Women are nearly half the workforce, but periods, fertility journeys, postpartum recovery, and perimenopause still get sidelined at work. That silence costs careers, companies, and—let’s be honest—humans. Executive coach Laure Goubau joins us to break the hush, connect the dots between health and leadership progression, and show leaders how to build cultures where women don’t have to choose between their bodies and their ambitions.
What you’ll learn
- How women’s health events (burnout, fertility, cancer treatment, peri/menopause) intersect with career inflection points
- Why “go to EAP” is not a strategy—and what integrated support actually looks like
- A simple business case leaders can use to win buy-in (talent, productivity, retention)
- How to spot early, subtle signs of perimenopause and what to track
- Practical ways managers can create psychologically safe conversations—without lowering the bar
- Low-cost culture moves (panels, peer circles, language shifts) that start change now
Key ideas & quotables
- “We’re not asking organizations to lower the bar—we’re asking for support to raise performance.”
- “Treat women’s health and leadership as a Venn diagram—the magic is in the overlap.”
- “Perimenopause isn’t a switch; it’s a slope. Track what’s changing.”
- “If you want talent parity, you can’t ignore the biology shaping talent supply.”
For leaders: do this next
- Educate yourself and your managers on women’s health stages and impacts.
- Audit resources you already fund (EAP, benefits, coaching, flex) and make the path obvious.
- Normalize the convo: add women’s-health panels/brown bags; set language cues (“Thanks for flagging—how can we adjust this week?”).
- Train with scenarios (bias interrupts, private check-ins, resource handoffs, promotion timing).
- Measure quietly: track utilization, retention, promotion rates for affected populations.
For individuals: small moves, big leverage
- Track: energy, sleep, cognition, mood, cycle; bring data to care providers.
- Stack support: medical care + coaching + manager conversation + peer circle.
- Reframe: you’re not “asking for exceptions”; you’re designing how you keep delivering.
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