May is, among other things, “Mental Health Awareness Month,” and there is increasing focus and concern on this issue by employers.
This discussion will share ways that employers can support employees, experiencing the stress of working in a “hybrid fashion,” Gen Z’ers who have only worked remotely during the pandemic without much or any “live” social interaction with peers, the confluence of “five generational cohorts” (from Gen Z to Traditionalists) in the workplace for the first time in history, ongoing uncertainty around the pandemic, America’s racial reckoning, gun violence, mass shootings at work, increasing polarization of society, and an unpredictable economy that is impacting hiring and layoffs. All of this makes managing and leading employees increasingly more challenging.
In this webinar, we will discuss how some purpose-driven organizations are supporting employees navigate unpredictable times to remain productive at work and in their personal lives.
MODERATOR
Patrice Tanaka, Founder & Chief Joy Officer, Joyful Planet LLC,
Best-selling author, public speaker on business and life purpose, serial entrepreneur, co-founder of three award-winning, PR & Marketing agencies recognized as “Best Workplaces,” and the consultancy, Joyful Planet LLC, focused on building purpose-driven individuals and organizations.
PANELIST
Gil Bashe, Chair, Global Health and Purpose at FINN Partners
Nothing has kept Gil Bashe from advancing people’s well-being and access to health innovation from battlefield to boardroom. As a combat medic in an elite paratrooper unit, he tended to the wounded under fire. As a C-suite and global practice leader, he sees communications as the bridge to connect healers from around the world with those seeking to be healed.
At FINN Partners, which makes a difference through collaboration and shared values, he has a role to which he is ideally suited. As Chair Global Health at FINN, he champions the sector within one of the world’s leading integrated marketing and communications agencies. Before FINN, he led Health Practices at other agencies—Sutton PR, Medicus PR, Hill & Knowlton, and Makovsky—all selected by The Holmes Report/PRovoke as “Most Admired Health Agencies.” Earlier in his career, he worked in government affairs for a global non-profit, spent time as a health-industry New Jersey-based lobbyist focusing on drug development and environmental health, served as Group Company CEO of CommonHealth, and was CEO of Health!Quest Global Communications (the portfolio company of top private-equity group GTCR).
Gil serves as an ambassador for the health innovation sector. He is included among the Medika Life “Top 50 Health Influencers,” Medical Marketing & Media “Top 10 Innovation Catalysts,” and ranked as a “Top 10 Digital Health Influencer.” PRWeek includes him among the “Top 30 Most Influential People in Health PR,” and PM360 has awarded Gil their prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.” Gil is a keynote speaker and correspondent for the global news source Health Tech World, writing about digital health advances, and editor-in-chief of Medika.Life, a digital platform that hosts many of the world’s most essential voices in public health.
PANELIST
Michael Glazer, Senior Consultant at People Focus Consulting
Michael Glazer is a certified leadership coach, organizational development consultant, and facilitator at People Focus Consulting, a B Corp certified company. His client work spans 15 countries across four continents and helps leaders take care of people while also taking care of business. He speaks English and Japanese and has worked with leaders at some of the best-known brands in global business. He has also guest-lectured at Kyoto University and at the United States Air Force Academy.
Before becoming a leadership coach and consultant, Michael served as a commercial and global functional head at leading firms including Morgan Stanley, public relations firm Burson-Marsteller (now BCW), and Dell.
Michael earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Master of Arts from the University of Colorado, and an external coaching certificate from Teachers College Columbia University (C3P). He is a Certified ACE Coach (trained by renowned executive coaches David Goldsmith and David Peterson), a Positive Intelligence practitioner, and he hosts the Humans At Work with Michael Glazer podcast which has reached listeners in more than 100 countries around the world. Past guests include top-rated TED Talker Dr. Paul Zak, Thinkers 50 thought leaders Dr. Ruth Gotian and Dorie Clark, and Nobel Laureate Dr. Robert Lefkowitz.
PANELIST
Cat Collela-Graham, Founder, Cheer Partners
Cat is a trusted change maker and speaker with a proven track record of driving meaningful change through the power of communications. Cat is an Adjunct Professor at St. Francis College and an independent communications consultant and coach. Cat founded Cheer Partners, the employee experience agency, after four successful years Cheer Partners was acquired by Lippe Taylor Group March, 2021. Cat has deep experience in internal communications, executive thought leadership, change communications, HR advisory and DE&I.
Cat secured the first and only trademark for Employee Experience.
She is also a member of Forbes Human Resources Council, a mentor with the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, Benedictine University L.E.A.D.S Board Advisor, and Ragan Advisory Board member. She is a volunteer TED translator and co-founded the Diversity Marketing Consortium.
