Grace Mele-Cormier

PhD Candidate, Organizational Behavior, Harvard Business School

I am fascinated by how employees navigate the often-painful process of growing at work, and how employees’ relationships can facilitate – or undermine – their success. My research examines the role of relationships in employee growth across two complementary streams:

(1) My first research stream explores the critical role that leaders play in enabling employees’ growth by encouraging employees to stretch outside their comfort zones, and in responding supportively when employees face challenges in their personal and professional lives. In this stream, I also consider when and why leaders might sometimes unwittingly hinder employees’ growth.

(2) My second stream of research explores how employees manage the uncomfortable process of growing and how they often overlook the very experiences and relationships that might benefit their growth.

Across research streams, I use multi-source field surveys, field experiments, and archival field data, which I complement with online experiments and surveys. My field data comes from organizations across a variety of industries, including pharmaceutical companies, professional services firms, and non-profit organizations.

Prior to pursuing my PhD, I worked as a Senior Program Manager and Program Facilitator for resilience and well-being programs at the University of Pennsylvania’s Positive Psychology Center, serving clients including the U.S. Army, the Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA team), universities, and professional services firms. I also worked as a Research Manager at Wharton People Analytics where I conducted applied organizational research.

I hold a B.A. in Psychology from Carleton College and a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.

To contact me, please email gcormier@hbs.edu