Leslie Mays is vice president, chief inclusion officer for Avon Products, Inc., responsible for designing and driving the company’s worldwide inclusion strategies, policies and practices in line with Avon’s empowerment mission. She has been leading the design and implementation of the company’s first global women’s strategy across six of Avon’s largest markets around the world, leading development of a new global employee value proposition and integrating D&I into core talent practices. She also currently serves as acting vice president of Global Talent Management.

Prior to joining Avon, Leslie has served in senior executive roles and as an executive level specialist for other leading global corporations for over 20 years. Her key accomplishments include: the establishment of the first auditable global D&I policy in a multinational corporation implemented in 140 countries; applying rigorous, evidence-based analysis to D&I strategy development; educating and partnering with leadership teams in Asia, Latin America, Europe and Africa to improve talent and business performance through understanding and leveraging cultural differences. Her work has resulted in several awards and professional commendations, and has been featured in articles, books, and research in academic, trade and business publications.

Greg Burns is a senior vice president in Human Resources.  In this role he leads the Client Partnership organization, which provides strategic HR support to Allstate’s business areas. Greg also serves as HR business partner for the president of The Allstate Corporation, and president, Emerging Businesses.  

Greg has a deep knowledge of the business, extensive field and corporate experience, and a proven ability to collaborate and influence to drive business results. He brings a diverse  background and unique perspective to HR.   

Greg joined Allstate in 1985. His Allstate career has included a variety of roles in Claims, HR and Business Insurance. As the regional commercial manager for the Northeast Regional Commercial Center in New York, he was responsible for the profit and loss for the Commercial Center. Most of his career has been in HR, with roles supporting Business Insurance, Allstate Personal Property & Casualty, the Illinois Region, the Southern California Region, Encompass, and Allstate Personal Lines Eastern and Western Territories. In 2012, he was promoted to senior vice president, with responsibility for HR’s field organization and Claims support. He took on his current position in January of 2015.  

Greg earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of South Florida and an MBA from the

University of Illinois at Chicago.  He earned his CPCU in 2007. 

Greg is a board member for Countryside Association and the Lake County Workforce Investment Council.

Glenn Sherman is Vice President of Retirement Plans for ICMA-RC. His responsibilities include management of ICMA-RC’s 457, 401, Retiree Health, and IRA programs. Mr. Sherman is responsible for ongoing development and enhancement of these programs in response to competitive, market and legislative and regulatory changes, as well as development and introduction of new programs in support of ICMA-RC’s mission. Mr. Sherman oversaw the development and introduction of ICMA-RC’s guaranteed lifetime income solution.

Mr. Sherman has nearly 25 years of financial services product development experience. Prior to joining ICMA-RC in 2004, Mr. Sherman was President at Retirement Plan Services, LLC, a regional third-party administrator. Prior to Retirement Plan Services, LLC, Mr. Sherman was Vice President, Employee Benefits Product Manager, SunTrust Bank. Mr. Sherman earned a BS in economics from George Mason University and an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University.
 

A powerful storyteller with a powerful story to tell, Dr. Steve L. Robbins has an uncanny ability to inspire people even in the midst of disrupting and challenging the way they think about the world. Born in Vietnam, Dr. Robbins immigrated with his mother to the United States where they faced many challenges during a time when there was much anti-war and anti-Vietnamese sentiment.

Working through and rising out of the challenges of poverty, discrimination and the tough streets of Los Angeles, Dr. Robbins now brings insightful perspectives on issues of inclusion & innovation, leadership, and the power of caring.  Drawing upon a compelling life journey, his talks and workshops are filled with intriguing stories, laugh-out-loud humor and a keen understanding of human behavior.

Dr. Robbins uniquely knows how to simultaneously challenge and motivate people with a dynamic use of storytelling, humor and extensive knowledge of pertinent issues and concepts. The inclusive power of his message are why organizations like Coca-Cola, Disney, Ford Motor Company, Walmart, Lululemon, Pixar, NASA, The NBA,  Michelin, Bank of America, Mercedes-Benz,  and numerous others call on Dr. Robbins to inspire, educate and prepare their people for the exciting challenges of dynamic and diverse environments.

A thought leader and innovator, Dr. Robbins' unique, science-based approach to inclusion and diversity has captured wide acclaim from numerous audiences and organizations across the the world. His approach does NOT blame or point fingers. It uses neuroscience and the science of human behavior to encourage individuals and organizations to be more open-minded, mindful and intentional about inclusion and valuing people for their unique gifts, abilities and experiences.

Dr. Robbins earned an undergraduate degree in Communication from Calvin College, and his masters and doctorate in Communication Science from Michigan State University.  His background in communication, social-psychology and cognitive neuroscience drives his work with individuals and organizations – the core of the work is about understanding human behavior and leveraging human differences in an ever-changing, fast-paced 21st world.

Howard A. Wallack has been the Deputy Chief Human Resources & Administrative Officer since 2016 in the Global Human Resources (GHR) department at Jhpiego in Baltimore, MD, an international, non-profit health organization, affiliated with Johns Hopkins University. Jhpiego is dedicated to improving the health of women, children, and families in lower-resourced countries, with approximately 4,200 employees worldwide in 38 countries. At Jhpiego, Howard spearheads the organization’s leadership development program and leads a team of 5 regional HR business partners who support country HR operations, himself currently backstopping Ghana, Guatemala, and Mozambique. During his 40-year career with experience in nearly 90 countries, Howard has had senior-level positions in HR, training and development, global business development, and program management in for-profit and non-profit businesses and the US Peace Corps. In April 2023 Howard was recognized with an OnCon Icon peer-voted award among the “Top 50 HR Professionals” for having made a considerable impact on their organization and/or previous organizations; made strong contributions to their community through thought leadership; innovated in their role/career; and exhibited exceptional leadership. He has advanced degrees in international affairs and international human resources and globalization and holds multiple professional certifications, including the SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP), and the GPHR® & SPHRi™ qualification from the HR Certification Institute. As a volunteer he has served on the Board of Directors of Cultural Vistas since 2011.