January 2017 Presenters
Name: Jerry Kaminski, CPT, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, CSSGB
Title: Manager of Learning and Development, Instructional Design
Organization: Consumers Energy
Session Title: Learning from the BEST
Description:
In 2016, Consumers Energy submitted and received the ATD BEST award. This award signifies the
pinnacle accomplish for any learning organization. If was Consumers Energy’s first time
submission, and they were the only Michigan company awarded it this year. During this session,
Consumers will walk you through the application and submission process, required documents,
tools, tips and techniques to aid organization’s considering submissions. We’ll also walk you
through what it takes to transform your organization to world-class including organizational
structure, metrics, and processes necessary for the transition. Even if you are not considering a
submission, this session will assist you in improving your organization’s learning and development
function.
Biography:
Jerry manages a team of nine instructional designers at Consumers Energy. He has over thirty-year’
experience in the instructional design field, holding many positions including Chief Learning Officer
across a multitude of industries. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in instructional
design from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale and Wayne State University, respectively. He
earned his Certified Performance Technologist (CPT) in 2003 from ISPI. Additional certifications
include SPHR, SHRM-SCP and CSSGB. In 2016, he led the entry for the ATD BEST award, winning it
for Consumers Energy on their first attempt. Consumers Energy was ranked ninth in the world for
this award and the only energy and Michigan-based business to receive this prestigious award in
2016.
12/2015
Name: Alexandra Morgan
Title: Project Coordinator
Organization: Innovative Learning Group
Session Title: Busting 5 Millennial Myths and Getting the Employee Performance You Need: Trust
Me, I’m a Millennial!
Description:
You’ve heard it before, millennials are lazy, entitled, and the “job-hopping” generation. As they
flood into your organization you may worry about the future, and how to motivate and retain this
new type of employee. But the mistake being made is lumping 83 million people into a single
category. It’s your job as an HR and performance improvement professional to truly understand
what Millennials are looking for because the future of your company may depend on it. As a reallife millennial, I will bust the Top Five Millennial Myths for you and demonstrate that all of us are
not the same. Additionally, I’ll present six simple questions you can ask to ensure you get the
performance you need from ALL of your employees. At the end of the day, the success of your
company depends on employee performance and knowing that the generational needs are not as
different from each other as you have been told to think.
Biography:
Alexandra Morgan is a project coordinator at Innovative Learning Group.
Prior to joining ILG in 2016, Alex spent three years at FCA US LLC. She joined FCA US in 2013 as a
summer intern and parlayed that role into a full-time position with the company as a human
resources business partner supporting the Network Development and Chrysler Academy groups.
Most recently, Alex was an employee resources/labor relations business partner for Mopar. In this
role, she designed human resources-related e-learning courses for new-hire field supervisors as
well as facilitated plant manager training on various labor relations topics.
Alex has a master’s degree in training and organizational development, and bachelor’s degree in
human resources development from Oakland University.
12/2015
Name: Michael Haynes
Title: Lecturer
Organization: Oakland University
Session Title: “Social Media the Millennial Way”
Description:
Want to get ahead as a professional in the Talent Development field? Then you need a social media
plan! Get some tips on boosting your personal and professional aptitude with Twitter, Facebook,
and LinkedIn, from a member of the generation that was born to post, blog, and tweet – a
millennial!
Whether you’re a daily tweeter or barely know how to use a keyboard, you’ll come away with a
new perspective on today’s social media tools.
Biography:
Michael H. Haynes, Esq., is a licensed attorney in the state of Michigan and an experienced HR and
employee relations professional. His specialty areas are training, employment law, labor relations,
and employee benefits, all of which he writes about at www.hrfromhaynes.com. Aside from his
work as a contract writer and project manager at CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Mike also teaches
Employee Benefits courses at Oakland University.
12/2015
Name: Peter Guenther
Title: Instructor
Organization: Grand Circus
Session Title: VR, MR, AR: Making Sense of the Alphabet Soup of Immersive Environments
Description:
In 2016, Virtual Reality finally came of age and is set to explode in 2017; the hardware for Mixed
Reality and Augmented Reality is following closely behind. Learn more about what each of these
mean, what skill sets are required to design and develop for them, and what instructional
affordances each mode presents.
Biography:
Peter Guenther is a software development boot camp instructor for Grand Circus. He recently
taught a Unity3D development workshop and is excitedly exploring the world of VR/MR/AR
development. He holds a Master’s in Instructional Technology focusing on interactive media from
Wayne State University and has taught instructional media development for Wayne State and the
University of Michigan Dearborn.
12/2015
Name: Walter Schirmacher
Title: Programmer and Media Developer
Organization: Innovative Learning Group
Session Title: Real Reality of Virtual Reality
Description:
Virtual Reality (VR) is a hot topic which may seem to have just arrived, but in the actual reality, it
has been in development since the 19th century. What is VR, and how can we make use of it for
learning and development? In this roundtable, we will discuss the real reality of virtual reality, its
history, current state, and future potential.
Biography:
As a programmer for over 15 years, Walter Schirmacher brings to Innovative Learning Group his
extensive experience in e-learning development, website programming, and mobile delivery.
Walter’s experience with e-learning and web/media development tools includes After Effects,
Audacity, Audition, Articulate Studio and Storyline, Captivate, and Lectora Publisher. Moreover,
he’s an expert programmer, skilled in ASP.Net, PHP, HTML5, XML, and CSS.
Walter has presented on the topic of mobile learning at Detroit ATD and has been involved in the
development and implementation of ILG’s mobile initiatives. He also has served on a panel
discussion and conducted a roundtable on the topic of gamification at ISPI Michigan.
Walter holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Concordia University in Ann Arbor.
12/2015
Name: Danielle Crane
Title: Chief Talent Officer
Organization: GreenPath
Session Title: CPLP Journey
Description:
The Certified Professional of Learning and Performance (CPLP) is ATD’s certification for learning and
performance professionals. Come learn from a recently certified CPLP about the CPLP journey and
how you can become part of this elite group of Learning and Performance professionals.
Biography:
Danielle Crane has been committed to modernizing the human resources field since her entrance
over 10 years ago. Captivated by the art of recruitment early on in her career, Danielle was
immediately drawn to how it made her feel – creative, results-focused and value-added. Since
then, Danielle has strived to recreate that feeling in all disciplines of human resources, from talent
acquisition to compensation and benefits to employee development and retention. Practicing HR in
a variety of industries, from privately held start-ups to national not-for-profits, Danielle has
partnered with leadership to build simplified, high-performing HR functions that fuel organizational
growth and success. Danielle currently serves as the Chief Talent Officer for GreenPath, Inc, a
national non-profit focused on financial wellness, overseeing the Human Resources, Talent
Development, Quality, and Workforce Management functions.
Danielle earned a B.A. in Human Resources and English from Albion College and a M.B.A. from
Walsh College. She holds the PHR, SHRM-CP and CPLP certifications, is an active member of the
National Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) and serves as the College Relations
Chair for Detroit SHRM. Danielle was a proud recipient of the 2015 “Michigan’s Top HR
Professional” MISHRM award and the American Society for Employers (ASE)’s HR Executive of the
Year award in 2016. She also facilitated a session with the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission’s (EEOC) Federal Investigators in the Detroit office, on helping HR to bridge the gap
between policy and human need. You may connect with Danielle via her LinkedIn profile at
www.linkedin.com/in/danicrane1.
12/2015