Concurrent Session

Kevin Abbed is the Specialist, Academic and Afiliate Engagement for SHRM.  Prior to that he served as Member Engagement Associate, where he engaged with members, students and prospective students. Kevin earned his bachelor’s degree in Communications from Penn State University.

Sean McIntosh is a Senior Specialist, Member Advocacy for SHRM. In his role, Sean is responsible for leading SHRM’s Member Advocacy efforts, including SHRM’s Advocacy Team.

Prior to joining SHRM, Sean worked on Capitol Hill in the United States Senate as a Correspondence Manager for a Senator from Iowa (with Sean himself being a native Iowan). During his time on the Hill, he managed all correspondence and constituent database operations for the Senator’s congressional office.

Sean’s beginnings with SHRM Advocacy traces far beyond his employment. Over the last 8 years, he has volunteered at almost a dozen SHRM events, particularly during SHRM “Days on the Hill." In college, he was president of the George Mason University (GMU) SHRM Chapter.

Dianna Sporcic, SHRM-SCP is Members and Community Director for the Southeast Region, which includes the states of AL, FL, GA, Mississippi, Bahama, BDA, PR, DC, KY, NC, SC, TN, VA, WVA. She works remotely from her home in St. Petersburg, FL.

Dianna spent almost 30 years with Hyatt starting in operations and then moving into HR. Most recently she was Director of HR for Hyatt Vacation Ownership (HVO) who is known for the most luxurious vacation ownership resorts in the world. She was instrumental in the M&A when Interval Leisure Group (ILG) purchased HVO. She remained on as a highly valued and strategic member of the ILG HR team while still supporting HVO. After Marriott purchased ILG, Dianna joined ONICON Measurement Solutions. Dianna has diverse HR experience in hospitality, manufacturing and labor relations. Dianna is a member of our Tampa chapter and holds SHRM-SCP certification.

Nate Mahanes,SHRM-CP, is the Affiliate Operations Director for the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM).  Prior to this, he was Director of Dual Membership Operations & Services for SHRM where he led operational and relationship management for the SHRM Dual Membership Release (DRM) program. Nate also serves as the senior account and relationship manager for the SHRM Chapter and State Council Dual Membership Release distribution channel, providing a single point of contact for issue resolution, process optimization and program improvement and strategy.

Mary Cheddie, SHRM-SCP is Divisional Director, Membership Community. 

Cheddie has more than 35 years of domestic and international experience in all aspects of human resources and training. She has extensive experience with strategic planning, M&As, and in starting and turning around businesses.

Prior to joining SHRM, she served as senior vice president of human resources for Interval Leisure Group, Inc. and its affiliated companies. The company was publicly traded on NASDAQ and the leading provider of vacation services with a global consumer membership base of nearly 2 million member families, more than 2,500 member resorts in over 75 countries worldwide, and has oversight for about 14,000 employees. 

Cheddie also served as senior vice president, people with PRC, as well as vice president, human resources, strategic planning, office services, and facilities for The Orvis Company, Inc. in Manchester, VT.

She earned her MBA from Upper Iowa University, a bachelor’s degree from Thomas Edison State College in Trenton, New Jersey, and is certified as a SHRM-Senior Certified Professional.

Cheddie received the HR Award of Excellence, Hospitality in 2016 from South Florida Business & Wealth. Business Leader Magazine named Cheddie one of the 2011 Women Extraordinaire and in 2012 the National Diversity Council awarded her the Glass Ceiling Award.

She serves on the Board of Trustees for Upper Iowa University, Chairs the Human Capital Committee and is a member of the Governance and Advancement Committees, Chaired the Keiser Career College’s Advisory Board, was a member of the Board of Directors for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) from 2003-2008 and chaired SHRM’s governance and compensation committees. Cheddie has more than 35 years of SHRM volunteer leadership experience at the national, regional, state, and local levels.  She also served on the Waldorf College Alumni Board from 2004 through 2008 and was the President of the Dallas HR Association in 2000 (one of the largest affiliated SHRM chapters). She resides in South FL.

Mary A. Augustin, SHRM-SCP, is the Members and Community Director for SHRM's SW Central Region.  She specializes in the topics of Employee Engagement, Harassment, Board Training, and Development, as well as Empathy and Culture in the Workplace.

Faith is Manager, Academic, Affiliate and Student Communities for SHRM.  Prior to this role, Faith served as a Field Services Director (FSD) based in Pittsburgh, PA. In this role she is responsible for membership growth through renewals and member acquisition working closely with the chapter and state council volunteer leaders in IN, KY, MI, ND, SD and TN. Faith also leads strategic planning and succession planning workshops for state councils and chapters along with speaking to SHRM members and non-members on a wide range of HR topics that are impacting employees and employers who are creating Better Workplaces for Better Worlds.

Hannah Wilken is a Regional Director of People Science at Culture Amp. She leads a team of People Scientists who enable organizations to evolve their employee feedback strategy and approach to measuring and developing employee performance by deploying technology and modern psychology. Leveraging her experience in consulting and research, Hannah provides advanced consultative services to organizations, guiding them in their change management efforts and enabling them to make best practice and evidence-informed people and culture decisions.

Prior to Culture Amp, Hannah led the organizational culture and leadership assessment practice of a boutique consulting firm and collaborated on research projects with Columbia University Medical School, the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, and the University of Bremen. She achieved her BSc in Psychology at Osnabrück University (Germany) and her MA in Forensic Psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

Sara Taylor, President and Founder of deepSEE Consulting, has 35 years of extensive experience, nationally recognized as in the practice of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion serving local, national and global clients. While her areas of specialty are in both Diversity and Leadership Development, Sara has become a thought leader particularly in the field of Cultural Competence. Her bestselling book, Filter Shift: How Effective People SEE the World, is used by numerous individuals and organizations to increase success and create greater effectiveness. Sara holds a Master's degree in Diversity and Organizational Development and, prior to founding deepSEE, held positions such as Chief Diversity Officer and Leadership and Diversity Specialist.

Jessica Looman was confirmed as the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) on October 25, 2023. WHD enforces worker protections and provides outreach and education about federal labor laws including minimum wage, overtime, child labor, and family and medical leave. 

Before joining WHD, Jessica served as the Executive Director of the Minnesota State Building and Construction Trades Council, where she advocated to expand construction career pathways, protected the physical and financial health of union construction workers, and increased private and public investment in construction infrastructure. 

Before joining the Building Trades, Governor Mark Dayton appointed Jessica to serve as Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Commerce. She also served as the Deputy Commissioner and the Assistant Commissioner for the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry where she oversaw the strategic coordination of DLI’s five divisions. She has previously served as the General Counsel of the Laborers District Council of Minnesota and North Dakota.

Jessica is a graduate of George Washington University and the University of Minnesota Law School. She lives in St. Paul, Minnesota with her husband and two sons. 

Sona Khosla is Benevity's Chief Impact Officer. At the helm of Benevity Impact Labs, an incubator and resource hub, Sona and her team bring cutting-edge data, research, insights and best practices to help organizations and individuals maximize their impact and live their purpose. She is responsible for infusing impact into Benevity’s business and culture and overseeing the company’s own inclusion and impact initiatives.

As the host of Benevity’s podcast, Speaking of Purpose, Sona is a frequent guest on shows and in the media discussing topics such as authentic employee engagement and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.