Live 2023: Atlanta

Joanna Price has more than two decades of experience in public affairs and communications, particularly in the food and beverages sector.

Born in Australia, Joanna has lived and worked in over six countries. She joined The Coca-Cola Company 15 years ago and has overseen public affairs, communications and sustainability strategy and activities across North America, Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa – with special expertise in the South Pacific, North America, and Asia – and has experience working at country, regional, group and global levels.

Based in Atlanta, Joanna, a member of The Coca–Cola Company North America Operating Unit (NAOU) Executive Leadership Team, is SVP, Chief of Public Affairs, Communications and Sustainability. Joanna leads multiple high-performing teams which focus on strategic communications, leadership and internal communications, stakeholder and community management, corporate reputation marketing, public policy, government relations and sustainability.

Joanna has led major corporate and public affairs initiatives which have drawn upon her extensive issues-management experience, partnership management, stakeholder mapping and engagement skills. In recent years, Joanna has actively led public affairs work in the U.S. and the Corporate Center around corporate reputation, category growth, financial reporting, and sustainability priorities – and one of her proudest achievements has been helping launch Coca-Cola’s industry-first goal to collect and recycle the equivalent of every bottle or can it sells globally by 2030. In addition to her work leading public affairs, Joanna also has supported C-level executives and advised the Coca-Cola Board in the areas of strategy, governance, and public policy.

In addition to serving on the national board of the YWCA, Joanna serves on the boards of The International Dyslexia Association and The Atlanta Women’s Foundation. Prior to Coca-Cola, Joanna served in senior corporate positions at Kellogg, ACNielsen and News Corporation in public affairs, communication, strategy and research role. She has an Executive MBA from Harvard Business School, a Masters of Marketing from Charles Sturt University and Bachelor of Business from Queensland University of Technology.

Helene D. Gayle, M.D., MPH, began serving as the 11^th president of Spelman College on July 1, 2022. Dr. Gayle previously served as president and CEO of The Chicago Community Trust, one of the nation’s oldest and largest community foundations, from October 2017 to June 2022. Under her leadership, the Trust adopted a new strategic focus on closing the racial and ethnic wealth gap in the Chicago region.

For almost a decade, Dr. Gayle was president and CEO of CARE, a leading international humanitarian organization. A pediatrician and public health physician with expertise in economic development, humanitarian, and health issues, she spent 20 years with the Centers for Disease Control, working primarily on HIV/AIDS. She led the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s programs on HIV/AIDS and other global health issues.

Dr. Gayle serves on public company and nonprofit boards, including The Coca-Cola Company, Organon, Palo Alto Networks, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Brookings Institution, Center for Strategic and International Studies, New America and the ONE Campaign. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, National Academy of Medicine, Council on Foreign Relations, American Public Health Association, National Medical Association, and American Academy of Pediatrics.

She was awarded the Chicago Mayor’s Medal of Honor for her work on COVID relief and recovery for the city. Named one of Forbes’ “100 Most Powerful Women” and one of NonProfit Times’ "Power and Influence Top 50," she has authored numerous articles on global and domestic public health issues, poverty alleviation, gender equality, and wealth inequity.

Dr. Gayle is from Buffalo, N.Y. She earned a B.A. in psychology at Barnard College, an M.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, and an M.P.H. at Johns Hopkins University. She is a tenured Full Professor in the Department of Environmental and Health Sciences at Spelman College and has received 18 honorary degrees. She also holds faculty appointments at the University of Washington and Emory University.

Dr. Gayle is married to Stephen Keith, M.D., the First Gentleman of Spelman College and a proud Spelman dad.

Chris Bartlett, UPS HR VP - People & Culture, has 30 years at UPS. Chris began his career in Cleveland, Ohio as a loader in package operations when he was in college.  He has worked in the small package, air and freight business units at UPS, holding numerous positions in operations, communications and human resources at the local and corporate levels.   He has vast HR experience in employee relations and experience, compliance, and labor. He is passionate about making abstract concepts concrete using practical experience and gaming principles.

