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Balancing Cost Efficiency and Positive Outcomes in Employee Benefits
BY Katie Chambers May 14, 2025As the employee benefits landscape continues changing, it’s important for employers to identify what benefits their workers find most meaningful today. During the pandemic there was a big push for mental health support—and that’s still important given all the cultural and political uncertainty impacting workers in a variety of ways.But now, the physical, financial, and personalized offerings are returning to the forefront. At From Day One’s Boston benefits conference, leaders discussed the benefits that make the biggest impact for their employees. Here are the key takeaways.A Focus on Physical Health“With the advent of GLP-1s and medically assisted weight loss, one of the hottest topics we’re seeing in the industry is around weight management,” said Cody Fair, chief commercial officer at Noom. With GLP-1s, he says, “Think about the member experience first,” in terms of minimizing hurdles and prior authorizations. Consider alternative funding methods to access medications at a reduced cost to the patient through rebates, and add behavior change support in addition to the medication options for long-term success. “We’re [also] seeing a lot of talk around women’s health, specifically around menopause,” Fair said. Generally, he says, people are not just interested in living longer–they want to live healthy longer. Therefore, employers are best served by taking a holistic approach.“As an organization, we focus on the overall happiness of our employees. That’s something that we practice very intentionally as part of our cultural framework. And because of that, we have programs which not only focus on physical health [and] mental wellness, but holistic well-being, which includes even things like financial literacy [and] how we plan for retirement,” said Shahina Islam, VP, HR at Zensar. To increase DEI initiatives for an increasingly diverse workforce, employers can also consider adding benefits for fertility and resources for parents and those involved in elder care, she says.Serving a Large Workforce While Staying on BudgetModerator Rebecca Knight, independent journalist and contributor at Harvard Business Review, notes the challenges of providing adequate benefits to a large, diverse workforce with varying needs while also “staying on budget.” Part of the answer, says Amy Claffey Widell, global benefits director at Akamai Technologies, is identifying point solutions that can cover several areas at once, such as musculoskeletal, fertility, cardiovascular, and cancer, and then being able to prove the cost effectiveness.Leaders shared insight on the subject of "In Employee Benefits, Balancing Cost Efficiency With Good Employee Outcomes"“I’m creating that business case to our senior leaders: if we implement a mental health benefit, we’re going to see a decrease in claims from our medical spend,” Widell said. “[For example], we implemented a point solution three years ago, and we’ve seen a 10% decrease in the claims in our medical plan.”To determine ROI, claims analysis paired with employee feedback is key. Employee surveys can help you understand which benefits employees are using, which they aren’t, what they want and, importantly, what they may not realize is already being offered. HR leaders should remember that the vendors themselves are constantly changing, so it’s important to stay flexible. “Every couple years, revisit the market, see who’s out there, [and] see if you can consolidate vendors,” Widell said. “I don’t necessarily want to have 500 vendors,” as that causes confusion for workers and a headache for HR managers. ROI can’t be pegged to one particular benefit, since wellness itself is holistic. “Look at the cumulative effect of everything you do. Are you managing cost and trend from everything you do, and are you reaching the maximum efficiency on those things you do?” said Scott Kirschner, senior director, global benefits at Greystar.Implementing Digital Solutions“Employees are increasingly looking for a more seamless experience,” Knight said. That’s where technological advances can help, especially when it comes to healthcare and wellness benefits. “With digital care, I’m noticing that we’re really able to take an ordeal that could take three hours and turn it into a 30-minute access thing,” said Dr. Bijal Toprani, senior clinical solutions lead and doctor of physical therapy, Hinge Health. Healthcare apps allow for easy provider follow-up and opportunities for patients to access care outside of traditional in-person office hours, she says.“How are we going to get people to use [a benefit] if they don’t know about it?” Kirschner posited. Digital solutions also offer centralized access to benefits for a workforce that is becoming increasingly dispersed as hybrid and remote setups become the norm. Additionally, Kirschner says, employers should take advantage of the fact that everyone is always on their phones. Place QR codes around the office for employees to scan for benefits, offer webinars to train employees on the benefits portal, send regular text updates with an option to opt-out, and embrace internal email marketing. To meet employees where they are, you might need to get even more creative with your communications. For example, Toprani was able to successfully reach her truck-driving workforce by leaving cards about benefits on their windshields, since they might not regularly check their email. Focusing on Positive Employee OutcomesThe best employee benefits programs take into account the entirety of the population they are meant to serve. For example, even if most of your employees are men, Toprani shares, sending them information about women’s healthcare is important since they may be married or have daughters.For workforces spread across multiple countries, it may be necessary for HR to seek out local vendors for certain benefits. Menopause care in particular, Widell notes, is more accessible in the U.S. but does not yet have prominent global solutions available in other countries. Ultimately, benefits programs are meant to do just that: provide benefits. “Everything that we are doing we need to ensure that we have a very happy and engaged workforce,” Islam said. “Our annual survey has a big section on how employees are feeling valued, and benefits are a big component of that.”Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.(Photos by Rick Friedman for From Day One)
Building a People and Culture Team in a High-Profile Business
BY Ade Akin May 12, 2025Tarsha LaCour didn’t expect transitioning to the Dallas Mavericks in 2018 after a 19-year HR career at telecom giant AT&T to be as much of a stark contrast as it turned out to be. “It was culture shock,” she said during From Day One’s Dallas conference. Performance management processes were largely manual, employee records were kept in file cabinets, and staff frequently put in long hours that weren’t always sustainable. “I walked up to what I thought was our system of records, and someone pointed and said, ‘Those file cabinets over there,’” LaCour described during her conversation with Stephen Koepp, From Day One’s Editor in Chief and Co-Founder. For LaCour, now the Mavericks’ Chief People Officer, this became an opportunity to build an HR function as dynamic as the basketball team on the court. LaCour, along with former Mavericks CEO Cynt Marshall, sat down with every employee to conduct one-on-one assessments, mapping out available skill sets and cultural needs. “We did a compensation analysis to make sure everyone was at or above market,” she said. “And we built out ERGs, learning functions, business partners, everything.”LaCour prioritized staffing and technology to professionalize the HR department. Her first goal was to convince leadership to invest in recruiting, which was no small feat. Once that mission was accomplished, her second goal was layering performance-management, recruiting, and workforce modules onto the existing ADP system. LaCour followed that up by creating a dedicated diversity, equity, and inclusion team, followed by learning-and-development specialists.Championing Wellness and RecognitionLaCour went on to launch the Mavs Vitality Program (MVP) after recognizing the additional burdens game days put on staff, sometimes requiring them to work past midnight. MVP is a holistic wellness initiative that covers multiple areas, from physical and mental health to financial well-being, she says. “We bring in counselors on retainer and offer financial-planning workshops so our young staff can build real wealth,” she said. Alongside the wellness programs, the Mavericks created an annual award banquet based on respect, authenticity, fairness, teamwork, and safety (CRAFTS), where peers nominate and vote for standout colleagues. “We give out over 100 awards by team, then crown one True Maverick,” LaCour said.Leading Through DisruptionFew events have tested LaCour’s change-management chops like the recent trade of superstar Luka Dončić that left fans and employees stunned. “Everyone loved Luka,” she said. LaCour’s counsel to distraught team members was to acknowledge the loss, trust leadership decisions, and stay focused on the business at hand. She coined the acronym ACT (acknowledge, communicate, and trust) to guide decision-making during challenging times. “We empower our leaders with data to make fast, informed choices, rather than wait for C-suite direction,” LaCour said. Tarsha LaCour, chief people officer at the Dallas Mavericks, was interviewed during the fireside chat To stay ahead of changes and disruptions, learning and development has also become a priority. The Dallas Mavericks have embraced an ethos that embraces continuous learning under the guidance of new CEO Rick Welch. LaCour’s team curates OpenSesame courses on their learning management system (LMS), creating mandatory paths for new hires, people managers, and high-potential employees. Mentoring and coaching round out the offerings, ensuring team members gain core leadership skills that are transferable across industries. A Winning CultureUnlike some organizations that waver on their DEI commitments depending on political climates, the Mavericks’ dedication is ingrained in their DNA, LaCour says. “Sports and music unite people from all walks of life,” she added. “So, inclusion is second nature, woven into our policies, hiring practices, and vendor relationships.”The Maverick’s HR transformation underscores LaCour’s belief that winning on the court starts with empowering those behind the scenes. “Our end goal is simple,” LaCour said. “Make this a great place to work, uplift our community, and—yes—win championships.”Ade Akin covers workplace wellness, HR trends, and digital health solutions.(Photos by Steve Bither for From Day One)
Pride Month Without Partners: As June Approaches, Corporate Support Recedes
BY Erin Behrens May 06, 2025As Pride Month nears and WorldPride prepares to mark its 50th anniversary in Washington, D.C., the celebration comes with a question: where did all of the corporate allies go?In years past, brands jumped at the chance to market themselves as allies during Pride Month. Companies like Nike, Target, and Apple poured millions into Pride campaigns, with Pride-themed products, promotional materials, and partnerships. In the month of June, rainbows could be found anywhere you looked, from social media to train cars and store shelves. While Pride had become a major corporate initiative, with Fortune 500 companies sponsoring parades and selling rainbow products, skeptical members of the LGBTQ+ community criticized these efforts as performative, and the term “rainbow-washing” gained traction in media.But this year, as the economic and political landscape has changed, those who doubted the depth of corporate commitment have been validated. Many companies are quietly, or not so quietly, stepping back from their rainbow-filled marketing efforts and broader DEI commitments. “Since Jan. 21, when President Trump signed an executive order calling DEI ‘dangerous, demeaning and immoral,’ companies have treated it like a dietary fad suddenly found to pose mortal health risks,” wrote Bloomberg’s Brad Stone.“I know that they’re facing tough decisions inside those organizations, and I don’t want to call them out,” Suzanne Ford, the executive director of San Francisco Pride, told NBC News. “I want to call them in. We will remember who stood by us and who didn’t. When it was politically popular, they were lined up.” The Growing Shift in Corporate SupportIn New York City, home to an annual Pride March on Fifth Avenue and the host of WorldPride in 2019, companies such as Mastercard, PepsiCo, and Citi have scaled back or withdrawn their sponsorship of this year’s events, reports the Wall Street Journal. “Two-thirds of last year’s NYC Pride sponsors have agreed to renew their sponsorships, but the rest remain in negotiations to return, have scaled back their funding or have said they are not sponsoring this year,” writes Journal reporter Patrick Coffee. Some companies are even asking for their names to be taken off of promotional materials and event merchandise, out of fear of political backlash, says Eve Keller, co-president of United States Association of Prides. “It’s multilayered, and it’s all happening at the same time,” she said.The retreat from advocacy and financial support occurs amid a broader upheaval in the DEI landscape. Resistance to DEI, which has been growing for over two years, intensified when president Trump’s second term launched a crackdown on DEI across the government, academia, cultural organizations, and corporate America. Before the new legal threat, major companies like Walmart, Google, Target, Ford, Lowe’s, and Amazon had already scaled back their DEI efforts. These cutbacks included reductions in DEI spending, labeling, diversity goals, and partnerships with organizations that track DEI progress.But the backlash to DEI advancement has produced its own backlash. The consequences of companies stepping away from DEI are becoming visible. Target’s decision to scale back its DEI program, including support for gay rights, sparked a boycott that has taken a toll on in-store traffic, which dropped 9% in February and 6.5% in March compared to the previous year. While Target is still sponsoring New York City’s annual Pride march, it has taken a quieter, “silent partnership” role, according to Kevin Kilbride, media marketing manager for NYC Pride. The shift is part of a broader trend of companies pulling back from public LGBTQ+ support, which can weaken the visibility and impact that Pride sponsorships are meant to have. Meanwhile, Twin Cities Pride has declined Target’s sponsorship altogether. NBC News reports: “Andi Otto, the executive director of Twin Cities Pride, said he chose to turn down the company’s $50,000 sponsorship because he didn’t like the message it was sending to the LGBTQ community and communities of color.”Marching Forward, With or Without Corporate SupportIn contrast to the pushback, some companies have remained steadfast in their commitment to supporting the LGBTQ+ community. Levi’s, a longstanding ally, has continued its support, with product lines focusing on “queer joy through self expression,” and continued funding for Outright International, a global organization working to advance human rights for LGBTQIA+ people. Ben & Jerry’s, the prototypical progressive brand, has also maintained its visibility, professing LGBTQ+ Rights as an issue they care about. Other brands like Visa and Oreo have implemented and renewed Pride campaigns, emphasizing inclusion even in a more cautious corporate climate.The question now is whether the corporate world will eventually return to the visibility and support it showed in recent years, continue to retreat into quieter forms of advocacy, or withdraw from the conversation altogether. Some in the LGBTQ+ community may not view corporate involvement as essential, but it can signal broader public support and offer a sense of visibility and empowerment, much needed at a time when the Trump administration is slashing funding for research into LGBTQ health. In keeping with its opposition both to DEI programs and gender-affirming care for adolescents, the administration has scrapped “more than $800 million worth of research into the health of LGBTQ people, abandoning studies of cancers and viruses that tend to affect members of sexual minority groups and setting back efforts to defeat a resurgence of sexually transmitted infections,” the New York Times reported this week, based on an analysis of federal data.While the drop in sponsorships and LGBTQ+ supportive marketing is disheartening to the community and its advocates, Pride’s core message remains unchanged. Since the Stonewall Uprising in 1969, Pride has been more than a celebration. It has always been a movement rooted in resistance, liberation, and the ongoing fight for visibility, with or without corporate support.Erin Behrens is an associate editor at From Day One.(Featured photo: Vladimir Vladimirov/iStock by Getty Images)
The Brand Manager’s Nightmare: Is Every Purchase Decision Now a Political One?
