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Webinar Program Descriptions
Unless otherwise noted, Webinars begin at 3:00 p.m. and end at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
September 11, 2008
"What Can HR Do to Help the Bottom Line?"
FREE to CUPA-HR Members
With the current economic downturn, institutions across the nation have increasing pressure to reduce operational costs and increase revenues. HR is uniquely situated to find solutions that affect 80-90 percent of the budget — its personnel costs. With a wealth of expertise in key areas like communications, resource allocation, system design and process design and assessment, HR professionals should confidently promote their contribution as they work in viability for years to come. In this Webinar, you will learn about examples and models where HR leaders can work proactively in helping their institutions through this difficult period.
Presenter Biographies
Kyle Cavanaugh has held senior HR positions in several large universities and in various industries. In his current role as senior vice president for Administration at the University of Florida, his primary responsibilities include HR operations, business affairs, internal audit and privacy. Throughout his career, Kyle has shared his knowledge with CUPA-HR colleagues and has served as guest lecturer and consultant to public and private universities. He holds two M.Ed. degrees and an MBA from Belmont University.
Charlotte Fugett currently serves as president of the East Campus for the Pima Community College District. Prior to assuming the presidency, Charlotte was executive vice president for Administration at PCC with responsibilities ranging from human resources and legal liaison, to college events and public safety. Prior to accepting her position at PCC, Charlotte served as chief human resources officer at the University of Richmond for 20 years. Charlotte has a strong background in institutional operations, campus based activities and planning for organizational effectiveness.
October 2, 2008
"Privacy Issues in Human Resources"
This session will explore how long-standing principles are being applied to the electronic workplace, in such diverse areas as monitoring of telecommuting and employee e-mail, Googling job applicants, genetic testing and protection of personal information to prevent identity theft. Attendees will learn why they must confront not only traditional common law and constitutional protections, but a wave of new regulations and laws at the federal and state levels.
Presenter Biographies
Ira M. Shepard is the Co-Managing partner of the Washington, DC office of Saul Ewing LLP. He has served as CUPA-HR'S outside counsel for the past 30 years and writes a monthly column for CUPA-HR entitled "Legal Watch." He is called on by colleges and universities nationwide for counsel, advice and representation on specialized labor, employment and benefits law issues.
Robert Duston is a partner in the law firm Saul Ewing, based in their Washington, D.C. office. He represents colleges and universities, public and private sector employers and non-profits nationwide in all areas of labor and employment law and other aspects of higher education law. Rob received his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he began his career as a law clerk for the university's in-house counsel. He has defended institutions, presidents, board members and others in federal and state lawsuits from employees and students; provided advice and counsel on a wide range of legal issues, acting as either outside general counsel or assisting university counsel; and done training on topics from ADA to the electronic workplace.
November 6, 2008
"Building Conflict Competent Teams"
Conflict is at the heart of some of the best ideas as well as worst failures of teams. This Webinar will explore how teams can deal more effectively with conflict so that they can obtain the enhanced creativity and improved decision-making that it can afford. Learn about the sources and challenges of team conflict, how to create the right climate for handling conflict effectively and using constructive communications techniques to address conflict. Participants will develop a clear understanding of how to create team norms for managing conflict as well as insight into how they can become more competent at dealing with conflict as a team leader or member.
Presenter Biographies
Tim A. Flanagan, director of Custom Programs for the Leadership Development Institute, earned his M.A. at the Ohio State University and worked in higher education for eight years before entering the human resource development field in 1985. He is a frequent presenter at professional conferences and has consulted with scores of leading national and international firms. He is the coauthor of Becoming a Conflict Competent Leader (Jossey-Bass, 2007) and Building Conflict Competent Teams (Jossey-Bass, 2008).
Craig E. Runde currently serves as director of the Center for Conflict Dynamics at Eckerd College, where he oversees training and development on the Conflict Dynamics Profile assessment instrument. He is the coauthor of Becoming a Conflict Competent Leader (Jossey-Bass, 2007) and Building Conflict Competent Teams (Jossey-Bass, 2008). He received his B.A. from Harvard University, M.L.L. from the University of Denver and J.D. from Duke University.
November 20, 2008
"The Retiree Medical Funding Crisis … How Will Higher Education Respond?"
Due to rising medical inflation and certain budgetary constraints, many employers are reconsidering their approach to retiree health care benefits and weighing alternatives such as reducing these benefits, eliminating them or transferring the financial risk on to their employees and retirees. In this Webinar, TIAA-CREF and Hewitt Associates will discuss the spiraling cost of retiree health care and the risks it poses to the long term financial security of retirees. The program will also focus on the essential elements of plans and products designed to enable plan sponsors to find solutions for funding this important need.
