2016 Schedule

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Growth

Friday, Sep 16
2:00pm — 3:30pm
Wells Fargo Bank - Hershner Room
319 attending

Startups, Culture & The Future of Work

The world of work is changing. Many of today’s organizations have built their success on a blueprint that is well over a century old. Startups have done more than disrupt entire industries; they have played a critical role in forging the future of work. Startups, Culture & The Future of Work brings together a panel of seasoned human resources practitioners to discuss what lies beyond bringing a new product to market – building a high potential organization. Specifically, the panel will discuss the role of human resources in startup organizations, how to determine when your startup should invest in HR, as well as culture-impacting work trends, such as remote work and new organizational systems.

Startup funding can drastically accelerate bringing a new product to market. It can also put you in the position of having to double or triple your workforce in your first six months of existence. The role of human resources - whether in-house or outsourced - is an essential component of any growing organization. It is, in a very real way, an investment in your people.

The panelists behind Startups, Culture & The Future of Work have experience in building sustainable, high potential work cultures as well as navigating emerging workforce trends. This session is purposed with the founder in mind. A few questions startup founders can expect to have answered include, but are not limited to:
-When is the right time to invest in HR? What are my options?
-What is the cost of not investing in HR?
-What does a strong founder/HR partnership look like?
-How can the right HR practitioner be a competitive advantage?
-What organizational strategy makes the most sense for my business?

A strong company culture is a competitive advantage. It has the ability to lower production costs, reduce attrition, improve productivity, and ultimately deliver a quality product to market. Building a high-impact organization is no easy feat. Our panelists understand that that, while some core fundamentals never change, the future of work is already here. Any startup looking to navigate a window of opportunity or disrupt a multi-billion dollar industry should strongly consider its organizational culture and human resources function. Our panelists have years of experience building sustainable, high potential organizations. Their passion and wealth of knowledge could tremendously contribute to Denver Startup Week, assisting founders forge sustainable companies here in Colorado.

Our Moderators:
-Krista Morgan* – Krista is the Co-Founder & CEO of P2Binvestor, a Denver-based crowd-lending platform that provides working capital financing to growing business. In less than two years since P2Binvestor went to market, Krista has grown the company from just an idea into a multi-million dollar company. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics from McGill University and is the co-host of Women Who Startup Radio, a biweekly podcast for and about female entrepreneurs. Krista is passionate about mentoring other women entrepreneurs and teaching others about how fundraising and how to scale their startup.
-Christopher Arnold – Christopher is a Senior Advisor & Culture Cultivator with the Trebuchet Group. He assists business leaders with building sustainable, high-performing cultures and achieving organizational excellence through motivational and education speaking engagements, executive and team coaching, and “breakthrough” workshops.

Our Panelists:
-Kathleen Brenk - Kathleen brings 15+ years of human resources experience to the panel, from Fortune 200 organizations to recently leading the function at smaller software firms. She has built a career that changes the traditional view of HR as administrators (and let’s be honest, a hurdle to getting stuff done) to a business-focused partner who brings strategy to talent and operational efficiency to process. Kathleen firmly believes that HR must stop complicating things that are not complicated.
-Alicia Cuello – Alicia has 20+ years working in human resources, which includes working at a Professional Employer’s Organization (PEO). Alicia is well-versed in aligning the HR function with the business and enabling human resources practitioners to free up key internal stakeholders to focus more keenly on what it is they do best.
-Nicholas Larche – Nick serves as Human Resources Manager & Corporate Counsel to ShopAtHome.com, one of Denver’s own “seasoned startups.” His passion is for navigating today’s marketplace challenges to build high-impact cultures, which means empowering business leaders, leveraging new technology, and burning outdated practices.
-Drew Bonder – Drew began his career in the world of therapy, reinventing and implementing federally granted therapeutic practices. Since then, Drew has obtained his Masters in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, with a concentration in human resources, and has immersed himself in the ever competitive tech recruiting industry, partnering with a number of HR departments throughout the Boulder/Denver corridor.
-Bryan Bridgford – Bryan is the founder of PEO Concepts Ltd., a human resources outsourcing and PEO brokerage firm which recently celebrated its fifth year in business. Bryan’s work runs the gambit with a variety of research and management projects for small, well-established businesses of varying sizes, but being an entrepreneur has helped ensure his continued focus on assisting early stage companies with guidance, education and value in making important business decisions. The mission of PEO Concepts is to save employers time and money, and reduce compliance risks through an innovative, single-provider approach.