Meet Dr. Crystal Lawson

Helping Healthcare Organizations Build Leadership Capability That Lasts

Dr. Crystal Lawson is a nationally recognized healthcare leadership strategist, educator, and founder of We Rise Up, LLC, where she partners with healthcare organizations to build leadership systems that develop confident, capable leaders.

Our Story

We Rise Up was ignited by Crystal’s enduring passion to support and develop nurse managers, who she believes are the true core of healthcare—the bridge between strategy and bedside, people and process, mission and execution.

Crystal's passion for leadership transitions began during her own transition into various leadership roles. We a dream to develop a leadership system, she began her doctoral research at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Lawson designed and evaluated a nurse manager transition program within a five-state healthcare system. The study demonstrated significant improvements across every AONL Nurse Leader Competency domain and became the foundation for her later work as Education Director for the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL), where she collaborated with a national team of experts to develop the Nurse Manager Transition to Practice Program.

Building on that work, Crystal joined Ascension, one of the nation's largest health systems, where she led nursing leadership development initiatives and learned firsthand how to scale a leadership programs across a complex national organization. Those experiences shaped her belief that organizations don't just need great leadership classes—they need leadership systems that consistently develop capable leaders.

Today, Crystal partners with healthcare organizations, professional associations, and leadership academies across the country, equipping thousands of nurse leaders each year through keynote speaking, leadership system design, and facilitator-led development programs.

Innovator and Collaborator

Dr. Lawson is one of the creative minds behind the interactive curriculum and development tools used in the MD Anderson Wheeler Nursing Leadership Academy and a top-rated leadership development facilitator with the Advisory Board.

Crystal is also co-founder of RapidIRB, built in partnership with Dr. Alysia Adams, a nurse-founded platform that accelerates exempt IRB approval, helping researchers reduce barriers, retain intellectual property, and move innovation forward.

In 2024, she was honored with the Richard Hader Visionary Leader Award, recognizing her innovation and national impact on nursing leadership.

Rooted in Reality,

Driven by Purpose

Her Mission

Having walked in the shoes of those she now develops, Crystal continues to serve in practice to stay connected to the realities of today’s nurse leaders

—not what happened a decade ago.

She is deeply passionate about serving for those who serve others and believes that excellence in leadership is the foundation of a thriving, resilient workforce.

Known for her genuine, authentic, and real approach, Dr. Lawson has a rare ability to connect with any audience—from groups of 10 to auditoriums of 1,000—making every person feel seen, valued, and capable of growth.

Her presence blends candor, compassion, and clarity—reminding leaders that they are never alone on their journey and that leadership, at its core, is human work.

To elevate, equip, inspire, and empower nurse leaders to be their best—helping them rediscover both their why and their value.

Publications & Recognitions

Cover of a nursing administration journal titled 'INQ Nursing Administration Quarterly' with a subtitle about identifying and dismantling structural inequities and bias in healthcare, edition January-March 2024.

    • Adams, A., Brabham, D., Caufield, C., & Lawson, C. Understanding the Current State of Nurse Leader Social Media Use. Nursing Management. 2026; June; 57(5): 44-48.

    • Lawson, C. Re-imagining 24/7 Accountability: Balancing Leadership Responsibility with Personal Well-Being. Nurse Leader. 2024; December, 688-691.

    • Lawson, C. & Truelove, A. Fostering Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Through the Lens of Gratitude. Nursing Administration Quarterly. 2024; Jan-March.

    • Lawson, C. & Weberg, D. Leading Through Times of Transformation: Purpose, Trust, and Co-Creation. Nurse Leader. 2023; March.

    • Gerardi, D. & Lawson, C. Coaching in Community: Fostering Resilience for Nurse Leaders During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Nurse Leader. 2021; 19(3): 233-238.

    • Lawson, C. Strengthening New Nurse Manager Leadership Skills Through a Transition-to-Practice Program. Journal of Nursing Administration. 2020; 50(12):618-622.

  • • Lawson, C., Hancock, B. & Sweeney, S. Into the Unknown: Taking the Plunge into Virtual Education, NCPD Summit ANCC, Atlanta, GA, 2021.

    • Lawson, C. & Ingram, M. Escaping the Lecture, Viizient Nurse Residency Conference. Savannah, GA, 2018

    • Lawson, C. & Meadows, S. Implementing a Nurse Residency Program, Tennessee Organization of Nurse Executives, 2015

    • Lawson, C. & Downing, J. Reducing Falls: Less is more, Academy of Medical Surgical Nursing, 2016.

    • Lawson, C. Wired to the Workplace, Tennessee Organization of Nurse Executives, 2015.

