 Richard Baier
Director, Department of Economic Development, State of Nebraska
Richard J. Baier currently serves as director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, a position former Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns appointed him to in August 2003 and Governor Dave Heineman subsequently reappointed him to. Richard’s previous experience includes Executive Director of the Development Corporation of North Platte, and Executive Vice President of the Greater York Area Chamber of Commerce/ York County Development Corporation (NE). In addition to directing Nebraska’s overall economic development effort, Baier serves on numerous statewide boards & commissions, including chairing the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, the BioNebraska Executive Committee and the Nebraska Workforce Investment Board. Baier earned his certification as a Certified Economic Developer in 2002 from the International Economic Development Council, and graduated from both the US Chamber Institute for Organizational Management and the Economic Development Institute.
Session: Leveraging Technology in Nebraska Communities
 Dr. Lawrence Pfaff
Human Resource Consultant, Pfaff & Associates, Portage, Mich.
Dr. Pfaff has 30 years of organizational consulting experience. He is a Professor of Psychology and a former Dean of a business school. Since 1980, Dr. Pfaff has consulted in the areas of employee selection, executive/management coaching, team building, 360 degree feedback, and performance appraisal. He has been a consultant to more than 250 organizations of all sizes. Dr. Pfaff is author of the SELECTPro Selection Interview System (www.selectpro.net) and is nationally known as an authority on behavioral selection interviewing. Since 1989 he has specialized in the implementation of 360-degree feedback systems. He is the author of the Management-Leadership Practices Inventory, the Team Practices Inventory, the Professional Communication Inventory, Time Management Practices Inventory, and the Career Orientation Inventory. Dr. Pfaff's research has been cited in HR Magazine, Inc., BusinessWeek, Forbes, Working Woman, The Christian Science Monitor, Incentive, Executive Female, Across the Board, and Retailing Today.
 Susan Burns
Chief Talent Strategist, Talent Synchronicity, Executive Director, Future of Talent Institute, Portand, Ore.
As the founder and Chief Talent Strategist of Talent Synchronicity, Susan develops strategic talent solutions through an integrated alignment with core business functions and processes. Susan is a strong advocate of integrating social media to enhance engagement of prospective talent, establish collaborative communities and advance a company’s brand equity and competitive positioning. By weaving together technology, social media, branding, P & L experience, and alignment with strategic business directives intrinsic value is created across recruitment and talent initiatives. With a keen focus on adaptive and sustainable solutions, Susan facilitates establishing a foundation for talent functions to deliver enhanced value across the organization in today’s and tomorrow’s business environments. Susan also serve as Executive Director for The Future of Talent Insitute - a community of senior talent leaders influencing the way in which organizations evolve their talent strategies, develop adaptive talent solutions, and embrace the persistent challenges of a changing world. Through an annual retreat, practitioners come together to design guiding forecasts and strategies in the areas of talent acquisition, branding, technology, knowledge management, employee development, and leadership. Through hands-on leadership experience in organizations of various size and brand visibility, Susan has delivered successful and differentiated solutions to develop competitive recruitment strategies, employment brand engagement, workforce/talent planning, and university recruitment programs. Technology and relationships have both played a central role in how Susan approaches strategy development and implementation.
Session: Social Recruiting and Your Talent Acquisition Strategy
 Chris Russell
Site Operations Manager, Google
Chris Russell wears many hats at Google, one of which is the manager of the Google data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. He has a degree in Computer Science with a minor in Business Management. Chris comes from a background of managing global IT infrastructures, having direct experience with implementing and managing IT in over 35 countries.
