In-person Pass

G. Riley Mills is an Emmy Award-winning producer and writer, and the co-founder of Pinnacle Performance Company. He is the co-author of the book The Bullseye Principle and was included in the list of "Top Leadership Speakers" by Inc. Magazine. He presented his TEDx session "Are We Killing Communication" at the Shanghai American School and has guest-lectured at such institutions as the Columbia University, London Business School, Manchester United, and The Royal Household at Buckingham Palace. Mills has written about leadership and communication for Forbes, Fast Company, and Inc. Magazine. 

Lisa Cooper, Co-Founder of Workplace Healing and the Human Recovery Platform™ helps corporate leaders recognize how empathy can help them engage an employee experiencing a life disruption and lead a high-performing team. By striking a delicate balance of thought and humanity, leaders enhance team performance, corporate culture and fiscal well-being.  

 A former marketing professional, Lisa earned a reputation in the advertising industry for driving creative solutions as she led marketing campaigns for Fortune 500 companies and small businesses. She built upon her corporate success by launching a consulting practice and sharing her expertise in teaching graduate-level marketing classes.   

As an HR Visionary, Samm has spent the last decade passionately pursuing the missing elements for employee engagement within organizations. 

This path led her to studies in Classical Oriental Medicine, and now as a certified Medical Qigong Therapist (pronounced “chee-gong”), Samm brings both Western and Eastern perspectives on wellness into workplaces to heal burnout.  She’s discovered that energetic health is key to building thriving workplaces. 

Samm founded a workplace wellness center called the HRart Center (pronounced “heart”). Also the author of four books, her most recent book Workplace Healers dives into her latest work.

Adam Rosenthal is an employment attorney and Partner at Sheppard Mullin based in California.  Adam represents a broad spectrum of companies before federal and state courts and arbitration forums.  In addition to his single plaintiff and class action litigation practice, Adam advises clients throughout the country on compliance matters.  Adam is one of the few attorneys on the SHRM Speakers Bureau.  This is the third year in a row Adam has been invited to lecture at the SHRM Annual Conference.  Adam is also the author of Managing Employees Without Fear: How to Follow the Law, Build a Positive Work Culture, and Avoid Getting Sued.  Adam received his undergraduate degree from UCLA and his law degree from UC Davis.

Lorne Epstein, SHRM-SCP, MSOD, is a social scientist, keynote, and Vistage speaker who consults with senior leaders on improving decision-making outcomes by reducing biases. Over 50,000 professionals have taken his workshops worldwide. He has been quoted in Forbes, Cosmopolitan, Christian Science Monitor, and other publications. His research focuses on improving decision-making and reducing the impacts of unconscious bias in the workplace. Lorne has been leading experiential workshops since 1993. His book, You're Hired! Interview Skills to Get the Job has been downloaded over a half-million times worldwide. Lorne is currently studying cognitive neuroscience at the master’s level at George Mason University. He was admitted to the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and Psi Chi, The National Honor Society of Psychology.

I was a talent acquisition leader for 23 years supporting teams in the United States, Brazil and India. Many of my teams won awards for their performance. I wrote the National Talent Acquisition and Diversity Hiring plan for the United States Forest Service.

Dr. Shirley Davis, CSP, President of SDS Global Enterprises, a global workforce solutions firm, is an award-winning Human Resources expert, with over 30 years of business experience in a variety of senior executive roles for several Fortune 100 companies, as well as her last role of Vice President of Global Diversity and Inclusion for the Society for Human Resource Management. She’s also a best-selling author of 5 books, serves on the National Speakers Association and the NSA Foundation Boards, and the Make A Wish Foundation Board. She is a popular facilitator for eight LinkedIn Learning leadership courses.

Ginni Rometty was the ninth Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of IBM. Under her leadership, the 100-year-old company reinvented 50 percent of its portfolio, built a $25 billion hybrid cloud business, and established leadership in AI and quantum computing. Rometty also drove record results in diversity and inclusion and supported the explosive growth of an innovative high school program to prepare the workforce of the future in over twenty-eight countries. 

Through her work with the Business Roundtable, Rometty helped redefine the purpose of the corporation. She has been named Fortune’s #1 Most Powerful Woman three years in a row, is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and has been honored with the designation of Officier in the French Légion d’Honneur. Today, Rometty serves on multiple boards and cochairs OneTen, a coalition committed to upskilling, hiring, and promoting one million Black Americans without four-year degrees by 2030 into family-sustaining jobs and careers. She is married to Mark Rometty, and the author of the bestselling book Good Power: Creating Positive Change in Our Lives, Work and World.

