RIDGEFIELD, WA – Ilani, the Pacific Northwest’s premier gaming, dining, entertainment, and meeting destination, has placed Kevin Carmichael as their new Director of Total Rewards. Managing Partner, Ayla Maloney and Recruiting Director, Ramey Lynch led and placed the critical HR search.
“Kevin Carmichael is a visionary HR leader with exceptional expertise in Workday and enterprise HRIS transformation, making him an ideal fit for ilani’s people-focused culture and commitment to innovation. His ability to modernize systems while strengthening total rewards and employee experience aligns perfectly with ilani’s strategic direction. Kevin’s collaborative leadership, data-driven approach, and passion for building inclusive, high-performing teams will be invaluable as ilani continues to enhance its HR infrastructure and empower its workforce for long-term success.” shared Ramey Lynch, Recruiting Director at TCG.
As the Director of Total Rewards, Kevin will have a pivotal role within this value driven casino and resort. Kevin will be a strategic partner and collaborator to the President and the executive leadership team as well as the management company, Marnell Gaming and their HR leader. His position leads the strategy and execution of total rewards and how it shapes the employee experience. He will help shape technology of the business and enable a more data-centric and analytically capable organization by driving the Workday implementation. Kevin Carmichael will be responsible for designing all employee compensation, benefits, and wellness initiatives and rewards programs across the organization.
Kevin Carmichael is an accomplished HR executive with over 15 years of experience leading global people strategy, workforce transformation, and HR technology initiatives across diverse industries. As the new Director of Total Rewards at Ilani, he brings deep expertise in compensation, benefits, payroll, and HRIS leadership, having previously managed multi-million-dollar HR operations and global system implementations across five countries. Known for driving large-scale transformations that align people, processes, and performance, Kevin has successfully led SAP SuccessFactors rollouts, unified complex payroll structures, and delivered over $35M in cost savings through automation and data-driven workforce planning. He is recognized for his ability to lead through complexity, deliver measurable business outcomes, and elevate HR’s strategic impact.
About Ilani
This is a premier gaming destination in Ridgefield, Washington owned by the Cowlitz tribe that will continue to expand. The name Ilani means to sing and the property focuses on celebrating life and their many offerings.
About The Christopher Group
Through its award-winning, customized HR solutions, The Christopher Group (TCG) delivers critical human capital solutions in the area of executive HR search, interim HR leaders, fractional CHROs, and HR advisory and consulting. Since 1998, TCG has served clients across all industries, locations, company sizes, and verticals. Staffed by former HR professionals and highly trained search practitioners who have sat in the job, TCG has been named one of the Fastest-Growing, Best Non-Profit, Diversity, Private Equity, and Top 50 Executive Recruiting Firms by Hunt Scanlon as well as Forbes’ 2019, 2020, 2021 & 2022 list of America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms.