FREE WEBINAR

Everyone says HR should be strategic, but what does that look like in the real world?

In this interactive session designed for mid- to senior-level HR professionals, we’ll move beyond theory and dive into what it truly means to lead with strategy. You’ll assess your current strategic impact, explore how to align people practices with business goals, and learn how to bring data, insight, and influence to the executive table. Through real-world examples and peer discussion, you’ll walk away with practical tools to elevate your role and amplify your impact.

Whether you're already on the path from tactical to transformational—or want to sharpen your edge—this session is your launchpad.

By the end of this session we will:

1. Define what it means to be a strategic HR professional in today’s complex environment.
2. Evaluate their current level of strategic influence using a simple assessment tool.
3. Identify the key behaviors and mindsets that differentiate tactical HR from strategic HR.
4. Engage executive leaders in meaningful, forward-looking conversations about people strategy.
5. Apply data-informed insights to shape HR practices that align with organizational priorities.
6. Explore real-world examples and peer strategies to elevate their impact in the year ahead.

Rachel Platt, CEO of PLATTinum HR Consulting

Rachel Platt brings 20+ years of experience helping organizations and individuals achieve enduring success through strategic human resources leadership. Through her roles as a Chief Human Resources Officer, Vice President, and Regional Director in diverse organizational structures and industries, she built her reputation on her track record of developing pragmatic solutions to meet complex organizational and people challenges.

Rachel founded PLATTinum Consulting in 2018 to guide leaders in creating People Strategy initiatives in the areas of employee engagement, leadership development, culture assessment and improvement, performance management, staff training, communications, talent acquisition, HR process improvement, diversity, equity and inclusion and employee coaching.  As a certified Women's Business Enterprise (WBE), PLATTinum serves small and medium sized non-profits and commercial businesses across the US.

PLATTinum partners with clients to maintain a transparent, ongoing, open dialogue. We provide a data-driven, responsive, organized approach.  But most importantly, we are proactive, optimistic, approachable and occasionally funny. We place outcomes before egos and work with clients who share similar values.

IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR 1.5 HRCI + SHRM CREDITS

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED

         

Session Description & Learning Objectives:
WTW will share insights on key market trends and outline how HR leaders can navigate today’s rapidly evolving landscape. The session will focus on strategies to elevate the Employee Experience, including:

• Employing multi-faceted listening strategies
• Understanding and responding to total rewards preferences
• Applying structured change management approaches

Speakers:

• Elise Freedman – Senior Director, Employee Experience

Elise is senior leader in the Employee Experience and Talent Practice. For over 30 years, Elise has been advising Senior Business and HR Leaders on how to better link business strategy to their talent strategy to develop a culture, structure and practices that attracts, aspires and retains talent while also driving business performance. Her areas of expertise include talent management, change management, culture transformation, mergers and acquisitions, employee experience, leadership development, career development, performance management and succession management.  

Additional experience outside of WTW includes senior roles at Korn Ferry, Accenture, and BearingPoint where she developed a broad base of talent management, change management, human resources and project management skills and expertise.

• Lara Paukovits – Senior Director, Employee Experience

Lara Paukovits is the Employee Experience (EX) Market Leader for the Metro Washington, D.C. market. In this role, she focuses on helping our clients to achieve their business goals and desired EX, our colleagues to attain their ambitions, and our company to deliver on our key strategic priorities.

Lara’s recent experiences include:

●Organizational change, including M&A and restructuring

●HR transformation, strategy and effectiveness

●Career framework and related program implementations

●Total rewards strategy

●Performance management

●Wellbeing program engagement

●Employee insights

Lara has more than 20 years of experience with WTW and has worked with clients across many industries. For more than 15 years she has contributed to the firm’s intellectual capital on change management and the career aspects of the employee experience. In 2007 she was one of six employees to receive the Chairman’s Award for personifying the mission, vision and values of the firm.

• Shekar NV – Senior Director, Work & Rewards

Shekar NV is a recognized global leader in Workforce Transformation, specializing in Strategic Workforce Planning and Talent Analytics. With a proven track record of leveraging big data, AI, and advanced analytics, Shekar helps organizations move from reactive talent decision-making to proactive and predictive workforce strategies.

With 25+ years of experience, Shekar has designed and led workforce analytics strategies, transformation initiatives, and predictive modeling projects for some of the world’s most prestigious companies, including Capital One, HP, Marriott, and Accenture. His ability to bridge HR, business strategy, and data science has helped executive teams drive workforce agility, operational efficiency, and talent innovation.

Before his role at Willis Towers Watson, Shekar founded and scaled Accenture’s Talent Innovation Lab and Talent Analytics team, growing it from a one-person function to a 100+ member global practice while filing three patents in workforce intelligence. His expertise spans workforce planning, AI-driven talent insights, organizational design, and HR technology transformation. A trusted advisor to C-suite leaders, Shekar is committed to reshaping the future of work by integrating data, digital transformation, and strategic workforce design to help businesses stay ahead in an era of rapid change.

Areas of focus

●Workforce Planning & Labor optimization

●Predictive Talent Analytics

●HR Data Strategy, Reporting & Dashboards

●Talent Strategy and Talent Management

Education and Credentials 

Shekar has a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA in Finance & Strategy from Vanderbilt University, USA. He was a member of the prestigious Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society. He is a frequent keynote speaker at HR conferences and has been interviewed by CEB and other magazines and publications.

Timeline

8:00am - 8:45am - Registration + Breakfast + Networking

8:45am - 9:00am - Interactive Team Building Activity

9:00am - 10:30am - Program

10:30am - 11:00am - Networking

IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR 1.5 HRCI + SHRM CREDITS

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED

         

Timeline

8:00am - 8:45am - Registration + Breakfast + Networking

8:45am - 9:00am - Interactive Team Building Activity

9:00am - 10:30am - Program

10:30am - 11:00am - Networking

IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR 1.5 HRCI + SHRM CREDITS

PROGRAM ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED