Research

Each year, more than eight million U.S. employees take medical leave for their own serious health condition-yet millions more who qualify don’t, fearing career penalties or job loss. In a country without a federal job-protected paid medical leave policy, organizations ultimately determine whether leave becomes a pathway to healing or a source of additional suffering for employees. Leveraging interviews with employees who have taken leave and HR leave coordinators, we introduce a “healing-centered implementation approach” to medical leave. Our work highlights medical leave as a notable policy worthy of scholarly study, elevates healing as a key indicator of policy effectiveness, and shows that the way leave policies are both enacted and written profoundly shapes employee health. In this article, we provide actionable steps for organizational leaders to implement medical leave policies in a way that reduces employee suffering, fosters healing, and ultimately builds a more sustainable business.  

Link to the full paper coming soon!

Who can speak truth to power in organizations? Research has indicated that employees in lower-power positions are best poised to challenge leaders, because these individuals better understand others’ perspectives and have a different lens on day-to-day organizational issues compared to powerful leaders. While several well-known leaders rely on a lower-power employee (i.e., right-hand partner) to amplify their efforts, it is unclear how one becomes a right-hand partner or what this entails. In this qualitative research, we explore how these employees, particularly Chiefs of Staff, effectively challenge leaders by presenting alternative viewpoints in a thoughtful and individualized manner. We also illustrate how Chiefs of Staff become a leaders' right-hand partner as they develop this ability to heedfully challenge them. 

Check out a summary of the research here - or the full paper here! 

Since 2017, the #MeToo movement and #TimesUp movement galvanized women to unite against sexual assault and sexual harassment. But did anything change? In this study, we utilize repeat surveys (collected in 2016 and 2018) to show that while severe forms of sexual harassment decreased, instances of gender harassment increased. We also find that women's negative self-views related to sexual harassment lessened during this period, likely due to greater scrutiny and support, empowering women to speak up about sexual harassment.

Read the full open-access paper here.

Or read a summary in Harvard Business Review: Has Sexual Harassment at Work Decreased Since #MeToo?

• This work was featured in an HBR Women at Work book titled “Speak Up, Speak Out” in 2022.

• It was in PLOS One’s top 10% most cited papers published in 2019.

• This work has also received media coverage by Yahoo!, 9NEWS, NBC News, Daily News & Analysis, Newsmax, The Indian Express, The Japan Times, The Hindustan Times, Medscape, World Economic Forum, the New Zealand Herald, and more.

Although there are many calls to study management concepts within organizations, there is limited guidance on how to effectively conduct such research, especially in the area of organizational team research. In this study, we provide an overview of the current state of organizational team field research and offer 10 recommendations and 10 best practices identified through a literature review, a survey of experienced researchers, and interviews with practitioners. By incorporating diverse perspectives, we aim to enhance the collaboration between scientists and practitioners in this field.

Check out the research here. If you cannot access this paper and would like more information about our recommendations and best practices, email me!