HR Credit

Dan Pasternak is a Shareholder in Greenberg Traurig's Labor and Employment Practice Group.  Dan's practice covers the full range of labor and employment issues, from litigation, to working with management to develop, implement, and enforce effective employment and labor relations policies and practices, to providing daily counsel to management and human resource personnel on employment law compliance matters.  Dan also conducts workplace investigations, and provides a unique approach to harassment and discrimination avoidance training through Greenberg Traurig's GT Training Workshop.  In addition, going back to his days as an attorney with the National Labor Relations Board, Dan has years of experience representing employers in a broad spectrum of traditional labor relations matters, including union organizing campaigns and response strategy, collective bargaining negotiations, unfair labor practice charge and representation case proceedings, strike response and contingency planning, and grievance arbitration proceedings.    

Jake Flaitz, Director of Benefits at Paychex, is responsible for managing the company’s comprehensive benefits programs, including the nationally recognized Active Health wellness initiative.

Jake is active in community health care issues in Rochester, New York and a member of the Rochester Business Alliance’s Health Care Planning Team and the Rochester Regional Health Information Organization’s (RHIO) Management Committee. He is also a member of the Community Technology Assessment Advisory Board (CTAAB) and the board of the National Business Group on Health’s Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being.

Jeff Gibson is the VP of Consulting for The Table Group, a Patrick Lencioni company. As a management consultant and speaker, Jeff has worked with hundreds of CEOs and executive teams to help them become more effective and build healthier organizations. 

Jeff has worked with a broad spectrum of clients in various industries, including high-tech, biopharmaceuticals, financial services, manufacturing and health care. His responsibilities also include new business development, enterprise sales and all aspects of client service. 

In addition to his work with consulting clients, Jeff has been instrumental in assisting with the development of Lencioni’s original methodologies and publications, including The Advantage, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, The Three Signs of a Miserable Job, to name a few.

The HR Certification Institute is based in Alexandria, Va.

Bob Kelleher is a best-selling author, keynote speaker, and consultant on employee engagement, leadership, and workforce trends. Bob is the author of the bestselling book, LOUDER THAN WORDS: 10 Practical Employee Engagement Steps That Drive Results, CREATIVESHIP, A Novel for Evolving Leaders, EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT for Dummies, and I-Engage, Your Personal Engagement Roadmap.   

Bob can be seen or heard on national media (most recently on CNBC, CBS, NBC News, Business Week, Forbes, and Fortune, and has presented to many of the world’s top companies

Bob is also the founder of The Employee Engagement Group, a global survey, products, assessment, consulting firm.  

Joseph (“Joe”) Beachboard is a nationally recognized employment lawyer who also closely tracks the most important developments at the U.S. Supreme Court impacting the business community. He has more than 30 years of experience representing management in a wide variety of employment and labor matters in perhaps the most challenging state in the nation for employers – California.  Mr. Beachboard speaks regularly before human resource and employer groups on cutting edge employment law topics.  He is a member of SHRM and has been an annual presenter at both the SHRM Annual Conference and the Employment Law and Compliance Conference for two decades.  Mr. Beachboard is frequently quoted in such leading publications as HR Magazine, National Law Journal, Los Angeles Times, NY Times, HR Executive and Workforce, and has been published in dozens of legal and business journals. Throughout his career in Los Angeles, Mr. Beachboard has represented dozens of studios and entertainment properties.  He cites his most interesting project as working with the cast and crew of the television show The Office, from its pilot through the final season.

Eartha Jean Johnson is President and Chief Executive Officer of LegalWATCH, an international training and staffing company she formed in 1997 after practicing law for a Fortune 100 company, and working for the United States Department of Justice and an international law firm.  She uses the knowledge and expertise she acquired practicing law to help companies avoid mistakes that can often force them into settlements, regulatory compliance sanctions or litigation.  She has conducted numerous training courses, spearheaded governmental audits, designed compliance programs and negotiated settlements with third parties and governmental regulators across the United States.  In addition to her Juris Doctorate Degree, she holds a Masters Degree in Energy, Environmental and Natural Resource Law, a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice.  Eartha is certified in Training and Development and is a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR).

Eartha serves on the Forum of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council and is a member of the Women Business Enterprise Alliance of Texas and Houston Minority Business Council.  Eartha is a Past President of the Houston Lawyers Association and Past Chair of the African American Law Section of the State Bar of Texas. Eartha also served on the boards of WIPP ("Women Impacting Public Policy") and NISH ("National Institute for the Severely Disabled") and completed an eight year term as Chair/Vice Chair of the Women's Lawyers Division of the National Bar Association.   She also served on the National Women's Business Council, a bi-partisan Federal government council that advises the President, Congress and the U.S. Small Business Administration on economic issues important to women. 

Penny Wofford is a South Carolina Supreme Court Certified Specialist in Employment and Labor Law. She concentrates her practice in the area of employment litigation and employee benefits. She advises and defends employers, employer sponsored plans, and plan fiduciaries against all types of claims under ERISA and employment discrimination laws. Penny not only provides proactive counseling and legal advice to employers and management regarding human resources issues but also assists employers with the design, drafting, and administration of welfare benefit plans. Penny is a frequent speaker on employee benefits and employee leave topics and regularly provides company and supervisor training on employment discrimination, documentation and confidentiality.