Laura Quintana is Vice President of Corporate Affairs and General Manager of Networking Academy, Cisco’s largest and longest-running Corporate Social Responsibility program. She is a proven leader with over 30 years of experience in the technology industry and a people-oriented executive who forges long-term partnerships with governments, social benefit organizations, and academic institutions around the world.

As an innovator, Laura focuses on social responsibility, delivering groundbreaking initiatives that prepare students to participate in the digital workforce and connects them with career opportunities. Her strengths in scaling and accelerating impact helped her and her team grow the Networking Academy to benefit more than 3 million students in FY21 (over 15 million since inception) throughout 180 countries with an annual in-kind contribution valued at over $367 million USD.

Laura is a committed change agent. She cares passionately about diversity and on making an impact on peoples’ lives and communities. Her focus includes initiatives targeting educational institutions, economically underserved communities, women and minorities underrepresented in tech, people with disabilities, and justice-impacted individuals.

Laura and her team are further expanding Networking Academy’s reach with SkillsforAll.com, a mobile first, self-paced, and gamified experience available direct to learner and via academies. Within the first six months of launching, more than 230,000 learners have joined Skills for All. Through her leadership, Networking Academy has become a critical part of country digital readiness, working with ministries of education to further national digital agendas and develop the human capital necessary to support country transformation.

Laura was recognized by the Hispanic IT Executive Council (HITEC) as one of the top 100 most influential and notable Hispanic Professionals in the Information Technology Industry, receiving HITEC Top 100 awards for 2016-2017, 2017-2018, and 2021-2022. She was recognized by Latino Leaders Magazine as one of the 100 most influential Latinas in 2021. She is a co-executive sponsor of Conexión, Cisco’s Latinx employee resource organization, and serves as a member of the SER Jobs for Progress National, Inc. Board of Directors.

Laura is fluent in Spanish and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and their children. She holds a B.S. degree in Industrial Engineering from Stanford University.