BY Bill Saporito April 30, 2025Starting May 12, Avelo Airlines, a budget carrier, is scheduled to begin flights chartered by the U.S. government to fly from Mesa, Ariz., to El Salvador. The Boeing 737s will be carrying not vacationers but people, in shackles, who are being deported, destined for a known hellhole of a prison.Even before the plane took off, Avelo had touched down in a public relations fiasco. Avelo said it was proud to assist the government, yet all but stated that it needed the business. The company is a startup, an Ultra Low Cost Carrier (ULCC) that operates out of secondary airports such as Wilmington, Del. Avelo quickly became the target of a boycott by groups in Delaware, as well as Connecticut and California, where it operates, who accused the airline of transporting people who were being deported without due process. For that same reason, Connecticut’s attorney general, Will Tong, threatened Avelo’s tax breaks and subsidies.A higher-profile company, Tesla, has learned the cost of the controversy created by its CEO, Elon Musk, who spent $250 million to help elect Donald Trump president and then fired tens of thousands of federal workers in his role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).The world’s richest man has lost some $150 billion in wealth this year as shares in his car company continue to fall. Tesla reported that its profits dropped 71% and revenue from car ales declined 20% in the first quarter as customers abandoned a brand once viewed as progressive and eco-friendly. But Musk’s ties to Trump have made the Tesla brand toxic. The used car market is flush with Teslas, as owners abandon the company. Tesla owners who can’t afford to unload them display bumper stickers proclaiming, “I bought this before Elon went crazy.”For other companies caught one way or another in the political crossfire—Target, Anheuser-Busch, Costco—it’s a year that offers lots of bad options concerning brand and reputational risk as America’s politics continue get more strained. And pained.Even America as a brand is in play, the golden door having been slammed shut, the world leader now becoming isolationist. The president of the U.S. dissing Canada, geography’s nicest neighbors, has set off a boycott by Canadian tourists that is already apparent in places like Las Vegas, New York, and Florida. Within this political maelstrom, companies are trying to figure out whether consumers are going to turn every purchase decision into a political one. As for me, I'm just trying to buy paper towels on the cheap. Does my cereal choice really have to be a commentary on the Trump Administration? Can’t a hamburger just be a hamburger? Increasingly, the answer is no.The Hazard of Getting Outside the Brand FitOf all the corporate jobs I wouldn’t want to have right now—other than DEI director—brand manager might be one of them. This used to be a fairly straightforward assignment. If you are in charge of say, Ivory Soap, your job is to make sure the brand speaks to purity, cleanliness and motherhood.But in our over-politicized world, virtue signaling and value signaling can trip over each other. And when they do, there’s trouble. We saw this happen, most spectacularly, when Anheuser-Busch’s Bud Lite brand decided to do a promotion with a transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. There was an actual brand fit—Bud Lite has a longstanding marketing presence in the LBGTQ community, just as it does in deep red areas. And given that Bud Lite had run some pretty insipid creative in the past (and I’m talking about you, Spuds MacKenzie), this promotion should have had a half-life of about 30 seconds.But Bud’s umbrella brand image of traditional American masculinity—all of it pulled by Clydesdale horses—was too much for MAGA America, which staged a loud boycott. Bud Lite’s sales tanked until the company counter-programmed with the reddest of red, white and blue advertising. Gay and trans people are still drinking Bud Lite, presumably, but you are just not going to see that highlighted as much. You can call A-B a coward for being bullied, but brands, and the companies behind them, adjust their identities at considerable peril. Consider what happened to BP, the British oil giant that tried to reposition itself as a green energy company. Then its Texas refinery blew up, revealing the firm’s horrible environmental record. Granted, oil companies did green energy pantomime during the Biden Administration, but they are suddenly oil-and-gas companies again, as opposed to the energy companies.And maybe that kind of honesty is preferable. Resource extraction is a dirty business. If you’re driving a gasoline-powered auto, maybe you shouldn’t expect chlorophyl from a hydrocarbon seller; just fill’er up, shut up, and drive.But if you want to know how to do down-and-dirty, there’s Waste Management, now known as WM, which has managed to raise trash removal to some kind of sacred environmental mission. WM’s communications all but scream, “We love garbage!” It’s a clear corporate statement that shareholders and other constituencies can understand.How Much Leeway Does a Brand Have?A company’s brand or trademark is often explained in terms of permission: What does your brand or logo allow you to offer customers? Being Budweiser gives you permission to market the beer made by a company founded by a German immigrant—that is now part of a Belgian-Brazilian conglomerate—as All-American. But Anheuser-Busch earned that permission over the last 100 years of brand communication. What it doesn’t permit you to do is engage in identity politics, at least not today.And not every brand-marketing failure is caused by controversy. In the 1980s the old-line retailer Sears, Roebuck bought Dean Witter, an old-line stockbroker. The reasoning was that consumers would gladly buy stocks where they buy socks. Because both firms were trusted, went the logic. But people didn’t shop for equities and power tools the same way, wouldn’t you know. Sears had neither mission nor permission to sell stocks.Costco, on the other hand, is an example of a company that had permission from its customers to freely reject the anti-DEI initiatives of the Trump Administration. From its beginning as a membership wholesale club, Costco was green, liberal, worker-friendly and an absolutely first-rate operation. Customers love the place because cheap groceries and merchandising magic are bipartisan. There was no red drain from Costco’s coffers, because the company and its culture were behaving in the way that co-founder Jim Sinegal had executed from the start.Target employees marching in the New York City Pride Parade in 2017. When Target stepped away from its DEI commitments earlier this year, a boycott broke out (Photo by Aneese/iStock by Getty Images) On the other hand, poor Target, the midwestern retailer that’s been a favorite of young families, managed to catch it from both the left and the right by trying to please both. Target’s decision to back away from its DEI program, which included supporting gay rights, infuriated the soccer-mom set as well as Black shoppers. The ensuing boycott has hurt in-store traffic, down 9% in February and 6.5% in March vs. the prior year, compelled CEO Brian Cornell to seek a meeting with Black leaders to try to repair the damage. The company pledged to buy $2 billion from Black-owned suppliers. But not everyone in the community is onboard.Then we’ve got Ben & Jerry’s, where the corporate owner, the Dutch conglomerate Unilever, just fired the CEO for being too political, even though the brand has a stated mandate to be socially progressive. This in the context of Unilever's decision to sell its ice-cream portfolio, which the company carefully assembled and artfully mismanaged. Co-founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield have offered to buy back the company and return the brand to its progressive roots. Set Chunky Monkey free! That might not matter to people who just want some chocolate ice cream. But if you are part of the company and its community, you care a lot, because the politics are part of the culture.That’s why nobody expects Patagonia to be anything but a fierce environmental steward, because that’s exactly the company that Yves Chouinard created. How fierce? In 2021, Patagonia pulled its business from the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort after a then-owner hosted a fundraiser for far-right, which is to say anti-green, Republicans.Essentially, Patagonia fired one of its prestige customers. You might label that decision as extreme, but it’s also an example of a company living up to its culture and mission. Over the long term, there may be way more value in reinforcing the mission than losing a customer.Bill Saporito is an editor at large at Inc. magazine whose work has also appeared in the New York Times and Washington Post. Previously, he worked as an assistant managing editor at Time magazine and as a senior editor at Fortune. He has written for From Day One on the power gap among labor unions, the myth of the “woke” corporation, and the perils of getting technology and people misaligned.(Featured photo: People take part in a protest on March 2025 outside of the Tesla centre at Park Royal in West London, as part of a campaign encouraging customers to boycott Tesla. Photo by Stefan Rousseau/Associated Press)
Calm Amid Chaos: How to Talk to Your Team About Uncertainty
BY Lesley Alderman, LCSW April 22, 2025Life can be unpredictable, and we don’t like it that way.Our brains were designed for certainty. Humans look for patterns in our surroundings to form useful habits and conserve mental energy. Always have: Hunting buffalo in the winter when the animals’ coats are thick. Sowing seeds in the spring before the rains. Buying our lattes from the same reliable coffee shop week after week.These days, a lot feels unsettled: Tariffs on or off? Financial markets up or down? Recession is possible, but who knows? The Trump administration’s disdain for DEI and ESG has upended workplace culture and hiring practices, leaving many employees confused or upset about their company’s values and practices.All this comes at a time when employee engagement is at a ten-year low. Just 31% of workers report feeling engaged, according to a Gallup survey released in January, well before the current administration began its rapid-fire changes. “Economic uncertainty remains a significant drag on the sentiment of workers as tariffs, federal funding and workforce cuts, and general business uncertainty disrupt investment and hiring plans,” wrote Glassdoor’s lead economist, Daniel Zhao in an April report.No kidding. And it could get worse. This just in from the Editorial Board at Bloomberg: “A financial crisis isn’t out of the question.”How can HR leaders and other managers respond? The first thing is to appreciate the physiology. Uncertainty rattles our nervous system. It creates a sense of ambiguity that our minds struggle with. “The stress of uncertainty, especially when prolonged, is among the most insidious stressors we experience as human beings,” said Aiofe O’Donovan, Ph.D., an associate professor of psychiatry at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, back in 2020, when the pandemic was our biggest problem. Now impacting our psyches are the upending of global alliances, accepted health practices, and predictable weather patterns.Some workers are literally cracking their teeth from stress, dentists in Washington, D.C., have discovered recently. Even Slackmojis have taken a very dark turn.When our prediction-seeking brains are challenged with too many plot twists, we tend to feel threatened, scared, and overwhelmed. But there are proactive steps that leaders can take to restore some calm, promote needed focus on work, and reduce the long-term, unhealthy effects. Among them:Validate and EmpathizeHumans need to feel understood. If your workers are quietly panicking and seeking reassurance, let them know that their concerns are normal and understandable. Give them space to talk about their fears and listen to their perspective. You might see more tears during meetings or meltdowns over minor mishaps. When appropriate, remind workers about the resources the company offers, such as EAPs, employee resource groups (ERGs), mental health therapy of all kinds, and even subsidized gym memberships that might give them places to feel supported or just sweat out their anxiety. While being a careful listener may require extra effort, there’s a substantial upside: research finds that workplaces that promote candid communication tend to be more collaborative, have higher morale, and react to layoffs with more resilience.Communicate Regularly, With EmpathyKeep your workers well-informed. During uncertain times, “employees most want information about their job and the organization,” according to research by Kristine W. Powers and Jessica B.B. Diaz, academics at Claremont Graduate University. “They want psychological and instrumental support from their manager and clear, fast, and accurate communication.” If you’re making changes to programs, like DEI, explain why, as candidly as possible. If you’re keeping everything the same, tell them that, too. If your company is using silence to the outside as a strategy, then keeping your internal communications robust is even more important, writes Paul Klein, author of Change for Good: An Action-Oriented Approach for Businesses to Benefit From Solving Social Problems, in a recent Forbes article. “Use this as an opportunity to deepen your team’s understanding of the company’s purpose and impact. Develop internal newsletters, Q&As, and leadership briefings that reinforce your values. Employees are your most credible messengers. They need to know what you stand for, even if the world outside doesn’t hear as much as before.”Be prepared for pushback. Some employees might be upset that you are bending to the current political winds and may quit, rebel, or confront, as the Washington Post reported last week. Think honestly about the impact that might have on morale and staffing issues.Celebrate the ControllablesA powerful antidote to anxiety is agency. Help your workers focus on what is squarely within their control. Praise the value of their work and guide them to new projects or tasks that will give them a sense of mastery. Be clear about what they need to do and let them figure out how they can do it. And don’t be shy about asking for feedback on matters ranging from office layout, meeting scheduling, even party planning. If you have the resources, send out a survey soliciting advice on how a specific system might be improved. When workers feel trusted and see that their feedback matters, they’ll feel like significant members of a team rather than cogs in a wheel.Fact-Check Your Own FearsTo be a good leader, you need to have a grip on your sense of uncertainty. When faced with conflicting and frightening news, it’s common to panic or catastrophize. First, ask yourself, How likely is this to happen or How real is this threat? If your honest answer is likely, then turn to trusted sources. Talk to a good friend, colleague, or manager to gain perspective. If the threat is about the world order, consult well-reported, professional news sites for information rather than random posts on IG, X, or TikTok. One resource to help spot misinformation is Rumor Guard from the News Literacy Project, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching Americans how to discern fact from fiction and dispelling viral rumors.Take Ten—and Commend It to Your Team“Most of us are working with tired brains,” says Amit Sood, M.D., author of The Mayo Clinic Guide to Stress-Free Living. If you're getting caught up in the rapidly changing political rhetoric, take ten-minute breaks during your workday. Treat yourself to micro naps, mini nature walks, or a sound bath on Spotify—anything that will give your tired mind some time to rest and recharge. And please, don’t scrimp on sleep. This is no time to be running on empty. You need to be in good mental shape for yourself and your workers.Model Self-compassion and CuriosityWhile this might sound self-indulgent, research proves that workers who treat themselves with grace rather than punishment perform at a higher level, have less workplace stress, and are better team players. How does this look? Instead of tearing yourself down, ask: “What do I need to overcome this challenge? How can I grow from this experience? What support would help me move forward?” This is the advice of Kristin Neff, associate professor in the University of Texas at Austin's department of educational psychology, and the author of Mindful Self-Compassion for Burnout. And apply the same level of curiosity and kindness to workers who are struggling with uncertainty, burnout, or any type of work challenge.Admit Your Mistakes and Clear the AirLeaders will make mistakes navigating the current unpredictability and they should admit their vulnerability, says Bill George, the former CEO of Medtronic and author of the classic True North leadership books. “Harvard is acknowledging it didn’t control the antisemitism on campus,” he told the Minnesota Star Tribune last week. “So let’s put that one out there. Harvard leader Alan Garber is clearly doing that. I think clearly [CEO] Mary Barra at General Motors, who was trapped with the tariffs, right now is acknowledging some of the mistakes that they made, and they’re trying to adapt to that. So I think we do see many leaders now being more vulnerable. Some are not. They’re afraid of being vulnerable. But I think when you do that, then you kind of clear the air. You have to admit your mistakes. Any leader that won’t admit their mistakes is not a real leader.Keep Track of the Good and the GreatEven during difficult times, one can find positive events and ideas to appreciate. Focus on your accomplishments and help your employees do the same. Robert Waldinger, M.D., author of The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness, shared a humbling story in a recent blog post: “During the An Lushan Rebellion [a major uprising against the Tang Dynasty in China, 755-763 A.D.], amid so much death and destruction, there was a poet who was trapped in a town that was being destroyed. He wrote a poem called ‘The View This Spring.’ The poem is just two lines.” It goes: The nation is destroyed, mountains and rivers remain. When you find yourself consumed by worry, zoom out to the bigger picture. Take stock of your wins and the beauty in your life and world. And help your workers do the same.Lesley Alderman, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and journalist based in Brooklyn, NY. She writes about mental health topics for the Washington Post and has been an editor at Money and Real Simple magazines and a health columnist for the New York Times.(Featured photo by iStock by Getty Images)
