Susan L. Harmansky, SPHR, is a management consultant and author focusing on workforce planning and strategy.  She has had a diverse career in human resource management most recently as Global Vice President Human Resources for SGS International, a design-to-print graphic services and marketing firm headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.  Her previous experience includes HR leadership roles with LG&E and KU Energy, Farm Credit Bank, Papa John’s International and the Presbyterian Church USA national headquarters.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in cultural anthropology from the University of Louisville and an MBA from Bellarmine University.  She has served as president of the Louisville Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) chapter and as state director for Kentucky SHRM.  She also led the SHRM-sponsored task force that developed the first American National Standard for performance management and served on the first international committee developing ISO standards for HR.   

She served seven years on the board of the premier international certifying agency for human resources, the HR Certification Institute, including a year as Board Chair during which HRCI expanded its reach internationally to the European Union and China. 

She has been certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources since 1990 and is a recipient of the Louisville SHRM Award for Professional Excellence.  

Been there – done that!  With 30 years of HR and business experience – Lori has walked in your shoes.  A recovered HR Generalist, she built a consulting company that she sold to Arthur J Gallagher after 7 years and then reinvented her current business – HR Topics -  training, speaking and developing content for HR professionals.  Lori delivers facts, tips, tricks and best practices in a way that appeals to human resource and business leaders: with a sense of humor, a bias toward actions that improve their operations right away, and practical resources and tools to support their progress.  As an annual speaker at the National SHRM conference, she has leveraged her masters in HR, SPHR and SHRM-SCP background to elevate the position of all HR professionals!

Amy Hirsh Robinson, M.B.A., is Chief People Officer for King’s Hawaiian, a global producer of irresistible Hawaiian food. Amy was brought on to King’s Hawaiian to re-envision the employee experience and transform the People function from traditional HR to a strategic driver of business growth. During her time at the company she has worked to radically redefine the purpose, structure and activities of HR with significant results. Prior to her role as CPO, Amy ran a successful human capital consulting firm, The Interchange Group, helping executives and HR professionals retool and adapt their strategies to rapidly changing workforce expectations and business landscapes.

Michael S. Cohen is a partner in Duane Morris’ Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group.  Michael concentrates his practice in the areas of employment law training and counseling. He has trained and counseled employers throughout the country on subjects including harassment prevention; diversity, equity and inclusion; combatting implicit bias; performance management; discipline and discharge; hiring and recruiting practices; performance evaluations; FMLA, ADA and FLSA compliance; leave of absence policies; LGBTQ+ issues in the workplace; substance abuse testing; workplace violence; records retention; conducting background checks; and more. Michael also has conducted investigations into claims of harassment and discrimination and has drafted employee handbooks, employment agreements, non-compete agreements and post-termination agreements. Michael regularly conducts in excess of 200 trainings each year.  He has represented clients throughout the country in EEO and other administrative proceedings.

Michael has been cited as a national authority on employment issues by The New York Times, The Associated Press, USA Today, MSNBC.com, HR Magazine, SHRM On-Line, Employment Law 360, Inside Counsel Magazine, as well as many other publications. Michael serves as an Advisory Board Member of GenHERation and as a Board Member of Serve, Inc. Michael is a 1997 magna cum laude graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law and a cum laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

Rue Dooley has been an HR Knowledge Advisor for the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) for over 16 years and has over 25 years of HR experience.

In college, as an accounting major, Rue interned with major corporations and worked his way through school from fast food, to dorm RA, to payroll assistant with a state agency. After receiving his B.S., he worked as an accountant, a budget analyst, a meeting planner, payroll specialist, benefits coordinator, and an HR Generalist…mostly all at the same company! 

After managing the HR function for a growing government contractor (from 13 to 100+ employees while he was there), Rue went on to hire school teachers at a major school district. In his current position as an HR Knowledge Advisor for SHRM, Rue has daily direct contact with HR professionals around the world, helping them to create solutions, to improve systems, and to find and use resources that improve the delivery of the HR function. 

Rue has authored and co-authored numerous articles; Designed systems and policies; Created practical tools (including forms, letters, toolkits, and other resources); Conducted webcasts and videos; and has been quoted in various media outlets on a number of HR topics. Rue is SHRM-SCP certified.

As SHRM’s Director of Certification and Veteran Affairs Andrew Morton works with the military and veterans' organizations to develop workforce readiness pathways for veterans and military-families. As part of SHRM’s Speaker’s Bureau Andrew informs and empowers organizations in their inclusion-hiring efforts across many populations including Veterans, individuals with disabilities, and Returning Citizens as part of SHRM’s Getting Talent Back to Work Initiative.  He is the contributing author to Justin Constantine’s SHRM published book “From We Will to At Will- A Handbook for Veteran Hiring, Transitioning and Thriving in Today’s Workplace.” 

Andrew, a retired Infantry-Officer, served in several leadership roles during multiple overseas and combat tours (Iraq, Bosnia, Macedonia and Egypt) in his 21-year Army career. He also served as the Chief of Marketing and Advertising for the Army Reserve.   Prior to his arrival at SHRM in 2014 Andrew previously served as public relations director for a PR firm in Alexandria. 

Andrew is passionate about awareness and resources in support of mental health within our workforce and society at large and is currently completely his Masters in Mental Health Counseling at the College of William and Mary.       

Erin N. Sullivan, SHRM-CP, is the Program Manager for Conferences at SHRM. Erin has been with SHRM since March 2013. As Program Manager, she manages and programs one fall and one spring conference, as well as certain aspects of the Annual Conference. She is also responsible for the delivery of both the SHRM Conferences and Annual Conference mobile apps. Prior to joining the Meetings & Conferences team, Erin was an Instructional Designer for SHRM Seminars.

Prior to joining SHRM, Erin was an Instructional Designer for GP Strategies Corporation. 

She earned a BA from Muskingum University.  

Follow Erin on Twitter @SHRMErin.