James Redstone joined the SHRM External Affairs team after nearly 10 years of service in the U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, and White House. As the Special Assistant to the President responsible for workforce development policy, he oversaw initiatives to modernize federal hiring, expand public access to higher education performance data, provide more granular state and local labor market data, and collaborate with Congress on legislation governing employer-provided education assistance. As the lead workforce development policy expert for the House of Representatives, he negotiated the recent reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act and oversaw the implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

Marni Falcone is a Managing Consultant at FMP Consulting, a human capital consulting firm located in Arlington, VA. Marni has over 13 years of experience working on and leading human capital projects for the public, private and non-profit sectors. Her areas of expertise include: competency model development and strategic implementation, applied training and development, competency/skill gap assessment and analysis, employee selection, and program evaluation. Marni received her MA in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from George Mason University, is a Project Management Professional (PMP), and Certified Scrum Master (CSM). Marni currently serves as the President-Elect of the Personnel Testing Council Metropolitan Washington (PTCMW).

Haylee Gans has over four years of human capital experience spanning both the public and private sectors. Specifically, Ms. Gans has expertise in the areas of competency modeling and assessment, training and development solutions, survey design, and research and data analysis. Ms. Gans applies industrial/organizational psychology principles to identify, develop, and deliver custom solutions that address organizations’ unique needs. She has led and supported several projects with a variety of organizations, including private and non-profit organizations, as well as State and Federal government agencies.  Ms. Gans earned her MA in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from George Mason University, and a BA in Psychology from the University of Notre Dame.    

Robert A. Boonin is a member of the national law firm of Dykema Gossett and is based in its Ann Arbor office. Rob is an honors graduate from The University of Michigan Law School, holds a Masters in Labor and Industrial Relations from Michigan State University, and a BS in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.  Practicing law for nearly 40 years, Rob has litigated employment law matters before federal and state courts across the nation, handles all forms of union matters for employers, and regularly counsels clients on such issues as discrimination, FMLA compliance, and wage and hour law. 

Rob is a recognized leader in his field.  For instance, he is: on the Chambers USA list of top employment law attorneys; listed as a Best Lawyer in Employment Law; repeatedly recognized as one of Michigan’s “Super Lawyers”; a Fellow and a Past-President of the Litigation Counsel of America; a Past Chair of  the national Wage and Hour Defense Institute; a Past Chair of the Michigan Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Section; and a Fellow of the distinguished American College of Labor and Employment Lawyers.  Rob also in an immediate past-chair of the American Bar Association’s Federal Labor Standards Legislation Committee (which covers FLSA matters), and serves as an Editor of the most recognized authority on the FLSA, the Bloomberg BNA legal treatise – The Fair Labor Standards Act.