Watch Alison in Action
About Alison Fragale
In a competitive workplace, who gets heard, promoted and paid is not decided by credentials alone. Alison Fragale, an organizational psychologist and expert on status and power, has spent her career studying why. Her distinction is precise: power is control over resources, while status is the respect, admiration and high regard a person earns from others. When we are respected by the audiences that matter most, she finds, the result is greater influence and a more satisfying life, both physically and mentally.
“Leaders often confuse being respected with being popular,” Fragale explains. “People respecting you comes from two places: them seeing you as a capable person and as someone who cares about people other than themselves.” With decades of executive education experience, she has brought that science to organizations including Merck, Sixth Street Partners, Guild, Results Canada and the Ethics & Compliance Initiative, in formats ranging from keynotes to interactive workshops and one-on-one office hours.
Alison's Keynote Topics
According to organizational psychologist Alison Fragale, Ph.D., success depends a lot on who you know. In this engaging presentation, she shows that when you have a trusted relationship with someone who can offer the advice, information or approval you need, everything is easier. When you lack these relationships, Fragale explains, you struggle. She outlines why strategic relationship-building is particularly important for women but also more challenging because they often look different than others in the room, are busy and, for many, the idea of “networking” is unappealing. But she points out, building strong relationships does not need to be time-consuming or unpleasant. Sharing science and strategies, Fragale explains how to cultivate desirable professional relationships in ways that are both authentic and efficient. Participants will learn how to develop a network strategy that turns strangers into acquaintances and acquaintances into allies; how to stay top of mind in existing relationships by making “small deposits” and developing daily network habits; and how and when to use social media like LinkedIn to deepen professional relationships.
How can individuals be strong, confident advocates for their own careers and their own ideas? Status – how respected we are by others – is critical for both life satisfaction and career success, says Alison Fragale, Ph.D., leading organizational psychologist and expert on status and power. In this engaging talk, Fragale explains how status is won (and lost) as well as authentic, practical strategies we can use to build our status – including creating our army of “other-promoters,” self-promoting effectively and authentically, and saying yes and no strategically. Participants will leave the session more confident, inspired and purposeful than when they entered, armed with actionable advice for delivering great performance to their organization while simultaneously managing one’s own path.
Why do women struggle to be seen as both competent and likeable, get less credit than men for the same accomplishments, and remain underpaid and underrepresented? Because most people don’t understand status, they fail to manage theirs effectively, explains Alison Fragale, Ph.D., organizational psychologist, UNC Chapel Hill professor and expert on status, power and negotiation. In this revealing presentation, Fragale draws from her bestselling book “Likeable Badass” to unpack the science of status and demonstrate that it is critical for both life satisfaction and career success. Reframing women’s age-old struggles through a new lens, Fragale shows why, on average, women have less status than men, how it holds them back from achieving the power they deserve and most importantly, what they can do about it. Speaking from both the head and the heart in a customized presentation, she provides audiences with easy, proven strategies to build status, correct the assumptions women make about advocating for themselves, influence productively without being labeled “aggressive” or “self-promoting,” and negotiation tactics that are immediately applicable. With these new tactics, audiences will leave inspired and empowered to win the status game.
No matter our workplace seniority or the position we hold, “because I said so” is never a constructive way to influence others, regardless of whether a leader has the authority to do so. Instead, notes Alison Fragale, Ph.D., getting buy-in and building positive relationships comes from convincing others that they want to agree with us. The key to influence is not having the best idea or making a convincing speech, but rather by undertaking a systematic process to understand our audience and give them what they want. In this highly interactive presentation, which can also be delivered as a workshop, Fragale reveals a six-step process that participants can employ to both gain greater influence and build stronger relationships. Attendees will leave this thought-provoking talk armed with highly relevant strategies for exercising influence while bolstering understanding and cooperation.
As the famous saying goes, “power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” We know what he means. Gather around the water cooler and everyone has a Bosszilla story to share. As Alison Fragale, Ph.D., leading organizational psychologist and expert on status and power, explains, although we may chalk up our managerial misfortune to our leader’s poor disposition or training and vow that we would never submit others to the same mistreatment, evidence from psychology suggests that this is hubris. The experience of being “in charge” changes how individuals think, feel and act, often for the worse. Combining research-backed science with rich storytelling, Fragale explains how power affects all of us and provides tips for how leaders can lead better than they were once led, as well as how organizations can create cultures that foster excellent leadership.
Books by Alison Fragale
Articles by Alison Fragale
Kamala Harris Is Doing Something Brilliant Up There on the Tightrope
October 2024ChiefWhy Being a ‘Likeable Badass’ Can Boost Your Status at Work
September 2024Built InAre You a Likable Badass?
