Everlearning: The Key to Your People and Teams’ Growth
BY Christina Cook May 31, 2023In an era of constant change, how can business leaders keep up? Whether it’s collaborating in a hybrid environment, creating policies for the use of AI, or recalibrating benefits packages, leaders are reimagining the post-pandemic workforce. On top of it all, there are still organizational goals to meet. One approach offers a solution: Everlearning. A new way of thinking about learning, evergreen learning empowers individual teams and organizations to develop core competencies and grow their strengths. Everlearning puts learning at the center of every stage of the life cycle. This shift in mindset makes learning easier to absorb and administer, and creates long-lasting positive behavioral changes in individuals and strong company cultures.SkillCycle combines the entire talent and learning ecosystem with performance management, engagement, and goal setting, all into one hub that drives personalized learning paths. At the From Day One May virtual conference, SkillCycle's CEO Kristy McCann said “Everlearning is a culture of initiative, it is not a point in time. It's meant to be evergreen. It’s meant to continue to help with the overall change and evolution of not only your people, but your organization, and to get them where they need to go.” To start, companies need to establish baselines. McCann said, “You need to look at the value that we're seeing within our company goals. It's not just about [accomplishing] a goal, it's about how you get there. And what do those competencies and values look like?”Evergreen learning is successful when applied to the employee life cycle. McCann suggested that leaders can look at where they are hitting the most roadblocks in their hiring process. By identifying these gaps, HR can become revenue drivers because they reduce the turnover rate.Kristy McCann, SkillCycle's CEO, spoke at the From Day One May virtual conference (company photo)When companies begin to take action on changes in company culture, McCann said, “It’s all about instilling that communication, but also making sure that you have the accountability within the organization that is connected to people's goals and roles. I have been doing this in organizations where the turnover has been atrocious. But the minute that we took down the turnover, I was able to yield $10 million in revenue. In addition, because we brought down that turnover cost, people have the skills they need to do their job, and we are able to succeed within our overall revenue. This is how you get the buy-in from your leadership team. Drive it from an overall revenue perspective as to what you can do and what you can yield.”Evergreen learning can then be tied to goals, and then tied to the accountability, competencies, and the values within an organization. McCann said, “You're never going to learn everything all at one time. It's going to be constant, even with everything that's going on with AI, and ChatGPT. If we don’t have the skills to do our job, this technology will not be an enablement, it will just be another distraction. We saw this happen within social media. Social media killed critical thinking and inference skills. These powerful and durable skills of empathy, situational leadership, change management, communication, and collaboration are at the heart of everything that we need to do. And if they're at the heart of everything that we need to do, it's going to yield that profitability.”This perspective also measures success versus how many employees left and how much money was lost. Instead, goals and benchmarks are forward-looking. McCann said, “When you're trying to put in an everlearning culture that has a growth mindset, often what hinders organizations is their accountability factor is gone. So we want to make sure that we're providing that evaluation of progress consistently, and how it yields savings.”Often, business leaders are hindered by budget concerns. McCann reiterated that this is where measures and accountability become important. As companies launch cultural changes, every HR initiative should be attached to the company’s bigger picture. She said, “Numbers are going to be your beacon. Engagement is going to be your beacon. Feedback and measurement [are] going to be your beacon. Showing the results of how the company is succeeding is going to be your beacon.”Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, SkillCycle, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight.Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
How HR Leaders Can Focus on the Whole Lives of Workers–and Boost Productivity Too
BY Christina Cook May 25, 2023More than a year out since the onset of the Great Resignation, business leaders are still adapting to seismic changes in the workforce. Workforce talent is demanding empathy, flexibility, and respect for their personal lives, while HR leaders are focused on productivity and retention. Leaders are faced with the challenge of creating structure and expecting strong performances, while still honoring the individual needs of their employees.At the From Day One conference in Dallas, Associa’s Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, Chelle O’Keefe, said “leaders can focus on the whole person by really knowing who your employees are. Supporting the whole employee isn’t about offering everything to everyone. It’s about identifying the key needs of our employees, and making sure that the benefit offerings speak specifically to who they are and what they need.”While HR leaders are eager to support their company’s talent, CFO’s might have a more tempered response. Thinking about whole-person health may seem like an added cost, especially now with an uncertain market. Liz Pittinger, head of customer success at Stork Club, offered insights into how benefits can actually reduce costs for self-insured employers.First, Pittinger said, “If you’re going in front of the CFO, you need to know the key concepts that are going to draw them in. You need to know your data points. And if retention isn’t your overarching strategy, it should be, given the Great Resignation.”On average, it costs a company 1-2 times the leaving employees salary just to hire, train, and onboard a replacement. So, how do you drive retention?Pittinger said, “The data shows that if you are a company with a strong DEI strategy, you are more likely to outperform all of the other companies that don’t in terms of revenue, market share, and employee performance. Do you have a DEI strategy that’s supporting women?”Pittinger said that at Stork Club, they don’t call it the Great Resignation. She said, “We call it the Great Confrontation. We have millennials out here saying: “We’re going to leave if you don’t have inclusive fertility benefits for everyone. If your company offer inclusive benefits, employees will stay.”She said, “Recognize where women suffer in silence. That needs to go away. And you’re the folks in the room who have the power to drive those conversations forward.”Dr. Lia Gass Rodriguez, chief medical officer at ActiveHealth, said that in addition to a successful benefits package, “you have to think about body, mind, and spirit. You need to take all of the things into consideration. Having a shared understanding of what that is, is key.”When thinking about the whole person, she said, companies “need to be reactive. There are some people who already have high cost conditions.” ActiveHealth takes a data-driven