BCCWF Presentation Series
The Boston College Center for Work & Family is proud to offer a series of custom presentations that are available to any employers who are interested in our focus areas. Since our founding in 1990, our staff has worked with many of the world’s best employers and leading academics to research, develop programming and share expertise on workplace initiatives, programs and culture that will provide the optimal employee experience.
Trends in Leading Today's Workforce
Our staff has presented on these topics to a range of groups — from human resource departments, to employee resource groups, to management teams and the general employee population.
The past several years have seen unprecedented changes in the way we think about work and the workplace, and the team at the Center has witnessed firsthand the many challenges facing workers and leaders.
In response to this demand, our team has launched our BCCWF Presentation Series, Trends in Leading Today's Workforce, which offers custom presentations that are available to any employers who are interested in our focus areas, including work-life, flexibility, caregiving, inclusion, well-being and workforce development.
Available to
Premier members
Core members
Non-member companies
Available presentations include:
- Building a Culture of Well-being in the Post-Pandemic Workplace
- Belonging: More than a Buzzword
- New Work Models: Redefining How Work Gets Done
- Women’s Advancement Strategies
- Today's Working Fathers
- Gender Equity and the Interplay of Work & Family
- Leveraging ERGs to Promote Inclusion & Belonging
- Supporting LGBTQ+ Employees
Building a Culture of Well-being in the Post-Pandemic Workplace
Amid a growing mental health crisis, organizations are focused on building a culture of well-being to support their workforces. Based on the Center’s executive briefing Mental Health in the Post-Pandemic Workplace: A Culture Shift towards Transparency and Empathy, we share data, best practices and a strategic framework for effective holistic well-being programs, including destigmatizing mental illness and preventing stress and burnout. As employees increasingly expect their employer to be the main source of mental health support for themselves and their families, it is critical for leaders to invest adequately in high-quality benefits and programs.
Learning Objectives
Understand the scope of the growing mental health crisis generally and in the workplace, including groups most at risk.
Recognize the workplace costs of untreated mental illness and the business case for investing in mental health supports, including lower absenteeism and higher talent retention.
Learn the key elements and success factors for a holistic well-being program and what individuals, managers and organizations can do to build a culture of well-being.
Suggested Audience
HR, DEI, and Well-Being Departments; ERG Leaders, Managers, Individual
Meet the Speaker
Jennifer Fraone, Director of Corporate Partnerships
Tina Lawler McHugh, Senior Research Associate
Belonging: More than a Buzzword
For decades, organizations have focused on increasing the diversity of their workforce. While these efforts can be measured in terms of representation, demographics and numbers do not indicate whether employees genuinely feel a sense of inclusion and belonging within their organization. Having a sense of belonging is a critical driver of engagement and attachment to the organization, and has become more challenging to develop in today’s complex work environments. When belonging exists, employees feel connected to, accepted, and valued by their colleagues and leaders as they work together. In this way, belonging is the best measure of whether diversity efforts are yielding positive outcomes for the individual and the organization.
Learning Objectives
Review the definition of belonging and the elements that contribute to a sense of belonging
Understand why belonging is so important in today’s organizations.
Learn strategies that leaders and managers can use to foster a culture of belonging.
Discuss how we can leverage ERGs/employee groups to contribute to belonging.
Brainstorm actions all employees can take in their daily work lives to promote belonging.
Suggested Audience
HR and DEI Departments, Executives and Managers, ERGs and Employees
Meet the Speaker
Jennifer Fraone, Director of Corporate Partnerships
New Work Models: Redefining How Work Gets Done
The pandemic ushered in a new way of working — employees are re-examining their relationship to work, while employers continue to grapple with redefining how work gets done and delivering a superior employee experience. Despite increasing economic pressures, flexibility and equity continue to be key talent management drivers. We will examine shifting employee expectations, key considerations and best practices for developing new work models, and how work and the role of the office are changing.
Learning Objectives
Review how to develop and evaluate new ways of working along four dimensions.
Address challenges associated with hybrid/flexible work environments, including team alignment and collaboration, inclusion and proximity bias, and employee engagement and belonging.
Learn strategies that leaders and managers can use to foster a culture of belonging.
Emphasize the growing role of the manager, including critical soft skills that organizations should develop.
Recognize the intersection of organizational culture, DEIB objectives, and well-being with new ways of working.
Suggested Audience
HR and DEI Leaders and Managers
Meet the Speaker
Tina Lawler McHugh, Senior Research Associate
Women’s Advancement Strategies
Long a key component of corporate America’s leadership development and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) efforts, women’s career advancement programs have proliferated in various forms over the years. Based on the Center’s executive briefing Women’s Career Advancement Programs: Optimizing Efforts for Better Results, this workshop will cover the key elements of a successful women's advancement strategy and what organizations should consider as they focus on supporting and advancing women in their organizations.