Jeri Hawthorne joined Aflac in 2019 as the vice president of Corporate Human Resources at Aflac, Inc. She became SVP, CHRO of Aflac in 2023. In her current role, she leads all facets of the Human Resources functionfor Aflac. She has more than 20 years of human resources experience,specifically as a strategic HR leader, a talent management expert and inglobal human resources.

Prior to joining Aflac, Jeri was the Managing Director/Head of HumanResources for Campbell & Company, a quantitative hedge fund based in Baltimore, where she led their HR, administration teamsand community outreach. Jeri worked at Exelon from 2010-2017, where she was the director of Talent Management and Leadership Development and the HR Director for Exelon’s commercial organization. Jeri worked inHR and talent management at T. Rowe Price and has broad experience in global human resources. She was director of Global HR and Employment at the U.S. Pharmacopeia, leading the HR strategy for their global expansion efforts. Jeri was an expatriate in Copenhagen, Denmark, where she worked as an International HR consultant at Novo Nordisk. She started her HR career working as a cross-cultural trainingmanager at GMAC-Global Relocation Services and Berlitz Intercultural Services in New York, NY, and Princeton, NJ, respectively.

Jeri holds both the SPHR and GPHR. She is a Global Fellow in Talent Management (the Wharton School). She has an MSc in Social Policy fromthe University of Bath (United Kingdom) and a BA in Political Science from Wheeling Jesuit University.

Karen Viera is a senior executive with over 25 years of multi-functional experience in Fortune 500 highly regulated insurance and healthcare Fortune 500 companies. She keenly understands the complexities and significant issues related to change management, organization design during times of change or growth and has deep expertise in the integration of people (culture), processes and structure. Currently, Viera is Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer for a global company, Church’s Chicken/ Texas Chicken International, owned by Private Equity. She is responsible for all functional areas of human resources including internal communications.

Grady Tripp is Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer for TEGNA Inc. Reporting to the CEO, Grady oversees all aspects of TEGNA’s diversity strategy, including attracting, retaining and growing diverse talent at all levels of the company, developing programs and processes to enhance awareness and accountability in diversity and inclusion issues, and facilitating the company’s diversity and inclusion employee working group.

Since joining TEGNA in 2017, Tripp has been an integral part of the company’s people and culture strategy. As senior director of human resources and talent acquisition, he oversaw strategy and execution for TEGNA’s talent acquisition team, in addition to leading a team of human resources business partners supporting television stations in 15 markets.

Prior to TEGNA, Tripp was a human capital performance and change management leader within Accenture’s talent and organization practice in Europe and the US, and has held various human resources leadership roles for companies across five industries.

Tripp holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and an MBA in Finance from Florida A&M University, and several HR and DE&I certifications.

Ted Kezios is Vice President of Global Benefits based in Atlanta. In his 22-year career at Cisco, Ted has held leadership roles in Global Benefits, Global Compensation, and HR Business Partner functions.

In his current role, Ted is responsible for Cisco’s Global Benefits strategy, which covers 74,000 employees in over 100 countries. Ted’s passion is cultivating Cisco’s inclusive culture by ensuring that its people not only have the protection and peace of mind through traditional benefits, but also the diverse solutions to help navigate life’s triumphs and challenges. Ted represents Cisco as an Executive Sponsor and Advisory Board member for several global healthcare partners and customers.

Prior to Cisco, Ted worked in large healthcare and financial service companies with a focus on sales, service, and financial management. Ted holds a Master of Business Administration from Santa Clara University and a Bachelor of Science from Indiana University.

Ivory Harris is senior vice president and chief HR officer for AGCO, the Duluth, Ga.-based manufacturer of agricultural equipment, including tractors, combines, and grain-storage structures under brand names including Massey Ferguson and Challenger. The company ranks in the Fortune 500 and has more than 23,000 employees.

Harris is responsible for leading the development and execution of high-impact talent strategies that deliver winning outcomes for AGCO’s employees and stakeholders. Prior to AGCO, Harris spent 17 years with BASF, where she held HR leadership roles of increasing scope and responsibility throughout her tenure.

