Keynotes 
HOW TO MAXIMIZE HAPPINESS AND ENGAGEMENT WHEN LEADING REMOTE TEAMS
It’s uncharted territory for many — having everyone who answers to you in different locations, checking in only by email, text and Zoom. There are a few extra steps needed when your workforce isn’t all under one roof, but management principles are the same no matter where your team is. If you care about both your people and your bottom line, then right now, the happiness of your employees should be your highest priority. How to Maximize Happiness and Engagement When Leading Remote Teams covers: • Why Happiness Matters Now More Than Ever • What Makes People Happy and Engaged at Work • How To Get it Right as a Leader Every Time • How To Maximize Happiness for a Remote Workforce • Leading Remotely During a Crisis • plus worksheets on Best Practices for Videoconferencing and How to Stay Productive When Working From Home In times of uncertainty, your people want to know they are cared for and safe, and once assured of that, most will strive to feel useful and productive. The best thing you can do is lead them to give you their best. Audience members in leadership positions in their companies will learn skills and techniques that they can apply right away for instant results. The will learn: • How policies can be altered to increase happiness and productivity simultaneously • Simple changes in communication that motivate employees to give you their best • How to recognize and deal with toxic employees, even when working remotely (DO NOT ignore them -- they cost you more than you realize) • How to ensure everyone working remotely has clear direction and stays in communication with their leaders and colleagues • The best ways to care for, keep and motivate employees through times of extreme uncertainty These combined will result in increased productivity, substantial cost savings, and a better corporate culture that will outlive any crisis.
HOW TO OUTSMART UNCONSCIOUS BIAS IN YOUR COMPANY AND YOURSELF
One of the things we must understand in order to confront and "outsmart" our own unconscious bias is how our brains function naturally, by instinct, and what we can do to overcome thoughts, behavior and reactions that happen -- sometimes without us even being aware -- that we need and want to correct in ourselves. This energetic, interactive keynote or workshop will challenge you to discover the biases you may not even realize you hold, examine how those may manifest themselves in the workplace, and explore ways to overcome them, without shame or judgment. To achieve diversity of thought, your company requires inclusive conditions and diverse voices, which means leaders must know how to: recruit, retain and reward the best talent, and give everyone in your workforce the same freedom to share ideas, express opinions, and fail while attempting success. This program gives audience members simple, specific actions they can take right away to foster a more inclusive culture, eradicate racism, and demonstrate core values of equality, diversity and excellence. We are now at a critical point in the labor market where employers need to figure out three things very quickly: • How to recruit and retain a workforce from a wider range of backgrounds • How to lower the excessive costs of turnover, absenteeism, theft and disengagement • How to reward top performers so that they stay, stay committed and are able to bring others up with them Valerie Alexander's talks and workshops provide the most comprehensive solutions to all of these issues, whether focusing on the happiness of the workforce, the elimination of unconscious bias or expanding opportunities for women.
YOUR ULTIMATE STRATEGIC ADVANTAGE -- HAPPINESS!
STOP TALKING ABOUT ENGAGEMENT! IT'S WORKPLACE UNHAPPINESS THAT'S COSTING YOU MILLIONS (AND IT COSTS NOTHING TO FIX...) Workplace unhappiness costs the world economy hundreds of billions a year .Yes -- billions! The Gallup organization has been studying this aspect of corporate culture for over two decades and their most recent report estimates that, isolating for all other factors, the cost of unhappiness is astronomical. If worker unhappiness was a line item in your P&L, you'd pay a lot more attention to it. Unhappy workers are more likely to call in sick, quit, steal, sell company secrets to your competitors, engage in workplace violence and bullying, get injured on the job, cause injury to others, file workers' compensation claims, and those are just the overt costs. An unhappy workforce is simply disengaged, which lowers everyone's productivity (even the happy employees'). Making workplace happiness your top priority is one of the most cost-effective tools you can bring into your organization. In this keynote or workshop, we address the issues of “Accidental Managers,” toxic employees and a disengaged workforce. We discuss the brain science behind happiness at work and give leaders easy adjustments in communication and policy that instantly make a huge difference among any workforce. This workshop also covers how to shift corporate culture towards employee well-being — a change that can have an enormously positive impact on the bottom line. Audience members in leadership positions in their companies will learn skills and techniques that they can apply right away for instant results. They will learn: • The number one factor in every employee's happiness and how to foster that • How policies can be altered to increase happiness and productivity simultaneously • Simple changes in communication that motivate employees to give you their best • How to recognize and deal with toxic employees (DO NOT ignore them -- they cost you more than you realize) • How to increase their own happiness every day -- a critical factor in a happy workplace These combined will result in substantial cost savings, increased productivity and a better corporate culture.
MYSTERIES OF THE MALE & FEMALE BRAINS -- HOW UNDERSTANDING OUR DIFFERENCES WILL SAVE YOUR COMPANY (AND YOUR MARRIAGE!)
Having a gender diverse workforce at the top yields higher returns in every metric – stock value, revenues, employee retention and a more positive corporate culture. CEOs who want to capture the value of having the best talent in the right roles, and women at any level, whether the leader in the C-suites or whether the newbie making copies, who strive to be more highly recognized and rewarded for their contributions all benefit immensely from this provocative, funny, engaging, interactive event. Gender diversity is good for business. According to FastCompany, higher representations of women in C-level positions results in 34% greater returns to shareholders, and organizations with above-average gender diversity outperform companies with below-average diversity by 46-58%. McKinsey found that there’s a strong correlation between a company’s higher-than-average diversity and higher-than-average profits, as compared to similar organizations. Using relevant studies in anthropology, sociology and evolutionary biology, and the latest research in neuroscience, as well as examples from her own experience as an IPO lawyer, investment banker and even as a screenwriter, Valerie Alexander explains the evolution of the “gendered” brain and the corporate structure, showcasing and dissecting areas where companies utilizing time-worn metrics don't get the best results, and how women’s natural tendencies can impede success in male-designed workplaces, even when they create better outcomes. We discuss instincts around decision-making, language, hierarchy, networking, mentorship and sponsorship that affect all male-female relationships, both workplace and personal. This keynote takes an honest look at why companies fail to recruit, retain and - most importantly - reward their top female performers, how CEOs can manage their companies to ensure more innovation and inclusion, and what women can do to successfully compete on playing fields designed by men to reward their own natural instincts.