approach to identify what opportunities exist for a person whose health needs improvement, whether in mind, body, or spirit.There are also proactive solutions. ActiveHealth educates its clients with services that will help them take control of their health before it becomes a reactive problem. Rodriguez said, “We take a data-driven approach to try to offer a multi-modal engagement solution. That data can help us predict where additional support might be needed.”She also suggested focusing on deliberate solutions like preventative health. She said, “’you know how we’ll talk about generational wealth? Well, I like to say generational health. Taking proactive steps to manage health and well-being trickles down in a positive way.”Will Maddox, right, the senior editor at D CEO Magazine, moderated the conversation in Dallas (photo by Steve Bither for From Day One)An important aspect of whole person health includes considering how benefits and policies will affect the workers. In any business, there are inherent differences in the amount of responsibility, compensation, and influence that employees have. HR leaders are learning best practices for balancing those realities with a desire for equity and equality in the workplace.Jennifer Chopelas, head of HR for Merlin Entertainments Limited, said, “Some of the successes that I’ve seen is equity and fairness coming from our global key stakeholders. They are essentially putting their money where their mouth is. It’s not a wink and a nod to we care about diversity. No, we mean it, and we want it to be part of our culture. We are filtering this down to our team level. And we want our employees to feel their true authentic self at work.”In companies like Merlin Entertainments, teams have age ranges starting as young as 16, going all the way to post-retirement age. So, a culture of equity and inclusivity translates when working together.Still, potential challenges arise in sensitive conversations. Chopelas said, “In a leadership meeting, we could be talking to someone in their 20’s and someone in their 50’s. The older person might be thinking, am I the right person to talk about race? But, if we’re not willing to have that conversation in a respectful space in the workplace, we can’t reach that goal of equality.”Ultimately, companies need to make their DEI efforts a part of the culture.Chopelas said that at Merlin Entertainment, they are rolling out equity training. In the training, she said, “I ask them a simple question: Within the role that you sit in now, how can you contribute to equity? It might be as simple as senior leadership influencing the budgeting for DEI initiatives, and frontline team leaders can find out more about their employees, and if they need accommodations or a particular area of support.”Finally, Chopelas said, “It’s really about getting to know our teams, building a rapport, and meeting them where they’re at so that we can ensure they have the proper tools to do well in the workplace.”Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
How Business Leaders are Creating a Purposeful Return to the Office Experience
BY Christina Cook May 24, 2023Business leaders are seeing a direct correlation of employee engagement to employee attendance and presence, emotional wellness, and productivity. With leadership rightfully focused on how to enhance productivity, what can companies do to enhance employee engagement? Jamie Walsh, risk management consultant at Anco Insurance said, “The companies that I've seen be the most successful are focused more on employee engagement, and less on a mandate of returning to the office. How can we make our employees feel like they're being heard right now? And how can we support them and their dependents? Because presenteeism at the workplace can be a direct effect of what's going on at home. If we can support our employees and their family members at a higher level, that actually will enhance employee engagement.”During a From Day One Dallas conference panel moderated by Alcynna Lloyd of Insider, business leaders shared how companies can make employee engagement a reality by creating the kind of experience that re-engages workers with their leaders, their colleagues, and their roles. How can employers be intentional about the office as a welcoming community? Business leaders are learning to guide company culture toward being a consistent space where workers can fulfill their need for connection, purpose, inclusion, and belonging.Dr. Yetta Toliver, global head of diversity, inclusion and belonging (DIB) for Xerox, suggested companies should consider volunteerism to create a sense of purpose and belonging within the company. She said, “What we're trying at Xerox is to encourage employees to come back into the office together, and to create teams to do some volunteering together. We are looking to encourage our employees to get excited about coming into the workspace, but not demanding it.”Calli Hartman, head of customer success for Blackbaud’s corporate impact division, said the key to a successful employee volunteer program is “offering plenty of options for your employees to meet them where they are. Junior associates may have more time than money. Senior members of the company might have less time, and hybrid employees may not be able do in-person opportunities. Also, consider skills-based volunteering. Do your volunteer opportunities activate your employees’ sense of purpose?”While volunteering is known to create unity among teams and a sense of personal purpose, employees want to feel safe and comfortable at the workplace. Toliver said, “Looking through the lens of DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) is ensuring that people feel trusted, and they feel that they're respected. That’s important to consider as we start to bring our employees back into the workspace.”Hartman said that at Blackbaud, she, “leans into education and sharing. We do a lot of workplace education around discrimination, anti-harassment, anti-bias, and belonging. I think that is really critical of meeting our employees where they are. We also want them to be learning to meet their peers where they are and supporting each other as a whole team.”The full panel from left, Yetta Toliver of Xerox, moderator Alcynna Lloyd of Insider, Jamie Walsh of Anco Insurance, Paula Moore of JLL, and Calli Hartman of Blackbaud (photo by Steve Bither for From Day One)Creating a workplace where employees feel seen can also include practical improvements to the office culture, and companies can design whatever experience they think is best for their employees. Paula Moore, managing director of global experience strategy at JLL, said one of the best practices she has observed was last summer. She said, “I worked with a company who did a portfolio savings. They had about $400,000 and they chose to reinvest that into their employee experiences. Because they were listening to their employees, they realized that they had all purchased Pelotons during the pandemic, and there was this huge following. So, they bought Pelotons! Now when they come into the office, they can ride with their peers. From an experience perspective, you can really tailor these to your company’s culture.”Many companies see the benefit of a hybrid work option, and even as businesses are trending towards in-office work, there are still remote employees to consider.Creating employee engagement in a remote team has its own set of challenges, but business leaders are trying a