PANELIST
Suzy Clausen, LPC, Director - Client Services, CuraLinc Healthcare
Suzy Clausen joined CuraLinc Healthcare in 2021 as the Director of Client Services. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with nearly 20 years of experience in workplace mental health benefits.
As Director of Client Services, Suzy partners with her clients to ensure their Employee Assistance Program remains a compelling component of their population health management strategy. She thrives at building strong relationships and is driven by a passion to eliminate barriers of mental health treatment and recovery, while actively working to reduce stigma.
Suzy began her career working directly in the EAP industry. Since then, she has served in a variety of roles that exposed her to all aspects of Employee Assistance Program delivery, including oversight of the EAP for a Fortune 50 company where she provided on-site critical incident response, managedformal referrals, conducted EAP orientation and training and provided psychiatric disability case management. Later as a consultant at Aon, Suzy used her industry experience to help her clients maximize the value of their EAP and improve employee mental health through strategy development and execution.
Suzy received her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Master’s Degree in Clinical-Counseling Psychology from Illinois State University. In her free time, she is often writing, speaking, or presenting on the importance of prioritizing the mental health and wellbeing of employees. She resides in Southwest Michigan with her husband and three children.
PANELIST
Lesleigh Irish-Underwood, Chief External Affairs Officer & Head of Brand at Vibrant Emotional Health
As the inaugural Chief External Affairs Officer (CXO) & Head of Brand for Vibrant Emotional Health, Lesleigh “LIU” Irish-Underwood leads the advancement of the nonprofit’s external-facing strategy and a best-in-class business unit that encompasses integrated marketing & communications, stakeholder engagement, national and state policy, fundraising & business development, strategic partnerships, and social impact.
Irish-Underwood has built her career on serving historically-marginalized and underrepresented communities. Before joining Vibrant, she was the first Chief Brand & External Relations Officer of MetroPlusHealth, as well as the first Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer at United Way of New York City. Irish-Underwood started her career at the prestigious Random House publishing imprint Alfred A. Knopf, and then went on to several other world-class publishing brands, including Kensington, Pearson, Golden Books, and Dorling Kindersley.
Known for being a catalyst for creativity and collaboration, Irish-Underwood was named both a Crain’s New York Business’ Notable Leaders in Advertising, Marketing and PR, as well as a Notable Black Leader and Executive. She is a member of CHIEF, was selected to join the esteemed Black Executive CMO Alliance (BECA), as well as the Wall Street Journal CMO Network, and Salesforce CMO Club. She is an alumna of the American Express Leadership Academy, a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., where she sat on the National Strategic Planning Committee, and currently serves on the Brooklyn Community Foundation and Brooklyn Tech Alumni Foundation Boards.
LIU earned her B.A. from Stony Brook University, and resides in Brooklyn, NY with her husband (another Stony Brook University Seawolf), their daughter and son.
PANELIST
Michelle Emery, VP of Equity & Inclusion, Colleague & Customer, Macy's Inc.
An experienced leader at Macy's with over 25 years of service, Michelle has gained invaluable knowledge in the retail industry. Her leadership experience has enabled her to guide and motivate teams toward achieving business goals and driving customer satisfaction.
She has held many roles across Macy’s Inc., including VP, Regional Merchandise Director, and Division VP of stores in St. Louis/Kansas City, Sr Director, DE&I Customer before stepping into her current position of Vice President, DE&I Colleague, Customer.
As a member of the DE&I team at Macy’s, Inc., she works towards creating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace. Michelle leads a group of DE&I champions in their effort to execute the DE&I vision and strategy in the stores. She also led the efforts to conduct comprehensive research to uncover opportunities in the shopping experience for our customers and colleagues.
Collaborating with cross-functional teams, she works to develop targeted strategies to improve representation and implement best practices to drive change and foster inclusion.Michelle is responsible for DE&I education/training and has developed an innovative DE&I training program, leveraging simulation platforms, to provide interactive and engaging learning experiences. Through these initiatives, colleagues have gained a deeper understanding of the nuances of diversity, equity, and inclusion and have gained the confidence to have more conversations about DE&I topics.
She has played a critical role in advancing colleague resource groups, by ensuring they have the resources they need to drive meaningful change. Providing guidance and support to the CRGs helps them reach their goals and amplify their impact internally and externally.
With an educational background in Consumer Behavior and Social Wellness & Community, she understands the psychological and sociological factors driving customer buying behavior. She is uniquely equipped to represent and advocate for customer and colleague needs at Macy’s Inc.