Daria Torres is a tech-savvy, proven strategist with over 20 years of global, cross-sector executive experience. As founder and managing partner of Walls Torres Group, Torres has led her firm in serving an extensive portfolio of esteemed clients, including blue-chip Fortune 500 businesses, multinational philanthropic organizations, leading academic institutions, and pioneering technology companies. Across her consulting career, which began at McKinsey & Company, Torres has played a defining role in a host of groundbreaking deals and market advancements, primarily within the most heavily regulated sectors of the economy. As a former Lockheed Martin systems engineer with top secret/sensitive compartmented information clearance, Torres also has signature strengths in digital transformation, cyber/information security, and risk management. Altogether, Torres is known for channeling vast interdisciplinary knowledge to foster sustainable growth and added value across an extraordinary range of industries and contexts.

As one of the earliest NACD Certified Directors in the nation, Torres serves on the board of Columbia Bank and its parent company Columbia Financial Inc. (NASDAQ: CLBK), where she is a member of the audit and risk committees. CLBK is the highest-performing bank stock on Nasdaq as well as a top 5% performer on the index overall. Previously, Torres was a member of the advisory board at Roshni Rides, a technology-driven transportation-services platform operating in Karachi, Pakistan. She counseled the cofounders through successive rounds of the Hult Prize competition in which they ultimately prevailed over 50,000 teams from more than 100 countries, securing a $1 million prize presented by former president Bill Clinton at the United Nations. In addition, Torres has served as an independent director with Human Resolution Technologies, a privately held venture specializing in patent-protected health devices. Her guidance helped the company navigate the tumult of COVID-19 and pivot into digital spirometry with zero investor attrition.

Torres is also a top-rated, award-winning faculty member affiliated with multiple universities. At The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, she has consistently garnered impeccable reviews while lecturing in progressively more advanced levels of the program. During her 10-year tenure with the Rutgers University School of Business at Camden, she was twice recognized at Commencement with a teaching excellence commendation, an extremely rare honor for adjunct professors. In similar fashion, courses Torres has designed for Executive Electives Week at Drexel University are repeatedly among the most popular and highest ranked across the catalog.

A recognized expert on strategy, leadership, and governance, Torres has been featured in a number of business podcasts as well as in TV and radio interviews. She also has advised scores of fast-track leaders, entrepreneurs, and start-ups through cohort-based programs convened by Goldman Sachs, Cornell Tech, Camelback Ventures, The Enterprise Center, Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia, and Management Leadership for Tomorrow. Always generous with her counsel, Torres enjoys mentoring rising professionals through her lifetime affiliations with the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, Girl Scouts of the USA, University of Virginia Alumni Association, Mensa International, National Black MBA Association, and the National Society of Black Engineers.

Torres has a deeply rooted spirit of social responsibility and is an engaged contributor to individuals, organizations, and communities. She is the board chair of Giving Cycle, an innovative, experiential youth philanthropy program, and serves as a trustee for the University of Virginia Engineering School Foundation. She has also invigorated growth and strengthened impact while serving on the boards of the Wharton Black MBA Alumni Association, University of Virginia IDEA Fund, SOSAfrik International, Camden Dream Center, and Holland Scholars Program.

At the University of Virginia, Torres earned high honors and completed her bachelor of science in systems engineering with a double major in economics. She also holds a master's in systems engineering with a specialization in telecommunications from the University of Pennsylvania and a master of business administration in operations and information management from The Wharton School, where she graduated with Director's List distinction. With a personal mantra of "when is the last time we did something for the first time," Torres is intrinsically wired for learning and adventure and treasures time with her loving family and many circles of friends.