Dr. Shonna Waters

Dr. Shonna Waters Speaking Topics

• The Human-AI Partnership: Unlocking Your Workforce's True Potential

  As generative AI reshapes the business landscape, the critical question is no longer if you will adopt it, but how.

  Organizational psychologist Dr. Shonna Waters provides a research-backed playbook for creating a symbiotic relationship between your people and intelligent technology. Drawing on proprietary frameworks and real-world case studies and examples, she reveals how to redesign the work experience, upskill teams, and lead with confidence in the AI era. Move beyond the fear of replacement and learn to build a powerful human-AI partnership that amplifies creativity, drives innovation, and secures your competitive advantage.

  Key Audience Takeaways:

  • A proven framework for auditing and redesigning job roles to maximize collaboration between employees and AI.
  • Examples of leading organizations that are successfully navigating AI adoption such as the Mayo Clinic’s approach to reduce AI angst by inviting employees to design the tools and use cases.
  • The three essential leadership skills for managing a hybrid human-AI workforce and fostering psychological safety.
  • A strategic plan to future-proof your talent by investing in uniquely human skills that AI cannot replicate.

• Psychological Ergonomics: The Science of Designing Work That Works

  Why do so many engagement initiatives and transformation projects fail? The answer lies in a fundamental conflict between common business practices and human nature. In this paradigm-shifting talk, Dr. Shonna Waters introduces "Psychological Ergonomics"—her proprietary, evidence-based framework for aligning your organization's systems with how people actually think, feel, and thrive. Learn to diagnose and eliminate the hidden points of friction in your culture and processes that drain motivation and hinder performance. This is the science of unlocking human potential and achieving breakthrough results for teams and organizations.

  Key Audience Takeaways:

  • A research-backed diagnostic toolkit to identify the top three sources of "psychological friction" in your organization.
  • Actionable design principles to apply to your performance management, team collaboration, and change initiatives.
  • A method for quantifying the ROI of human-centered design through improved retention, productivity, and innovation.

Work-Related Angst: From Data to Action on Burnout and Engagement

Employee angst is a silent killer of productivity and a leading indicator of future turnover. In this data-driven session, Dr. Shonna Waters leverages the proprietary "Workforce Angst Index"—a groundbreaking study of over 1,000 employees—to decode the root causes of workplace stress and disengagement. She provides a clear, actionable roadmap for moving beyond wellness platitudes to build a truly resilient and high-performing organization. Learn how to use data to identify risks, equip managers with the right skills, and make targeted investments that boost both well-being and the bottom line.

Key Audience Takeaways:

• How to identify the tell-tale signs of Workforce Angst and how to benchmark overall health.
• The two most critical leadership behaviors that can reduce team anxiety and prevent burnout.
• A framework for building a business case for mental health initiatives by linking them directly to performance metrics.

Influence Without Authority: A Psychologist's Toolkit for Leading Change

In today's matrixed and collaborative environments, getting things done depends less on your title and more on your ability to persuade, motivate, and build consensus. Organizational psychologist Dr. Shonna Waters goes beyond the basics of influence, offering an evidence-based toolkit grounded in the psychology of power and decision-making. Learn to map stakeholder networks, adapt your influencing style, and communicate in a way that turns resistance into support and ideas into action. This session is essential for any professional tasked with driving change and delivering results without direct control.

Key Audience Takeaways:

• The 5-step "Influence Blueprint" for planning and executing a successful change initiative.
• Techniques for diagnosing the core motivations of key stakeholders and tailoring your message accordingly.
• How to build and deploy "expert power" and "relational power" to become an indispensable leader, regardless of your role.

The ROI of Belonging: How to Fix the $154 Billion Connection Crisis

Employee loneliness isn't a soft problem; it's a hard-dollar issue costing U.S. employers an estimated $154 billion annually in stress-related absenteeism and lost productivity. Dr. Shonna Waters provides a compelling, business-focused case for investing in a culture of connection and belonging. Drawing on data and case studies from forward-thinking companies like Atlassian and Allstate, she demonstrates how strategic investments in connection directly impact innovation, retention, and performance. Learn to build a workplace where everyone feels seen, valued, and motivated to do their best work.

Key Audience Takeaways:

• A framework for calculating the specific cost of disconnection within your organization.
• Three scalable, low-cost strategies to foster authentic connection across remote, hybrid, and in-person teams.
• How to equip managers with the skills to build psychologically safe and inclusive teams that become magnets for top talent.