Dr. RJ Willis is the Founder and CEO of The Up-Ward Shift (TUWS), an organization dedicated to transforming workplace culture through leadership development and mental health awareness. With a Doctoral degree in Organizational Leadership and national certification as a Peer Specialist (CPS), Dr. Willis blends academic research, professional experience, and lived wisdom to help leaders recognize silent emotional struggles and respond with dignity, compassion, and respect.

For more than nine years, Dr. Willis has worked alongside nonprofits, behavioral health providers, faith-based institutions, and corporate teams, supporting individuals who may be quietly carrying mental health concerns in the workplace. His work centers on inclusive language, human dignity, and creating safe spaces where staff feel seen, valued, and supported. Dr. Willis’ signature method, The SOAR Experience — Stop, Observe, And Respond, teaches leaders how to move from awareness to meaningful action, ensuring no one suffers in silence under their leadership.

Driven by the belief that what we do not face, we cannot overcome, Dr. Willis continues to inspire change by empowering teams to break barriers, strengthen connection, and build healthy work environments. His approach is warm, hopeful, and rooted in the power of community, faith, and lived experience. Through keynote presentations, organizational training, and executive coaching, Dr. Willis equips leaders to change the atmosphere one relationship, one conversation, and one life at a time.