What makes a truly effective CHRO in today's complex business landscape? Chelle O'Keefe, Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer at Associa, brings refreshing clarity to this question through her remarkable journey from psychology graduate to C-suite leader.

The power of Chelle's approach lies in her unique perspective: despite never taking a formal business class, she's mastered the executive suite by focusing on the fundamental thread connecting all her work—understanding human behavior. "The common thread through my entire background is human behavior," she explains, detailing how this focus has guided her through roles in learning and development, change management, communications, and even marketing before landing in HR leadership.

Chelle shares the strategies behind her impressive achievements, including an 80% internal promotion rate and 30% reduction in turnover. Rather than adopting off-the-shelf solutions, her team developed leadership competency models by studying their own successful leaders. This authentic approach created a powerful eight-month development program that transformed their talent pipeline. On retention, her philosophy is wonderfully straightforward: "Leadership is absolutely the first thing that drives that turnover rate," combined with directly asking employees what they want through simple polls rather than complex engagement surveys.

Leading HR for an organization with 300 branch offices serving 7.5 million residents worldwide presents unique challenges. Chelle discusses how they manage cultural alignment during acquisitions and maintain cohesion across dispersed locations through their "Associa Book" of values. She offers practical wisdom on AI implementation, suggesting leaders focus on automating "painful repetitive tasks" rather than getting overwhelmed by the broader concept.

Perhaps most valuable is Chelle's candid insight into executive influence: "You have to be able to speak the language of the business to sit at the table. That's just table stakes." What truly differentiates exceptional HR leaders is bringing humanity to the C-suite—building relationships, having tough conversations, and sometimes being "the only adult at the table." In a world increasingly focused on technology and metrics, Chelle reminds us that understanding people remains the heart of effective leadership.

Support the show

Feature Your Brand on the HRchat Podcast

The HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score.

Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here.

• Follow us on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to our newsletter
• Check out our in-person events

Your next hire could be a deepfake. Identity fraud in employment has exploded, with a 30% increase in 2025 alone and experts predicting one in four candidates will use some form of deepfake technology by 2028. This isn't just resume padding—it's a sophisticated attack on your organization.

Joelle Smith, President of First Advantage Corporation, reveals how the convergence of massive data breaches, advanced AI, and remote work has created a perfect storm for employment fraud. Foreign actors aren't just seeking multiple paychecks; they're targeting something far more valuable: day-one access to your organization's internal systems and data. These threats transcend industries and borders, affecting companies of all sizes.

The traditional hiring approach—taking candidates at their word before conducting background checks—creates a dangerous vulnerability. Joelle explains how "identity-first" verification not only blocks fraudulent candidates but improves the accuracy of background screening, with companies seeing a 17% increase in criminal record detection when identity verification comes first. First Advantage's sophisticated system triangulates technology, proprietary data, and personal knowledge verification to distinguish legitimate candidates from increasingly convincing fakes.

What makes this discussion particularly valuable is the balance between security and candidate experience. The goal isn't just blocking bad actors but creating streamlined processes for legitimate candidates. As Joelle emphasizes, "Our job is to help organizations find great talent and retain them."

Want to protect your organization from the rising tide of identity fraud? Connect with Joelle on LinkedIn or visit FADV.com to explore how identity verification can strengthen your hiring process. The future of secure hiring starts with knowing exactly who you're bringing on board.

Support the show

Feature Your Brand on the HRchat Podcast

The HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score.

Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here.

• Follow us on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to our newsletter
• Check out our in-person events

The U.S. faces a talent crisis with millions of skilled candidates overlooked due to outdated hiring practices. The SHRM Foundation's Center for a Skills-First Future aims to bridge this gap by transforming how employers approach talent acquisition.

In this HRchat conversation with Bill Banham, SHRM Foundation President Wendi Safstrom reveals why skills-first hiring has moved to the forefront of strategic thinking for forward-looking organizations. "Talent is America's greatest asset," she explains, noting that employers increasingly rely on workforce creativity and innovation to compete. Yet traditional credential-based hiring creates artificial barriers that exclude qualified candidates simply because they lack formal degrees.

The statistics paint a sobering picture: 75% of employers struggle to fill positions, nearly half face retention challenges, and replacing employees costs up to four times their salary. Meanwhile, one-third of working-age adults without four-year degrees possess valuable skills that remain untapped. As AI and technology rapidly transform skill requirements, the disconnect between educational outputs and workforce needs continues to widen.

Beyond addressing the immediate talent shortage, the Center for a Skills-First Future expands support for overlooked talent pools, including military community members and "opportunity youth" aged 16-24 who are neither in education nor employment. The initiative provides HR professionals with practical tools, including a new certificate program focused on skills-first recruitment strategies.

Learn more about the SHRM Foundation to join a movement reshaping America's workplace.

Support the show

Feature Your Brand on the HRchat Podcast

The HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score.

Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here.

• Follow us on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to our newsletter
• Check out our in-person events