91香蕉视频成人在线

Given their individual life and career trajectories, Stacy Boss PsyD and Abby Eaves PsyD should have crossed paths in any number of locales鈥攆rom London鈥檚 Heathrow Airport to One Wells Avenue or the Panera Bread on Highland. Instead, the pair of William James College alumnae (both graduates of the 91香蕉视频成人在线 PsyD in Leadership Psychology, in June 2021 and December 2022, respectively) connected only recently thanks to a tremendous workplace opportunity and a wee bit of serendipity. 

鈥淚 was seeking to fill a specialist position in Organization Effectiveness and Change at Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH),鈥� said Director Stacy Boss, who sought an experienced candidate keen on advancing in the organization development/effectiveness/behavioral space. Eaves, who spotted the job posting on LinkedIn after OLP Department Chair Suzanne Devlin, PhD, tipped her off, had already interviewed with a partnering BILH group in workforce planning鈥攁n arena that, while ultimately not the right fit, resulted in Eaves being highly recommended for the opening on Boss鈥� team. As word spread of the two graduates being in conversation, a groundswell of support erupted from campus and ended in a clear consensus: The pair would not only enjoy working together, but they would also complement one another鈥檚 strengths quite well. 鈥淸Abby] had already wowed enough people in her interviews and discussions that I didn鈥檛 really have a choice,鈥� joked Boss of her new colleague鈥攈ired in October 2023, just five months into her own tenure鈥攑ointing to a powerful partnership that鈥檚 been gaining steam ever since. 

鈥淲e pursued very different paths,鈥� explained Boss, who鈥攄espite nine years working toward a PhD in Organization Behavior and Change through Storytelling while living in Scotland, which she successfully defended鈥攚as discouraged from completing her PhD (or pursuing academia) when she unexpectedly lost her supervisor. 鈥淚t was a bitter pill to swallow,鈥� recalled Boss, who, considering her extensive background in change management, vowed to come back to the concept of behavior in organizations. The OLP PsyD program at William James presented her a unique opportunity to join a growing discipline within psychology鈥攕omething she had not considered prior. Already employed in the field of organizational development (working for various global organizations undergoing change), Boss sought a practical approach to complement her theoretical basis. Her return to the classroom was a gift. 

鈥淚 love learning,鈥� said Boss, pointing to a growing interest in leadership piqued by the William James doctoral program. While in Glasgow, she taught classes in organizational culture, change, structure and behavior at University of Strathclyde; once stateside, she eventually returned to the lecture hall at Bentley University in Waltham where she is an adjunct faculty member鈥� teaching again coupled with research, keeps her vibrant and engaged. 

鈥淐hange, in the majority of cases, is perceived as top-down work, and my focus areas have been on how to support the individuals, teams and departments within an organization; almost as a liaison or advocate for stakeholders,鈥� she explained, underscoring that, from a change perspective, it鈥檚 a tiered approach. As such, Boss emphasizes the distinction between her degree (OLP) and her field (organization development, behavior and people change management): 鈥淵es, it鈥檚 important to understand why a leader is doing things the way they're doing them but equally important is the impact on the stakeholders, individuals and teams within the organization,鈥� explained Boss. 

Eaves commenced her coursework at William James in January 2019. 鈥淚 found myself on an unexpected career path,鈥� said the native of Wales who sought to pursue personnel psychology (an iteration of organizational psychology) in London after earning her undergraduate degree. Keen on experiencing the adventure of living and working in America, Eaves was recruited by a nonprofit and got caught up in the fun of living abroad which included earning her MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and becoming a therapist. Following some twists and turns along the way, she landed an administrative role at a nonprofit (overseeing the social services and well-being of those in her organization鈥檚 care), an environment in which she got turned onto the idea of workplace psychology.

 鈥淚 was really fascinated by it all鈥攆rom understanding team dynamics and helping people grow and develop to figuring out the best leadership approaches鈥攚hich inspired me to go back to school and do something new,鈥� said Eaves who, while contemplating business school, found a program that, in retrospect, was the answer she鈥檇 been looking for all along.

鈥淭he doctoral program in OLP at William James married all my interests together, and the rest is history,鈥� she shared. After earning her degree, Eaves鈥攚ho had established a robust therapy and coaching practice鈥攖ook some breathing room in order to work on projects with other consultants and develop her own niche. 

Since October 2023, Eaves and Boss have been collaborating to better understand all things associated with leadership鈥攆rom the simple fact that organizations need effective leaders now more than ever to the myriad complexities surrounding the influences of an individual鈥檚 leadership style on their teams and colleagues.  Like their employer (a nonprofit coordinated healthcare system that brings together academic medical centers and teaching hospitals鈥攃omprising 4,800 physicians and 38,000 employees鈥攊n a shared mission to expand access to care), Boss and Eaves are achieving more together than they could have separately. In their day-to-day work at BILH, the pair is tasked with not only understanding that individuals are inherently designed to respond to stimuli in a constantly changing environment but that their behavior also has ripple effects. 

Despite disparate paths, Boss and Eaves share important common ground: Gratitude for having been connected, as adults, to the learning community at William James. 鈥淔inding subject matter that really interests me, and having conversations with other learners who are just as passionate, has been really stimulating,鈥� said Eaves of an educational experience that, considering the peers and professors who helped her along the way, remains both unrivaled and ongoing.

鈥淓ach individual has a thing that is driving them, and every day [Abby and I] try to understand what causes people to act [as they do], especially when their behavior is incongruent with what needs to happen in an organization,鈥� said Boss, before Eaves chimed in.

鈥淚t鈥檚 working with individuals to understand their psychology, [and] how it鈥檚 showing up in the workplace,鈥� she explained, underscoring that the individual鈥檚 own behavior is constantly showing up in their leadership role and, by extension, 鈥渁ffecting their teams and reverberating through the entire system.鈥�

In the end, it all boils down to options. 鈥淚f the team is experiencing a power issue, we brainstorm approaches to better engage with the dynamics present,鈥� said Boss, citing invaluable tools of the trade learned at William James. 

鈥淲hat we've learned in the Leadership Psychology doctorate, we can use as additional arrows in the quiver,鈥� she says, pointing to their unique, complementary skill sets鈥攆ound at the intersection of a clinical background and behavioral assessment perspective albeit in a corporate environment.

If Boss has learned anything in her journey, it鈥檚 to work on being truly self-aware. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to make mistakes, and stumble along the way, but [in the end] it鈥檚 about listening to yourself and being [cognizant] of not only what drives you, but also what brings you the most joy in the work that you do,鈥� she said, emphasizing that the work is neither one-dimensional nor poised to yield cookie-cutter results. Getting feedback along the way, without fear of what others have to say, is an excellent way to measure impact and grow. 

Considering humans are adaptive by nature, Eaves is quick to underscore that the idea of career monogamy is not only unnatural but also antithetical in many ways. 鈥淩emain open to who you are as you grow, evolve, and develop through your lifespan鈥攍ean into that,鈥� says Eaves who encourages folks to be honest about who they are and what motivates them. In short, it鈥檚 not about choosing one pot or the other鈥攄oing well for the world or being financially stable. 鈥淭hese things may not be truly exclusive anymore,鈥� says Eaves who distills it down to the basics: 鈥淜now who you are, know what kind of life you want to live, and be open to all the different possibilities that come along that can get you where you want to go.鈥�

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