INCLUSION21 Opening General Session - Keynote Conversation with Kal Penn
Kal Penn, who you may recognize from his starring roles in the Harold and Kuma franchise, House, and Designated Survivor, is joining Alex Alonso, SHRM Chief of Knowledge on the Main Stage.
This will be a riveting session as Alex will question Kal about his journey as an Asian American tackling the complexities of Hollywood, stereotypes and making the jump to work in the White House.
In today's changing world of work, fostering sustainable diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace cultures is imperative to the future of our workforce. This not only requires thoughtful discussions like this session but will require deliberate actions to break through barriers that stand in the way.
Kal Penn
Kal Penn is an actor, writer, producer, and former Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. He is known for starring roles including the Harold and Kumar franchise, House, Designated Survivor, and most recently the patriotic immigration comedy Sunnyside, which he co-created with SNL alumnus Matt Murray for NBC and Hulu. Penn’s other credits include roles on Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, New Girl, 24, and Law & Order: SVU. He has appeared in a number of independent films, most notably Mira Nair’s adaptation of Pulitzer-winner Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel The Namesake, about which The New York Times called his lead role a "crackling, star-making performance."
From 2009 to 2011, Penn took a sabbatical from acting when he was appointed by President Obama to serve as an Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, where he focused primarily on outreach to young Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and the arts community. He worked on issues as diverse as the Affordable Care Act, the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, college affordability, countering violent extremism, and veterans benefits for service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan among others. Penn served as a national co-chair for President Obama’s re-election campaign in 2012, and later served on the President’s Committee for the Arts and Humanities, focusing on arts education in underperforming schools, and cultural diplomacy in Cuba and India.
Penn has taught courses on film and media at the University of Pennsylvania, and on politics and sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Originally from New Jersey, he received his BA in Sociology with a specialization in Theater, Film, and Television at the University of California, Los Angeles, and a graduate certificate in International Security from Stanford University.
He has maintained careers in both entertainment and public service, has been an active member of the Council on Foreign Relations and Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and most recently completed several global documentary series for Amazon, VICE, and National Geographic.
Alexander Alonso, Ph.D., SHRM-SCP
Alexander Alonso, PhD, SHRM-SCP is the Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM's) Chief Data & Insights Officer leading operations for SHRM's Certified Professional and Senior Certified Professional certifications, research functions, and the SHRM Knowledge Advisor service. He is responsible for all research activities, including the development of the SHRM Competency Model and SHRM credentials.
During his career, he has worked with numerous subject matter experts worldwide with the aim of identifying performance standards, developing competency models, designing organizational assessments, and conducting job analyses. He was also responsible for working on contract task orders involving the development of measurement tools for content areas such as job knowledge (like teacher knowledge of instructional processes) and organizational climates (like organizational climate forecasting in military health care).
Dr. Alonso received his doctorate in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from Florida International University in 2003. His works have been recognized for their contribution to real-world issues. They include being recognized by the Society for Industrial Organizational Psychology (Division 14 of the APA; SIOP) with the 2007 M. Scott Myers Award for Applied Research in the Workplace for the development of the federal standard for medical team training, TeamSTEPPS; being awarded a 2009 Presidential Citation for Innovative Practice by the American Psychological Association for supporting the development of competency model for team triage in emergency medicine; and receiving the 2013 SIOP Distinguished Early Career Contributions for Practice Award.
Throughout his career, he has published works in peer-reviewed journals such as Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, Journal of Applied Psychology, International Journal of Selection and Assessment, People and Strategy, Personality and Individual Differences, Quality and Safety in Health Care, and Human Resources Management Review. He has also authored several chapters on community-based change initiatives in workforce readiness, as well as co-authoring Defining HR Success: A Guide to the SHRM Competency Model in Practice.
Dr. Alonso also served as a columnist analyzing major trends in the workforce for The Industrial Psychologist and HR Magazine. In addition, he has served on several professional society boards including the SIOP and the Personnel Testing Council of Metropolitan Washington.
