2015 Workforce Game Changers Winners

Simara Campbell Twohill and Adam Robinson are two of the Game Changers from the class of 2015.
Read about them and the 23 other members of the exclusive group below.

This marks the fifth year of WorkforceGame Changers, an award program designed to recognize those in workforce management who are pushing the field forward with innovative people-management practices. Even though we’ve given out these awards five times, there’s still no set mold into which all the Game Changers fit.

Our winners have tackled issues such as talent acquisition, employee development, and benefits design and management in a variety of creative ways over the past five years.

The thread that ties them all together is that their efforts engage employees and help their respective companies succeed.

Workforce’s editorial staff selected 25 winners this year based on the applicants’ ability to drive measurable results within their organizations.

Much like last year’s winners, this group of workforce management practitioners and strategists in human resources-related fields — all under 40 years old — didn’t focus their efforts on a single industry trend.

Some addressed employee skills gaps while others concocted ways to integrate new technology platforms into their practices to make them more efficient and user-friendly. Still others worked to help their companies grow on a global scale.

In each instance, the Game Changer took a risk and worked to incite change in a field that is often bogged down by protocol and leaders content with the way things have always been done.

For the willingness to embrace the spirit of innovation, we recognize 2015’s group of well-deserving Game Changers.

Congratulations to all the winners.

Julio Acevedo Human resources director, Lake Wales (Florida) Charter Schools	Jon Bischke CEO and  Founder, Entelo	Stephanie Bloom Acting director, workforce transformation initiatives Mission Support Directorate, Office of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security
Don Charlton Founder and CEO, Jazz	Dylan Choong Director of human resources, Asia-Pacific, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific	Teresa Clarke Vice president, human capital & employment counsel, Achievement First
Colleen Karpinsky Cone Vice president, talent & culture, Dyn	Adam Fernandes Director, Eagle Hill Consulting	Lauren Herring CEO, Impact Group
Adam Hopewell Director, talent management, Savola Iran	Ben Jackson Executive director, health & welfare benefit operations, AT&T Inc.	Miranda Leurquin Vice president, human resources & recruiting, The Mosaic Co.
Lori Lorenzo Deputy director, Leadership Council on Legal Diversity	Stacy Lowman Vice president, training and communications, World Travel Holdings	Dzmitry Nikitsin Chief technology officer, Appcast
Sara Piccollo Vice president, global head of inclusion & diversity, PIMCO	Kelly Ploehn Department analyst, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality	Johanna Pystynen Vice president, people operations, Vincit Oy
Adam Robinson Chief ‘hireologist,’ Hireology	Wendy Smith Head of new employee experiences, NCR Corp.	Sirmara Campbell Twohill Chief human resources officer, LaSalle Network
Quentin Tyler Assistant dean for diversity, University of Kentucky	Justina Sanchez-Uzzell Senior vice president and chief people officer, Providence Service Corp.	Bradford Wilkins Vice president, talent management, Adcap Network Systems Inc.
	Ivory Woodhouse Career development specialist, Washington University School of Medicine