HR Professionals Honorees

As part of this Human Resources: Employment Law special report, we present this year’s Business Journal Human Resources Professionals honorees, which were chosen this month out of a nomination field of nearly 90 people from greater Valley-area businesses of all sizes. These honorees represent the best in the HR business — integral parts of their companies’ decision-making and strategy processes. An advisory committee made up of area businesspeople had input into the selection of these honorees. Final selection was made by Business Journal Editor Jason Schaff. Cathy Cousineau Human Resources Director Kaiser Permanente, Woodland Hills Cousineau is responsible for all HR functions including strategy, integration, planning, training and communication for more than 3,000 employees at Kaiser. She was instrumental in the development and execution of the facility’s “Affordability Plan” last year to bring costs down. She works with all department managers regularly in sessions to meet performance goals. She also took a leadership role in successfully managing an unusually high number of picketing and leaflet incidents with minimal disruption to the facility. Lori Crawford VP of Human Resources United Online Inc. Crawford started out as a temp in the HR department gradually working her way up to head it. She is responsible for all the company’s training, which when she took over was inconsistent and expensive. She implemented SkillSoft eLearning which boosted employee competency as well as made training more organized and cost efficient. She also undertook a major revamping of the company’s benefits, helping the company out financially while keeping quality benefits. Diane Fiero VP Human Resources/Asst. Superintendent College of the Canyons Fiero works at the executive management level at one of the area’s largest colleges and is actively engaged in setting a vision for the institution. She has worked actively to build the reputation of the HR department as a partner and resource campus-wide involving campus leaders in key HR initiatives. She has also won national recognition for developing the school’s professional development program. Ursula Hildebrandt Director, Human Resources Bioness Inc. Hildebrandt has a huge roster of responsibilities: recruitment, organizational development, training, benefits, diversity and compliance. As director of human resources for Bioness in Valencia, she also deals with HR duties of a portfolio of Alfred Mann companies at the strategic level. She is known as someone who can communicate effectively both with a CEO and a technician and move with ease from the 50,000-foot strategic level to the operational. She recently was effective in working with the core management team that was challenged by apparent silos in the organization. She helped build more communication and sharing throughout the organization. M. Angelina Guirindola Manager, Employee Benefits Princess Cruise Lines Guirindola instituted a major change in her company’s HR department by outsourcing employee benefits administration, freeing up company employees to focus more on strategic duties and also saving the firm money. Consequently, the company is getting a bigger return on investment in its HR department. William McLeod Director of Human Resources City of Palmdale McLeod has demonstrated outstanding leadership abilities in a tough time for municipalities. Despite diminished resources, he’s been creative in his approach to the job. He was instrumental in establishing a formal wellness program for city employees where physical and athletic activities are sponsored by the city during lunch. In addition employees get a reduced rate on health insurance if they participate in an annual on-site health screening. He also helped develop a city succession plan to nurture younger employees so that they can step up to be department directors when others retire. Diane Palumbo Corporate VP-Human Resources MannKind Corp. Palumbo is one of seven corporate officers of her company. She attends all board of directors meetings and is a member of the company’s Board of Directors Compensation committee. She was instrumental in urging and developing a major reorganization of the company and then led a search for new executive-level talent. This reorganization helped the company beat its very aggressive goals for filing a new drug application with the FDA. Jennifer Reberger Director, Human Resources Disney Interactive Studios Reberger created a new hire orientation program which focuses on the company’s product lines at this unit of The Walt Disney Co. She’s managed a large-scale employee reduction and a major reorganization of Disney Interactive into another business division. This was similar to an acquisition or merger. Maria Souza HR Generalist and Manager of Administration USI of Southern California Insurance Services Souza is known to be a strong presence at her company playing a vital strategic role in steering the course of the local office. The office’s CEO Thom Lewis, regularly depends on this honoree to aid in decisions that range from operations to training. Rarely is a strategic initiative considered without her input, company executives say. Joyce McNeely Memorial Award for Excellence in Human Resources Joyce McNeely was director of human resources at Galpin Motors in North Hills through most of the 1990s until her death in 2008. She was known for her human resources acumen and her expertise in mentoring and helping all employees. She was an integral part of the Galpin organization. For the second year, the Business Journal chose to honor McNeely by recognizing with a special award one local human resources professional who exemplifies the best attributes of an effective HR director. Annmarie Villiers-Furze Human Resources Manager Great American Group Villiers-Furze’s company has been undergoing tremendous growth recently understandably so since its business is involved with asset management including liquidations and auctions. This company increased staff by 25 percent just in 2009. The honoree successfully managed employee orientations, development and training. She also implemented a major initiative of a new software package that allows supervisors to more effectively and efficiently evaluate their employees. Roxanne Stevenson Director of Human Resources Westlake Village Inn Stevenson is responsible for the overall well-being of more than 250 full and part-time employees, many of whom are young and in need of mentoring and training. One of her biggest accomplishments was the implementation of’ an employee benefits program for part-time employees, something very unusual in the hospitality industry.