Enhancing Employee Mental Health and Wellness Support
BY Tabitha Cabrera April 01, 2025In 2024 the World Health Organization released a report about Mental Health at Work estimating that globally, $1 trillion is lost in productivity each year due to depression and anxiety. Preventing mental health conditions at work is about managing psychosocial risks in the workplace, the study reports.Business leaders should invest resources in training management to not only try and recognize the struggles that employees face but to ask the right questions to provide important resources to employees within their organization. A panel discussion at From Day One’s Salt Lake City conference addressed this very topic. Leigh Stenby, Mountain States health solutions practice leader at AON, highlighted the spectrum and impact mental health can have within an organization. “It’s important to provide yourself, your colleagues and those that you work with resources, training, and access to tools to help folks, because you really never know what they’re going through,” she said.Stenby, shared the story of a client “who was a smart, young, dynamic woman, and we were doing amazing work together, and she ended up having a very severe mental health episode.” Mental health struggles reach a far and wide range of people in different aspects of their life, which can include, situational mental health, such as the loss of a family member, financial stress, or divorce or can be a lifelong battle that some employees may face managing depression and anxiety. Mike Brandt, VP of HR operations, employee and labor relations of L3 Harris Technologies agreed, highlighting how the company creates options inclusive of all. “So as we think about the support networks that our employees have, whether they’re single parents, whether they have family in town or not, whether they have any other network that can help them with their responsibilities outside of work,” he said. The company focuses on providing support for a wide range of employees and also ensuring they know the resources available, and that they are using them.Connie Washington, VP of people and DEI at Progressive Leasing, provides insight into the responsibility of employers. “There’s so much that people are dealing with, and they don’t leave it home. It shows up at work, whether we like it or not. And so, it’s our responsibility, responsibility as leaders and organizations to determine ways that we can support them through the challenges that they face. They’re our most important and valuable asset of an organization,” she said. Sometimes support looks like giving people time and flexibility to focus on things outside of work. AON provides “two global well-being days per year to our employees, and they’re set days, but they don’t align with any other national or religious holidays, and so they are intended for employees to use for their own self care and their own well-being, the whole company shuts down for that day,” said Stenby. Beth Taylor, assistant editor at Utah Business, moderated the panel discussionDallen Allred, co-founder and CEO of Tava Health, emphasizes the importance of a top-down approach to well-being. “I think one of the things that companies can do is demonstrate more vulnerability as leaders,” Allred said.Ryan Schatzer, VP of people services & experience at Intermountain Health agreed: “Frontline managers are so pivotal for the mental well-being of the workforce.” Resources for managers can include Mental Health First Aid, which is a one-day certification course. When employees feel like there is a culture of openness and an ability to be vulnerable without judgement regarding productivity, missed work, or any other number of factors important to employers they may be able to find what they are needing to make their way through whatever mental health struggle the employee is facing. Schatzer shared an impactful story regarding an employee who was struggling with thoughts of suicide and how important it was for the manager to ask the right questions and provide support in that situation. He goes on to highlight the gravity of providing services, support, and openness within an organization, “How do we support the team and families that have gone through or experienced suicide, but on the prevention piece, create a culture, again, a culture of openness.” Finding a way to see the employee sitting in front of you asking for help, either through their words or action, and having the proper training to either ask the right questions or direct the employee to the support they are needing, can greatly impact the workplace but most importantly the individual. Tabitha Cabrera, Esq. is a writer and attorney, who has a series of inclusive children's books, called Spectacular Spectrum Books.(Photos by Sean Ryan for From Day One)
How Employees Can Navigate Digital Transformation While Being Heard, Seen, and Valued
BY Jennifer Yoshikoshi March 28, 2025Extra Space Storage is a self-storage company that has over 4,000 facilities across the United States and employs 8,000 workers. The company has also only had three CEOs since 1977. At From Day One’s Salt Lake City conference, Whitney Harper, SVP of people at Extra Space Storage spoke with moderator Robert Gehrke, a reporter for The Salt Lake Tribune about how the company’s leadership and culture has fostered a work environment that embraces inclusivity, thoughtfulness and has adapted to artificial intelligence.As the nation faces a tumultuous time in politics, the news can be overwhelming and distracting for everyone, especially in the workplace. In order to make sure employees are seen, heard and focused, leaders can incorporate informal and formal strategies, says Harper.Surveys are a common way to check in with team members and get a “pulse check” on engagement, says Harper. Meetings can also give companies insight on how employees feel and what their concerns are.Informally, having conversations while running into people at the office can be a great way to casually connect with others and hear their thoughts. Extra Space Storage has developed a culture of having stairwell chats, while people run into workers from different departments between building floors. Harper also encourages asking the questions of “what’s on your mind?”, “what are you stressed about?” and “what can we help answer?”Showing employees that they are valued is another strategy to creating a thoughtful work environment. “When you have team members that hit a significant milestone, you want to make sure that you are also adequately or appropriately showing up and recognizing and reinforcing and creating kind of that calmness,” said Harper. Extra Space Storage celebrates employee milestones through bonuses. Although they used to send gifts, they found that extra cash was better received by workers. Diversity, equity and inclusion has been a hot topic in the news since the beginning of Trump’s second term. Extra Space Storage has remained committed to DEI efforts since the Black Lives Matters movement following George Floyd’s murder in 2020. The company has adjusted its DEI language to shift more toward inclusion and values because it felt that it more strongly aligned with its authentic self. Balancing the Use of AIWith thousands of employees and a commitment to helping everyone who needs human resource assistance, Harper is a regular user of artificial intelligence programs such as ChatGPT and Galileo, but she emphasizes to “never let AI be the driver.”Harper said AI has helped the company analyze data from employee engagement surveys and produce reports to share with senior leadership with indications that it was AI generated. This data contains a lot of sensitive information and so Harper clarified that she works closely with the cybersecurity team to ensure that these tools are safe. Whitney Harper, SVP of people at Extra Space Storage, was interviewed by Robert Gehrke, reporter at the Salt Lake Tribune during the fireside chatThe company also uses AI in learning and development. It recently launched a new learning management system called Axonify. “Axonify does trainings, but also does daily quizzes, so it can be testing the individual and also asks the individual, what's your confidence level on your answer to this,” Harper said. The AI training system learns about the individual employee the more they use it and helps them advance their skills in a way that is suited for them.Culture From the Top DownExtra Space Storage serves millions of customers with its storage facilities, but how do they transfer its inclusive work culture down to the members of the public?Harper says its unique company culture and business model all stems from the foundation of the company and its mission to maintain a “win-win relationship.” The founder of Extra Space Storage, Kenneth M. Wooley has always worked under the win-win relationship mindset even prior to the creation of the company, says Harper. “If you’re going to go into business with Ken Woolley, he's never going to do a deal that’s not a win-win with you,” she said. This reputation has continued with its second and third CEO.The win-win relationship is now serving its customers through rate adjustments especially when the company acknowledges that rate increases can be stressful. “We empower our team members to do rate adjustments,” she said. “They are empowered to do that so that they can say, ‘I know this customer, I can empathize. I see what’s going on with them. This is not a good time for you to have a rate increase. Let me make that adjustment for you.’”When the company’s culture is embraced by leaders, team members and third party owners, the positive impact of it “cascades throughout the whole organization,” Harper said.Jennifer Yoshikoshi is a local news and education reporter based in the San Francisco Bay Area.(Photos by Sean Ryan for From Day One)
Corporate Empathy: Where It Went and Why It Matters
BY Emily McCrary-Ruiz-Esparza March 19, 2025It certainly seems like a bleak moment to be a worker in America. Scroll the news or social media and a picture forms of an uncaring, turbulent, and miserly workplace.Why is this so striking? Empathy, or the ability to understand and be sensitive to others’ feelings and experiences, became a fashionable trait in business just a few years ago. For a while, employers were getting really good at responding to the needs of the workforce. Some companies even traded on it. Empathy, as well as its more active cousin, compassion, took many forms. As more attention focused on how some demographic groups were often left on the sidelines, employers said OK, let’s find ways to level the playing field, and they set hiring goals and stood up mentorship programs. When Covid lockdown closed schools and day-care centers and quarantined babysitters, companies told workers to take care of their families and welcomed Zoom cameos from kids. When employees needed a reprieve from expensive cities and long commutes, companies converted to remote work and hybrid work. When burnout and loneliness pressed on our minds, employers started footing the bill for therapy.The year 2025 feels really different. Much of change in the weather has to do with what the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency are doing to the federal workforce, gutting it haphazardly and villainizing the civil service—and how companies in the private sector are playing follow-the-leader. Meta appeared to ingratiate itself to the incoming administration by axing its DEI programs. And when President Trump ended federal DEI programs, Google and Amazon ended some of theirs. When Elon Musk fired “low performers” from the federal government, so did Meta and Microsoft. Public sector followed private sector in ending remote and hybrid work. First Amazon, AT&T, and Boeing called workers back to the office in late 2024, and the president did the same on inauguration day. Underscoring the dramatic shift: All of this is happening as we arrive at the fifth anniversary of Covid lockdowns in the U.S. In some ways, all those revolutionary changes to the way we work seem to be dissolving. To be sure, many employers insist that employee well-being is still a priority, but surveys show that most workers aren’t feeling it. According to Gallup, the percentage of employees who believe their organization cares about their well-being plunged to 21% in early 2024. At its peak in May 2020, that figure was 49%.These stories and statistics certainly make it seem like employers are pulling the plug on empathy. But while the big tech and banking companies that have toughened up their workplace policies employ a lot of people, as does the federal government, they don’t employ everyone. Do these stories really reflect what it’s like to be a worker in 2025? Is corporate empathy dead? I started asking around.When the Reality Doesn't Match the MessageAs I was working on this story, Lauren Branston, CEO of the UK-based nonprofit Institute of Business Ethics, sent me an email. “I have been hearing people I trust saying they are seeing more and more ‘campaigns’ saying empathy is bad, etc. Which I find worrying,” she wrote. “People are campaigning against a core human value. We aren’t ready for this as an institution or in society because we have assumed these topics to be settled.”For decades, she later told me in an interview, people have operated with the belief that undergirds much of Western political democracy: that those with power can largely be trusted to use that power for good, and if they don’t use it for good, then accountability, in the form of ethics or regulations, will come for them. Now, it’s not clear whether either of those things is enough to stop the rolling tide.“It’s fundamentally challenging, she said. “It’s a moment where your values and beliefs are shaken, and it’s a moment where you have to sit and recalibrate what’s going on. What you see when people’s values are challenged is engagement and collaboration and connection. People organize and get organized. And I think that might happen.”As a reporter, I talk to senior HR leaders and executives every day, and some of them I know well. It’s clear to me that a lot of these people who work in HR are, as individuals, genuinely concerned about the well-being of their colleagues. And some are really pushing for change.In February, I moderated a From Day One panel of senior talent-acquisition leaders, and all of them were insistent on providing a good candidate experience even as they introduce AI into their hiring process and navigate an unwelcoming labor marketplace. In fact, they were most concerned with finding ways to provide feedback to individual applicants, even those who don’t get the job. Comcast, which might get a thousand applications for a given role, learned that what applicants want most is feedback, so its TA team is finding ways to provide that.But when what the company says is not what the company does, a lot of HR leaders are really troubled by this. Lori Osborne is one of them. She has spent her 20-year career in HR, mostly working for corporations and startups, plus a brief stint with a non-profit organization, before leaving in 2024 to be a fractional CHRO for startups. Hypocrisy is why she left corporate HR, after finding that values and behavior just didn’t add up. Publicly, leadership would say, “‘We want you to go on a run at lunch. We want you to go to your kids’ school play. We want you to do this thing that you have a personal passion for, even though it’s during work hours,’” Osborne told me. But behind closed doors, the same leaders debated whether to promote employees who went on lunchtime runs or left early to make the school play. Taking them at their word was a trap. But this didn’t happen in the new, colder environment, it happened years ago, when it was in vogue to be a support-everyone kind of company. Which tends to confirm the worker suspicion that many companies never believed in empathy at all.What It Feels Like When the Vibe ShiftsEven so, I found employees who wanted me to know that they don’t believe corporate empathy is dead. One of them works in product development at a large, U.S.-based tech company. He wanted me to use a pseudonym—we’ll call him Terry—so he could speak candidly.Terry likes his work, which he says is creative and challenging. He also likes that expectations are clear and good work is rewarded. There have been two rounds of layoffs and a reorganization since he arrived, but Terry believes the matters were handled as well as they could have been.Primarily, he told me, empathy is evident in the fact that executives are so accessible. For two years, and especially lately, employees have asked executives during town hall meetings whether they’ll stick with DEI. The answer has always been yes. They ask whether workers will be called back to the office. The answer is no, remote and hybrid work will stay in place. As far as ratcheting up productivity expectations, the company now attaches bonuses to performance, but Terry doesn’t believe that’s meant to hector workers. It’s just what happens when revenue flattens out.But something weird happened. Recently, Terry’s new boss told him to provide weekly status updates, a requirement that sounds suspiciously close to Elon Musk’s ominous email to federal employees, ordering them to list five accomplishments for the week. I asked Terry, does that give you pause? It does, so he’s going to ask his manager why. Is he not trusted? Many workers may be harboring the same concerns, but aren’t confident enough to speak up. “Senior leadership can’t make people ask questions,” Terry told me, “but they can create an atmosphere where you can ask questions in front of everyone, or silently Slack the leadership.” So that’s what he’s going to do.What Does Empathy Have to Do With Business?It may be worth asking ourselves where we expect empathy in the workplace to come from: the executives in the C-suite who represent the business, or the colleagues we interact with on a daily basis?One employee who was recently let go from the Department of Education wrote on LinkedIn about how her colleagues went out of their way to help when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. One tech worker told me how much their manager was a mentor. Federal workers at the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce have told me how they’re banding together to share resources and support. Go looking for empathy, and you’ll find it.What some employees are getting from their employers cannot be dismissed: bullying and badgering, threats and ultimatums. Really big sticks and no carrots to speak of. People are really angry about layoffs. Most people would agree this is really bad humanity. Some would argue really bad business too.Business Insider’s Aki Ito reported on how Meta’s harsh performance reviews may backfire and damage productivity rather than improve performance. “CEOs may think they’re creating a meritocracy,” Ito writes. “but in reality they’re marching their companies straight into a trap of sunken morale, high turnover, depressed profits, and reduced innovation.”There’s evidence that corporate empathy really does affect dollars and cents. Among my favorite examples is a study by a group of researchers in Switzerland and the UK. They examined 510 CEO conference calls by 448 U.S.-based companies on the Russell 3000 stock index that took place in the earliest stages of the pandemic. They found that the more CEOs made statements, even vague ones, that signaled their human concern for employees, customers, or clients, the better those companies’ stock prices fared when overall share prices plunged in March 2020. The researchers call them “human care statements.”We’ve seen the opposite happen in 2025. Tesla’s stock price has been dropping precipitously, for nine straight weeks. Much of that may be politically inspired, but Musk’s gleeful lack of empathy for workers hit by DOGE cutbacks, with references to wood chippers and chain saws, gained viral infamy.The opposite kind of behavior appears to be demonstrably beneficial and stabilizing. “Follow-up explorations unveiled a negative association between CEO human care statements and stock volatility, meaning that market participants discounted these companies’ future earnings less,” the study reads. “Our explorations suggest that it pays off for CEOs to go beyond mere financial information and show some humanity.”Emily McCrary-Ruiz-Esparza is an independent journalist and From Day One contributing editor who writes about business and the world of work. Her work has appeared in the Economist, the BBC, The Washington Post, Inc., and Business Insider, among others. She is the recipient of a Virginia Press Association award for business and financial journalism.(Featured photo by Miniseries/iStock by Getty Images)
The Secrets to Finding and Retaining Top Talent at a Time of Digital Revolution
BY Jessica Swenson March 18, 2025How can technology organizations attract and keep talent in an industry where employees have countless mobility options?Dan Domenech, interim chief people officer and chief talent officer for Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), spoke about some of HPE’s best practices for recruitment and retention at From Day One’s Houston conference. Sean McCrory, editor-in-chief of Houston Business Journal, moderated the conversation.Even with its enviable attrition rate of 3–5%, HPE’s innovation and growth mean that it is constantly hiring technical, sales, and customer experience roles across 40 countries. Open roles often receive hundreds of applications, even in niche business areas. There is typically a 50/50 ratio between internal and external hires, says Domenech.By embracing technology, the company has boosted its hiring capability and improved the candidate experience. In conjunction with a world-class talent acquisition team and external recruiting partners, HPE pairs the Phenom platform with a robust customer relationship management platform, an application status call center, and chat bots to provide a hyper-personalized digital experience for all stakeholders, says Domenech. Leaders also regularly review candidate feedback data to ensure an exceptional talent acquisition experience.One of CEO Antonio Neri’s top priorities in 2025 is internal mobility. Ten years ago, companies eliminated formal performance ratings to favor more frequent, informal performance management conversations. Unfortunately, this strategy did not give employees what they needed. HPE introduced quarterly success plan conversations to provide regular feedback, assess progress, and learn more about team member aspirations and development plans. The company leverages technology to support this process as well. Employees enter their existing and aspirational skill sets into HPE’s Workday-based career marketplace and use AI tools to be matched with mentors, learning opportunities, and new roles, says Domenech.Sean McCrory, editor-in-chief of Houston Business Journal, interviewed DomenechAnother priority for HPE is leadership development. They ensure that leaders know what is expected of them through a clear framework they call the Four E’s—engage, empower, evolve, and execute. Domenech also revealed a personal passion for promoting psychological safety in the workplace, which was identified in a recent Google study as “the number one characteristic of high-performing teams.” As HPE evolves its leadership model, the company ensures that leaders listen to the employees’ voices, are inclusive, and consider the team members’ best interests in their decision-making processes. Despite the recent trend of companies reversing course on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, Domenech does not anticipate any changes to HPE’s practices. Recently recognized by JUST Capital as America’s Most JUST Company (for the second consecutive year), HPE is a values-based organization that will continue to be unconditionally inclusive of its employees’ diverse backgrounds, ways of thinking, and contributions. “We know that we’re better together,” Domenech said. “We need those differences to thrive and provide that innovation and service to our customers.”A key consideration of HPE’s potential merger with Juniper Networks—beyond the typical risks of any merger—is the integration of Juniper’s 10,000 employees. HPE leadership is already planning how to onboard leaders and assimilate cultures, including an exhaustive culture study. The data shows that the individual cultures are more alike than different, enabling them to integrate the additional talent into existing HPE operations, capitalize on each company’s strengths, and maintain their values-based approach.The advent of AI technology in the organization prompted HPE to establish a governance council that ensures ethical, responsible AI use. Additionally, Neri wants all HPE employees to have what he calls a “minor in AI,” and Domenech’s team has been a key part of this initiative, he says. They collaborated with internal partners to facilitate AI education throughout the enterprise. They are now building a comprehensive training suite to provide more specialized knowledge to technology-focused leaders and teams.With a strong commitment to flexible working arrangements, HPE led by example during the pandemic by shifting to a remote model for anyone whose work didn’t require them to be on-site. The health and safety of on-site teams was paramount, and remote teams were provided the tools they needed to be successful outside the office. HPE has maintained its commitment to flexibility despite Neri’s belief that in-office innovation and collaboration are unmatched. He recognizes that the balance and autonomy afforded by flexible work is crucial to employee satisfaction and retention.When asked for one piece of advice for business leaders who want to retain and engage their existing workers, Domenech replied “It all starts with culture.” He encourages sustained focus on a mission-based culture that makes people enjoy coming to work, feel confident that they will have growth and development opportunities, and know they are a part of something great.Jessica Swenson is a freelance writer based in the Midwest. Learn more about her at jmswensonllc.com.(Photos by Annie Mulligan for From Day One)
Enhancing Workplace Culture by Prioritizing Growth and Engagement
BY Jennifer Yoshikoshi March 11, 2025Six years ago, BMC Software was hesitant to survey employees and gather their feedback, says Lynn Moffett, vice president of human resources at BMC Software. The company didn’t utilize surveys because it didn’t know what to do with the insights. However, with the arrival of a new CEO, the company embraced a shift in approach.The new executive team pushed for a workplace that embraced interactions with employees that boosted the company culture. Since then, surveys have been a critical part of evaluating employee needs and driving improvement.During a panel discussion at From Day One’s Houston conference, executives spoke on how their corporations are enhancing wellness and workplace culture for its employees.Listening to Employee FeedbackSurveys are serving as a great way for companies to gauge how employees feel about their workplace and pushes the needle to bring change and improvements for the whole corporation. BMC Software’s employee survey measured how employees felt about career growth and development and by partnering with a technology vendor, the company was able to analyze the data and develop a sustainable strategy for the company to deploy, says Moffett.The vendor also helped the company understand how BMC’s initiative compared to other organizations. It found that many others are also focusing on career growth for its employees. BMC aimed to use the surveys to empower managers by giving them access to their own feedback and scores, opening up avenues to hold conversations with their employees, Moffett says. Managers were also trained and supported in having these discussions.Adrienne Adeshina, global head of learning and development for Ericsson, emphasized that the important part of utilizing surveys is actually taking action.Richard Robinson, system vice president of employee and labor relations at CommonSpirit Health, added that companies should reflect on whether any changes occurred since the last survey. When creating a survey, it should recognize the current issues at hand.“I emphasize with the leaders to still check in with employees to see if we moved the needle. And if not, is there something else we should start looking at? Because maybe whatever was drawing the issue at that time may not be driving it anymore,” Robinson said.Carver Edison is using survey data and connecting it back to an evaluation of how employees are engaging with benefits and financial programs, says Aaron Shapiro, the company’s founder and CEO.“That actually helps create context around different survey responses so we can help our clients really understand how the two are connected, how employee survey data actually then connects and translates to the decisions people are making,” said Shapiro.Investing in Employee DevelopmentNational University has started a credential-rich pathway initiative which allows students to gain more experience and connections in addition to graduating with a degree.“No longer are we living this three phase life where you go to school, you have a career and you retire,” said Eric Roe, dean and regional vice president for Texas at National University. “You have this multiphase life where you’re moving in and out of education.”National University is one of the first education institutions to embed an industry certifications into its degree program, Roe says. The university has embedded the Google project management and data science certificate. It also partners with companies like Amazon and Southwest Airlines and takes its leadership training program and incorporates it into the university’s initiatives.Nick Baily, CEO and co-founder of From Day One, moderated the session Adeshina says Ericsson has created a four-level learning plan for global critical skills that the company has identified that are used in the organization. Employees are then given the opportunity to focus on growing these certain skills through short term projects in collaboration with their leaders. These projects open opportunities to network, work with new people and experience a day in the life of someone doing the job more related to that skill, says Adeshina.Holistic Wellness: From Finances to Workplace Flexibility While many employers want to provide more financial stability for employees through raises, budgets always cause a barrier, says Shapiro. Financial wellness is a growing topic among corporations as a report from the Federal Reserve shows that “72% of adults are doing at least okay financially,” which is six percent lower than recorded in 2021.People often look for jobs to make more money, therefore employee retention begins to increase when workers are feeling comfortable with their income and not seeking new employment, says Shapiro. In the remote working space, wellness and productivity can either decline or improve with the different initiatives taken by leaders to ensure the workplace culture is still prevalent for remote workers. The National University’s Center for the Advancement of Virtual Organizations recently published a book titled, Winning in the Virtual Workplace, a framework for leaders on how to successfully lead a remote team.“It really starts with a leader centered in the framework around emotional intelligence,” said Roe. “You have to really be able to understand that employee and connect with them, but then you surround that with a structure that supports that remote workforce.”The framework encourages communication through check ins, maintaining accountability and providing positive encouragement. A communication feedback loop has to be developed to keep remote employees engaged, says Roe.The panelists agreed that what they see drives engagement is stability, flexibility, growth opportunities, and connection.The Importance of DEIAs some corporations are rolling back on diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, others are still holding onto its initiatives to make sure that the sense of belonging remains a part of the workplace culture. “Ericsson hasn’t rolled back or changed anything. It’s always been a culture of inclusion and belonging, and that continues,” Adeshina said.Social justice, equity, diversity and inclusion is important for building the next generation of the workforce, says Roe. Supporting DEI helps create a workplace culture where individuals feel valued, respected, and empowered to contribute—an environment that leaders are committed to maintaining.Jennifer Yoshikoshi is a local news and education reporter based in the San Francisco Bay Area.(Photos by Annie Mulligan for From Day One)
How AI is Revolutionizing Hiring Decisions by Focusing on Quality Over Quantity
BY Ade Akin March 06, 2025“We’re in an era where every hire counts,” said Scott Parish, the CEO of Hireguide, a skills-based interview intelligence platform.Parish, a recruitment veteran with deep roots in human resources, organizational psychology, and product strategy, spoke during a thought leadership spotlight at From Day One’s February virtual conference. Parish spoke about how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the hiring process from a subjective, error-prone process that relies heavily on interviews to a science-driven strategy focused on the quality of hiring decisions—a metric TA leaders can control.The Shift From “Quality of Hire” to “Quality of Hiring Decisions”For decades, companies measured TA success through the quality of hires, tracking metrics like performance, retention, and promotion rates. This is a flawed approach to talent acquisition, says Parish. “Quality of hire is like asking, ‘Did you win the poker hand?’” he said. “You can’t control luck, but you can control how well you play your cards.”Parish advocates for focusing on the quality of hiring decisions and prioritizing structured interviews, skill-based assessments, and data-driven evaluations. It’s a critical shift at a time when businesses face tighter budget constraints. “The C-suite knows that improving 100 hires can save millions,” he said. “TA leaders need tools to prove their impact.”AI’s Role in Building Structured, Bias-Resistant ProcessesTraditional hiring processes rely heavily on unstructured interviews, which only predict about 4% of the variance in job performance. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) worsen the issue by storing low-relevance, fragmented data. “ATS platforms track candidates but don’t help you decide,” he said. Tools like Hireguide’s Interview Intelligence software are now used to organize unstructured data, transcribe conversations, align responses to skills-based scorecards, and flag biases. “AI isn’t replacing humans, it’s enabling a process where interviewers ask the right questions, capture the right data, and make decisions rooted in evidence.”One insurance company Hireguide previously worked with reported reduced attrition among new sales hires after using AI to identify traits many managers prioritize, like competitiveness, that did not correlate with job success, says Parish. Instead, traits like “closing details” emerged as the accurate predictor—an insight that would have been hidden in messy interview notes without AI. Addressing Bias and Accuracy: Systems Over TrainingAI doesn’t eliminate bias from the hiring process, but it can be used to create systems that mitigate human biases in real-time. Parish cites Harvard Kennedy School professor Iris Bohnet’s research: “Bias training matters, but it’s not enough. You need process guardrails.”Structured interviews, multiple assessors, and skill-based criteria reduce hiring bias by as much as 30 to 40%, according to Bohnet in her book What Works. AI amplifies this by standardizing questions, anonymizing responses, and ensuring consistency. “If everyone’s scored on the same 10 skills, you’re less likely to favor candidates who ‘feel’ like a fit,” Parish said.Practical Steps for TA Leaders to Integrate AI into the Hiring ProcessParish, the CEO and founder of Hireguide, led the virtual discussion While AI has emerged as a promising tool to streamline the recruitment process, Parish recommends integrating the technology incrementally. “You don’t need a full overhaul,” Parish says. “Start by training interviewers to probe for specific skills—AI can handle the rest.”Start by defining your decision criteria and identifying ten crucial skills for success in the role. Align your interview questions with these criteria to ensure a structured evaluation process. Use AI to generate skill-based interview guides, making interviews more consistent and effective. Instead of relying on handwritten notes, leverage AI to organize transcripts and create scorecards for each candidate. After 100 days, assess how well new hires demonstrate the ten skills identified at the beginning.The Future of Hiring: Predictive Analytics and Merit-Based OutcomesParish says AI will play a more prominent role in the coming years, linking hiring data to performance metrics and creating predictive models that refine hiring criteria. For example, if “problem-solving” scores correlate with 100-day success, that criteria can be given more weight during future interviews. Making AI a part of the hiring process supports programs like diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). “Structured processes let you champion DEI and merit [simultaneously],” Parish pointed out. “You’re not lowering the bar—you’re making the bar visible.”Parish concluded the conversation by reminding TA leaders of their broader impact as the hiring process becomes more scientific. “Interviews are the gateway to opportunity. A fair, rigorous process doesn’t just boost retention—it changes lives.” AI is now helping to widen that gateway, making qualified candidates more visible. Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Hireguide, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Ade Akin is a writer who specializes in the emerging applications of artificial intelligence.(Photo by Parradee Kietsirikul/iStock)
