Leadership (Behavioral)

Nichol Bradford is a futurist, investor, and technology executive
dedicated to amplifying human potential through the thoughtful
integration of AI. As SHRM's AI + HI Executive-in-Residence, she
shapes global strategies impacting 362 million workers through
340,000 HR professionals across 180 countries. She is the Co-Founder
of Niremia Collective, a venture fund investing in the future of human
potential.

With over two decades of experience in technology and human
development, Bradford specializes in strengthening mental, emotional,
and social health (MESH) to drive innovation. She reaches over
100,000 people annually through thought leadership and speaking
engagements, including TEDx talks. Her unique approach combines
psychology, neuroscience, and organizational change to guide
companies through human-centered AI adoption.

Bradford's impressive track record includes operating World of Warcraft
in China, co-founding TransformativeTech.org, and building the largest
global network for human potential technology spanning 450+ cities.
Through her $22.5M venture fund, she targets the $8.5 trillion human
potential market. Her mission is clear: creating a future where AI
enhances human capabilities while strengthening social cohesion and
well-being.

Nichol Bradford is a futurist, investor, and technology executive
dedicated to amplifying human potential through the thoughtful
integration of AI. As SHRM's AI + HI Executive-in-Residence, she
shapes global strategies impacting 362 million workers through
340,000 HR professionals across 180 countries. She is the Co-Founder
of Niremia Collective, a venture fund investing in the future of human
potential.

With over two decades of experience in technology and human
development, Bradford specializes in strengthening mental, emotional,
and social health (MESH) to drive innovation. She reaches over
100,000 people annually through thought leadership and speaking
engagements, including TEDx talks. Her unique approach combines
psychology, neuroscience, and organizational change to guide
companies through human-centered AI adoption.

Bradford's impressive track record includes operating World of Warcraft
in China, co-founding TransformativeTech.org, and building the largest
global network for human potential technology spanning 450+ cities.
Through her $22.5M venture fund, she targets the $8.5 trillion human
potential market. Her mission is clear: creating a future where AI
enhances human capabilities while strengthening social cohesion and
well-being.

After 12 years of building and growing his media company, Arturo Ferreira had a front row seat to what generative AI could do. A technological hobbyist throughout his life, Arturo watched the conversation around generative AI morph from humorous novelty to societal shift. In late 2022, he realized his media company had, at most, a 5 year shelf life, and turned his attention to understanding and mastering the budding field of gen AI and prompt engineering. Alongside Martin Crowley, he helped found AI Tool Report: the largest and fastest-growing AI news and education platform in the world. Using his platform and drawing on his life experience, Arturo's focus is teaching AI from the perspective of the average professional, making complex topics simple and ensuring everyone understands just how accessible, and important, this new technology is.

Rich Horwath is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today best selling author on strategy. As the CEO of the Strategic Thinking Institute, he leads executive teams through the strategy process and has helped more than 50,000 managers around the world develop their strategic thinking skills. As a former chief strategy officer and professor of strategy, he brings both real-world experience and practical expertise to help groups build their strategy skills. Rich's work has been profiled on CNBC, Investor's Business Daily, CBS, NBC and FOX TV.

Dr. Christopher D. Lee is a retired HR executive having served as the CHRO for William & Mary, the Virginia Community College System, and Bates College. He is now a managing director with Storbeck Search. Chris has authored four books, including the SHRM-published Performance Conversations: How to Use Questions to Coach Employees, Improve Productivity, and Boost Confidence (Without Appraisals). He has consulted with over 100 clients in the US, Canada, Australia and South Africa on HR related topics. He is also a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the United States Marine Corps Reserves.       

Hilary Blair, co-founder ARTiculate: Real&Clear, incorporates her professional voice over and performing techniques into a re-framing of executive presence and leadership communication. As a trainer, coach, facilitator and speaker, she sees beyond habits and extensively across the globe with businesses including: AWS, PwC, Maersk, ALCU, Centura Health, Liberty Global, and MD Anderson. Hilary is a CSP™, Certified Speaking Professional, and is certified in Conversational Intelligence™ (CIQ), and CultureTalk. She holds an MFA in acting from the National Theatre Conservatory and a BA from Yale University.