Her most recent role was vice president, People Service, U.S. Previous roles included vice president, Total Rewards & Corporate HR Solutions, North America, and global director, HR, Bioscience Research. Harris also previously held a senior project expert, International Delegation role that was based in Ludwigshafen, Germany. She holds a bachelor’s degree in social sciences and psychology from the University of Houston.

Michael Jones currently serves as Vice President, Human Resources, US Operations for Ricoh USA.  Ricoh is empowering digital workplaces using innovative technologies and services that enable individuals to work smarter from anywhere.

With cultivated knowledge and organizational capabilities nurtured over its 85-year history, Ricoh is a leading provider of digital services, information management, and print and imaging solutions designed to support digital transformation and optimize business performance

Jones career with Ricoh has been one with progressive responsibility that has included stops in FL, GA, OH, PA and Tokyo with focuses on Talent Acquisition, Management training, Employee Relations, and business partnering.  In his current capacity Jones leads a 30+ member HR team comprised of generalist & specialist, that drive and execute on talent management strategies that deliver optimal business and human resource results.  He has worked across a wide array of business groups and functions and is a self-described “business fanatic” dressed as a Human Resources Executive. He is a champion of innovation and change; relentless for customer satisfaction, and purposefully passionate about the “frontline”.

Leroy Chapman Jr. is the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Editor-in-Chief. Previously, he was managing editor where he was in charge of reporting teams that cover state, local and federal government; politics; education; public safety; local, state and federal courts; transportation; immigration and breaking news. He has worked at the AJC since 2011.

Karen Fikse has over 30 years’ experience as an HR professional, and is currently a Senior HR Director for Cummins Inc., where she serves as the HR Business Partner for the North America Distribution Sales Segments.  In this role, she delivers high value support to her business partners by aligning resources, building new capabilities, delivering process excellence, and focusing on the moments that matter.  Karen also serves as a coach for the leadership teams she supports and is passionate about creating the right environment to enable employees to achieve their full potential.  She also serves as a facilitator, table leader, and thought partner for multiple leadership development and team effectiveness programs.

Karen has a passion for mentoring and coaching, especially young women as they transition from college into adulthood.  She is very involved in college ministry where she regularly leads a small group.

Sara Fatima is the Head of Global Talent Acquisition at Verifone.

Kelly Yamanouchi is a business reporter covering airlines and the airport for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She started at the AJC in 2008, joining the paper from The Denver Post. She has also worked as a business writer for newspapers in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and Honolulu. She has a bachelor's degree from Harvard University and a master's degree from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.

Jackie Parker serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for Global Payments. In her current role, Ms. Parker is responsible for leading Global Payments' overall talent management strategy, global talent acquisition, leadership development, diversity, equity and inclusion, organizational design and cultural development, and employee education and development. As Chief Diversity Officer, she has changed the culture, and impact of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion across the Company to support its business goals and strategies and the needs and aspirations of its 24,000 employees around the world. She has worked with leaders across Global Payments and many lines of business to build and manage an integrated talent management process through a lens of inclusion.

Ms. Parker has overseen efforts that have resulted in more effective and streamlined company-wide talent acquisition practices that better utilize technology; a company-wide diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy, the launch of a global workplace and women's initiative, a redesign of the Employee Resource Groups focused on maximizing business results. One of Ms. Parker's significant contributions as SVP Talent Management has led the RFP and implementation process to replace the MSP/VSP provider.

Post-merger, Ms. Parker has transformed Global Payment's HR function by identifying new Leadership Capabilities, standardizing succession planning across the organization, and introducing career pathing and internal mobility. Prior to joining Global Payments, Jackie served as the President and Founder of JWP Consulting LLC., a strategic advisory firm that helped the C-suite improve its brand and reputation by developing Equity & Inclusion and Corporate Giving Strategies. Before that she served as President, GM Foundation and Director of Global Corporate Philanthropy.

She has held various positions over the course of her career at Newell Rubbermaid, PepsiCo, Nabisco Foods, Campbell Soup Company and Quaker Oats. Jackie holds a Bachelor’s degree in marketing from Hampton University and an MBA from John Hopkins University. She also received a Corporate Citizenship Certificate from Boston College’s Center for Corporate Citizenship. Jackie serves on the board of Habitat for Humanity and is a member of Leadership Atlanta and the Executive Leadership Council.

