
Southern California CHRO Community
Executive Summit
December 7, 2023 | Renaissance Long Beach Hotel
December 7, 2023
Renaissance Long Beach Hotel
Collaborate with your peers
Get together with Southern California's top CHROs to tackle shared business challenges and critical priorities facing your role today. Participate in this one-day, local program with peer-driven topics and interactive discussions with your true C-level peers.
Join your peers to discuss the most critical issues impacting CHROs today:
Developing empathetic leaders for the new world of work
Fostering resiliency while supporting the workforce through change
Identifying, growing and retaining employees with the skills your business requires
Southern California CHRO Governing Body
The Governing Body Co-Chairs shape the summit agenda, ensuring that all content is driven By CHROs, For CHROs®.
Governing Body Co-Chairs

Dina Barmasse-Gray
The Cheesecake Factory
Chief People Officer

Deborah Cegielski
Cubic Corporation
CHRO

Kari Durham
Skyworks
SVP, Human Resources

Samantha Khoury
Los Angeles Lakers
VP, Human Resources

Grace Lee
Lumentum
EVP Chief Human Resources and Diversity Officer

Ross Pollack
LionsGate Entertainment
EVP & CHRO

Tracy Ting
Encore Capital Group
CHRO
What to Expect
Agenda
7:45am - 8:30am Registration & Breakfast
8:30am - 9:15am Keynote
Executive Presence for Lasting Leadership

Chris Ulrich
Body Language Expert & Political Consultant
Guest Speaker
Any given gesture -a nod, a point of the finger - unconsciously communicates powerful ideas and feelings that have tangible consequences. Top executives are generally proficient in their ability to interact with others, but the stakes are raised during high-level negotiations, reporting to the board, inspiring and empowering senior managers or dealing with tricky internal matters.
Join body language expert Chris Ulrich as he shares:
- Why every movement and action is magnified in high-level situations
- Tools and techniques to build rapport quickly
- How executives can communicate more effectively
9:15am - 9:40am Networking Break
9:40am - 10:25am Breakout Session
HR Playbook — Culture & Leadership Development
Hosted by CoachHub

Samantha Khoury
VP, Human Resources
Los Angeles Lakers

Shaun Mayo
Chief People Officer
Arizona Cardinals
Not every HR leader has the opportunity to build a human resources department from the ground up. The heads of HR with the Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Lakers were given a blank slate to create HR strategy, develop stretch opportunities for high potential employees and create a winning culture.
Join Samantha and Shaun for a session aligning organizational culture and leadership development as they discuss:
- Defining behaviors of success within your organization
- Utilizing assessments to create career paths and leadership pipelines
- Taking advantage of external learning and development programs
9:40am - 10:25am Executive Boardroom
Unwinding the Maze of Employee Experience
Hosted by Alight

Matthew Bragstad
VP, Strategy, Vision, Storytelling, Evangelism
Alight

Ellen Sheehan
Executive Director, HARRT
UCLA Anderson School of Management

Glenn Grindstaff
CHRO
OSI Systems
Since 2020, employers have increased spending on employee programs by 20% — giving them more choice, more flexibility, more tools, more technology, more data and more systems. However, utilization of these programs is under 10% on average, and only 52% of employees say they have a good understanding of their total rewards.
This boardroom will explore:
• The role of HR transformation in attracting and retaining talent, while fostering engagement and holistic wellbeing
• Strategies for optimizing total rewards programs and benefits offerings
• How to help employees live healthy, financially secure lives with a simplified, AI-driven employee experience
9:40am - 10:25am Executive Boardroom
Creating a Safe Space for Wellbeing

Tasmin Plater
SVP, Global Head of Human Resources
Fifth Season

Patricia Grabarek
Head of People Research
Intuitive Surgical
Health and comprehensive wellbeing benefits have never been more important to the workforce as they are today. Many organizations have enhanced benefits programs to be more aligned with the needs of employees. But as we look forward, what does the future of health and wellness benefits entail?
Join this session as HR leaders discuss:
Initiatives to start, halt and continue for 2024 and beyond
Trends in health and wellbeing solutions — what works and what does not?
Strategies to support health and wellbeing holistically and consistently
10:25am - 11:00am Networking Break
10:30am - 10:55am Peer-to-Peer Meetings
Peer-to-Peer Meetings
Connect with like-minded peers in a one-on-one setting through Evanta’s Peer-to-Peer Meetings. You will be matched with peers in your community based on your shared interests and priorities.
11:00am - 11:45am Breakout Session
Targeted Recruitment and Onboarding for Retention

Lisa Garrett
Director of Personnel
Los Angeles County, CA

Víctor Úbeda
Global Vice President Human Resources
Grifols

Dina Barmasse-Gray
Chief People Officer
The Cheesecake Factory
Organizations’ ability to survive, adapt and grow in this environment hinge on recruiting high-quality talent and successfully onboarding them. A 2022 Gartner Candidate Survey found that 77% of new hires with high onboarding satisfaction say they can see themselves having a long career at the organization. But there are many different paths to a successful recruitment and onboarding program.
Join this breakout session as speakers discuss:
- Streamlining onboarding through virtual and mixed reality solutions
- Creating processes and efficiencies for hiring for varying job types
- Managing high turnover and continuous onboarding
11:00am - 11:45am Executive Boardroom
HR at a Crossroads
Hosted by Visier

Paul Rubenstein
Chief Customer Officer
Visier

Kari Durham
SVP, Human Resources
Skyworks

Tracy Ting
CHRO
Encore Capital Group
HR has been in a perennial state of transformation for decades. Why, then, does it seem like the function is as far away as ever from the business?
This session will explore:
- An outside-in approach to thinking
- Using people data and business data to elevate the decisions around talent
- Approaches to delivery of business results
11:00am - 11:45am Executive Boardroom
Reframing EVP for the Modern Employee

Michael Adamson
VP, Global HR Operations
UST

Ellen Goldsmith
Chief People Officer
Deluxe Media

Michele Hoff
VP, Human Resources, Americas
Epson America
When the world was turned on its head, so were the ways in which employees work, live and feel. Gartner research shows 83% of candidates will exit the hiring process due to at least one mismatch in EVP preferences and 64% would accept a job with more growth opportunities or better work-life balance over a job with higher pay
In this session, CHROs will discuss:
Building a people-centric EVP that focuses on the whole person through a global and local perspective
Making EVP more adaptive to individual needs
Using EVP to reframe workforce strategy and act on critical gaps
11:45am - 12:30pm Lunch Service
Apply to Participate
Apply to participate in the Southern California CHRO Community Executive Summit.
Gartner facilitates exclusive, C-level communities by personally qualifying and understanding the priorities, challenges and interests of each member.
Our selective approach maintains the high quality of the network and ensures top-level discussions with peers from the world’s leading organizations.
Each application will be reviewed, and once your participation is confirmed, you will have access to year-round community programs.
Location
Venue & Accommodation
Renaissance Long Beach HotelParking:
Parking Garage Onsite
Overnight: $30
Day Rate: $25
A block of rooms has been reserved at the Renaissance Long Beach Hotel at a reduced conference rate. Reservations should be made online or by calling 1-800-468-3571. Please mention Evanta SoCal Executive Summit to ensure the appropriate room rate.
Deadline to book using the discounted room rate of $231 USD (plus tax) is November 13, 2023.
Community Program Manager
For inquiries related to this community, please reach out to your dedicated contact.