Connie Noonan Hadley

Leaders in every sector are facing one of the biggest challenges in their careers: getting employees to return to the office. In addition to preparing the physical workspace, they must be ready to address the psychological issues that may arise in a setting where employees feel anxious or at risk. The health and social issues that have exploded to the forefront over the past year are only exacerbating existing concerns regarding trust, collaboration, and work engagement in organizations.

Helping executives over these hurdles is esteemed organizational psychologist and Boston University (BU) Questrom School of Business Research Associate Professor Constance (Connie) Noonan Hadley. Also the co-director of BU’s Human Resources Policy Institute, her research, speaking and advisory roles focus on building a culture of psychological safety, trust, teamwork and well-being in the workplace. As organizations design processes around the future of work, Hadley works closely with leaders, helping them understand how the decisions they make today may impact their culture and strategy tomorrow.

A research and evidence-based scientist with a Ph.D. in organizational behavior from Harvard University, Hadley, who is also the founder and chief scientist of The Institute for Life at Work and a former consulting researcher at Microsoft Research Lab, has the experience and methodologies to dig beneath the surface of organizational issues ranging from team dynamics to diversity, equity and inclusion. Her accessible frameworks and insights illuminate what is happening inside the hearts and minds of employees so leaders can better understand and manage their teams.

Hadley’s previous experience working as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company, and in marketing and operations at General Mills, sharpened her skills as an organizational change expert. She explains, “My goal is always to translate knowledge into practice. That requires me to really engage with my audience and meet them where they are. I do not provide textbook answers, but I do offer unique research insights, case examples, and cautionary tales to help leaders understand the issues and see a path forward.”

For example, as firms grapple with return-to-work scenarios, Hadley sees problems – and solutions – around both the hybrid and permanently remote models. In either case, she says organizations will need to be more deliberate about how they structure policies, staff teams, manage meetings and set expectations. She recently shared a vision of organizations operating as a “league of teams” with a focus on prioritizing and coordinating team interactions so that better work-life balance can be achieved. As she explains in Forbes, it is crucial that organizations approach the return to the office “with a primary focus on psychological safety as well as physical safety. Without both, employees might just as well stay home.”

At the core of Hadley’s work is helping employees across ranks find meaning and fulfillment in their jobs so that both they and their organizations can flourish. She is particularly skilled at identifying and addressing the often-hidden problem of loneliness in the workplace.

“I encourage leaders to take a more active stance in supporting the health and well-being of their workforce, but I also recognize that strategic goals and constraints need to be considered too,” says Hadley, a member of the Thinkers50 Radar Class of 2024. “It doesn’t have to be either/or, profits or people. Resilient, more engaged, employees not only create stronger organizations, they set the foundation for a healthier society.”

Constance (Connie) Noonan Hadley, Ph.D., is an organizational psychologist and research associate professor at the Boston University Questrom School of Business. She is a board member of the Higher Ambition Leadership Alliance. Previously, Hadley worked in the fields of management consulting at McKinsey & Company and in marketing and operations at General Mills, Inc. Her work has been published in Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Management Review, The Leadership Quarterly, Human Relations, and Group & Organization Management, and featured in The New York Times, The Times (U.K.), Wired, Forbes and other news outlets.

She holds a PhD in organizational behavior from Harvard University/Harvard Business School, an MBA in human resource and strategic management from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and a BA in social psychology from Princeton University.

Constance Hadley is available to advise your organization via virtual and in-person consulting meetings, interactive workshops and customized keynotes through the exclusive representation of Stern Speakers & Advisors, a division of Stern Strategy Group^®.