Employee Recognition and Rewards: How Managers Can Be Empowered
BY Carrie Snider March 05, 2025Recognizing employees for their hard work isn’t just about making them feel good, it’s a strategic tool that drives engagement, retention, and workplace culture. But what makes recognition truly meaningful?At From Day One’s Washington, D.C., five panelists explored how managers can be empowered to make recognition personal, timely, and effective. Steve Koepp, co-founder and editor in chief of From Day One, moderated the discussion.When we think about recognition, we often focus on the recipient—how great it will feel for them to be acknowledged. “What we need to remember, and what our data show very clearly, is there’s [also] a benefit to the giver,” said panelist Naomi Dishington, director of consulting and Workhuman. This is why peer-to-peer recognition is so powerful. It creates a ripple effect across an organization, strengthening engagement and shaping culture.“Every time I show up and give a moment or I nominate a fellow worker, I see a benefit,” said Dishington. “I see a boost to my engagement. I want to see what’s going right and call it out,” she said. However, meaningful recognition assumes that managers truly know their people. It requires consistent check-ins, whether weekly, biweekly, or at a set cadence, to understand employees’ preferences, values, and achievements. In a series of reports co-published with Gallup, WorkHuman found that one of the key elements that makes recognition meaningful and impactful is that it’s personalized.Generic awards can miss the mark—or even backfire. “If we don't know our people,” she added, “and we give out a team award and it’s all the same for each one of them, it can almost backfire.” When recognition is tailored, it sends a clear message: You are valued as an individual.‘RICE’ Framework for RecognitionRecognition isn’t just about rewards, it’s about reinforcing behaviors, celebrating achievements, and fostering engagement. That’s where the RICE framework comes in: Rewards, Incentives, Celebrations, and Engagement, according to Julie Gu, vice president of revenue in North America for Prezzee.“If you can make sure that you are rewarding action, then you’re incentivizing behavior. You’re celebrating the moments,” said Gu.The executive panelists spoke about "Employee Recognition and Rewards: How Managers Can Be Empowered"At its core, meaningful recognition has a personal touch. Whether it’s peer-to-peer, manager-to-employee, or colleague-to-colleague, personalization makes recognition more impactful. “The appreciation is what makes you feel good in the moment,” she added. “The personal message is what makes it memorable.”A well-thought-out reward isn’t just about the dollar amount, it’s about the connection behind it. Is it that the company gave an employee $5 towards something they really wanted? Actually, it’s less about the money and more about remembering that your colleagues paid attention to your interests outside of work, says Gu.By integrating the RICE framework and focusing on personal, meaningful recognition, organizations can build stronger, more engaged teams, where people don’t just feel appreciated, but truly seen.Mechanisms for Employee RecognitionLeaders and managers play a crucial role in shaping the workplace. A simple moment of recognition can make a lasting impact. “You are literally shaping someone’s day,” said panelist Boma Anyaogu, vice president of DEI at Compass Group.To make recognition effortless and meaningful, Compass Group has implemented multiple mechanisms, including its Voice of the Customer (VOC) program. “When a customer highlights an employee by name, we make sure that employee sees it,” she said. “We have recognition months so when something goes right, we allow the customer to highlight them. We do kudos, newsletters, and other simple ways to make recognition quick and easy,” Anyaogu said.One of the biggest challenges with traditional recognition programs is timing. Many managers have expressed frustration that recognition can take too long to process, often being saved for the end of a month or quarter. To counter this, Compass Group is shifting toward real-time recognition. “We’re trying to do things where we can capture it in the moment.”Effective Recognition StrategiesPanelist Sunita Braynard, acting head of total rewards at Under Armour, emphasized that recognition doesn’t always have to be monetary. Peer-to-peer recognition, in particular, is a powerful tool because it drives recognition and engagement, making people feel valued for what they do. Whether it’s a small acknowledgment of effort or celebrating moments that matter, recognition should be embedded in daily interactions. Timeliness and specificity are key.“When we say peer-to-peer recognition, we know that it’s more impactful when it’s timely, it’s instant, and it’s specific,” Braynard said. Recognition doesn’t have to be elaborate. Sometimes, a simple message can make all the difference.Companies can structure recognition in various ways, from instant peer-to-peer acknowledgments to more formalized programs. “If the company has a formal recognition program, then you can think about how to assign points to that particular achievement,” Braynard said. While instant appreciation can be as simple as a quick email or a shoutout within a team, larger contributions over time can lead to structured rewards, such as a project-based bonus. “There are multiple ways to do it, but the easiest is to recognize instantly, make it specific, make it meaningful—a heart-to-heart connection that really goes a long way.”Recognition shouldn’t be limited to work-related achievements, she added. Whether celebrating a birthday, a wedding, or the birth of a child, or offering support during a difficult time, recognition fosters a culture of belonging. “It’s about engaging with them so they start feeling that they’re not in it alone—that they’ve got people who have their back.”Diversity in RecognitionAccording to panelist Shabrina Davis, head of diversity learning for AADA talent acquisition at Amazon, flexibility in recognition is essential. “Employees want their leaders to know them and who they are. We shouldn’t have a rigid structure where leadership can’t make changes, adapt, or offer just-in-time recognition.” Instead, companies need to equip leaders with the tools to be adaptable, ensuring they can acknowledge employees in a way that feels personal and meaningful.Listening to employee feedback is another critical component. “Take the surveys and actually listen to the sentiment behind them,” Davis said. “Because if you make a mistake in your recognition system, it backfires.” Recognition should be driven by data and real employee preferences, not just assumptions from leadership.As a global company, Amazon recognizes that effective recognition varies across cultures. “Part of diversity is diversity of thought. The behaviors we reward in America may be very different from the behaviors we reward in China or Germany. A recognition program needs to be localized—we need to reward people where they are succeeding, and that may look different for every person,” said Davis.Beyond performance-based recognition, companies should also support employees in times of crisis. “At the enterprise level, companies can have mechanisms in place to support employees and their families during disasters, whether it’s war, wildfires, or hurricanes,” Davis said. “Giving managers the ability to make those decisions without question shows that you value employees not just for their work or output, but as human beings. That kind of recognition goes a long way in fostering inclusion and belonging.”Employees thrive when they feel valued—not just for their output, but for who they are. Whether it’s a simple “thank you,” a personalized reward, or a leadership-driven initiative, appreciation fosters stronger connections, higher engagement, and a workplace where people want to stay and grow.Carrie Snider is a Phoenix-based journalist and marketing copywriter.(Photos by Justin Feltman for From Day One)
4 Must-Have Talent Retention Strategies for 2025
BY Katie Chambers February 20, 2025Did you know that nearly two thirds of your workforce might be seeking a job elsewhere? A recent study by Achievers Workforce Institute found that 65% of employees have at least one foot out the door. Why? This is, in part, due to the fact that 43% of employees are experiencing at least some burnout, only 28% would recommend their manager to others, and a measly 15% feel their organization does a good job connecting them to colleagues.So, how do you fix it?The last four years have witnessed record levels of resignation and historic labor shortages amid shifting expectations of what work should look like so that it works for employees. In 2025, many organizations will continue to be challenged by economic uncertainty and may not be able to hire their way out of their people problems. At From Day One’s Chicago benefits conference, David Bator, managing director of Achievers Workforce Institute, shared the four must-have research-driven talent strategies that will help engage and retain employees in 2025.Building the Foundation for Talent RetentionBator notes that the buzzwords “engagement” and “experience” are often thrown around by HR. Both are important, but what do they look like in practice? “When I talk about employee engagement, I'm talking about the commitment an employee makes to doing the job that they're paid to do. And by contrast, when I talk about employee experience, I’m referring to the responsibility [of leaders] to create conditions so that folks can be engaged in the first place,” he said. Each is crucial to talent retention.While salary is a piece of the puzzle, Bator says, it’s not enough. Surveyed employees were also greatly swayed by feelings of appreciation, celebration, community, and growth. So, a holistic approach is needed to build a workplace where employees feel empowered and excited to thrive.Here are Bator’s “Four C’s” of talent retention:1.) ConnectionEngaged employees are able to develop and maintain relationships across a diverse network. An Achievers study found that people who say their company supports them in building meaningful friendships at work are 2.4 times more likely to feel a sense of belonging.“Connection is more for a philosophy than it is a series of features,” Bator said. “The fundamental question we need to ask ourselves is, ‘Are we making it easy every single day for our people to access the people, the skills, [and] the resources they need so they can be productive and positive from anywhere?’”David Bator of Achievers led the thought leadership spotlightConnection has a direct impact on an employee’s resilience and adaptability, both of which are critical now in an ever-evolving workplace. A recent Achievers study showed that only 28% of employees felt that they could manage change at work. This was due, in part, to their inability to connect to the organization’s mission, their peers, and their manager, all of which impacts their confidence.To help strengthen the connection between managers and employees, Bator suggests focusing on four key factors of manager effectiveness. First, regular one-on-one meetings provide essential support for employee success. Second, recognizing employees helps them feel valued, and those who receive regular recognition report a stronger connection to their peers. Third, effective coaching offers guidance to help employees improve their performance. Finally, investing in career development supports both personal and professional growth.Leaders can gauge manager success in part, Bator says, by regularly surveying teams to see if they would recommend him or her to others. And, despite recent backlash against DEI initiatives, those too have been proven to strengthen connection. Bator says employees are three times as engaged at companies where recognition efforts integrate diversity and inclusion.2.) Celebration“Frequent recognition has a massive impact on how employees feel about their work,” Bator said. “It's not just about connecting them through frequent recognition to the mission, to their manager, and to their peers, but it’s also about the opportunity to connect them to the behaviors that drive performance. 74% of employees will repeat an action if they are recognized for it.”The effects of recognition are far-reaching, impacting several areas of a worker’s outlook. Bator cited a 2023 research study of more than 5,000 respondents which showed that employees who are recognized weekly are twice as likely to report positive mental and physical well-being; are three times more engaged at work; are five times as likely to feel a strong sense of workplace belonging; and are 10 times more likely to recommend their manager. And these “warm fuzzy feelings” of recognition can be a “protective factor” on business outcomes when it comes to retention, sustainability, and growth, Bator says. 64% of respondents said feeling recognized reduces the desire to job hunt and 73% said it inspires productivity. And when it comes to the bottom line, 54% of employees surveyed remarked that feeling recognized and appreciated reduces the impact of having a salary that is below their expectations.In fact, it’s social recognition, rather than monetary reward, that drives engagement, retention, and productivity, Bator says. While many larger organizations rely on rewards programs, Bator says it’s not the best strategy: “It’s better than nothing, but it’s worse than average.” 71% of employees feel the same people win every year, only half find the rewards to be something of value, and not many are invested in or excited about winning. When asked what they actually want instead, the option with the highest votes was “consistently receiving at least monthly recognition for the impact I’m having in my role,” he said.3.) CompensationFrequent recognition and feelings of belonging increase perceptions of pay. Of course, the ability to adequately house, clothe, and feed oneself is still vital to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs – and all of that requires cash. Offering competitive salaries is well-known to increase the acquisition and retention of high-level talent.When fair compensation is combined with recognition and connection, the results are impactful. More than 70% of employees say being paid market value and being celebrated frequently would strengthen their sense of belonging. But with corporate budgets always tightening, raises are not always possible. Fortunately, Bator says, 52% of employees say feeling meaningfully recognized would outweigh a salary freeze.4.) ChoiceAn Achievers study showed that employees who are asked for feedback four times annually are 50% more engaged and 88% more likely to feel valued. Soliciting comments, critiques, and suggestions is one way to signify that employees are valued and accepted without reservation. The most successful companies, Bator says, promote an inclusive environment where employees feel seen, heard, and respected.This inclusive spirit should infuse every business decision. “The call to action here is to not do more engagement surveys, even though they have utility for the work that we all do, but it's to think about the programs, the products we're trying to take to market, the policies we're rolling out, and where are the opportunities to involve our employees [and] to include them in that conversation,” Bator said.He also notes this does not mean you should just flood your employees with benefits options for health and well-being. They may look good on the surface, but are rarely used. “Participation in those programs hovers somewhere between 21-26%,” Bator said. “So many of the things we build for our people, we build with a supply side focus. Meaning, ‘Here’s all the stuff that's available to you,’ rather than a demand side focus that understands the moments that matter to employees and meets them there. And that’s exactly what choice is all about.”Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, Achievers, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight.Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.