September 2024Psychology TodayWhy Women Have Less Power in the Workplace
September 2024Alison Fragale's Research
Alison in the Media
The Psychology Trick Behind Power
Alison Fragale on the Psychology of Likability and Status
New Rules: Earning Respect, Sustaining Engagement and Improving Presence
The Mediator as Likeable Badass with Alison Fragale
You're Not Elon Musk: Here's How Normal People Should Critique Their Superiors
How To: Become a Capable and Caring “Badass”
Want to Boost Your Status? Show Up as a Likable Badass
How to Negotiate Your Salary in 2025: Start the Conversation ‘Before You’re Desperate for an Answer’
How to Find Career Success in 2025, According to an Expert: Get 'Comfortable Talking About Your Wins'
These 4 Toxic Mindsets Can Hurt You at Work, Psychologist Says
We’re Asking for (and Getting) What We Want
Being a "Likeable Badass" Could Improve Your Health
Alison presented on the use and abuse of power at our Best Practices Forum for Ethics and Compliance practitioners. Her comments were insightful and full of practical applications and her warmth and sense of humor deeply connected with our group. In fact, Alison’s presentation was rated as one of the best of the forum!
Earnie BroughtonSenior Advisor, Ethics & Compliance Initiative, LPEC
Alison was a perfect fit for our training conference for L&D professionals. She was flexible leading up to the event, adjusting her talk on negotiation to fit our audience. Alison was definitely a favorite among our attendees. She is a very dynamic presenter, engaging, incorporated humor and had excellent stage presence. Thanks for delivering a memorable and practical keynote!
Elizabeth ParkerMarketing & Events Specialist, Training Industry, Inc.
Alison is one of the most impactful speakers I have ever seen and worked with. She presents in such a genuine and unassuming way that endears her to the audience, and then she delivers an impact through storytelling and practical tools that anyone can start using immediately. Her first event with us was so well-received that we invited her back for a second event with our clients. And, I’ve been able to personally benefit from her advice. After hearing her talk about the art of negotiation, I used some of the techniques to acquire free gym passes on a business trip. She is truly changing the world, one free gym pass at a time. I can’t endorse Alison enough and I would jump at the chance to see her speak at every opportunity.
Jeff TetzCEP, Results Canada
As someone who’s spent most of his career in rooms where power dynamics can be subtle but consequential, I found Alison Fragale’s "Likeable Badass" both deeply insightful and immediately actionable. I recommended it to Guild as my executive book pick of the year not just because it’s a powerful guide for women navigating leadership, but because it’s a powerful guide—period. Alison brought that same clarity, energy and depth to the keynote she delivered at our company’s all-hands event. She spoke to an audience of nearly 900 people—across all roles, backgrounds and genders—and the response was overwhelmingly positive. She was thoughtful and flexible in tailoring her talk to our team, and her message resonated in a way that was both empowering and unifying. In a world where the word "badass" can be misused or misunderstood, Alison reclaims it with substance, empathy and research-backed wisdom. I'm grateful for her voice—and I hope more people, especially men, pick up her book and take her message to heart.
Jonathan MarekChief Operations Officer, Guild
I first met Alison when I took her Negotiations class in business school, and was very impressed with her ability to deliver content that is based on science with many advices and actionable items that you can execute in your work and personal life. Years later, I was very excited to have Alison as a guest speaker at our Women’s Network, and she did not disappoint! She delivered an amazing presentation that addressed strategies and tactics to help women overcome challenges in negotiation. During a time when we are being challenged to adapt our ways of working in virtual environments, Alison keeps her audience highly engaged with great sense humor and deep knowledge of influence, negotiation and leadership topics.
Juliana AlmeidaWomen's Network Lead, Merck
We started partnering with Alison in 2018 on a variety of trainings and engaged her expertise with the top leaders in our business. We have been so impressed with her ability to quickly understand the complexity of our business and adapt the content and format to our needs. In all of our engagements, Alison’s advice is high-impact, tactical, and universally valued. At our global Sixth Street Partners firm Offsite in 2019, Alison spoke to our Women’s Network on Power, Advocacy, and Influence, tailoring content to a group of 50+ women across functions, levels, and years of experience. She also conducted one-on-one and small group office hours with members of the Women’s Network specifically designed to address their professional development goals. The Women’s Network found her teaching extremely relatable and impactful — she engages audiences with ease and makes a lasting impression.
Kelly Marshall & Kate HanickSixth Street Partners Women's Network
Alison Fragale is a superb public speaker by any measure. I have had the privilege and pleasure to listen to over 50 of her lectures to audiences of a couple dozen or hundreds of attendees. As a mentor to those audiences, I often follow her presentations with small group discussions of her topics which are related to the art and science of negotiation and the consequences of power. Thus, I can calibrate how well her audience absorbed her lecture, which in every case has been outstanding. She is a master of her lecture subjects, and blends well researched facts, her opinions and humor to keep her audience engaged throughout her lecture. Alison is one of the very best speakers I know, and I’m confident she will meet the standards of any requirement she faces.
Thomas F. MetzLieutenant General (Ret.), U.S. Army
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