Michael S. Cohen is a partner in Duane Morris’ Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group.  Michael concentrates his practice in the areas of employment law training and counseling. He has trained and counseled employers throughout the country on subjects including harassment prevention; diversity, equity and inclusion; combatting implicit bias; performance management; discipline and discharge; hiring and recruiting practices; performance evaluations; FMLA, ADA and FLSA compliance; leave of absence policies; LGBTQ+ issues in the workplace; substance abuse testing; workplace violence; records retention; conducting background checks; and more. Michael also has conducted investigations into claims of harassment and discrimination and has drafted employee handbooks, employment agreements, non-compete agreements and post-termination agreements. Michael regularly conducts in excess of 200 trainings each year.  He has represented clients throughout the country in EEO and other administrative proceedings.

Michael has been cited as a national authority on employment issues by The New York Times, The Associated Press, USA Today, MSNBC.com, HR Magazine, SHRM On-Line, Employment Law 360, Inside Counsel Magazine, as well as many other publications. Michael serves as an Advisory Board Member of GenHERation and as a Board Member of Serve, Inc. Michael is a 1997 magna cum laude graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law and a cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

Kim Lear is a writer, researcher, and the founder of Inlay Insights. She is known for skillfully weaving eye-opening statistics, insightful stories, and relevant case studies to make presentations come alive. Previously, Kim was the content director at BridgeWorks, a research firm dedicated to generational and millennial trends. Her undergrad research focused on baby boomers and longevity, and her post-grad work centered on millennials and social media trends. She is currently in her ninth year of a longitudinal study on leadership.

Kim was recently named one of today’s best speakers by Meetings and Conventions Magazine, and she appeared as keynote speaker before some of the most renowned companies in the world. She has received rave reviews from clients such as American Express, Cisco Systems, Deloitte, Disney, General Mills, LinkedIn, Mastercard, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Wells Fargo, and more.

In addition to speaking, Kim was head of research on the book Gen Z @ Work. She has written whitepapers on generational wealth transfer, retirement trends, and Gen Z’s impact on higher education. Kim is the writer of the popular Substack, Kids These Days. She has been featured on NPR and national publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, USA Today, and TIME magazine.

She is a highly sought-after generational expert and serves as an advisor to FORE, an AI startup focused on predictive analytics for attrition. She also volunteers for The 78 Cents Project, an organization dedicated to helping young women develop strong presentation skills.

When not delving into the minutia of human behavior, Kim can be found spending time with her husband and daughters in Minneapolis.

Ben Peterson is the global leader of Walmart’s People Product & Design organization, one of the teams bringing Walmart’s people-led, tech-powered vision to life. He is responsible for the vision, strategy, design, and growth of experiences that empower 2.1 million associates across Walmart Stores, Sam’s Club, Walmart International, Global Tech, and corporate functions. Under Ben’s leadership, People Product & Design led the strategy and launch of innovative new products such as Me@Campus, My Assistant, and Me@Sams. His team is focused on building world-class digital experiences that leverage AI, automation, and data-driven insights to drive engagement, operational efficiency, and productivity at scale.

Before joining Walmart, Ben spent nearly a decade at Deloitte Consulting, where he co-founded and led Deloitte Consulting’s Product Management practice, leading new product innovation and shaping the offering’s go-to-market approach, growth strategy, and talent management. Ben architected and led high-performing product organizations to drive product-led transformation across the retail, digital commerce, sports, and FinTech industries.

Ben holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Texas A&M University, and a master’s degree in business administration from Cornell University. Ben is passionate about the future of AI, building high-performing teams, and leading zero-to-one products and ventures. He enjoys spending time outdoors with his family playing tennis, pickleball, disc golf, golf, and backyard football.
 

Ruth Hickin is Vice President of Workforce Innovation & Transformation at Salesforce, where she leads strategies for workforce adaptation in response to AI, skills development, and talent redeployment. She oversees the Career Connect internal mobility platform and drives transformation to meet future business needs.

Before joining Salesforce, Ruth was with the World Economic Forum, where she led strategy and thought leadership on the future of technology and global tech governance, publishing influential reports. She has also held leadership positions at Virgin Unite, focusing on strategic partnerships and impact investments.

Ruth holds an MBA in Design Strategy from California College of the Arts, an Executive Master of Arts (MA) in Global Leadership from the World Economic Forum, and a Master of Arts (Honors) in English Literature from the University of Glasgow.

