Concurrent Session

As the Vice President and Global Head of Human Resources at MS International, Inc. (MSI), Chris leads the HR function for the premier flooring, countertop, and hard surfaces supplier in North America. With over 15 years of experience in HR and business management, Chris has a proven track record of delivering innovative solutions that impact his organization’s people and bottom line. Before his career in HR, he was a business leader responsible for managing sales, supply chain, and warehouse operations for one of the largest private employers in the US. He is a certified Diversity and Inclusion professional, a member of Forbes Magazine’s Human Resources Council, a member of Newsweek Magazine’s Americans Greatest Workplaces Council, and has won the Distinguished HR Leaders award for the last 3 years. In his current role, he partners with the executive team and the operational and sales management teams to align HR strategies with business goals. He oversees all HR activities across 50+ locations in the US, Canada, and India, including employee relations, organizational development, diversity and inclusion, performance management, training, benefits, compensation, rewards, wellness, workers compensation, injury prevention, and compliance. He also leads MSI’s HR modernization efforts, leveraging automation, big data, artificial intelligence, and machine learning techniques to enhance people practices. 

Mr. Bedi joined Visa in 2014 in Asia Pacific leading its regional client engagement strategy. Recently, he led all sales learning and leadership development for Visa in North America. He is currently focused on helping organizations develop a coaching culture. Mr. Bedi has shared his thought leadership and expertise in this area at leading HR conferences, including the Conference Board (https://www.conference-board.org/events/engagementsummit)

Prior to Visa, Arun was with PayPal  in Sales Enablement.  Previously, he was with  Dell Computers where he helped to develop an integrated go-to-market strategy for emerging markets.   Before Dell, he was with Cisco Systems,  in the client-facing strategic consulting practice.

In his early career, Mr. Bedi ran a successful US fintech startup to provide credit scoring for under-represented minorities.    Mr. Bedi has also held assignments globally with Chase Manhattan Bank and Citibank.  He started his career as a management consultant with Booz Allen & Hamilton, in the Financial Services practice.  Mr. Bedi graduated from Cornell University with a BA, BSc, and an MBA. While at Visa, he pursued his Masters in HR at Cornell (awarded July 2023) with an emphasis on coaching and internal talent marketplaces.

Mike Horn helps executives, aspiring leaders, and their teams avoid, minimize, or reduce poor outcomes related to people and culture actions and decisions. He coaches clients on how to close the gap between probable (the best they can do) and possible (what they are capable of doing).

⭐️ Coached an IT Security executive into success following being made redundant following organizational restructure
⭐️ Led an Engineering VP and his team through a significant organizational redesign to increase managerial opportunity and career development for software, hardware, and mechanical engineers
⭐️ Worked with a founder and CEO to re-imagine his career and leadership impact
⭐️ Developed a newly formed global HR team in the midst of an organizational contraction
⭐️ Coached a Biotech VP to seek new career success following failure at their current company
⭐️ Assisted a biopharma technical leader to advance their career for promotion

An expert in human and organization development who works with leaders with technical backgrounds (scientists, technologists, engineers, financiers), helping them excel at what they do while developing leadership skills - including the ability to influence others authentically.

Mike Letizia is an accomplished, certified, senior human resource executive with over 35 years’ experience in the full scope of all HR functional areas. His last 23 years holding Director, Vice President, and President roles in HR. Mike is a subject matter expert in California employment law and is the author and developer of, “California Employment Law Essentials for Business” and has collaborated with SHRM in the development of education courses focused on California employment law.

Through his company, Mike provides full scope human resource services to over 30 small to medium sized business in California with a strong focus on training and development. He is a contracted instructor for SHRM delivering both virtual and face-to-face human resource education courses throughout the USA and California. He is also a frequent speaker at business and trade associations delivering presentations, workshops and courses on a variety of human resource topics.

Femily is a gender inclusion consultant who advises tech startups on promoting allyship cultures, advancing women of diverse ethnicities and orientations, and reducing all manner of workplace bias.

With extensive DEI industry experience and a management consulting background, Femily helps companies implement common sense, evidence-based changes that make workplaces welcoming, safe, and inspiring for everyone.

