Caregiving, vaccines and hybrid work top this week’s HBLC agenda.
The last year has upended the world of benefits, as HR and benefits leaders scrambled to meet unprecedented levels of stress among employees, lead policy responses to the pandemic and vaccine rollouts, and help craft what the future of work would look like. All of these topics and more will be on the (virtual) table Tuesday as the Health & Benefits Leadership Conference opens.
The free, online event runs through Thursday, offering dozens of sessions and more than 80 renowned speakers, who will dive into the robust changes in the benefits space. Register here.
Day one kicks off with two keynotes—the first at 11 a.m. from former Good Morning America anchor Joan Lunden, who will share her personal experience as a caregiver. Lunden has become a vocal advocate for caregivers and will offer insights into how employers can better support this population, especially given the increased caregiving expectations many workers have faced during the pandemic. “I’m hoping to use my public platform to help ensure that Americans everywhere get the support they need to tend to new babies and aging relatives and still be able to keep their jobs,” Lunden recently told HRE about the drive behind her advocacy.
Employer advocacy will be a topic of discussion at 4 p.m., when Carol Morrison, senior research analyst at the Institute for Corporate Productivity, and Tonie Lyubelsky, senior director, corporate total rewards at ELKAY, join for a conversation about employers’ role in vaccine distribution. From education campaigns to incentives, they will break down what employers are doing to encourage vaccine adoption.
Zoe Harte of Upwork
Pandemic-driven shifts will dominate the rest of the day, including at Spotlight Sessions including one from Zoë Harte of Upwork about what it will take to ensure hybrid and remote setups are successful after the pandemic. Tara Scott of Revitalize Medical Group will lead a session on boosting employee resilience to help workers manage stress, while leaders from EY and Johnson & Johnson will pair up to discuss the shifts employers need to undertake to embrace post-COVID transformation. CHRO Kristin Johnson of Edward Jones will share her organization’s approach to wellness during the crises of the last year, while industry analyst John Sumser will break down the ways the benefits space has changed recently and explore what that means for the future.