The Demonization of DEI: 10 Questions About What Went Wrong and What Happens Next
BY the Editors February 11, 2025When disaster strikes, the traditional way for leaders to respond is to mourn the victims, praise the first responders, and call for patience while experts figure out the cause. But in America’s culture wars, such forbearance is gone. One common suspect is targeted in calamity after calamity: the pursuit of diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, the relatively recent approach to addressing inequities and structural racism going back centuries in the U.S.The accusations have become reflexive. Anti-DEI activists and politicians have blamed DEI for the tragic airborne collision in Washington, D.C., the California wildfires, a toxic train derailment, a major bridge collapse, the Silicon Valley Bank failure, and more. No evidence has emerged to support those theories, yet the rising chorus of accusations have turned DEI into a radioactive term. The assault reached a crescendo last month when President Trump veered from somber, prepared remarks about the DC tragedy into a half-hour attack on “woke” elements and diversity as the underlying cause. How could he prove the connection? “It just could have been,” he said. “Because I have common sense. OK? And unfortunately, a lot of people don’t.” His supporters have been more explicit, making the case that competent white males have been overlooked in favor of incompetent DEI hires, an alleged pattern of reverse discrimination.While the backlash against DEI has been building for more than two years, the momentum picked up steam when the president launched his second term with a sweeping attack on DEI in the federal government, academia, the scientific community, corporate America, and beyond. Calling DEI “nonsense,” Trump told financial leaders at Davos last month that “America will once again become a merit-based country.”Wielding his executive power over the federal workforce, which employs more than 3 million people, Trump ordered all DEI-focused offices to shut down, put their workers on leave, and ordered them to report any coworkers trying to “disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language.” Failure to do so “may result in adverse consequences,” the administration told workers, which created a prospective new persona: the DEI snitch. Workers were told to scrub personal-pronoun preferences from their email signatures, and the Pentagon announced that the military would no longer “use official resources” to celebrate commemorations like Black History Month.How did the cause of DEI become vulnerable to such vehement and often misleading attacks that even many of its advocates are losing the will to fight? Why are some major corporations backing away from their wholehearted embrace of DEI, while others are sticking to their commitments? Can advocates of DEI learn from its excesses and pursue their principles by other terms or other means? Should the term DEI simply be dropped?These questions need to be energetically explored, since the war on DEI has created a perilous landscape for HR leaders and corporate America in general. Companies will have to balance stakeholder interests, employee expectations, legal vulnerabilities, and their public reputation. They need to consider the impact of their DEI-policy decisions on recruiting and employee engagement, especially among younger and more diverse workforces who may view such retreats as a step backward. As we head into four years of a new administration that’s bent on escalating the backlash, how should HR leaders continue to build inclusive organizations? From Day One asked experts and sampled the latest surge in reporting on the DEI wars. Among the issues:Which employers are backing away from their DEI commitments, and why?In the racial-justice movement that arose after George Floyd’s death in May 2020, corporate America rushed to build programs and put money behind the cause of DEI. Yet within three years, the zeal flagged in the face of a U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down affirmative action in higher education, attacks and lawsuits by anti-DEI activists, and financial constraints. Many DEI advocates questioned whether corporations were ever really committed, but the headwinds became undeniable.And the threats keep growing. Many types of DEI programs could draw new lawsuits accusing them of “illegal D.E.I.,” a term that has caused widespread confusion and has lawyers scrambling to interpret what it might mean. “We’re in a brave new world. People are freaked out,” Jon Solorzano, a lawyer who counsels corporations on DEI, told the New York Times.The trigger effect: Among President Trump’s barrage of executive orders was one that struck down a 1965 executive order by LBJ banning discrimination by federal contractors, which had inspired them over the decades to set up programs favoring marginalized workers and subcontractors. Trump’s executive order tells each federal agency to identify “up to nine potential civil compliance investigations” for companies pursuing such practices, like giving jobs or promotions to specific groups based on their race. No company wants to be among the nine called out.Even before this new legal threat, a parade of household-name companies had publicly dialed back their DEI efforts. Walmart, Ford Motor, Lowe’s, Harley-Davidson, John Deere, Amazon, Google, Target, and others have all announced cutbacks. Among the programs: DEI spending, labeling, diversity goals, and participation with partners who monitor DEI progress. While not long ago companies were often accused of “rainbow-washing,” or being performative about their commitments to DEI, now they’re “rainbow-hushing” by cutting or reframing their DEI programs.Walmart, which employs 1.6 million workers in the U.S., said it won’t renew a racial-equity center that was established through a five-year, $100 million philanthropic commitment from the company. Ford told employees it will no longer participate in an annual survey from an LGBTQ advocacy group, the Human Rights Campaign. After showing little reluctance to support DEI causes in recent years, many corporate leaders now tend to acknowledge that they’re feeling the heat. “We are mindful that our employees and customers hold a wide range of beliefs,” Ford CEO Jim Farley told employees in an email. “The external and legal environment related to political and social issues continues to evolve.”Which companies are sticking with their commitments—and why?Costco, which ranks No. 11 on the Fortune 500 and has more than 300,000 workers, has made headlines by bucking the trend. Its board of directors unanimously urged its shareholders to vote against a proposal by a conservative think tank that would require Costco to issue a report on the financial risks of maintaining its DEI program. The group criticized Costco “for possible ‘illegal discrimination’ against employees who are ‘white, Asian, male, or straight,’” as CNN reported.Costco’s response, in a statement to investors, echoed what many corporations has given as the purpose behind their DEI support: “Among other things, a diverse group of employees helps bring originality and creativity to our merchandise offerings, promoting the ‘treasure hunt’ that our customers value. We believe (and member feedback shows) that many of our members like to see themselves reflected in the people in our warehouses with whom they interact.”Apple, too, pushed back against a similar proposal. DEI hasn’t been a passing fancy for the company. Apple has had a supplier-diversity program since 1993, hired its first VP of DEI in 2017, and among its employees now has 67 “diversity network associations.” Apple said the proposal “inappropriately attempts to restrict” and “micromanage” the company.Speaking at Davos, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, said, “We are going to continue to reach out to the Black community and Hispanic community, LGBT community, and the veteran community. ... Now if you point to something we’re doing that’s wrong, I’d change it. But we’re very proud of what we’ve done, and what we’ve done is lift up cities, schools, states, hospitals, countries, companies, and we’re gonna do more of the same.”Yet it was the National Football League that delivered the most well-timed defense of its DEI programs: on the eve of the Super Bowl. While the NFL had struggled to navigate the politics of Black Lives Matter and earlier social-justice waves, it more solidly committed after the murder of George Floyd. “We got into diversity efforts because we felt it was the right thing for the National Football League, and we're going to continue those efforts because we've proven to ourselves that it does make the NFL better,” the league’s commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters. “We're not in this because it's a trend to get into it or a trend to get out of it.” In terms of hiring decisions, he added, “There are no quotas in our system. This is about opening that funnel and bringing the best talent into the NFL.”Did DEI advocates overreach—and how?While standing up for their basic values, many DEI advocates admit that the cause committed some self-sabotage. “Undoubtedly, there has been ham-fisted DEI programming that is intrusive or even alienating, making workers feel that they are being told what to think or how to feel. But, for the most part, it is a relatively benign practice meant to increase diversity, while also sending a message that workplaces should be fair and open to everyone,” writes Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, a professor of African-American Studies at Princeton, in the New Yorker.Indeed, many experts in the field of corporate training say that part of the DEI backlash was triggered by poorly designed programs and overly righteous practitioners, not core values. “You cannot be inclusive by being exclusive and the way DEI has been operationalized over the last few years gives the appearance of being exclusive, rather than common-sense principles that uplift everyone,” Janine Yancey, CEO and founder of Emtrain, told From Day One.The current DEI movement gained momentum after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020. A memorial to police-shooting victims sprang up near the site of his death in Minneapolis (Photo by Stephen Koepp/From Day One)“The current model of diversity needs a shift,” said Stefanie Christmas, global head of DEI for Inizio, a Dublin-based, life-sciences company. “We’ve defined it too narrowly, associating it only with ‘minorities’ instead of embracing the full spectrum of human differences. This leaves many—especially straight, cisgender men—feeling they have nothing to contribute.”“Decades of research shows clear problems with status-quo DEI,” writes inclusion strategist Lily Zheng in Harvard Business Review. “Despite their widespread prescription, DEI trainings often fail to change bias or reduce prejudice. Popular strategies for communicating the value of DEI can paradoxically both hurt marginalized communities and decrease leadership support for DEI. Common initiatives intended to create better workplaces for all might instead activate backlash, increase burnout, and fail to improve outcomes for underserved groups. DEI needs a reset,” wrote Zheng, who offers a prescription for responding to the backlash.What is the continued rationale for keeping up the fight for DEI programs?Backing up their DEI initiatives, organizations typically have made both a moral case (it’s socially just) and an economic case (it’s good for business), in various measure and emphasis, but always with a sense of inevitability about it. “Saying diversity is dead is like saying gravity is ending. Ridiculous,” said a diversity professional who didn’t want to be quoted by name given the crossfire of the moment. “Ask yourself, ‘Are you building the types of teams that are better for business?’ Managers are underprepared to get the best work out of diverse employees, whether we’re talking about neurodiversity, gender, LGBTQ+, accessibility. Most employers know they need to do and say the right things to keep and attract those new generations. It’s a math problem, a business issue, a growth issue.”Surveys of the workforce indicate steadfast support for DEI issues, despite the blitz coming from Washington. “Continuity of DEI as a value driver in the workplace doesn’t make the news. Pushback is part of the news cycle, but the commitment to DEI endures,” said Ripa Rashid, managing director of Seramount, which advises companies on building more inclusive workplaces. According to Seramount’s nationally representative 2024 survey of more than 3,000 U.S. white-collar and frontline employees across dimensions of diversity, geography, and political affiliation, 76% of employees agreed with the statement: “I am committed to helping my company fight racism and injustice within the organization” and 78% indicated that it is “very important” for their company to be an inclusive organization.The pronounced whiplash in corporate support for the LGBTQ+ community strikes some experts as financially self-defeating. “Inclusion is a driver of the business. Those businesses backing away from their support of the LGBTQ+ community will fall behind their competition who continue to show up for the community, Mita Mallick, author of Reimagine Inclusion: Debunking 13 Myths To Transform Your Workplace, told From Day One. “According to LGBT Capital, the estimated purchasing power of the global LGBTQ+ community is $4.7 trillion. Belief-driven buying consumers are on the rise, and they will continue to vote with their wallet and walk away from brands and companies they feel no longer match their values.”Did DEI programs make any measurable progress toward their own stated goals?Not all that much, at least in numerical terms, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of 13 million workers at S&P 500 companies. In the four years since George Floyd’s murder launched the wave of DEI programs, “the workforces of the biggest public companies have become slightly less white, and Asian and Hispanic employees have made modest games,” reported the Journal. “The picture is more lopsided in the upper ranks of these companies. White men have lost a little ground but still occupy half of all senior manager roles. White women—a bigger focus of corporate diversity efforts before 2020—have experienced the least change since then. The share of senior managers who aren’t white, meanwhile, rose to 26% from 22%.”Amazon, which said in a memo to employees in December, that it’s halting some of its DEI efforts, has one of the most diverse workforces, the Journal noted. With hundreds of thousands of workers in warehouses and other operations, “about 69% of its roughly 1 million workers were people of color in 2023, compared with nearly 67% in 2020,” the Journal said. Though its senior management remains largely white, “Amazon embarked on a pandemic hiring spree and made a push to hire more Black executives into high-level roles. Over four years, the share of nonwhite senior managers nearly doubled, with those of Asian descent rising the most.”And at the top of the C-suite, the number of women CEOs running Fortune 500 companies was at 52 last year, more than double the number of six years ago—and a 2,500% increase from 1998, when only two Fortune 500 companies were led by women. One of the current women CEOs, Citigroup’s Jane Foster, is making a case for sticking with inclusive policies that benefit everybody, such as flexible work schedules and parent-friendly policies.Can DEI programs avoid the flak and focus their mission by changing their terminology?Many companies have shifted from standard DEI terminology to focus more on terms like just inclusivity and belonging, with the implication that no employee is left behind. This is reflected in job titles as well. For example, top leader Mark Brown of Starbucks, who has a background in both talent acquisition and DEI, since 2023 has carried the title of SVP of global talent and inclusion. “We want to represent the communities that we serve, and we want to innovate for all our different audiences,” he told a From Day One audience last year. “And if we don’t have more voices in the conversation and more backgrounds in the conversation, we can’t continue to create a sense of belonging and warmth in our stores, which is core to what we do.”Of course, anti-DEI advocates are wary of organizations doing a rebranding of such efforts without a more wholesale capitulation to dumping DEI, hence the warning from the Trump administration to anyone who might “disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language.”Despite the high-profile statements from famous companies, however, surveys of U.S. corporations taken in recent months indicate that “these programs aren’t dying; they’re morphing,” according to DEI legal experts Kenji Yoshino and David Glasgow, writing in the Los Angeles Times. “The ‘DEI in the dustbin’ narrative is utterly unsupported by the data. The companies that have formally backed away from their diversity programs represent a tiny minority of corporate America. The conservative Heritage Foundation recently conceded that 486 out of the Fortune 500 still have inclusion statements or commitments on their websites,” they write. “This data jibes with our experience as scholars who study DEI. A vast majority of the hundreds of major organizations with which we have interacted over the last year or two are still deeply committed to these values. They are just doing the work more quietly and carefully than before, to avoid unwanted scrutiny and lawsuits.”What can DEI advocates do better, by whatever name they go by?Many DEI advocates assert that workforces and other communities need to dig even deeper into emthathy and brave conversations, rather than retreating into opposite camps based on identity or political affiliation. “If DEI reframes to focus on everyone's consciousness and intentionality—thinking about what each person needs to feel respected and a sense of belonging so they can deliver their best work—that gets the behaviors needed to foster DEI,” said Emtrain’s Yancey.“To create change, we need to highlight—through personal stories and self-reflection— privilege’s sliding scale and the impact of exclusion,” said Inizio’s Christmas. “Once people can understand what it feels like to lack privilege or be excluded, they’re more likely to empathize with other marginalized communities and drive real change.”Are liberals and progressives all on the same page in advocating DEI programs?No, a thoughtful cohort of thinkers and leaders on the left are skeptical of DEI programs, saying they’re a distraction from attacking economic inequality—and sometimes even get in the way. People in this camp “prefer activism that focuses on class rather than racial or gender and sexual identity. They tend to see labor unions and worker-led organizing as a more effective solution to inequality,” writes labor journalist Noam Scheiber in the New York Times.Faiz Shakir, a Democratic activist and former manager of Senator Bernie Sanders’s presidential campaign, told Scheiber that DEI programs often serve to divide the working class and “soften the actual confrontation with corporate power we need in society.” Workplace DEI policies essentially buy off workers on the cheap, he said, adding: “You get a penny for your efforts. A little trinket here or there, that should mollify you.” In that view, DEI is essentially a tool of management, rather than one that empowers employees.What are the stakes in terms of who else is hurt when DEI programs are dropped?The case has been made that the fallout will affect people ranging from women and minority contractors to rural poor communities. In late January, Target announced that it was concluding its three-year DEI goals and its Supplier Diversity team would be renamed Supplier Engagement. Pernell. “The announcement from Target, just a week before the start of Black History Month, hit Black entrepreneurs particularly hard. The company had created an infrastructure that helped Black-owned start-ups even before the 2020 protests, [coffee entrepreneur Pernell] Cezar said, and then set a goal of featuring about 500 Black-owned brands in its stores by the end of this year,” the New York Times reported. Since the entrepreneurs behind such startups tend to have less startup capital and fewer connections than their competitors, “It’s definitely the wild, wild West of the haves and have-nots if you don’t have institutional knowledge,” Cezar said.One of Trump’s executive orders also took aim at “environmental justice,” eliminating positions and assessing spending on projects, including those aimed at poor, rural communities, CNN reported. The order cancelled many financial grants designed to help small communities, including everything from wastewater-treatment plants to tornado shelters for schools in poor communities. The thinking behind such grants is that the effects of climate change fall disproportionately on poor communities. “Environmental justice is not affirmative action. It’s not DEI [to have] the right to breathe clean air, drink clean water and the right to have environmental laws to be enforced equally across the board,” said Robert Bullard, an environmental-justice pioneer.Employers, too, could face legal trouble from abandoning DEI principles by exposing themselves to more discrimination lawsuits by workers, experts said. While reverse-discrimination lawsuits do occur, they’re vastly outnumbered by those filed by members of marginalized communities. “Many common corporate policies that fall under the DEI umbrella, such as auditing pay practices, requiring diverse pools of job candidates, and ensuring that promotions are awarded fairly, are crucial tools for employers to ensure compliance with state and federal laws banning workplace discrimination,” lawyers and other experts told Reuters.Will corporate American start to deny diversity, either as a fact or value?Even the statements by leaders whose companies announced pullbacks in DEI programs seemed to be hedging their bets, from leaders of Tractor Supply Co. to Meta, the parent of Facebook. In a companywide meeting after Meta ended its DEI and fact-checking programs, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sought to reassure his workforce that the company’s values hadn’t changed, despite the new regulatory regime in Washington. “I mean, it’s a little crazy that we need to say this,” Zuckerberg said. “We continue to believe that diversity is a strength.”Reported by Jenny Sucov, independent journalist, and Stephen Koepp, editor-in-chief of From Day OneFor further reading, here's a selection of more than 200 stories on DEI by From Day One.(Featured photo by FG Trade/iStock by Getty Images)