Learning Objectives
Understand the latest data and trends on women in the workplace.
Recognize the prevalence of gender bias in the workplace, the importance of taking an intersectional approach to examine these issues, and the case for diverse leadership.
Identify the four essential pillars of a cohesive women’s advancement strategy - Setting the Foundation, Preparing the Path, Navigating the Path, and Supporting the Path - along with objectives, key success factors, and initiatives for each.
Suggested Audience
HR and DEI Departments, All Managers
Meet the Speakers
Professor Brad Harrington, Executive Director
Dr. Keila Viñas, Senior Research Associate
Tina Lawler McHugh, Senior Research Associate
Today's Working Fathers
Dr. Harrington has been researching and speaking on the experience of working fathers for more than a decade through The New Dad Research Series. Brad will present his latest research on fatherhood and the shifting roles of dads at home and in the workplace. This workshop will include an overview of the current challenges that working fathers face and what prevents them from achieving equality in caregiving, even in spite of their best intentions to do so. Equality on the homefront is critical not only for fathers but just as importantly, as an enabler for women’s advancement in the workplace. Brad will also discuss how men can step forward and challenge conventional views of fatherhood and support the equality of their spouses, partners and professional colleagues.
Learning Objectives
Learn about current research on the state of working fathers.
Understand what challenges fathers face in their efforts to be shared caregivers and the importance of shared caregiving to women’s career advancement.
Develop strategies to improve the attainment of living a balanced life and becoming a shared caregiver with their partner.
Suggested Audience
All Employees, Members of Parents ERG
Meet the Speaker
Professor Brad Harrington, Executive Director
Gender Equity and the Interplay of Work & Family
The goal of attaining greater gender equality is one that society and organizations have been pursuing for many years. While women have made great strides in professional roles in many organizations, there is still a notable lack of progress for women at senior levels among large employers in the US. In addition, research has shown that women still carry the greatest burden on the homefront doing significantly more housework and carework than their male partners / counterparts.
Learning Objectives
Provide an overview of the current state of equality in the workplace and at home.
Review some of the major causes of disparities in the workplace.
Review the barriers to couples trying to achieve equality on the homefront, even in spite of best intentions.
Explore the role men and fathers can play in perpetuating inequality at work.
Cover the actions organizational leaders and employees can take to facilitate greater equality in the workplace.
Suggested Audience
HR and DEI Departments, Executives and Managers, ERGs and Employees
Meet the Speakers
Tina Lawler McHugh, Senior Research Associate
Leveraging ERGs to Promote Inclusion & Belonging
This session will discuss how organizations can amplify their Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Belonging strategy by engaging employees through ERGs (or BRGs, affinity groups, inclusion circles or other cleverly-named communities). ERGs have evolved from networking groups that promote diversity and inclusion to become key contributors to business strategy and operations. Attendees will hear research and best practice examples on utilizing ERGs and how to leverage these communities to foster a culture of belonging and enhance outcomes.
Learning Objectives
Review the origins and history of ERGs.
Understand the employee and employer benefits of ERGs.
Learn about the names and types of ERGs based on the communities served.
Navigate through the stages of the ERG journey.
Review promising corporate practices for how to use these groups strategically and emphasize the importance of executive champions and allies.
Suggested Audience
HR and DEI Departments, Executives and Managers, ERGs and Employees
Meet the Speaker
Jennifer Fraone, Director of Corporate Partnerships
Supporting LGBTQ+ Employees
Recent events have highlighted the continued challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ communities in the U.S., and as the demand for accountability on behalf of employers continues to grow, organizations must mobilize to create supportive work cultures where LGBTQ+ colleagues can feel safe and thrive. Based on the Center’s executive briefing A Model for Supporting LGBTQ+ Employees: Providing Safety, Equity, and Community, we share the latest trends and data on this topic and discuss the components of a strategic approach to supporting LGBTQ+ employees.
Learning Objectives
Understand some of the current trends affecting the LGBTQ+ communities in the U.S., amid a rapidly evolving legal and social climate.
Understand the latest demographic trends among the LGBTQ+ population and workforce.
Recognize the particular challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ workforce and examine their experience through an intersectional lens.
Learn about the components of the Safety, Equity, and Community Model and its associated initiatives.
Suggested Audience
HR, DEI Departments, All Managers
Meet the Speaker
Dr. Keila Viñas, Senior Research Associate