Ashley T. Brundage is the President and CEO of Empowering Differences. While seeking employment at PNC Bank in the United States, she identified openly during the interview process as a woman of transgender experiance and subsequently was hired after facing years of harassment, discrimination, and homelessness. These factors led her to start her second career as a means of survival while doing research on empowerment & differences. She took a role in the bank as a part time teller and then rose to national Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion in less than 5 years. She captured her research as a 4-Step process of empowerment to cultivate change in her new book and online leadership course. Ashley credits her success to those closest to her for providing actionable allyship including her 2 teenage sons, Bryce and Blake. She also volunteers her time serving numerous nonprofit organizations including serving as the vice chair for the national board of directors for GLAAD who works to accelerate acceptance across all forms of media for the LGBTQ+ community.

As the Director, Global Diversity & Inclusion, Jen improves the work experience for all employees through inclusive programs, policies, and behaviors. During her 9+ years at Lenovo, Jen has held several roles within HR. With over 20 years of experience in leadership and development, she has a deep understanding of how to create and deliver effective training programs that promote a more inclusive culture. Working women and mothers are especially important to Jen. She founded and co-chaired Lenovo’s new mother’s group for 3.5 years and is an active board member of Women in Lenovo Leadership (WILL). Jen has a MBA from The George Washington University and a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin Madison. Outside of work Jen enjoys spending time with her husband and two young daughters. She loves yoga and hiking.

Chris Mikulski is Head of Human Resources for H&M, Region Americas, and an accomplished Retail executive with over 20 years of experience in the industry. He began his career with famed American retailer, Toys ”R” Us, where he spent his several years working in stores, learning about the foundational principles of the retail business and management. During his time in stores, he found his passion for connecting people with business success and made a bold decision to pursue a career path in Human Resources. Chris quickly discovered there was no pre-identified path to achieve this ambition, so he set off on a discovery journey to learn as much as he could about the profession from his network of mentors, leaders and advisors. His journey led him to grow through roles in Talent Acquisition, HR Business Partnering, Employee Relations, Total Rewards and Executive Leadership Chris ended his tenure with Toys “R” Us in 2018 and was then recruited to the iconic global fashion brand H&M, serving as the Head of Human Resources for the Americas Region since 2020. In his current responsibility, Chris leads a team of over 100 diverse HR professionals across Canada, USA, Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador who are responsible for supporting 24,000 colleagues across the region. His accomplishments in his current role include leading multiple end-to-end business transformations, architecting a modern colleague experience strategy, increasing colleague retention and engagement, and embarking on the largest HR transformation in the company’s history. Chris also serves as an Executive Sponsor for H&M’s Voices of Internal Black Excellence (VIBE) employee resource group and is a published contributing author in the book “Staying in the Game: Leading and Learning with Agility for a Dynamic Future” by Pamela Meyer. In his personal life, Chris was born and raised in the Hudson Valley area of New York State and currently resides in New York City. He is a proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community and uses his platform to advocate for the equality of all people.

Dr. Whitehead, a certified SHRM and diversity practitioner is a versatile and award-winning senior leader, speaker, strategist, mediator, mentor and coach with over 25 years’ experience in building high performing, inclusive teams. Dr. Whitehead has excelled at "people" work across industries, leading strategic organizational change as well as providing consulting expertise to corporate, non-profit and higher education sectors. Dr. Whitehead has been called a “inclusionist” due to her unique approach to systemic humanity throughout the employee life cycle. Honing her lens of systemic humanity as the “willful interrogation of every element of our “system” of being, acting, communicating and providing access to resources that reflect the foundational belief that all people hold value that is solely connected to their humanity” has helped her “meet employees at all levels, where they are”. A John Maxwell certified coach and leader; Nicole holds several degrees and certifications, however her passion for utilizing her experiences to evolve culture and climate through transformative leadership.