Season 5 of HR Fresh Take starts here! Dr. Jo welcomes Alexandra Dailerian, VP of Impact & Inclusion at Comcast and a board member of the Pennsylvania Conference for Women, and Alyssa Schaber, Senior Manager on Comcast's Impact & Inclusion team. Together they take a fresh look at how culture gets built inside organizations.

Alexandra and Alyssa walk through Comcast's Team Up program and its three pillars: Serve, Give, and Grow. They also explain how a strong HR partnership model turns volunteerism into part of the company's DNA.

We'll also preview the 2026 Pennsylvania Conference for Women, held Thursday, November 5, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Philly SHRM is a community partner of this event where over 9000 women will receive a year's worth of fresh perspectives, practical ideas, meaningful connections, and lasting momentum. A return that extends far beyond one day.

You can follow the Pennsylvania Conference for Women on LinkedIn and on Instagram at @conferencesforwomen and @pennwomen

Business, Engagement, Human Resources, Management, Thought Leadership, Return to work, Inclusion, Hybrid work, AI, phillyshrm.org

What does "modern HR" actually mean once you strip away the buzzwords? In this final installment of The Future of HR Beyond Tech, host Dr. Jo gathers five HR leaders on the ground at the Philadelphia SHRM Symposium for a candid roundtable on what it really takes to lead people well right now.

The conversation moves from AI and automation to something more fundamental: relationship building, empathy, and psychological safety. The panel digs into why HR has to trade administrative, reactive habits for strategic, proactive ones — connecting people metrics to business outcomes leaders actually care about (think retention, ramp time, and hiring velocity, not just cost-per-hire). They talk candidly about the profession's current uncertainty and attrition, what to look for when bringing new talent into HR, and why the best HR departments are built by people who are, above all, humans first.

Plus, don't miss the closing lightning round, where the panel reveals what they'd be doing in another universe — from running a Cajun restaurant to chasing volcanoes.

Guests:

• Melissa Atkins — Founder, Philly HR Group (HR consulting & employment law)
• Dr. Kayla LaBarge — Senior Consultant, Equilibria Leadership Consulting
• Kaela Blanks — JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) Practitioner and Inclusive Culture Strategist
• Stephanie Manzelli — Chief People Officer, Employinc
• Erica Kaufman — President, Evolve Leader Kinetics

Business, Engagement, Human Resources, Management, Thought Leadership, Return to work, Inclusion, Hybrid work, AI, phillyshrm.org

Data informs. People transform. That's the future of HR.

In Part 3 of HR Fresh Take’s special series, The Future of HR: Beyond Tech, recorded live at the 2026 Philly SHRM Symposium, host Dr. Jo continues the conversation with her guests, Samantha Bussard, Chief Talent Officer at Compass Business Solutions, Kristi Straw, Founder of Lighthouse Leadership Consultants, and Jennifer McSherry, Senior Vice President and Client Advisor with Lockton Companies, to explore how HR is changing in a rapidly evolving workplace.

From AI and data to trust, empathy, and experiential leadership, we discuss people-centered leadership, business impact, data-informed decisions, and the power skills HR professionals need to create workplaces where people can thrive.

Business, Engagement, Human Resources, Management, Thought Leadership, Return to work, Inclusion, Hybrid work, AI, phillyshrm.org