About Us

MEET OUR COLLEGE RELATIONS DIRECTOR: Ty Miyahara

Ty Miyahara is a seasoned Human Resources leader with more than 40 years of leadership experience across the restaurant, recreation, and service industries. Throughout his distinguished career, he has held senior HR leadership positions with respected organizations including the H. E. Butt Foundation, CEC Entertainment (Chuck E. Cheese and Peter Piper Pizza), Wendy’s, Fiesta Restaurant Group (Taco Cabana and Pollo Tropical), Federal Express, Hardee’s Food Systems, and Arby’s.

Ty is deeply passionate about building high-performing teams, attracting exceptional talent, and fostering strong partnerships with business leaders. He is equally committed to mentoring and developing HR professionals to help them achieve meaningful career success. He currently serves as College Relations Director for SHRM-San Antonio.

His contributions to the profession have earned numerous honors for the organizations he has led in HR, including Wendy’s prestigious Jim Near Award for Employer of Choice, an annual recognition presented to the company demonstrating the nation’s best HR practices. His organizations have also been recognized by the Houston Business Journal as one of the Top 10 Companies to Work For and received the HR Houston Impact Award for its innovative approach to avoiding a company-wide layoff.

With over 20 years in the restaurant industry, you’ve built and led teams in fast-paced, high-turnover environments. What are the top three things you’ve learned about attracting and retaining great talent?

Ty: Creating and sustaining a strong workplace culture requires intentional, consistent effort every single day. As an HR leader, I cannot afford to become complacent or let a day pass without taking action that reinforces the culture we want our employees to experience.

At the H. E. Butt Foundation, for example, we strive to create a true sense of belonging by fostering an environment that is welcoming, psychologically safe, and appreciative of each employee’s unique contributions. How I respond to employees — on both their best days and their most challenging days — must reflect those values. When employees share concerns or personal information, I believe it is critical to handle those conversations with care, discretion, and respect for their emotional and psychological safety.

I have also focused heavily on designing thoughtful internal systems that support both recruitment and retention. From implementing strategic selection processes to ensuring employees feel valued and supported throughout their careers, every step is designed to create an environment where people want to stay and grow long-term.

As College Relations Director for SHRM-San Antonio, you’re helping connect the organization with the next generation of HR professionals. What advice would you give to college students and recent graduates interested in building a successful career in Human Resources?

Ty: I appreciate that question because supporting young professionals is something I care deeply about. I often encourage students and recent graduates to embrace hard work and be willing to prove themselves early in their careers. Finding the right first opportunity matters tremendously.

I advise students to be intentional and selective about where they begin their careers. They should ask important questions: Who will mentor and train me? What does the organization’s leadership culture look like? How do managers support and develop their teams? A successful career relationship is always a two-way street.

Promotions and advancement may not happen as quickly as you hope, but it is your responsibility to demonstrate that you are prepared for the next opportunity. Patience, accountability, and a willingness to learn are essential.

Early in my own career, I chose Wendy’s because of its exceptional management training program. At a young age, I learned how to manage a million-dollar business and, more importantly, the value of developing and training others. That passion for coaching and development ultimately opened the door to my first HR leadership opportunity in talent management.

One lesson that has stayed with me throughout my career came from Wendy’s founder, Dave Thomas, who believed that success in business comes from surrounding yourself with good people. Because of that philosophy, I have always been willing to hire individuals who may not yet possess every technical skill, but who are coachable, hardworking, and committed to growth.

You’ve received several notable honors throughout your career, including the Jim Near Award and the HR Houston Impact Award. Looking back, what accomplishment are you most proud of, and why?

Ty:The accomplishment I value most is seeing people I have mentored grow, succeed, and earn recognition for their own achievements.

One example that stands out involved a former team member whom I hired shortly after he graduated from high school. He was eager to learn, highly motivated, and absorbed everything he could about human resources and business leadership. Over time, he developed into an exceptional leader and eventually advanced to a vice president role.

Ironically, my own layoff from a previous employer created the opportunity for his promotion. I took pride in knowing I had played a meaningful role in helping prepare him for that success. I’m grateful to have been one link in the chain of his journey.  Watching others grow and thrive professionally has always been the most rewarding part of my career.

MEET EDWARD CONTRERAS: Secretary

Edward Contreras serves as Secretary on the SHRM San Antonio Board. He is the Employee Relations Manager for a San Antonio-based nonprofit organization. His HR career began in 1997, with experience spanning government, manufacturing, education, and nonprofit sectors. Ed brings extensive HR / Employee Relations expertise, primarily in workplace investigations, dispute and conflict resolution, disciplinary actions, employee surveying, training, policy development, and HR analytics. He has been a guest speaker on Employee Relations issues both locally and nationally.  A longtime supporter of the local HR community, with his initial Chapter membership beginning in the 1990’s, Ed returned to give back to the organization that helped him early in his career. As Secretary, he plays a key role in supporting the chapter’s governance, documentation, and operational excellence. Ed graduated from Harlandale High School in San Antonio, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Syracuse University and a Master’s in Business Administration from Our Lady of the Lake University. His deep employee relations experience and commitment to the San Antonio HR community make him a trusted resource for HR professionals

Q: What is one employee relations trend HR leaders should be paying close attention to right now?

Ed:  Over the past few years, ER has experienced many changes in both scope and span of responsibility.  There is an emerging re-evaluation of what ER does and its value to an organization.  Prior to COVID, ER was primarily seen as the team that investigated complaints, processed grievances and issued employee discipline.  In the past few years, ER is increasingly being tasked with understanding and improving the entire employee relationship with the workplace and optimizing that experience, from recruitment to onboarding to development to departure.  To accomplish this, ER has become more connected with all HR areas, organizational operations, and has become more data oriented.  Data sources such as surveys, people analytics, complaint tracking, training gaps, etc allows ER to focus on opportunities for improvement with their employees which are specific to them, and then to measure if improvements are successful.  Industry wise, the biggest ER trend seems to be decreasing engagement and increased personal stressors, which is driving turnover, conflict, and dissatisfaction.   

Q: What is a common mistake do you see organizations make when it comes to minimizing liability in employee relations?

Ed: Over my career, the most common mistake is becoming upset during a disagreement which impacts communication, collaboration, and problem solving.  I learned early in my career the value of focusing on a person’s interest instead of being locked into a position during a conflict, so I always advise to remain rooted in curiosity during a conflict as this encourages open dialogue and seeking resolution.  More often than not, having a conversation can help clear up misunderstandings or miscommunication, which can resolve issues before they become more complicated.  Not having a conversation allows for disputes to grow and become increasingly emotionally charged, which increases potential liability.  And of course, appropriately document what has been occurred and the actions taken.

Q: What advice would you give HR professionals navigating complex employee relations issues?

Ed:  My advise is two-fold, personal and professional.  Personally, be aware of your own emotional boundaries and appreciate that ER issues can impact your own mental health.  HR / ER professionals should allow time to reflect and remind themselves that these issues are a professional dispute instead of a personal matter.  Finding the mindset of being empathetic and caring, but not becoming emotionally invested, is an important balance to avoid burnout.  Secondly, as we navigate and resolve a complex ER issue, stay aware on the root cause(s) that contributed to the situation.  Ultimately, ER should help build relationships, even broken ones.  If there is an opportunity to help bring meaningful improvements to the work environment, then let’s leverage our opportunity to flip a bad situation into one of learning, growth, and clarity.

Shavonne L. Smith