Concurrent Sessions

Shebani Patel is a director with PricewaterhouseCoopers in their Saratoga practice where she is responsible for helping U.S. and global organizations in their measurement initiatives. Shebani works with many organizations across a variety of industries to help them understand how their results illustrate areas of strength as well as opportunities for maximizing human capital investment. Most recently, Shebani developed the Metrics 101 and 200 courses that are taught around the country and focus on helping HR professionals utilize metrics and dashboards to drive organizational success.

Laura J. Mazel has more than 20 years of experience leading corporate and research institution clients through the immigration process. Laura helps corporate clients assess the immigration consequences and benefits related to mergers, acquisitions and other corporate restructurings. She conducts internal audits on I-9 documentation, H-1B and LCA compliance to minimize employer liability, and E-Verify registration, and has conducted numerous trainings. She is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University and Northeastern University School of Law.

Flora Houn Hoffman has extensive experience implementing comprehensive proactive compliance programs in a variety of industries. Prior to joining WSM, Flora was a managing partner with an international immigration firm, where she worked with Fortune 500 companies and start-ups to establish, maintain and improve immigration policies and procedures. She is a graduate of Harvard University and Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley.

Beth N. Gibson is assistant deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Prior to ICE, she served as assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia in the major crimes unit and the terrorism and national security unit, where she prosecuted criminal cases and coordinated the district’s immigration policies. Beth has served in the Executive Office for Immigration Review in a variety of capacities. She attended James Madison University and holds a master’s degree from Western Kentucky University. She was valedictorian and graduated summa cum laude from the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville.

Autumn Wagner, MBA, is a dynamic organizational development consultant and program manager with a proven ability to execute new and critical strategic initiatives for organizational success. Leveraging her deep functional strengths in HR and project management, Autumn has become known as a creative developer of solutions to key business problems. Autumn is the winner of several awards for customer service applications, performance support technology and corporate communication interventions, including the ASTD award-winning EPSS corporate knowledgebase for AAA.

Carole Berkson-Ross, PMP, CPT, CSM, is an award-winning senior level change leadership strategist and talent development manager. Her leadership of groundbreaking projects links learning solutions, new technologies and culture change with the bottom line for employee engagement and measurable business results. Carole’s interactive media firsts include the Apple Videodisc ToolKit and the ASTD award-winning EPSS corporate knowledgebase for AAA. As AAA IT talent development manager, Carole led the hard and soft skills development of 600 employees and merged two clashing IT cultures into one productive team.

Mary L. Topliff, Esq., of the Law Offices of Mary L. Topliff in San Francisco, advises human resources professionals in all aspects of employment law with a focus on preventing costly litigation. She regularly conducts workplace investigations and helps employers deal with the aftermath of workplace disputes through mediation and problem-solving strategies. Mary recently served on the board of directors of NCHRA.

Marianne Jones, MSHROD, has more than 15 years of experience working with senior management teams to create and execute human capital strategies and initiatives integral to achieving critical business results. She has served most recently as HR director in a New York-based Fortune 100 financial services organization and previously worked as a human resources executive with a multi-national retailer, with providers of financial and insurance services in the U.S., and with a large not-for-profit organization in Central California. Since 2010, Marianne has been consulting on senior-level succession planning processes, new manager integration, team effectiveness and individual leadership coaching.

Chris Chan is a senior Health and Group Benefits consultant and he has worked closely with many employers to strategically align benefits with their HR and total rewards philosophy and their financial objectives. Most recently, Chris has been evaluating ways to increase engagement through the use of behavioral economics, mobile technology, social networks and game design.

Rebecca McCathern, SPHR, spent many years as an HR partner to senior (C-level) executives in several industries and now focuses her strengths in a strategic acquisitions role across Cisco globally. In this role, Rebecca brings her years of aligning organizations to the goals of the business internally, to a focus on creating that synergy between the acquired company and the growing internal business.