variety of approaches. Hartman shared that at Blackbaud, she hosts weekly win meetings, where the focus is on wins and impact that were made in the previous week. She said, “We’re not focusing on the numbers. It’s a lot of relationship building and connection building, and we've leaned into impact and purpose.”Toliver said the skill of active listening can help create a sense of belonging with remote employees. She said, “This helps our managers do a better job. After 15 years of experience with remote teams, I have learned when my employees sign on and say hello, I can tell whether their energy is high or if something might be going on. It may not be time in the meeting to ask them about it, but I guarantee you I am calling them after the meeting to ask them if everything is ok.”In addition to creating a work environment that is safe and inclusive, Fisher said “Again, it’s allowing your people to be heard. College grads who are evaluating a company want a chance to personally and professionally develop. They are also looking for emotional wellness support and solutions. It’s encouraging, and it’s also a sign that we need to be able to understand our employees better. Then, from there, you can make some strategies and try to build upon the culture that is perfect for your company.”Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
Unraveling the Science Behind Why Volunteering Works
BY Christina Cook May 22, 2023Chris Jarvis divided the audience at From Day One's Dallas conference into two groups and asked us to engage in a thought experiment. He said, “Imagine a happiness scale that ranges from one to ten, where ten is an amazing day, ranging all the way down to one, which would be a pretty rough day. Now, on your way to the conference today, you come across a crisp, clean $100 bill on the ground. There is no one around, so you pick it up and you put it in your pocket. How many points did your happiness level go up after you found the money on the ground?” The audience members in the first group reported their happiness points going up about one point.On the opposite side of the room, the experiment was similar, except instead of spending the found money on yourself, you have to spend it on someone else. I was in the second group, and my response was among the majority. My happiness went up about three points.Why do humans help other people? This is a fundamental question, and the idea behind the company Realized Worth, of which Jarvis is co-founder and chief strategy officer. Why do we help others, and what happens when businesses include volunteering in company culture?This question, and the thought experiment Jarvis offered springs from a study conducted by Michael Norton at Harvard. Whether Norton carried out the study at Harvard, in Africa, or among colleagues, the results were largely the same. When the money was used to help someone else, happiness points were higher. The act of giving is what matters.Jarvis said, “It comes down to a process in our brain called the Reward System. Think of a runner's high. Those naturally occurring endorphins in your brain are part of the brain reward system, and that is built-in neuro-behavior.”Jarvis led the Dallas session (photo by Steve Bither for From Day One)In addition to the reward system, our brains have something called the pain matrix, and that means there are neurons in the brain that light up when you're in pain. But, these neurons can't tell the difference between being in pain and seeing somebody else’s pain. When our pain matrix lights up, we have one of two responses: intervene, or get up and leave. So, we feel compelled to help because it feels good to help, and we feel pain when we see somebody else in pain.“But this last part presents us with a bit of a weird problem,” Jarvis said. “Because empathy is really only felt for those who are like us. It only works for our in-groups. What I mean by this comes from Social Identity Theory. Think of concentric circles of identity: Do we have enough commonality that we can connect? For every in-group that you're part of, it shares some of your interests and perspectives. And this is why we can feel great concern for people that are close to us in proximity and core alikeness.”Jarvis continues, “For example, when catastrophe happens in another part of the world, we acknowledge it, but our pain matrix doesn’t light up. We are easily susceptible to dehumanizing those outside our groups. And this is the great crisis of humanity as a species, the ability to look at another group and say: We’re not safe because of them. They want what we've worked for.”Luckily, there is a solution. “Because,” Jarvis said, “your brain tends to be plastic. It is incredibly flexible, like bones and cartilage when you're younger.” This flexibility is referred to as neuroplasticity.In neuroplasticity, when we are confronted with a situation that doesn’t fit our expectations, a chemical called acetylcholine is secreted, and we grow new neural pathways. Jarvis said, “We need to have experiences that challenge the reality of what we think of as normal. And we need to be guided to this new place.”When applying this concept to DEI initiatives in a company, Jarvis said, “Experience is key. You need to have the experience of the mind and the body, these two things together, for creating memories and for creating new neural pathways.”For Jarvis, this is why employee volunteering is such an important feature of a company's program, especially regarding DEI. Without experiences to challenge the way our brains are wired, we can’t understand the human tendency to dehumanize another group.Jarvis said, “Hidden biases stay quite hidden unless you go looking for them. And if the checklists are there, and we're meeting all the obligations, somehow, maybe we become more insulated. Because we have combined all of these external constructs, but never do the internal work. So, now we know just not how to show it, but that isn’t the direction we want to go. We want a workplace where we can bring your whole self, and we can belong.”He said, “We need to inform people's experiences so that we don't carry these half understood biases and truths forward in life. Then, act. And that's where we'll see the behavior change. As a result of these experiences, we see ourselves differently in the world. Employee volunteering could be the best way to address this idea.”Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Realized Worth, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight. Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
The Workplace of the Future: A Magnet for Collaboration
