Speakers of People in Financial Services

John Mattone
President
Executive Development Associates (EDA)

John Mattone is President of Executive Development Associates (EDA), a global leadership consulting firm that specializes in executive assessment, development, and coaching. John has over 30 years’ experience in the human capital, talent management and leadership development industries, as an entrepreneur who has built two successful human capital consulting firms, an as executive of a multi-million dollar human resources consulting firm, and as a leading industrial psychologist and respected worldwide authority in executive assessment, coaching, succession management and HR predictive analytics.

Prior to EDA, John was the Vice President of Global Assessment Services for Linkage, Inc., where he was responsible for the firm’s global assessment practice. Prior to Linkage, John was the Senior Vice President of Sales for Drake Beam Morin, the global career and outplacement firm. Before joining DBM, John spent 10 years building his first successful consulting firm, Human Resources International.

John has consulted for more than 250 organizations and addressed more than 500,000 people in 2,000 speeches and seminars throughout the U.S., Canada and other countries worldwide. John is a prolific author having written four books as well as over 100 professional articles and book chapters including the award-winning “The Role of Assessment in Driving Operating Results”, published in Jac Fitz-enz book “The New HR Analytics” (AMACOM, 2010) and “Predictive HR Leadership”. John’s latest two books, entitled “Stealth Leadership: Using Assessment & Coaching to Propel Your Leaders and Organization to Greatness” and “Success Yourself: Unlocking & Unleashing Your Leadership Potential”, are both scheduled for release in 2011.

John holds a B.S. Degree in Management and Organizational Behavior from Babson College and an M.S. Degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Central Florida. John serves as an MBA faculty member at Florida Atlantic University where he teaches his popular course Global Leadership Assessment & Development. He is a member of numerous professional associations including the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and the International Coaches Federation.

Kate Barton
Vice President and Manager of Human Resources, Finance and Corporate Properties
Wells Fargo

Kate Barton is a Vice President and Manager of Human Resources for the Finance and Corporate Properties businesses at Wells Fargo. She provides strategic HR guidance to the organization and is experienced in developing and implementing human resources business strategies and executive coaching. She is a member of the Enterprise LOB Advisory council which represents Lines of Business perspective on HR priorities, focusing on operational excellence, risks and team member experience.

Prior to joining Wells Fargo in 2001,  Kate spent 17 years working in senior roles in HR, Recruitment and Sales across several industries including retail, internet startup, consumer products, mailing systems and information technology staffing.

She holds a Bachelors degree in communications from St. Mary’s College

Johanna Steans
Senior Leadership & Development Program Manager
Esurance

Johanna has over 25 years of experience in training and development that includes designing professional development programs, training courses, and materials; delivering courses; and providing organizational development consulting.  She joined Esurance in 2007 where she currently develops and provides program oversight for Esurance’s diversity and inclusion efforts, as well as designs and implements leadership and management training and development programs.

Johanna also owns and operates JTS Enterprises Group LLC, a consulting and professional services firm providing leadership development, employee training and business consulting support to private companies and public sector agencies.

Johanna is a frequent speaker in the United States and abroad and currently speaks on topics related to diversity and inclusion as well as leadership development, employee engagement and talent management practices.

Mark Steiman
SVP/Chief Human Resources Officer
Kinecta Federal Credit Union

Mark’s core leadership purpose is to “Maximize Business Effectiveness Through People.”  He serves as a coach, business advisor, and confidant to the CEO and Board of his organizations. He is accountable for the design and implementation of the organization’s human capital strategy and key HR initiatives, as well as, a strategic partner, culture guardian and thought leader with executive peers on the team. 

Mark has over 20 years of experience in Sales and HR, and as a Senior and Executive leader across industries including established Fortune 500 organizations and start-ups.

Mark Steiman holds a BS in Finance / Organizational Design and a MS in Consumer Affairs & Regulatory Compliance.  He is an active Board Member and Vice Chair of Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) serving foster children in the Orange County area; An Advisory Board Member for the Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) Credit Union for Kid’s initiative; and a co-founder of the Executive Next Practices (ENP) Institute for C-Level leaders.

Mark is a nationally published speaker and guest lecturer at numerous venues and has presented his research before the American Council on Consumer Interest and members of Congress.  Additionally, he is a pioneer in the art of business narrative and is featured in the book, Wake Me Up When the Data Is Over: How Organizations Use Stories to Drive Results.

