Event invitations are typically sent to all alumni as Google calendar invitations from hello@peopleleaderaccelerator.com and are hosted on Zoom.
If you missed an invitation or would like it to be resent, please email hello@peopleleaderaccelerator.com. Thank you!!
Manager Skills Training workshop
Join us to discuss how to effectively upskill managers inside our organizations.
What works? What doesn’t?
What measures should we use to gauge impact?
What budget needs to be allocated?
What should be in-sourced, versus out-sourced?
How do we deal with internal resistance to the time or cost?
Maybe most importantly, where should we start?
We will be joined in this interactive discussion by Tom Griffiths, CEO & cofounder of Hone and Amelia Moore, Lead Consultant with A Positive Adventure.
As usual - no recordings, no slides. Just straight talk and practical suggestions.
Headcount Planning & Budgeting for HR
How can HR leaders best support their organizations during headcount planning and budgeting processes?
What is our role versus that of department leaders and the finance team? What should you do if you feel "frozen out" of headcount and budget discussions?
What approaches, processes, and tools work well? What traps should we watch out for?
Learn from Ian White, founder & CEO of Charthop and fellow members of the People Leader Accelerator community in this interactive discussion.
Come prepared with your questions and please share whatever might be working for you!
Effective Onboarding workshop
Join our PLA community for an interactive discussion on the topic of employee onboarding.
How much time and effort should you put into employee onboarding? What is the ROI?
Do you need a technology tool to help with onboarding?
How should you prioritize between job-specific skills, cultural integration, and tactical basics?
Long-time adjunct faculty member, Jess Yuen will facilitate our session, and as usual, there will be no recording and no slides presented - just a focus on group dialogue and practical, actionable tips.
More resources are available on Jess’ website and be sure to check out the 62-page New Hire Onboarding Guide that Jess created for PLA!
We will give you the code for a free download during the session and in the meeting invite :)
Performance Management & Goal Setting workshop
Join our PLA community for an interactive discussion on the topic of Performance Management & Goal Setting.
Are your company-level goals clearly articulated? If not, how can you get buy-in?
How can we best ensure alignment between individual goals and broader company objectives in a fast-paced, founder-led organization?
What are the most effective performance management frameworks that we have used?
How can we balance quantitative (e.g., OKRs, KPIs) and qualitative measures of performance in an evaluation process?
What role does transparency play in your organization’s goal-setting and performance management processes, and how do you manage the risks of over-transparency?
What are some key changes to plan for when transitioning from early-stage to growth-stage or beyond?
Andrew Bartlow and PLA alum Marcele Kaite will facilitate this session, but as usual, we're looking forward to a lively dialogue with all attendees.
You may also find some of these free PLA resources to be useful:
PLA Propel: An Alumni Retreat
Save the date for our first PLA alumni retreat! We have reserved meeting space at the UC Berkeley Faculty Club. The agenda includes a private group dinner on Wednesday 5/14 near campus, a full day of workshops on Thursday, and a half day on Friday 5/16.
Make your overnight room reservations directly with The Graduate Hotel or The Faculty Club.
Register and details here: https://www.peopleleaderaccelerator.com/pla-propel-2025
PLA Year in Review 2024
Join us in reviewing the state of the PLA program, celebrating recent graduates, reviewing key activities from 2024, and discussing upcoming opportunities to engage more closely with our PLA community in 2025. Hope to see you all here!
