ABOUT

Jeanne Mau currently serves as Executive Vice President, TV Programming Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) at NBCUniversal. In this role, Mau oversees NBCU LAUNCH, the umbrella brand that houses the comprehensive DEI efforts across the company’s expansive entertainment television portfolio. 

Her purview includes the entertainment networks in the NBCU Television and Streaming portfolio – NBC, Bravo, E!, Oxygen, SYFY, Universal Kids, USA and Peacock – as well as Universal Studio Group – which comprises four powerhouse studios, Universal Television (UTV), Universal Content Productions (UCP), Universal International Studios (UIS), and Universal Television Alternative Studio (UTAS). 

Mau’s key responsibilities include oversight of NBCU LAUNCH, which supports the company’s goal to produce authentic and compelling content with a focus on giving underrepresented talent, at any place in their career, access to meaningful opportunities in television. Her work spans inclusion efforts for scripted, unscripted and late night programming both in front of and behind the camera; working with internal partners to ensure DEI-related best practices are fully embedded into the creative development process; and managing current partnerships with external advocacy groups and organizations that support the company’s DEI goals. 

Before joining NBCUniversal, Mau spent two decades at ViacomCBS where she held several senior leadership positions including her most recent role as Senior Vice President, Global Inclusion. Over her tenure at the company, she oversaw the ViacomCBS Writers Mentoring Program, Directors Initiative, Viewfinder Emerging Directors Program and Nickelodeon Writers and Artist Program. She also successfully built partnerships with executives and producers to create access for artists and creators across all platforms of the business, and she established initiatives to inspire and foster innovation, and cultivate an inclusive, world-class talent pool of content drivers. 

Prior to her transition into DEI, she was a creative executive. She rose through the ranks at CBS to become the Vice President, Current Programs, where she was responsible for the day-to-day management of shows including “Criminal Minds,” “NCIS,” “Two and a Half Men.”

 Mau graduated from the University of San Diego with a bachelor's degree in Communications.

Robert Baltazar is NBCU LAUNCH's Vice President, TV Programming DEI, servicing NBC, NBCU’s cable networks, streaming platform Peacock, as well as the Universal Studio Group.  In this role, he oversees the TV creative talent development Launch programs for both scripted and unscripted, such as the NBC Launch TV Writers Program, the TV Directors Program and Female Forward, the New Mexico Directors Initiative, and the Unscripted Producers Initiative.

Prior to his current role, Robert has worked in the entertainment industry as a non-scripted development executive at various television networks, production companies, and studios, such as Discovery Studios, Four M Studios, and ITV Studios.  Most recently, he was the Head of Development at Four M Studios, developing and selling the documentaries The Story of Diana and The Story of the Royals to ABC Network with PEOPLE Magazine attached, the PEOPLE Magazine Investigates franchise to Investigation Discovery, and People Puzzler to Game Show Network.  This is Robert’s second term back at NBCU, as he previously was Vice President of Reality Development and Current Programming for USA Network, shepherding non-scripted formats and docu-series for the network.

Jaunice Sills is Sr. Director, DEI Production and Creative Partnerships where she develops and launches TV programs and initiatives designed to increase representation throughout every facet of the business, including but not limited to below-the-line, casting and internal production. 

She previously served as Sr. Director, Content Planning & Strategy within NBCUniversal's Television & Streaming division. In this role, she led marketing strategy, promotion and operations for programming across all platforms for Bravo, E!, and UniKids scripted, unscripted, news programming and live programming initiatives. These included Watch What Happens Live, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Live From The Red Carpet, E! News, and The Real Housewives franchises.

Jaunice’s experience includes entertainment marketing, program strategy, acquisitions and production. Prior to NBCU, Jaunice served as Vice President, Programming and Promotion Strategy at REVOLT TV, the music television network she launched with Sean “Diddy” Combs in 2013. In this role, she directed the strategy of all programming content, managed promotion, scheduling and operations. Her background also includes programming and production roles at BET, MTV, HBO, and LOGO.

Jaunice graduated from Spelman College and Harvard Business School’s Business of Entertainment, Media and Sports program. She is very passionate about HBCU's and in 2016 was honored at The White House as a successful HBCU alumnus by First Lady Michelle Obama’s Better Make Room initiative. 

