2026 Workplace Immigration Changes Unpacked: What HR Leaders Need to Know Now

Chenai Kirkpatrick is the Senior Director of Government Affairs at SHRM, the world’s largest HR association, representing nearly 340,000 members across 180 countries and impacting the lives of 362 million workers and their families.

In this role, Chenai provides day-to-day oversight of SHRM’s Government Affairs team and leads the organization’s global policy and workplace immigration initiatives. She also supports SHRM’s efforts in workplace governance (labor relations policy) and regulatory affairs. Chenai brings extensive experience in global advocacy, U.S. public policy, regulatory and legislative affairs, law, and compliance. Prior to joining SHRM, she served as Senior Director of Government Relations & Deputy Counsel at Melwood, a $115M+ nonprofit dedicated to empowering children, youth, and adults with disabilities to live, work, and play where and how they choose.

Born and raised in Zimbabwe, Chenai is a global citizen who has traveled the world in her personal and professional capacity. She volunteers her time to serving mission-focused organization's Boards of Directors for the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) Foundation, a designated organization serving as the voice of U.S. businesses before the United Nations, the National Immigration Forum, U.S. organization that advocates for the value of immigrants and immigration to our nation, GGEM Farming a $5M social enterprise on fair market access based in Malawi; Lawyers for Good Governance, providing legal counsel on business and family immigration; and the Zimbabwean Nurses Association of America, providing corporate governance counsel.

Chenai is a West Virginia State University and Liberty University School of law graduate and an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sorority, Inc.

Steve is a Senior Associate with BAL’s D.C.-based Government Strategies team. He advises clients on a range of topics, including compliance with H-1B worker regulations and policies, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) adjudication trends, as well as issues presented by mergers, acquisitions and other corporate restructuring. Steve conducts benchmarking on immigration issues and company policies and frequently hosts BAL Community webinars focused on benchmarking.

Prior to joining BAL, Steve served as associate counsel for the USCIS Vermont Service Center, where he advised USCIS officers on employment-based nonimmigrant eligibility issues and coordinated litigation defense strategies for the agency. He has worked in-house for the immigration team of an e-commerce and cloud computing company. He is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Based in Fragomen’s Silicon Valley office, Audrea is a multi-jurisdictional attorney and trusted advisor to companies across technology, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, engineering, automotive and manufacturing. She counsels startups, entrepreneurs and multinational corporations on securing temporary work visas and permanent residence for key talent, designing scalable, compliant immigration programs aligned with business growth and evolving workforce strategies. She is particularly regarded for her guidance on U.S.–Canada cross-border matters, advising on the movement of professionals and executives across North America and helping organizations manage risk while maintaining workforce mobility.

Audrea serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Culture & Inclusion Committee, providing strategic guidance and advancing initiatives that foster inclusion and belonging across the organization. Drawing from her personal experience immigrating to multiple countries, she brings a practical, empathetic perspective to her work and is committed to delivering thoughtful, solutions-oriented counsel. She earned her J.D. from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University and her B.A. from McGill University.