Jessica Wagner Keliher is a seasoned HR executive and executive leadership coach across biotech and life sciences, previously serving as Chief People Officer at Cartesian Therapeutics and SVP of Talent Management at Novavax. Her core belief: kindness—practiced with intention—is a leadership advantage under pressure.
Leading change will cost you something—but it doesn’t have to cost you yourself. In this conversation, we unpack how Jess stepped into the head of HR role after a traumatic leadership exodus, co-created mission, vision, and values with the entire company, and learned to protect herself, her energy, and the work while navigating resistance.
We get specific about building your tribe (early adopters and converted skeptics), pre-briefing known critics, and using intentional kindness and relationships to earn the benefit of the doubt in high-stakes moments.
Chapters:
00:00 – The real cost of leading change (why it hurts and how to carry it)
03:00 – The messy moment: leadership exits, new CEO, and an HR rookie in the hot seat
Alexa Beavers: Leading change will cost you something. The real question is whether that cost hardens you or whether you learn how to carry it without losing yourself. Leading [00:01:00] change just isn't about strategy, speed, or execution.
It's about what happens to you when resistance, doubt, and emotion get aimed in your direction. Because when you represent change, it will cost you something. And too often leaders are taught to absorb that cost by toughening up, shutting down, putting on armor, or just pushing through. But there's another way to lead one that doesn't require losing your humanity in the process.
In this episode, I'm joined by Jessica Kellerher, a seasoned HR executive and executive coach who has led organizations through growth, disruption, and deep transformation while showing that kindness practice with intention is what allows leaders to navigate pressure without succumbing to the cost.
organizations across biotech [:
People officer at Cartesian Therapeutics, senior Vice President of talent Management at Novavax, and she's known for balancing big picture strategy with the human reality of change. Jessica champions one core belief that kindness is not a weakness, but a leadership advantage that builds trust, accountability, and resilience under pressure.
Welcome to the show, Jess. So glad you're here.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Glad to be here. Thank you.
Alexa Beavers: Yeah, so we usually just jump right into it, and you and I talked a little bit about messy moments.
So what messy moment are you going to bring us into from your life leading change?
years back, I happened to be [:
A bunch of leaders all left on the same day. It was a very big traumatic moment for that organization. Bring in a new CEO and not long after that, I stepped into the head of HR I was very young. My first time sitting on an executive team and the board of directors, the leadership team, the new CEO, they're all sort of saying, you know, gosh, we really need to turn things around here.
be, that was gonna be a big [:
Alexa Beavers: okay, so you are working for this biotech. You're there on a day and a good amount of the leaders that you have been working with and looking up to are no longer there. All of a sudden you get a new CEO, you're now on, side by side with that CEO as their partner in hr, as the head of hr.
And they're declaring, Hey. The board and I wanna make a cultural turnaround. And you're sitting there and going, what are you going, what was your emotional state at that moment?
t was great, I think it just [:
So I was excited. I didn't know where to go from there, but I was like, Hey, we're gonna do this and it's gonna be awesome and we're gonna figure it
Alexa Beavers: Awesome. So a surge of energy. You're like maybe even, oh, thank goodness. And now I get to be part of this. So there's excitement, some energy. I noticed you were like even putting your hand on your heart. It meant something to you, right?
Jessica Wagner Keliher: yeah. It really did. I cared very deeply about the I felt honored to be able to lead the charge. I was given that opportunity to lead the charge. This was a probably a few years in the making and you never really saw.
ted embedding that in all of [:
Alexa Beavers: We came in at a messy moment and it's undeniably messy to be like sitting there being like, wait, my whole leadership team just turned over and now we're about to do this. And it felt like we hit fast forward already to all the benefits that you guys were able to weave in. What was it like for you?
it, and it's taking all this [:
You're like, oh my God. Like it's, it can, it has its moments of being painful, For sure. Because you, you're gonna have people who are your early adopters, right? And they're gonna, they're gonna be gung-ho and they're wanna do all the things and they're gonna wanna do it. Now, on the other side of the spectrum, you're gonna have your naysayers, if you will, the people that you need spend a little more time with, do a little bit more handholding, pouring into those people a little bit more and a little bit more intentionally, I would say. To bring them along. And, in that process, I think you're building your tribe, It's the people who are your early adopters, but then who is it that's like. not bought into this, that maybe I, if I spend a little more time with that person, I can convert them and then they're gonna say all these great things about what we're doing. And so identifying those people, is really important.
ching certain aspects of it. [:
Alexa Beavers: one thing I love is your energy and enthusiasm and I can hear it in you how much you cared about this work. Would you mind if we rewound and move forward a little bit in slow motion so people can experience what it was like from the time that you said, oh, great, we're gonna start doing this work. Yay. Through the process of. Being a leader in this time can you walk us through a little bit of what it was like for you and what you experienced?
