Palpable excitement reverberated throughout Grace Dodge Hall one evening last fall, when more than 100 Social-Organizational Psychology students, alumni and faculty convened for their marquee event of the year. One of their very own, Monique Herena (M.A. ’17) — a graduate of TC’s Executive Master’s program (XMA) in Change Leadership and the Chief Colleague Experience Officer (CCEO) at American Express — returned to her alma mater for a standing-room only discussion that captured her insider secrets to success, and what it takes to make a difference. 

Herena’s visit and the crowd that rallied around her reflect not only the unique bonds that form within TC’s academic programs, but also the particular strength of the College’s Social-Org Psych community — “serving as active change agents and leaders in their fields,” in the words of President Thomas Bailey, who delivered the gathering’s opening remarks. 

“I’m enormously proud that our program at TC centers [change leadership] as part of our scholarship,” he said, “and also really impacts the health and effectiveness of businesses and organizations around the world.”

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Student Elizabeth Hyde, student Yael Silverstein, Monique Herena, President Tom Bailey, doctoral student Zoë Troxell Whitman, Bill Pasmore, Professor of Practice of Social Organizational Psychology, and doctoral student Nilima Ajaikumar (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Monique Herena (M.A. ’17), Chief Colleague Experience Officer at American Express. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

President Thomas Bailey delivers welcoming remarks. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Monique Herena in dialogue with colleague and fellow Columbia alum Kelly DiBenedetto, Vice President & Colleague Strategic Partner at American Express. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Herena embodies such influence. As a leader helping define the ideals of company culture more broadly, Herena is leveraging the very lessons she learned in TC’s XMA program to challenge traditional ideas about company success. At American Express, the C-suite executive has championed a collegial dynamic that rejects hierarchy in favor of more collaboration and support among teams.  

“You will learn something from every single person you encounter — and others can learn from you,” says Herena, for whom this mantra is among her top pieces of advice for professionals. “You unlock your full potential as a leader when you realize it isn’t about you. The focus needs to be on others. It’s about the organization, your team and helping them deliver strong results and outcomes for our customers and various stakeholders. The faster you figure this out, it will start coming back to you tenfold.”

Herena’s focus is not only on giving back at AmEx, but also at Teachers College. With her husband, Lou, the TC alum established the Herena Family Endowed Scholarship Fund — which has supported 12 Social-Organizational Psychology masters or doctoral students since 2018, including four current students. 

Herena and her family wanted to “give others the opportunities to be inspired by the best research and the best thinkers, and to provide them with tools to become vehicles of change. After meeting many of the Herena Family scholars and receiving personal notes from others, there is no doubt in my mind that this group of amazing future leaders will do just that. It is important to me to give back.”

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(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Debra Noumair, Professor of Psychology and Education and the founding director of the XMA program, and Herena. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert)

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

For Herena, it all began in Wisconsin, where she grew up as the daughter of a high school teacher in a family of Italian entrepreneurs who inspired her work ethic. After supporting herself through college and graduate school, Herena launched her career in human resources — building her career at Quaker Oats, Honeywell and PepsiCo. By the time she started the XMA program at TC, Herena was the Chief Human Resources Officer at BNY Mellon. 

Her classmates at TC were also ambitious professionals across a wide range of industries — a core feature of the XMA program, explains TC faculty member Debra Noumair, the program’s founding director.

“Part of the pedagogical framework is that they learn from each other as much as they learn from the faculty, right? What we're trying to do in the program is simulate what happens out there in the world,” explains Noumair, Professor of Psychology and Education, who sat in dialogue with Herena during her fireside chat last fall. “We want them to be able to learn in community, learn in public, and really offer each other consulting and coaching. Peers are often an underutilized resource in organizations.”

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Debra Noumair, Professor of Psychology and Education, and founding director of the XMA program. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Michael and Monique Herena (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Michael and Monique Herena with President Thomas Bailey. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

(Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

Kelly DiBenedetto of American Express with students from TC's Social-Organizational Psychology program. (Photo: Bruce Gilbert) 

In addition to learning from fellow high-achievers, Herena sought evidence-driven techniques to advance teams and organizations when she embarked on her TC journey. “Human Resources is a balance of art and science, and I needed more research-based methods that I could apply in the real world…My time at XMA was invaluable and took my leadership to the next level — personally and professionally,” Herena says. “I continue to put what I’ve learned into my daily practice. It also reaffirmed that you’re never too old or in too senior of a position to keep learning and that each of us can be a better version of ourselves in the next moment than we are right now.”

Defined by rigor and relevance, the XMA program’s focus on change leadership reflects its critical role in professional success, Noumair explains, and the “transformational” impact that developing as “change leaders” can have on its graduates. 

“They really have a different identity as leaders because of the work that they've done in terms of their own self-awareness, and incorporating academic frameworks and models to really make a difference out there,” says Noumair, who alongside colleague Marina Field is working to build networking relationships among XMA alumni. “How we teach is what we teach. And what we hope is that their experience in XMA gives them some tools and some models for what they can do in their own organization.” 

Herena’s dialogue last fall with AmEx colleague Kelly DiBenedetto was followed by a question-and-answer session, and reception with attendees, who felt “seen, heard” and inspired to “carry Herena’s vision” of more collegial work environments forward.  

“[Our students] had such a meaningful experience. Meeting Monique, hearing her talk about her work directly, and how she tried to link to their research and help to make connections — that was really powerful,” said Noumair. 

Herena’s commitment has led to recruitment efforts from American Express at Teachers College, as the alum continues to shape change leadership for not only her colleagues, but the graduates who will follow her. For them, it’s the clarity of Herena’s advice that makes it so striking.

“Don’t play small,” says Herena. “Do the work, speak up, share your ideas, suggest improvements, make an impact. Think about the best version of you and who you want to become and show up as that version every day.”