The builders behind OrbitIQ’s intelligent leadership engine.
OrbitIQ is powered by a multidisciplinary team of leaders, technologists, designers, and operators committed to advancing women’s leadership. Together, we bring rigor, creativity, and deep respect for the real-world complexity leaders navigate every day.
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Kyla Byas-Smith
Founding Advisor, Operations
Kyla Byas-Smith
Founding Advisor, Operations
Kyla Byas-Smith is a Founding Advisor for Operations & Partnerships at OrbitIQ, where she helps design scalable operating models, partner strategy, and internal systems that support early-stage growth. She brings a builder’s mindset—translating vision into structure and enabling organizations to scale with intention.
With over a decade of experience, Kyla has led leadership development, operations, and systems-building work across education, nonprofit, and corporate environments. Her background includes senior leadership roles within complex, mission-driven organizations where she partnered closely with executives and boards, built governance and operating systems, and led large-scale talent development and onboarding efforts. She currently serves as Sr. Manager, Learning & Development at HD Supply, supporting enterprise-wide leadership and supply chain training initiatives.
OrbitIQ’s mission aligns with Kyla’s career focus on building access, clarity, and capability for emerging leaders. She is recognized for translating complexity into actionable systems that empower individuals and organizations to lead with confidence. Kyla is a Spelman College alumna and holds a Master’s degree from Georgia State University.
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Mini’imah Shaheed
Founder
Mini’imah Shaheed
Founder
Mini’imah Shaheed is the Founder of OrbitIQ, a tech-enabled social enterprise advancing women’s leadership through data-informed insight and human-centered design. With more than 15 years of senior executive experience, she has led large, complex organizations through periods of growth, innovation, and change, working closely with boards and executive teams to drive alignment, performance, and organizational health.
A 2025–2026 International Women’s Forum Leadership Fellow, Mini’imah developed OrbitIQ through her Fellowship as a venture designed to make visible the often-unseen power dynamics shaping how women lead, influence, and advance at work. OrbitIQ integrates data, AI, and applied leadership research to equip women leaders with practical tools and perspective to navigate power, build influence, and lead without barriers to their brilliance.
Mini’imah is the author of Winning Leadership Teams and advises executives and boards on building high-trust, purpose-driven organizations across the public, nonprofit, and social-impact sectors. Her leadership has been recognized by Atlanta Magazine, the Atlanta Business Chronicle, and Georgia Titan 100. She is an alumna of the University of Pennsylvania, Agnes Scott College, and Georgia State University.
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Nakaiya Turk
Founding Advisor, Marketing
Nakaiya Turk
Founding Advisor, Marketing
Nakaiya Turk is the Founding Advisor for Marketing at OrbitIQ, where she supports the development of clear, resonant messaging and go-to-market strategy for a new category of leadership technology. With more than a decade of experience across global, Fortune 500 organizations, she brings a strategic, insight-led approach to brand building, storytelling, and audience engagement.
Nakaiya’s career spans roles at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Johnson & Johnson, and Comcast, where she worked at the intersection of marketing, innovation, and business strategy. She currently serves as a Product Marketing Manager at LinkedIn, driving data-informed positioning and organizational impact within one of the world’s most influential professional ecosystems.
OrbitIQ’s mission aligns deeply with Nakaiya’s long-standing commitment to leadership development and community impact. A LEAD Atlanta graduate and She Leads alumna, she has contributed more than 400 volunteer hours to Girls Inc. of Greater Atlanta and is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Her work is guided by a passion for helping current and emerging leaders thrive, grow with intention, and build sustainable pathways to success.
Nakaiya is a graduate of Spelman College and Emory University Goizueta Business School.
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Laura Voicu
Founding Advisor, Product Development
Laura Voicu
Founding Advisor, Product Development
Laura Voicu is the Founding Advisor of Product for OrbitIQ, a tech-enabled social enterprise advancing women’s leadership through data-informed insight and human-centered design. With more than 15 years of experience in technology and cybersecurity, she brings both technical depth and authentic insight as a woman in senior technical leadership navigating these dynamics herself.
Her background combines deep data science and AI expertise with proven ability to translate complex technical concepts into practical frameworks. Her cybersecurity experience ensures OrbitIQ is is built with trust and data responsibility at its core.
Laura is a co-founder and Chief Data Science Officer of the Enterprise Risk Quantification Institute (ERQI). She holds a PhD in Computer Science and serves as FAIR Institute standards committee member and Europe Ambassador Award winner.