Atlanta HR Star Conference Speaker Information Jill Christensen is an author, international keynote speaker, employee engagement expert and President of Jill Christensen International – a global firm based in Denver, Colorado that focuses on teaching companies proven strategies to re-engage their employees. With three decades of real-life, in-the-trenches Fortune 500 executive-level experience, Jill’s view is radically different from many other employee engagement experts. Prior to launching her consulting firm in 2009, Jill served as the head of Global Internal Communications at both Avaya and Western Union. Jill’s proven approach for increasing employee engagement has allowed her to speak throughout the United States, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore and India. Jill is also a best-selling author, holds a Six Sigma Green Belt and was named a Top 100 Global Employee Engagement Influencer. In 2017, her popular blog was awarded a Top 100 Corporate Blog alongside that of Apple and Microsoft. Jill partners with the best and brightest leaders around the world to re-engage employees, improve productivity, retention, customer satisfaction and revenue growth. She has worked in 13 industries with clients that include: Samsung, Novartis, AT&T, Nokia, ARROW, TIAA and ACT as well as numerous U.S. cities and non-profit organizations. Clare Draper, Esq. is a Partner in the Labor and Employment Group at Alston & Bird LLP in Atlanta, Georgia and consistently has been named a "Georgia Super Lawyer" by Atlanta Magazine. His practice covers all areas of labor and employment law. Having served as lead counsel in all types of labor and employment litigation for over 20 years throughout the country, Mr. Draper has developed extensive expertise in assisting clients with HR management issues, including litigation prevention, development and implementation of workplace policies and practices, reductions and expansions of the workforce, employee retention, union/management issues, regulatory compliance and negotiating, drafting and litigating employment agreements, restrictive covenants and separation agreements. Mr. Draper is a nationally known expert in the field of government-mandated affirmative action plans, and he serves as national affirmative action counsel for several companies, including the second largest private employer in the U.S. In addition, he is the author of several employment related publications, the latest of which is the Pike & Fisher/BNA book Workplace Privacy: A Guide for Attorneys and HR Professionals. Mr. Draper received his B.A. from Yale and his J.D. from Vanderbilt, where he was an associate editor on the Vanderbilt Law Review. Sheree Knowles, SPHR, CPM is a talented executive with over 20 years of HR leadership experience. She is the Founder of HR Knowledge Source (HRKS) - a human resources and talent management firm - and a Managing Partner with Human Capital Consulting Consortium (H3C). Prior to joining the entrepreneurial community she served as the VP of HR for companies with regional and national geographic footprints. Sheree is an accomplished practitioner who has achieved multiple certifications and designations throughout her career including: EQi 2.0 (Emotional Intelligence), SPHR (Senior Professional in Human Resources), CPM (Certified Project Manager), MBTI (Myers-Briggs) and DiSC. In addition she is a Certified Facilitator for ELI, Inc’s Civil Treatment Programs and a Master Facilitator for Facebook’s Leadership and Diversity Programs. Sheree is a highly-regarded business leader, curriculum architect, dynamic facilitator and professional speaker. She has been a featured presenter at multiple HR Star Conferences, DisruptHR, SHRM-Atlanta Conferences, NAAAHR Conferences, the Project Management Institute (PMI) as well as on radio and television. Sheree is respected as a thought-leader and subject matter expert in HR with an emphasis in workplace civility, employee engagement, project management, emotional intelligence as well as in diversity, equity and inclusion. She is also active with a variety of nonprofit organizations and has served as a Board Advisor for the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR) Atlanta Chapter. Sheree is a graduate of the University of Dayton. Nancy J. Lewis, MS, PHR, SHRM-CP, RCC is a leading inspirational speaker, trainer, author and registered corporate coach. Nancy is the President of Progressive Techniques, Inc. based in Fayetteville, Georgia and has been conducting training for 30 years. She is the co-author of, Millennials and Beyond: Making the Leap from Texting to Talking.. Additionally, Nancy has worked as an adjunct faculty instructor at Georgia State University where she has taught courses in human resources. Nancy works with organizations that want to develop their people potential and with employees who want more fulfillment in their careers. She conducts dynamic keynotes and seminars on leadership, diversity and human resources. Also, she delivers customized, interactive and content-rich presentations and works with executives and managers to help them transform and enhance their careers. Nancy was included in the 2016 edition of Who’s Who in Black Atlanta and is the former host of the radio talk show, Sisters Together: Sharing Stories Straight From the Heart. She has been featured regularly on local radio and television broadcasts and was selected as a 2009 WNBA Atlanta Dream Woman of Inspiration. Nancy was also selected by Rolling Out Magazine as one of 25 most influential women in Atlanta. Some of Nancy’s clients include: Delta Air Lines, Inc., Chick-fil-A, Inc., The Coca-Cola Company, Georgia Power, FORD Motor Company, AT&T, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The American Heart Association, Winn Dixie, Georgia State University, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice, SunTrust Bank, Spelman College, Kimberly Clark Corporation and Georgia Institute of Technology. Nancy earned a M.S. degree from Georgia State University in Urban and Public Affairs with a concentration in Human Resources. Seth Davies is Managing Partner and Senior Consultant at Competitive Solutions, Inc. where he runs the day to day operations of the Atlanta office. Seth is a popular speaker at human resources, operational excellence and quality conferences. He believes organizations today must create and sustain a culture with three non-negotiable attributes: a sense of urgency, a clear and concise business focus, and a leadership-driven accountability. In this regard he has assisted a wide variety of organizations in the development of their key business metrics, documented communication strategy and established collective accountability across the company. Organizations that Seth has worked with include Pfizer, Genentech, Genzyme, Goodwill Industries, Revlon, Michelin Tire, Alcon Life Sciences, National Institute Severely Handicapped (NISH), and several Army Depots. Braden Albert is the Founder and President of the HR Star Conference and its parent company, Abbington Court Media. A graduate of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, Braden began organizing job fairs and trade shows in the mid-1990's. Intrigued by the idea of bringing people together for a shared, learning experience - and impressed by the impact such an experience can provide - Braden organized his first HR Star Conference in 1999. Today, the scope of the HR Star Conference includes annual events in Los Angeles, California; Atlanta, Georgia; San Francisco, California; and Cleveland, Ohio. Over 3,300 HR professionals attended an HR Star Conference in 2019.