Mitch Albom is the author of numerous books of fiction and nonfiction, which have collectively sold more than forty million copies in forty-seven languages worldwide. He has written seven number-one New York Times bestsellers – including Tuesdays with Morrie, the bestselling memoir of all time, which topped the list for four straight years – award-winning TV films, stage plays, screenplays, a nationally syndicated newspaper column, and a musical. Through his work at the Detroit Free Press, he was inducted into both the National Sports Media Association and Michigan Sports halls of fame and is the recipient of the 2010 Red Smith Award for lifetime achievement. After bestselling memoir Finding Chika and “Human Touch,” the weekly serial written and published online in real-time to raise funds for pandemic relief, his latest work is a return to fiction with The Stranger in the Lifeboat (Harper, November 2021).  He founded and oversees SAY Detroit, a consortium of nine different charitable operations in his hometown, including a nonprofit dessert shop and food product line to fund programs for Detroit’s most underserved citizens. He also operates an orphanage in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, which he visits monthly. He lives with his wife, Janine, in Michigan. Learn more at www.mitchalbom.com, www.saydetroit.org, and www.havefaithaiti.org. 

Valerie helps companies improve their bottom line by elevating employees from tactical thinkers to strategic leaders.

She served in senior leadership roles at RollsRoyce Aircraft before helping to found InterActiveCorp, parent company to Expedia, Home Shopping Network and TicketMaster. She then went to work for Oprah Winfrey, helping to found the Oxygen channel which was later sold to NBC Universal.

Valerie obtained her mechanical engineering degree from Kettering University and her MBA from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. Val’s book, Clash of the Generations: Managing the New Workplace Reality, helps leaders manage multiple generations in the office.

Robert Bogue has led change projects for three decades. As a recovering technologist, he’s changed the way people work as he changed the technology. He’s the author of 28 books and has been a Microsoft MVP for 20 years. His work has transformed corporations, government, and quasi-government organizations. It’s not about the technology, but he leverages his strength in technology and human systems to create change that is sustainable and transformative for organizations of all sizes and shapes.

An authority on brave leadership and founder of The Brave Initiative, Carol has been educating, empowering, and entertaining audiences internationally for almost a decade. She is committed to helping building braver workplace cultures - where every person is brave enough to bring all of who they are to all of what they do. She holds a BFA in Theatre Performance, an MA in Communication, two postgraduate certificates in coaching and mentoring, and has worked with numerous Fortune 500 companies, International Associations, and thousands of leaders and individuals to get their brave on. Whether it be asking for a raise or promotion, nailing a presentation, or climbing Africa’s highest peak, her clients attribute her insights and inspiration to achieving what they never thought possible. She is also a dedicated mental health advocate, and founder of Brave Beyond Diagnosis, a community dedicated to empowering women living with mental health challenges. In speaking openly about her own experience with mental illness, she makes it okay to not be okay. Her work on creating safer spaces in the workplace, and inviting braver conversations around mental health, is changing the landscape on this important topic. Carol is a published author, been featured in numerous magazines and podcasts, and is a returning guest expert on Rogers TV in Canada. Having lived and worked in 16 countries including Ashrams in India and vans in New Zealand, rocked dreadlocks in Thailand and shaved her head for breast cancer, she certainly walks her talk and brings a global perspective to all she does. When she’s not traveling or speaking on stage, you can find her volunteering as a bereavement facilitator, training for her next triathlon, or practicing her serious carpool karaoke game! 

Robert Bogue has led change projects for three decades. As a recovering technologist, he’s changed the way people work as he changed the technology. He’s the author of 28 books and has been a Microsoft MVP for 20 years. His work has transformed corporations, government, and quasi-government organizations. It’s not about the technology, but he leverages his strength in technology and human systems to create change that is sustainable and transformative for organizations of all sizes and shapes.

Ryan Gottfredson, Ph.D. is a cutting-edge leadership development author, researcher, and consultant. He helps organizations vertically develop their leaders primarily through a focus on mindsets. Ryan is the Wall Street Journal and USA Today best-selling author of Success Mindsets: The Key to Unlocking Greater Success in Your Life, Work, & Leadership. And, he is the author of the upcoming book, The Elevated Leader: Leveling Up Your Leadership Through Vertical Development. He is also a leadership professor at the College of Business and Economics at California State University-Fullerton.

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.

Steve Browne, SHRM-SCP is the Chief People Officer for LaRosa's, Inc., a regional Pizzeria chain. He has 35+ years working as an HR professional in a variety of industries. He has a globally recognized HR blog and author of three books, HR on Purpose !!, HR Rising !! and HR Unleashed !! He is a past member of the SHRM Board of Directors. Steve also runs a global HR network called the HR Net which reaches 15,000+ HR and business professionals weekly.

Barbara Trautlein is author of Change Intelligence and originator of the CQ® System for Developing Change Intelligence®. For over 30 years, Barbara has coached executives, trained leaders at all levels, certified change agents, and facilitated mission-critical change initiatives. She is gifted at sharing strategies and tactics that are accessible, actionable, and immediately applicable. Barbara has a unique ability to connect with her audiences in industries across the globe. Clients served include Abbott, BP, Cisco, Deloitte, Northwestern University, and the United Nations.  Barbara holds a doctorate in Organizational Psychology from the University of Michigan. 

