2026 CT SHRM Inclusion Conference

Join SHRM Connecticut for a full day of learning, connection, and practical conversation. Our goal is simple: move inclusion and equity from intention to action.

📅 Friday, October 30, 2026
📍 Central Connecticut State University | New Britain, CT
⏰ Doors open at 8:00 AM | Program runs 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM

As workplaces continue to evolve, HR professionals play an important role in creating environments where employees feel valued, respected, and able to contribute. This conference brings together HR professionals and leaders from across Connecticut to learn from peers facing many of the same challenges.

• 🎤 Opening keynote from Christopher Bylone
• 🌟 Spotlight keynote from Yvonne Alston
• 🎤 Closing keynote from Simone Morris
• 💬 A candid panel on risk, responsibility, and engagement
• 🤝 A second chance and reentry hiring panel with practitioners who do the work
• 🌿 A wellbeing reset with Anna Annette
• ☕ Continental breakfast and lunch included, with time to connect with colleagues
• ✅ SHRM and HRCI recertification credits (pending)

Whether you are leading inclusion initiatives, supporting employees and managers, or shaping your organization's culture, you will leave with practical ideas you can put into action.

Together, we move forward. 💙

Breaks sponsored by Paylocity.

The SHRM Connecticut Council is an affiliate organization of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the world's leading association of Human Resource professionals.

For reasonable accommodations, please contact [email protected].

Info: Welcome, opening remarks and sponsor introductions

Info: Equity is not a trend. It is the part of the belonging formula that changes what the rules produce, and the people carrying it are tired. Budgets have shrunk, pressure has grown, and the work often lands on one HR professional. This opening keynote names equity fatigue plainly and refuses the conclusion it invites: tired is not finished. Christopher Bylone reconnects the room with why equity matters, then turns to what restores energy, first for each person in the room and then for the teams they support.

Info: This panel will focus on the intersection of risk, program implementation, and culture and climate at work. From professionals focusing in diversity, equity, and inclusion to those specific in HR to Operations, this panel will explore the costs, benefits, and identify takeaways that we can bring to our organizations to show up better.

Info: Employers facing a tight labor market are finding committed workers in an often-overlooked talent pool. This panel of Connecticut employers, the Department of Correction, a reentry provider, and a CCSU researcher will discuss where to find second chance candidates, how to hire fairly, and what it takes to help new hires succeed. Moderated by John McTighe.

Event venue

Central Connecticut State University, 1615 Stanley Street, New Britain, United States

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.

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