Enhancing Productivity and Creating Relationship Breakthroughs Through Your Total Rewards
BY Jessica Swenson February 06, 2025It’s no secret that employees are key to an organization’s productivity and profitability. Research shows a clear link between engaged, authentic, healthy employees and positive business results. But what can employers do to enhance the employee experience and become a high-performance organization?Ingrid Woolfolk, employee experience lead with WTW, shared insights and next steps in a thought leadership spotlight session about “Creat[ing] Relationship Breakthroughs Through Your Total Rewards” at From Day One’s Chicago benefits conference.WTW helps clients build resilience, inspire their workforces, and optimize performance with data-driven solutions in people, risk, and capital. With over 50 years of insights across industries, they’ve analyzed how employee experience, rewards programs, and company performance are connected.What Makes a Winning Company?To understand what high-performance organizations are doing differently, WTW analyzed results from 16 million surveys completed between 2002 and 2023, including 6 million individual employees from 600 companies in what they call the “post-disruption era” (2019–2023). They compared the employee experience and tracked 9 separate financial metrics across 30 global high-performing companies and 500 average companies.Ingrid L. Woolfolk, the employee experience leader at WTW, led the session Data showed that total rewards are important to employees, even if they don’t use that language. Because of this, it is crucial for companies to understand what employees need and innovate their offerings to fulfill those needs. The three areas that emerged as most important to employees were recognition, growth, and well-being. These three areas also happen to be existing differentiators for global high-performance (GHP) organizations.“Recognition goes beyond traditional monetary rewards,” said Woolfolk. Leading companies prioritize pay equity, transparency, and customized compensation options. They foster loyalty and internal growth by setting clear goals, offering development opportunities, and providing advancement pathways. Comprehensive well-being programs—addressing physical, emotional, social, and financial needs—demonstrate that employees are valued beyond their productivity while removing barriers to engagement.Five Predictions for 2025Based on this research, and requests from existing clients, WTW predicts that companies will pursue the following five focus areas in 2025 to drive performance and elevate their employees’ total rewards experience.Artificial intelligence: Companies are already showing interest in using AI to improve business outcomes and improve the employee experience through enhanced communication, navigation, analytics, and operational efficiency.Spending money where it counts by analyzing employee wants and needs alongside cost and utilization rates to better understand the overall ROI of specific benefits. Subsequent communication campaigns will ensure clear articulation of the total rewards value.Bolstering employee pocketbooks: Woolfolk and team anticipate that companies will seek to improve the affordability of pay and benefits programs, advance employees’ financial acumen and resilience, and enhance retirement offerings. Elevating transparency beyond compliance: Data shows that DEI programs may evolve into broader, more sustainable human capital strategies that promote equity, inclusivity, and pay transparency. These strategies are expected to exceed current compliance standards through new governance models and stakeholder reporting.Double-down on careers by developing career frameworks that align with business goals and support productivity targets while growing and rewarding critical employee skills.Where Can You Start?Woolfolk suggests collaborating with HR and finance partners to assess your current plans. Including the finance team up front can reduce decision-making delays and improve planning. Ensure you have a solid listening strategy so you can collect, analyze, and act upon employee feedback. “Make sure you don’t ask questions that you’re not willing to address,” she said, “because nothing hurts employee morale worse than asking questions and they never hear anything back.”Work with vendors to optimize the design of benefit plans, she says. Take the lead of high-performance organizations by being sensitive to the diverse, evolving needs of your employee populations, including more people in the planning as your organization’s story emerges, and being transparent about what’s next.“Taking action now is really important.” Woolfolk said. Identifying your strengths, weaknesses, and goals is crucial to engaging with the correct partners and building out the rest of your total rewards plan. Any listening strategy or employee survey is not a single event that leads you to high performance. It is a multi-faceted, ongoing exercise, and needs to be blended with a great communication strategy and change management principles.“Combining that change management with that communication strategy is paramount. In order to create the relationship breakthrough, you need that dialogue. You need listening,” said Woolfolk. You need communication that ultimately creates that high-performing employee experience that we all want, to help drive productivity.”Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, WTW, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Jessica Swenson is a freelance writer based in the Midwest. Learn more about her at jmswensonllc.com.
Adapting to Evolving Workforce Expectations: Key Areas for Leaders’ Focus in the New Year
BY Jennifer Yoshikoshi January 29, 2025Looking ahead in 2025, leaders are setting their priorities. At From Day One’s December virtual conference, leaders shared their plans to advance development initiatives with a focus on diversity, inclusion, and artificial intelligence in 2025.As companies progress in developing diversity, equity and inclusion goals, Rebecca Warren, director of talent-centered transformation at Eightfold, says that the DEI objectives will continue to move forward and become more integrated within the workforce.“The general definition of diversity is widening. We’re moving from just focusing on demographic, cultural and social identities to also thinking about abilities and perspective and cognitive capabilities as well,” said Warren.DEI can also be reflected in how companies include and engage with their staff. Laura Mazzullo, founder and owner of East Side Staffing, says that when she spoke to undertrained internal recruiters, they expressed a desire to sit in meetings with HR business partners, executives and be involved with creating plans and strategies.Many employees lack the confidence to pursue their goals because they’ve never been given the opportunity. Companies can address this by fostering inclusivity and developing emotional intelligence and other important soft skills.AI and New TechnologyAI is rapidly evolving within companies, particularly in human resources, where it’s being introduced as a tool for task efficiency. But as Warren points out, its full potential is still unfolding with continued use. As AI advances, leaders face a key question: How can companies balance automation with the irreplaceable human touch?At Hearst, the company hosted a learning program to create a cultural switch in the integration of AI. For 2025, Hearst is planning for more programs to be available for staff to continue their education on AI as well as maintaining and developing human based skills such as empathy, collaboration, communication and leadership.“We absolutely envision an environment where technology and power human skills are working together, because we don’t believe that generative AI is going to replace people,” said Maris Krieger, senior director of talent programs at Hearst Corporation.These learning and development efforts are a result of staff feedback and input, says Krieger. “It wasn’t a corporation doing something behind closed doors. We collaborated. We asked what [staff] needed and what their priorities were,” she said.Investing in Development During Times of ChangeAs the workforce undergoes changes with technological advancements and evolving work expectations, companies need to be prepared to adapt. Especially during times of change, it's important for leaders to be a guiding hand for their team.SiriusXM is actively working on leveling up managers, said Bhavna Sharma, vice president of talent enablement and engagement at SiriusXM. Investing in leadership creates a ripple effect on the company’s culture, employee experience and business outcomes, she adds.SiriusXM began by building a leadership profile that reflected the company’s core values to create a baseline of what it means to be a leader. HR also conducts quarterly conversations and succession plannings to assess not only manager readiness but also identify developmental needs.They also launched SiriusXM University, a curriculum based program that aims to support and cultivate a growth mindset for leaders. Sharma emphasized the importance of empowering managers as career coaches. The program provides leaders with quick training sessions and resources that help boost manager accountability and team collaboration, helping them support their employees.Lydia Dishman, senior editor at Fast Company, moderated the panel about "Adapting to Evolving Workforce Expectations: Key Areas for Leaders’ Focus in the New Year" (photo by From Day One)The company dedicates its training to all employees as well, embracing the idea that career progression can be taken in different ways and that the company encourages everyone to develop their skills.At MiTek, the company will be conducting its first upward feedback manager survey, an assessment of the managers performance. Christopher Rotolo, vice president of global talent at MiTek, says that the feedback from the survey will start off as a way for managers to assess their own development, but after a couple of years the survey data will be used to discuss succession and talent mobility.MiTek also encourages managers to hold Aspiration, Capability, Engagement (ACE) conversations with each of their employees at least once a year to hear about their personal aspirations, capabilities and engagement.Holding one-on-one meetings with employees allows managers to gain a better understanding of how they can support their team.When companies around the world evolve, employees might feel pressure from the change. These new evolutions might look like the recent increase in shifting back to in person work or work expectations changing. In these cases, Warren thinks it's more important for companies to focus on the outcome of the employee’s work, not the amount of hours they put in. Companies should be looking at “skill and performance based metrics rather than focusing on schedules or presenteeism,” Warren said.Sharma says that productivity will increase when companies foster a culture of trust and autonomy. By eliminating micromanagement, employees will be empowered in decision making within their role.At Hearst Corporation, Krieger has witnessed many successes with remote work. Although some companies are encouraging people to return to offices, Krieger emphasizes that in person work is not necessary for successful outcomes. Working a remote or hybrid position also plays into mental health and work life balance, agrees Rotolo.HR can sometimes be resistant to trusting data that shows employees are happier and more productive working from home or with a flexible schedule, says Mazzullo. “We talk so much about tech and AI but you’ve got to actually look at the information and then do something with it,” Mazzullo said. “There’s data there that would allow employees to have the flexibility they want. There’s no reason a company should not be listening to that.”Jennifer Yoshikoshi is a local news and education reporter based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Developing Leaders Who Can Balance Productivity with Individuality
BY Katie Chambers January 14, 2025When Carlos Pardo joined Microsoft 20 years ago as an intern in sales, he knew his ultimate goal was to work in finance. So, he took a gamble and reached out to the CFO, Roberto Palmaka, and asked for a coffee meeting with the note, “I’d love to work for you one day.” Palmaka agreed. One coffee led to two, which led to three, and when a finance opportunity came up, Pardo was top of mind. Now as chief learning officer, Latin America at Microsoft, Pardo is responsible for helping workers navigate their own individual career paths and encouraging leaders to be as generous with their time, expertise, and resources as Palmaka, now a close friend, was to him.In managing a diverse and flexible workforce, today’s leaders need expertise well beyond their technical skills that got them into management roles. How can employers identify and develop leaders with the human insights, confidence and authority to make myriad decisions a day about the people they supervise? How can they set high expectations as well as embracing the individuality of team members? Pardo and other executive panelists tackled these questions at From Day One’s Miami conference.A Culture of Learning and CreativityEncouraging curiosity and professional development can help workers grow in a way that is unique to their own personalities and paths. At Microsoft, this is integral to the corporate values system. “Learning is a celebrated part of Microsoft’s culture and growth mindset,” said moderator Michael Butler, business reporter at the Miami Herald.“We look for everybody to be a learn-it-all versus a know-it-all,” said Pardo. The company promotes this through Learning Days, full days dedicated to professional development at whatever skill an employee chooses. Learning is also integrated into performance management systems, with the goal of having workers articulate lessons learned from both successes and setbacks.Along with encouraging learning, leaders should promote creativity to encourage individuality, in a way that is actionable and sustainable. “Most people think that creativity is about coming up with possibilities. It’s actually not just that. It’s at the intersection of possibility, constraint, and purpose,” said Steven Kowalski, principal, organization & learning evolution at Genentech. He suggests leaders “craft a purpose that’s both meaningful and durable and that has some tension in it.” Embracing Individuality and Fostering InclusionAI can provide transparency and empowerment when it comes to skills matching, career mapping, and professional development, driving employee engagement. Technology can help you understand the skills of current talent or potential candidates and match them with available roles within the organization, says Andrea Shiah, head of talent strategy and transformation at Eightfold. “When you give that transparency, suddenly your employees understand where they can go instead of having to know somebody or [already] understand roles across the organization,” Shiah said. “If you allow your employees to see that, they’re empowered to drive their career in whatever direction they want to go.”The executive panelists spoke about "Developing Leaders Who Can Balance Productivity with Individuality"This kind of transparency also has a marked impact on DEI. “Diversity really rises when it’s no longer who you know, but what you know,” Shiah said. Another way to foster inclusive leadership, says Abbe Partee, VP, head of certified learning and development at DHL Supply, is simple: “Understanding the importance and treating each of our people as humans.” DHL Supply makes this a core tenet of its leadership training program for frontline supervisors. “We’ve got such a diverse group in our workforce today that it’s really important that the people who lead the majority of our population know how to be good leaders and know how to be inclusive. Productivity is great, but that human side is absolutely first,” she said.Today’s multigenerational workforce poses unique challenges and opportunities. “This is the first time we’ve had five generations of people in our workforce,” said Rocki Rockingham, chief HR officer, GE Appliances. “Our frontline managers now need to be retrained and think differently about how they have workers who are Gen Zers or Millennials who want to work differently and who need different things and who have different expectations. When you create a learning environment, it has to be an environment where people learn the way they need to learn.”Supporting Long-term Career DevelopmentThese early career employees are especially invested in career development opportunities, so employers must keep innovating to attract and retain young talent. Partee says DHL Supply offers a platform called Career Marketplace, that shows employees all the training development opportunities and open roles in their area. “We also have extensive talent panels and employee development reviews,” she said. “We spend a lot of time each year talking about people and talking about their careers. How can we help them? How can we sponsor them to make sure that they can have a nice, successful space in DHL?”Genentech offers something similar, called Career Center. “This is founded on two core principles. One is [that] career development is actually part of your job, so you don’t have to sneak there during lunch or after work or before work. And then the career lab is not a place that’s focused on outplacement. It’s about positive internal development,” he said. Career consultants can meet with employees to discuss personalized next steps and guide them through internal learning and development initiatives.Microsoft too, Pardo says, offers internal mentorship programs, both as a way for younger employees to grow and for more senior employees to give back and share their talents. Optional projects are another “really powerful way to allow your employees to learn,” Shiah said, “in addition to just coursework.”Partee notes that junior employees need not just mentorship, but sponsorship. “A sponsor is someone who [speaks well] about you when you’re not in the room,” she said, noting that this is especially crucial for underrepresented groups who might need added support in those behind closed doors conversations. Employee resource groups (ERGs), Rockingham says, help expose diverse employees to those resources and empower them to follow up. “I encourage you [as leaders] to involve yourselves with different groups across your organization, because what it does is it provides exposure on a different level, so that you see people and that people see you,” she said.This all comes down, Kowalski says, to “a spirit of generosity.” Leaders and colleagues should be ready to support other people’s uniquely individual priorities, allowing everyone involved to grow. “To be a sponsor, to be a mentor, to be a coach means, in an organizational context, being generous with your time, with your wisdom, with your intuition, and with your social capital.”Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.