Session: Building a Company Culture that Engages Employees
 Bob Herrera
Information Services Manager, Mutual of Omaha
Bob has been employed at Mutual of Omaha for 23+ years and he has held a variety of positions since he started as an entry-level mainframe programmer. He has done recruiting on behalf of the I/S Operation at different times during his career, and he is currently working with a team on Talent Management initiatives. Bob is involved in several boards and organizations across the community including Nebraska Methodist College, Heartland Latino Leadership Conference, Omaha Sister Cities Association, Winners Circle, and the NorthSTAR Mentor Program. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Kearney State College and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Session: Internships as a Recruiting Tool
 Steve Kudlacek
Principal Consultant, DaVinci Group
Steve has more than 25 years of experience in Business and Information Technology Management. As a certified Project Management Professional, Steve has built his career on high-risk, multi-million dollar initiatives. As the leader of PayPal’s Operation and Support technology during their start-up, Steve positioned PayPal to support over 35 million new Customers in just three years. At First National Bank, Steve led the management of FNB’s high risk transaction processing businesses and drove Business Cost & Production Control for over $75 million in operations. Steve offers a variety of consultative services to his clients including: Strategic Coaching & Development, Tactical Plan Development, Strategic & Tactical Alignment, Program & Project Management Coaching, Project Management, Data Management Coaching, Critical Business Reporting, Business Process Analysis, Business Process Design & Modeling, Finance Integration with IT & Operations, Activity-based Costing, Business & IT Management Controls, and Risk Identification & Mitigation.
Session: Unlocking the Business Person in the IT Professional
 Steve Narans
Principal, Human Capital, SilverStone Group
Steve has over 25 years of experience in Human Resource and Executive Leadership positions. He has worked with clients on projects ranging from strategic planning to assessing, designing and delivering training workshops. Steve has held positions from entry level in Human Resources to Chief Executive Positions in both Human Resources and Organizational Management. Steve’s experience and background allow him to assist his clients in all areas – from the basics to the more complex – resulting in value-added consulting for everyone involved. Steve’s unique consulting style allows clients to learn, experience and relate to the real world while having fun during the process. He has worked in diverse industries with venues from small to large organizations. He has a real talent for helping clients break down issues and develop plans that add value to their organization. Steve’s workshop audiences learn to tie skills and knowledge back to their working world, where they can measure their effectiveness and, once again, add value. Steve also facilitates groups in strategic planning, teambuilding and public speaking. Steve is a member of many professional and civic organizations, including the local and national associations of the American Society of Training and Development (ASTD) and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).
Session: Generation What? Who?
 Vickie Seitner
President and Founder, Career Edge One-on-One Consulting
Vickie Seitner is President and Founder of Career Edge One-on-One Consulting. She received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from University of Nebraska, Omaha. Vickie's career includes 15 years of executive management, 10 years in the stock brokerage industry, and five years in the not-for-profit sector. She is an active member of SIOP (Society for Industrial & Organizational Psychology, SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management), and ICF (International Coach Federation).
Session: Recruitment and Retention Strategies of 2010
Bob Michelic
PMP, Manager of the Project Management Office, Oriental Trading Company
Bob Michelic, PMP, is the Manager of the Project Management Office at Oriental Trading Company with responsibility for IT Project Management leadership, strategies, best practices/processes and execution. Prior to joining Oriental Trading Company, Bob worked in IT project and program management positions for government, energy, trading/risk management, insurance, and transportation companies, including Denver Regional Council of Governments, Omaha Public Power District, Aquila Inc., Physicians Mutual Insurance and GMAC. Notable is his 5 years at Aquila Inc. where he served as Manager, IT Applications Development and Director of the Project Office providing strategic IT solutions to Aquila’s Energy Trading business. He has a BSBA, Business Management and a MBA both from Creighton University. He is a native of Omaha, married with two sons and three grandchildren, enjoys golf, traveling and participating in community activities.
Session: Employees' Perspectives on Collaborative Culture
Donna Gould
Manager, Information Technology, ConAgra Foods
Donna Gould is Manager Information Technology for ConAgra Foods in Omaha. She oversees the web development team which writes stand alone enterprise applications and simplified user interfaces for SAP. She is passionate about collaboration and has worked to move her team closer to other shared services groups as well as customer facing teams. The team is currently finishing up an Agile/SCRUM pilot program to try to strengthen the partnership with end users. Previously, she was a Senior UNIX Systems Engineer for ConAgra and TD Ameritrade. Donna holds an MA in Management from Doane College and a BS in Biology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Session: Employees' Perspectives on Collaborative Cultures
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