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About Elaine Lin Hering
Elaine Lin Hering works with senior leaders on one of the most persistent and costly problems in business: why people do not say what needs to be said. She helps organizations understand how silence, whether driven by fear, power dynamics, culture or habit, undermines innovation, slows decision-making and keeps teams from performing at their best.
Her central insight is direct: most organizations do not have a talent problem, they have a silence problem. Leaders often tell people to speak up, yet fail to address the real and perceived costs of doing so. "The common advice to just speak up falls flat if we fail to recognize the silence we've learned," she argues. Employees stay quiet when they worry they will be dismissed, penalized, or labeled difficult, and critical information goes unsaid.
Elaine's Keynote Topics
Teams work to solve problems, but conflict and communication struggles often undercut collaboration. According to Harvard Law School lecturer Elaine Lin Hering, individuals using their voices leads to newfound innovation, fresh ideas and creative thinking. In this educational session, Hering tackles this challenge head-on by showing audiences of employees and leaders how they can recognize and unlearn unconscious patterns that keep people silent. By revealing what’s driving these actions, she helps team members see how they can make more intentional choices about how they want to show up. A warm and relatable speaker, Hering unpacks how to identify each teammate’s value and offers concrete steps for finding and using your individual voice toward collective success. By illuminating the role silence has played in everyone’s careers, she provides attendees with strategies for calculating the real and perceived costs and benefits of speaking up, and how to best enable workers and leaders to raise their voices.
How can leaders avoid the trap of inadvertently cultivating environments where silence seems like the safest option, stifling innovation and honest feedback? According to Elaine Lin Hering, a former advanced training director for the Harvard Mediation Program and a lecturer on law at Harvard Law School, leaders can break these barriers by actively designing communication practices that incentivize speaking up. In this revealing presentation, she draws on her bestselling book “Unlearning Silence,” as well as her extensive experience in conflict management and negotiation, to structure interactions that foster open dialogue and dissent, allowing for issues to be addressed before they escalate. Hering teaches audiences how to design communication practices that account for differences in wiring and how to ask questions that get below the surface, enabling leaders to dismantle cultures of silence. Attendees will leave with tools and strategies for fostering an environment where every voice is heard and valued, but not over-weighted. Using Hering’s approach, leaders find increased clarity for evaluating options and using their energy effectively, leading to enhanced problem-solving and decision-making across all levels of the organization.
Elaine in the Media
Elaine Lin Hering on the "Breaking Beliefism" Podcast
How to Get Your Team to Actually Speak Up
How This Consultant Helps Companies Like Google, Nike, and Pixar Fix Cultures of Silence
Author Talks: The Magic of Unmuting Yourself
Unlearning Silence: How to Speak Your Mind, Unleash Talent, and Live More Fully
Silence Speaks Volumes in the Workplace
Elaine Lin Hering – Unlearning Silence
Are You Unintentionally Silencing Your Employees?
Silence-Busting Strategies for Introverts
3 Strategies for Speaking Up at Work and Building Buy-In and Understanding From Your Team
These 3 Factors Can Help You Speak Up at Work
How to Speak Up for Yourself
How Elaine Works with Organizations
Each engagement is built around your goals and audience.
01 · WORKSHOPBuilding Effective Speak Up Cultures
Creating a dynamic communication environment within teams doesn’t happen by accident – it requires intentional design and leadership commitment. This interactive workshop led by Elaine Lin Hering, bestselling author of “Unlearning Silence,” tackles the common yet overlooked problem of silence within teams, which can undermine both performance and morale. Focusing on practical interventions, guided discussion and engaging activities, this eye-opening session offers a hands-on approach to reshaping communication practices across organizations. Participants will undertake exercises that mirror real-world scenarios to design more inclusive communication strategies and learn the right questions to ask to unlock true team potential. Attendees will leave this educational workshop with immediately applicable tools for fostering a culture that celebrates and utilizes the full range of employees’ ideas, insights and expertise. Leaders will be empowered to bring open communication, enhanced collaboration and better team effectiveness back to their organizations.
This was the most engaging event I've been to! I loved how she presented and all the tips. I greatly appreciate getting real examples and actions I can take.
Frontline ManagerEdelman Financial
Elaine was able to balance two important factors throughout the training. On the one hand, she could offer vulnerability and her own demonstrative stories/examples, which made her relatable. On the other hand, she came across as very expert and knowledgeable about the subject matter, which established trust with the audience right away.
ManagerProtect Democracy
Elaine changed my life. She spoke both to my work and to my soul.
PresidentCalifornia Community College
Elaine was so present. She really got us. She understood and spoke to the moment. She made change feel possible.
Vice PresidentCollege of Marin
I’ve already received numerous emails, texts, and IMs sharing how valuable your session was. And even better, many are readying for the book club discussion next week.
Vice PresidentWells Fargo
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