Acknowledgments

To my dear friends at AMACOM Books, executive editor Christina Parisi and president Hank Kennedy—thank you both for your support, commitment, and continued friendship as we keep these books coming! To Mary Miller for her outstanding recommendations, suggestions, and incredible attention to detail throughout the copyediting process. Special thanks to Erika Spelman for coordinating all aspects of production so efficiently and thoroughly, both for this project and for a number of others. And to my literary mentor and coach, Adrienne Hickey, who may have retired from AMACOM but still influences me in so many ways she’ll never know.

To the finest legal team and legal minds in the business who helped review select portions of this manuscript as it made its way through the various stages of review and development:

Ann Kotlarski, senior litigation partner in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP and fellow UCLA Extension instructor; Jathan Janove, partner in the Portland office of Ater Wynne LLP and fellow author both at AMACOM Books and HR Magazine; Jacqueline Cookerly Aguilera, partner, and Yoni Cohen, associate, in the Los Angeles office of Bingham McCutchen LLP; and Sharon B. Bauman, partner and co-chair of the employment practice group in the San Francisco office of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP—I consider it an honor and a blessing to have worked with all of you and learned tremendously from your guidance.

Last but not least, to Heather Rider, vice president of human resources at Intuitive Surgical in Sunnyvale, California, and one of the most respected HR executives I know—thanks for your ongoing support and mentorship, Heather. I’m proud to call you my friend.