Scheinman Institute Program Director Spotlight: Lisa Csencsits

Name: Lisa Csencsits
 
Current position at Scheinman/ILR: Director of Human Resource Programs
 
Education:  B.A. in Psychology from Adelphi University and a M.A. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Hofstra University
 

Areas of expertise: Working alongside management and leaders to successfully drive change initiatives with a focus on establishing talent management processes for greater efficiency and results, creating leadership development programs to drive business growth and individual success, delivering innovative solutions to engage and retain employees, and establishing career development opportunities to support organizational needs.
 

Types of courses taught: Designs learning programs on a wide range of contemporary human capital topics with a focus on strategic leadership, change management, feedback and coaching, persuasion and influence, successful communication, fundamentals of human resources and leadership development, employee engagement, generational differences and work motivation. Also works in collaboration with colleagues to deliver programs in the areas of employee relations, conflict resolution, labor relations, and diversity and inclusion.
 
Career highlights at Scheinman/ILR: Working as an instructor in a number of Cornell University, ILR offerings and collaborating with private, public and non-profit organizations to develop customized training programs.
 

Please discuss one of your most interesting clients, the services provided and the impact it made: The Seeing Eye®, an organization focused on training dogs to empower their blind human companions with independence, dignity and self-confidence. Lisa Csencsits had worked with The Seeing Eye® over the course of three years to help empower managers to see their employees’ point of view and to inspire them to be successful by tailoring their interactions in a way that best reaches each member of their team. For Jim Kutsch, president and CEO at The Seeing Eye®, the payoff has been a drop in turnover. While acknowledging that many factors can account for improved retention, “it’s often said that the top reason that employees leave a job is because of a bad manager,” he says. “Our staff turnover for the past several years has been at historically low levels and we think improved management effectiveness, aided by annual training, has played a role,” Kutsch says.
 
 
Advice you would give to students in the conflict resolution field: There is always something that can be learned from every experience; you just have to be willing to learn it.