BY Christina Cook May 12, 2023In the hybrid work era, the future of office culture is an important consideration for business leaders. CBRE, the world’s largest commercial real estate and investment firm, has 600 offices in 100 countries. Elizabeth Jenswold, senior vice president and global head of people for CBRE, has an inside look at how workplace design can foster a purposeful culture. “An office should be a magnet and a destination,” she said recently. “Not an obligation.”In a fireside chat at From Day One’s Dallas conference, Jenswold told moderator Christine Perez, editor of D CEO Magazine, “Likely everyone in this room is starting to reimagine what the new office will potentially be.”As some business leaders focus on how to bring employees back into the office, each business is taking a different approach. Culturally, Jenswold said, “We have to acknowledge that we’ll all have a different approach, and we have to ensure that people are having an experience when they’re coming back to the office.”At CBRE, offices are used to express their brand. Jenswold said, “That means that we are bringing people together in a meaningful way, and we impress our culture on them by having an environment where people like to come.”“The office environment should be used to empower people,” she continued. The pandemic brought incredible changes to how we work, and Jenswold suggested that, as we move into this new way of working, companies should focus on environments that help employees be their “most productive selves.”To accomplish this, CBRE trains their managers to openly communicate with employees about what it means to be productive at work.She said, “What we’ve designed in our practice more than our policy is to have managers to have open conversations about what productivity means for their team.” This approach requires strong leaders who can have open and honest conversations with employees, can see each employee as an individual, and are willing to be flexible.Jenswold and Perez kicked off the From Day One Dallas conference (photo by Steve Bither for From Day One)Jenswold continued, “That’s a big change in the way we work, for both employees and managers. Not just at CBRE, but across all of our companies globally. What does it mean to be heard?”When it comes to returning to work, whether a company chooses to ask all of their employees back to the office, or a company chooses to remain all remote, employees are feeling the pros and cons of each choice. Jenswold said, “The businesses who have gone to one extreme or the other are having more challenges. The hybrid work environment seems to be the sweet spot.”With this, Jenswold said that companies should carefully consider creating a “harmonious, collaborative environment.” One strategy: offering a more casual office dress code. Additionally, the technology at home should transition back to the office with ease. Ultimately, she said, “We want the transition from home and in-office work to be seamless.”She added that “reimagining the role of your managers” will help with the back-to-work transition. She said, “HR professionals are spending a lot of time on that. What is the role of that manager, and how is that manager helping with this seamless transition, when half of the staff is at home and half of the staff is in the office?”She said, “It’s critical that managers get good at that. How do we replace an inclusive environment for people who aren’t in the same room every day? Managers need to be focused on being equitable versus fair by recognizing people as they are, as individuals with imperfect lives.”Business leaders need to consider creating an in-office experience, which Jenswold says should include all of the technology they need, a quiet space, and a social space. Ultimately, she said, “workers want companies to care about them.” She continued that this includes a healthy environment with clean air, healthy snacks, pleasing lights, and sunshine.The evolution of the workspace speaks directly to the purpose of the office. The purpose of the office goes back to branding and is an opportunity to reflect the values of the company. Jenswold said, “When you think about a reflection of your brand, you have to be careful that you’re authentic. If you’re saying our brand is bold and smart, for example, but have leadership that isn’t taking risks or making good decisions, it doesn’t really matter what your offices look like if you can’t model that for your employees.”Finally, she said, “The workplace has evolved to be incredibly inclusive. Think about all of the people that work for you. Consider neurodivergent employees regarding lighting and noise control, for example. How do we make offices a peaceful place to be, and how can we operate with more humanity?”Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including art, film, and live theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
The Future of Benefits: Change Is on the Horizon
BY Christina Cook May 02, 2023Over the past few years, employers have relied heavily on enhanced benefits packages to attract and retain a productive workforce. But this year, with an economic slowdown, and a return to a semi-traditional workplace, 95% of HR and benefit leaders are focused on recalibrating their company’s benefit strategies.Jess Marble, the director of Care.com for Business, kicked off her session at From Day One's April virtual conference by noting that “The biggest theme of the future of benefits this year, is that change is coming.”Marble should know, as the stated mission of Care.com for Business is to support every working caregiver with accessible, affordable, and customizable family care benefits.During her talk, Marble shared new research from the 2023 Future of Benefits Report about the primary goals of HR leaders in 2023, the business impact of investing in employees and families, and how businesses and the government can make childcare more accessible for working families.Of the businesses that are recalibrating their benefits’ strategies in 2023, 47% say that it includes trimming some employee benefits. In industries like food and hospitality, retail, manufacturing, and construction, the average is even higher.Specifically, Marble said, “companies are pulling back more on what we call boutique benefits, like one-off specialized programs, including fitness benefits like gym memberships.”Employers are cutting back on all types of benefits, but the impact of those cuts vary dramatically. Eliminating health and fitness discounts, for example, is likely to have minimal impact on costs and worker retention. In contrast, adjustments to family care benefits have a big impact on both, which is why investments in child and senior care remain relatively strong. Marble said, “The focus here is on the strategy of recalibration, with the selective trimming and reallocating of funds rather than complete elimination.”Jess Marble, the director of Care.com for Business (company photo)So, who are business leaders designing these benefits packages for?Marble said, “We're seeing from the data that most employers are prioritizing their full time, salaried, corporate employees, over their frontline, hourly employees, despite the fact that 58% of US workers are non-exempt.”In the retail industry, which is highly dependent on hourly employees, 46% of the survey respondents said that their benefits strategy focused on professional, knowledge based, hybrid employees. In the food and hospitality industry, 58% of the survey respondents said they concentrate on the needs of professional, knowledge based, office employees.But, an interesting statistic from this year’s report is, in 2023, 73% of the American workforce is a working caregiver.Hourly and frontline workers need the most in terms of child and senior care benefits, and these workers also have the most at risk to lose with sparse income without the support of their employer. Marble said, “If productivity is a top concern for HR and business leaders this year, it's going to require leaders to take a closer look at family care benefits in particular.”Marble suggested that companies can measure the direct business impact of the benefits it chooses to keep by considering accessibility, quality, and affordability.She said, “More than one in six Americans are already a caregiver for the elderly, and 70% of these caregivers suffer work related difficulties.”In the Future of Benefits survey, 69% of female job seekers said that they'd be more likely to choose an employer who offered childcare benefits. 83% of women and 81% of men said that such benefits would play an important role in helping them decide whether to stay with their current employer or not.When employees provide childcare, it's estimated that job turnover can decline by 60%, and that can result in significant cost savings. Employers are starting to recognize the positive impact of family care benefits in the workforce and are recalibrating their packages to support those strategies and spend accordingly.Despite this, some business leaders are holding off on expanding benefits because they want to know what government policy will be. But many employers are choosing to be more proactive, and are lobbying state and federal government to be their partners in addressing family care.Overall, employers are taking advantage of the state and federal support that’s available. Marble said, “96% of benefits leaders are aware of the employer provided childcare tax credit, and 75% say that they use it. But of those that don't use the tax credit, nearly 90% say that they would use it if it was broadened to include more types of childcare. The fact that 68% of our respondents favor flexible childcare benefits, adds fuel to support the notion that employers would welcome an expansion of the current tax credit.”For businesses that want to get started on the recalibration of benefits, Marble said, “A great way to begin is to ask employees about the distractions that they have in daily life. What are their needs for major life events? And whenever I am asked this question, I like to remind employers that life happens continuously.”Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Care.com for Business, for sponsoring this thought leadership spotlight.Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, TX, where she covers a variety of topics, with favorites including Art, Film, and live Theatre. Her work can be seen on Rawckus.com, RedDirtNation, and DallasArtBeat.com. Christina is also a creative writer. Her children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a 2017 regional bestseller.
The Future of Recruiting: How the Landscape Will Change in 2023 and Beyond
BY Christina Cook February 14, 2023Lisa Hurst, PhD, is an embodiment of the approach to talent acquisition at McKinsey & Company, the global management-consulting firm. A trained immunologist, Hurst says that during graduate school, she realized, “[I] liked the solving of problems, but I liked working with people more than lab animals. So, I started thinking about my options. I knew some folks who’d gone to McKinsey, and the idea of going someplace where I could learn about practical applications of science that actually made it to people in a team setting seemed like a lot more fun. And thankfully, McKinsey has recruited people like me with PhDs for quite some time.” Driven by advancements in technology and changes in attitudes toward careers, HR leaders are racing to adapt to the shifting dynamics in the new world of talent acquisition. Even at a time of headline-making layoffs in the tech industry and beyond, many industries are struggling with a labor shortage. How does this changing market affect recruiting tactics? Hurst, the head of North America recruiting at McKinsey, spoke with Matthew Boyle, a senior reporter for Bloomberg, in a fireside chat about the future of recruiting at From Day One’s monthly virtual conference. Hurst illuminated McKinsey’s diverse approach to talent acquisition, keeping employees motivated during layoffs, and how the firm is exploring new markets in the search for talent. As with the hiring of Hurst, the firm casts a wide net, which has proven valuable and effective. Hurst said, “We’re looking for interesting, talented people. We've definitely shifted away from a lot of concern about pedigree to more thinking about peoples’ potential.” Lisa Hurst, the director of North America recruiting at McKinsey & Company (Company photo) Currently, the company has grown the number of hiring sources they use at 1,400 this year, with plans to expand even more. McKinsey is recruiting in new markets, presenting creative opportunities for tech workers and mid-career professionals, and offering flexible career paths. “It’s all about the diversity of thought and background that we’re thinking about right now,” Hurst said. ”We know that our people are our asset. And our clients still need us when things get tough. A lot of times, we need to think about how to pivot. We invest huge amounts of money into learning and development for our people. We give them opportunities to grow and build their skills.” So, how do companies like McKinsey keep employees motivated during challenging times? “For us with tech talent, it’s the opportunity to really solve tough problems across a range of clients that gets people excited. There’s a variety of ways you can flex your skills, and we have three opportunities at McKinsey. One is to literally be on the ground with a client building something for them. We also have proprietary tools that we’ve built to serve a range of clients. And we’re a large company, with our own technology needs. Part of the beauty of McKinsey is your ability to flex between things, depending on what you want to do.” A flexible career path is part of what McKinsey calls “being the author of your own journey,” and this flexibility extends beyond the tech sector. Hurst said it comes down to what excites an employee, and learning what they are passionate about. This approach not only keeps employees motivated, but it retains employees. Hurst said, “When I talk to folks about why I’m still at McKinsey, it’s because I keep growing. For us, it’s just making sure that people are aware of the multitude of opportunities within the firm. That keeps people here. It’s transferable skills, even if you have to learn the content.” Bloomberg senior reporter Matthew Boyle (Company photo) McKinsey is approaching new talent markets in a geographical sense, and Hurst shared that the company is setting up an office in Detroit. From there, they are recruiting at the University of Michigan and Michigan State, but also at smaller schools and alumni associations. In addition to having a diverse recruiting team and recruiting a diversity of prospective candidates, McKinsey has been developing its relationships with HBCUs and Hispanic-serving institutions, as well as marketing to first-generation college students. About the recruiters at McKinsey, Hurst said, “I’m proud to say that the recruiting team is quite diverse. It really creates this inclusive meritocracy where we want people to challenge each other. That's a big thing with McKinsey: We’re very values-based in terms of an obligation to dissent and engage, and you need people who come from different backgrounds to do that. McKinsey has some pretty clearly stated values that are on our website, and we also have a purpose. I find that when I’m interviewing somebody, and I raise the fact that we have these values, it usually starts a good conversation.” Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas. She writes about a variety of topics, including art, film, and live theater. Her 2017 children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a regional bestseller, and she is the founder of the hyperlocal arts blog, Dallas Art Beat.
