Member Spotlight: Patricia Grabarek

Name
Patricia Grabarek

Position/Employer
Co-Founder, Workr Beeing, and Head of People Research, Intuitive

How long have you been a SIOP member?
I joined as a student in 2007.

What roles have you had within SIOP?
I've been involved with the Visibility, Awards, and Advocacy committees, and served as a conference reviewer many times.

Interest area(s)
Workplace wellness, culture, leadership, and people analytics

What sparked your interest in I-O psychology?
In undergrad, I was working in a health psychology research lab, which sparked my interest in stress research. As I dug into the literature, I came across papers on workplace stress. I had always wanted to help improve people's lives and quickly recognized the big impact work has on the majority of people. I then decided to pursue I-O psychology to learn more about people, work, and how to make work lives better.

What role do you see I-O psychology playing in the future of work?
I think we are in a time of change in how people view work. For organizations to continue being successful, they are going to need to increase their focus on people and their experience at work.

Which of the Top 10 Work Trends for 2023 do you most strongly relate to, and how can I-O psychology practitioners, educators, and students impact this trend?

So many of the trends in 2023 surrounded the broader concept of addressing workplace wellness and employee experience. I particularly relate to Trend #6 surrounding mental health at work. This is an area that I am hoping to impact and shape. We, as I-Os, have a responsibility to help organizations support employee mental health. We need to continue to conduct research to highlight the business case for supporting mental health and concrete tactics for organizations to implement. Additionally, practitioners need to leverage the research to educate their clients and organizations on how to build the systems and structure to support employees.

What advice would you give to students or those early in their career?
Enjoy the journey and embrace nonlinear career paths! My career did not have a traditional path, and I loved it. Follow your instincts with career decisions, don't be afraid to say yes to an interesting opportunity that you've never done before, and leverage your network!

What is one of your favorite SIOP Annual Conference memories/highlights?

I love reconnecting with friends and colleagues each year at the SIOP Annual Conference. The first year I couldn't walk through the lobby without running into people I knew, I felt like I had really made it into this wonderful community.

Please share one non-I-O-related bit of information about yourself.
I love animals and have three furbabies—two cats and a dog. They keep the house vibrant and fun!

Is there anything you would like to add?
I am so lucky to have started a business with my brilliant grad school friend, Katina Sawyer. We embody the science–practitioner model in everything we do at Workr Beeing. Check us out if you want to learn more about our work and our podcast, “Thriving at Work,” where we share takeaways from the amazing research from folks in our field. We've also conducted some of our own research and will be sharing more about it in 2024. Follow along on LinkedIn! We'd love to connect with you all and continue to learn from you too!

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