The Society of Behavioral Medicine’s Leadership Institute is turning 5!

The institute will proudly celebrate its fifth anniversary at the 41st SBM Annual Meeting & Scientific Sessions in San Francisco, CA, April 1-4, 2020

2019 Leadership Institute Fellows

For four great years, SBM’s Leadership Institute has provided mid-career SBM members the training and skills they need to advance their careers and take on more leadership roles in their respective professions. During the past four years, 139 fellows have participated in the program. SBM Past-President Marian Fitzgibbon, PhD, founded the institute after she noticed many leadership programs focused on early or senior career professionals, but few were devoted to the unique challenges of mid-career behavioral scientists. The 2020 program will begin with a two-day in-person intensive workshop at the Annual Meeting. It will continue throughout the year via conference calls with SBM senior leaders, and one-on-one meetings with career coaches. Participants also identify a leadership project during the year that is presented at a poster session at the next annual meeting. The goal of the leadership project is to translate skills learned during the leadership institute into something tangible, reflecting their leadership journey.

Past participants have raved about the Leadership Institute’s impact on careers advancement.

“I needed this leadership workshop,” said a surveyed participant. “It challenged me to push beyond my comfort zone. [The Leadership Institute] helped me to appreciate the core essence of my leadership style while showing me where I need to grow as a leader.”

 “I'm already coming away with tons of ideas for making life more manageable and for getting to the next level in my career,” said another participant. “I feel extremely fortunate to have taken part.”

The fifth anniversary class will enjoy sessions on developing their leadership style, self-assessment, building an inclusive workplace, building collaborative teams, negotiations and conflict resolution skills, and how best to pitch their next great idea. Participants will also get to connect with one another on a professional and personal level.

As one past participant put it, “It’s good to have this type of input early. It’s also great to do it with peers.”

Congratulations to all the Leadership Institute participants from the past four years! Applications for the 2020-21 fifth anniversary institute will be available on the SBM website this fall. Be sure to apply and take your leadership skills to the next level!