Jennifer Vessels, CEO of Next Step, has more than 30 years of talent development experience in sales and marketing director roles with Tandem, Ungermann-Bass and Tandberg (now a Cisco company). Since Jennifer founded Next Step in 1997, its 40 seasoned professionals have provided the tools, skills and resources to maximize growth for Cisco Systems, Adobe, Genentech, Goodwill Industries and numerous smaller organizations. Jennifer is a Certified Management Consultant (CMC) and holds a MBA from San Jose State University and a Master of Occupational Psychology from the University of London.

Jane Kow received her B.S. at Cornell University and her J.D. at New York University School of Law. Before founding Jane Kow & Associates, she practiced at leading national law firms where she defended companies against employment claims and advised them on all aspects of workplace laws. Jane devotes her practice to helping employers develop sound personnel policies and practices to reduce the risk of lawsuits. She creates customized training programs on effective documentation and performance management practices, conducting workplace investigations, sexual harassment prevention and workplace disability accommodations.

Sharawn Connors, MA, PMP, PHR, provides vital leadership expertise for the human resources division at Safeway, Inc., a Fortune 100 company, where she is a senior project manager. Sharawn holds a B.A. in history from California State University, Hayward, and a master’s degree in human resources management from Golden Gate University in San Francisco. She earned her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification in 2005, and Professional in Human Resources (PHR) in 2009. Sharawn teaches HR and project management curriculum as a visiting professor at the Keller Graduate School.

Joe Gerstandt helps Fortune 500 corporations, small non-profits, and everything in between deliver on their promises. He speaks at numerous conferences each year and blogs at joegerstandt.com. Joe is a regular contributor to numerous print and online journals including the Workforce Diversity Network Expert Forum, Diversity Executive, HR Executive, The Diversity Factor, and The Corporate Recruiting Leadership Journal. He served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and attended Iowa State University.

Kathryn Shen has over 25 years of human resources experience in successive, challenging roles with leading organizations including Alcoa and Goodrich, Inc.  Her expertise is in HR and labor relations consulting, workforce planning, and employee development.  Kathryn is an attorney and has an MBA, both from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.

John Ford mediates, trains and consults to organizations seeking to approach the inevitability of conflict with greater clarity and confidence. He teaches negotiation at UC Hastings College of the Law and mediation at Golden Gate University. John is the trainer of NCHRA’s two-day Mastering Mediation seminar, was managing editor of Mediate.com from 1999 to 2011, and is a past president of the Association for Dispute Resolution of Northern California. He is writing a book on mediation for HR managers.

Michael J. Lotito is a partner who travels nationwide and internationally for Jackson Lewis LLP and L&E Global, an alliance of premier boutique law firms enhancing the Jackson Lewis services and footprint worldwide. Michael practices all aspects of traditional labor relations, including matters arising under the National Labor Relations Act. He is one of the nation’s leading authorities on preventive strategies in the workplace and serves as lead counsel for some of the country’s largest corporations.

Salvatore Falletta, GPHR, has more than 20 years of experience in human resources, workplace learning and performance, human capital management and organization development. He is associate professor and program director for Human Resource Development (HRD) at Drexel University, and the founder and chairperson for Leadersphere, Inc., a HR intelligence consulting firm. Sal holds a doctoral degree with a specialization in human resource development and organizational behavior from North Carolina State University.

Rae Lee is a principal consultant and COO at Vita Benefits Group, a small but nationally recognized employee benefits brokerage firm. The team at Vita works with small, mid-sized and large employers to implement, communicate and manage all aspects of employee benefit plans. Everything at Vita is driven by the following four values: excellence, knowledge, service and relationships. Rae Lee is uniquely well-qualified in the employee benefits world, with more than 25 years of experience developing practical solutions to complex employee benefits challenges.

Stephen Hirschfeld is a partner with the law firm of Curiale Hirschfeld Kraemer LLP in San Francisco. He is also the CEO of the Employment Law Alliance, the world's largest network of labor and employment lawyers. Stephen advises clients throughout the country on day-to-day labor and employment law issues. He takes a proactive approach when advising clients, emphasizing creative solutions to employee relations problems. He frequently represents employers in federal and state courts and before administrative agencies on a variety of litigation matters involving the employer-employee relationship.