Creating a Resilient Culture and Developing Resilient People
BY Christina Cook January 11, 2023As we transition into a post-pandemic culture, daily headlines are focused on a potential recession, layoffs, social division, and more. Behind the headlines are human beings who are impacted by the realities of today’s world. When it comes to employee talent, organizations are considering the whole person, and wellness and mental health are an important part of daily workflow, areas of responsibility, and benefit packages. When faced with adversity, employers need to know how to respond with resiliency. What does it mean to have a resilient culture? What does it look like to develop resilient people? Adam Bouse, manager of performance coaching at 15Five, a performance-management platform, provided his expertise on this topic at From Day One’s December virtual conference on the future of jobs, where he highlighted successful practices of resilient people. He also offered strategies for developing a resilient culture with intention. To start, Bouse defined resiliency as, “the capacity to bounce back from adversity and grow stronger from overcoming negative events. How do I bounce back? How do I get stronger because of the challenging things that are going on?” In order to actualize the idea, he offered six practices to building resiliency. The first two points are that resilient people maintain an accurate view of reality, and they view difficulties as challenges instead of threats. Resilient people honestly acknowledge difficulties, but they don’t exaggerate the difficulty. They also don’t downplay or minimize the situation. Bouse said, “If you don’t start with an accurate view of reality, you’ve made the challenge even bigger because you may be working against a perception of bias–a skew that makes it harder for you to maintain that resilient attitude.” Adam Bouse, manager of performance coaching at 15Five (Company photo) The third piece to building resiliency is to cultivate what psychotherapist Viktor Frankl called a “redemptive perspective” on suffering. Frankl survived the concentration camps of World War II and studied trauma survivors extensively. Bouse quoted Frankl’s work when he shared that “Frankl found in his lived experience that people were able to find meaning in their suffering. It’s not about being glad or happy for that suffering. It’s being able to see how that suffering has shaped you.” A fourth practice is choosing a mindset of optimism, and Bouse stressed that a mindset of optimism isn’t about simply staying positive or certain all the time. “It’s this sense of choosing to find possibilities in an unknown future, and to choose to believe that there are paths forward,” he said, The fifth aspect is that resilient people stay connected to a strong social network. Bouse acknowledged that during stressful situations, the impulse to handle it all on our own is tempting. But, he said, “in order to stay in a place where we have the most support as possible, it’s not just about relying on our own individual competencies. It’s also about seeking out other people to help us navigate our experiences.” Lastly, resilient people take time to rest and recover, which Bouse said is also a tool that companies can use to build a resilient culture. “When you’re making plans, ask yourself: How can I cultivate human thriving? How can I minimize frustration? How can I make a decision that doesn’t just minimize harm, but actually maximizes opportunities for inspiration and satisfaction?” These practices can be implemented by employers in simple ways. For example, at 15Five, they have mandatory breaks between meetings in order to mitigate the stress and pressure of back-to-back appointments. 15Five has also built mindfulness into team meetings by practicing collective gratitude. “There is a real and very powerful impact in practicing gratitude,” Bouse said. Finally, he challenged organizational leaders by saying, “You have the opportunity–if you are leading people in any way, shape, or form–to change the way people experience work, the way people experience each other, and the way that people experience themselves. We need to teach and develop these emotional skills, and this needs to be a constant and intentional practice.” Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, 15Five, who sponsored this this thought leadership spotlight. Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas. She writes about a variety of topics, including art, film, and live theater. Her 2017 children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a regional bestseller, and she is the founder of the hyperlocal arts blog, Dallas Art Beat.
