Kelsey Casselbury, CDMP
Director, B2C Content, SHRM
Kelsey Casselbury is the Director of B2C Content at SHRM, where she leads a 13-person team producing news, newsletters, and podcasts for HR professionals. With a journalism and editorial background, she has spent over a decade in associations, including the School Nutrition Association, where she helped lead an award-winning website redesign. She embraces technology as a content and marketing leader, uses tools like AI to work smarter, and values AWTC for its supportive community and cross-industry connections. Learn more about HERStory!
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
Hello and welcome to this edition of AWTC Presents Her Story, a series where we feature different members from AWTC. I'm your host, Cecilia Sepp. I am also a member of AWTC and I'm currently serving on the marketing committee.
In this episode, I am pleased to welcome Kelsey Castleberry, who is also on the marketing committee in 2024. And we're really looking forward to learning more about Kelsey and her association experience. So Kelsey, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
Absolutely. Well, thank you for having me. I'm Kelsey Castleberry, and I'm currently the director of B2C content at SHRM, which people might know as the Society for Human Resources Management.
And at SHRM, I lead a team of 13 writers, editors, and podcast producers to produce the majority of our content at SHRM—everything from our daily news articles to our newsletters, which range from daily to monthly and all in between, as well as three of our five podcasts released weekly.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
That is an amazing array of communication content. And I love that there are five podcasts at one organization. That's really cool.
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
Also, two of them are managed by our B2B content team, but we work so closely with them that it's a great relationship.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
That's great. I love hearing about teamwork and people working together across departments. You have a great background in communications. How did you get started working with associations?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
I've been in associations for about 12 years. A couple of years in, I realized this was the industry for me. My background is in editorial—journalism degree from Penn State, worked at a daily newspaper, then a city magazine in Annapolis.
In 2012, I was hired at the School Nutrition Association as a communications specialist and eventually became managing editor. I later worked for a small medical association, then spent five years as a contractor (mostly for SNA). In 2022, I returned to SNA as content director until November 2023, then freelanced until starting at SHRM in September this year.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
Well, you have really traveled the whole spectrum of size and scope.
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
Yes—SHRM’s ~330,000 members, SNA’s 50,000, and APGO with only a few thousand. Very niche.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
So with all that experience, can you share a time you felt really good about your work?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
When I returned to SNA, I helped lead a total website overhaul. I’d contracted with the marketing team for a year beforehand and became deeply involved in the new site, working closely with Ray van Hilst and Diane Samuelsson from Yoko.
We added major features like a recipe database and a new resource library. After nearly two years of work, launching it in 2022 was incredible—and even more so when we won ASAE’s Gold Circle Award for Best Website (and Best Video). Accepting the award on SNA’s behalf remains one of my proudest career moments.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
That’s wonderful! You should be proud. So what advice helped you in your journey as a woman in tech?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
I was introduced to AWTC by Carrie McGovern, then invited onto the marketing committee by Jill Treby after she learned I also do graphic design (I’m art director for ACS’s ChemMatters magazine).
At first, I said, “But I’m not in tech.” And they said, “Do you use technology? Then you’re in association tech.” That changed my whole perspective.
Since then, I’ve embraced technology fully—from website strategy to AI tools like Jasper. AI now speeds up tasks like structuring articles, making my job easier when used as a tool rather than a replacement.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
Exactly. So where else do you see technology leading associations?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
Honestly, technology we don’t even think of as technology is driving everything. At SHRM, the website strategy team constantly improves personalization and user experience.
Cross-collaboration is key—breaking down silos is how organizations innovate and how technology transformation succeeds.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
Well said. Now, what do you like best about AWTC?
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
The support and the community. From my first AWTC happy hour to AWTC Advance, I felt welcomed—especially as I was navigating a career transition.
The strong women leaders in AWTC inspire me, and the networking is invaluable. I even brought my AMA mentee to Advance this year, and she loved it so much she applied for the marketing committee.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
That is a great wrap-up, Kelsey. Thank you for joining me.
Kelsey Casselbury [Guest]
Thank you so much.
Cecilia Sepp [Host]
This has been AWTC Presents Her Story featuring Kelsey Castleberry. If you’d like to learn more about AWTC, visit awtc.tech for our free membership, events, and information about the 2025 AWTC Advance Conference. Thanks for joining us—we’ll see you next time.