2025 Speaker Bios

Michele Cobb is a partner at Forte Business Consulting, which provides Business Development services for the publishing industry, and through that she serves as Executive Director of The Audio Publishers Association, The Podcast Academy, and PubWest. She is also Publisher of both AudioFile magazine and MMB Media.

Amandeep ‘Aman’ Kochar is the president and group Chief Executive Officer of Baker & Taylor, the 196-year-old book distributor, content services, and software company. His expertise in education technology, publishing, domestic and international operations, and engineering, combined with a high-energy, results-driven approach, has helped him lead Baker & Taylor into the digital realm since joining the company in 2014. As the world’s premier distributor of physical and digital content, software, and services to public and academic libraries, B&T is uniquely positioned to make a difference in communities by helping the libraries that serve them. To help fill the representation gap, Kochar led the launch of Paw Prints Publishing in 2022, returning Baker & Taylor to its publishing roots. The publishing imprint shares stories inspiring and enlightening youth from all walks of life.

Mary McAveney is a publishing veteran with decades of experience and expertise in marketing, strategy, and branding. In November 2022, she became President and Chief Executive Officer of Abrams, making her the first woman to hold the position in the company’s history. In addition, she sits on the board of Abrams & Chronicle Books, the London-based European arm of the two companies. Prior to Abrams, McAveney was the Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Revenue Officer at Open Road Integrated Media, where she led the efforts behind the company’s marketing platforms, leading to dramatic increases in sales. Her previous positions in publishing include senior roles at Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, and Zondervan.

Madeline McIntosh is a digital pioneer and book publishing executive who has played a seminal role in each of the major inflection points in the consumer book market over the past three decades, including the birth of ecommerce, digital audio, and ebooks. She is the co-founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Publisher of Authors Equity, a new company dedicated to reshaping the relationship between author and publisher. Prior to that, McIntosh was the Chief Executive Officer of Penguin Random House in the US. She serves on the boards of Simon & Schuster and Poets & Writers.

David Shelley, previously based in the UK, started his career at independent publisher Allison & Busby in 1997 before joining Little, Brown as Editorial Director in 2005. Initially commissioning mainly crime and thriller novels and overseeing the audio and ebook lists, he became Publisher of their commercial imprint Sphere in 2007, then overall Little, Brown Publisher in 2011. Authors Shelley published include Mitch Albom, Mark Billingham, Carl Hiaasen, Dennis Lehane, Val McDermid, and J.K. Rowling. He became Chief Executive Officer of Orion and Little, Brown in 2015, and in January 2018 became Group Chief Executive Officer of Hachette UK, which is the second-largest consumer publisher in the UK. In January 2024, Shelley, now based in New York, started a new role as CEO of both HBG US and HUK. He is a past President of the Publishers Association, a trustee of the Reading Agency, and a director of Tate Enterprises.

Shanteka Sigers (she/her) is an Executive Creative Director turned Brand Strategist, with a strong focus on inclusion as a business imperative, social strategy, and leadership. She is also an O. Henry Prize winner, with her work appearing in The Paris Review, Best American Short Stories, and Freeman’s. In 2024, she combined her interests to create Good and Feral, a company that provides creative direction and strategy for books, authors, and publishers. As a former Director at Meta (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and the Metaverse), Sigers led a team of creative strategists to enhance advertiser success on these platforms. As an Senior Vice President and Executive Creative Director, she created national campaigns for major brands such as McDonald’s, KFC, P&G, General Mills, Chevrolet, AT&T, Verizon, Allstate, and more. She teaches advertising at University of Texas, Austin.

Emma Straub is the New York Times-bestselling author of six books for adults: the novels This Time Tomorrow, All Adults Here, The Vacationers, Modern Lovers, and Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures, and the short story collection Other People We Married. She is also the author of two picture books, Gaga Mistake Day, which she co-wrote with her mother, and Very Good Hats. Her work has been published in more than 20 languages. Straub and her husband own Books Are Magic, an independent bookstore in Brooklyn, New York.

Anna Tavis, PhD, is Professor and Academic Director of the Human Capital Management Department at the NYU School of Professional Studies, Senior Fellow with the Conference Board, and the Academic in Residence with Executive Networks. She is the co-author of Humans at Work. The art and practice of creating the hybrid workplace. (Kogan Page, 2022) Dr. Tavis’ latest book, The Digital Coaching Revolution (Kogan Page, 2024), launched in Spring 2024. She publishes regularly in the business media, is a former Executive Editor of People+Strategy Journal, and is currently an Associate Editor of Workforce Solutions Review. Dr. Tavis is a frequent presenter at international conferences on the topics of the Future of Work, People Analytics and Technology, Employee Experience, and Intelligent Automation in the Workplace. Prior to joining NYU faculty, she navigated a diverse global career in academia, business, and consulting.