Presenter Biographies
David Richardson, principal research fellow, TIAA-CREF Institute
Allen T. Steinberg currently serves as principal and senior consultant of Retirement and Financial Management Practice at Hewitt Associates. Since joining Hewitt in 1984, Allen has served as a national resource for consulting on retiree health care and retirement income design. Allen has written a number of articles on benefits issues for a range of publications. Prior to joining Hewitt, he practiced for a major Chicago law firm, specializing in employee benefits. Allen holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from Northwestern University.
December 11, 2008
"Risky Business — Being an HR Data Custodian"
The incidence of identity theft is doubling every year with increasing losses and decreasing recoveries. Data security breaches continue to be reported in every business sector: federal government, state government, commercial enterprises, credit processing/reporting companies and public universities. Learn the methodology to review and assess HR data security risks, and then how to prepare a plan to address and mitigate those risks. The recent collaborative effort of the IT and HR departments at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is used as a case study to show how to develop a hierarchical inventory of key business processes, categorize and rank security threats and establish a set of recommended controls.
Presenter Biographies
Steve Brukbacher is a certified information systems security professional with ten years of experience in higher education information technology. Steve has held various positions in IT including client services, support and management. He is currently the Information Service technical service specialist overseeing IT security for the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
Karl Sparks has served as an equal opportunity educator, affirmative action officer and human resource executive in federal settings, private industry and higher education. HR systems have been a significant aspect of Karl’s career, having served as project manager for an implementation of HR/payroll/timekeeping and as a principal business analyst for a major software vendor. Karl is currently the chief human resources officer for the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
January 22, 2009
"Non-Cash Reward Strategy for Tough Economic Times"
With talk of a recession growing, businesses, organizations and consumers are considering whether now is a good time to reduce spending. During past recessions, when such talk escalated, reward systems were one of the first items cut from the budget. Today, however, a WorldatWork Survey of Trends in Employee Recognition 2008 published at the end of April shows that over 90 percent of responding organizations are continuing all of their existing recognition programs or have increased them in the last 12 months. More than half say they are planning new programs in the coming year. Only 7 percent of respondents say they are doing less recognition today than they were a year ago. Why the change? Why are businesses increasing recognition programs rather than cutting them? What have we learned from the past? What should we do for the future? These are questions we will explore in this Webinar. Our panel of presenters will provide suggestions and strategies for creating and maintaining a recession-proof culture of recognition.
Presenter Biographies
Before founding Drake & Associates in 1992, Mary Lou Drake worked as a human resource generalist and manager for over 16 years at Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill. Her creative ideas and commitment to excellence made her successful in working with all levels of faculty, staff and senior management. Mary Lou founded Drake & Associates, Ltd. to utilize her extensive human resource knowledge to provide strategic analysis, professional advice and hands-on assistance to area business and university leaders. She and her associates specialize in partnering with clients to improve and enhance employee productivity through sound human capital management practices compatible with the client’s business strategy and mission.
Before assuming her role as associate vice president for Human Resources & Payroll, Linda Harber was assistant vice president for Human Resources and chief human resources officer for George Mason University. She came to Mason with 25 years of experience at Virginia Commonwealth University. She has served on both the regional and national boards of directors for CUPA-HR. Linda has also served as Southern Region chair and has presented sessions at both national and regional conferences over the past fifteen years. Ms. Harber was awarded the National Distinguished Service Award in 2005 for leadership and service to CUPA-HR, the CUPA-HR Southern Region Distinguished Service Award in 1998 and the CUPA-HR National Creativity Achievement Award in 1992.
Randi Shapiro, assistant director for Work/Life, University of Washington
Brian Usischon is the senior director of Benefits & Employee Services at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He joined the university in April 2007 and is responsible for overseeing the administration of all health, welfare, retirement, work/life, wellness and discount and employee leave programs. He has an extensive background in employee benefits and many years of experience providing consulting services to colleges and universities in the analysis, development, design and installation of employee benefit plans. Brian holds a Group Benefit Associate designation from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is an active member of CUPA-HR and has served on several advisory boards for various organizations and councils.
February 19, 2009
"Enhancing Coaching Competencies"
In this Webinar, attendees will gain a deeper understanding of coaching, and will learn about the approach the University of Rochester has been using to enhance coaching competence both in HR and on their campus. Presenters will also discuss and provide information about various coaching training and options.
Presenter Biographies
Barbara Saat has worked in human resources at the University of Rochester for over 20 years. Since 1998, she has had responsibility for a team of generalists who provide a full range of human resource services to a diverse group of customers in academic, research and central administration arenas across the university. Barb is co-chair of the Upstate New York Chapter of CUPA-HR and has presented at several national, regional and chapter conferences. Barb holds a Master of Science degree in career and human resource development, with a specialty in organization development, from Rochester Institute of Technology. Barb has also completed an extensive training program through Corporate Coach University International and is a licensed facilitator of their coaching training programs for managers and leaders.