But I think too, I was given [:
We did that several times and I led and facilitated those sessions. I was facilitating sessions with the executive leadership team. So I was given a lot of opportunities to, really step forward, be seen and I'm really grateful for that.
employees to build mission, [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: certainly nerve wracking, There's all sorts of reasons why people doubt themselves in these moments, right? I think I was lucky enough to be surrounded by people who supported me and would help me through those moments, there, there were times where I'm like, okay. I just gotta step off the curb here.
nk it's just about. Building [:
Alexa Beavers: I think showing up for people day in and day out, I feel that there's a lot of passion here, and I also realize that when work becomes your day in and day out and you're in the midst of something that is messy without a manual and very situational, it could have its costs. Were there any costs to being in the spotlight leading this work?
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Oh, for sure. Absolutely. Whenever you represent change, it's gonna cost you something. There were moments I think, early on where I was maybe not so prepared for that I learned as time went on how to be better prepared for that and how to mitigate more appropriately. But for myself, when you are so passionate about something right?
e into this work and people. [:
It wasn't about me personally. And just to better prepare myself, knowing okay, this big announcement's going out. I know so and so is gonna have a major issue with this. Maybe I go talk to them beforehand, or, maybe I can ask them how they, feel about X, Y, and Z and how I might.
How I might structure my communication effort around that. Let me get their opinions on this so smooth those things before they even, present themselves. And so I just learned as I worked my way through it, how to navigate that. But it, it does, it can, when you represent change, you're gonna get all the daggers, everything's gonna be thrown at you and you have to.
You have to be ready for that mentally, and find a place for that to live because that doesn't have to live in your heart and it shouldn't.
eavers: Yeah, this is a very [:
at the same time, if you love it too much, it can consume you or hurt you. So there's a duality here, where's the line of being able to be attached enough, but detached enough?
that becomes easier. So just [:
Alexa Beavers: I love that you said protect yourself, protect the energy, and protect the work. And it sounds like those three things are interdependent. You have to protect them all at the same time, like a little bit of a juggling act. You were thrust into this exciting opportunity that also came with challenges in terms of being the face of change and navigating, when you're.
er things you did to support [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: one of the big things I did I had an executive coach. it's like your therapy at work coaching is such a gift. I always had a coach. And like I said before, you build your tribe. Your sort of support system.
And those can be people that you work with. It can be people outside of work. Mentors, right? If you have people who are more seasoned than you, who you respect and can go to leaning on those people. And I was very lucky through the whole duration of going through that change that I had consultants I was working with.
I had an executive coach, I had people mentoring me. I had a great team internally that supported me, and people who really believed in the work. While I was the face of it, I had a whole team of people that were behind me and helping me navigate it. And trust me, there were moments where I was like, I need you to beat me at the restaurant across the street because I'm bawling my eyes out.
Okay.
hat's a real reality. It's a [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: having a good cry. But then there is also those moments where you're like getting ready to go, walk up on that stage and someone's there with a big smile on and they're like, you're gonna, you're gonna crush this. And you're like, yeah, I'm gonna, I'm gonna crush this.
Alexa Beavers: Yeah. And so you feel it all. I think feeling it and divorcing ourself of our feelings are something that a lot of leaders struggle with. And it sounds like you were able to be with it.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: It's important to just, have those moments. Sometimes you just have to let the magnitude of the moment just have its way with you and like, you've got to let those things just circulate through your system and sit with it for a little bit.
So that you can process it and figure out what it means to you. And again, just coming back to keeping it all in perspective. You get there, but you gotta let yourself go through that process.
he next action item, if that [:
What was the difference between being with the moment and just passing it up?
Jessica Wagner Keliher: I am, , honestly, a person that doesn't often just pass it up. I feel deeply and I think the benefit of that is you learn a lot. You learn a lot about yourself, you learn a lot about the situation. You have time to reflect. I think if you don't do that, like you just, you're missing an opportunity to be authentic and be vulnerable.
And people pick up on that. Especially in this type of work, if you're just glazing over and just going through the motions, it's not gonna mean as much to you and to the people that are alongside you, and the recipients of, of the outputs of the exercise. So I think it's important, not to do that.
lexa Beavers: It sounds like [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Yes. Yeah. Authentically.
Yes. do know when you're editing apart, whether it's your heart, whether it's what you're thinking, whether it's the words they'll know.
Yes, People are very intuitive. And it's unfortunate when we, don't realize or don't give people the benefit of the doubt in terms of how intuitive they are.
Because as leaders you miss a lot and you miss a lot of opportunities, to really deeply connect with people and when you're leading change, I think the connection, that deep connection, that vulnerability, that the relationships you build as part of that process are what make that so powerful.
ep intelligence because it's [:
And I think that you're saying when you can touch onto those things, you have so much more at your disposal to lead through these times.
Yeah. Oh my gosh. Thank you so much for bringing that to light. And I think it's so powerful that you really tap into all of your gifts as a leader and a human. And sometimes that is being a little bit different not what the typical leader might be seen for.
So as you lived these lessons and you really kept your eye on the vision. Tried to keep perspective and then built that support structure around you from an executive coach to people in your tribe as you say that are maybe people that are gonna tell you how it is and tell you're gonna be okay.
. Mentors, people outside of [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Oh my gosh. It's everything.