Anita Peterson
VP, Regional Training
Bank of the West

Anita Peterson brings over 25 years of management and HR/Learning & Development experiences to the conference. She has hired very successful candidates over the years and facilitated many training sessions in her various roles. It all started after Anita earned a BS degree in Vocational Education which led down a path of training and management in the financial services industry where she started as a teller. Anita worked her way up to a Client Services Training Specialist, then Training Manager, at First Data Resources, a credit card processing company. She then moved to Director of Training/Customer Service and became a member of the Executive Management Committee for the Hyatt Hotels Reservation Center. Looking to get back into the financial services world, Anita took on a mortgage operations site as Production Operations Manager for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. More recently, Anita is the Vice President/Regional Training Manager at Bank of the West in Omaha, Nebraska, where she was excited to get back into the training field. Anita resides in Omaha with her husband and three teenage children. Anita clogs (dances) regularly and loves to go kayaking when she can get away.

Neal Wendel
Managing Director of Human Resources
Credit Suisse

Neal Wendel is a Managing Director of Credit Suisse in the Talent, Branding and Communications division, based in New York. He leads the Credit Suisse Alumni Network. Prior to his current role, Mr. Wendel was the Global HR Business partner for the Investment Banking Technology Group and the IT HR Region Head for the Americas.

Mr. Wendel joined Credit Suisse in May 2006 from JPMorgan Chase, where he was an HR Business Partner in the Global Technology HR Team. Prior to his six years at JPMorgan Chase, Mr. Wendel spent fours years at American Express; first heading up American Express Bank’s Global Training and Development function and then moving to a Corporate Development role, supporting many American Express core businesses, including Credit Cards, Establishment Services and the Global Technology Group. Prior to joining American Express, Mr. Wendel spent 11 years at Citibank in a variety of Training and Development roles, including Global Head of Training for the Citibank Trade Finance Business and ended his time there as a Global Product Manager to Citibank’s Electronic Trade Finance Products.

Mr. Wendel holds an M.B.A. in Organizational Behavior from Pace University and a B.S. in Computer Science from Brooklyn College.

Marcia Leander
Assistant Vice President of Staffing
Unum

Marcia Leander is Assistant Vice President of Staffing for Unum. She oversees recruitment and selection activities for Unum’s US operations. 

Marcia joined Unum in 1991.  She held various roles in Enrollment Services, Advertising and Communications.  Over the past 10 years she has held management positions in Human Resources in the areas of HR Service Delivery, Vendor Management and Recruiting.

Marcia is a Certified Employee Benefit Specialist and a member of the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and the Society for Human Resource Management.  She holds a BA in Speech Communication and a MA in Rhetorical Communication Theory from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.   She serves on the board of the Maine STEM Collaborative Alliance and has served as a class parent representative at Waynflete School in Portland, Maine and Helena Dyer School in South Portland, Maine.

She lives in Cape Elizabeth Maine with her husband and two children.

Greg Benzon
Senior Vice-President, Corporate Finance Human Resources
Wells Fargo

Greg Benzon is a Senior Vice President and Manager of Learning & Development for the Finance and Corporate Properties businesses at Wells Fargo. He established and is responsible for Wells Fargo’s Finance University and serves on Wells Fargo’s Learning Leaders Council, the company’s governing body for learning and development. In addition to his role as the senior learning leader for the finance organization, he is also a member of the Enterprise Diversity Council’s Talent Management Committee, establishing the enterprise strategy for diversity talent management.

Prior to joining Wells Fargo in 2003, Mr. Benzon spent 15 years as a Human Resources leader in the legal, high tech engineering, and financial services industries.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and is an extreme adventure junkie, endurance athlete, and writer.

Jeff Reid
SVP, Talent Acquisition
BOK Financial Corp

Jeff Reid is Senior Vice President, Talent Acquisition Manager for BOK Financial Corporation (BOKF) in Tulsa, OK. 

He joined BOKF in June 2004 as a Senior HR Manager responsible for all aspects of Human Resources for the Consumer & Wealth Management Divisions.  In September 2005 he developed and rolled out the Talent Acquisition initiative focused exclusively on identifying and attracting top tier talent throughout BOKF’s footprint.  Since its inception, the Talent Acquisition team has quadrupled in size and continues to gain momentum.