Gregory Gary is the Senior Director of Business Development for Broadleaf. In this role, Greg is responsible for working with clients to build total talent management solutions that provide greater workforce visibility and insights, enhance compliance and risk mitigation, improve efficiency, and drive measurable and sustainable results.

During his 28-year career in the human capital industry, Greg has focused on contingent labor, independent contractor compliance, and RPO and SOW services. He has significant experience developing and delivering strategic sourcing and spend management strategies in consulting, HR, Procurement, and IT & Engineering. He maintains a track record of successfully implementing and managing supplier diversity strategies for Fortune 500 organizations and government agencies.

Greg has degrees in marketing, political science, and sociology from St. Bonaventure University

Alexis Hauk has written for outlets, including TIME, The Atlantic, The Bitter Southerner, Garden & Gun, Atlanta magazine, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, ArtsATL, American Theatre, and more. In 2024, she won the Atlanta Press Club award for best arts writing. Alexis spent a decade living in cities scattered across the U.S. (New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, and Los Angeles) before heeding the siren song to return to her place of origin, Atlanta, in 2018. Along with freelancing, she currently serves as Director of Communications for Emory Heart & Vascular and previously worked as a health communications specialist at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). Other passions include theater, comedy, film, animals (particularly cats and sharks), and travel.

Jodi Weintraub is the Global Chief People Officer for GroupM Nexus. Formed by the integration of 9,000 employees from three of GroupM’s divisions in April 2022, GroupM Nexus is the world’s leading​​​​​​ global media performance engine that unites talent and technologies to dramatically improve performance innovation and efficiency for GroupM’s agencies and clients.  Jodi is a member of the executive committee and leads the global people strategy across 60+ markets.  She spent most of her HR career in both established and start-up technology and professional services firms and focuses her energies on driving efforts that impact business outcomes.  Jodi has served in client-facing account management and P&L ownership roles and uses that lens to impact her approach to HR strategy.  She has a master’s degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Georgia, and a Bachelor’s in Marketing from Stetson University.  Jodi lives in the Metro Atlanta area and is happiest when she is spending family time as Grandma JoJo, hiking, cycling, travelling, and getting as tan as possible at the beach or at the pool.

Kristy has 15 years of experience as a Strategic Human Resource Leader, Change Manager and Organizational Development Expert. She has served in senior leadership positions throughout her career – most notably with Pearson Education and Constant Contact. Kristy brings a big picture perspective and a hands-on, tactical approach to her leadership that she is now bringing to life with SkillCycle (where she is the CEO & Co- Founder). Kristy’s goal is to help and educate companies to meet their ultimate goals by empowering their employees to take ownership of their career.

David Bator thinks and writes about how work could work. David leads Achievers Workforce Institute, a strategic practice whose focus on Research, Community and Advisory empowers global executives with tactical, practical approaches to changing how the world works.

David is passionate about people, and has spent the last 20 years working closely and consultatively with HR, IT and Communications leaders to build programs that position individuals, teams and companies to grow.

For the past decade, George has worked with businesses to provide strategic guidance and practical expertise related to employee engagement. He is passionate about working with HR Leaders to achieve their business objectives, particularly in the area of change, engagement, recognition, attraction and retention.  George brings a global perspective and has been privileged to partner with hundreds of companies, from global brands such as Discovery Communications, Atos, IBM and Computershare, to regional and local businesses across all industries.  He has been successful in helping his clients to think differently and embrace technology to enhance their employee experience.

Anna is CEO and Founder of Ceresa.  Ceresa’s mission is to build diverse leadership for the future, by democratizing access to truly transformative career and leadership resources. She dedicates her time to shaping the company’s vision and strategy, driving consistent high-quality programming, building a world-class team and culture, and shaping a sustainable social impact business model.

