Older people are the fastest-growing age demographic in the workplace. One-third of the U.S. labor force is age 50 or older, and workers 65 and older are predicted to represent a quarter of the global workforce by 2031. Despite their loyalty and high engagement, many older workers feel undervalued in the workplace and face challenges such as age discrimination, retirement stress and lack of support for age-related conditions such as menopause.
Join the Health Action Alliance on Tuesday, September 10 for our National Employer Summit on the Aging Workforce, where business leaders and experts will share practical ideas and solutions to create inclusive, productive work environments that meet the needs of employees at every stage of their careers, ensuring a resilient and thriving workforce.
This live virtual event is free to attend. Registrants who are unable to attend live will receive access to a replay video.
The Health Action Alliance is a joint initiative of the Ad Council, the CDC Foundation and the de Beaumont Foundation—in partnership with Meteorite. Our free tools, training and events help employers, large and small, navigate evolving health challenges, improve the health of workers and engage with public health partners to build stronger, healthier communities.
Morra Aarons-Mele works with leaders and teams to turn their anxieties into their superpower—so they can lead at their highest level.
An anxious achiever herself, Morra knows that taking your mental health seriously is a leadership strength. Her ongoing work has been recognized by Mental Health America with their Media Award (2023). Morra is a LinkedIn "Top 10 Voice" in mental health and was shortlisted for the Thinkers50 2023 Distinguished Achievement in Leadership Award.
Morra’s consulting clients include Fortune 500 companies, startups, and U.S government agencies. In her decades-long career as a political, public health, and issue advocacy strategist she has helped the world’s largest organizations change minds and behaviors. Her speaking audiences range from executives to frontline workers, and startups to associations. Learn more about Morra’s keynotes and workshops here. Her media coverage is extensive.
Alongside speaking and consulting, Morra hosts a Top 10 Management podcast, “The Anxious Achiever,” for LinkedIn Presents. Guests range from CEOs to leading psychologists and leadership colleagues. This popular podcast is a Webby Awards Honoree and a “Best Commute” Signal Award winner.
Maura is a Senior Partner with Mercer Health & Benefits business and the national leader for Mercer’s Large & Jumbo Employer Team. She has more than 30 years of experience in the employee benefits field, both at Mercer and at two insurance carriers. She has extensive experience helping large employers implement actions to address the increasingly complex health and benefits environment. Recent client engagements include health and benefits program design as part of an overall total rewards strategy, consolidation of disparate business units into a common benefits platform, and evaluation of existing programs against key metrics.
As the leader of Mercer’s Large & Jumbo Employer Team, Maura works with a team of consultants across the country – sharing client experiences and best practices, identifying emerging trends and developing intellectual capital to address client issues. She also represents the large employer segment as part of the U.S. Health & Benefits national leadership team.
Maura is a Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude from Lake Forest College and has attended Mercer’s Executive Leadership Development Program.
Lena Davydov joined the Hilton HR Benefits team with over 20 years of health and welfare consulting experience. In her role at Hilton, she oversees US health benefits, 401(k) plan, and looks after the overall wellbeing efforts for Hilton Team Members. Prior to Hilton, Lena worked on a variety of large-scale client engagements, focusing on benefits strategy, program design evaluation, pricing, and total reward integration. She has expertise on a broad array of HR and financial issues, including the development and execution of strategic benefit objectives, governance, financial management of employee benefit plans, competitive market assessments, and mergers and acquisitions benefit integration. Lena earned a Bachelor of Science finance degree, with a minor in mathematics, from Arizona State University.
Sonja Kellen, CEBS, is the General Manager of Global Health and Wellbeing for Microsoft Corporation. She provides leadership in the design, governance, and execution of Microsoft's worldwide health, wellness, and safety programs, aligned with business strategy, while striving to elevate wellbeing as a key aspect of corporate culture.
Sonja has more than 25 years of experience in the global benefits space and holds the Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS) designation from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) and Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Qualified 401(k) Administrator (QKA) designation from the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA). Sonja has a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) in Speech Communication and a Business degree from the University of Washington.
