TEAM
FACULTY
Jodi Forlizzi | Professor | PI, NSF Future of Work in the Hospitality Industry
Human-Computer Interaction Institute, Carnegie Mellon UniversityJodi Forlizzi is the Herbert A. Simon Professor of Computer Science and Human-Computer Interaction in the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University. She is also the Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the School of Computer Science. Jodi has advocated for design research in all forms, mentoring peers, colleagues, and students in its structure and execution, and today it is an important part of the HCI community. Jodi studies the ethical impacts of human interaction with AI systems in front-line service industries including healthcare and hospitality. She also develops methods and tools to ensure that product developers can mitigate ethical harms and bias during product development. Jodi is an ACM SIGCHI Fellow and recently received its Lifetime Research Award. She recently testified to the US Senate in an AI Innovation Briefing and collaborates closely with the AFL-CIO Tech Institute.
Ben Begleiter | Deputy Director
UNITE HEREBen Begleiter is a Deputy Director in the Research Department of UNITE HERE where he leads the union’s program to prepare hospitality workers for a more technological future.
Sarah Fox | Assistant Professor
Human-Computer Interaction Institute, Carnegie Mellon UniversitySarah Fox is an Assistant Professor at Carnegie Mellon University in the Human Computer Interaction Institute, where she directs the Tech Solidarity Lab. Her work examines the impacts of AI and automation on essential work sectors, with a focus on developing systems that center workers’ needs and expertise. She holds a Ph.D. in Human Centered Design & Engineering from the University of Washington.
Hye Jin Rho | Assistant Professor
School of Human Resources & Labor Relations, Michigan State UniversityHye Jin Rho is an Assistant Professor at the School of Human Resources and Labor Relations at Michigan State University. Her research focuses on the changing nature of work and organizations and its implications for employment processes and outcomes dictating the future of work. In particular, her work focuses on the rapid proliferation of new advanced technologies, increase in fractured employment relationships through outsourcing and hyper-subcontracting arrangements, and changing demand in skills and worker preferences for jobs. Her projects have received funding from National Science Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Russell Sage Foundation, as well as the Labor and Employment Relations Association (LERA). She holds a Ph.D. in Management from MIT Sloan School of Management with the Institute for Work and Employment Research.
Christine Riordan | Assistant Professor
School of Labor & Employment Relations, University of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignChristine Riordan is an Assistant Professor at the School of Labor and Employment Relations (LER), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Christine has conducted research focusing on the implications of restructuring and outsourcing for work design and voice. Research in progress explores these topics in the nursing occupation; past work has focused on legal work in corporate law firms. She has co-authored multiple papers considering how outsourcing reshapes conflict, work relationships, and inequality. Christine holds a PhD in Management from the Institute for Work and Employment Research at the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Betsy Stringam | Professor
School of Hotel, Restaurant, & Tourism Mgmt., New Mexico State UniversityBetsy Stringam is a Professor at New Mexico State University's Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management program. She has worked in the hotel, resort, and restaurant industries before transitioning to academia in 2008. Stringam is an expert on Hotels and Resorts, having authored a book and multiple chapters in textbooks on the subject. She also regularly contributes to hospitality and tourism journals and serves on the Research Committee for the International Foundation for the American Resort & Development Association. Additionally, Stringam holds various professional certifications, including Registered Resort Professional and Certified Hospitality Educator.
Ed Wytkind | Senior Advisor
UNITE HERE , AFL-CIOEdward Wytkind is a decades-long labor movement leader and advocate with expertise in technology, transportation, the future of work, and labor and workplace issues such as worker protections, bargaining rights and safety and security. Ed is a senior advisor to the UNITE HERE and has assisted the union in building and executing its technology program. He is also a senior advisor on technology and the future of work to the national AFL-CIO and its Technology Institute and is assisting the Transport Workers Union in the development of a multi-faceted technology program. Prior to going out on his own in 2017 to consult on technology strategies, Ed was the president of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), where for more than 25 years he led a diverse coalition of private and public sector transportation unions in developing and advancing their policy priorities in the aviation, transit, rail, highway, longshore, maritime, and other sectors.
PROJECT CONSULTANTS
Deborah Figart | Distinguished Professor Emerita
School of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Stockton UniversityDr. Deborah M. Figart is Distinguished Professor Emerita of Economics at Stockton University. Her research focuses on labor economics. Dr. Figart is the author or editor of 22 books/monographs and over 100 other publications. Her latest books are Stories of Progressive Institutional Change: Challenges to the Neoliberal Economy (Palgrave, 2017) and Economic Well-Being (NASW Press, 2022). She has served as president of the Association for Evolutionary Economics and the Association for Social Economics.
Ellen Mutari | Professor Emerita
School of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Stockton UniversityDr. Ellen Mutari is the Professor of Economics Emerita at Stockton University. Her current research encompasses emerging perspectives on job quality and well-being, modern approaches to teaching introductory economics, and the evolution of feminist political economy theories. Dr. Mutari is the author or coauthor of 6 books including Just One More Hand, Life in the Casino Economy (Rowman & Littlefield, 2015) and Economic Well-Being: An Introduction (NASW Press, 2022). She is currently on the Executive Council of the Association for Social Economics.
RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
Somang Min| Postdoctoral
Researcher
School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Mgmt., New Mexico State
UniversitySomang Min is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management at New Mexico State University. She holds a PhD in Hospitality Management from the University of South Carolina. Her research focuses on understanding the impact of technological advances on consumer and employee behavior, as well as service marketing in the hospitality and tourism industry.
Shannon Potter| PhD Candidate
Centre for Industrial Relations & Human Resources, University of TorontoShannon Potter is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources at the University of Toronto. Her research areas include unions and collective bargaining (e.g. strikes, inter-union competition and wages) as well as the gender earnings gap and the impact of parenthood on women's labour market outcomes.
Claudia Robles| Master's Student
School of Labor & Employment Relations, University of Illinois
Urbana-ChampaignClaudia is an incoming graduate student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Since last summer, she has participated in the NSF Future of Work Research project as an undergraduate researcher at Carnegie Mellon University. Her undergraduate studies focused on developing skills and understanding in the fields of Human-Computer Interaction and Data Science. She has experience in conducting research, analyzing data, and applying HCI principles to improve user experiences and has a strong passion for learning how to leverage technology to solve real-world problems.
Grace Sarfo| Master's Student
School of Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Mgmt., New Mexico State
UniversityMiss Grace Sarfo, a second-year Master's student in Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management at New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, also serves as a Graduate Research Assistant to Dr. Betsy Stringam. My academic focus involves areas of hospitality management and related fields. As a research assistant, I contribute to ongoing research projects within my department and other external projects, gaining valuable experience in academic inquiry and scholarly activities.
Franchesca Spektor| PhD Student
Human-Computer Interaction Institute, Carnegie Mellon University
Franchesca Spektor is a PhD student at the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, where she seeks to challenge dominant discourses around disability, sexuality, and expertise. Most recently, Franchesca uses community-driven design methods to study how workplace technologies impact low-wage workers, who are disproportionately disabled on the job.
Patricia Tabarini| PhD Student
School of Labor & Employment Relations, University of Illinois
Urbana-ChampaignPatricia Tabarani is an incoming 4th year Ph.D. student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She possesses a strong dedication to social justice and a profound interest in international labor issues. As a recipient of the Pola and Harry Triandis Ph.D. scholarship and the Robert Larsen Career Development Award, she focuses her research on the challenges and inequalities within the global labor landscape, particularly for marginalized groups in developed and developing countries.