Sessions

Forum I 25 Agenda

Tuesday, March 11, 2025
5:30 PM – 
7:30 PM

Networking Reception

Wednesday, March 12, 2025
8:30 AM – 
9:30 AM
Mystic

Join our keynote speakers as they address the overlooked connection between workplace psychosocial hazards (e.g. job insecurity, toxic leadership, and chronic stressors embedded in work environments) and their profound impact on mental health, including the risk of suicidal ideation and suicide. They'll speak to theory, along with the practical application of mental health well-being and mental illness, to reinforce that creating mentally healthy workplaces isn’t just about support services—it’s about redesigning conditions of work to prevent harm before it starts.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Define the phrase workplace psychosocial factors.
  2. State at least three workplace psychosocial factors that can directly impact the mental health and well-being of an employee.
  3. Apply at least one strategy to mitigate workplace psychosocial hazards with their team and/or broader employee population.
  4. Identify leadership principles, workplace strategies and practices that they can implement in their workplaces to support positive mental health and well-being.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
9:40 AM – 
10:40 AM
Potomac

This session will explore the case study of a former Koop Award winning program at DENSO Automotive, a North American employer with a unique journey that is linking leadership training with Neuroscience & Human Performance research. The program concurrently aims to impact business performance, engagement survey scores, mental well-being, psychological safety, leadership burnout, safety decision making and physical health. Through organic evolution it represents an innovative and exciting total worker health approach to workplace health and human performance.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Describe the link between brain health and biometric health markers.
  2. Identify the various factors and neural hardwiring that impacts leadership burnout.
  3. Explain the neuroscience link between stress, prefrontal cortex function, decision making, mental well-being and health.
  4. Recognize the relationship between leadership behaviors, organizational processes, team engagement, human performance and well-being.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
9:40 AM – 
10:40 AM
Thames

This session will feature three winners of the Carolyn C. Mattingly Award for Mental Health in the Workplace. The Award recognizes and celebrates exemplary organizations that advance the mental health and well-being of their workforce, while also serving as role models for other employers.

The panelists will address these questions:

  • Why is your organization concerned about the mental health and well-being of employees – what’s in it for the organization and how do employees benefit?
  • What are some of the traditional approaches/programs you’ve put into place – and what innovations have you introduced?
  • How did you convince senior leaders that the investment in employee mental health and well-being was worth it – that it would produce a positive value on investment (VOI)?
  • What were the biggest challenges you’ve encountered and how have you overcome those challenges?
  • How does achieving recognition via the Mattingly Award support your efforts?
  • What was it like to apply for the Mattingly Award? Who did you need to involve?
  • What lessons learned and advice to would you offer future to Mattingly Award applicants?

This session is brought to you through the support of

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Identify the “secret sauce” of best practice companies for promoting workplace mental health and well-being.
  2. Demonstrate the importance of offering organizational level support interventions (e.g., programs, policies, and environmental supports) in addition to those directed at individuals (e.g., counseling, quick access to providers, adequate benefit plan design offerings).
  3. Explain the process for applying for the Mattingly Award and the benefits gained from submitting an application regardless of whether they win or not
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
10:40 AM – 
11:00 AM
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
11:00 AM – 
12:00 PM
Potomac

EVERYONE HAS MENTAL HEALTH. The importance of workplace culture where everyone can thrive and flourish has never been more relevant. But do we really know HOW to do that? This workshop will shine a light on key lessons learned and challenge you to reflect on practices within organizations that support MH in your unique environment.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Define "crafted culture" in their own context.
  2. Self-evaluate their own approaches to mental health in the workplace through the lens of the "five lessons."
  3. Identify key opportunities in their organizations where mental health could be fostered.
  4. Describe the role of leaders in overall mental health.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
11:00 AM – 
12:00 PM
Thames

Mental Health is an integral part of employee overall well-being. It can affect not only physical health, but also workplace performance. Mental health issues can lead to reduced productivity, poor communication, and social withdrawal. By prioritizing mental health in the workplace, employees can flourish, and businesses thrive. Developing a plan to assist employees involves analyzing the medical and pharmacy data, productivity/presenteeism/absenteeism data, organizational impact, and cost trends. Learning how to create a culture and strategies where employees feel safe and supported is a meaningful step to preventing small problems from escalating into larger issues. Healthier and happier employees positively impact both employee retention and workforce productivity.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Develop a holistic well-being strategy that includes mental health that
    removes barriers and silos
  2. Develop key measures and systems to monitor mental health
  3. Engage leaders in active ownership of mental health measures in the
    workplace
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
12:00 PM – 
1:00 PM
Sorenson Commons
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
1:00 PM – 
2:00 PM
Potomac

