2020: A Year in Review

As 2020 comes to a close, I am reflecting on the many lessons learned during this unusual time. While the year has brought more than its fair share of challenges, it has also presented certain opportunities, including the launch of the Travelers Institute’s #WednesdayswithWoodward series.

 These webinars provided unique opportunities to explore pressing issues in our personal and professional lives amid all the uncertainty. We covered a wide range of topics and the feedback has been fantastic. I am grateful to the many speakers who shared their knowledge and expertise. Here are some of the top lessons we learned:

Leading and Managing During the Pandemic

·        Leading Teams During Crisis: Team Rubicon’s Jake Wood taught us that panic is contagious, but so is leadership. [Watch]

·        Relaunching or Pivoting Your Career: Ginny Brzezinski, Mika Brzezinski, co-authors of “Comeback Careers” and the U.S. Chamber’s Women Taking the Lead Program’s Ashley Wilson offered career tips for “pandemic pivoters” and those looking to get ahead while working from home. (Virtual) networking is key. [Watch]

Physical and Emotional Health During Uncertainty

·        Emotional Wellbeing at Work: Travelers’ Dr. Marcos Iglesias explained that a question as simple as “Are you okay?” can open the door to better communications between co-workers and managers. [Watch]

·        Managing Personal Stress: Humana’s Wendy Wollner encouraged us to develop a personalized menu of stress-relief options to help manage stress over time. [Watch]

·        Developing a COVID Vaccine: Dr. Lloyd Minor of Stanford University’s School of Medicine reminded us that “reopening [after COVID] is not an on-off switch, but rather a dimmer switch,” and discussed the path forward for COVID-19 vaccine approvals. [Watch]

Protecting Your Business

·        Reopening Your Business: Chris Hayes and Bill Shoemaker, both members of the Travelers Risk Control team, walked business leaders through the PATH framework to reopening – Plan, Act, Training and Education, and Health. [Watch]

·        Liability Issues for Businesses: The U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform’s Harold Kim and Travelers’ Yafit Cohn discussed the impact of the pandemic on businesses. Kim encouraged any federal legislation to address liability issues to be timely, temporary and targeted. [Watch]

·        Returning to the Office: The National Safety Council’s Lorraine Martin and Travelers’ Allen McCalister explained how to promote a workplace culture of safety during the pandemic, and Martin shared the NSC’s SAFER framework as a guide for employers. [Watch]

·        Cyber Risks in 2020: SentinelOne’s Jared Phipps cautioned businesses that malware may linger on employee devices used on home networks, and explained that antivirus software may not be enough to protect your networks when those devices return to the office. [Watch]

·        Small Business Success: The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council’s Karen Kerrigan encouraged small business owners to use every tool at their disposal to interact with consumers and showcase their products: from engaging and attracting customers on social media, to embracing e-commerce, to offering local delivery options. [Watch]

·        Understanding Cyber Threats: Travelers’ Cyber Risk Control Director Ken Morrison noted that ransomware is now more damaging and more frequent for all businesses – no matter their size or industry. He encouraged businesses to identify the assets that attackers are most likely to target and focus on protecting them. [Watch]

Insurance Industry & Innovation

·        Building Stronger Homes & Businesses: The Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety’s Roy Wright and Debra Ballen and Travelers’ Eric Nelson celebrated the 10th anniversary of the IBHS Research Center, which explores how to protect homes and businesses from wildfire, wind and hailstorms. IBHS’ Shingle Performance Ratings can help consumers protect their roofs from hail damage. [Watch]

·        The Outlook for the Insurance Industry: Dr. David Sampson of the American Property Casualty Insurance Association previewed what’s ahead for the insurance industry in 2021, including APCIA’s continued advocacy for risk-based pricing. [Watch]

·        Distracted Driving Continues During the Pandemic: TrueMotion’s Ben Kotrc cautioned that dangerous driving behaviors, including distracted driving, continued and even increased during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Travelers’ IntelliDrive? app helps incentivize safer driving behaviors by providing users with feedback on their driving performance. [Watch]

It’s been an incredible season and we’re excited to continue the webinars in 2021. We’ll kick off on Jan. 13 with Dr. Mark McClellan, former FDA Commissioner, about the race to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine.

#TravelersInstitute

Visit travelersinstitute.org to watch webinar replays or register for future programs. Contact [email protected] to join the Travelers Institute email list.