Ryan Estis is the former Chief Strategy Officer for the $100 million People Marketing division of McCann-Erickson World Group Advertising and now serves at the Chief Experience Officer in a growing speaking and consulting practice. Recently recognized as one of the Top 100 keynote speakers in America alongside Tony Robbins, Bill Gates, Al Gore and Marcus Buckingham, Ryan is a leading expert on Leadership & Culture, Workforce Trends and Communication. He serves as the USA Sr. Associate with Employer Brand International, an advisory member on the SmartBrief Workforce Council, is a certified Human Capital Strategist and professional member of the National Speakers Association.

His consultancy develops strategy and communication design to help companies more effectively connect to their two most important audiences: employees and customers. He shares his thoughts on culture, engagement and leadership on his blog passiononpurposeblog.com.

Internationally recognized as an expert in the field, Mr. Kushner is one of the nation's most sought after speakers on HR strategy and employee benefits. He has advised four U.S. Presidents on health care and has testified before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee and the U.S. House Small Business Committee on employee benefit issues.

A frequent resource to the media, Mr. Kushner contributes to the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, AP, Knight-Ridder, the Kiplinger Washington Newsletter, CNN News, Fortune, MSNBC and Good Morning America among others. More importantly, he and his wife Tamis have five children and four wonderful (and amazing!) grandchildren.

 

Jeff Tulloch is vice president of MetLife’s PlanSmart®, Workplace Benefits, and Business Advantage organization.  

In this role he is responsible for overseeing PlanSmart, MetLife’s financial education platform which provides education and assistance to meet the diverse financial needs of employees.  More than 170 of the Fortune 500 companies currently rely on PlanSmart to support their financial wellness efforts.

 Jeff is passionate about helping employees improve their financial wellness through education and is committed to empowering them to take action to achieve their financial goals.  He speaks at various seminars on the topic and also works with MetLife leaders globally to bring financial education to international employees of companies located in countries such as India, Japan, and Mexico. 

In addition to PlanSmart, Jeff oversees MetLife’s Business Advantage organization, leading a cross-channel initiative that provides coordinated resources and support to help MetLife firms succeed in the small business owner market. 

Through the Workplace Benefits arm of his organization, Jeff manages a team that provides voluntary benefits to companies. 

Jeff has served in a number of roles with MetLife since joining the company in 1996.  Prior to his current role, he had responsibility for MetLife’s Strategic Alliance group, focused on establishing and managing distribution relationships with associations, affinity groups, and a variety of other distribution organizations. 

Jeff and his wife, Karen, live in Ridgefield, CT, and have two college-aged sons.  When he’s not promoting financial wellness, you can find Jeff on a ski slope, racing slalom, giant slalom, and super-G in the United States Masters division.

Jay has more than 30 years of experience as a tax attorney specializing in employee benefits.  Prior to joining World, Jay was a Sr. VP and Senior ERISA Attorney with Lockton was previously the national practice leader for the legal and research team at WT.W

Jay served as a Peace Corps volunteer and business consultant from 1979 to 1982. 

He has an LL.M.  in taxation from New York University School of Law, J.D. with distinction from the University of Arizona College of Law and a BSBA from Washington University in St. Louis.  Jay is the former Chair of the American Benefits Council, an adjunct professor of employee benefits in the LL.M. program at Washington University School of Law.

 

 

 

 

Cory Bouck is the Director of Organizational Development & Learning at Johnsonville Sausage.  He is also an author, keynote speaker, and an expert in building leaders - a reputation he has earned over twenty years of leading in the military, in business, and in politics. He is a graduate of and former leadership instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy and is a former Naval Flight Officer. Cory led brand and event marketing teams at General Mills, Newell-Rubbermaid, and Johnsonville Sausage.  He is also the author of The Lens of Leadership: Being the Leader Others WANT to Follow (2013).

 

David Lee, the founder of HumanNatureAtWork.com, helps employers improve employee engagement, customer service, and morale, though his work as a consultant, trainer, and executive coach. He is an internationally recognized authority on organizational and managerial practices that optimize employee performance.

David is the author of Managing Employee Stress and Safety, as well as over sixty articles and book chapters on employee and organizational performance that have been published in North America, Europe, India, Australia, and China.

Much of his work involves taking research into human nature from a wide range of scientific disciplines, and then translating these principles into practical strategies for optimizing individual and organizational performance.

Using the popular TV show The Dog Whisperer as an analogy for the difference understanding human nature makes, David’s work helps leaders and managers become “Employee Whisperers.”

Richard Schepp, chief administrative officer, oversees Kohl's human resources, legal, risk management and compliance, real estate and business development functions.

Schepp joined Kohl’s in 2000 as senior vice president, general counsel/secretary. He was promoted to executive vice president in 2001 and senior executive vice president in 2011. In 2013, he became senior executive vice president, human resources, general counsel/secretary. He was promoted to the principal officer position of chief administrative officer in 2015.

Prior to joining Kohl's, Schepp, a 23-year retail veteran, served as senior vice president, general counsel/secretary for Shopko. He began his career as an attorney for Quarles & Brady, LLP.

As vice president of human resources, David Almeda is responsible for overseeing the global human resources function at Kronos.  He serves as a strategic business partner to Kronos’ senior leadership team and drives the human capital management strategy, programs, and initiatives to support Kronos’ continued growth and profitability. Prior to his work at Kronos, Almeda spent 16 years in various human resources functions at Staples, most recently as vice president of global human resources.

Almeda holds a master’s degree in HR management, and a doctoral degree from The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School/Graduate School of Education. He is an active member of SHRM; serves on the Board of Directors of the New England Human Resources Association; and is an advisory board member of the Executive Program in Work-based Learning Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania/Wharton. He is a sought-after speaker and expert on HR issues, and has presented at or been published by The Conference Board, Harvard Business School, and CMO Magazine.

 

 

Dr. Loren Murfield is a disruptive thinker who serves as an Executive Coach, Author, Filmmaker, and Speaker. Working with entrepreneurs and organizational leaders, he stretches their thinking to sense and seize cutting-edge opportunities. Dr. Murfield has authored over 30 books, including Pivotal Thinking, Pivotal Leadership, and Pivotal Power. He has also penned eight plays, a screenplay and produced his first movie short in 2020. He holds a Ph.D. in Communication Studies from the University of Nebraska and taught 23 undergraduate and graduate courses in Leadership and Communication.