Gary Kushner, SPHR, of Kalamazoo, Mich., president and CEO of Kushner & Co., was honored with the SBCA Connie Murdoch Award for his outstanding dedication and efforts on behalf of the Small Business Council of America (SBCA).
The SBCA, a national nonprofit organization that represents the interests of more than 20,000 privately held and family owned organizations on federal tax, employee benefit and health care matters, presented its 28th Annual Congressional Awards at a reception on Capitol Hill on May 4, 2011.
Created in honor of one of the founders of the SBCA—highly acclaimed Delaware tax attorney Connie Murdoch—this award is presented in his memory and in acknowledgement of all the good work he did for the SBCA. Kushner, a longtime volunteer leader for the Society for Human Resource Management, is a director of the SBCA and considered to be one of the nation's experts on employee benefits. His company provides HR strategy and employee benefits consulting and administration.
The award is given only to SBCA members and recognizes Kushner's outstanding contributions to the SBCA. In presenting the award, SBCA Chair Paula Calimafde said, “We are honored to present this award to Gary Kushner, one of the leading experts on employee benefits in the country. Not only does he understand the technicalities of providing employee benefits, but he also understands the power of advocating for small business in Congress. We appreciate his extraordinary efforts on behalf of the SBCA which help small businesses in delivering employee benefits to their employees.”
Melissa Drennan, PHR, has been recognized by the Mississippi State Council of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) as a 2011 award recipient. Drennan is the HR manager at Systems Electro Coating.
Mississippi SHRM held its annual Human Resource Conference and Expo in Tunica, Miss., April 4-6, 2011. The event, coordinated by the governing State Council, brings together human resource professionals from across Mississippi for educational and networking opportunities.
Drennan was named the 2011 Spirit of Human Resources Award recipient. Winners are chosen from a pool of nominated individuals by a selection committee.