ESG News and Views by The Conference Board
The Conference Board
Categories: Business
Listen to the last episode:
Geralyn Ritter knows about personal and organizational resilience. She was on Amtrak Train #188, which derailed outside Philadelphia in 2015 at 106 miles per hour. The crash killed eight people and injured more than 200. Geralyn was critically wounded. Her doctors use the word “miraculous” to describe her survival and recovery. She also knows about organizational resilience, as the current Head of External Affairs and ESG for Organon, following twelve years at Merck, where she held numerous leadership positions, including Senior Vice President, Corporate Secretary and Assistant General Counsel, Head of Global Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility, and President of the Merck Foundation. She is the author of Bone by Bone: A Memoir of Trauma and Healing.
In part one of this two-part podcast, Paul Washington, Executive Director of the ESG Center, speaks with Geralyn about surviving the accident, her road to recovery, and lessons in personal resilience. They discuss the importance of optimism, acceptance, an action orientation, connection, and a sense of purpose. They discuss how these traits are equally important for leaders, organizations, and society.
In part two, they go deeper into the subject of organizational resiliency, with practical insights on how to develop a more resilient organization, including the role of ESG in creating a healthy organization, the link between resiliency and sustainability, maintaining resilience in a hybrid work environment, and the value of sharing stories of personal resilience in building a stronger organization.
The discussion spans 9/11 to the COVID-19 pandemic to Silicon Valley Bank, with insights for all of us on resilience.
Related Resources:
Bone by Bone: A Memoir of Trauma and Healing, Geralyn S. Ritter, June 2022
Consider Operational Resilience a Competitive Advantage, The Conference Board, 2023
C-Suite Outlook 2023: On the Edge: Driving Growth and Mitigating Risk Amid Extreme Volatility, The Conference Board, January 2023
Crisis Management in the Era of "No Normal," The Conference Board, September 2021
Five Ways a Sustainability Strategy Provides Clarity During a Crisis, The Conference Board, April 2020.
Previous episodes
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32 - Surviving a Near-Death Experience: Lessons on Resilience (Pt 2)Tue, 11 Apr 2023 - 0h
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31 - Surviving a Near-Death Experience: Lessons on Resilience (Pt 1)Tue, 11 Apr 2023 - 0h
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30 - What’s the Role of the Board and C-Suite in Addressing Health Equity?Fri, 24 Feb 2023 - 0h
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29 - How to ESG: Preparing for ESG DisclosuresThu, 10 Nov 2022 - 0h
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28 - Hurricane Ian: Lessons from Past Disasters and Preparing for a New Era of Disaster ResponseFri, 07 Oct 2022 - 0h
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27 - What does the C-suite Actually Think of Their Boards? A Conversation on Board EffectivenessMon, 23 May 2022 - 0h
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26 - What the New Landmark #MeToo Law Means for the Future of Business and EmployeesWed, 30 Mar 2022 - 0h
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25 - Director-Shareholder Engagement: Practical Advice for Constructive ConversationsMon, 28 Mar 2022 - 0h
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24 - C-Suite Outlook 2022: Which ESG Issues Do Leaders Care AboutThu, 24 Feb 2022 - 0h
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22 - Corporate Political Activity: Opportunity Amid Scrutiny with Adie Olson, Jason Abel, and Bruce FreedWed, 16 Feb 2022 - 0h
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21 - Companies’ Impact on Economic Opportunity & Fairness – a conversation with Martin WhittakerWed, 27 Oct 2021 - 0h
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20 - Infusing Community Needs into Products and Services: Lessons from PrudentialFri, 24 Sep 2021 - 0h
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19 - Human Capital Disclosure: Early Trends and a Case Study of SuccessTue, 21 Sep 2021 - 0h
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18 - Corning’s Approach to Social Issues: A Story of Innovation and PassionWed, 28 Jul 2021 - 0h
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17 - Impact Investing and its Impact on YouTue, 11 May 2021 - 0h
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16 - Corporate Citizenship in Action: Helping Small Businesses Survive and ThriveThu, 18 Feb 2021 - 0h
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15 - The Future of Corporate GovernanceThu, 04 Feb 2021 - 0h
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14 - A New Way at Looking at Risk: From the Pandemic to Cybersecurity and BeyondTue, 12 Jan 2021 - 0h
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13 - Supporting Veteran-owned businesses, employees, and communities – are corporations doing enough to help?Wed, 18 Nov 2020 - 0h
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12 - Corporate Citizenship in the Global South during COVID-19: Part 4 – The Middle EastTue, 11 Aug 2020 - 0h
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11 - Corporate Citizenship in the Global South during COVID-19: Part 3 – IndiaThu, 16 Jul 2020 - 0h
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10 - Corporate Citizenship in the Global South during COVID-19: Part 2 – Latin AmericaThu, 09 Jul 2020 - 0h
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9 - Corporate Citizenship in the Global South during COVID-19: Part 1 – AfricaThu, 18 Jun 2020 - 0h
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8 - Tackling Climate Change – Can Investors and Philanthropists Work Together?Fri, 01 May 2020 - 0h
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7 - How can corporations best support non-profits during COVID-19?Tue, 31 Mar 2020 - 0h
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6 - Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire’ with Rebecca HendersonWed, 11 Mar 2020 - 0h
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5 - A Focus on Climate Change: From BlackRock’s Letter to CEOs to the Davos ManifestoThu, 20 Feb 2020 - 0h
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4 - Coronavirus Outbreak: The CSR ResponseTue, 18 Feb 2020 - 0h
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3 - If corporations are sociopaths, what do we do about it?Wed, 15 Jan 2020 - 0h
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2 - Are corporations sociopaths? A conversation with Jamie GambleWed, 08 Jan 2020 - 0h
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1 - Western Union Foundation: Opportunity Beyond BordersMon, 23 Sep 2019 - 0h
