofits to identify workforce needs and connect them with qualified candidates. In addition to her role at Zavikon, Alexia contributes to Autism in Entertainment, where she helped launch the Educational Partner Program to connect educational institutions with industry resources and enhance support for neurodivergent talent.

She now leads the Business Partnership Program, crafting innovative strategies to encourage companies to champion inclusive hiring and mentorship initiatives. With a deep commitment to sustainable impact and expanding access to opportunity, Alexia is passionate about helping organizations strengthen their teams while fostering a more equitable workforce.

Rebecca Beam is Founder and CEO of Zavikon. Prior to launching Zavikon, she was a founding advisory team member launching MindSpark, Inc. whose mission was to train and employ adults on the autism spectrum in technology careers. After MindSpark’s acquisition by auticon, Rebecca became President of the US operations leading the US expansion and driving growth.

As a veteran of the tech sector, Rebecca’s career has included senior leadership roles sourcing and developing human capital with high-demand skill sets for the area’s leading tech firms, including Fortune 100 and 500 brands. Rebecca believes there is a job out there for everyone to apply their talents and skills in a meaningful way and she is dedicated to being a bridge to an inclusive working world. She is passionate about opening doors for all individuals with disabilities or those who are neurodivergent to achieve career success. In 2019, Rebecca won the prestigious Milestones Visionary Employer Award.

Johnna Cho is a former Senior Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs at Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. She retired from Warner Bros. after 24 years and now enjoys working on projects to advance the autism and disabilities community. She is the Vice Chair of Asians and Pacific Islanders with Disabilities of California (APIDC) and has served on its Board of Directors since 2009. Johnna is married and the proud mom of an adult son with autism. She has a BA degree from Wellesley College and a JD from UCLA School of Law. Johnna is also a certified yoga instructor (RYT-500) and yoga therapist (C-IAYT).

Paul Hemstreet is an experienced and accomplished creative leader with a proven history of planning and executing high-profile, globally distributed projects for major Hollywood productions that have included the Harry Potter, Matrix, and Lord of the Rings franchises. He has served as Executive Producer and Head of Production on initiatives to create special features to accompany home entertainment releases. His experience includes the development and production of short and long-form documentaries, as well as story-driven content to support and promote major film and original series releases. He currently serves as an adjunct instructor at Exceptional Minds Academy, where his courses include video production, editing, voice acting for animation, and career readiness.

Since 2002, when Chris and his wife Janette began Payrunner Payroll, the need for ancillary services have grown to which Payrunner has delivered. In response, Chris has worked hard to create great business relationships and has partnered with companies that offer these services. Payrunner Payroll and its partners offer HR services, workers compensation insurance, background searches, drug testing services, time and attendance services as well as staffing services to serve the needs of their small business clients.

Chris has been performing payroll functions at many levels since 1992. He has worked for a corporate banking institution with 1600 employees and 13 subsidiaries in 28 states. As payroll manager, he processed the payroll and tax liability filings as well as the quarter and year-end functions. Chris and Janette started Payrunner Payroll because they saw the need for small business to have a choice when it came to who processed their payroll, the large national companies can’t match the customer service, fair pricing, and respect shown to the small business owner. Payrunner is a small business itself, which is why other small business owners relate to the couple. They understand the needs of other small business, but more importantly, they can deliver valuable solutions for them.

Chris is also a big community supporter. In 2009, he won the Central County ROP Business Leader of the Year Award. He won this for working with high school students that were not only failing in school but also struggling in life. With the help of the Orange Chamber of Commerce, he was able to work with these students to give them the support they needed to get their lives back on the right track. Chris was very pleased when all 10 of these students, who worked very hard, graduated from Orange High Schol. Chris is past Chairman of the Board for the Orange Chamber of Commerce and is still a member of their Executive Board and their Board of Directors. Chris has also been a Board member for the Community Foundation of Orange who holds the annual Foundation Gams at Fred Kelly Stadium. Chris has also been a member of the Rotary Club of Orange.

Susette Hsiung is happily retired after 28 years with The Walt Disney Company.  She was the executive vice president of Studio Production and Network Programming Operations at Disney Branded Television. In this role, she led the productions for premium original content for kids and families on Disney+, Disney Channel, and Disney Junior, including the Emmy Award-winning music special, Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium, and the hit Descendants and Zombies franchises. She has worked on iconic Disney titles like High School Musical, Hannah Montana and Phineas and Ferb, and championed diversity and inclusion efforts across Disney, serving on the Diversity and Inclusion Council and supporting initiatives for women and underrepresented groups. In addition to her work at Disney, Susette also served for three years on the board of the Greater Los Angeles chapter of Girls, Inc. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Cornell University and an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business, residing in Los Angeles with her family.