Jennifer Brown Shaw, Esq., provides regular advice and counsel on workplace issues to various private and public sector employers throughout the country. Named by Northern California Super Lawyers magazine as a top attorney in California for 2009, 2010 and 2011, Jennifer is a frequent speaker on employment law topics, and has been a guest on CNN and local television and radio. Jennifer graduated magna cum laude from the University of San Francisco School of Law, where she was the editor-in-chief of the law review. Before founding Shaw Valenza LLP in 2006, Jennifer was a partner at Jackson Lewis LLP.

Jane Howard served as chief people officer for Joie de Vivre Hospitality (JdV) from 1999 to May 2011. During that time the company grew from 450 to 3,000 employees and from 14 to 35 hotels plus 20 additional restaurants and spas. Currently, Jane is consulting to JdV on a variety of topics including mapping HR strategy and tactics to the recently written five-year JdV strategic plan. Her new consultancy with co-founder Candra Canning, The Culture Effect, seeks to help companies achieve market leadership through superior corporate culture. Jane holds a BA in journalism from San Diego State University and an MA in management from JFK University.

Todor Tzolov is senior consultant at Market Metrix, a leader in feedback solutions for the hospitality industry with more than 100 enterprise clients in 70 countries. He has experience in management consulting, data and legal analysis, academic and speech writing, and SaaS product development. Todor oversees guest and employee feedback programs for clients located in more than 30 countries. Prior to Market Metrix, Todor worked on development of technology solutions for U.S. embassies worldwide. Todor's experience also includes work in international regulatory affairs and global alliances at United Airlines World Headquarters in Chicago.

Robert Sher is a speaker, author and consulting CEO who advises mid-market chief executives and their top teams as they navigate critical passages. A veteran CEO, he taught entrepreneurship to executive MBAs for five years at St. Mary’s College. Robert authored the book “The Feel of the Deal; How I Built My Business Through Acquisitions,” and serves as a board member for the Association of Corporate Growth, and as a director for the Alliance of Chief Executives. Hundreds of his CEO case studies and articles can be found at www.ceotoceo.biz.

Gary Purece is a senior executive career consultant, keynote speaker, seminar leader and facilitator who specializes in communication techniques in the San Francisco office of Lee Hecht Harrison. His success as a corporate communicator led to his focus on speaking for performance improvement. Recognized for his outstanding presentation skills, Gary was voted President of the National Speakers Association/Northern California chapter. Previously, Gary was the leader at Publicis, a global advertising agency, and was a senior manager with Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising. Gary’s earlier career success was as a broadcaster in the radio industry. He studied mass communication at Wayne State University and at Sonoma State University.

Patrick Nooren, Ph.D., is executive vice president of Biddle Consulting Group, Inc., a firm specializing in the areas of EEO/AA compliance, test validation and development, compensation analysis, litigation support and software development. Patrick has more than 17 years of experience in the EEO/AA industry, has conducted training across the nation and has authored numerous articles and software programs in the areas of affirmative action, disparate impact, test validation, compensation analysis and EEO. Patrick is the primary author and editor of the book  “Compensation Analysis: A Practitioner’s Guide to Identifying and Addressing Compensation Disparities.”

Lorelei Carobolante, GPHR, SCRP, SGMS, leads G2nd Systems, a strategic, language-based communications consultancy that enables corporations to enhance linguistic and intercultural communication skills for their managers, teams and organizations. Lorelei contributes her expertise to organizations that recognize the complexity of global competition, and serves as a SHRM Lead Global HR Subject Matter Expert, member of the U.S. Technical Advisory Group for the International Organization of Standardization Technical Committee 260 for Human Resource Management, and a voting member of the ANSI-SHRM Standards Diversity and Inclusion Programs Taskforce.

Gerlinde Herrmann, GPHR, CHRP, is the founder and president of The Herrmann Group Limited, which provides human capital management solutions through talent attraction and retention programs and services. As past chair of HRPA, Gerlinde held the portfolio of HRPA’s Chair of Strategic and Global Alliances for two years. She co-founded the HRCC (Human Resources and Compensation Committee) program of the Directors’ College. She also serves as vice chair of the CMA Complaints Committee and the SHRM Research Advisory Council.

