New York City SHRM’s Board enjoys a rich makeup of diverse professionals with one thing in common – the desire to serve you. Our Board members will gladly take the time to connect with you regarding our association and your involvement with it. Look below to learn more about the individuals who make New York City SHRM the association you rely on for insight and connections in the fast paced New York market. Board of Directors site.

Janet Riesel, MBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
President

HR Consultant and Adjunct Professor at CUNY. Prior: Sr. Talent Acquisition Manager, Kroll, Adjunct Professor, Baruch College; Northeast Recruiting Director, Ernst & Young, LLP; Director, The Conway Organization. BA English and Psychology, Queens College; MBA Industrial Psychology, Baruch College; Certificate in Career Counseling, NYU; DDI Certified, Member of YAI Business Advisory Council; Board Member of PTACH. Current: President, Prior: VP, Programming, Chair, Career Planning & Professional Development SIG. SHRM Member since 1999.

 

 

Immediate Past Co-President
Chief Administrative Officer, Carl Marks & Co. 

Chief Administrative Officer, Carl Marks, since 2004; Prior: Administrative Manager, Booz Allen Hamilton; B.A. State University of New York at Albany, JD, Potomac School of Law, Member State Bar of Georgia; Current:Immediate Past Co-President, Prior: VP, Website, Member of Membership Ctte, Directors’ Forum, Managers Forum; Membership Director for NYS SHRM and SHRM member since 1997.

Janet Hoffmann, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Immediate Past Co-President
President, HR Aligned Design

President, HR Aligned Design. since 2010; Prior: Chief People Officer, BR Guest Restaurants; VP/Human Resources and Organizational Development, Morton’s – The Steakhouse. BS Hotel and Restaurant Management, Cornell University, School of Hotel Administration. Current: Immediate Past Co-President. Prior: VP, Communications, Former: Chair, Social Media Ctte, Assistant Secretary & Co-Producer Speaker Select Series, Program Ctte Member. SHRM member since 1995.

 

Rajan Lai

Vice President, Finance & Treasurer

VP Human Resources of B&B Hospitality Group. Prior: VP Human Resources, Thompson Hotels; VP Human Resources, Raffles Hotels & Resorts; Director Human Resources, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts; Director Human Resources, Taj Hotels & Resorts; Area Director Human Resources, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. MPS Hotel Management from Cornell University, M.A. & B.A. Delhi University Current: Vice President, Finance & Treasurer, Prior: Chair, Finance Committee, Member Directors’ Forum. SHRM member since 2012.

 

 

Stuart Friedman, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Vice President, Communications

HR Business Partner with CWP Group. BS, Communications from New York State University at Brockport. Current: VP, Communications. Prior: Mentoring Committee Co-Chair, Chair of Social Media Committee focused on making sure we communicate with our members via all media channels and formats. Do you Tweet?, Networking, Staffing and HR PRO SIG’s. SHRM member since 2011.

 

Alex Salas
Vice President, Membership
HR Generalist, UNITE HERE

HR Generalist, UNITE HERE; Prior: HR Generalist, Audemars Piguet; HR Specialist, AXA; Bachelors of Science with a focus in International Business and Economics from Saint Peter’s University. Current: VP of Membership; SHRM member since 2012.

 

Harrison Newman
Vice President, Marketing & Sponsorship
Corporate Synergies Group

Corporate Synergies Group. Current: Vice President, Sponsorship; Co-Chair, Total Rewards, Prior: Chair, Sponsorship. SHRM Members since 2015.

 
John McCaffrey, CEBS, GBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Vice President, Programs; Chair, Workforce Readiness SIG
HR DIrector, UNITE HERE

HR Director at UNITE HERE since 2005. Prior – LSG Sky Chefs – Recruitment, Retention and Development / Human Resources Manager – Northeast Region. SHRM member since 1990, NYC SHRM member since 2003 Current: Director, Chair, Workforce Readiness SIG, Mentor in NYC SHRM’s mentoring program, Member of the Directors’ Forum and Volunteer Engagement Team.

 

 

Rich Atkins, Ed.D.
Director; Co-Chair, Orientation; Co-Chair, Holiday Party
Managing Director, Improving Communications
 

Managing Director of Improving Communications, American Management Association (AMA)-certified faculty and Vistage-certified speaker. Presenter on the concept of MEDIA TERRORISMâ„¢. Doctoral dissertation on canine learning styles. Current: Chair, Orientation Committee, Co-Chair, Holiday Party Planning Committee and Career Planning & Professional Development Special Interest Group. SHRM member since 2007.

 

Grace Beasley-Matthews, DBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Director; Chair of Not for Profit SIG

Chief Human Resources Officer, WHGA, Inc.

