“Some of the most powerful data in an organization lies in what’s not said, in what goes quietly endured.”

Emilia Yu is Co-Executive Director of the Global Lab for Talent Innovation at Coqual, where she leads the Lab’s research architecture and insight strategy. A quant researcher by training and a systems thinker by instinct, Emilia brings precision, clarity, and deep curiosity to the work of designing workplaces that work—for talent, for business, and for society.

At Coqual, Emilia has led the design of large-scale, multinational studies on workplace culture, leadership effectiveness, trust, talent mobility, and the hidden friction points that prevent organizations from fully accessing and retaining the talent they already have. She serves as the Lab’s methodological lead—crafting complex, mixed-method research that blends survey design, data analysis, and qualitative depth to produce insights that are both practical and provocative.

Emilia is a trusted advisor to senior leaders across industries, helping them translate research findings into strategy, decision-making, and measurable change. She’s a sought-after speaker on topics including:

• >Designing fair and adaptive workplaces
• >The hidden drivers of employee experience
• >Expanding how organizations can identify and support talent

She previously contributed to policy research at the Office of the Manhattan Borough President and provided writing and editorial coaching at the NYU Writing Center. Emilia holds a degree in economics from New York University.

Beyond the Lab, she is an earnest bedroom musician, moonlighter writer, and full-time nerd. She is a seeker of stories waiting to be heard in music, in video games, in the seeming mundanity of daily life. Every insight begins with careful listening, and the best stories begin with the right questions.