2024 Winter Cluster

Magdalen Bickford, Managing Member - New Orleans Office, McGlinchey Stafford

Magdalen Blessey Bickford is Chair of McGlinchey’s Labor and Employment section and Managing Member of the firm’s New Orleans office. Mag represents businesses and management in labor and employment litigation and provides general legal counsel on a variety of workforce matters. As a provider of management counsel, training, and education, Mag advises employers on best practices in the workplace and on drafting and implementing effective policies and procedures. Because the regulatory framework is constantly evolving, Mag helps clients navigate the changes in statutes such as the FLSA, LRA, EEOA, FMLA, ADA, and other laws. Additionally, she has successfully advocated on behalf of management in courts and administrative agencies in several states and before the EEOC and NLRB. With extensive litigation experience, Mag has also represented several non-profit and educational institutions in addition to her corporate clients.

Greg Booth Jr., EAG Gulf Coast, LLC

Gregory Booth is a Partner in the firm’s Tax Services Group. With over 15 years of extensive public accounting experience, Greg primarily focuses on Federal tax compliance, planning and research.
Greg has cultivated strong relationships with clients throughout the Gulf South region, with particular emphasis on the real estate, restaurant, and professional service sectors. Greg’s dedication to his clients extends beyond day-to-day tax matters, as he provides invaluable advice and strategic insights to support their long-term tax planning goals.
Prior to joining the firm, Greg was a Director at Postlethwaite & Netterville (P&N), a leading full-service accounting and business advisory firm.
In addition to his exceptional contributions in the accounting industry, Greg generously shares his knowledge and passion as an adjunct professor at Loyola University in New Orleans, Louisiana. Every fall semester, he imparts invaluable insights to aspiring accounting professionals, shaping the future of the field.

Susanne Cooper, McGlinchey Stafford

I became an employment lawyer because I love working with people and helping them out. This work is 
personal and practical and provides a valuable service. Whether they employ five people or five 
thousand, my clients depend on me to stay in business by resolving personnel issues that could put 
the company at risk. Employment law isn't an abstract issue; we all encounter it, and I enjoy helping employers and 
business owners find effective solutions when things go wrong.

Susanne Veters Cooper helps companies maintain successful employer-employee relationships through 
advice and counsel and in litigation. She helps them navigate discrimination and harassment, 
employee attendance issues, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charges, Family and 
Medical Leave Act (FMLA) compliance, and challenges related to retaliation, whistleblower, and 
wrongful discharge claims.

Susanne develops practical and cost-efficient strategies for resolving disputes before they become lawsuits. She trains
managers on sound workplace policies and practices. And when situations become contentious, Susanne 
draws on more than 15 years of litigation experience to defend employment claims in court, 
including those brought to a jury.

A former Employee Relations Consultant at a 30,000+ employee healthcare system operating throughout 
Louisiana, Susanne brings a hands-on, solutions-driven approach to every client engagement. She 
also worked as the General Counsel and Human Resources Director of a New Orleans-based restaurant. 
Susanne offers comprehensive advice, sensible counsel, and clear guidance on avoiding disputes in 
the first place, resolving them efficiently when they arise, and mounting an effective defense when 
matters proceed to litigation or trial. Clients know she's always ready to roll up her sleeves and 
dig into a problem to provide a personalized response that aligns with their strategic and 
financial objectives.

Earlier in her career, Susanne practiced at McGlinchey, advising employers on employee management 
and litigating employment disputes in state and federal court.

As Honorary Consul for the Federal Republic of Germany, Susanne collaborates closely with the 
Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Houston to foster positive German-American 
relationships. In this role, she assists German citizens living in Louisiana with passport 
applications and lost passports, dual citizenship and naturalization
applications, and notarizing transactions.

J. Michael Inzina is founder and CEO of Audit Litigation Training and Efficiency Consulting, Inc. (ALTEC), a consulting company serving public accounting firms and other accounting and auditing organizations on matters of audit efficiency, continuing education, litigation and ethics.

Mike has been named Outstanding Instructor by the American Institute of CPAs and several state societies 13 times, and has served on several national committees, including: AICPA Professional Ethics Executive Committee, Auditing Standards Board, AICPA Independence and Behavioral Standards Subcommittee and Governmental Technical Standards Committee.

Sandy Michelet, Sparkhound

Sandy Michelet is the Director of People Strategy for Sparkhound’s growing team of 250+ employees and four regional offices. She joined Sparkhound in 2014 with 20 years of senior human resources leadership, including tenure at a Fortune 500 company, experience in the public sector, and work in both the healthcare and technology industries. Sandy leads Sparkhound’s people-focused strategies and initiatives to develop a high-performing, engaged culture. With responsibilities including performance management, organizational development, employee relations, talent acquisition, compensation, and benefits, she embraces two Sparkhound core values essential to the creativity and individuality that define a Sparkie: “Create Value” and “Have Fun.”
 
Sandy is actively engaged in the human resources community and frequently serves as a keynote and session speaker for multiple local and national HR conferences and associations. She is the immediate past State Director Elect of Louisiana SHRM. Sandy previously served as President of GBRSHRM in 2013 and is currently the co-chair of the GBRSHRM Fall Conference. She holds both the Senior in Professional Human Resources designation and the SHRM-SCP. She earned a master’s degree in workforce development from the University of Southern Mississippi and a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University where she proudly served as a member of the LSU Tiger Band.  

In addition to leading the Sparkhound Nation, Sandy is a dedicated advocate and powerful voice for the growing community of women who are unable to have children. Her personal struggles with infertility and firsthand realization of the lack of support and assistance for childless women led her to launch TheChildlessLife.com, a blog dedicated to women for whom children are no longer an option. By sharing her own story and empowering other women to do the same, Sandy has created a network of compassion and support for those moving toward acceptance as a childless woman. In 2018, she partnered with World Childless Week and was instrumental in motivating Louisiana and Baton Rouge to become the first U.S. state and city to officially recognize World Childless Week. As a result, she was selected as a World Childless Week Champion and served as a speaker for the Hope Narrative Conference.
 
Sandy is also a lead singer with Trilogy and enjoyed playing with Something Blue, Stormy and Carbon Copy over the last 20+ years.
 

Kurt Oestriecher is partner in charge of accounting and auditing services with Oestriecher & Company, CPAs, in Alexandria, and is also involved in litigation support and small business consulting engagements.

Kurt is a 3-time recipient of LCPA’s Outstanding Discussion Leader Award and has been named an Outstanding Discussion Leader for the AICPA 10 times. Kurt has served on the Accounting and Review Services Committee, AICPA Council, and has authored several courses for the AICPA and LCPA.