Mike Thomas

Mike Thomas is Program Director of the Total Rewards Executives Council and the Human Resources Operations Council at The Conference Board. He has experience helping global, publicly traded companies deliver on their short- and long-term business objectives via the creation and execution of reinforcing HR strategies. Mike most recently was Vice President of Total Rewards & HR Operations for AbbVie, a Fortune 250 biopharmaceutical company with 50,000 employees in 70+ countries. Coming out of AbbVie’s 2013 spin-off from Abbott Laboratories, Mike collaborated closely with the new CEO, executive leadership team and board compensation committee to create and implement AbbVie’s global TR platform. Prior to AbbVie, Mike’s career and expertise grew dynamically through HR leadership roles of increasing scope and responsibility, primarily within Total Rewards and HR Operations, at other large multinational organizations, including roles at Motorola Solutions, Biogen, Pfizer, Moore Corporation, Pizza Hut, and ITT Financial Services. Mike began his career in finance before transitioning into HR, where he spent most of his 40-year professional career.

Throughout his career, Mike actively participated in several HR networking organizations, including The Compensation Council of The Conference Board, the Pharmaceutical Human Resources Association, and the International Management Remuneration Group. Mike served as executive chair of all three of these organizations.

Mike received his master’s degree in finance from the University of Wisconsin—Madison and his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Wisconsin—Eau Claire. He is also a Certified Compensation Professional through the World at Work organization.