Gannon University’s Trent Burner, who spent one semester as the executive director of human resources, has left Gannon for another position with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).
SHRM is a distinguished global HR society, and according to a Gannon press release, Burner’s new placement will allow him to lead the research function of the society, which houses 285,000 members in over 160 countries with more than 575 chapters located in the U.S., China, India and United Arab Emirates among others.
The professional HR society is a leading provider in serving HR professionals and growing the field of human resource management.
Burner has much experience in the field of HR. He received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Akron in Akron, Ohio.
Prior to working at Gannon, he worked at Harding University teaching leadership development, human resource management and consumer psychology at both undergraduate and graduate levels.
Burner’s last day as the executive director of HR at Gannon was Dec. 29, 2017; however, he will remain a presence at Gannon advising the university as it looks for a new executive director, and will continue to help in the future.
Burner came to Gannon after working for Walmart, where he served as vice president of Global Organizational Effectiveness and as an officer of the incorporation.
At Gannon, he led the HR department in planning, designing, developing, evaluating and making sure the department was in line with Gannon’s strategic plan and goals.
Some of his accomplishments include staff revisions and performance evaluations, and he procured a performance management and applicant tracking system.
While the university looks to fill the position, Jay DiFrank, the assistant director of HR, will be the interim executive director.

BRANDON JACES
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