About Us
Our Mission
Helping organizations strengthen their HR strategy, structure, people and processes.
Our Vision
To enrich the world of work.
Our Guiding Principles
people first
make work fun
Here's how we can
Meet the Team
Lisa Cooper, PHR, SHRM-CP
Lisa Cooper is the Chief People Officer with Cooper People Group whose mission is to enrich the world of work by developing innovative HR strategies, HR structures, HR processes and HR people. Lisa is a Laker for Life (Go GVSU!) and with more than 20 years of HR leadership and consulting experience in West Michigan, she has worn nearly every hat in HR from entry-level Generalist through Consultant and Vice President and has a particular passion for small, entrepreneurial businesses, both for-profit and not-for-profit. Lisa enjoys public speaking, is a past-President for the Association for HR Management (a local SHRM chapter) and currently chairs the Governance Committees at North Kent Connect and Family Business Alliance and serves on the YWCA HR Committee.
Fun fact: Besides a love for great HR, Lisa loves her 3 teen daughters, her COVID rescue puppy, bacon, and scuba diving with hubby of 17 years, Dan.
Specialities
Strategic Planning, Future Workforce Development, EOS, Employee Engagement, HR Compliance, Small Business, Leadership Development
Education & Certifications
BA, PHR, SHRM-CP
Claire Larabel, MA, SHRM-SCP
Claire is the Director of Talent Acquisition & Development with Cooper People Group. She has spent her career working in internally and externally focused roles at both large and small organizations! She has a passion for finding the right people, enabling people to succeed by providing the right training and support, and helping organizations through change. Claire has a Bachelor’s degree from Calvin College in Business with a concentration in Human Resources and a Master’s degree from Western Michigan University in Organizational Learning and Performance.
Fun fact: I pitched a no-hitter in high school!
Specialities
Education & Certifications
MA, SHRM-SCP, The Predictive Index
Elizabeth (Lisa) Hanning, JD, SPHR
Lisa Hanning is Cooper People Group’s Sr. HR Consultant & Operations Integrator. She brings more than 30 years of HR Executive Leadership experience in the manufacturing, legal, higher education and non-profit sectors. She is passionate about developing HR teams, and helping organizations find solutions to help grow their business and their people.
Lisa has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree from the University of Denver, a Juris Doctorate degree from Seattle University of Law, and a Master of Law in Taxation from the University of Denver College of Law. She is a member of Kent County’s Chapter of 100 Women Who Care.
Fun facts: Lisa is an avid traveler, and proud mom of two grown children. She LOVES dogs, Michigan summers, and entertaining friends out on her boat. Lisa is also learning to play the piano.
Specialities
Strategic Planning, Executive Coaching and Leadership Development, Employment Law, Employee Relations and Training, Benefit Plan Design and Management, HR Team and Organizational Performance, Succession Planning, Restructuring and Post-Merger Integration
Education & Certifications
JD, SPHR, LEA 360
Cynthia Peña, SHRM-CP
Cynthia is Cooper People Group’s HR Consultant. She joins our team with experience working with medium size organizations in the retail, food & beverage, manufacturing, and child care industries. With an extensive generalist background, she has a deep understanding of HR systems, processes, and administration while supporting people, culture and strategic initiatives.
Specialities
Payroll, Benefits, Employee Relations, Leave Administration, Onboarding, Training, Employee Engagement
Certifications
SHRM-CP, Human Resource Professional Certification Program via Michigan Chamber of Commerce
Katherine Wolthuis, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Katherine is Cooper People Group’s Sr. HR Consultant. She brings a hard-working and professional attitude with an eagerness to learn, grow and drive results. She’s passionate about developing relationships, problem solving, process development and management, helping people, and by doing so, fully contributing to the success and growth of the companies she serves.
She’s previously held leadership positions with small, medium and large companies in the staffing, retail, manufacturing and banking industries. She holds an AS in Business from Grand Rapids Community College, BS in Business from Central Michigan University, an MBA from Michigan State University and SPHR and SHRM-SCP certifications as well as a certificate of completion of the Graduate School of Banking for Human Resource Management from the University of Wisconsin Madison.
Fun Facts: Katherine enjoys spending time with her husband, Mike, of three years and their fur babies, Tink, and Luna, along the shores of Lake Michigan and Woodbeck Chain of Lakes.
Specialities
Talent Acquisition, Employee and Labor Relations, Talent Management, Talent Development, Systems Administration, Onboarding, Employee Orientation, Recognition, and Engagement, Project Management
Education & Certifications
MBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Jason Ramer, BA
Jason is CPG’s HR & Compensation Consultant, specializing in the area of compensation within the total rewards function. He has spent his career working for large global organizations in several industries including the automotive, consumer appliance, medical device, and agriculture sectors. He has deep expertise within the compensation function with backgrounds in supply chain and finance as well. He is excited to create solutions for our clients, and help them move towards improved results. Jason has a BA in Supply Chain Management from Western Michigan University. He supports his local community through coaching high school sports and serving in his local church.
Fun fact: In Jason’s first (& only) marathon, he barely beat the 1st speed walker by 2 minutes!
