Building Connections, Launching Careers: The 2026 SIOP Consortia

The SIOP Consortia Committee remains committed to advancing the professional development of student and early career members through meaningful, career-focused experiences. The 2026 SIOP Consortia served as an important opportunity for learning, mentoring, and networking within the I-O community. This year’s programming emphasized fostering connections designed to support continued professional growth while integrating consortia participants into the broader SIOP conference experience.

The 2026 consortia welcomed 150 registrants and featured 21 thoughtfully curated sessions, with contributions from 45 presenters, panelists, and mentors. These sessions offered attendees rich insights and valuable guidance for navigating the early stages of their careers. Feedback from participants underscored the value of the experience: 89% of those who responded to the postconsortia survey felt the topics and material would be helpful for their future success, 90% indicated that the Consortia helped them feel connected to SIOP, and 90% would recommend the consortia to peers. These numbers reflect the committee’s ongoing commitment to high quality, relevant programming.

Participant feedback also points to broader lessons for career development in I-O psychology. Respondents’ open-ended comments emphasized the value of hearing real career journeys, exploring the range of roles available to I-Os, gaining practical tools for professional branding and job search preparation, and building connections with peers and mentors. These themes suggest that career development is strengthened when professional learning, mentoring, and community building are integrated. Consortia continue to bridge graduate training and early career experience into a more connected, confident, and engaged professional identity.

New this year, the Consortia Committee explored the possibility of expanding its programming to include a Midcareer Consortium, led by a task force including Rachel Callan (Adobe) and Jill May (City of Chicago). As a first step, the committee pilot tested the concept through an annual conference panel session, where attendees discussed midcareer challenges and opportunities and offered thoughtful feedback to guide future planning.

Special thanks to our dedicated committee members and our outstanding student volunteer, Erin Young (Illinois Institute of Technology), whose support helped ensure the consortia’s success again this year. As Kristina Bauer (Illinois Institute of Technology) rolls off the committee, the Consortia remains in excellent hands under the leadership of Rachel Smith (Georgia Southern University), who will serve as Chair next year. We are excited to see Rachel’s vision continue to strengthen the consortia as a space for learning, mentoring, and connection across the I-O community.

Read on to explore highlights and insights from each of the four individual consortia offered this year.

Master’s Consortium

The 2026 Master’s Consortium successfully transitioned from a fully virtual format to an in-person event, with 96% of the postevent survey respondents agreeing that an in-person environment worked well.

The consortium included a virtual kickoff session focused on networking and a debrief of the participants’ Hogan assessment results. Following the structure of previous years, the in-person event featured sessions representing four broad career paths: external consulting, internal HR and talent management practices within organizations, public sector and government contracting, and talent assessment. This exploratory approach to the field continues to be well received by participants, one person noting that, “every speaker [being from] a different area in I-O showcased how versatile the field is.”

We were joined by a strong group of speakers, including:

• Amy Renshaw (independent consultant) and Kaylen Wood (Korn Ferry): The World of Consulting: What Is It and How to Excel
• Jason Frizzell (Walmart): Internal Practices & Navigating HR as an I-O Psychologist
• Veronica LeRoy and Anita Pai (DCS Corporation): Public Service: Navigating Government/Public Sector Contracting
• Paul Fursman (SHL), Monica Elcott (Talogy), Mark Shoemaker (Hogan Assessment Systems), and Dara Drescher (Valmont Industries): Expert Panel: Inside the Assessment Industry

Across sessions, speakers emphasized the transition from graduate training to applied roles, offering guidance grounded in their own career journeys and day-to-day experiences as practitioners with master’s degrees. Our postevent feedback was largely positive with participants describing the experience as providing practical tools, generating excitement to be part of the I-O community, and a beneficial pre-conference activity to get to know other I-Os.

The Master’s Consortium continues to serve as a critical bridge between graduate education and applied careers. On behalf of cochairs Juliette Lloyd (Hogan) and Brooke Ackerman (Williams), thank you to all who participated. We look forward to the continued impact these emerging professionals will make in advancing the science and practice of I-O psychology.

Lee Hakel Doctoral Consortium

This year, over 30 I-O psychology and organizational behavior/human resource management doctoral students attended the Lee Hakel Doctoral Consortium at the SIOP conference! Students came from nearly 25 programs at schools across the United States and Canada. Students with an interest in joining academia or industry upon graduation attended a series of in-person professional development sessions.