Navigating People Tech with Emily Chardac
We all agree there is SO MUCH people tech out there. But what is good? Or, what is good for YOUR company - but perhaps not another? We will discuss with Emily Chardac how various HR tech products fit together, and when it’s time to move on. https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilychardac/
Building confidence through agency: Taking control of your HR career - with Melanie Naranjo
Many HR professionals wrestle with both personal feelings of imposter syndrome as well as power & status imbalances in the workplace. (How hard should you REALLY push back on your CEO?) During this PLA workshop, we will speak with Melanie Naranjo, VP of People of Ethena (an HR tech startup), about how to overcome these challenges successfully. As a pre-listen, be sure to check out her appearance on the Modern People Leader podcast here: https://www.modernpeopleleader.com/137-handling-nos-from-your-ceo-reminding-fellow-execs-what-hr-is-optimizing-for-melanie-naranj/
Learn more about Melanie and follow her on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-naranjo/
Changes in Control with Maggie Ruvoldt
What do HR leaders need to know - and need to DO - related to a change in control for their organization? This might include an IPO or any type of merger & acqusition activity. What are the issues and what are the steps? We will speak with Maggie Ruvoldt, multi-time CHRO/CPO, educator, and advisor. https://www.linkedin.com/in/margaretruvoldt/
Design and Pitch L&D on a Budget - with Lucy Georgiades (Elevate Leadership)
In today's economic environment, L&D offerings have been tightened by many employers. We will speak with Lucy Georgiades, cofounder of Elevate Leadership (a beloved vendor of many PLA alumni), about what L&D offerings are most likely to be critical to the success of early/mid-stage venture-backed technology companies, how to estimate anticipated ROI, how best to resource these critical L&D offerings (internal vs. vendor support), and how to position requests of time or budget with your CEO or CFO. Learn more about Lucy and Elevate Leadership here:
PLA Summer Garden Party @ Marie Szuts' Home
Join us for a summer gathering of the People Leader Accelerator community in Marie's lovely back yard garden! Refreshments will be provided. Families and pets are welcomed. There will be no formal program - just drop in to say hello and meet with other members of our PLA community!
For privacy reasons, we won’t publish Marie’s address on our website - only on the calendar invite. Let us know if you missed the invite and would like to join us! (FYI, it’s in the Lake Merritt area of Oakland, CA)
Executive Presence with Hope Timberlake
Executive presence is essential for leaders, though the term can be subjective and elusive. In this interactive session, we will explore how to connect with internal and external stakeholders, practice exercises for commanding virtual and in-person rooms, and learn how to captivate your audience and listeners. To prepare, please think of a scenario where you would like to demonstrate better executive presence and achieve a successful work outcome.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hopetimberlake/
https://www.fortesf.com/
Hope Timberlake empowers leaders and teams to drive high performance with masterful communication and influence skills. She is the acclaimed author of the book Speak Up, Dammit! How to Quiet Your Fears, Polish Your Presence, and Share Your Voice. Her speaking programs range from persuasive messaging, executive presence, influence skills, and working well cross-functionally.
For nearly 20 years, Hope has been an in-demand speaker and advisor to global companies, including Airbnb, Autodesk, Dropbox, Gap, Intel, PlayStation, Williams Sonoma, and many smaller, rapidly growing companies.
She earned her Bachelor of Arts from Duke University and completed a Master’s at the University of California, Berkeley. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, teenage children, and two dogs.
Career Exploration & Job Search w/Rachel Serwetz
Particularly in today's environment, with so many HR tech leaders looking for a new role...
We are very pleased to partner with Rachel Serwetz, CEO & Founder of Woken. Rachel is an expert on guiding professionals to clarify their ideal career path through learning & reflection. From there, she helps clients to select upskilling opportunities, improve their personal branding materials, and pursue an efficient, strategic, job search to land a role they will thrive in.
People GPT with Q Hamirani
Accelerate your understanding of Artificial Intelligence tools for HR professionals, with PLA alum Q Hamirani
Excel Workshop with Recalc Academy
Elevate your Excel skills with a private interactive workshop with long time friend of PLA, Recalc Academy founder Katie Fifer.
HR Transform Conference
The People Leader Accelerator community shows up in force for this conference at the Wynn in Las Vegas, which includes a unique collection of venture capital investors, People Tech founders, and progressive HR leaders of tech companies. We will have a private dinner for our alumni and a few select guests on Monday evening (3/11) from 7-9pm.
How to Build a Creativity Culture
In this 60-minute interactive workshop, “Born to Create” author (and PLA SME) Anne Jacoby will reinforce key themes in the book to ignite your creative mindset, develop your creative leadership, and activate a plan to build a creativity culture.
How to Elevate Your Professional Profile as an HR Leader
With our guest, Modern People Leader podcast host, Daniel Huerta!
Cohort Reunions
Reconnect with your cohort virtually. Dates and times will be announced throughout the month of November, hosted by a faculty member.
Goal Setting
Annual goal planning and OKR best practices, facilitated by Andrew Bartlow from Series B Consulting
HR Transform Conference
Many, many IRL meetup opportunities! And, come see PLA community members on stage!