Speakers

Billy Beane is considered one of the most progressive and talented baseball executives in the game today. With his “Moneyball” philosophy, he shattered antiquated MLB beliefs that big payrolls could mean more wins. This strategic methodology led the Oakland A’s, one of the worst teams in baseball with one of the lowest payrolls, to six American League West Division Titles. 

Bestselling author Michael Lewis chronicled Billy’s journey in his 2003 bestselling book Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game. The film adaptation starred Brad Pitt as Beane and garnered six Academy Award nominations in 2012. 

Today, Billy’s philosophy has been adopted by organizations of all sizes, across all industries, as a strategy to manage their assets, talent, and resources more efficiently. He has helped to shape the way modern businesses view and leverage big data and employ analytics for long-term success. 

Kat Cole is a creative, community-building capitalist and chronic learner whose personal journey from restaurant hostess to corporate president by age 35 epitomizes the entrepreneurial dream.

As COO and President of FOCUS Brands (Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s, Moe’s, and more), Kat oversaw 6,800 operations doing billions in product sales in over 50 countries. Prior to that she held a variety of senior strategic roles, such as President of Cinnabon Inc. and Vice President of Training and Development at Hooters.

Kat is a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum, a former member of the United Nations Global Entrepreneurs Council, and was named to Fortune’s 40 Under 40.

Tim Urban is redefining live speaking for the digital era, proving complex thinking can captivate a short attention span world. His signature style created the most-watched TED talk of 2016, and the only TED main stage talk to reach 10 million in the first year. Tim’s popular blog, “Wait But Why,” has topped 10 million unique visitors, attracting famous fans like Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Greg Harmer is the global payroll leader for Amazon, the world’s third largest private employer. Prior to joining Amazon in 2013, Greg led payroll and other finance and accounting functions at IBM and Delta Airlines. He holds a B.S. in finance (University of Utah) and an M.S. in accounting (Georgia State University) and he is a CPA, CPP, CMA, CFM, and CIA.

Sean Sullivan is responsible for providing HR leadership, vision, and service delivery as the Chief Human Resources Officer at SHRM, the world’s largest HR professional society. He has over 25 years of experience in HR strategy and operations, across multiple industries. Prior to SHRM, Sean served as the VP of Human Resources for Tufts Medical Center, an internationally respected academic medical center.

Brian Richardson Jr is an award-winning diversity officer, currently serving as the inaugural Director for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Indianapolis Colts. His work has been featured on TEDx and the Big Ten Network, as well as through news, radio, and magazine outlets across Indiana. Brian is both an Adjunct Professor and a fourth-year doctoral student at Indiana University.

Terri Snider has more than 20 years of experience in various HR leadership positions. Terri joined GateHouse Media in early 2019 and played a pivotal role in managing the acquisition and integration of Gannett. She has since managed total rewards, HR tech and analytics, and HR operations for Gannett as Vice President, People Resources. Terri has also held global roles at ACM Global Laboratories and Bausch + Lomb.

Sandy Hornak leads payroll, payroll tax, payroll finance, and HRIS activities at Aaron’s, as the Director of Payroll and Business Solutions. Sandy also serves as chairman of the leading community pillar for the Aaron’s Women’s Leadership Network (AWLN). She has a passion for serving team members and leaders throughout the organization.

Alan House has over 25 years of experience across all facets of human capital management. He has held several senior roles throughout his career, and has experience in multiple industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, and retail. His extensive HR knowledge, combined with Lean Six Sigma training, process redesign expertise, and project management skills have helped him excel in leading large-scale initiatives.

Steven DelVecchio manages a diverse workforce across 300 publications, such as USA Today. He oversees the people technology and people analytics functions at Gannett. He focuses on strategic intiatives through analysis and delivery of data to the executive and people resources teams. Previously, Steven held various leadership roles in compensation, HRIS, and analytics in the healthcare and space and defense sectors.

Steve Mauricio leads the HRIS team at Caleres, overseeing the people systems for all associates across the U.S., Canada, the Dominican Republic, and Asia. Prior to joining the HRIS team, Steve held various roles in store operations and management at Caleres. He recently celebrated his nineteenth anniversary with the company.

Heather Hetterick leads HRIS activities at Multi-Color Corporation as the Global Director of HRIS. Prior to joining Multi-Color Corporation in 2020, Heather led HRIS activities for Johnson Electric in North America. She holds a MA in International Human Resources Management (Université Panthéon Assas Paris II) and an BBA in business (University of Cincinnati).

Nic is a Director in PwC's HR Technology practice with over 14 years of experience leading global HR, talent management, and payroll transformation programs from strategy through execution. Nic specializes in connecting organizational people strategy to business strategy by leveraging data and technology to make more data-driven decisions regarding pay and rewards strategy, talent management, D&I strategy, and successions planning.

Brett Knowles is a long-time thought leader in strategy execution and employee engagement for global organizations. Brett has over 3,000 clients in virtually every sector around the world, including well-known organizations like Nike, IBM, and Boeing. His client work has been published in Harvard Business Review, Forbes, Fortune, and various business publications. Brett is currently the CEO of Hirebook.

Chris Brett is a Senior Manager for Accenture, the world’s leading WFM consultancy and technology group. For more than 10 years, Chris has partnered with some of the top companies in the world to solve workforce transformation challenges. For the past six years Chris has been a trusted partner of Ceridian and currently leads the Accenture North American partnership with Ceridian.

Jacqueline Kuhn is an HR professional with over 25 years of experience leading executive teams to create HR strategy and technology roadmaps to drive clients’ HR transformations. She helps her clients evaluate and select vendors for talent management, HRMS, payroll, and benefits applications, and more. Jacqueline is a sought-after speaker in the HR technology industry, averaging more than 10 national and regional speaking engagements annually.

