Leo F. Flanagan, PhD

Leo F. Flanagan, Jr., PhD is a Distinguished Principal Research Fellow in the Human Capital practice at The Conference Board and Founder & President of The Center For Resilience, LLC. The Center assesses and develops resilience in leaders, employees, teams, organizations, and communities. Leo is focused on helping businesses, medical centers, and communities mitigate the anxiety created by COVID-19, the related economic disruption, and the preexisting crises they brought into sharp relief including: systemic racism, disparities in education, global warming, homelessness, supply chain fragility, and weaknesses in health care. He believes anxiety levels are the major barrier to restarting our economies and communities.

Leo has 30 years of experience in the activation of human capital strategies. He has guided the assessment and transformation of HR organizations for top global companies such as IBM and McDonald’s as well as private equity companies to fuel profitable growth. He held senior-level corporate HR positions at Merrill Lynch, Willis Holdings, and The Forum Corporation. Early in his career, Leo was a faculty member at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Leo is currently on the board of Tuesday’s Children, an advisor to Children’s Learning Centers of Fairfield County, and a member of Ministry to the Homeless. As Director of Community Resilience & Behavioral Health for H.E.A.R.T. 911, he volunteered in response to the Newtown School Shooting, Superstorm Sandy, and the Moore Oklahoma EF-5 tornado.

Leo earned his PhD at City University of New York, his MA at Hunter College, and his BA at Fordham University.