MANAGING DIRECTOR
STANTON CHASE

Iris Drayton-Spann, MA, PHR, CDE, SHRM-CP

Iris is a Managing Director at Stanton Chase in Washington, D.C., bringing extensive experience in executive search across for-profit and nonprofit sectors. She specializes in placing all levels/titles of executives for corporations, associations, nonprofit organizations, as well as commercial and public media. Additionally, she focuses on human resource executive placements, board appointments, and social impact consulting, including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Her expertise also extends to leadership assessments, succession planning, and executive coaching for clients.

Prior to joining Stanton Chase, Iris was Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Diversity Officer at WETA TV, one of the largest-producing stations of new content for public television in the United States.

Iris has a Master of Arts from George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Howard University. Iris holds certifications from the Society of Human Resource Management, the Human Resources Certification Institute, and The Institute for Diversity as a Certified Diversity Executive. She is a member of the National Association of Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC). She is a former board member and chair for New Endeavors by Women (NEW) and is a current member of Mercer/Marsh Women’s Executive Leadership Group (WEL). In 2019 and in 2021, DCA Live honored Iris as one of the 25 HR Leaders of the Year in the Washington, D.C. region. She was also named to Mogul’s Top 100 DEI Leaders of 2021; and as one of the Top 10 Most Influential D&I Leaders of the Year 2022, by CIO Views Magazine. Iris was recently presented with the President’s Award for service from the DC Chapter of the National Black MBA Association, Inc. in the fall of 2024.