Rewind 2019: Major HR movements in 2019

We are on the verge of completing the year 2019 and all set to enter the next year. The year 2019 witnessed some significant HR movements in this domain, and industry leaders from top to mid-level shifted their companies, some got elevated, and few of them got kicked up. In this article, we highlight some of the significant movements which took place in the year 2019. 

Rudy Afandi- Rudy Afandi, who was with General Electric for over three years, joined XL Axiata as Chief Human Capital Officer. He has broad experience across HR functions including remuneration and reward, capability building, recruitment, performance management, employee relation, change management, and organizational development. Afandi has worked in different businesses, functions, and countries. Prior to joining GE, Rudy was the Head of HR for Supply Chain and Corporate Industrial Relations with Unilever based out of Indonesia.

Judi Seltz - LabCorp a leading global life sciences company announced Judi Seltz as the new Chief Human Resources Officer. She replaced Lisa Uthgenannt following her planned retirement. Seltz comes to LabCorp from Diversey Inc., where she was Chief Human Resources Officer. Diversey is a global provider of sustainable hygiene technologies and services, with approximately 9,000 employees around the world. Prior to Diversey, Seltz was Senior Vice President of human resources for the Global Human Health division of Merck, where she worked with Schechter. 

Kathryn O’Driscoll - Zymeworks Inc a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing multifunctional therapeutics appointed Kathryn O’Driscoll to the executive team as Chief People Officer (CPO).

O'Driscoll is an industry veteran with 20 years of experience as an executive-level human resources leader across large global organizations in the technology and non-profit sectors. In her new role as Zymeworks’ CPO, she is managing and developing its highly diverse and skilled workforce.  

Felicia Mayo - Felicia Mayo, Former VP Human Resources and Head Diversity at Tesla stepped down from the Palo Alto-based electric carmaker within 2 years of joining the organization. 

Felicia joined Tesla in 2017 after a 9-year stint at Juniper Networks as VP - Global Talent Acquisition and Diversity, prior to which she worked with Oracle for 7 years and PWC for 3 years. After working for 19 years in Silicon Valley, she was sought out by Tesla to lead their HR and Diversity initiatives and was promoted to VP from Senior Director in March 2019. 

Stan Duncan - Condé Nast has appointed Stan Duncan as the new Chief People Officer, In his new role, he will oversee the company’s global people organizations and lead all human resources functions. 

Duncan holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Alabama. He is also an active member of the Human Resources Policy Association, and various securities industry organizations.

Irene DeNigris - iCIMS, Inc., the cloud-based recruiting solutions, announced the elevation of Irene DeNigris to Chief People Officer (CPO). As CPO, DeNigris is responsible for all aspects of the organization’s talent strategy and operations, powering its ability to continue to scale up its workforce.

DeNigris previously worked in human resources at Dolce Hotels and Resorts corporate headquarters, as well as Johnson & Johnson’s corporate headquarters. During DeNigris’ time with iCIMS, the company has received industry recognition for its commitment to both job candidates and employees.

Kristi Erickson - Publicis Sapient, the digital business transformation hub of Publicis Groupe, appointed Kristi Erickson as Global Chief Talent Officer. Kristi is an accomplished professional with over 30 years of experience working across organizations and partnering with their C-level executives to develop and drive talent and culture strategies to enable business strategy. Prior to joining Publicis Sapient, Kristi held Chief People Officer roles spanning verticals, regions and horizontal service lines.

Kathy Gentilozzi - Planet Fitness, one of the largest franchisors and operators of fitness centers in the U.S., announced Kathy Gentilozzi as their new Chief People Officer. Gentilozzi oversees the company’s human resources operations including talent acquisition, leadership and organizational development, business partner support, culture and employee engagement, benefits and compensation.

Lara Hernandez - Global hospitality company Hilton roped in Lara Hernandez as senior vice president, human resources in the Asia Pacific. Hernandez will be responsible for overseeing culture and talent development at Hilton from Hilton’s Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore. 

Hernandez joins Hilton after a 12-year career at IHG, where she most recently served as the senior vice president, commercial and business performance for Europe, Middle East, Asia, and Africa.

Lisa Chang - Adding another senior industry veteran to their senior leadership, The Coca-Cola Company appointed Lisa Chang as the new Chief People Officer.  Chang took charge from March 1, 2019 based at Coca-Cola headquarters in Atlanta, replacing Jennifer Mann, who now serves as president of Global Ventures for the company.