Investing in Employees: A Key to Resilience in Challenging Times
Investing in employees is not just a good practice—it’s a necessity, particularly in challenging times. Companies must prioritize their people across all facets, from recruitment and retention to leadership development. When the going gets tough, the best organizations focus even more intently on their workforce, knowing that their success is deeply intertwined with the well-being of their employees. This was the core message shared by a diverse panel of industry leaders at the From Day One’s September virtual conference. Moderated by independent journalist Jenny Sucov, the discussion explored the various strategies companies are employing to put their people first in today’s uncertain environment.Recruiting in Rural AreasMarvin, premium manufacturer of custom windows and doors, is based in Warroad, Minnesota, with over 17 locations across the U.S. and Canada. They’ve struggled to find enough workers in smaller communities, so they took a different approach.Panelist Renee Rice, senior director of communications and culture at Marvin, says to address the problem, they implemented the Path North program. They work with staffing agencies to bring in employees from Puerto Rico and different areas of Florida. “It definitely has been a successful program for us,” Rice said. “We've hired over 150 employees at a couple of our major northern plants. Some of them have come on their own. A lot of them have come with their families, and they’re truly becoming a part of the community so that they want to stay with Marvin for the long term.”Marvin also worked with local schools to help them prepare for an influx of students, and with with local grocery stores to make sure there is a variety of foods depending on the population coming in. By fostering a sense of belonging, Marvin ensures these employees are more likely to stay with the company long-term.Their key to success comes down to providing stability, a sense of security, and community, says Rice. Companies can’t think of culture as separate from business, she says. Culture is in the service of the business. Not only that, but it’s not static. Organizations should expect culture to shift, especially as business and people change. She suggested that companies ask themselves the following: “Where is the business headed? But then also how might our culture need to evolve to best enable and. best support that business strategy and that business direction?” It takes a lot of research but it’s important to keep your eye on it to truly understand your company culture. Employee EngagementDocuSign recently underwent a rebranding effort, evolving from a company known primarily for electronic signatures to an intelligent agreement management firm. But it wasn’t only about what the company offered customers—it also involved an internal cultural alignment. Panelist Iesha Berry, VP, chief talent and diversity officer at DocuSign, says that they engaged with employees so they could be an important part of the rebranding journey. To support this cultural shift, DocuSign has implemented several initiatives focused on employee engagement. One key effort is the creation of a talent brand video that offers a day in the life perspective at the company, including insights from leadership and employees worldwide.The panelists spoke on the topic, "People First: The Crucial Role of Investing in Employees in Challenging Times," during the virtual conference (photo by From Day One)“We created a video that highlights DocuSign with a global view, including a message from our CEO and our president of growth, but also including employees from around the world talking about their roles [day-to-day],” Berry said. The initiative aims to attract and engage new talent, focused on increasing diversity and accelerating career development. One very successful employee engagement initiative was a company-wide hackathon, designed to foster cross-functional collaboration and innovation. The event involved over 550 employees from around the world put into teams from different functions to help develop different types of thought leadership and foster a differentiated employee experience. “Through the hackathon, we had 110 projects,” she said. “The goal was to bring our values to life, particularly our innovation value, our simplicity value, our trust and unity value, and, of course, our customer focus value. And as a result, we had 30 plus teams and winners from around the world that were recognized for their efforts to deliver hacks that will ultimately be assessed for particular potentiality of getting a patent.”The CEO was thrilled with what our employees were able to deliver, Berry says. Beyond the hacks, the shared vision and engagement was everything. Employee RetentionChedraui encompasses three grocery chains: Smart & Final, El Super, and Fiesta. Joe Tischbern, VP of talent development and engagement at Chedraui U.S.A., says recruitment isn’t the issue. With 25,000 across its grocery stores, the issue is retaining talent. “It’s not hard at an entry level to get a lot of people to apply for jobs. My very unique career path is that I went from cashier a lot of years ago, I won’t say how, long ago, to vice president today. And one of the things we try to do is help people find themselves,” he said.Some who start at entry level in college may not initially think it will be a long-term gig. But then there are others who wonder if there are opportunities if they stay. Can they move up? How? So they’ve created career paths so employees can better see how to get there. “We do it very intentionally,” Tischbern said. The results have been promising. “While we might have very high turnover at entry level, we have much lower turnover once people get to, let’s say, full time status, and then move toward management, very low turnover, because people can see the career path for them.” The company went through a lot of changes in the past several years, following the purchase of El Super and Fiesta. Each of the three grocery store chains had unique ways of doing things, and they had to come together into one corporate office. “The interesting moment was when we all moved into the office together, and we had to look at each other and say, Okay, how are we going to go to work?” There wasn’t a lot of trust at first, which was understandable. So they implemented a learning program so they could all learn together.“What we found was that as people learn together, their walls start to come down.” They also involved store leaders and developing core values. Turns out, they all mostly wanted the same things. But to have that ownership and trust was invaluable. On the corporate side, one of the companies was used to having a lot of meetings, but another one had hardly any. So they had to look at the reasoning behind them. Do we need them all? Or are there any key collaborations we’re missing?“Now they’ve found a happy medium. And I think that was one of the, one of the beautiful moments that we saw as we came together.”Leadership DevelopmentThinkHuman is a leadership development organization, including cohort-based programs and executive coaching for senior leadership. Founder and CEO Meredith Haberfeld says they have the opportunity not only to hear their own employee challenges, but also facets of what clients are facing. “We are hearing much more from the collective employee voice, the desire for security. If you imagine the pendulum swing, there are times where it's a growth economy,” she said. In times like those, people are thinking about their next job opportunity. But the pendulum has swung the other way. “Right now, it is much more of a mode of, how do I ensure that the company is secure and my job is secure, and that I'm doing the right things to have an important place here over time?”Along with that, employees want transparency. They want employers that are honest about the state of the business and the work. Employees always want a sense of community inside the workplace, and focusing on managers and leaders can help to make that happen. They must intentionally focus on creating that sense of community within the organization, she says.“People leaders are really coming to understand they have to create that interconnectivity within their teams and cross functionally. That really strengthens the fabric for people to feel like, oh, I have a place here that I can feel inside this community.Since the pandemic, ThinkHuman saw a lot of investment in frontline managers who were the core of the teams, so companies needed to equip them with proper training and the tools to be the leaders they needed to be. A few years past the pandemic, that has shifted somewhat. Now, there has also been a push on investment in senior leaders, rather than frontline managers. “I think with the global uncertainty and election year, we’re seeing a lot of more conservative approach to how people are running their business and employees wanting security and transparency.” That’s good, she says, but companies should not forget about their managers. Leadership development at all levels is key, as it trickles down to employees and helps put them first. Carrie Snider is a Phoenix-based journalist and marketing copywriter.