How AT&T Is Learning What 200,000 Employees Really Want
BY Christina Cook November 02, 2022For Ben Jackson, AT&T’s vice president of HR technology and analytics, listening to what 200,000 employees really want means to never stop learning. Successfully navigating the still-tight labor market involves two-way listening, and, as Jackson said, that starts with focusing on the employee experience: “You’re going to hear this theme a lot, and I think it’s exactly right. We are constantly listening.” Jackson sat down with Jason Wheeler, a news anchor and editor for WFAA-TV, for a fireside chat at From Day One’s Dallas conference in October. During the conversation, Jackson shed light on how the expectations of workers have changed and how AT&T is responding. “We do a large annual survey of all 200,000 of our employees. And then we are constantly doing micro-segmentation listening, whether that’s focus groups or polling new hires, people who just changed jobs, or people who got promoted and are now supervisors for the first time. And we ask them questions like: Do you feel like you have what you need to be successful?” To get the most out of their talent, Jackson said companies should commit to a listening strategy now. And while many companies chose to relax employee performance reviews during the height of the pandemic, Jackson said that at AT&T, “we are doubling down a little more.” He continued: “We made a change to performance reviews in the middle of Covid by reintroducing the ‘how’–not only what you accomplished and how you drove results in the business, but your leadership skills and how you did your job. For us that’s really important. We use that information as we identify our top talent. Obviously, we want people who are delivering results and crushing it every day, but also how they lead others, and the skills that they use to interface with their teams.” When the time came to begin asking some employees to return to the office, Jackson acknowledged the importance of the language used when communicating with AT&T’s workforce. Specifically, Jackson said that for about 40% of AT&T employees, working from home was never an option. Retail workers and technicians, for example, showed up to a physical site throughout the pandemic and Jackson shared that acknowledging the contributions of those employees, and their sacrifices, was extremely important. He said, “We worked really closely with our corporate communications partners to really go over each word to make sure that we’re continuing to recognize the 60,000 people and all that they did, but then also re-invite this other group back so that we can start to collaborate in person.” Wheeler, right, is the editor of WFAA’s “Right on the Money” program For the remote and hybrid workers, Jackson said that providing structure and purposeful reasoning for a return to in-person work was paramount. Department supervisors led these conversations and focused on the value of connecting in person. Listening to employees also spotlighted a need for a renewed focus on mental health and wellness. “I think the long tail of Covid is going be the mental health outcomes. If you look at substance abuse, if you look at the effects of isolation, we have many people that were home by themselves for a long time and the mental health outcomes and emotional health outcomes that go with that, I think we’re going to be living with this for a long time.” To combat this, AT&T has invested in a long-term solution with the appointment of a chief wellness officer for the organization. The company also hosts health and wellness fairs during which employees have free access to health practitioners at their job site. AT&T has also focused on making the process for workers availing themselves of these benefits easier and more streamlined. Ultimately, Jackson said, “The data is really clear that happy, healthy employees are productive employees. So, I think the health care aspect of what we can offer is maybe the most important right now. I think we’re going to see a wave of new solutions and new models, because the effects of the pandemic are going to be with us for a long time. We’ve got to find ways to continue to support people.” During the pandemic and recent labor shortage, workers gained a lot of leverage in their relationships with employers. Will a recession change this balance of power? “If I had to predict, maybe we’ll see more softening [in the labor market] for about the next year or so. I think it’s going to swing back to the employer side, but comparing where we are now to where we were pre-Covid, I think the employee is going to retain a lot of power, especially people in technical talent,” Jackson said. Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas. She writes about a variety of topics, including art, film, and live theater. Her 2017 children’s book, Your Hands Can Change the World, was a regional bestseller, and she is the founder of the hyperlocal arts blog Dallas Art Beat.
In a Hybrid Era, What Promotes a Healthy Work Environment?
BY Christina Cook October 15, 2022In a workplace marked by uncertainty and lack of boundaries, employers need to be extra vigilant about the health and well-being of their workers. But what does that support look like in action? Leaders can boost morale and productivity when they show they care, and respond with empathetic and effective solutions. In a panel conversation at From Day One’s conference in Dallas this month, five industry leaders talked about the innovative approaches their companies are using to bolster a healthy hybrid workplace.During the discussion, moderated by Will Maddox, managing editor of D magazine, the leaders acknowledged the tensions that accompany hybrid work–and suggested tools to mitigate them. They highlighted the importance of having candid conversations, offering benefits that enrich their employees’ lives beyond the workplace, and letting the work itself aid in decision-making. In sprawling companies like American Airlines, there is often a stark difference in job positions, from jet mechanics to marketing executives. Additionally, many large companies see mini-cultures develop based on teams or location. How can leaders create unity among a large workforce with vastly different experiences and responsibilities? Ashley Heis, director of employee experience at American, said that a positive culture must include an individualized approach. She said, “First, it's having clarity on expectations in your role, connecting that to the business, and how you aspire to the higher purpose,” she said. “The second thing we really focus on is engagement, understanding, and having empathy as a leader. Just because you’re in the same group doesn't mean that that particular work environment works best for you. Finally, we really stress open and consistent communication, and to maintain that connection.” She said that this approach seems to work for all team members and groups, regardless of the nature of their role. Taking a per-person approach, practicing empathy, and communicating clearly were common themes among the panelists. Eujin Ahn, director of learning and development for One Medical, a primary-care provider, added that a positive culture is centered in the idea that clarity is a form of kindness. He said, “Clarity-is-kindness is basically an employer or manager being able to provide upfront, ‘These are the expectations. This is what we really want to see from you.’ And asking, ‘How do we work through this together?’ Letting it be a conversation. We also take into account the entire person. Our values are human centered, and we always want to measure with a compassionate lens.” Will Maddox, managing editor of D magazine, far right, moderated the conversation Heis agreed and added that candid conversations are crucial when it comes to implementing policies and procedures. She shared that at American Airlines, many of their global initiatives came from the ground up. During one particular focus group, employees shared stories of their most challenging days–times of natural disasters and loss of life. The common lesson of their stories: Because the teams rallied together, the most challenging days became their best days. “That’s ultimately how we came to our purpose,” she said. “We distilled these stories into one phrase: We focus on ‘moments that matter.’ I share that because that is a great example of how we took something so simple, but so meaningful, and scaled it–because we listened to our team members.” Companies that are more tech-based, with larger numbers of remote associates, are promoting work-life balance by offering benefits that support all aspects of life. Dasha Crosby, senior VP and HR lead for Citigroup, talked about her company’s recent launch of a tuition-assistance program, which will help ab out 38,000 employees continue their education goals with no out-of-pocket expenses. Citi also offers a 12-week sabbatical program. She said, “Through all the pain and suffering of the pandemic, what we learned is we have to take care of ourselves as a whole. And we are asking at Citi, How can we really invest in our employees as a whole?” The focus on caring for the whole person amplified the fact that remote workers often have a lack of boundaries when it comes to taking time off. PTO is a popular benefit, but the ‘always on’ culture fed by the pandemic means it goes unused or it’s used ineffectively. Rilee Buttars, CEO and co-founder of Dónde, created her company to help solve this very issue. Donde’s goal is to fix PTO by offering travel benefits. Buttars said, “Let’s think about this idea of taking a break. What can it do for your productivity? What can it do for your engagement and satisfaction as an employee? Let’s put the company at the center of that conversation and make them the hero because we can’t have employees feeling so burned out. Productivity and the ROI of coming to work and feeling good about it–that needs to happen.” Buttars cited a trendy word for the growing practice of workers adding leisure time to their business trips: bleisure travel. Another aspect of the rise in hybrid and remote work is that on the employer’s end, there is sometimes a tension felt about having office space or physical locations. Many companies are struggling to justify the costs of physical locations for a largely remote workforce. How can companies balance this while still caring for employee morale? At Dallas-based Builders FirstSource, the largest U.S. supplier of building materials, management decided to take a highly flexible approach. Amy Messersmith, the company’s chief people officer, said, “We took the opportunity to reevaluate our physical footprint in our headquarters location. After two years, it’s clear that there are some roles that can be done very effectively in a hybrid status or completely remote status. We saw no degradation in our productivity. In fact, in many cases we saw our team’s productivity go up.” The company offered their remote employees the option of office space, either on a permanent basis or as-needed, she said. “We decided to let the work drive the decision. I think those tensions can be resolved with honest conversation and listening to our people.” Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas. She writes about a variety of topics, including art, film, and live theater. Her 2017 children’s book, Your Hands Can Change the World, was a regional bestseller, and she is the founder of the hyperlocal arts blog Dallas Art Beat.
Shaping the Future of an Iconic Company With Inclusivity at its Core
BY Christina Cook October 12, 2022During a fireside chat at the From Day One conference in Dallas this month, Andre Joyner, the chief human resources officer of JCPenney, shared how the company is making workers feel that they, too, are part of its 120-year legacy and its future growth through shared purpose and inclusivity. He also addressed ways the company is responding to shifting values in both their consumers and employees and supporting purpose-driven work. JCPenney, one of America’s iconic department stores, often elicits memories of family shopping trips. From Day One co-Founder Steve Koepp opened his conversation with Joyner by sharing one such memory. He said, “I have a special recollection, like it was yesterday, of shopping at your company back in a small town in Wisconsin. We were a family of six, and of course it was a family expedition. I really liked the slacks with no belt.” The image painted by Koepp’s anecdote is still at the core of JCPenney’s mission. About the company’s rebirth after some difficult years, Joyner said, “We are in a very exciting place. We’re an organization with an ownership group that’s really invested in our growth and success. We have a clean balance sheet, which is important. We have a newly established leadership team with deep and diverse capabilities. And I’d say, most importantly, we have a mission that matters, and that’s to celebrate and serve diverse American working families.” Joyner, in fact, has four children of his own. Today, companies are tasked with adjusting to rapid social change, a lingering pandemic, and economic uncertainty. Many companies are looking at their values and adjusting them. But Joyner said that JCPenney’s values have remained consistent. “Our primary core value is the golden rule. That’s what we are anchored in and on. We have belief systems that have evolved and the one that we amplified most consistently is the focus on inclusivity. In our company, we approach inclusivity as a verb, and focusing on how that shows up in both our customer engagement and our associate engagements,” he said. The employment market is seeing the same shift in values, and the Great Resignation has been a challenge facing companies of all kinds and sizes. When asked about how, or if, this phenomenon is affecting JCPenney, Joyner said he takes a contrarian view. He said, “I see it as the Great Reflection. To me this suggests that people want to do less, but I actually think they want to do a lot more. I would say aspiration and engagement are alive and well. I think organizations that enable their associates to live more purpose-driven lives vs. pure profits will win.” How is JCPenney supporting purpose-driven work? How is the company, which has a large employee base and locations nationwide, harvesting collaboration and growth? Joyner said that JCPenney has a particular benefit in that their associates represent their customer base. So when Penney’s managers are engaging with their associates, they are engaging with their customers. “Our focus is on how we get to more time spent on shared purpose and shared commitment. Because by nature we’re trying to get to a common place,” said Joyner. At the Dallas conference, Joyner spoke with Steve Koepp, co-founder of From Day One This approach to shared purpose and commitment follows through to the opportunity for individualized career growth within the company. When looking at how best to offer this, Joyner said he looks for three things: what the person enjoys doing, what they are really good at, and what the organization needs. He said, “We’re leaning a little bit more into being hyper-focused on what that individual wants and needs from an experience standpoint, maybe to a greater degree than you would historically in traditional career-path models.” This is a telling example of how the HR role is changing. Joyner said that finding the very best talent is an opportunity to offer individualized benefits, career growth opportunities, and substance and purpose–“something that’s deeper than maybe the recent past. I think you see some companies taking a human-centered approach. I’m going to care about your whole experience and whether that’s going to help you put the tools in your tool kit that’s going to help you live the life that you want to live. I think companies to a greater degree need to think about it that way. And that’s in some ways a bit of a departure, but I believe it’s the right way to go.” Christina Cook is a freelance writer based in Dallas, Texas. She writes about a variety of topics, including art, film, and live theatre. Her 2017 children’s book Your Hands Can Change the World was a regional bestseller, and she is the founder of the hyperlocal arts blog, Dallas Art Beat.