Investing in Employees: A Key to Thriving in Uncertain Times
BY Katie Chambers January 09, 2025Many companies are trying to do more with less. But even as they work with tighter budgets, organizations still want to be able to support employees to boost engagement, increase retention, and promote professional growth. Investing in employees needs to stay top priority, no matter what.What are the most inventive, data-driven and budget-friendly ways to invest in your people, from innovative benefits, recognition, workshops, mentorship, and more? At From Day One’s Miami conference, a panel of leaders spoke about “Investing in Employees: A Key to Thriving in Uncertain Times,” in a session moderated by Paul Bomberger, independent journalist and former business editor at the Miami Herald.Managing Employee WorkloadTraditional ways of thinking about workload, says Ernest Paskey, practice leader, North America at Aon, are rooted in the industrial age, when physical output was key. For knowledge and service organizations, “We have to rethink what is true productivity. Is it the number of hours sitting at a desk? Is it the number of widgets [produced], or is it something different?” Paskey said.Making sure employees understand the “why” behind their work is essential to driving satisfaction and performance. “It’s important that we bring our frontline leaders along the journey of really understanding what the strategy and vision is of the company, and not just focusing on all of the activities,” said Elizabeth Wixted, global head of talent management & DEI for CSL Behring. This also means no busy work—only give assignments that are essential to the mission. “You need to be mindful of the work you’re putting on both yourselves and your teams. Clarity is kindness.”Executive panelists spoke about "Investing in Employees: A Key to Thriving in Uncertain Times"Technological advances that can minimize workload and increase productivity should be embraced, not feared, says Loren Blandon, global head of careers and organizational development at VML. “With generative AI, there are so many things that can be done in seconds that used to take us weeks,” she said.Paskey notes that post-pandemic returns to office are not quite reaching the proper balances yet, with employees spending most of their time on calls and Zoom meetings that could have been done from home, leading to feelings of stress and dissatisfaction. “What will bring them in? It’s [social] time, it’s happy hour, it’s lunch, it’s coffee breaks,” he said. “We need that collaboration and downtime to think through the chaos of our day.” Some panelists suggested using food and organized social gatherings as an incentive to come in, while other panelists said that the opportunity to work remotely can be used as a reward for high-performing employees.Supporting Career DevelopmentCareer development opportunities should come from within, says Dana Moore, VP, HR, people & culture, luxury & lifestyle Americas, IHG Hotels & Resorts, who cites IHG’s mentorship program as one of the central ways the organization invests in its employees. “We have something called a RISE program to put women in leadership, which catapults them through a general manager role, [and] teaches them how to be well-rounded in a general manager position. And we also have a mentorship program just within our discipline [of HR] for new mentees to come in who are looking to excel in their role,” Moore said. “It’s important to have someone to tell you which way you can go, and the things you need to learn to excel.”It’s also important to recognize that not all employees are looking to ascend the ranks, especially in these post-pandemic times when people are less interested in linear or traditional paths. “A lot of folks are no longer looking to their jobs for fulfillment,” said Blandon. But that’s not to say organizations should not still invest in their growth. Even as organizations are “flattening” with fewer managers, Blandon says, employees are still interested in salary increases, building skills, and having interesting, fun, and meaningful experiences.Organizations should respect such employees, says Moore, “because that is the foundation of your company. Those are the irreplaceable employees. They know all the processes, all the procedures. They have the most valuable knowledge that can’t be bought. We owe them some interest and some investment into making sure that they do stay in that role, because they are the ones who build us up and take care of us as we’re going up, hiring managers, and creating new directors.”Bomberger notes the challenging dichotomy of supporting younger generations who value work/life balance over leadership growth, while still ensuring that your organization is primed for evolution and a transition of power. “We have to be really clear in our organizations, in our company, what is ultimately the value proposition, and what do people come here to gain in terms of their career?” Blandon said. “You may be in an industry where you’re like, ‘Don’t come here for balance because it’s super competitive in a really innovative space and we move quickly.’ We have to be clear on what the true, authentic culture is and let folks opt in or out on whether that fits their life or expectations.” That clarity, Wixted says, should start in the job interview—understanding expectations from both sides and how they can or cannot be met.Building Workplace Culture for the FutureUltimately, leaders should set the tone for office culture, be it work/life balance or a return to office. “It’s so important, especially when you think about changing behavior, you have to have the right leadership and sponsorship that’s going to express, model, and reinforce the right behavior. If they’re not expressing or modeling the right behavior, you’re not going to get the outcome that you’re desiring,” said Stacey Finnegan, AVP, people advisory services, Genpact.Going forward, Moore says, “we’re always going to have to be malleable” and ready to respond to the demands and trends of workers. “If you aren’t able to provide what works for them, then they're going to look other places.” This includes developing attractive rewards programs and comprehensive benefits packages that incorporate women’s health, fertility, and family leave options that incorporate multiple generations and lifestyles.In this vein, we all must recognize that the world is constantly evolving. “We’re talking about the key to thriving in uncertain times, and I have to say, when has it ever been certain times? And will it ever be certain times again?” Finnegan said. “I think disruption is the new norm, and we need to embrace the disruption, whether it’s new generations coming into the workforce, whether it’s technology… We’re going to be dealing with this going forward, and all the ambiguity that it brings with it.”Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.
Trust: How to Build Strong and Supportive Relationships on Every Level
BY Katie Chambers January 02, 2025Trust in U.S. institutions has never been lower, according to a recent Gallup poll. But even as institutional trust is on decline, organizations must persist in trying to build it within their workforce and with their customers.Dr. Peter H. Kim, PhD, professor of management and organization at the University of Southern California, and author of How Trust Works: The Science of How Relationships Are Built, Broken, and Repaired has found this dilemma so important that he’s made it the focus of his academic study as a social scientist.“[As a child], I had not lived in one place for more than four years at a time,” Kim said during a fireside chat at From Day One’s LA conference. His family bounced around from Korea to Japan to South America to New York to Chicago. “We just kept moving and moving as my parents tried to build a better life for us. As we entered and exited new communities, I became quite aware of how easily we can inform impressions of one another, and how they can make a marked difference in how we relate to one another.” These impressions, whether at work or at home, can be based on all sorts of things and not necessarily reflect how truly trustworthy we are.As much as companies rely on written rules and official communications, to run well they depend on trust among colleagues. When our trust is broken, or our own trustworthiness is doubted, many of us are left wondering what to do. Dr. Kim, a leading expert in the field of trust repair, reveals the surprising truths about how relationships are built, broken, and restored.Trust Within the Hiring Process“Trust is a psychological state,” said moderator Alison Brower, contributing editor at The Ankler. And it comes down, Kim says, to a willingness to make yourself vulnerable instead of just mitigating risk. “That willingness has to be based on positive expectations of the intentions or behavior of another. And so this takes you away from the idea that you might cooperate for reasons due to incentives. This is based on the belief that the other person should be trusted—[that] they are worthy of your trust.”A lot of Kim’s early studies focused on the hiring process, which requires a balance of trust, transparency, and healthy skepticism as we interact with people we’ve just met. While trust is usually associated with one’s significant other or family, based on years of extended knowledge, “it turns out that most of our interactions are with people we don’t know very well. They’re based on loose ties, loose connections, rather than strong, tight relationships,” Kim said. “And so that’s how we make decisions to trust on a more frequent basis. It’s also how we can gain insight into how trust operates.” Studying looser ties shows just how those gut decisions happen quickly, rather than taking years of relationship history into consideration.“People have much less trust in our institutions now,” Brower said, and that includes workers who are skeptical not only of their employers but of HR professionals. Talent professionals can take steps to engender that trust in themselves and in the company they represent, even during this time of insecurity in the workforce. “One of the most customary approaches to dealing with trust issues is to create systems that ensure compliance,” Kim said. And while those rules may make sense for more “mission critical” aspects of an organization, if overdone they can impede innovation and success. “As organizations grow, they [can] become so bureaucratic that they are not able to get things done.”Dr. Peter Kim signed copies of his book How Trust Works for audience members Kim cites Netflix as an example of an organization that “starts from a position of trust,” eschewing traditional infrastructures such as vacation policies or gift policies. “They have a five-word policy that simply says, ‘Act in Netflix’s best interests.’” And while the company is not, he said, “an idealistic Ivory tower” and doesn’t shy away from firing workers, it does maximize accountability and has certainly seen exponential growth.Beware the Hive MindWorkplaces are essentially one large group, made up of smaller collectives such as departments or teams. Kim cautions workers to “beware the hive mind,” noting that intergroup bias means “we tend to favor our own group, and we are less kind and respectful to members of out-groups. It allows us to nurture and maintain trust very effectively in our group, but that comes at a clear cost: those who are not in our group, we will treat with suspicion.” We are quicker to judge or to attribute blame to those outside the group. “[And] we are more likely to come up with simplistic rationales that will enable us to denigrate everyone in that whole category, whereas in your group, you might see every person as an individual, and deal with them in a much more nuanced way,” Kim said.Group dynamics can exacerbate problems that already exist at an individual level. Leaders can help mitigate this, Kim says, by breaking down group boundaries through multiple group memberships. “So, you're not only part of your own division, but you're also part of another part of the organization, so that you don't have this simple identity that can delineate your own group from others so cleanly,” he said. The more permeable the group connections, the easier it will be for employees to see members of other groups as humans rather than “caricatures.”When it comes to DEI efforts, Kim lauds any attempt at “fairness” but also cautions that fairness can mean different things to different people, in different situations. “How you achieve something is as important as what you try to achieve, and if you don’t pursue that in a nuanced way and get buy-in from all the people who are affected by these decisions, then you’re going to get resistance, and that’s what I see a lot in organizations,” Kim said. “When you believe that you are standing on principle, you become less willing to engage in the dialogue to figure out how to achieve that principle in the face of other principles that other people might also value. It becomes a matter of domination rather than dialogue.”Ultimately, choosing empathy and trust over blame and suspicion will help us strengthen our connections and move our organizations forward. “The story you tell about why things happened is as important as whether that thing happened or not,” Kim said. “It’s made me much more deliberate about the attributions I make, to move beyond the snap judgment, and to be much more careful about how I view the world and other people.”Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, On New Jersey, and CBS New York.
Transforming Employee Value Propositions: The Role of Well-Being
BY Angelica Frey January 02, 2025Well-being means something different to every individual. For Ebony David, VP of HR at Quest Diagnostics, a medical laboratories company, sitting is the new smoking. “[At Quest] we put a meeting in the calendar, tell everyone to put their AirPods in and take a walk,” said David.David and four other executive panelists spoke about “Focusing on Well-Being to Evolve Your Employee Value Proposition,” at From Day One’s Brooklyn conference, in a session moderated by Lydia Dishman, senior editor at Fast Company. Jim Gallic, SVP of well-being at Personify Health, a healthcare solutions provider, has a similar approach. “I work from home, and at the end of the day, I get out, walk around the yard or block, and come back through a different door,” he said. “That’s the break between home life and work life.” In a similar fashion, Ivelesse Mendez-Justiniano, chief DEI and Learning officer at NYC Health + Hospitals, the largest public healthcare system in the United States, follows the company-wide wellness initiatives: this month, it’s adaptive yoga; last month, it was plant-based eating. On the eating front, Katie Egan, general manager of DoorDash for Business, a food delivery and logistics platform, treasures the $20 credit for lunch: she places the order on her way to work, since she is usually booked in back-to-back meetings. “My lunch comes at 10:45—I get up at 5, and I am starving by 11:30, so then I grab my food between meetings, and I am not hangry, which makes me a better boss,” she tells Dishman. Ralph Nader, SVP and U.S. Head of Talent at IPG Media Brands, a global media and marketing services company, thinks that the flexibility behind the return-to-office policies adopted by his organization has been most helpful.Well-Being at Work TrendsIt’s disheartening that, four years after Covid spotlighted burnout and lack of motivation, we’re still navigating how to address these challenges. Yet, research from Gallup and SHRM shows that prioritizing well-being can boost productivity, enhance retention, and reduce absenteeism and healthcare costs. While Covid has been the greatest disruptor when it comes to talking about employee well-being, the conversation has evolved significantly in the last four years as well. “In terms of overall trends, if we look back to 2019, well-being used to be the doorknob conversation; now it’s the starting point,” says Gallic.Smart SpendingA key component is smart personalization. “How do I make it really personal: we did a lot of spending as organizations during the Covid years trying to figure out what worked and didn’t work. Exiting that, we said ‘it might be time to simplify things. How can we consolidate?’” said Gallic.“When it comes to spending money, we all have less to spend,” acknowledges David. “We all put our money where our mouth is,” she said, referring to their 2023 initiative that resulted in employees being able to get mental-health help in one hour if they’re in crisis and one week if they’re not in crisis.Panelists spoke about "Focusing on Well-Being to Evolve Your Employee Value Proposition"“People needed the benefit: when people were calling [to get mental-health services], they were put on hold, so you had people, if not in crisis, nearing it. It’s paying for itself,” she said, framing it as ROI.Mendez-Justiniano speaks in similar terms, with an emphasis on entry-level employees. “We started funding them through education—in the last year, we’ve been able to impact individuals at the very low end of the salary range, and we mentored these individuals, supported them in education, and the results are showing,” she said. “We had service aides that are now nurses, going from $40,000 to six figures. What’s best for the employee is going to have an ROI on our system.”Wellness in an Era of Return to OfficeVery early on in Covid, IPG Media Brands took the anxiety out of return-to-office policies, tabling the conversation altogether until at least 2021. “Then we really focused on the listening, asking what’s going to work, what’s not going to work,” said Nader. Different branches have different needs: tech-centric departments can thrive in remote workspaces, whereas client-services employees might itch to go back to the office.“It was a guideline, not a policy—if it’s enforced with the keycard, it reduces flexibility.” They landed on three days at the office. “We’re hearing from competitors who are going with five days at the office, losing their employees, who are coming to us looking for employment and flexibility.”“Mandates don’t work,” said Gallic. “It did not work when your parents told you to clean your room. What we’re seeing now—employers need to have that conversation, almost leader by leader, to see what works best: let’s be flexible for the work, let’s be empathetic, and let’s make it work.” As a result, his organization’s employees are clamoring for off-sites at their office locations in Providence and Minneapolis.Courageous ConversationThere are a number of best practices for leaders to foster a culture of well-being, and they start with conversations. “Honestly, get to know your team first—being in person helps for that. It does not take a lot of listening to get a sense of someone,” says Egan. “You’re building a product, I am building a program, and the best practices for doing that are the same best practices for a product team.” She recommends defining goals, testing, and iterating. “If it does not work, try something else. That requires a strong degree of collaboration.”Angelica Frey is a writer and a translator based in Boston and Milan.