Prior to joining BOKF, Jeff spent 9+ years in professional recruiting focused on both contingency and retained searches throughout the Banking, Accounting and Financial industries.  His responsibilities ranged from individual production to Area Management, managing several offices throughout the Southeast. 

Additional experience includes 10+ years with First Union National Bank.  His experience was primarily focused in the Consumer and Business Development arenas including graduation from their Collegiate Associates Training program.

Jeff has spoken at numerous Universities and Conferences throughout the U.S. on topics ranging from interview skills and resume writing to how to build a world class recruiting team from the ground up.  He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Georgia State University.  He and his wife Denise have one child, Jackson. 

Jeff is very passionate about children and serves on the local and executive board for Big Brothers Big Sisters in Tulsa, OK.  He serves as a “Big” brother to his “Little”, Sterling, and was the recipient of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Shanna Grinstead Memorial Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service in 2006.  He was the Bowl for Kids’ Sake city wide chair in 2007, which is one of the top 5 “bowls” in the country, was the chair for the 2010 & 2011 “a Taste of Tulsa” and will be the local Board Chari for 2011.  He was awarded The President’s Volunteer Service Award in 2008 & 2010.

Kimberly Thekan
SVP Talent Acquisition & Integration
Robert W. Baird & Co.

As the Senior Vice President, Talent Acquisition & Integration for Robert W. Baird & Co., Kimberly leads the talent management efforts for Baird’s Private Wealth Management business.  She joined Baird in 2008 as a Human Capital Business Partner to Private Wealth Management and was promoted to the Sales Management team in March 2011.

With over 16 years of experience, Kimberly began her career at Arthur Andersen and over time transitioned into Human Capital.  She has contributed to business success in Human Capital and recruitment roles within Andersen, Grant Thornton, and most recently, as Director of Human Resources for Stark Investments.

Kimberly earned her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.  She achieved the Senior Professional of Human Resources (SPHR) designation in 2008.

Kimberly resides in Pewaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, Grant, and their three children, Aiden, MacKenna and Delaney.  Kimberly is an active member of both the Society for Human Resources Management and the Human Resources Planning Society.

Cynthia Palumbo
Vice President, Global Talent Management
MasterCard Worldwide

Cynthia Palumbo is Vice President, Global Talent Management, at MasterCard Worldwide.  She is responsible for succession and talent planning, performance management, employee engagement and key organizational development and change management initiatives driving MasterCard’s cultural transformation.

Cynthia joined MasterCard in 2006 as the Chief of Staff to the Chief Human Resources Officer to advance the MasterCard human capital strategy in alignment with the business and improve operational effectiveness of HR service delivery.  Prior to MasterCard, she spent nearly 15 years working in senior roles as an organizational consultant with Arthur Andersen, Accenture and Ketchum Pleon Change. Cynthia owned her own consultancy for six years working with senior leaders in Fortune 500 companies in a range of industries including financial services, consumer products, media and entertainment, telecommunications and healthcare.

She holds a BS in Organizational Communication from Ithaca College and has certifications in Lominger, Balanced Scorecard (Kaplan and Norton), and is a certified Human Capital Strategist from the Human Capital Institute. Cynthia is a member of numerous professional associations such as the Organization Development Network, the New Talent Management Network and is a Founding Member of HCI’s Executive Work Group.  Her work has been cited in research studies conducted by Melcrum and Bersin & Associates.

Melinda Lebofsky
Assistant Vice President, Human Resources
Farmers Insurance

Melinda Lebofsky is the Assistant Vice President, Human Resources for Farmers Group, Inc.  She is responsible for leading the overall human resources strategy and execution for Farmers’ Service Operations business unit including, talent acquisition, retention and management; compensation and benefits; leadership development; diversity; organizational design; cultural development; performance management and strategic workforce planning. Additionally, she provides leadership and strategic direction to Farmers’ Executive Vice President of Operations and the senior leadership team.

Since joining Farmers in 2007, Melinda has led the Human Resources discipline for Farmers’ Kansas City operation. She also developed and implemented strategies that drove business results, created positive work environments and increased employee engagement.

Throughout her 15-year career, Melinda has held positions of increasing responsibility including several Human Resources senior leadership positions with Citigroup and Harrah’s Casino. In addition, she has received several awards for outstanding leadership and innovation in Human Resources. She also serves on several executive committees within the Human Capital Institute.

Melinda is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources through the Society of Human Resources Management. She earned a Business of Administration degree from Park University.