Employee mental health is a business imperative, impacting productivity, engagement, retention, and healthcare costs. Yet, many organizations struggle to move from awareness to action, relying on surface-level wellness initiatives that fail to address underlying challenges. HERO tackles this issue through a variety of initiatives, helping employers create meaningful, evidence-based strategies. This session will feature a two-part discussion based on two HERO publications published last year: a comprehensive evaluation of 66 validated workforce mental health assessments, and an employer’s guide to mental health and well-being resources.

Assessments are a powerful yet underutilized tool to assist in driving meaningful change. This session will review HERO’s published research and expand upon it with a practical framework for selecting, evaluating, and implementing assessments that align with organizational needs. Attendees will learn how to navigate the vast landscape of assessment tools, ensure employee participation and trust, and translate data into actionable strategies. By integrating assessments into a broader mental health initiative, organizations can move from reactive solutions to a proactive, data-driven approach that fosters a mentally healthy, high-performing workplace.

In HERO’s best practice workforce mental health and well-being framework, the fourth element is to “provide and promote access to evidence-based, high quality mental health care.”  The list of resource options in the commercial market is as wide as it is deep, which can confound and paralyze decision makers. The goal of this session is to offer straightforward guidance:  each of the five categories will be clearly defined, key insights into each category will be offered along with questions to ask a prospective vendor partner, and potential red flags will be identified. The solutions that will be covered include behavioral health benefits, employee assistance programs, digital mental health, informational resources, and mental health training.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Describe the six core elements of a best-in-class well-being initiative.
  2. Identify five of the most common mental health interventions and list key strengths and red flags for each.
  3. Identify and evaluate the right assessment tools for workforce mental health.
  4. Utilize a comprehensive resource of evaluated mental health assessments to support workforce well-being within your organization.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
1:00 PM – 
2:00 PM
Thames

Workplace change is constant and increasing in pace. This presentation will focus on workplace change and mental wellbeing programs. We will discuss and contrast the different types of workplace change including how these types differentially impact employee mental wellbeing.
We also discuss the differentiation of mental wellbeing programming or interventions based on the change type, particularly considering the potential for perceived carewashing during change involving reduction or reorganization. Throughout, examples from the Global Mental
Wellbeing Program will highlight the opportunities and challenges of working with employee mental wellbeing during times of change.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. To spotlight workplace change as an important determinant of employee mental
    wellbeing.
  2. To contrast different forms of change and their differential impact on employee mental
    wellbeing.
  3. To identify best practices and challenges when working in the employee wellbeing space
    during times of change.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
2:10 PM – 
3:10 PM

Now what? In true HERO fashion, we will provide an opportunity for small group discussions to reflect on what we've learned from the experts, synthesize learnings, and identify how it can be applied within our organizations. Skilled facilitators will take each group through a process of dynamic discovery for real-world application.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. Describe three key learnings from previous sessions on systemic change for workforce mental health.
  2. Identify levers of influence to impact change within organizations.
  3. Name two strategies that can be implemented within their organization.
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
3:10 PM – 
3:30 PM
Wednesday, March 12, 2025
3:30 PM – 
4:30 PM
Mystic

The U.S. Surgeon General's Framework for Workplace Mental Health & Well-Being calling attention to the role of the worker's voice in cultivating a mentally safe work environment. Unfortunately, organizations continue to rely heavily on surveys, and overlook the importance of direct, boots-on-the-ground verbal conversations. Backed by peer-reviewed research, we’ll examine how verbal dialogue can uncover, and provide solutions to, many of the mental health challenges workplaces face today. We'll then hear from a panel of employees, made up of four of our five generations in today's workplace, who will share firsthand experiences and insights on what they need from their employers to support their mental health at work.

After completing this session, participants will be able to:
  1. State one to three reasons why fostering open communication enhances psychological safety, reduces stress, and strengthens engagement.
  2. State one to three reasons why the absence of the employee voice negatively impacts the employee, therefore business outcomes.
  3. Gain insight into how different generations define mental health at work, how they experience speaking up in the workplace, and the impact their voice has and/or could have on bettering their work, workplace and mental health.