President

Kiaina Phillips
Kiaina is passionate about empowering women in finance and adjacent industries. She brings over 15 years of experience in financial services, advisory operations and building high-performing teams. Kiaina also serves as the President for Chicago Financial Women, helping to design meaningful programming that connects and inspires professionals across the city.

Originally from Cincinnati, Kiaina earned her Bachelor of Business Administration from Loyola University Chicago and held multiple industry licenses and certifications. Beyond her professional work, she is deeply committed to community service, having volunteered with organizations including After School Matters, Liberation Library, Greater Chicago Food Depository, and Year Up.

Outside of work, Kiaina enjoys nonfiction reading, yoga, traveling, and spending time with her niece and nephews. She is excited to share her expertise and enthusiasm with the nonprofit community and to support efforts that foster equity, education, and opportunity.

Treasurer

LaMichelle Hecht
LaMichelle Hecht is a powerhouse in the world of accounting and financial strategy. She’s a seasoned business leader and Certified Public Accountant with licenses in Virginia, Illinois, and New Jersey, and over a decade of experience helping government agencies, nonprofits, and businesses get their financial houses in order.

In 2021, she launched Overhead Solutions Group, a SWaM-certified accounting firm that’s all about simplifying complex financials, ensuring compliance, and helping organizations operate with clarity and confidence. Her team supports clients across sectors with everything from audits and tax returns to setting up sustainable systems for long-term growth.

A dynamic speaker and bilingual professional (English/Spanish), LaMichelle’s passion lies in empowering mission-driven leaders to make smarter financial decisions, and she brings a unique blend of technical expertise, strategic insight, and a genuine commitment to service. Whether she’s mentoring young professionals or guiding clients through tough compliance challenges, she’s all about making numbers make sense.

Director of Marketing & Events

Nora Darvirris
Nora Darvirris is a community builder who loves bringing people together, creating meaningful connections, and helping others find opportunities to succeed. She is especially passionate about advancing women in technology, she herself works in the Chicago Fintech Industry, and building spaces where women can learn from one another, expand their networks, and feel supported throughout their careers.

As Director of Marketing & Events for Chicago Financial Women, Nora develops engaging programs that foster meaningful professional connections. She is also an active community volunteer and brings the same curiosity, energy, and commitment to service to everything she does.

Director of Marketing & Events

Skylar Shagovac
Skylar Shagovac is a Chicago-based finance and accounting recruiter whose work is rooted in real relationships and market insight. She partners with CFOs and hiring leaders to build high-performing teams, giving her a direct view into how professionals are evaluated, filtered, and ultimately selected.

With a front-row seat to hiring decisions, Skylar understands the gap between being qualified and being positioned. She helps professionals clarify their value, strengthen their narrative, and build a personal brand that attracts opportunity rather than waiting for it.

She is passionate about empowering individuals to take ownership of how they are perceived and to align their visibility with where they want their careers to go.

Open Positions:

Director of Sponsorship & Engagement
Seeks sponsors and individual donations to increase our endowment for charitable giving. Actively shares sponsorship package, meets with donors, and provides insights on what we should incorporate in our benefits to increase appeal.
Events Coordinator (2-3 roles available)
Works with the Director of Events in event planning. Event planning includes establishing dates and topics, arranging for speakers, reserving the event site, and coordinating food, drink or catering (when in person), creating zoom event link for remote events and hosting. Event planning includes budgeting, coordinating name tags, set-up, check-in, establishing dates, reserving the event site, develop a theme or motif for the event, arranging for speakers, coordinating location support and catering/ wine etc. Communicating the details with the board for approval on the event fee and actively marketing the event to assure good attendance. Uses NFP form to purchase food and beverages as not taxed.

Updates and monitors event logistics (Eventbrite, MailChimp, Zoom, etc.) to assure event items are covered and assigned. Works with Director of Event and fellow event committee members to assure tasks are executed against or ask for assistance as needed.

Marketing Leaders – Content Creation, Communications, Media (2/3 roles available)
Works Directly with the Director of Marketing. Markets our organization and upcoming events. Content creation for our social media platforms. Connect with other companies, media, and other organizations to include our web link and information with its employees to widen our exposure, sends our list of
events and pdfs out to market us. Obtains other venue spaces at corporations that can sponsor our event and allow us to use.
Reviews the CFW website monthly to assure correct and current information is displayed and is working properly. Provides website updates with information to post events, oversees the posting, takes pictures to post. Connecting and establishing relationships with other related organizations to co- chair events.