    • Lawson, C. Increasing Professional Certification for the Clinical Nurse, University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2015.

    • Lawson, C. & Bennett, S. Innovation: September Madness. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2014.

    • Lawson, C. & Bennett, S. Quality and Safety: Fall Prevention and Clinical Alarm Reduction. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2014.

    • Lawson, C. & Anderson, N. Increasing Education Among Patients with COPD. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2013. First Place Award

    • Lawson, C. & Baker, H. Improving Participation and Efficiency in Shared Governance. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2012.

    • Lawson, C. Organizational Change in Scrub Uniform Colors. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2011.

    • Lawson, C. Improving Communication with Other Disciplines and Increasing Time for Nursing Care. University of Tennessee Medical Center, 2010. First Place Award

    • Lawson, C. & Quick, M. Decubitus Ulcer Prevention Project. Nursing Symposium. Las Vegas, NV, 2010.

    • 2024 Richard Hader Visionary Leader Award

    • Chancellors Award for Exemplary Professional Promise

    • Silver Lamp Award

    • American Organization of Nurse Executives – Nurse Manager Fellow

    • Nursing Excellence Leader Award Winner

    • Florence Nightingale Award

    • Nursing Excellence Award

    • QUEST Clinical Leader recognition

    • Co-host Healthcare Rule Breakers Podcast

    • Co-founder RapidIRB

    • University of Tennessee, Center for Executive Education, Role Player for Developmental Leadership Simulation Exercise

      Engage in leadership development with managers and executives from various industries in the public and private sectors. Key skills and responsibilities include developing knowledge of dimensions of leadership behavior through full course of frame of reference training; responding flexibly to fast-paced situational changes in order to elicit behavior, and applying sound professional judgment to determine the appropriate course of action in ambiguous situations.

    • Serve as preceptor to DNP and MSN students

    • QUEST sponsor

    • Clinical Trial Research team for Cystic Fibrosis and COPD

    • Volunteer for Tennessee Promise Program and Tennessee Achieves Mentor

    Professional Organizations

    • American Organization for Nursing Leadership

    • American College of Healthcare Executives

    • American Nurses Association/Tennessee Nurses Association

    • Association for Leadership in Nursing Science

    • Association of California Nurse Leaders

    • Sigma Theta Tau, the national honor society for nurses

Cover page of the December 2020 issue of the Journal of Nursing Administration featuring the journal's title, volume, issue number, and list of article topics, with a colorful abstract background.
Cover of Nurse Leader magazine, June 2021 issue, featuring Deborah Zimmermann, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, smiling and sitting in a home office with a bookshelf in the background.
Two women in business attire smiling and holding a certificate against a black background.
Podcast cover art titled 'the handoff presented by Trusted', episode 33 featuring leadership insights for nurses, with icons for audio, music, and streaming services, and a woman with shoulder-length hair smiling.

Listen in to the podcasts to get to know Crystal a bit better.
Graphic for Healthcare Rise Breakers Podcast featuring photos of two women, Dr. Alysia Adams and Dr. Crystal Lawson, with their titles and affiliations. The graphic has a white background, with the podcast title at the top in black cursive font, and two headshots with descriptions underneath. Dr. Alysia Adams is shown on the left, smiling, with her professional info below. Dr. Crystal Lawson is on the right, also smiling, with her details below.
A logo with a red and gray abstract shape and the text 'The Advisory Board Company'

Partial Client List

Logo of Case Western Reserve University featuring a blue square with a white starburst icon.
University of Florida Health logo with orange and blue text.
Logo of the Association of California Nurse Leaders (ACNL) featuring an outline of California in orange and purple text
PEAK6 logo with stylized mountain triangle in the letter A
Rush University Medical Center logo with green circular symbol and black text
University of Wisconsin Stevens Point logo featuring a purple and gold circular emblem with a white temple and the university name.
Northwestern Medicine logo in blue with large 'M' and the words Northwestern Medicine.
Logo of 'perfect serve' with colorful dots forming a semi-circle.
Logo for Florida Organization for Nursing Leadership, featuring the acronym FONL with a stylized orange and a map of Florida inside the letter 'O'.
Logo with the words 'Practicing Excellence' in white and black text on an orange and gray background.
Logo of the Organization of Nurse Leaders (ONL) with text 'Advancing a culture of health'.
Jefferson Health logo with a profile of a man's head in blue and white, and text reading "Jefferson Health" and "Home of Sidney Kimmel Medical College".
HealthPartners logo featuring abstract green and purple shapes with the company name.
Cedars Sinai logo with red intertwined C's and gray text.