Specifically, Femily helps companies by designing customized high-level diversity, equity, and inclusion roadmaps and provides non-judgmental advisory sessions throughout their implementation processes.

WHAT I DO
I co-pilot Gravity Learning as we design, deliver, and oversee fantastic (ahem!) in-person and remote learning programs for mid and large organizations. We specialize in soft "people" skills, management, systems, software process, product, and compliance.

POINT OF VIEW
My belief is that all learning should be based in science, not trends or common knowledge. But, that's not enough. It must also be engaging, skill-focused, and measured to the point of "proof". Learning without measurement is just a wish.

And... fun. Let's have fun while we're here on this Earth.

WHO I AM
I've been a bit of an obsessive generalist my whole life. An insatiable desire to learn, grow, and share learning with others has come in handy in the learning industry. I nerd out on learning and how humans work, project management, time management, emotional management, classroom management, people management, and... basically all of the managements. If I had to pick a favorite, my main area of interest is the exquisite art of teaching and learning design.

PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
A Gravity, we solve problems inherent in the way companies traditionally do learning. We do that by focusing on how humans actually learn AND how business decisions are made. We’ve innovated a multi-touch and ROI focused approach to learning that Gravity uses to build and support workshops. I also thought-partner to help supercharge (and sometimes totally revamp) internal learning departments for our clients.

TRIVIA
I ride a Onewheel electric skateboard around the neighborhood like some kind of teenager. I have three wonderful dogs and one of them is named David Lieberman Junior. My Google Fu is strong.

Remy Biglow is a talent development professional who provides consulting services to non-profits.  She is on the Board of Directors for ATD Golden Gate and is the Head of Certifications for SHRM NorCal. Remy holds an MEd degree from the Memorial University of Newfoundland and her SHRM-SCP, CPTD, PMP, and SHRM California HR Law Specialty certifications. 

Elizabeth is currently the Manager, Foundation Programs overseeing SHRM Foundation’s strategic priority of Building Inclusive Workplaces. In that capacity, she oversees the Foundation’s initiatives around leveraging untapped talent including Veterans At Work, Employing Abilities and Getting Talent Back to Work. She joins the Foundation with extensive experience across the corporate, nonprofit, and government sectors. She most recently served as the Deputy Executive Director for PFLAG National working to advance equality and anti-discrimination efforts. In that role, she also partnered with corporate diversity and HR professionals on partnerships to impact the workplace culture for the LGBTQ community. She lives in Alexandria with her spouse, two sons, and an oversized rescue dog.

Bernadette Jones is a trailblazing HR leader with over 20 years of experience crafting "Culture-First" solutions across diverse organizations. As Human Resource Committee Chair at Richmond Art Center and Professional Development Chair for SHRM Northern California, she champions intentional inclusion and culture-first practices. Bernadette's innovative "Respect in the Workplace Starts With Me®" workshop series addresses crucial compliance and cultural issues. With SPHR and SHRM-SCP certifications, she brings deep HR expertise to her roles. Bernadette's leadership in Visionova's participation in SHRM's National HR Registered Apprenticeship Program demonstrates her commitment to nurturing HR talent and enhancing workplace environments. Her work connects over 27,000 HR professionals across 16 SHRM chapters in Northern California.

April Treece has represented business interests with K-12 education for well over two decades. During that time, she set education policy for eight years as a trustee for one of the largest school districts in the East Bay leading the effort to transition career technical education to career pathways believing every child should be college ready and work ready—that it is one in the same.

Leading the nonprofit, Bay Area LEEDS, Treece is proud that the organization is one of the few business/education intermediaries in the Bay Area that brings long-term talent development solutions to workforce shortages by engaging STEM career pathway educators (K-16) and employers who have high-demand, difficult-to-fill STEM jobs. Through innovative programming, her team develops, plans and executes industry-supported approaches that build a more diverse, inclusive and equitable talent base assuring economic vitality in our local communities.
Treece blends her 25-year Fortune 500 public relations work with leadership experience, and has managed STEM-related intermediary efforts in the East Bay since 2001.

Treece has a distinguished career—the highlight having received the Presidential Award for Private Sector Initiatives at White House ceremonies while working at AT&T.

She is a 33-year resident of Clayton and resides there with her husband of 41 years.