Wednesdays with Woodward®
Wednesdays with Woodward® is a new webinar series hosted by Joan Woodward, President of the Travelers Institute, which explores pressing topics impacting individuals and businesses. Through candid conversations with thought leaders, she delivers practical advice to help address today’s challenges. Join her as she interviews experts on topics such as cybersecurity threats as a result of remote employees, small business liability issues, the economic and political outlook, managing employee stress and anxiety and more.
Contact institute@travelers.com to join the Travelers Institute® email list.
Featured Webinars:
July 28, 2021
Insurance Market Insights: Emerging Trends to Watch
July 14, 2021
Can You Innovate Like a Unicorn?
June 30, 2021
Built to Last: The Connection between ESG Issues and a Company’s Long-Term Success
June 16, 2021
Behind the Scenes at the NYSE: Everything You Want to Know About SPACs, IPOs and Direct Listings
June 9, 2021
A Bright Future: Tackling a Global Pandemic
May 26, 2021
The Future of Cities
Past Webinar Replays
The Data-Driven Enterprise: Transforming Business in the Digital Age
The Travelers Institute hosted a conversation on the intersection of digital business trends and transformative technologies with Mojgan Lefebvre, Travelers' Chief Technology & Operations Officer and guest Dr. Tom Davenport, world-renowned author of The AI Advantage. They shared how leading-edge capabilities in everything from artificial intelligence to agile ways of working are forever changing business and the insurance industry.
View the May 19 Webinar Here >>
Small Business - Big Opportunity®
How can small businesses stay ahead in today’s uncertain environment? Tom Sullivan, Vice President of Small Business Policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Eric Nordquist, Executive Vice President and President of Small Commercial and Business Insurance Business Centers at Travelers identified actions that small business owners can take to access capital in the current environment, explained how insurance coverage can help prepare small businesses for today’s complex world and shared how to create a culture of safety to reduce workplace injuries.
View the May 12 Webinar Here >>
Behind the Scenes at the Travelers Championship
Each June, the world’s top golfers gather at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell for the Travelers Championship®, Connecticut’s annual PGA TOUR® golf tournament. It’s a thrilling week of sportsmanship, charity and more. But how does it all come together? Speakers gave a sneak peek of this year’s tournament, happening June 21–27, and shared how all the excitement is brought to life.
View the May 5 Webinar Here >>
Future Ready: Trends in Personal Insurance Distribution
Customer expectations are evolving. Are you keeping up? In this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, Loree Toedman and Jay Gauthier from Travelers’ Personal Insurance team shared their philosophies on meeting customers where they are, giving them what they need and serving them how they want. They explored business trends that have been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic; provided insights for insurance leaders and others on staying connected and getting ahead in a digital world; and took stock of emerging strategies in consumer marketing, customer service, operations, sales and more.
A Hopeful Spring: Vaccine Successes and Outlook
Brown University School of Public Health Dean Ashish Jha, M.D., MPH, joined this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series to share his outlook for containing the global pandemic. Dr. Jha provided an update on COVID-19 vaccine distribution in the United States, vaccine hesitancy in the population and the latest virus variants.
Are You Recruiting Military Spouses Yet?
In this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® series, the Travelers Institute convened speakers from leading military support organizations to explore why employers should consider expanding their recruitment efforts to include military spouses. Joining the conversation was Col. Matthew F. Amidon, USMCR, Director of the Military Service Initiative at the George W. Bush Institute; Colleen Deere, Executive Director of American Corporate Partners and Jim McMahon, Lead for Military & Veteran Outreach at Travelers.
Crash and Learn: An Inside Look at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)
You have probably heard of the IIHS TOP SAFETY PICK ratings that assess vehicle safety. But do you know how these ratings are determined? This installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series provided a behind-the-scenes look at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent, scientific and educational organization dedicated to reducing deaths, injuries and property damage from motor vehicle crashes. Supported by the insurance industry and Travelers, IIHS crashes vehicles — and lots of them — in their state-of-the-art Vehicle Research Center to help consumers make informed decisions. Webinar attendees explored the latest in auto safety, including new IIHS crashworthiness tests for 2023 models, and what one may want to consider when buying personal or company vehicles.
The Changing Landscape of Insurance Distribution
Whether it’s keeping up with changing consumer preferences, rapid technology advancements or even the impacts of COVID-19, the pace of today’s business world is accelerating. The insurance industry is no exception, with its evolving distribution strategies and ongoing consolidation. In this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, Travelers’ Patrick Kinney, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Distribution Management, examined the changing industry landscape.
Geopolitics and Global Hot Spots for the New Administration
A host of geopolitical and foreign policy challenges await the Biden Administration in 2021. In this episode of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, retired U.S. Navy Admiral Michael Rogers took us around the world to discuss global hot spots, pressing foreign policy issues, cybersecurity threats and takeaways for the business community.
On the Horizon: The Future of Autonomous Vehicles
Driverless ride-hailing programs, truck platoons and autonomous delivery vehicles – the future of our roads will undoubtedly look different from today. In this episode of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, Travelers Institute President Joan Woodward discussed the future of autonomous vehicles (AVs) with Dr. Mark R. Rosekind, Chief Safety Innovation Officer at Zoox and former Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and Michael Klein, Executive Vice President and President of Personal Insurance at Travelers.
The Race to Distribute a COVID Vaccine
The Travelers Institute kicked off the new year with this special update on the race to develop and distribute a COVID-19 vaccine. With multiple promising vaccines, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has begun granting emergency use authorization. Dr. Mark McClellan, former FDA Commissioner, took us behind the scenes of the fast-tracked rollout, discussed the unprecedented distribution challenges and shared his outlook for containing the global pandemic.