It's everything . Nobody achieves great things on their own, So I think, because I've built these relationships, I I've been given a lot of opportunities. People have been willing to give me chances. even when I didn't have the experience because I had really strong relationships with people, I think that they were willing to let me give it a go. leaning on the relationships that you have is, it's everything
Alexa Beavers: It sounds like it's a really important part of how you live your life and how you lead. Tell me a little bit about, your, probably it's your natural way of being, building relationships. If you were gonna take a step outside of yourself and watch yourself in action, how do you go about building meaningful relationships that. Allow people to trust you to do things that you might never have done before.
ading with kindness is a big [:
And this is not something that is what people talk about at work.
Alexa Beavers: I was about to ask you, okay, yeah, that sounds nice, but how does that really work? How does it look for you?
non-negotiables? Is it okay [:
I'd like to discuss something with you. so I think it's just about being intentional and kind and wanting to show up in a way that serves that person
Alexa Beavers: So there's another ad. So intentionality and kind and in service of the other, not necessarily in service of yourself.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: That's exactly right.
e questions, some was start, [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: I think the first one is about communication, right? So how do, what's the best way for us to communicate with one another? the questions are important, but also what you do with the answers is probably more important, right?
Alexa Beavers: Talk about that
Jessica Wagner Keliher: So if I say, ah, you can just email me and I just walk away with this, like, oh, well I can just email her, right? So what happens when I email you at nine o'clock at night and I'm expecting you to respond and you don't? so we didn't actually clarify right. What that meant in terms of just email me or if I say, just text me. And I like, I have some sort of expectation when you said that I've got my own internal expectation, how I'm making sense of what you said that I didn't validate with you.
eavers: So be very explicit. [:
Jessica Wagner Keliher: dig deep, get really granular because that's where, first of all, it's gonna lend itself to an amazing conversation that's gonna build trust. Super important. But then you're gonna know, like the moves. You're gonna know all the moves.
Alexa Beavers: How cool is that? I wish I had that earlier in my.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: I know me too. So I think that's one thing. So communication's huge.
I think the points of accountability is another of the three questions. That's a probably a big one
Alexa Beavers: Can you talk about it? Because points of accountability sounds big and hard
to me. So what does that sound like in English? Yeah. Yeah. Give it to me
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Yeah. so I think it's just as simple as saying like, if we ever find ourselves not on the same page, like how do we wanna handle that?
xample. I had a conversation [:
Alexa Beavers: a big jump, I think, from where my head was going.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: but like having that level of okay, just so we know, like in the event that this happens, you are signing on to the fact that it's gonna go in this direction We now expect that from one another. Don't be surprised when I come to you and say, Hey, we have to take this step.
ell, how are we gonna handle [:
Alexa Beavers: And the key here to me is you had that conversation before anything even transpired,
Jessica Wagner Keliher: That's correct.
Alexa Beavers: anything at stake, so to speak.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: That's correct.
Alexa Beavers: That is powerful and I think that points of accountability is, if I was gonna say it in plain speak, let's talk about
Jessica Wagner Keliher: talk
Alexa Beavers: what could go wrong and how we handle it before it does.
Yeah. That's right. That's right. I think that's super important because then at that point, as leader if you're working with your direct report, they're giving you the roadmap of how they wanna be treated,
That's amazing. Yeah. It is like the manual to a person in a way, if they're willing to share with you.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Yeah, that's right.
Alexa Beavers: So there was a third, what's your third?
ything that you need from me [:
Like, how do we wanna navigate those situations? You're gonna have all sorts of examples in your own world of like how those things show up. I would say just be super curious, be honest, about what you can and cannot do, and be vulnerable and just have a conversation about it so you can align. Ultimately, it's all about aligning, so the expectations are clear, they're mutually beneficial, and you both know how you're gonna navigate the relationship.
say something that could be [:
A lot of times, of.
many of us are like gosh, now I have to do that thing. That wasn't where you ended. You said, let's talk more. You did go deep and that's amazing. I think that's so powerful.
Jessica Wagner Keliher: Powerful. Yeah,
Alexa Beavers: Okay. So all these people are gonna be listening to this and saying, ah, I would love to meet her or network with her.
Where can people find you?
Jessica Wagner Keliher: find I think the best way to find me is probably on LinkedIn.
Alexa Beavers: Okay,
Jessica Wagner Keliher: so you can just search Jessica Wagner Kelleher, name on LinkedIn, so that's the best place to find me and I look forward to connecting with as many people as I can.
we'll have how you can reach [:
So today we talked about some amazing things. So many things that really stood out to me. But one of the most important things is as you lead change, tap into all of your intelligence and be willing to share it with others from a point of kindness. Think, listen to your heart, listen to your gut, listen to your head, and then build. A team of folks around you who can help you to navigate the tough times and keep perspective along the way. All wisdom from Jess. So thank you so much today, Jess, for sharing what was on your heart and what was in your head so others can benefit from it today on transformation Unfiltered. And if y'all liked this conversation, I encourage you to listen to others on Transformation Unfiltered anywhere you listen to podcasts. And if you like this, please share it with folks you think could benefit and please subscribe. Thanks so much, Jess. I can't wait till we get a chance to talk again.