Prior to launching Ceresa, Anna was a Partner at McKinsey & Company, where she served healthcare systems globally, as well as leading leadership development and diversity initiatives. She also served as COO at an early-stage tech company prior to launching Ceresa. She holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, MPhil, and BA from the University of Oxford. Anna lives in the Colorado mountains with her two dogs, three kiddos and one husband (who typically manage to get her attention in that order).

Andrew helps organizations develop sustainable, human-centered processes to thrive in today’s always-on, always-connected work world.

After years as a high-performing sales leader in a fast-paced, demanding role, Andrew saw how his exhaustion and inability to separate life from work was impacting his relationships, energy and sense of purpose. He found a new way to manage my time and energy and now teaches other corporate leaders and their teams to do the same.

Through his leadership of Regenerate, Andrew has helped thousands of leaders develop energy-inspired practices to transform their workplaces — including Apple, Booz Allen Hamilton, Intel, Coca Cola, Accenture, Edelman, Genentech, GE, Lego Systems, DPR Construction, and American Express, and the US Air Force.

David Malmborg is VP of Marketing & Community at Nivati, a leading mental health platform for employees. He serves on the Board of Directors of Utah Digital Marketing Collective, a non-profit organization promoting marketing education in the intermountain region. He has over 15 years of experience in various marketing initiatives. Previous to his role at Nivati, David ran agency operations and performance marketing at two different marketing agencies focused on travel and tourism and has worked with multiple world class ski resorts, and convention and travel bureaus.

Mike is a 20+year veteran in HR technologies and maintains deep appreciation for cultures and people which blossomed while traveling the global and living overseas. Relationships are everything!

Mike is committed to pursuing excellence that supports building culture, engagement, and inclusivity and has helped many organizations do the same. Prior to joining Hibob, Mike served in a similar role for Workday where he focused on HR and Finance. Before that, he led organizations through Ceridian implementations before eventually entering the world of solution consulting.

Mike is also a small business owner and an advocate for small business where often consults with other small business owners and entrepreneurs. Favorite quote: "Pursue significance and Success will Follow” Dad's lessons: 1) Be Sincere, Be Brief, Be Seated 2) Find comfort in not being the smartest person in the room 3) Disagree humbly, Forgive Quickly 4) Laugh Often

Katie is the Founder and CEO of Claira, a competency analytics engine that helps companies understand their people and hire better. No job descriptions. No resumes.

Katie spent eight years in global workforce development building competency models and helping organizations prepare for the future of work. She regularly speaks and writes on a variety of topics, including the digital economy, diversity hiring, AI ethics, and automation impact on the workforce.

Having worked in many types of jobs– cleaning hotel rooms, making sandwiches, and assembling windows on a factory line– she believes valuable competencies are used in every role, every day, everywhere. The problem isn’t people, it’s the antiquated hiring system.

Previously, she worked in the White House Office of Global Communications assisting the administration with strategic messaging following Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Additionally, she spent four years managing high volume document cases with the White-Collar Crime Division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

She holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, an MPA from the University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and a BA in Political Science from Hope College.

Carrie Teegardin is on the investigative team. She is a graduate of Duke University and has won numerous national journalism awards. She was a lead reporter on the AJC's award-winning Unprotected series, which prompted Georgia to reform its requirements for senior care homes in 2020. She was a lead reporter on the AJC's Doctors & Sex Abuse national investigation, which was a Pulitzer finalist. She was a lead reporter on the AJC's Borrower Beware series, which won a Gerald Loeb award in 2006. She has written extensively about health care, unfair business practices and the criminal justice system.

Debbie Morris is a seasoned HR professional who has helped large organizations hone their talent management strategies to have meaningful impacts on the employee experience and the business.  With over 15+ years in HR and Talent Management, Debbie works collaboratively within organizations to translate best practice into large scale change that drives talent retention and engagement and ensures client satisfaction.  A certified executive coach with a focus in positive psychology, Debbie interprets corporate talent management principles to curate practical experiences that maximizes individual strengths, promotes wellbeing and helps people find purpose in their work.  Debbie lives in Atlanta, GA with her two children.  She holds a BS in Business Administration from Florida A&M University and an MBA in Organizational Management from Georgia State University.