Julie Fernandez leads the HR Technology and Services practice for ISG (Information Services Group), a leading global technology research and advisory firm. Julie has over 30 years of industry and consulting experience in HR technology, automation, shared services, and global payroll. She is a sought-after speaker and has been named one of HRO Today magazine’s “HR Superstars” for four consecutive years.

David Ossip is Ceridian’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and the driving force behind the innovation, vision and leadership of the company. David’s commitment to helping companies save time and money while increasing employee engagement and productivity is transforming the Human Capital Management industry.

Leagh Turner leads operations and revenue driving activities globally at Ceridian, overseeing a leadership team that includes R&D, sales, marketing, IT, and the Global Customer Office (GCO). A seasoned technology executive, she has held senior operations and sales leadership roles at SAP, MicroStrategy, and Oracle. Leagh has been recognized twice as one of Canada’s 100 Most Powerful Women by the Women’s Executive Network.

As Chief Customer Officer, Chris Armstrong is responsible for overall customer experience and satisfaction through his leadership of the Global Customer Office (GCO), a team that comprises Services, Support, and Customer Relationship Executives. Collaborating closely with Sales, the GCO’s prime directive is to ensure a seamless experience and maximum value for customers throughout their entire lifecycle with Ceridian.

Joe Korngiebel leads Ceridian’s global team of product and technology experts, and is responsible for developing and executing on the company’s ambitious strategy to ensure its innovations continue to surpass customer expectations, disrupt the industry, and drive forward the company’s position as a world-class HCM partner.

Warren Perlman is the Chief Digital Officer at Ceridian. He was a co-founder of Dayforce and served as the company’s Vice President of Infrastructure and Compliance. Prior to that, he was a co-founder of Workbrain, where he held several senior management positions. Warren has over 16 years of industry experience in leadership roles at a variety of leading technology companies.

Caleb McEwan is the artistic director of Brave New Workshop, a sketch and improv comedy theater based in Minnesota. He is a seasoned actor, writer, director, trainer, improviser, speaker, and master of ceremonies. Companies like Hampton, Target, Major League Soccer, Microsoft, ING, and Yahoo! Seek out Caleb to deliver messages, entertain thousands, and train the best.

Somen Mondal is a serial entrepreneur. He has served as the CEO and Co-Founder of two companies: Ideal (acquired by Ceridian in 2021) and Field ID (acquired in 2012 by Fortune Brands). Somen’s professional accolades include both the Profit Hot 50 and Deloitte Fast 50 lists, as well as the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Michelle Bonam is a results-oriented leader with extensive experience in talent management, leadership development, change management, and organizational design. Prior to joining Ceridian, Michelle served as CHRO for Global Payments Inc., where she helped build a strong talent agenda focused on identifying and developing high-potential leaders. Michelle has also held key roles at Mars Chocolate, Starbucks, and Pepsi.

Emma Albert is a product leader who spent the past seven years converging the HCM and user experience worlds. She leads Ceridian’s Platform Experience Technology product team, focused on evolving the employee experience and creating great products with modern, consistent, and high-quality interfaces. Before joining Ceridian, Emma held product roles at Workday and GE.

Jack Bennett is currently the RVP of Ceridian's Global Solution Advisory Group. He has been working in the HCM technology field for the past eight years with a focus on global organizations. Prior to that, Jack worked within retail store operations for seven years.

Donnebra McClendon is an innovative thought leader and strategic business partner who has dedicated more than 17 years at Ceridian to cultivating consciously unbiased and intentionally inclusive leaders. Donnebra is currently a doctoral student in Strategic Leadership at Carolina University. She also established a non-profit organization, Leaders are Readers, supporting literacy in the Tampa Bay area.

As Strategic Initiatives Manager Principal on the Corporate Development Team, Leah Mendelsohn believes she has the best job at Ceridian. She spends her days working with incredible people to re-imagine the world of work and building innovative technology to power it.

Lisa Weckman drives the overall product strategy for Ceridian’s global payroll and tax offering, as well as Dayforce Wallet. She has extensive experience in the payroll, benefits, and HR spaces, and has held various product management roles at Ceridian since joining in 1999, playing an instrumental role in the company’s success and development.

Jason Gurgal oversees a global team of solution advisors at Ceridian, aimed at ensuring customers derive the most value throughout their partnerships with Ceridian. Jason has 20 years of experience in product management, development, and solution advisory, and has held roles with companies such as SAP, Sun Microsystems, Safeway, and the University of Victoria.

Kelly Dougherty brings years of employment law counseling and litigation experience to Ceridian, working as part of the Global Product Compliance team. She enjoys navigating complex issues in the HCM space and working to help develop cutting edge products. Kelly is based in Minneapolis, MN.

Jessica has extensive experience in the technology and Human Capital Management spaces, having spent over a decade consulting with executives from global organizations to help manage, develop, and retain employees across multiple geographies. Her professional experience spans global technology, finance and professional services sectors. Jessica holds a Bachelors degree from York University in Toronto. 

Tricia is a Solution Advisory leader at Ceridian who has spent nearly two decades helping organizations realize value and opportunity through digital transformation. Tricia's professional experience includes various roles across the customer lifecycle, ranging from corporate training, operational leadership, and solution advisory. 

Shaun joined Ceridian through its acquisition of Ideal, a Toronto-based company that is a leader in the talent intelligence space. Now, as the GM of Talent Intelligence at Ceridian, he helps to lead overall strategy for Ceridian's talent capabilities. He holds a degree in Comp. Sci. from the University of Guelph and lives with his family in Toronto.