by Marketing and Business Development Staff
February 24, 2011—“Working together, psychology and business can create healthy organizational cultures that support employee well-being and organizational performance,” says David Ballard, PsyD, MBA, Assistant Executive Director for Marketing and Business Development for APAPO. The 2011 Psychologically Healthy Workplace Conference, April 8-9 in Chicago, IL, is designed for employers and the psychologists who work with them. Sessions will provide practical, relevant information you can use to help employees and organizations thrive.
Highlights include:
Building and Sustaining Psychologically Healthy Workplaces: Lessons from Positive Psychology
Christopher Peterson, PhD, Co-Director, Michigan Positive Psychology Center, University of Michigan
Nansook Park, PhD, NCSP, Co-Director, Michigan Positive Psychology Center, University of Michigan
Traditional approaches to building and sustaining a healthy workplace are problem-focused. However, healthy workplaces entail more than reducing or eliminating what goes wrong, and good work entails more than imparting technical skills. In this session, an overview of relevant positive psychology theories, findings, and practices with the potential to build and sustain healthy workplaces is provided in the context of a strengths-based approach to work and life.
What’s Next in Flex: Trends in Research and Implementation
Jennifer Sabatini Fraone, Assistant Director, Boston College Center for Work & Family
Kyra Cavanaugh, President, Life Meets Work, a flexible work consultancy
2010 was a year of unprecedented acceleration for workplace flexibility. Learn why flex is trending right now and what leading thinkers are saying, find out how to overcome the BIGGEST obstacle to flex (and no, it’s not the CEO), and discover seven tactical changes that will improve flex in your organization.
RESET! What Diversity and Inclusion Mean Today
Joe Gerstandt, Speaker and Facilitator, an expert in diversity and inclusion
While nearly everything about business and how business is done has changed in the past couple of decades, little has changed about our approach to and our understanding of diversity and inclusion. This session will help you reset the diversity and inclusion conversation in your organization and challenge you to recommit to this body of work at this very critical time.
Well-Being Measurement: the Pathway to Happiness, Health and Productivity
Nikki Duggan, MBA, Director Operations and Analytics, Well-Being Strategy, Healthways
Research suggests that physical, social and emotional well-being status of employees may have direct financial implications for employers through increased health care costs and lost productivity. Participants will learn about recent advances in well-being assessment capabilities for the workplace and the links between well-being, performance and engagement.
Exploring the Importance of Integration in Worksite Health Management
Laura Ellison, Health and Productivity Account Manager, Club One at Motorola Solutions and Motorola Mobility
There are many aspects of worksite health management programs, including participation, employee engagement, incentive programs, healthy culture and optimizing results. This presentation will explore the role of integration in achieving desired outcomes, as well as design concepts and common pitfalls.
Engaging in Engagement: Why Much of What You Read is Wrong
Matthew J. Grawitch, PhD, Chair, Organizational Studies Program, Saint Louis University
Though research suggests that employee engagement is a critical element in today’s workforce, much of what we read is either confusing, not generalizable, or based on a desire to sell off-the-shelf assessments. This session will focus on specific actions you can take to define engagement in your organization and get the best results possible from your engagement efforts.
Organizational Culture Transformations Through a Focus on Strengths and Relationships
Tommy Thomas, PhD, CEO, Opposite Strengths, Inc.
What people want most is to do personally meaningful work as an integral and valued member of an organization committed to a worthwhile cause. Psychologically healthy workplaces create and nourish cultures that provide this opportunity. This session will focus on how you can recognize the strengths that people bring to their work and foster a robust network of positive relationships as the foundation of a healthy organizational culture.
Making It Count: Using Communication for Health, Wealth and Happiness
Jennifer Benz, Founder and Chief Strategist, Benz Communication
Social media and mobile Internet access are shifting expectations for how, when and where people of all ages receive and request information. This session will explore how workplace communication can keep up with expectations and ever-changing tools and how you can motivate employees to save for retirement and improve their health.
ACT at Work: Accelerating Performance and Reducing Stress with Acceptance and Commitment Training
Daniel J. Moran, PhD, BCBA-D, Founder and CEO, Pickslyde Consulting
Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) is an evidence-based, behavioral science application that has been shown to affect productivity, innovation, leadership skills and job satisfaction. ACT has also been shown to reduce mental health concerns, work errors and employment-related stress. This session is designed to help participants learn the broad impact of ACTraining applications in the workplace.
Emotional Well-being and its Role in Health Promotion and Wellness
John Weaver, PsyD, Director of The Healthy Thinking Initiative
It is a frustration experienced by many wellness professionals that individuals who need to make lifestyle changes often resist starting and continuing behaviors that support good health. Training in the healthy thinking skills of mindfulness, optimism and resilience counteracts these tendencies and lends support to health promotion efforts. This session will explore emotional wellness as the foundation for holistic well-being.
Employer Experiences: Lessons from Award-Winning Organizations
Teledyne Brown Engineering
Northeast Delta Dental
Any type of organization, large or small, for-profit or not-for-profit, can create a workplace that fosters employee well-being while enhancing organizational performance. These sessions will use case examples from award-winning organizations to demonstrate the application of psychologically healthy workplace principles in real-world settings. Special attention will be given to the importance of custom tailoring workplace practices to meet the unique needs of an organization and its workforce, employee and organizational outcomes, practical considerations for employers and practitioners and lessons learned.
Continuing Education Credit
Psychologists can earn up to 10 CE credits for the Main Conference and 4 CE credits for the Pre-Conference Training. The APA Practice Organization (APAPO) is approved by the American Psychological Association (APA) to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. APAPO maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Special thanks to our sponsors and cooperating organizations:
Health Enhancement Research Organizationopens in new window
Illinois Psychological Associationopens in new window
International Association for Worksite Health Promotionopens in new window
Presented by the American Psychological Association Practice Organization
More information on the 2011 Psychologically Healthy Workplace Conferenceopens in new window