Raymond Lee is the Founder and President of Careerminds, a global outplacement company based in Wilmington, Delaware. He has over 20 years of human resource, outplacement, and career consulting experience. Raymond pioneered the concept of virtual outplacement after experiencing years of traditional outplacement in a variety of HR roles. He has his bachelor’s in psychology and holds a Master’s Degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Louisiana Tech University. He sits on the Careerminds Board of Director’s and is active in SHRM, HRPS and ATD. Raymond’s been featured on SiriusXM Business Radio, CareerTalk, and the Wall Street Journal and he’s recently published a book titled, Clocking Out: A Stress Free Guide to Career Transitions.

Steve Mellor is an ICF PCC-certified Executive Coach and has coached high performers for 2 decades such as elite athletes, business owners, executives, and emerging leaders. As the owner of Career Competitor Coaching, Steve oversees coaching and workshop facilitation that ensures clients invest in their optimal selves when pursuing optimal performance. As a speaker, it is Steve’s mission to educate, equip, and empower audiences to make lasting investments into their personal growth, performance mindset, and culture development. An author, a podcast host, a devoted husband, and a committed embarrassing dad to his two children, Steve is the coach who realizes his potential by helping you realize yours

Dr. Cynthia Pearce LeMay is a senior-level researcher and author of a recently published book on intergenerational conflict in the workplace. Her current research is focused on conflict resolution, intergenerational conflict, and the Millennial generation. During her career, Cynthia held senior level positions with Fortune 500 companies where she negotiated billion-dollar agreements, participated in union negotiations, and led a Human Resources Department. She has lifetime certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources and is a certified Mediator. Cynthia holds a Ph.D. from Kennesaw State University where she teaches in the business school while continuing her consulting and training business.

Ashley T. Brundage is the President and CEO of Empowering Differences. While seeking employment at PNC Bank in the United States, she identified openly during the interview process as a woman of transgender experiance and subsequently was hired after facing years of harassment, discrimination, and homelessness. These factors led her to start her second career as a means of survival while doing research on empowerment & differences. She took a role in the bank as a part time teller and then rose to national Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion in less than 5 years. She captured her research as a 4-Step process of empowerment to cultivate change in her new book and online leadership course. Ashley credits her success to those closest to her for providing actionable allyship including her 2 teenage sons, Bryce and Blake. She also volunteers her time serving numerous nonprofit organizations including serving as the vice chair for the national board of directors for GLAAD who works to accelerate acceptance across all forms of media for the LGBTQ+ community.

After several years producing and facilitating team building programs for a variety of companies, Matt May recognized that there was an alternate way to provide engaging, interactive experiences. As a result, he created Premier Team Building & Interactive Experiences®, delivering programs nation-wide, and abroad. As the company’s president, he is responsible for the design & development of its experiences, overseeing the production and facilitation of these programs, customer support, and staff training. Additionally, in his career, May has served as a producer, director, manager, administrator, educator, and consultant for various event and live entertainment, theatrical, and educational organizations.

Shari Harley, author of How to Say Anything to Anyone, is known globally as an engaging, funny, content-rich business speaker. Her international training firm, Candid Culture, is making it easier to tell the truth at work. Shari is bringing candor back to the workplace. A former HR practitioner and operations leader, Shari’s practical approach has led her to speak and train in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, India, Dubai and Australia. From “Making Meetings Work” and “Delegating Better” to “Managing Your Career” and “Saying Anything to Anyone,” Shari’s tips are sure to delight and inform in a real, direct and very funny way. Watch videos and learn more about Shari at www.candidculture.com.

Valerie helps companies improve their bottom line by elevating employees from tactical thinkers to strategic leaders.

She served in senior leadership roles at RollsRoyce Aircraft before helping to found InterActiveCorp, parent company to Expedia, Home Shopping Network and TicketMaster. She then went to work for Oprah Winfrey, helping to found the Oxygen channel which was later sold to NBC Universal.

Valerie obtained her mechanical engineering degree from Kettering University and her MBA from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. Val’s book, Clash of the Generations: Managing the New Workplace Reality, helps leaders manage multiple generations in the office.

Steve is a member of the Speaker Hall of Fame and was recognized in 2015 as one of the top 10 motivational speakers globally from over 9,000 candidates.

In addition to being one of the most sought-after speakers in North America, he has written 11 books and was named Author of the Year by Advantage/Forbes for his book Enjoy The Ride.

Steve built a multimillion-dollar company, which the Pittsburgh Business Times named one of the fastest-growing privately held companies in the region. Steve is one of SHRM’s top-rated speakers. This is his 18th consecutive year speaking at the SHRM Conference.