Amanda Ross is Director of Strategy and Analytics for the NBCU TV DEI department. She serves NBCUniversal networks, streaming platform Peacock, and the Universal Studio Group tracking DEI creative efforts and overseeing analytics of content, partnerships, and initiatives.

Coming home to NBCU, Amanda got her start as an NBC Entertainment Publicity intern out of 30 Rock. Since then, she served as manager of research at CBS Television. Throughout her ten-year tenure at CBS, she oversaw research operations, provided programming insights to network and studio executives, incorporated BIPOC measurements, and developed branding strategies across linear, cable, and streaming platforms. Her extensive background in Nielsen ratings and pilot testing includes the successful runs of acclaimed shows including NCIS, The Big Bang Theory, The Equalizer, Evil, Why Women Kill, Your Honor, and Ghosts.

She has a BFA in Film and Television from NYU.

Michael Pogarian is an award winning producer and the Sr. Manager of TV DEI at NBCUniversal where he helps oversee creative development programs for emerging TV writers, directors, and below-the-line talent, as well as create activations with external industry partners to enhance diversity, equity and inclusion across the studio and industry. Prior to working at NBCUniversal, Michael was an Associate Creative Producer at Fullscreen where he co-created and lead the AT&T Hello Lab Mentorship Program, that brought together entertainment industry leaders including Common, Lena Waithe, Cary Fukunaga, and Taika Waititi with filmmakers from diverse backgrounds to create their signature work. In the first two years of the program he developed, produced and distributed ten short films that premiered on DirecTV Now and were accepted to notable international film festivals including SXSW, Outfest, Calgary Film Festival, Maoriland Film Festival and many others. During his time at Fullscreen he also developed award winning interactive digital content and social media series for AT&T Hello Lab, a collection of original and immersive entertainment created by, for and with Millennial and Gen Z audiences. Before that, Michael worked in unscripted development and production at Magical Elves (Project Runway, Top Chef). In 2012, he graduated with a BA in Film and Television Production at Boston University.

Jacqueline Jasso started her career at Universal Pictures in the marketing department, working on acclaimed films, such as Candyman, The Halloween franchise, and Marry Me.  Prior to joining Universal in 2017, Jacqueline worked at Film Independent during the Spirit Awards and Los Angeles Film Festival. She is currently a mentee in the Hillman Grad Program founded by Lena Waithe that provides free resources to emerging artists in entertainment. 

Jacqueline is originally from a small town near Fresno, CA, and received her B.A. in Communications with a minor in Sociology from California State University Fullerton.

Ivy Penn started her career in entertainment at Nickelodeon in the Talent Development Department under Sherley Ibarra, Katherine Wells, and Kate Blatchford.  There she worked on the Nickelodeon Artist and Writing programs, bolstering their social media accounts and helping bring in new and underrepresented talent.  She aided in partnerships with L.A. Family Housing, served on the Nickelodeon Kids & Family inclusivity council, and worked with the ViacomCBS Global Diversity and Inclusion team.

She is now the Coordinator for both the Creative & Below the Line Programs, working under Robert Baltazar.

Ivy is from St. Petersburg, Florida, and moved out to Los Angeles in 2015.  She graduated with a double major in Business and Design at University of California San Diego in 2021.

Shambhavi Mishra is the Coordinator of TV Production and Creative Partnerships on the TV Programming DEI team at NBCUniversal. Shambhavi has won the 2021 Hedy Lamarr Achievement Award for Emerging Leaders in Entertainment Technology and has premiered 30 original music compositions. Her prior experiences include working with a variety of leading entertainment companies such as ICM Partners/CAA, MGM EPIX, and Hello Sunshine across agency, publicity, production, and development. During her undergraduate education at Carnegie Mellon University, she pursued the BXA interdisciplinary program in Humanities Analytics & Music Composition. Through CMU's accelerated master's program, she furthered her involvement at the crossroads of screen-based media, data analytics, technology, and management. She graduated with a Master's in Entertainment Industry Management in 2023.