Brandon Roberts is the group VP of People Analytics and AI at ServiceNow. Roberts has 20 years of experience in people analytics, AI/ML and workforce planning. He has spent his career building and leading teams in these spaces at ServiceNow, Pinterest and Qualcomm. He's passionate about using data and AI to drive better decisions and outcomes at work. Additionally, he is a published author on a variety of HR topics, including advanced analytics, employee experience, cross-cultural psychology at work and equity/inclusion in the workplace.

Charlene is the New York Times bestselling author of six books, including The Disruption Mindset, Open Leadership, and the critically acclaimed Groundswell. Her latest book, Winning with Generative AI: The 90-Day Blueprint for Success, lays out a master plan for generative AI strategy. 

She is an experienced speaker who has inspired leaders in intimate forums and expansive conference halls. She has delivered keynote addresses at such venues as the World Economic Forum, TED, and South by Southwest.

Charlene is frequently quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USAToday, Reuters, and The Associated Press, and she’s shared her expertise on 60 Minutes, The McNeil NewsHour, ABC News, CNN, and CNBC. 

Charlene earned an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and an A.B. degree magna cum laude from Harvard College. In her spare time, she teaches her beloved cat new tricks.

Nilanjan (Neel) Adhya is the Chief Digital Officer of BlackRock. In his role, Neel actively collaborates with marketing, design, product and sales teams at BlackRock to reimagine all aspects of digital experiences, create new digital innovations, build great experiences and accelerate transformation across the digital ecosystem.

Neel has over 25 years of experience working at the intersection of technology, platforms, and people to help global organizations leverage new business models and drive growth.

Nick Schacht is a highly experienced executive with more than three decades of experience in professional services, education,  and corporate learning and development.  He has a history of driving product innovation, growth and profitability and he has led organizations operating worldwide. 

Nick is Chief Commercial Officer for SHRM, the world’s largest HR professional society. Before joining SHRM, Nick was the founder and CEO of KnowCyber, a learning and development company focused on improving the cybersecurity-related skills of people in all types of organizations worldwide. Prior to KnowCyber, Nick was President and Chief Operating Officer for PetroSkills, a provider of training and development services to the worldwide petroleum industry.  Prior to that, he was CEO and President of Learning Tree International, a publicly traded provider of IT and management learning and development.  Nick was also the President of Global Learning Systems, a start-up focused on e-Learning and digital content.  He served in a variety of capacities at ESI International, culminating in his role as President when ESI was sold to the Institute for International Research (IIR) and then as Group President for the Americas for IIR.  He has been a Research Fellow at the Logistics Management Institute, and began his career as a U.S. Navy Supply Officer, on the headquarters staff of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. 

Nick graduated with honors from the U.S. Naval Academy, and holds Master’s degrees in Administration from the University of Maryland University College, and Information Systems Technology from The George Washington University.

Guillermo is a seasoned senior executive with extensive leadership experience driving AI adoption, digital platforms and user-centered business initiatives to accelerate culture transformation and people performance across global organizations. He is a Cofounder of Atlas Copilot AI headquartered in London, UK since the Spring 2023; and balances his time advising unicorns and early stage digital platform ventures (BetterUp, Beamery, Syndio, Yawi Labs, Emerge and Reach Capital).

Most recently he was Boeing’s Chief Learning Offi cer and Sr Vice President of Leadership Development. Before joining Boeing in February 2021, he was IBM’s Global Head of CSR and President of the IBM Foundation. He also previously held roles as IBM’s Chief Learning Offi cer, and the fi rst CHRO for the newly chartered IBM Digital Business Group.

Along with his day-to-day business responsibilities, Guillermo launched the Digital Learning Consortium in 2017 and was actively advising innovation projects with top tier clients to shape business transformation and talent initiatives in collaboration with IBM Consulting. Guillermo also previously served as the CHRO of the InterAmerican Development Bank Group. Based in Washington D.C., he had overall responsibility for people processes and organizational development initiatives for all Bank operations across Latin America and the Caribbean.

He is a member of the Board of Directors of Hortifrut Ltd, the leading berries producer worldwide, and also chairs the Projects Committee of the Jesuits International Foundation Supervisory Board. He is a proud Latino leader and volunteers on initiatives to provide access to education and STEM skills for underserved communities.

Guillermo is a Lawyer, graduated from the Pontifi cia Universidad Católica del Perú in Lima, and attended the Master in Business Administration Program at Deusto University in San Sebastián, Spain. He currently resides in Madrid, Spain with his wife Talia and their 3 children.