From Toxic Workplaces to Thriving Cultures: A Conversation with Dr. Rosie Ward

Dr. Rosie Ward knows firsthand what it feels like when a workplace erodes your well-being. After experiencing the effects of two toxic environments, she made it her mission to ensure others wouldn't have to go through the same - and that by the time her son enters the workforce, dehumanized workplaces would simply be a relic of the past.

As CEO and founder of Salveo Partners, an award-winning consulting firm based in Minneapolis, Rosie helps organizations future-proof themselves by strengthening culture and equipping leaders and teams to navigate change and disruption. With a PhD, Board Certified Coach and Certified Dare to Lead Facilitator credentials, and over 25 years of experience translating behavioral science into practical action, she brings a deeply human approach to organizational transformation.

Her latest book, Future-Proofing Leadership, is already a bestseller - and she's showing no signs of slowing down. We sat down with Rosie to talk about what drives her work, what organizations are getting wrong, and what's on the horizon.

What inspired you to start?

After personally experiencing the ill effects of two toxic workplaces, I knew I wanted to change things so others wouldn't have to experience the same. And my hope was that by the time my son enters the workforce, dehumanized workplaces would no longer be the norm, and movies like "Horrible Bosses" or cringy television shows like "The Office" would no longer exist because people couldn't relate to them. I knew I had a different way of approaching the intersection of behavior change, organizational culture, leadership and well-being, and I wanted to leverage this to help create a better work experience.

What problem are you solving?

We are solving the problem of failing individual and organizational change efforts, increasing rates of disengagement and people not feeling like they matter at work. Most traditional methods fail or are mediocre at best because they don't care for the messiness of how human beings show up in the face of disruption and change. We future-proof organizations by strengthening culture and equipping leaders and teams to show up more courageously and better navigate change and disruption.

What's next for you?

Right now I'm busy promoting my new bestselling book, Future-Proofing Leadership and leveraging the content to help leaders, teams and organizations thrive in this disruptive environment. We're working with several clients across industries to apply these concepts to build comprehensive leadership academies within their organizations and revamp their leadership development and succession planning strategies. And, believe it or not, I'm already working on my fourth book that will build on Future-Proofing Leadership and provide many of the tools and mental reframes we use in our work with clients.

This is part of our ongoing 20 Founders On a Mission series. New editions publish regularly. To be featured or nominate a founder, write to us at hi@foundedbywomen.org