Amanda currently works as the Head of People, Culture, and Belonging at The Tech Interactive in San Jose, CA. Prior to this role, Amanda has worked in DEI and HR as a consultant, project manager, and generalist. At the Charleston International Airport, she built and implemented a Performance Management system as part of her Project Management Professional (PMP) Credential. Amanda holds a Master’s Degree in Applied Social Psychology from Loyola University Chicago where she studied statistics and implicit prejudice and bias. In 2016, she had the privilege to be published in the journal Women & Therapy. Amanda previously contributed to the development of HRCI upSkill™ assessments and continues to work on the aPHR, PHR, and SPHR exams as a Forms Reviewer, Item Writer, and coach for new item writers.
Emmanuel Michael is a seasoned and highly sought after strategic human resources leader with almost three decades of management experience spanning various industries such as multidisciplinary engineering, information technology, hospitality and financial services, of which almost two decades have been in human resources management practice. Between March and August 2017, he was the Interim CEO & Head of HR of Letshego MFB, a national microfinance bank in Nigeria. He is currently the Head of People and Culture at Letshego Nigeria. Emmanuel is a globally certified HR practitioner (SPHRi™, HRPL, MCIPM, MITD), subject matter expert with the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM), HR Certification Institute (HRCI), and a Microfinance Certified Banker (MCIB). He serves as a career and business mentor on various local and international platforms in addition to being an internationally certified Leadership and Career Success Coach. His contribution to the global HR community has resulted in several recognitions and awards both locally and internationally, chief among them are the 100 Most Influential Global HR Leaders (2018), 101 Global HR Heroes (2019) awards by the World HRD Congress, and Top 200 Biggest Voices in Leadership (2022 and 2023). In addition to being a regular contributor on current HR issues and trends on social media, Emmanuel enjoys public speaking at both local and international forums, writing blogs, and hosts #HRwithEM - a platform to #Connect, #Learn, and #Share on everything Leadership, Career Development, and Employee Experience. He is fondly called "The HR Celebrity" by the Nigerian HR community.
Amy Benbarka is the VP, HR for Ontrac, the largest regional delivery company in the US. Previously, she was the Chief Human Resources Officer for AM LLC, an organization that provides the federal government with mission-critical services in information, communications, technology, and public health. After spending time working in human capital consulting both in Seattle, Washington, and the DC metro area, she returned to corporate HR management and specializes in helping high growth companies scale their HR practices. Ms. Benbarka holds the PHRca®, SPHR®, and GPHR® credentials, as well as an MBA from The University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. She has served as an Item Writer and Reviewer for the GPHR, SPHR, and aPHRi™ exams, and contributed to The Guide to HR Body of Knowledge.
Sylvia Diemer is the Human Resources Manager at Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney. Her primary responsibilities include strategy development, recruiting, employee relations, policy implementation and enforcement, training, performance management, and compliance with state and federal employment laws for the Chicago, Austin, Houston, Detroit, and St. Louis offices. Diemer has more than 10 years of experience in HR leadership. Prior to joining Segal McCambridge she worked as the Regional Human Resources Manager at a facility management services company in Chicago. She earned PHR certification in 2010, and a bachelor's degree in entrepreneurship and innovations at the Krakow University of Economics in 2002. She started collaborating with the HR Certification Institute in 2010. She has served as an Item Writer and Item Reviewer for the PHR, SPHR, PHRi, and aPHRi exams. In 2018 she started mentoring and coaching new item writers.
Babs is the Group HR Data & Systems Director at Klockner Pentaplast - a global leader in recycled content high-barrier protective packaging. In his role, Babs is responsible for the overarching HR Technology strategy with emphasis on Employee Experience and Productivity. He has significant HR experience across different industries such as the Manufacturing, Media and Financial sectors. His experience spans over 20+ years working in various capacities for great brands like Coca-Cola, Jaguar Land Rover, Serco and the BBC. Babs’ vast experience in the field of HR has made him a versatile business ally and operational executor. His areas of expertise include: Information Systems and Transformation Projects, Talent sourcing, Learning/organizational development, role/team design, succession planning, and compensation/ benefits. Babs earned an MSc in Human Resource Management from the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen UK. He holds multiple HR and HR Systems certifications from various HR professional accrediting bodies in the UK, USA and Nigeria. Certifications include GPHR, SPHRi and SPHR from HRCI and a Chartered Member, Chartered Institute of Personnel Development, UK. Babs is also a SAP Certified Application Associate in four different modules of SuccessFactors.
