August 11-13, 2026

Human Resources Summit

Registration is closed. If you have any questions, please contact confreg@cmaa.org.

The Human Resources Summit is the annual event designed specifically for human resources professionals and those interested in focusing on the club’s people and culture. Education is curated for the unique challenges, needs, and priorities of today’s club HR professionals.

The Summit will take place at the renowned Interlachen Country Club in Edina, MN.

Network and collaborate with other club industry HR professionals, August 11-13, 2026!

Club Benchmarking

Presented in Partnership with Club Benchmarking

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Register

Registration is closed. If you have any questions, please contact confreg@cmaa.org.

CMAA Member/Human Resources Community* Subscriber Registration: $1,150
Non-Member Registration**: $1,500

*The CMAA Human Resources Community (HRC) is a hub for human resource professionals to connect, share, and engage with one another.

**Includes a free year of CMAA Human Resources Community subscription

Earn Credits: 11.5 CMI Credits
Learn more about CMAA certification and understanding your credits.

Schedule

Agenda Overview (All times CT)*

*All programming subject to change.

Tuesday, August 11

Interlachen Country Club

Time	Event
8:00 a.m.	Buses Depart from The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel
8:30-9:30 a.m.	Registration & Breakfast
9:30-10:30 a.m.	Driving Performance Without Driving People Out the Door—or to the Courthouse Ashley Herd, Founder & CEO, Manager Method Drawing from real employment law cases and hospitality HR experience, this session explores common workplace misconceptions, legal risks, and people-management challenges facing private clubs today. Attendees will gain practical strategies, communication tools, and real-world examples to help managers make informed decisions, reduce legal exposure, and create a more respectful and compliant workplace culture.
10:30-10:45 a.m.	Break
10:45-11:45 a.m.	Leading Responsible AI at Your Club: A Practical Playbook for HR Leaders Sean Johnson, Lead of US, We Are Agentic AI is already part of everyday work inside private clubs, often well ahead of the policies and training intended to guide it. Leadership teams may underestimate how much AI use is already happening, while employees are left without clear direction on which tools are approved, which tasks are well suited to AI, and when human review is essential. In this practical session, HR leaders will learn how to establish responsible guardrails, reduce the risks of inconsistent or unchecked AI-assisted work, and define where human judgment must remain in control. We will also explore why policy alone is not enough - and how employee enablement determines whether responsible AI use becomes part of everyday practice. Attendees will leave with a one-page framework they can use to guide responsible AI adoption at clubs of any size.
11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m.	Lunch
12:45-1:45 p.m.	Achieving Eustress: Where Stress, Performance, and Well-Being Meet Kendra Brodin, Esq., MSW, Founder & CEO of EsquireWell This research-backed session helps professionals reframe stress as a performance advantage. Participants will learn practical tools and mindsets to turn pressure into focus, resilience, and growth—enhancing well-being, collaboration, and results in high-demand environments.
1:45-2:00 p.m.	Break
2:00-3:00 p.m.	The Social Discord of AI Adoption: What Talent Actually Wants Betsy Gregory, Founder & Principal, Unbridled Courage Consulting; Head of Job Board & ATS, Next Level When Johnny Campbell predicted AI would become a major source of social discord, he wasn't wrong. Companies are cutting HR budgets while automating people management. SaaS vendors abandon their own products to build in-house AI stacks. Tech teams face layoffs to "make room" for tools. Data centers consume farmland. But here's what nobody's talking about: a growing pool of talent actively rejecting pure-efficiency organizations and seeking workplaces where people actually matter. This session cuts through the AI hype to examine the real human cost—and the unprecedented opportunity. We'll walk the adoption spectrum: organizations ignoring AI entirely through Oracle's 21,000-person reduction. We'll map cascading disruption across sectors and explore why organizations positioned around people, not cost-cutting, are uniquely positioned to win the talent war ahead. For club leaders, this changes everything about recruitment and competitive advantage.
3:00-3:15 p.m.	Break
3:15-4:15 p.m.	Creating Leadership Behaviors That Are Clear, Coachable, and Consistent Mariah Klemz, Head of People and Culture, Interlachen Country Club Many organizations talk about leadership using broad values and traits, but struggle to define what great leadership actually looks like day to day. In this interactive session, Mariah will share how Interlachen developed their leadership behaviors framework designed to turn vague expectations into observable, coachable actions. Attendees will learn how leadership behaviors were identified, refined, and are currently being embedded into systems across the organization. Through real examples and group exercises, participants will leave with practical tools and ideas they can use to create clearer leadership expectations and stronger accountability within their own teams and organizations.
4:15-5:15 p.m.	Welcome Reception
5:15 p.m.	Buses Depart to The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel

