Concurrent Sessions 4

Concurrent Sessions 4 | Tuesday, October 6 – 9:00-10:00 a.m.

CHOOSING YOUR PEERS: INSIGHTS ON SELECTING COMPARISON GROUPS FOR BENCHMARKING 

Identifying peers for benchmarking is critical to effective planning and strategic decision-making. This session aims to demystify the peer selection process by providing examples of how higher ed professionals create and use comparison groups. Panelists will discuss key components of the peer selection process, including the criteria they consider when selecting peers for various benchmarking goals, stakeholders involved in the process, and lessons learned from creating and using comparison groups.

Melanie DeSantis, Associate Vice President for Human Resources, Franklin and Marshall College; Bryan Garey, Vice President and Chief HR Officer, Virginia Tech; Keyra Williams, Senior Compensation Analyst, Wake Forest University; Kate Roesch, Data Visualization Developer, and Brielle Johnson, Ph.D., Senior Survey Researcher, both of CUPA-HR

CHRO ROUNDTABLE: LEADING THE CULTURAL AND WORKFORCE IMPLICATIONS OF AI

AI is not simply a tool to implement. It’s a force shaping how people work in, lead and experience institutional culture. This session for CHROs will examine the cultural and workforce implications of AI adoption and integration and the role of HR as a change leader. Join your CHRO peers for a discussion about navigating these shifts with intention, transparency and leadership.

David Weil, Senior Vice President for Strategic Services and Initiatives, Ithaca College; Rob Shomaker, Senior Vice President, CUPA-HR

HR ON AIR: TRANSFORMING WORKPLACE COMMUNICATION THROUGH AI AUDIO

What if instead of asking employees to read everything, we could provide them the option to listen? Learn how HR can use AI to meet employees where they are and provide a different avenue of communication that aligns with how content is consumed in our modern world.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Recognize how email overload and screen fatigue impact employee communication.
  • Learn how AI can turn HR communications into engaging, accessible audio content.
  • Apply audio communication strategies to better reach diverse employee audiences.

Ashley Byrum, Senior Communication Specialist, George Mason University

SILOS NO MORE: ESTABLISHING AND SUSTAINING A CAMPUSWIDE LEARNING COUNCIL 

This case study-based session will provide a step-by-step comprehensive roadmap on how to successfully provide scope and vision for a campuswide Learning Council, gain executive buy-in, establish council membership, draft sub-committee focus areas, and sustain momentum and long-term success.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Analyze the quick-win and strategic benefits of establishing a Learning Council.
  • Identify the required components for successfully launching a Learning Council.
  • Implement and sustain a Learning Council at your institution.

Paul Scott, Associate Vice President of Organizational Development, Training and Engagement, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

THE BORDERLESS CAMPUS: PEER LESSONS IN REMOTE EMPLOYEE COMPLIANCE

Hiring remote faculty and staff across all 50 states can help universities attract and retain top talent, but it also creates compliance, payroll, operational and visibility risks. Learn how three universities have addressed out-of-state employment challenges and built stronger governance models.

Learning Objectives:

• • Recognize compliance gaps created by remote faculty and staff employment.
  • Apply peer-tested practices to formalize remote work governance.
  • Learn real-world outcomes from peers who implemented formal remote work programs.

Stefani Neumann, Director, Workforce Solutions, NextSource; Susan Norton, Senior Associate Vice President and Chief HR Officer, University of Alabama; Ashley Mitchell, Director of Human Resources, Western Seminary; Anthony Grono, Senior Associate Vice President of Finance and Controller, Fordham University; Niki Norton, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Human Resource Management, Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College – Baton Rouge

THE LEADERSHIP BENCH HIGHER ED CAN’T AFFORD TO IGNORE

This session will explore how often-overlooked mid-level leaders are critical to institutional strategy, culture and execution and will offer concrete ways HR can build succession readiness before vacancies disrupt continuity.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Assess mid-level leadership gaps that affect HR strategy.
  • Link succession readiness to retention, culture and continuity.
  • Apply tools to develop the mid-level leadership bench.

Celeste Goltz, Ed.D., Director of Talent Management, Keiser University

WHEN BUDGETS DRIVE PAY: MANAGING EQUITY IN DECENTRALIZED COMPENSATION

Decentralized compensation decisions are common in higher ed, but they can create pay equity risk when similar jobs are paid differently across schools or departments. This session will explore practical ways to assess risk, engage leaders and move toward more consistent compensation practices.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Identify pay equity risks in decentralized pay decisions.
  • Assess when funding differences may create compliance concerns.
  • Build leadership support for consistent compensation practices.

Audra Hedberg, Vice President of Human Resource Compliance and Consulting, Trupp

WHITE-GLOVE RECRUITMENT: DESIGNING VIP-LEVEL CANDIDATE EXPERIENCES  

What if recruitment felt less transactional and more intentional? This session will explore a white-glove, high-touch recruitment model using communication, interviewer preparation, personalization and candidate-centered design to strengthen hiring outcomes, trust and employer brand.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Design white-glove recruitment practices that elevate candidate experience.
  • Apply high-touch strategies to strengthen engagement and interviewer readiness.
  • Adapt scalable tools to improve talent attraction, trust and hiring outcomes.

Audrey Davis, Assistant Managing Director of Auxiliary Services Personnel, and Ashley Styles, Senior Associate Managing Director, both of Texas Tech University

WORKPLACE CLIMATE AND EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT AT COMMUNITY COLLEGES 

Community college employees face unique workplace challenges every day. This interactive session will provide an introduction to how community colleges can use climate survey data to address employee well-being and increase employee engagement.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Understand the relationship between workplace climate and employee engagement.
  • Consider how institutions address workplace climate.
  • Develop ideas for improving employee engagement.

Daniel West, Associate Director of Research and Evaluation at the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research, North Carolina State University

YOU’RE LEAVING? YOU JUST GOT HERE! DEBUNKING THE BAD MANAGER MYTH 

Higher ed is in a strain crisis — AI and hybrid fatigue have pushed campus managers to the brink. Are they “bad,” or are they just compressed and undertrained? Explore if leaders can drive a multiplier effect when AI reshapes roles in real time. We’ll shift from manager blame to human-centered, data-driven campus leadership.

Learning Objectives: 

• • Explore practical ways to lead staff the way they want to be led while navigating AI-driven role changes.
  • Learn simple shifts for “compressed” managers to reclaim their impact and drive immediate results.
  • Leave with a 4-point plan for people, process and technology to prioritize human work in a noisy AI system.

Mike Bollinger, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, Cornerstone OnDemand