Strategic Thinking Starts with HR
Meet the experts
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
Session Description
This session provides a practical overview of developing and maintaining compliant employee handbooks for California employers. Participants will learn required and recommended policies, common compliance risks, and best practices to ensure handbooks effectively communicate expectations while aligning with California and federal employment laws.
Participants will be able to:
• Identify required California and federal policies
• Evaluate common handbook provisions
• Apply best practices for structuring and updating employee handbooks to support legal compliance and workplace clarity.
Astrid Servin is an experienced HR leader with over 25 years of driving organizational growth across public and private sectors, including retail and media. As HR Director at CEA, she helps organizations strengthen compliance and people practices. An active SHRM and PIHRA member, Astrid is passionate about aligning HR strategy with business success.
9:40 a.m. - Catherine Mattice, MA, SPHR founder, civility partners
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
Session Description
Your employees disengage from this training the moment they learn they have to take it again. When it focuses on compliance, rules and corrective action instead of the behaviors that actually stop harm, it misses the mark. Reinvigorate this mandatory training and use it as an opportunity to create connection, upskill in "upstandership", and tie it back to company culture.
Attendees will gain insight into:
✔ Strengthening harassment prevention practices
✔ Promoting respectful workplace behavior
✔ Reducing workplace risk
✔ Supporting a culture of accountability and inclusion
Catherine Mattice, MA, SPHR, is founder of Civility Partners, an organizational development firm helping global clients build healthier workplace cultures. She’s created 60+ LinkedIn Learning courses in 11 languages, reaching 3M+ learners. A frequent media expert, she authored Navigating a Toxic Workplace for Dummies and specializes in transforming toxic workplace behavior.
10:45 am - Marilyn Monahan, Monahan Law Office
8:35 a.m. - astrid Servin , HR Director, CALIFORNIA EMPLOYERS ASSOCIATION
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
Session Description
This session examines key provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) and its impact on employer-sponsored benefit plans. Participants will gain an overview of regulatory changes affecting fully insured and self-funded plans, along with practical guidance for adapting plan administration, maintaining compliance, and preparing for evolving benefits-related legal requirements.
Participants will be able to:
• Identify major benefit plan provisions within the OBBB that affect employer-sponsored coverage
• Assess how regulatory changes influence fully insured and self-funded group health plans
• Recognize emerging compliance challenges.
Marilyn A. Monahan is owner of Monahan Law Office in San Marcos, California. She advises employers and consultants on compliance with employee benefits and insurance laws, including ACA, ERISA, CAA, HIPAA, and COBRA. Marilyn serves as an advisor to PIHRA’s Government Advocacy Team and as vice president of the PIHRA Foundation board.
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
Session Description
In this informative presentation, management-side employment attorney Kevin Brown will discuss single plaintiff and class action litigation trends, looking at patterns in the types of employment lawsuits employers are facing. Single-plaintiff cases involve one employee bringing a claim (like discrimination, retaliation, wage issues, or wrongful termination). Class actions involve groups of employees with similar claims, often about wage-and-hour violations, misclassification, meal/rest breaks, or systemic policy problems and they carry much higher financial risk.
He will also discuss legislative and caselaw updates, as well as best practices to minimize the risk of litigation for employers, by providing a checklist for when to consider reaching out to employment counsel based on real world examples.
Kevin Brown is a partner at Snell & Wilmer LLP in Labor & Employment. He advises employers on compliance, risk mitigation, policies, investigations, and OSHA/Cal-OSHA matters, and represents them in workplace disputes. A seasoned trainer and investigator, he’s a former military attorney and naval aviator who continues serving as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve.
1:55 p.m. - lisa M. Harris, partner, sheppard Mullin
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
1:55 p.m. - lisa M. Harris, partner, sheppard Mullin
Session Description
Everyone in California struggles with the ins and out of managing leaves of absence in California. This session simplifies the complex web of California and federal leave laws into a practical framework HR professionals can apply immediately.
Participants will learn how to administer leaves consistently, reduce compliance risk, and confidently manage challenging employee leave situations.
Participants will be able to:
• Distinguish between key California and federal leave laws, including how they overlap and interact
• Apply best practices for tracking, documenting, and administering employee leaves in California
• Analyze complex leave scenarios and determine appropriate HR actions to maintain compliance and reduce risk
Lisa Harris is a partner in the Labor and Employment Practice Group serving Orange County and New York. She advises management on employment compliance, workplace investigations, and traditional labor matters, and supports diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. With both outside and in-house counsel experience, she also contributes to ESG workplace strategy.
3:00 Pm - Michael C. Wales, II, Paychex
12:50 a.M. - KEVIN BROWN, PARTNER, SNELL & WILBUR
1:55 p.m. - lisa M. Harris, partner, sheppard Mullin
Session Description
This session explores how HR professionals can benchmark the employee lifecycle to identify gaps, improve processes, and support organizational effectiveness. Participants will learn how to assess current systems, document workflows, and build a data-informed business case for changes that enhance employee experience and operational efficiency.
Participants will be able to:
• Identify key stages of the employee lifecycle and evaluate internal processes for improvement opportunities
• Document existing HR systems and workflows to support analysis and decision-making
• Develop a structured business case for process or system changes based on organizational needs
Michael C. Wales II brings 35 years of experience working with employers through ADP, Paychex, and Paycor. He has supported over 4,000 organizations in improving HR systems and workforce processes. Mike specializes in helping businesses evaluate their employee lifecycle and identify practical opportunities for operational and people-focused improvements.