Judi Fonzi, director and associate professor at the Warner Center for Professional Development and Education Reform at the University of Rochester’s Warner School of Education, brings extensive experience in mathematics and teacher education, research, and leadership coaching. Since the Warner Center’s inception in 2001, Fonzi has led a team of experts who provide important problem-solving resources, expertise and collaborative consultation services to every organizational partnership. She helped spearhead a new Leadership and Organizational Development division at the Warner Center that provides strategic services and models—including collaborative executive coaching sessions and leadership forums—to help improve workplace culture and productivity.
March 5, 2009
"Washington’s New Game Book for HR"
Presenters will cover changes HR professionals can expect from the new Congress and Administration, including changes to the laws governing employee leave, wage and hour, equal employment opportunities and unionized workforce.
Presenter Biographies
Josh Ulman is the founder and principal of Ulman Public Policy and Federal Relations. For the greater part of the last decade, Josh has helped businesses, business organizations, governments and coalitions to develop and implement strategies for achieving legislative and regulatory objectives on workforce related issues. He currently serves as the chief government relations officer for CUPA-HR.
Christi Layman serves as CUPA-HR's manager of government relations. A veteran of Capitol Hill, Christi focuses on legislative matters and developing relationships with other stakeholders in the HR and higher ed community.
March 19, 2009
"Best Practices in Harassment Prevention for Colleges and Universities"
Based on a review of hundreds of court cases, this Webinar will outline best practices for harassment prevention that you can use on your campus. It will answer the questions, such as: Why do colleges need a broad-based harassment prevention policy that prohibits all types of unlawful harassment, not just sexual harassment? Why is there a need to disseminate policies on at least an annual basis to all employees? Is there a need to train all faculty and staff on harassment prevention? What should I cover in the training? Are the courts rewarding employers that follow these best practices by giving them affirmative defenses and shielding them from punitive damages in litigation? How do courts punish employers that fail to follow these best practices?
Presenter Biography
D. Frank Vinik is an attorney and senior risk analyst at United Educators Insurance. Prior to joining United Educators, he practiced employment and education law at a major firm in North Carolina and served in the administration of the University of California at Berkeley. He has spoken on employment law topics at the annual meetings of many higher education organizations. In addition, he is the author of "The Quiet Revolution in Employment Law and its Implications for Colleges and Universities," published in the Journal of College and University Law. Frank graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of California at Berkeley and received his law degree from the University of Virginia.
April 16, 2009
"Campus Security/Threat Management"
As the frequency and severity of security incidents on campus continue to rise, effective threat management and security planning become an increasing challenge for both public and private institutions. In this Webinar, you will gain insights on assessing, preventing and responding to potential threats in a timely manner.
Presenter Biographies
Dr. Kris Mohandie is a police and forensic psychologist with over 19 years of experience in the assessment and management of violent behavior. He currently serves as a consultant at Aon Schirmer Engineering. He regularly consults on workplace violence, extreme violence, college and university and K-12 school violence, stalking and threat cases in the private and public sector through his company Operational Consulting International, Inc. His book, School Violence Threat Management came out in 2000 and is now in its second printing, and his research and writings have been featured in many publications and on many television networks.
Stephen Moritz, consultant, Aon Schirmer Engineering
May 14, 2009
"Managing an International Workforce"
The first part of this Webinar will focus on trends in immigration law and procedures, especially as they relate to legislation under the new President and Congress. The latter part focuses on expatriate issues and will outline Michigan State’s experience in setting up an HR program for employees in the United Arab Emirates.
Presenter Biographies
Jill Guzman is the international employment manager for Human Resources at NC State University and has more than 10 years of immigration experience. Jill joined NC State in her current position in December 2007, and is actively involved in assisting faculty and staff with immigration and visa issues and oversees the employment verification and compliance process and procedures. Jill received her law degree from DePaul University College of Law in 1995 and is licensed to practice law in Illinois. From 1997 to 2007, she was an associate/senior associate at Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, a global immigration law firm, where she led a team of legal professionals in providing immigration services to Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 clients.
In his current role as director of Employee Relations at Michigan State University, Scott Sowulewski is responsible for managing all employee relations functions including labor negotiations, grievances, arbitrations and union relations at MSU. Developing a strong background in labor relations and human resources, he previously served as the regional human resources manager for Graphic Packaging International and held prior positions with the Kellogg Company and the Michigan Senate that gave him experience in staffing, salary planning, government compliance, diversity, payroll and human resource information systems. He received a B.A. in international relations from the James Madison College at Michigan State University and also holds an M.A. in labor and industrial relations from Michigan State University.
