Melissa Jones
Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
CSAA Insurance Group
Melissa Jones, who has served as CSAA Insurance Group’s executive vice president and chief human resources officer since 2019, has led the company’s “Future of Work” initiative over the last year. The program is a response to employees’ needs in the wake of the pandemic and includes a company-wide hybrid work model and a people-focused approach to benefits and healthcare. As a result of the initiative, employee turnover is at an all-time low and the company has seen a surge in applications for open roles, with employees appreciating the flexibility and other benefits of hybrid work, including reduced commuting costs. .
Lori Knowles
Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
Memorial Herman Health System
As senior vice president and chief human resources officer at Memorial Herman Health System, Lori Knowles oversees staffing and training for more than 33,000 employees. She has led the organization’s “Well Together Human Capital Strategy” to create a supportive environment for healthcare workers by taking an employee-centric approach to organizational culture, talent acquisition, and the employee experience, including tuition payment support and care support for children and loved ones. Additionally, Knowles launched “Celebrate,” the organization’s online rewards and recognition program, which offers peer-to-peer recognition and a points system where top talent can win awards. As a result of these initiatives, Memorial Herman Health System has seen a 35% decrease in its turnover rate.
Jeff Krupp
Chief Human Resources Officer
Inotiv
Jeff Krupp joined Inotiv as its senior vice president of human resources in 2022, being promoted to chief human resources officer in 2023. Throughout his tenure, he has worked to drive positive employee momentum through “One Inotiv,” the organization’s culture initiative that focuses on continuous learning, energizing the workforce, enhancing DEI, and improving the company’s talent pipeline. Krupp’s leadership has helped increase female and people of color representation by 5% to 55% and 30%, respectively, and ensured market competitiveness and internal equity through a wage analysis across the U.S. and EMEA to help retain employees.
Nakesha Lopez
Chief People and Culture Officer
Advocate Healthcare
During Nakesha Lopez’s tenure at Baylor Scott & White Health, where she most recently served as chief human resources officer, she addressed the healthcare talent shortage by implementing the “Four R’s”: recruit, retain, retrain, and remove. As a result of her initiative, the organization saw vacancy rates drop by 23% and nursing labor costs were reduced by 9%. In addition, Lopez emphasized employee wellness, with 88% of employee survey respondents saying that they felt supported in their efforts to balance work and life. Earlier this year, Lopez joined Advocate Healthcare as its chief people and culture officer.
Rachel Miller
Roebbelen Contracting, Inc.
Rachel Miller, who joined Roebbelen Contracting, Inc. as its chief human resources officer in 2020, has spent the last year working to streamline HR operations through the company’s “LEAN” construction process. This effort to streamline and automate 14 HR processes has saved 372 hours annually for the company. Miller has also doubled down on Roebbelen’s commitment to continuous learning by adding 289 employee training and development sessions and a manager accelerator workshop to its selection of learning opportunities. Each of these efforts have helped to improve the company’s employee engagement score, which is 10 points higher than the industry average.
Rebecca Port
Chief People Officer
10x Genomics
As chief people officer at 10x Genomics, Rebecca Port has spearheaded and formalized the organization’s concept of talent density, which aims to increase the amount of top talent at the company while also driving productivity. Port has led the charge to improve the company’s bar for hiring, strengthen the company’s feedback culture, and increase employee accountability. Further, her efforts to improve manager training and foster approachable leadership have helped bolster morale, with 93% of 10x employees feeling satisfied about working with their colleagues.