Alisa Guralnick is one of two founders of NextLevel Human Resources Consulting, LLC in San Diego, CA. Alisa has helped self-funded and venture-backed technology startups, as well as Fortune 500 telecommunications and financial industry leaders, through all levels of development. She has a Professional Certificate in HR Management from the University of California, San Diego, and completed the inaugural session of their HR Leadership Program. Alisa has taught various Human Resources classes at the University of California, San Diego and at Mira Costa College. Alisa holds a BA in English from the University of Rochester (NY). Alisa holds the PHRca® and SPHR® credentials. She continues to serve as a Forms Reviewer, Item Writer and Item Review coach for the SPHR and PHRca exams for the HRCI and contributed to The Guide to HR Body of Knowledge.
Janet took an unusual path to the world of HR. After a 10-year career in employee benefits and insurance, she switched to HR and has been an active practitioner for over 25 years. Janet spent the bulk of her career in the state of Alaska after moving there to attend college at the University of Alaska Fairbanks on a Division I Rifle Scholarship. Janet credits her diverse HR background to practicing in the Last Frontier. Working in Alaska offered many remote opportunities in the HR profession. Throughout her Alaska career, she worked as part of a small HR team and worked outside of her comfort zone to gain skills in a variety of HR practice areas and worked her way up to larger companies and more senior HR roles. Throughout Janet’s career in Alaska, Janet held senior HR leadership positions on the Alaska pipeline, with CH2MHill on the Northslope oil fields, and with Chenega Corporation, a prominent Alaska Native Corporation with over 6,000 employees. Janet recently relocated to Virginia to take the role of Chief Human Resources Officer for SOS International, a dynamic international government contractor working in the technology, defense and intelligence sectors. In June 2021, Janet took on a new venture leading HR for a start-up software company working in artificial intelligence and machine learning. She’s excited to be part of a technology team working on some of our country’s toughest data problems and contributing to making our world safer. She has been a volunteer to HRCI for over 10 years, first as an item writer and now is very excited to be joining the Board of Directors and contribute to HRCI in another meaningful way.
Lisa Mockler is the VP, People Operations for ZoomCare, which provides a variety of health care services. Based in Portland, Oregon, she oversees human resources and learning and development. Previously, Lisa was the Human Resources Director for Pinkerton and was responsible for human resources and talent acquisition for the western U.S. and Canada. Throughout her career, Lisa has worked in a variety of industries for small and mid-sized organizations. She earned a Master of Business Administration from Willamette University, Atkinson Graduate School of Management, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Washington State University. She is Senior Professional in Human Resources® (SPHR®) and the Global Professional in Human Resources® (GPHR®) certified. Lisa has served as an Item Writer, Item Writer Coach, Forms Reviewer, and participated in the Job Task Analysis for the SPHR, GPHR and SPHRi® exams.
Rali Petrova is the Deputy Director of Certification at American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT). She has worked in the certification field more than a decade and is a Certified Credentialing Professional (ICE-CCP) with Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE) Petrova volunteers on several ICE committees. She earned her Master of Business Administration from American Military University and Bachelor of Science in Health Systems Management from George Mason University. Petrova resides in the Washington D.C. area, enjoys cycling and is a self-proclaimed “foodie”.
Ravi Puddoo is a certified Professional in Human Resources - International (PHRi) with over 18 years of global experience in diverse industries such as telecommunications, hospitality, automotive, retail, life sciences and technology. He currently serves as a Talent & Transformation Executive at IBM Consulting leading global talent acquisition and HR delivery strategies. In his role, he provides a consultative and trusting partnership to clients while executing on talent solutions to provide optimal experiences using workflow management and data. In his prior roles, he has overseen efforts that have resulted into effective and streamlined human resources practices and change management including initiatives to improve diversity and inclusion. Ravi holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from University of Mumbai, an MBA from IIMT New Delhi and an Executive Program in Human Resources from Rotman Business School, University of Toronto. He started collaborating with HRCI in 2012 and has since served as a subject matter expert in different workstreams like focus groups, Item Writing and Exam Form Reviewer. His passion revolves around coaching, mentoring, engaging with teams at all levels and serves as a foundation for change and progress.