Heather Tinsley-Fix is a thought leader and influencer in age diversity working to advance the value of older workers and the business case for building age-inclusive organizations. As a Senior Advisor of Employer Engagement at AARP, she leads the AARP Employer Pledge Program, a nationwide group of employers that stand with AARP in affirming the value of experienced workers. With a background in marketing, innovation, and program management, Heather works with employers and job seekers, external partners, and academics to provide thought leadership on 50+ labor market issues and create practical resources that enable employers to build age-inclusive organizations that capitalize on the value of experience. She holds a B.A. in English Literature and an M.A. in Literary Theory, both from the University of Exeter.
Emily Watson is a senior director with the TIAA Institute, where she manages the development, implementation, and improvement of the Institute’s thought leadership programs and strategic initiatives.
She currently manages partnerships and research projects on topics like young adults and their financial preparedness, the relationship between mental health and financial wellness, and the financial security implications of student loan debt.
Emily also co-leads the Institute’s Fellows Program and the TIAA Institute Research Academy. She has a background that spans both the public and private sectors, including past positions with the Clinton Foundation and Merrill Lynch. Emily earned a BA and MPA from the University of Pennsylvania.
A lifelong restaurateur, Dan Simons has become known for his ability to lead teams and communicate effectively while developing systems that deliver profitability. His tenacity for good management and desire to get the work done efficiently and creatively is balanced with a belief that providing reliable mentorship, sophisticated staff development, and supporting mental wellness is critical to any company’s sustained success. He and his partner, Michael Vucurevich, are Co-Owners of the innovative, mission-driven Farmers Restaurant Group in partnership with the North Dakota Farmers Union working to generate profits for American family farmers, earn farmers a larger share of the food dollar, and influence the sourcing decisions of suppliers and others in the hospitality industry. They currently operate seven sustainably run restaurants (in DC, MD, VA, and PA), one distillery, and a catering company. In 2018, Simons founded Our Last Straw, a business coalition turned non-profit working to eliminate plastic straws and other single-use plastics. Simons is also a teacher at the George Washington University and on the DC Advisory Board of Conscious Capitalism. He regularly blogs at www.DanSimonsSays.com and can be found across most social channels @DanSimonsSays.
Natasha Bowman, JD, SPHR is a renowned thought leader, workplace consultant, and advocate for workplace equality. With nearly 20 years of experience, she has dedicated her career to transforming the American workplace from the inside out. As a champion for employees, Natasha has worked with a wide range of organizations as a c-suite HR executive, creating engaging environments where respect, genuine leadership, and top performance thrive.
Recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice for Workplace Mental Health, a Top 30 Global Guru for Management, and Top 200 Voices in Leadership, Natasha is highly regarded for her expertise in diagnosing workplace issues and providing proven solutions. Her ability to craft highly-engaged cultures that truly value every employee's contribution has earned her the nickname "The Workplace Doctor."
As the President of The Natasha Bowman Consulting Group, formerly known as Performance ReNEW, Natasha has served clients such as 4A's, Forbes, Hearst Magazines, and R/GA. She brings a wealth of cross-sector experience and intellectual commitment to her work. She also serves as an adjunct professor of human resources at prestigious institutions, including Georgetown University, Fordham University, Manhattan College, and The Jack Welch Management Institute.
Natasha's impact extends beyond consulting and teaching. She is a sought-after international keynote speaker, sharing her passion for creating positive and engaging workplaces at Global organizations worldwide such as TedX, The HR Congress in Nice, France, Microsoft, Google, Trip Advisor, LinkedIn, and Oracle. Her expertise is regularly featured in national publications such as Forbes, Business Insider, U.S. News and World Report, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and Forbes.
As a three-time bestselling author, Natasha's latest book, CRAZY AF: How to go from being burned out, unmotivated & unhappy to reclaiming your mental health at work, became an Amazon #1 bestseller in 2023. Committed to promoting workplace equity and mental wellness, she is also the co-founder of The Bowman Foundation for Workplace Equity and Mental Wellness and a board member at NAMI-NYC.
Carole Mendoza is an HR leader whose career spans over 20 years in strategic benefits program planning, design, and delivery for multinational Fortune 500 companies, including IBM and Amgen. She currently leads Voya Financial’s benefits function, where she crafts the enterprise benefits strategy, expands employee retirement readiness initiatives, collaborates with business leaders, and champions DE&I and health equity across the organization. She also serves on the company’s Enterprise Leadership Team.
Carole holds an MPH from The George Washington University—Milken Institute School of Public Health and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. Carole serves as Vice Chair on the Board of the Midwest Business Group on Health and on the Advisory Board of Mom Congress.