 
Chief Human Resources Officer at WHGA, Inc. Prior: Director of Human Resources, Rescare; Director of Human Resources, Bideawee; Director of Human Resources, New Alternatives for Children, Director of Human Resources, UCP/NYC, DBA in Leadership. Doctoral dissertation on improving productivity of a multi generational workforce; MS in HR Management & Organization Development, New School; BBA in Business Management, Bernard M. Baruch, CUNY. Adjunct Instructor with CUNY; COO of NAAAHR NJ Chapter; Reviewer for IBAM & SHRM Foundation College Scholarships; Project Director for Taproot. Current: Chair of Not for Profit SIG, SHRM Member since 1999.
 

Angela Blum-Finlay, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, CCP
Director; Chair, Talent Management
EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer, Dime Community Bank
EVP & Chief Human Resources Officer for Dime Community Bank since October 2016. Prior: Director of Human Resources (Global Talent Management Group) for Mitsui & Co., (U.S.A.), Inc. from 2007 to 2016 and Director of Human Resources for public accounting firms from 1997 to 2007. M.B.A. and B.S. in Business Management / Human Resources Management from Fairleigh Dickinson University. SHRM member since 1999, Current: Director, Chair of Talent Development SIG, Prior: Co-Chair of the Workforce Council for the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, and Board Advisor for the FDU School of Arts.
 

Joan Ceinski, MLER, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Director; Chair, Mentoring Committee
Human Resources Strategic Business Partner, FirstEnergy
 

Human Resources Strategic Business Partner, First Energy. Prior: New York City Housing Authority, Board Agent, National Labor Relations Board; Community Development Institute; Council of NJ State College Locals. MLER, Rutgers University School of Management & Labor Relations. Current: Director, Chair, Mentoring Program. SHRM member since 2006.

 
Jane Gios
Director; Secretary
Principal, Platform: Success, Inc.
 

Principal, Platform:Success, Inc. and HR Consultant for start-ups  Prior: HR Lead for artnet and Chief Administrative Officer at Joel Isaacson & Co. Current: Director, Secretary, NYC SHRM, Chair of Women’s’ Initiatives SIG, Co-Chair of Women’s Initiatives since 2012.  SHRM member since 1996.

 

Ken Meyer, SHRM-SCP, SPHR
Director; Chair, Managers’ Forum
Vice President, Human Resources, Community Healthcare Network

Chief Human Resources Officer/V.P. of Human Resources & Corporate Compliance Officer for Community Healthcare Network, since 2011. Prior: Manager, Human Resources for Aptium Oncology, Inc. at NYU Clinical Cancer Center, 2004-2011. MSILR, Cornell University & Baruch College. BA, Lehman College. SHRM member since 2004. Current: Chair, Managers’ Forum SIG, Mentor-Mentoring Program

 

 

Susan Rosengarten
Director, Chair, Organizational Development & Change Management
Talent Associate, Nomura

Talent Associate at Nomura, BA in Psychology and Business from Queens College, CUNY. Masters in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from NYU. Current: Director, Leadership Continuity Committee member, Chair of the Organizational Development and Change Management SIG since 2016. SHRM member since 2013.

 

 

Beth Schefflan, SHRM-SCP, SPHR
Director; Co-Chair, Workforce Readiness
Senior Human Resources Consultant
Senior Human Resources Consultant with a focus on non-profit and manufacturing companies. Previously Vice President, Human Resources & Talent Engagement for Serino Coyne LLC, an OmnicomGroup Company. HR Management Certificate from the Human Resources Development Program at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Consultant for Taproot Foundation’s speed consulting program. Co-Chair for the Workforce Readiness Special Interest Group; member of the Human Resources Directors’ Forum and the Veteran’s Programs Coordinating Committee. SHRM member.
 

Briana Jakovcic
Assistant Treasurer
Senior Associate, Human Resources, APG Asset Mgmt. US Inc.

Senior Associate, Human Resources, at APG Asset Management US Inc., BA in Accounting from Manhattan College; Dual MBA in Management & Human Resource Management from Iona College as well as a certificate in International Business. Also serves as the Chairperson of Selection for the Yonkers Columbus Committee. SHRM Member since 2012.

 

Philip Rosen, Esq.
General Counsel
Partner, Jackson Lewis LLP

Principal, Jackson Lewis P.C. He is a member of the firm’s Board of Directors and leads the firm’s Labor and Preventive Practices Group. He joined the firm in 1979 and served as Managing Partner of the New York City office from 1989 to 2009. General Counsel for New York City SHRM.

 
 
 

Cheri Hennessy Durst
Executive Director
New York City SHRM

Executive Director for New York City SHRM since December 2018.

Director Emeritus
Jennifer Loftus, SPHR-CA, GPHR
National Director, Astron Solutions, LLC
Jeanne Marrin, SPHR
President, HR on the Move, LLC
Barry Manus
President, BRAVO Human Resources Services Inc.
Robert Nadel
President, Nadel Consulting
Jack Shein, SPHR
Senior Vice President, Job Diva
Al Smith
Former VP, Client Relations Lee Hecht Harrison
John S. Sturges, SPHR,CMC,PMC, PhD
Benefits and Compensation Design Group
Lorri Zelman
Division Director, Beacon Hill HR

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