Elissa Jessup, SHRM-SCP, has 8 years' human resources experience in the private sector, higher education, and government. Her areas of expertise include classification, compensation, talent management, benefits and employee relations. Elissa earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications, and a Master of Business Administration degree with an emphasis in Human Resources Management.  Outside of work, she enjoys date nights with her husband, traveling with family and friends, visiting wineries and scrapbooking.

Julie Schweber, SHRM-SCP, has over 18 years of strategic and tactical HR experience in for profit and nonprofit organizations including FedEx and IKON Office Solutions. Prior to joining SHRM, Julie was a senior HR consultant for more than six years and provided Fortune 500 HR expertise to small and midsize organizations. Julie earned her bachelor's degree in human resources with a business minor from Old Dominion University.  Julie enjoys spending time at the beach and hiking.

Jason Averbook is a leading analyst, thought leader and consultant in the area of human resources, the future of work and the impact technology has on that future. He is the Co-founder and CEO of Leapgen, a global consultancy helping organizations shape their future workplace by adopting forward-looking workforce practices and fast-innovating technologies personalized for their business. Prior to founding Leapgen, Jason served as the CEO of The Marcus Buckingham Company (TMBC). In 2005, he co-founded Knowledge Infusion LLC and served as its CEO until 2012, when the company was sold to Appirio. Earlier in his career, he served as the Chief Business Innovation Officer at Appirio Inc., where he led the HCM business. He has also held senior leadership roles at PeopleSoft and Ceridian Corporation. Jason has more than 20 years of experience in the HR and technology industries, and has collaborated with industry-leading companies in transforming their HR organizations into strategic partners.

Jay Polaki, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, is a global HR technology innovator and thought leader in HR digital transformation, future of work, ethical AI in HR, talent selection and assessment systems, and employee experience. She brings her experiential learning and insights to her keynotes and regularly contributes to Forbes, HRD, and other global HR publications. Meeting the challenges of people right where they are, taking the people-first approach, and providing transformational workplace technology solutions is why Jay loves working in the People function. As the founder & CEO of HR Geckos, a digital HR operations platform powered by an AI chatbot, Jay's mission is to transform employee experiences in the hybrid workplace so that people and organizations thrive. Making HR as agile as a gecko is Jay's motto! Jay lives in the Washington DC Metro Area, reads Agatha Christie, grows tomatoes and roses in her verdant garden, swaps HR tech stories with global HR leaders on her podcast HR Bytes, solves puzzles and crosswords, and loves training her chatbot, HR GeckoBot, with her little nephews.

Aradhya Srivastava is a product and technology thought leader with extensive experience and expertise in leading people/HR technology products from inception to shipping. He is currently working at Intuit and playing a leading role in HR technology programs with a focus on total rewards and shared services. Aradhya has worked with global companies such as Levi Strauss Co. ,ESRI , Capgemini and Accenture, where he successfully delivered an Enterprise Technology portfolio of multi-million-dollar programs for several years. He loves working on new products and complex business problems to provide simple, delightful, and scalable solutions that create exceptional customer, employee, and shareholder experiences. He is a turnaround and transformation expert who specializes in bringing structure to chaotic functions/programs and leading product-enabled transformation.

Aradhya has a dual passion for people and technology, and HR tech is a blend of the two. He is passionate about improving the 'technology experience' at large corporations so that all employees have the same flawless experience when interacting with all technology touchpoints at work as they do with consumer technology.

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Jessica Miller-Merrell is the Founder of Workology, a workplace resource for HR, recruiting professionals and business leaders, and host of the Workology Podcast. The site has been listed twice as a top 75 career resource by Forbes. Jessica is the president and CEO of Xceptional HR, a human capital strategy and consulting agency. Because of her industry expertise and knowledge, Jessica’s expertise is sought after and sourced by publications and media including: The Economist, Forbes, CIO Magazine, CBS, Entrepreneur Magazine, and SHRM’s HR Magazine. Her new book, Digitizing Talent: Creative Strategies for the Digital Recruiting Age was published in 2023 by SHRM.

Dave is a nationally recognized trainer, facilitator and speaker. He is the founder and CEO of Oak and Reeds, which offers practical business training to clients including CBRE, PayPal, the Kellogg School of Management, and more.
Prior to starting Oak and Reeds, Dave was a Strategic Consultant at AECOM Strategy Plus, where he developed workplace strategy, change management and virtual collaboration services for government, technology and university clients.
Dave is also an accomplished improvisor. Along with his teammates, he won the National Collegiate Improv Tournament, has headlined shows and festivals across the country, and coached hundreds of people in the art of improvised comedy.
Dave graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in Communications and currently resides in Castro Valley, CA with his wife and two cats.

 

Ms. Walters has more than 30 years’ combined experience in management, HR administration, employment law practice, and teaching.

She has presented at conferences across the country, been engaged as an expert witness, and testified before U.S. Congressional and state legislative committees on employment issues.

Her book, “From Hello to Goodbye: Proactive Tips for Maintaining Positive Employee Relations” is in its 2nd edition and was one of the SHRMStore’s “Great 8” best-sellers for eight consecutive years.

Today, Ms. Walters works as an independent consultant doing business as FiveL Company, “Helping Leaders Limit their Liability by Learning the Law.”SM