Women Innovators of Play 2025

Hasbro's Women Innovators of Play launched in Fall 2023 to promote a more inclusive and equitable toys and games community, encourage more women’s participation in the space, inspire the next generation of young women and girls to unleash their creativity, and increase awareness and exposure to creative career paths.

2025 Speakers

Kim Boyd

President, Licensing & Entertainment, Hasbro

Chris Cocks

Chief Executive Officer, Hasbro

Roberta Thomson

CEO, AI Studio, Hasbro

Eunice Lee

Chief Operating Officer, Scopely

Vivian Nguyen

Associate Principal Product Designer, Hasbro

Jodi Bondi Norgaard

Toy designer, creator of Go! Go! Sports line of dolls for girls; feminist advocate

Vlasta Komorous-King

Senior Design Director, IDEO

Liz DeSilva

Chief Creative Officer, Whatever! Company

Juliana Moreno

Co-Founder, Wild Optimists

Ariel Rubin

Co-Founder, Wild Optimists

Lisa Gilbert

President, NA & LATAM Commercial Sales, Hasbro

Christina Jansa

Vice-President, Toys, Target

Anne Carrihill

Director, Toys & Games, Amazon

Greta Carey

Director, Digital Marketing & Sales, Card Kingdom

Elizabeth Hargrave

Award-winning board game designer

Naomi Brugnatelli

Senior Manager, Inventor Relations, Hasbro

Natalie Podd

2024 WIOP Winner

Elise Hardman

2024 WIOP Winner

Ali Mierzejewski (Moderator)

Editor-in-Chief, The Toy Insider

Watch past programs

2025 Schedule

10:00am

5 Mins

Welcome

Kim Boyd

President, Licensing & Entertainment @ Hasbro

Chris Cocks

Chief Executive Officer @ Hasbro

10:05am

20 Mins

Panel: From sketchbook to shelf: designing toys and products to inspire and delight today’s fans

There’s no one path to becoming a successful toy designer. Meet four talented product designers, each with wildly different backgrounds, on their career paths, style and inspiration, and how to build products that bring joy to today’s fans, from dolls to interactive pets to fan-fueled fashion statements.

Vivian Nguyen (Moderator)

Associate Principal Product Designer @ Hasbro

Jodi Bondi Norgaard

Toy designer, creator of Go! Go! Sports line of dolls for girls

Vlasta Komorous-King

Senior Design Director @ IDEO

Liz DeSilva

Chief Creative Officer @ Whatever! Company

10:25am

6 Mins

Spark Moment: Dreaming big with Wild Optimists

A day in the life of experiential game designers Juliana Moreno & Ariel Rubin (Wild Optimists).

Juliana Moreno

Co-Founder @ Wild Optimists

Ariel Rubin

Co-Founder @ Wild Optimists

10:30am

17 Mins

In conversation with... Eunice Lee (COO, Scopely) & Roberta Thomson (CEO, AI Studio, Hasbro)

Hasbro's Roberta Thomson joins longtime gaming industry executive Eunice Lee for an honest discussion about leadership lessons, fandom, and the future of play.

Eunice Lee

Chief Operating Officer @ Scopely

Roberta Thomson

CEO, AI Studio @ Hasbro

10:50am

5 Mins

Spark Moment: At Gen Con with Elizabeth Hargrave

Checking in with award-winning board game designer Elizabeth Hargrave at the largest tabletop gaming convention in North America.

Elizabeth Hargrave

Award-winning board game designer

10:55am

25 Mins

Panel: Shop talk: Power dynamics, pivoting, and the female POV

A powerhouse panel of leaders in sales and marketing offers their go-to-market tips, tricks for navigating seismic change, and thoughts on what's working and what's next in retail.