View the January 14 webinar here >>
Weathering the Storm: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety
For 10 years, researchers at the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) have been studying natural disasters, testing different building materials and identifying ways to mitigate damage from severe weather events. In this episode of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, we celebrated a decade of IBHS research with Roy Wright, IBHS President and CEO; Debra T. Ballen, IBHS General Counsel and Chief Risk Officer; and Eric M. Nelson, Travelers’ Senior Vice President of Enterprise Catastrophe Risk Management and IBHS Chairman of the Board.
Small Business in America: Where do we go from here?
Small business leaders across the country have faced innumerable challenges in 2020, from keeping their doors open and their employees safe to adapting to new business models. President & CEO of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council Karen Kerrigan joined this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series to unpack the results of the 2020 elections and tackle what’s ahead for small business legislation, both in the lame duck session of Congress and in 2021.
Resilience In Times of Uncertainty
Life is complicated, and some days can feel overwhelming. This is true now, more than ever given a polarizing political landscape and the ongoing pandemic. It’s important to take care of ourselves, so we can support family members, neighbors and our communities. In this installment of the Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, Wendy Wollner walked attendees through self-care strategies and tips for building resilience during uncertain times.
Leading Through Crisis: A Conversation with Team Rubicon Co-Founder & CEO Jake Wood
In this installment of the Travelers Institute’s Wednesdays with Woodward® webinar series, Team Rubicon Co-Founder and CEO Jake Wood shared strategies for leading through crisis, drawn from his experience on the battlefield and in disaster zones. Wood, a former U.S. Marine Scout Sniper, leads one of the fastest growing non-profit organizations in America, which repurposes the skills of military veterans to respond to disasters. Under his leadership, Team Rubicon has responded to over 700 disasters since 2010, including wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes and now the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cybersecurity During the Pandemic
In honor of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Travelers' Cyber Risk Control Director Ken Morrison joined the Wednesdays with Woodward® series to explore findings from the 2020 Travelers Risk Index. Morrison discussed the latest cybersecurity threats and trends and shared actions businesses can take to safeguard their networks.
Insurance Regulation: What You Need to Know Now
There is no lack of pressing regulatory issues facing the insurance industry today. From leading through a global pandemic to ensuring the preservation of risk-based pricing, thoughtful and responsible industry engagement across sectors is critical. Dr. David A. Sampson, President and CEO of the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA), and Glenn Westrick, Senior Vice President for Government Relations at Travelers, joined this episode of the Wednesdays with Woodward® series to provide an inside look at key regulatory issues for 2021 and beyond.
Protecting Your Most Valuable Asset: Employee Safety During COVID-19
Protecting employee health and limiting the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the workplace is not a one-time event. In this webinar, representatives from Travelers Risk Control and the National Safety Council shared recommendations for employers to safely transition employees back to their workplace.
View the October 7th webinar here >>
Crafting Your Comeback
This conversation featured Mika Brzezinski and Ginny Brzezinski, co-authors of "Comeback Careers: Rethink, Refresh, Reinvent Your Success - At 40, 50 and Beyond," and Ashley Wilson, Executive Director, Women Taking the Lead Program, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The group discussed strategies from job coaches and tips to overcome internal and external barriers to success.
An Inside Look at IntelliDrive, Travelers' Telematics Program to Encourage Safer Driving Behaviors
This webinar explored how technology can help combat distracted driving - and why this issue is as important today as ever given current public health concerns. Speakers from Travelers and TrueMotion explained how IntelliDrive, Travelers' telematics app, works and how it is encouraging safer driving behaviors.
Life After Shelter in Place: A Conversation with Stanford University School of Medicine Dean Lloyd Minor, MD
While there are still many unknowns about COVID-19, we are all eager to restore a sense of normalcy to our lives. Dr. Lloyd Minor, Dean of the Stanford University School of Medicine offered a medical perspective on coronavirus, including what it will take to achieve widespread diagnostic and antibody testing, digital symptom tracking and contact tracing, the development of effective treatments and vaccines, and virtual health care.
View the August 19th webinar here>>
Liability Issues for Businesses in the Time of COVID-19
Business owners are preparing to reopen their doors, implementing enhanced safety measures to welcome back employees and customers. The successful reopening will be key to improving the economic health of communities across the country. But as they look forward to reopening, many business owners are concerned about potential liability related to COVID-19. In this webinar, the Travelers Institute explored liability issues for business owners and what can be done to help small businesses get back to business.
View the August 5th webinar here>>
Emotional and Social Reintegration in the Age of COVID-19
Few global events in recent years have had the immediate and far-reaching economic, financial, social, emotional and health consequences as a previously unknown Coronavirus did and expect to continue to having in the coming months. Social restrictions are being eased, and we are seeing a return to the workplace, but the pandemic’s impact on physical and mental well-being may not be fully known for years. Dr. Marcos Iglesias joined the Travelers Institute for a discussion on emloyee sterss and anxiety during this time.
View the July 22nd webinar here>>
PATH to Reopening Your Business
As states define guidelines for reopening after shutdowns related to COVID-19, every business needs a strong plan for a successful reopening of the workplace for customers and employees. The Travelers Institute and Risk Control team shared strategies to create a plan to reopen, how to apply a risk management approach to address COVID-19 and the four-step process that can help you safely get back to business.
View the July 1st webinar here>>
Return to Work with Cybersecurity
As companies prepare for employees to return to work, they are implementing enhanced safety measures to protect employee health. But what about protecting the health of their computer networks? Cyber thought leaders explored cyber threats impacting work-from-home devices, and how lingering malware on these devices could impact corporate networks as employees return to the office.
View the June 11th webinar here>>