Free Evening

Wednesday, August 12

Interlachen Country Club

Time	Event
8:00 a.m.	Buses Depart from The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel
8:30-9:30 a.m.	Breakfast
9:30-10:30 a.m.	Developing an Influential Communication Style Suzanne Peterson, Ph.D., Partner and Co-Head, Leadership Practice Effective leadership hinges on more than what you say—it depends on how you say it. In this session, we explore how your personal communication style shapes your credibility and influence with others, and how sharpening your message for a specific audience dramatically increases its impact. We also examine how the strongest influencers deliberately cultivate relationships with people who are most open to their ideas, creating a network of advocates before they ever need one. Leave with practical approaches to becoming a more intentional, influential communicator.
10:30-10:45 a.m.	Break
10:45-11:45 a.m.	The First Seat Partner: Building Systems Leaders Can't Build Alone Jeff Jones, Strategic Advisor, H&R Block; Corporate Board Director Drawing on decades of leading large, complex organizations with diverse workforces, Jones explores why a team can never outperform the system its leader builds—and why HR is rarely just executing that system but co-authoring it. This session unpacks the three-way accountability HR leaders navigate every day—to the CEO or GM, to the team, and to the organization as a whole—and offers practical ways to hold that line without losing sight of the individual person in front of you.
11:45 a.m.-1:00 p.m.	Lunch
1:00-2:00 p.m.	Recruit, Retain, Reward: Helping Employees Thrive in Today’s Financial Landscape Dennis Pearlman, Partner & Regional Director, Retirement Plan Services, Everhart Advisors Examine emerging benefit trends, plan designs, and best practices in employee benefits related to financial wellness and long-term financial security that support retirement readiness. Topics will include retirement plans, Health Savings Accounts, executive deferred compensation programs, and financial education initiatives as key components of a club’s employee growth and financial wellness strategy. Participants will gain insights into how financial and behavioral decision-making influences benefit plan benchmarking and outcomes, with life-cycle case studies illustrating practical financial wellness action items for both personal and staff applications. The session will also provide an overview of current investment market conditions and practical investment strategies, while addressing the fiduciary responsibilities of Human Resources and executive professionals in identifying, evaluating, and implementing evolving compliance and legislative requirements.
2:00-2:15 p.m.	Break
2:15-3:15 p.m.	Private Clubs Compensation Philosophy and Strategy—Using Compensation Data to Drive Smarter Pay, Talent and Business Decisions Ray Cronin, Founder, Club Benchmarking As competition for talent intensifies across the private club industry, compensation has become a critical component of organizational success. This session explores how private clubs can develop a compensation philosophy that aligns with their culture, financial objectives, and talent strategy while leveraging market compensation data to make informed and equitable pay decisions. Participants will learn how compensation benchmarking and market intelligence can help clubs attract, retain, and motivate high-performing employees while balancing budget considerations and internal equity.
3:15-4:45 p.m.	Club Tour
4:45-6:00 p.m.	Cocktails & Dinner
6:00 p.m.	Buses Depart for The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel

Thursday, August 13

Interlachen Country Club

Time	Event
8:00 a.m.	Buses Depart from The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel
8:30-9:00 a.m.	Grab & Go Breakfast
9:00-10:30 a.m.	Leading Through Change: Creating Cultures Where People Thrive Stephanie Pierce, Senior Vice President and Head of Leadership & Talent Practice, U.S. Bank As organizations navigate evolving expectations around workplace culture, employee engagement, and inclusion, HR leaders play a critical role in creating environments where employees feel valued, connected, and able to thrive. This interactive session will explore practical strategies for fostering belonging, strengthening culture, and leading through change, with opportunities for peer discussion, collaborative problem-solving, and Q&A focused on the unique challenges facing club HR professionals.
10:30-10:45 a.m.	Break
10:45-11:45 a.m.	Alignment, Culture, and Results: Turning People Strategy into Performance Joel Livingood, General Manager/CEO, Interlachen Country Club Great organizations don't happen by accident. They are built through aligned leadership, intentional culture, and disciplined execution. In this session, we'll explore practical lessons from Interlachen's transformation and the leadership practices that create clarity, strengthen culture, and turn people strategy into sustained organizational performance.
11:45 a.m.	Buses Depart for The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel

Important Information

World-class service is standard at the Westin Edina Galleria. Walk to the shops and restaurants of the Galleria, which is connected to the hotel or visit the nearby Southdale Mall.

Please note: The original room block has sold out. The hotel has added additional inventory in the Club Level at $329 per night plus taxes.

Address: The Westin Edina Galleria, 3201 Galleria, Edina, MN 55435

Book Now: Reserve Online

Deadline: The last day to book within the group is Friday, July 24, 2026

CMAA makes every effort to keep attendee expenses including registration fees and accommodation rates for the event as economical as possible. We work diligently to negotiate the best hotel rates and to make the best use of your registration dollars to keep the event affordable and accessible.

CMAA encourages all participants to reserve a room at the host hotel; this supports not only this event, but also future meetings. While in some instances, less expensive accommodations may be available from third party online consolidators, booking within CMAA’s established block helps to underwrite the cost of meeting space and other hotel concessions. When commitments to our host property are not met, CMAA must pay penalties which will ultimately increase the cost of events.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) is located approximately 10 miles from the host hotel and is serviced by most major airlines.

Business casual attire is required. Collared shirts, slacks, dresses, or skirts are appropriate; denim, athletic wear, and overly casual clothing are not permitted.

All registration cancellations and refund requests must be made in writing by the individual whose name appears on the registration. To be valid, submit all requests to CMAA Registration. No refunds will be made after July 9, 2026. CMAA will not issue refunds for no-shows. Substitutions are gladly accepted; substitutions of registrations are permitted prior to the event. Only one substitution is permitted per original registrant. The individual submitting the substitution request is responsible for all financial obligations (any balance due) associated with the substitution. Badge sharing, splitting, and reprints are strictly prohibited.

CMAA is dedicated to providing a safe, hospitable, inclusive, and productive environment for all participants at CMAA Events. CMAA has established minimum expectations of behavior for participants at all CMAA events. Please review the policy. It is intended to supplement any other applicable CMAA policies, including the CMAA Code of Conduct and Ethics.