The opening segment of the Doctoral Consortium focused on the dissertation process. Two speakers, Jenna McChesney (Meredith College; winner of SIOP’s 2025 S. Rain Wallace Dissertation Award) and Isabel Skovera (The Port Authority of NY & NJ), discussed their personal experiences, strategies, and tips for completing a stellar dissertation. They offered complementary perspectives on how to approach the dissertation with an eye toward careers in academia and industry, respectively. Jenna and Isabel also fielded a range of audience questions, spanning technical topics (e.g., accessing data and choosing analytic methods) to more practical concerns (e.g., sustaining motivation and preventing burnout during the final couple years of a doctoral program).

In the second session, students interested in academic careers joined a discussion with a faculty panel featuring Andrea Bazzoli (Baruch College), Ricardo Brooks (Penn State University), Elisabeth Silver (Michigan State University), Claire E. Smith (University of South Florida), and Paige Watson (Auburn University). Those interested in pursuing a career in industry participated in a practice-focused panel with Sarah Foster (Foster Insights), Ellen Lovell (Perceptyx), Maureen McCusker (Marriott), and Grayson Sturgis (APTMetrics). Panelists from both tracks shared experiences navigating their respective job markets and offered practical guidance on how to “ace” various stages of the job search, including search strategies and selection criteria, and how to stand out in application materials and job interviews.

The third session focused on bridging the gap between academia and industry. Richard Landers (University of Minnesota) and Brent Stevenor (National Registry of EMTs) shared their experiences conducting practically minded I-O research and offered advice on developing scientific partnerships with academics and practitioners. They offered practical strategies, examples, and “dos and don’ts” for making I-O research accessible and actionable—and reflected on how developing a scientist-practitioner mindset can enhance not only individual careers but also broaden the impact of our field overall.

The Doctoral Consortium wrapped up with students choosing one of two sessions to further prepare them for the field. Some attended a “Responding to Reviewers” boot camp, which was held jointly with the Early Career Faculty Consortium and led by the editorial team from the Journal of Applied Psychology (JAP). Participants were paired with JAP editors and action editors, including Mo Wang (University of Florida), Alicia Grandey (Pennsylvania State University), Kim French (Colorado State University), Ivan Hernandez (Virginia Tech), Babatunde (Tunde) Ogunfowora (University of Calgary), and Yihao Liu (University of Georgia). The session focused on best practices for crafting effective (and avoiding ineffective) responses to reviewers. Other students chose to join the Master’s Consortium for a session by Nicole C. Sellers (Right Management) focused on the “Career Compass” model for aligning your professional brand, which featured insights on fostering a professional identity and developing a professional network.

According to the postconsortia survey, the Doctoral Consortium received positive feedback from student attendees. On average, students indicated that the Doctoral Consortium met their expectations (4.00/5.00), they learned a great deal throughout the consortium (4.14/5.00), felt the topics and material would be helpful for their future career success (4.27/5.00), and they would recommend the Doctoral Consortium to other students (4.24/5.00).

Once again, Doctoral Consortium Cochairs Kira Foley (Army Research Institute) and Ian Hughes (Texas A&M University) would like to thank all the attendees, panelists, and contributors who helped make this year’s Doctoral Consortium a success. We wish all the attendees the very best in their doctoral studies, careers, and beyond!

Early Career Faculty Consortium

We are pleased to share that the 2026 Early Career Faculty Consortium (ECFC) was a success! ECFC hosted 21 early-career academics from various universities and departments. Participants interacted with esteemed midcareer and senior scholars in academic positions across I-O psychology and management.

The consortium kicked off the day with a panel on teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, led by Courtney Keim (Bellarmine University), Gloria González-Morales (Claremont Graduate University), and José-María Peiró (University of Valencia).

Then, participants learned about surviving and thriving through the promotion and tenure process and managing marketability from tenured faculty, including Mindy Bergman (Texas A&M University), Kimberly French (Colorado State University), Larry Martinez (University of Texas Arlington), Phil Thompson (Virginia Tech University), and Candice Thomas (Arizona State University).

The final panel session discussed research and pipeline tips and tricks. Panelists included Mindy Bergman (Texas A&M University), Jose Cortina (Virginia Commonwealth University), and Katina Sawyer (University of Arizona). To finish off the day, the JAP Responding to Reviewers Bootcamp, a session shared with the Doctoral Consortium, paired participants with JAP’s editors or action editors. Discussion focused on navigating the four common themes for rejection with review.

