she/her/hers
Nydia Assaf Aragon is the founder and Chief Strategist of EnLuz, a technology and wellness social enterprise advisory firm, empowering the growth of individuals and businesses with knowledge and resources to achieve their highest potential. She is also co-founder of Thrive, a coalition of RTP companies committed to empowerment. She serves as the Strategy and Alliance Board Member of SHE NC and is in the process of expanding the Data Scientista Society’s international footprint in Latin-America. Her passion for empowering individuals and businesses led her to pioneer and co-host an entrepreneurial pipeline and Hispanic Market in partnership with another nonprofit the Costa Rican Association in NC.
She recently served as MetLife’s Global IT Risk & Security Director of Strategy and Planning, where she led the integration of strategic maturity opportunities across all security framework domains. She prides herself in optimizing delivery by simplifying processes and empowering teams through the power of data. During her tenure at MetLife, she founded and led several ERG’s. Nydia founded the Pennsylvania Chapter of MetLife’s Women’s Business Network (WBN). She served as a Board Member for the National Book Club and local Chapter leader, as well as the Cary chapter of the WBN. Nydia co-hosted several events and book drives with MetLife’s Black Professional Network (BPN) and GLAM (LGBTQ+ ERG). She also served in the LIAT Diversity & Inclusion ERG and pioneered international events that familiarized fellow employees with the culture, customs and cuisine of different countries, during the company’s critical expansion of their global footprint through an acquisition.
Nydia is a speaker in the areas of Cybersecurity, Wellness, Digital Transformation and Data Science. She was featured in 2021 as “Top Woman in Analytics” by SAS for her work on Digital Branding as it relates to your professional brand fueled by the data, machine learning and Neurolinguistic programming (NLP). She was recently nominated for the 2022 ATHENA Leadership Award.
Since the inception of EnLuz Strategy in 2019, Nydia’s strategy focused on empowering underserved communities through workshops, training, mentoring, scholarships, small business pipelines and resource connections to open-source technology and free educational opportunities. During the pandemic and the great resignation, her company has empowered individuals to transition careers through the outline of transferable skills, connection to free or low-cost education and networking of individuals to new opportunities where they can thrive. Success stories include teachers, nurses and law enforcement officials.
In her personal time, Nydia enjoys diving, tai chi, kayaking, painting, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, tango dancing, designing wearable devices and spending time with her family and dog.