Andrew Streiter

Area Vice President

CareerBuilder

Andrew Streiter is an Area Vice President for CareerBuilder, the nation’s largest online job site and the global leader in human capital solutions. In this position, Streiter is responsible for developing human capital strategies for organizations ranging from Fortune 1,000 companies to mid-sized businesses throughout the US. He leads the Professional Services vertical for the company – specializing in Finance, Insurance and Banking organizations. 

In addition, Streiter is responsible for implementing an internal sales strategy that will drive profitability within his territory. Streiter brings 15 years of expertise in sales strategy and management to the business he leads.

Streiter joined CareerBuilder in 2005 as a National Account Executive, moving to an Area Sales Manager position prior to becoming a VP in 2007. He graduated from West Virginia University in 1995 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts and is pursuing his Masters of Business Administration from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Elizabeth Cole
Senior Vice President of Human Resources
Genworth Financial

Elizabeth Cole received her B.A. degree in Economics from Texas A&M University. 

Work history:

• GE Leadership Program in Dallas, TX
• Held various HR Management and Training and Development roles in several GE businesses: 
  • GE Appliances in Louisville, KY, where she was Training and Development Manager for Consumer Services and HR Manager for Technology
  • GE Plastics in Pittsfield, MA where she was one of the first Six Sigma Blackbelts in HR for GE and also provided HR leadership for the Six Sigma initiative globally
  • GE Aircraft Engines.  Served as HR Plant Manager for the Durham Engine Facility – a completely self directed work environment
• Worked for Arthur Andersen Business Consulting in Charlotte, NC as a Leader of their Change Enablement practice
• Progress Energy as HR Director for Progress Ventures, responsible for all unregulated business lines within the newly merged company between Carolina Power and Light and Florida Progress
• Currently SVP, HR for Genworth’s US Mortgage Insurance business and company officer.
• Currently also serve as VP of the Board of Directors for the Center for Volunteer Caregiving. A founding member of the newly established Women’s Giving Circle, "The Art of Giving" which serves the needs of women and families in the Triangle area.

Married with 4 children.  Resides in Raleigh, NC.

Jim O’Malley
Senior Vice President, Workforce Planning & Executive Talent Acquisition
Fifth Third Bancorp

Mr. O’Malley serves as a senior vice president in the human resource function of Fifth Third Bancorp. He is charged with building the infrastructure to support the organizations strategic workforce planning needs while attracting, retaining and recruiting a differentiated workforce at the executive level, in addition to supporting nationwide growth and tracking competitive trends for the Bancorp.

He joined Fifth Third Bank in 2010 with over 25 years of experience in developing solutions for leadership in the areas of human resources and recruitment. Mr. O’Malley leads the banks strategic workforce planning and executive talent acquisition functions, working collaboratively with the other functional areas within human resources to best serve the entire organization.

Prior to joining Fifth Third, Mr. O’Malley served as managing director and leader of the talent acquisition function for Huron Consulting Group since 2005. Prior to Huron he was vice president of human resources from 2002 to 2005 with Edward Don and Company the nation’s largest foodservice supply and equipment distributor. He has significant human resource experience with professional services firms having held leadership roles with Arthur Andersen’s business consulting unit, Deloitte and internet consultancy Lante where he led their global strategic staffing function. O’Malley began his career in the 1982 with United Parcel Service.

Kirsten Marriner
Senior Vice President
Director, Human Resources Business Consulting
Fifth Third Bancorp

Ms. Marriner serves as Senior Vice President, Director of Human ResourcesConsulting and she is responsible for HR Business Partner consulting servicesfor the Bank’s divisions and lines of business.  In addition, she leadsthe Employer of Choice function (Employee Engagement and Diversity &Inclusion). Her team develops and executes on Human Capital strategies andtactics that enable the achievement of strategic business objectives.

Previously, Ms. Marriner held various roles at Fifth Third Bank, including Vice President,Director of Compensation & Performance Management and Senior HR BusinessPartner.

Prior to joining Fifth Third Bank, Ms. Marriner served as a Human ResourcesGeneralist for Home Bank, Senior Consultant for KPMG Peat Marwick, Manager forDeloitte and Touche, and Compensation Manager for KeyCorp.
Professionaland Civic:

Ms. Marriner is a former President of the Board of Directors of the Women’sCenter of Greater Cleveland and a former Vice President of the ClevelandChapter of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).