Specialities
Remuneration Strategy, Base Salary Administration, Variable Pay Planning, Compensation Planning, Sales Compensation Planning, Reward and Recognition Programs, Job Levelling Evaluation, Systems Administration, Project Management, Employee Mobility Support, Total Reward Integrations
Education
BA
Kristine Babcock, MS
Kristine Babcock is an HR Consultant with Cooper People Group. She is a business professional experienced in human resources and information technology and has spent her career in public and private West Michigan organizations. She spent ten years in consulting and twenty years in leadership positions building and coaching teams to success. She is passionate about building relationships, teams, and processes that deliver business results through best practices and innovation.
It’s her belief in the power of education and hard work that drives her support of the Grand Rapids Community College Foundation (GRCC) and how it helps to change lives. She’s been a member of the GRCC Foundation Board of Directors for over 8 years and currently serves as the Board Chairperson. She is also a member of Kent County’s Chapter of 100 Women Who Care.
Babcock has a B.S. degree in psychology and communications from Central Michigan University and a M.S. degree in Communications from Grand Valley State University.
Fun Fact: Kristine can’t sit still! She stays active through gardening, biking, tennis, swimming, and trail running. She also enjoys traveling and spending time with her family, which includes her husband, 3 children, 6 grandchildren and a German Shepherd named Jax.
Specialities
HR Information Systems, Project Management, Employee Benefits Strategy & Administration, Change Management, Training & Education, Strategic Planning
Education
MS
Alexandria Polk, BS
Alexandria Polk is an HR Consultant with Cooper People Group. Alexandria is a talent and people professional driven by values and purpose. She has over a decade of experience working at the intersection of people, process, and technology. Her specialties include talent acquisition, onboarding, labor relations, compensation, HR technology, and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Alexandria earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Community Development from Central Michigan University in 2020 after taking one class at a time for seven years, while working full-time. Alexandria lives in Grand Rapids with her teenage daughter and their beloved dogs, Max and Hazel.
Fun fact: Alexandria and her daughter have traveled to 11 countries (and counting) since 2020!
Specialities
Talent Acquisition, Onboarding, Labor Relations, Compensation, HR Technology, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Education
BS
Roseann Masotti, BS, MA
Roseann Masotti is a Sr. HR Consultant at Cooper People Group. With more than 30 years of broad business experience, Rosann has held multiple executive level leadership roles in multiple functions including operations, human resources, sales support, IT, and systems planning. She has worked inside large corporations, mid-size 3rd gen businesses, and 1st gen start-ups. Roseann is passionate about helping leadership teams develop sustainable practices that drive healthy, high-performance organizations and profitable growth. She is known and valued for her unique ability to blend human science and business acumen to help organizations drive results while building trust and cohesion and engaging people.
Roseann has a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Psychology from Michigan State University, and a Master of Arts degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Central Michigan University. She also received her Certification in Lean Manufacturing from University of Michigan.
Fun facts: Roseann is an avid reader, amateur chef, and self-declared foodie. She loves walking with her dogs, hiking in the woods, cruising around in her pontoon (with a glass of wine!), and spending time with family and friends. She has two grown daughters and two adorable dogs that have attempted to fill the holes left by her girls when they left the nest! Roseann loves entertaining friends who share her love of good food, good wine, and good books!
Specialities
Organizational Structure and Performance Management Systems, Strategic Planning (Business and HR), Succession Planning, Team Health, Lean Manufacturing, Positive Accountability Systems, Executive Coaching and Leadership Development, Employee Relations, Policy Development and Deployment, Restructuring and Integration following mergers or multi-site consolidations.
Education & Certifications
BS, MA, Lean Manufacturing
Cinthia Williams, BA
Cinthia is the Office & HR Manager at Cooper People Group. She began her professional career in Business Administration right from college. Throughout her career, she has worked and volunteered for non-profit organizations, an insurance agency, a financial institution, and in higher education. Cinthia is passionate about serving and helping others, professionally and personally. She prides herself in her experience with data analytics, graphic designing, problem solving, and spreadsheet programming.
Cinthia has a BA in Human Resources Management and AS in Business Administration from Davenport University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She volunteers in her local community on a regular basis including with the Friends of the Otsego District Public Library.
Fun facts: Cinthia is a stay-at-home mom with her son, Theo. She is an animal lover and health and fitness advocate. She loves Microsoft Excel!
Specialities
Microsoft Suite, Graphic Designing, Calendar Management, Organization, Customer Service, Project Management
Education
BA
Jenna Grooms, BA
Jenna is the Administrative Assistant at Cooper People Group. She’s a seasoned business professional with a background in office administration, customer care, client account management and implementation, event planning, social media management, and creative design needs. Jenna has a passion for providing extraordinary service, and takes pride in offering world class support to all she serves. Her professional career has spanned the corporate, non-profit, network marketing, and entrepreneurial sectors.
She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Arts from Grand Valley State University and her Associate’s Degree in Arts from Grand Rapids Community College. She actively supports the Grandville School District as a member of the Community Council committee, and regularly volunteers with her daughters’ respective schools. She also enjoys singing and volunteering at her family’s local church.
Fun Facts: Jenna is a Certified Breathwork Coach and Certified Holistic Wellness Coach. She enjoys participating in the Grand Rapids theater community with her husband Chris, and feels her greatest contribution to this world is as a mama to her daughters Violet and Rose.
Specialities
Customer Service, Coaching, Organization, Training, Event Planning, Project Management
Education & Certifications
BA, AA
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