Depart from New York/surrounding area and make your way to Tel Aviv this evening.

Arrive in Tel Aviv at the Ben Gurion International Airport. Upon arrival, the group will be met and transferred to your local hotel. Relax this evening and settle into your hotel.

The Orchid Hotel is the perfect combination of location, hospitality, and service and is situated on the beachfront promenade. Guest rooms have a cable TV with LCD screen, radio, minibar, coffee/tea set, safe, hairdryer, and kettle. Wi-Fi is free as are many international calls. The hotel has onsite dining, gym, pool, 24/7 front desk, room service, and free bicycle rental.

All travelers will gather this evening with your national guide and receive further information on the program.

Enjoy a welcome dinner this evening at a local restaurant.

Meals: Dinner

Overnight: Orchid Hotel (or similar) 

Begin your explorations where it began against all odds; visit Independence Hall to relive Israel’s first Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion, declaration of Israel’s independence on May 14, 1948. Experience the excitement of that moment.

Next meet with the CHRO and team at PandoLogic Israel to hear about the challenges of recruiting and employing at their company (among other topics). PandoLogic's team of passionate professionals are on a mission to empower employers to intelligently source the best candidates.

Stop for lunch at a local restaurant. 

Head to the Peres Center of Peace & Innovation, a leading non-profit and non-governmental organization focused on developing and implementing unique and cutting-edge programs for the afternoon meeting with Dr. Efrat Liani, immediate past VP of HR at Microsoft Israel. Today she leads a unique course in MBA/Executive MBA in the world of HR in a global organization. She will discuss new trends in the workforce, execution manager including different models and business reality, talent acquisition and career routes. 

Dinner is by individual arrangement. 

Overnight:  Orchid Hotel  (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast, head to Tel Aviv University for an  interactive student/faculty/delegate session with faculty of the Social Sciences Dept as well as the department of Labor Studies. The faculty members in the department research and study labor through a variety of disciplines: labor relations, sociology, economics, law, history, and psychology. The introductory courses offered by the department include Human Resource Management, Organizational Theory and Behavior, labor Relations, Labor Law, and history of labor. 

Late this morning head to Tel Aviv City Hall for a meeting with the deputy Mayor (pending availability).

After a late lunch return to the hotel for an interactive start-up session with a variety of local HR professionals. The professional focus of this event will be finalized after enrollment has concluded and will be customized to fit the needs of the professionals enrolled as well as availability of the various hosts invited to attend. 

Accompanying guests: 

Accompanying guests will enjoy a day to explore the city with a small tour group. This will start with a visit to the Jewish People Museum followed by a driving tour around the “White City” which was declared as a UNESCO world cultural heritage site for its collection of over 4,000 Bauhaus stye buildings. Stop at Rabin Square, the site of the assassination of Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin in 1995. Continue to Old Jaffa, one of the oldest port cities in the world. Visit Neve Tzedek, the first old neighborhood from 1887 and last to explore Nachalat Binyamin, the pedestrian open-air mall. 

Dinner is on your own this evening.

Overnight:   Orchid Hotel  (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

This morning is open for another local meeting perhaps with Amdocs Israel, the US Embassy, or something similar. The objective of these meetings will be to further explore the complexities of hiring in a region that continues to face political adversity and challenges.

Accompanying guests: 

Accompanying guests will have some free time this morning or are welcome to attend the meeting with the remainder of the group. 

Check out of the hotel and drive north. Arrive in Haifa and ascend Mt. Carmel for a view of Haifa Bay and the beautiful Bahai Gardens with its amazing Temple. Arrive to the Druze village of Usefia. Enjoy a tour of the village with a local guide. Walk through the picturesque alleys and hear about the local culture. Enjoy an authentic Druze lunch today.

Travel to the ancient crusader port city of Acco, the fascinating UNESCO town with new excavations 1000 years old. Visit the Crusader Halls and see the underground tunnels and pathways. Look upon the port and fortifications that enabled the inhabitants of the town to resist against Napoleon Bonaparte. Spend some time walking through the Arab Bazaar with vendors selling fresh fish and other goods.

Head onward to Jerusalem to check into your local hotel and enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.

Herbert Samuel Hotel is nestled in the magical alleyways of the Nahalat Shiva neighborhood. This 5-star luxury hotel is just a short walk to the Old City and its religious sites. The hotel has rooftop dining with panoramic views, an elegant spa, fitness center, free Wi-Fi, and upscale amenities for your comfort. 

Overnight: Herbert Samuel Hotel (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

 After breakfast, the group will convene in the hotel conference space for your morning meetings. This will include an individual from the Governmental Workforce Committee to learn about the government’s involvement in the Israeli workforce and their influence. Learn about the special law, where large businesses must incorporate special needs employees within their workforce.

Have a meeting with an individual from the Industries Association of Israel and learn about the integration of workforces fresh out of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces).

As time permits meet with local HR managers to learn about the part of the employees' welfare and its' added value to the employees.

Lunch will be provided this afternoon.

This afternoon head to a local factory which employs Palestinian workers. Tour the factory, meet with employees, and learn from them about the co-existence in their workplace.

Accompanying guests:
Accompanying guests will enjoy a day to explore Bethlehem with a small tour group. Walk through Manger Square to visit the Church of Nativity, the oldest Church in the Holy land. Admire the ancient limestone columns and remains of mosaic floors; descend to the Grotto of Nativity, where a Silver Star in the floor marks the spot where Christ is believed to have been born. Proceed to the Church of Milk Grotto where the Virgin Mary nursed baby Jesus and according to tradition, a drop of her milk spilt and turned the stones white. Next, visit Shepherds' field. Stop at a local souvenir store before heading back to Jerusalem. The rest of the day is yours to explore independently.

Dinner is by individual arrangement (own expense).
Overnight:  Herbert Samuel Hotel (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast drive to the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of the city. Overlooking the Old City, the Mount is covered partly in olive trees, cemeteries, and churches - commemorating the Christian events of Jesus.

Descend via the Palm Sunday Walk to visit the Garden of Gethsemane. Enter the Garden with its ancient olive trees believed to date back to the times of Christ. The garden is next to the magnificent Church of all Nations (Basilica of Agony) and The Greek Orthodox Church of the Tomb of the Virgin Mary.
 

After lunch enter the Old City and walk through the Jewish quarters which was reconstructed after the city was unified after the Six-Day War in 1967.

Walk the Via Dolorosa and end with a visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This is in fact, a complex of various chapels built on what was called the Hill of Golgotha.

Dinner will be provided this evening.

Overnight:  Herbert Samuel Hotel (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

After an early breakfast, depart to the Dead Sea area. Traveling east arrive at the shores of the Dead Sea and descend to the lowest land point on earth at 1388 feet (423m) below sea level.

Continue south to the legendary mountaintop plateau of Masada and ascend by cable car to the ancient fortress. Explore the site with its synagogue and bathhouse. Here, was the last stronghold of the Jewish Zealots in their struggle against the Romans.
 

Enjoy lunch and time to swim at one of the hotels on the shores of the Dead Sea. Cover yourselves with mud and enjoy the buoyant therapeutic waters of this mineral-rich Sea. Relax by the pool or take a spa treatment.

Return to the hotel with some time to freshen up.

Enjoy a special farewell dinner at the Eucalyptus Restaurant this evening.

Overnight: Herbert Samuel Hotel (or similar)
Meals: Breakfast