Happiness Habits for Enhanced Employee Engagement and Productivity

Many organizations today struggle with low levels of employee engagement, burnout, and declining productivity. At the core of these challenges is employees’ mental and emotional well-being. When people are stressed, unmotivated, or disconnected, it creates a ripple effect of lower performance, reduced job satisfaction, and higher turnover. The problem isn’t only the work itself—it’s how employees feel about their work and workplace.

Alexia Georghiou knows this firsthand. As an immigrant daughter who grew up in silence with selective mutism, and later as a woman navigating menopause, she faced moments of invisibility, burnout, and identity shifts. Yet in those transitions, she discovered a path to resilience and joy. By cultivating Happiness Habits, she found ways to reframe adversity, embrace authenticity, and build new strength in midlife.

The same principles that helped Alexia find happiness in menopause apply directly to the workplace: when employees learn to regulate stress, nurture their well-being, and connect with meaning, both people and organizations thrive.

The Solution:
Happiness Habits provide a proactive, science-backed approach to improving well-being. Research shows that when employees are happy, they are more engaged, perform better, and build healthier relationships at work. This keynote introduces practical, habit-forming strategies to boost natural endorphins, strengthen resilience, and spark lasting cultural change in organizations.

Participants will learn how to:
Reframe adversity into authentic strength
Lead with empathy, vulnerability, and purpose
Cultivate resilience and joy at work and in life

This session is a roadmap to building engaged, resilient workplaces where both people and productivity flourish.

Get your copy of The Future of Work is Human and the Future of Success is Happiness https://a.co/d/fUvDieg

Strategic Leadership: How to Create the Culture You Need to Manage all of the Changes

Culture by Design: Build the Workplace You Want Turn values into action. Turn action into results. Your culture is shaping your organization—whether you guide it or not.

This training equips you to lead culture intentionally, creating an environment where people feel trusted, valued, and motivated to excel.

Through proven frameworks, including Harvard Business Review’s 8 Types of Organizational Culture, you’ll learn to assess your current culture, identify areas for growth, and implement strategies that drive engagement, belonging, and lasting success.

For all Levels: Emerging Leaders, Mid Level, and Senior Leadership

Take the Online Module Course for 2.5 SHRM PDC for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® https://knoxvillehappinesscoalition.systeme.io/

Speaking REEL SHRM25: https://vimeo.com/showcase/11817177

Selected Speaking History

2025
➸ University of TN Innovative Technologies Symposium-Burnout Prevention and Cognitive Resilience for IT Professionals,1.29.25
➸ Tennessee Conference on Volunteerism and Service-Learning-V.A.L.U.E.S. framework—Vision, Action, Leadership, Unity, Engagement, Synthesis—as a practical tool for enhancing organizational capacity based on empirically proven Positive Psychology practices—2.18.25
➸ United Nations sanctioned University for Peace Executive Education-Costa Rica-speaker 2024 & 2025
➸SOAHR SHRM-Atlanta-Happiness Habits for Enhanced Employee Engagement & Productivity, 3.25.25
➸SHRM TALENT 2025-Nashville-Happiness Habits for Enhanced Employee Engagement & Productivity, 3.26.25
➸DisruptHR-Knoxville,TN-Happiness Isn't a Perk—It's a Habit, 6.5.25– Closing Speaker
➸ SHRM25-San Diego-Empathetic Leadership in Layoffs, 7.01.25
➸ HR TENNESSEE CONFERENCE & EXPO-Nashville-Happiness Habits for Enhanced Employee Engagement & Productivity, 9.10.25

University of Tennessee Leadership and Supervisory Management Certificate Courses— http://bit.ly/3YOSWrf

2024
➸ United Nations sanctioned University for Peace Executive Education-Listening for PEACE March 9
➸Alternative Balance Webinar January 22–Happiness Habits for Practitioners
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9jxQ3hZrEE
➸Udemy Community Champion Webinar: Ask Me Anything on Learning Design July 11th

2021
➸Arkansas PMI—Project Management Institute
➸American Nephrology Nurses Association Annual Conference
➸The 36th Annual San Diego International Conference on Child and Family Maltreatment, Rady’s Children’s Hospital

2020
➸Knoxville Association of Women Executives: https://rumble.com/v25l4ev-live-talk-diversity-of-thought-and-normalization-of-emotions.html
➸Knoxville Accounting and Financial Women’s Alliance
➸TCSW-Tennessee Council of Social Welfare Annual Leadership & Networking Conference

Testimonials

Dr. Shirley Raines, President Emerita, University of Memphis, Speaker, Author, Leadership Development Consultant: “From my experiences with Alexia Georghiou, she is an exemplary leader and a dedicated learner. For example, she became an exemplary community leader as President of the Knoxville Professional Women. Alexia is very bright and took courses at Wharton. Ms. Georghiou also leads in human resource organizations in the area. As an engaging instructor, her virtual and in-person courses are in demand. Alexia's consulting strengths with organizations are in building positive and productive culture and strong teams.”

Lawrence Kitambi, PMP, Vice President - Programs Central Arkansas Chapter
Positives: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
“Alexia, presentation to our PMI Central Arkansas Chapter had good content and insights into practical ways of how to deal with conflicts. The members' response was very positive and as a group of leaders we learned a lot. In general, the delivery was very good, and she was passionate and came across as a high level expert in this field.”

Kathryn Schrader, Founder & Principal Strategic Tax and Business
Positive: Professionalism, Quality, Responsiveness, Value
“Alexia spoke at our Annual CPE Conference for the Knoxville chapter of the Accounting & Financial women's alliance. Her presentation was well organized, interesting and of value to the audience. The reviews of her presentation were excellent. Alexia will be asked to speak again at one of our future events!”

Short BIO— Alexia Georghiou is a keynote speaker on happiness and human-centered leadership, as well as an organizational development consultant who partners with executives to build values-driven cultures that foster resilience and well-being. She is the founder of the Knoxville Happiness Coalition, a SHRM Recertification Provider, and author of The Future of Work is Human and the Future of Success is Happiness, featured at UPEACE Executive Education in Costa Rica, SHRM25, SHRM Talent, the TN HR Conference, and the TECTA East Leadership Conference. Through her V.A.L.U.E.S. Model—Vision, Action, Leadership, Unity, Engagement, and Synthesis—Alexia equips leaders to align performance with purpose. Her writing has appeared in Florida SHRM Newswire, Yahoo News, CultureCon, Alternative Balance, The UT Daily Beacon, Knoxville News-Sentinel and other outlets.

Email for author events/book club meetings ageorghi@utk.edu

Knoxville Happiness Coalition is recognized by SHRM to offer Professional Development Credits (PDCs) for SHRM-CP® or SHRM-SCP® recertification activities.