Scottland Jacobson

Director, Talent Development and HR Operations
Russell Investments

Scottland Jacobson is Director, Talent Development and HR Operations at Russell Investments, based in Seattle, Washington, and has been with the firm almost 24 years. Scottland has global responsibility for learning and development, diversity and inclusion, talent acquisition, associate engagement, and HR operations.

Scottland has a bachelor’s in English and American Literature from University of California, Santa Cruz. He is certified in multiple training programs focused on leadership, coaching, sales, client service, presentation skills, and personality styles. He recognized early on how learning and development is a key component of any role – and helped launch multiple training programs at Russell Investments over the years including a recent manager-focused program on “leading through change.”

Scottland is passionately focused on the Talent Lifecycle Experience - from acquisition and onboarding to development, growth, and leadership to culture, loyalty, and retention. “When you see someone use the skills they learned, and further progress their careers or make an impact on others because of it, that is deeply rewarding.”

Darla Vidger, MPA

Sr. Organizational Development Specialist
Sound Transit

Darla Vidger has a passion for helping others grow that can be traced back to her work leading employee and organizational development for one of the largest local pension funds in the United States. During her 19-year career in public pension and investments, she spent significant time working on reimagining leadership in the public sector and established herself as a trusted thought partner to trustees, executive leaders and managers.

Currently working as Senior Organizational Development Specialist for Sound Transit, Darla specializes in applying the latest research and understanding of how the brain works to improve leadership development, knowledge transfer, mentoring, and preparing the next generation of leaders for the work ahead.

John Derment

Sr. Talent Program Manager
Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI)

John Derment leads REI’s leadership development strategy, building leadership capabilities—helping them apply learning in real time, build stronger relationships with their teams, assess talent needs for the future, and sustain their ongoing development.

John is best known for Ridgeline, an annual cohort-based development program for high-potential Directors and DVPs. John has also created REI’s first customized end-to-end curriculum for emerging and experienced managers and has made skill development a critical element of key co-op events including REI’s annual Leadership Conference and Leadership Award Events. 

Prior to four years at REI, John has developed leaders and led learning teams at T-Mobile, Amazon, and Tableau. John is a Seattle native and a graduate of the University of Washington.