FEATURED GUESTS
Johnny C. Taylor, Jr.
Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP, is President and Chief Executive Officer of SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management. SHRM drives social and economic change in the workplace and fosters mutually beneficial work environments that serve both business and employees. Mr. Taylor is frequently asked to testify before Congress on critical workforce issues and authors a weekly column, "Ask HR," in USA Today. Mr. Taylor's career spans over 20 years as a lawyer, human resources executive, and CEO in both the not-for-profit and for-profit space. He has held senior and chief executive roles at IAC/Interactive Corp, Viacom's Paramount Pictures and Blockbuster Entertainment Group, McGuireWoods LLC and Compass Group USA. Most recently, Mr. Taylor was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. He is a member of the US Department of Commerce's American Workforce Policy Advisory Board and Chair of the President's Advisory Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He serves on the boards of the University of Miami, Jobs for America's Graduates, and the American Red Cross and as an adviser to Safe Streets & Second Chances.
Ifeoma Ajunwa
Dr. Ajunwa is an Assistant Professor of Labor and Employment Law in the Law, Labor Relations, and History Department of Cornell University's Industrial and Labor Relations School (ILR), and Associated Faculty Member at Cornell Law School. She is also a Faculty Associate at the Berkman Klein Center at Harvard Law School and an Affiliate of the Center for the Study of Inequality at Cornell University. Dr. Ajunwa's scholarly articles have been published or are forthcoming in both top law review and peer-review publications. Dr. Ajunwa has been invited to present her work before governmental agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Dr. Ajunwa's writings have also been published in popular media such as the NY Times, the Washington Post, the Atlantic, the Harvard Business Review, the ACLU Blog, and others. Dr. Ajunwa's forthcoming book, The Quantified Worker, which examines the role of technology in the workplace and its effects on management practices as moderated by employment and anti-discrimination laws, will be published by Cambridge University Press in 2020.
Rich Sternin
Richard Sternin currently serves as Associate Director, Strategic Recruiting Projects, at EY. In this role, he acts as project lead for artificial intelligence recruitment in EY's Global Innovation and Client Technology teams. Before joining EY, he led talent and recruitment at Sentient Technologies, LendingClub, and—more recently—at Hearsay Systems.
Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is a business advisor and technology consultant. He helps Fortune 500 companies with digital transformation, media, and marketing. Named LinkedIn's Top Voice in Technology, he is the co-host of "Think About This with Shelly Palmer & Ross Martin" on the Westwood One Podcast Network. He covers tech and business for Good Day New York, writes a weekly column for Adweek, is a regular commentator on CNN and CNBC, and writes a popular daily business blog. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.
Sonya Sepahban
Sonya Sepahban is an independent board member, tech investor, and entrepreneur. Leveraging her engineering and technology background and her operational expertise and profit-and-loss experience, Sepahban has built successful business ventures and advanced systems in the United States and globally. Sepahban is currently CEO of OurOffice Inc., a software company leading a new product category in human resources technology. OurOffice is the provider of an integrated platform that leverages data and machine learning to empower companies with deep insights, curated solutions, and actions to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion. Previously, Sepahban's career spanned world-class, high-tech organizations such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Fortune 500 companies, and technology startups. Most recently, Sepahban was senior vice president at General Dynamics with significant global responsibilities. Sepahban serves on the board of Cooper Standard, a publicly-traded automotive company, and has held board seats and advisory roles at nonprofits, startups, and investment funds.
RELATED RESOURCES
• Ajunwa, Ifeoma. “Beware of Automated Hiring.” The New York Times (October 8, 2019).
• Ajunwa, Ifeoma. “The Paradox of Automation as Anti-Bias Intervention.” 41 Cordozo, Law Review (October 10, 2016).
• Mullainathan, Sendhil. “Biased Algorithms Are Easier to Fix Than Biased People.” The New York Times(December 6, 2019).
• Palmer, Shelly. “The Top Emerging Job of 2019: Artificial Intelligence. Specialist.” (December 11, 2019).