Feedback from the consortium was positive, with participants reporting they were satisfied with panels and the JAP bootcamp. Participants specified that they appreciated hearing from “a range of experiences” and engaging faculty during the Teaching Undergraduate and Graduate Courses Panel. They appreciated “the opportunity to connect directly with the editors” during the JAP bootcamp. Participants also valued the transparency and informativeness of the panelists from the Promotion and Tenure Process Panel, as well as the Managing Marketability and Research & Pipeline Tips panel.

From cochairs Becca Brossoit (Rice University) and Monique Domingo (Louisiana State University): Thank you to the junior faculty for participating—we wish you all the best in the future! And to the wonderful panelists, thank you all so much for dedicating your time and making the consortium a success!

Early Career Practitioner Consortium

The 2026 Early Career Practitioner Consortium (ECPC) was attended by 19 practitioners. Designed for practitioners less than 5 years into their I-O careers, this year’s ECPC emphasized the importance of building professional agility to develop in an applied career and was centered around the following goals:

• Expand their professional network by connecting with peers, mentors, and leaders across diverse industries and career paths.
• Focus on career growth and transitions through mentoring and discussion designed to support both new and evolving practitioners.
• Identify individual strengths and development opportunities through the OPQ assessment and guided interpretation session.
• Gain practical insights into applied I-O work, including internal HR functions, organizational consulting, and data-driven talent practices.
• Develop key skills and confidence to thrive as an applied I-O professional and navigate career progression effectively.

The consortium included a full program of I-O experts who shared their career histories, lessons learned, and advice on building agility and developing as an I-O practitioner.

In a preconference virtual event, attendees had the chance to meet their fellow ECPC participants, learn about the theme of professional agility, and hear how assessment can build self-awareness and enhance professional development. Participants also received guidance on preparing for ECPC and completing prework, which included identifying for discussion a challenge they were facing in their current role and completing SHL’s Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ).

During the in-person event, ECPC participants heard from distinguished I-O professionals Sara Gutierrez (SHL), Erica Desrosiers (SC Johnson), Victoria Smoak (Johnson Controls), and Scott Brooks (Org Vitality) who shared experiences from their illustrious and diverse careers and gave insights into critical experiences that shaped their professional agility. They also provided advice on professional development, discussed the value of curating and consulting a personal board of directors, and gave tips for strategically building a career through often unexpected changes and life events.

ECPC Co-Chair Andre Hennig, managing consultant at SHL, talked with attendees about how assessments can be powerful tools not only in their work as practitioners but also in their own development as I-O professionals. He also provided guidance on interpreting their OPQ results and on building a personalized development plan.

Desmond Leung (Intuitive), Michael Durando (Chevron), Kimberly Wrenn (SHL), Rose Fonseca (DICK’S Sporting Goods), and Steve Young (Caterpillar) served as mentors for the afternoon. In a panel discussion, these mentors shared their personal career experiences, including how they are personally working to grow professional agility and examples of when they have shown agility. They also shared practical advice for responding in the moment when you are not sure of the answer, reevaluating success metrics and goals as needed, and adapting your style to different situations and audiences.

Attendees spent the remainder of the afternoon joining small breakout groups with the mentors. They brought the challenges they had identified as prework and engaged in rich dialogue with mentors and other attendees on a variety of topics, including development as practitioners, career aspirations, and insights from the OPQ. Following the afternoon break, participants had the opportunity to “speed network” with mentors and other participants. This time allowed attendees to strengthen connections with other I-O practitioners.

This experience helped them feel more connected to SIOP and eager to be involved and network within the SIOP community. Participants were asked to share what two things they would take away from ECPC, and a few theme areas were seen around learning more about career paths, how to influence, and the importance of mentorship, building relationships, and networking. There was a great deal of positive feedback on the session, with a few comments that stood out below, on what participants will carry forward:

 Keep building my network because you never know which connection will matter in the future.

Importance of influence as a skill, and that leading to impact, even if you don’t have authority.

 It’s all about relationships, Science is the foundation. Communication is the bridge. Invest in relationships.

Cochair Andre Hennig and Casey Witherspoon (Target) are energized by the positive impact of the 2026 ECPC and are looking forward to ECPC 2027!