It’s On Us: How Leader Intervention Shapes Workplace Culture and Drives Inclusion

Much has been written about the need to train employees in bystander intervention, equipping them with the skills to speak up and take action if they see harassment, safety or ethics violations at work. HR and other organizational leaders are also witnesses to these culture failures but often feel ill-equipped to speak up, particularly when the perpetrator is one of their colleagues, superiors or clients. In this session, we will explore how HR and company leaders play a unique and critical role in shaping workplace culture and stopping workplace misconduct, how bystander intervention skills are a fundamental leadership competency, and how leaders can overcome personal barriers and biases that may inhibit them from speaking up when they see pending harm.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the data about attitudes, misperceptions and barriers related to bystander intervention from empirical research and surveys on nationally implemented harassment and discrimination prevention programs.
• Learn how leaders can mitigate the effect of their personal biases and other impediments to being an effective ally and help stop concerning behavior at work.
• Learn actionable steps for developing the leadership competency of bystander intervention for ourselves and the leaders with whom we work.