Rebecca Johnson, CPA, has more than 20 years of business experience as a leader in both finance and human resources. She partners with HR and management teams in a wide variety of industries to bring clarity, simplicity and increased impact to compensation and reward programs. She earned her CPA with Ernst & Young and subsequently held senior management positions in both finance and HR. Her unique combination of financial and human resource expertise makes Rebecca especially suited to translate complex business concepts into everyday language. A frequent presenter at industry groups and conferences, she is a past director for the Northern California HR Association (NCHRA) Executive Board.

Walter Stella represents employers in all aspects of employment law. His litigation experience includes representing clients in employment-related disputes such as wage and hour class actions, trade secret theft and wrongful termination. Walter also routinely counsels clients on employment-related issues arising from complex business transactions. In recognition of his expertise in this area, Walter was selected for the 2010 edition of the Inside the Minds series, a leading publication featuring top experts in the law. Walter is a frequent speaker at SHRM and Haas School of Business.

Daniel J. McCoy defends employers against wage and hour class actions, claims for sexual harassment, discrimination, breach of contract, union disputes and many other causes of action in both state and federal courts. In his counseling practice, Daniel advises employers about employee terminations, wage and hour issues, reductions in force, employee misconduct, leaves of absence and many other personnel issues. Fenwick & West provides comprehensive legal services to technology and life sciences clients of national and international prominence.

Allen Kato's practice concentrates exclusively on representing management in wage and hour, EEO compliance, unfair competition and trade secret matters and litigating individual and class action wage and hour, wrongful discharge employment discrimination, and unfair competition matters before courts and agencies. He also trains managers and HR professionals on a regular basis.

Kevin Weitz is a seasoned change management leader with more than 20 years of experience in leading and managing large-scale change projects with companies like Chevron, Levi Strauss & Co., Pacific Gas & Electric and Wells Fargo Bank. He has global experience managing multinational projects in the U.S., Latin America, Kazakhstan and South Africa. Kevin has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from U.S. International University in San Diego, a Master of Arts degree from San Diego State University, and Honors and Master of Commerce degrees from the University of South Africa.

Laura Raynak is the president of a 14-year-old firm with a distinguished track record of successful executive management search in medical technology, life sciences, consumer product and health care services companies. Laura's work reflects her head for science and heart for people, her attention to detail while envisioning the big picture, and her finely-honed instincts about people and leadership. Many companies have partnered with Laura's team to bring in talent that transforms their organizations into highly successful endeavors.

Roberta S. Hayashi is a partner in the law firm of Berliner Cohen, where she is head of the litigation department and the employment law practice. Roberta has more than twenty-five years of experience in employment and business litigation with extensive state and federal court trial experience in wrongful termination, discrimination, and misappropriation of trade secrets and proprietary information actions. She has received numerous honors including The Daily Journal’s Top 50 Women Litigators in California; the Santa Clara County Bar Association’s 2009 Professional Lawyer of the Year Award; and the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal’s 2009 Women of Influence in Silicon Valley.

Kate Wilson is an attorney in the law firm of Berliner Cohen, where she is a member of the litigation and employment law practice. Kate specializes in providing advice and counsel on a variety of employment matters and represents clients in business and employment litigation. She assists clients in drafting personnel policies, employee handbooks and agreements governing employment issues from hiring to termination; and provides training in workforce sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation. Prior to her legal career, she worked for several years in the human resources department of a clothing retailer with operations across the U.S.

Yael Schy, MSW, is a leader in using expressive arts in organizational learning and development. She is principal of Dramatic Strides Consulting, specializing in leadership development, communication skills, team building and creative decision-making techniques. Yael serves as a faculty member at the American Management Association and is a Certified Somatic Coach. She brings a unique perspective by combining 20 years of management experience with her background in improvisational theater and dance. Yael is co-author of the business book, “Teamwork Tools: A Revolutionary Approach for Managers and Trainers.”