Hilary Kokenda is the Chief Operating Officer of Zavikon. Prior to becoming a founding member of Zavikon, she spent 10 years at The Walt Disney Company as a technologist supporting business solutions and processes. Hilary’s primary role throughout her career has been to bridge the communication gap between technology resources and the businesses they can support at Fortune 500 companies. Hilary’s career has required her to work with individuals at all levels and drive change across all types of departments. Through her wealth of experience in the corporate environment, she has recognized the need for and benefits of diversity and she is passionate about being a bridge to an inclusive working world. Hilary holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics/Applied Sciences from UCLA.

Marlene Sharp is a creative and business-savvy entertainment multi-hyphenate who originally hails from New Orleans and moved to San Fernado Valley. Firmly ensconced in LA life, she is top dawg at Pink Poodle Productions. She serves as producer, story editor, and writer on the forthcoming animated TV series Mongly Syndrome: K-Pop Odd Couple from ENPIX Animation Studio and Educational Broadcast System in Korea. Noteworthy media consulting clients and co-conspirators include Autism in Entertainment, God’s Gang, Autism Society Orange County, GameU, Spectrum Laboratory, Rubber Ninja, Katamaco and more. Prior to Pink Poodle Productions, she was director, production at Level 5 abby, home of Yokai Watch and other Japanese hit video game-based franchises. She even worked with the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise at SEGA as well.

Marlene is a 5+ year ally of the autism community, and she grows more enthusiastic each day. This passion started with a consulting role at The Center for Learning Unlimited and companion animation studio Brainstorm Productions and swelled to collaborations with multiple artists on the spectrum including the bunch of performers whom she represents via Sandstone Artists Management. She is exceptionally proud of the ongoing Laugh Factory neurodivergent comedy nights which she established alongside Rob Kutner, Mike Rotman, Judi Uttal, Maja Watkins, Autism in Entertainment, the Miracle Project and Spectrum Laboratory.

Judi Uttal is the founder and the mastermind behind the Autism In Entertainment Workgroup. She led the effort to host the amazing Autism In Entertainment Conference held on April 5, 2024, and continues to drive and expand the effort to increase employment of talent on the autism spectrum in the entertainment Industry.

Judi is the vice president of Autism Society Orange County (Formerly The  Orange County Asperger’s Support Group), a nonprofit organization improving the quality of life for individuals and families dealing with high-functioning autism and the parent organization of Autism In Entertainment. For the last twelve years, Judi has been leading the ASOC Toastmaster Gavel Club. Meeting monthly, this innovative organization has helped individuals on the spectrum improve their communication skills and quality of life.

Judi is a member of the Competitive Integrated Employment Blueprint, Orange County Local Partnership Agreement (OCLPA) and the Thompson Policy Group Chapman University Transition Initiative. In this role, Judi has been doing groundbreaking work on how the fear of losing Social Security benefits impacts work and potential solutions.

Judi retired from a career as a high technology marketing executive. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Math/Computer Science from UCLA and an MBA from the Tepper School of Management at Carnegie Mellon University. Judi is married and is the mother of a 34-year-old son, Joshua, who was diagnosed with High-Functioning Autism at the age of three. Josh graduated from California State University, Fullerton with a major in Cinema and Television.

Dr. Zeedyk is an Associate Professor at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF). Dr. Zeedyk’s research is mainly focused on the social and behavior skills of youth with ASD and intellectual disabilities across the course of development. She is interested in understanding how behavior problems and social skills relate to social, mental health, and academic outcomes for these youth, as well as how these skills impact their parents’ psychological well-being. Recently, she has begun to study postsecondary outcomes for youth with ASD who attend college.

Dr. Zeedyk earned her B.S in Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She later started her career working with children and families as a second-grade teacher. She received her Master’s in Elementary Education from The George Washington University and her PhD in Special Education from UC Riverside. She completed her postdoctoral training at the Child and Adolescent Services Research Center in the UC San Diego Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Zeedyk is currently a Center Investigator at the CSUF Center for Autism.