Dr. Johnna Powell is Managing Director and Head of Technology, Research and Innovation at DTCC. Within her role, she drives external and internal innovation through strategic thought leadership, enterprise-wide advocacy, collaborative sponsorship and execution. AT DTCC, she spearheaded the enterprise-wide AI strategy and overall AI execution, alongside enabling and implementing DTCC’s first blockchain acquisition and integration. Johnna currently serves on the Board of Fnality, Inc. and Hyperledger Foundation.

Prior to her work at DTCC, Johnna held leadership roles at Consensys Software Inc., including Global Co-Head of ConsenSys NFT and Head of Professional Services US, where she served multiple Fortune 100 clients on product design, development and launch, including bringing to market a carbon credit trading platform with a global alliance of 4 banks, designing a securities issuance and lifecycle management platform with 10 of the largest global banks and launching an NFT ticketing platform with Sports Illustrated. Under her leadership, the ConsenSys NFT team spearheaded several high-profile endeavors in NFT collections across industries, including art, entertainment and music, such as Damien Hirst: The Currency Project and The Merge: Regenesis. Prior to that, Johnna was a senior engagement manager at McKinsey & Company, where she focused on corporate strategy and commercial engagements including marketing & sales optimization and go-to-market strategies.

Johnna holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from MIT, where she conducted research in millimeter-wave imaging systems and Ultra-Wideband ("5G") antennas for military applications. While at MIT, she won the IEEE International Best Paper Award for her research, along with a patent for her designs. In addition, BMW used her designs and prototypes in their Ultra-Wideband systems testing.