Creating an Employee Experience That’s a Magnet for Today’s Workforce

BY Jennifer Yoshikoshi | April 25, 2025

According to a Gallup study, organizations that have a strategic plan for employee development saw an 11% increase in profitability and were twice as likely to retain employees. “One of the most important factors in creating a high-performance workplace is instilling a high-development culture,” the study said.

Across industries, companies are always aiming to increase fulfillment and sparking new initiatives to develop an effective work culture.  During a panel at From Day One’s Silicon Valley conference, leaders discussed how their companies are driving engagement, what challenges their organizations face and how employers can create more trust.

Driving Engagement 

Oracle is committed to a culture around a growth mindset and “building that throughout the vein of the organization,” said Sid Deka, vice president of human resources. The company encourages continuous learning and provides employees with a safe space to experiment and drive innovation.

Deka adds that by offering learning opportunities for employees of all levels to grow increases the feeling of trust that is developed within the company. It’s important for people to have authentic conversations with managers to plan out ways to improve and explore options for more opportunities, he says.

Velocity Global’s Chief HR Officer Carol MacKinlay ties fulfillment in her organization back to empathy. She points out that it's important to remember that the team is human and leaders must be mindful about ensuring their employees are having the best experience while they’re at work.

As companies implement new initiatives, transparency at all levels is necessary, says Sid Nayar, vice president of HR strategy, operations, analytics and talent at Freshworks. He also called for the necessity to have business leaders to own company shifts and transformations so “the onus is also on them to cascade it down.”

Subadhra Sriram, Independent Journalist, Workforce Expert, right, moderated the discussion 

MacKinlay says the company is also investing in the growth and development of employees while they are with them. “There may be people here who have career paths that are outside the company, and that's okay. So we're going to develop you. We’re going to grow you. We’re going to tell you what you’re doing well, we’re going to get you to the next place,” she said.

Velocity calls these employees “boomerang employees.” Although they may leave the company, there is an incentive plan to bring them back. 

Challenges in Management

Freshworks is the first India-based SaaS company that was started from a small city in India and has grown to be successful. Nayar says that because of the company’s background, many of its first employees came from humble beginnings but since the company completed its initial public offering the leadership has shifted. Now, all senior executives are in the United States.

“Our biggest challenge is defining who we are now.” Nayar said. “It was a company that about 10 years ago, was the people who had a chip on their shoulder. They were not tier one at your school. They came from humble backgrounds, built this company and made this a global brand.”

Freshworks is currently working on how to develop the sense of belonging and identity for those workers as the company has gone globally successful.

Kelly McMahon, vice president of organizational effectiveness at Equinix, says accountability, in a sense of pushing for strategic thinking, is a struggle that the company is currently trying to manage. She believes that when employees become accustomed to merely completing day to day assigned tasks, it impedes the company’s pace of work.

“I think what we’re trying to sort of engender is a little bit more of a risk tolerance around experimentation,” said McMahon. “Let's put out a perspective and see what the response is, versus trying to build consensus.”

Larger companies such as Oracle are seeing challenges with managing and strategizing engagement for multigenerational, multicultural and multiregional employees. Deka says the work environment is three dimensional and pushes the company to think of how to best engage with a diverse group of people in various ways.

“Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication,” said MacKinlay, a quote she once heard from Velocity’s CEO. She’s referring to the company’s pursuit to simplify communication between leadership and employees. MacKinlay says 90% of her job is spent on communication issues and addressing challenges around communication is best done through providing clear and concise ideas.

Building Trust

Companies are seeing that investing in building leadership skills in frontline managers is important to ensuring that down the hierarchy, employees are feeling engaged and trust is being built.

Velocity is currently holding roundtables with all employees in small groups to obtain actual feedback on the programs they are implementing. The employee success team is holding 20 sessions around the world with different groups in various languages. “What it does is build trust and it builds a bond to be able to have the faces of the people who can actually affect change for the employees,” said MacKinley. 

From these meetings, the company is learning about whether their offered benefits match employee needs and if there are any “glaring things that the company has missed,” she said.

Velocity is also kicking off an initiative that encourages employees to give anonymous constructive criticism. The idea behind this is to give people a chance to have an outlet to report issues in the workplace and push for others around them to improve.

McMahon emphasized the need to invest in employee experiences the same way that companies do for customers.

“Organizations who do this really well, map the employee life cycle, prospect to alumni, and then within that say, what are the moments that matter and how are we going to invest in repeatable, scalable, predictable experiences for employees that you know are going to meet their needs,” said McMahon.

Jennifer Yoshikoshi is a local news and education reporter based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

(Photos by David Coe for From Day One)

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How Leaders Can Personalize Employee Recognition and Rewards

While data is a powerful tool for driving engagement, it’s most effective when paired with genuine human connection. Fleur Tang, vice president of human resources in biosciences at BD, highlighted the value of combining analytics with direct employee interactions to create a more complete picture of the workplace experience.“ In order to really understand associates’ needs, one big part is to really get quantitative feedback,” she said during a panel discussion at From Day One’s Silicon Valley conference. “But we are so very big on gemba—meaning that you go to where work happens.” By spending time with employees where they work, managers can uncover insights that surveys alone can’t provide.Employee expectations are shifting rapidly—so how can companies keep up? Has the role of recognition and rewards in the workplace ever been more vital and complex? Tang and four other panelists explored how companies can empower managers to lead with empathy, purpose, and personalization. Moderated by David Thigpen of UC Berkeley, the discussion illuminated the evolving responsibilities of today’s people leaders and offered actionable insights for organizations of all sizes.Recognition efforts, Tang says, must align with company culture and be rooted in purpose. “Let’s be clear about the behaviors we are trying to recognize. That should be absolutely aligned with the culture we are creating for the organization.” It’s not just about the reward—it’s about reinforcing the right behaviors and supporting long-term engagement and retention.Tang also emphasized the growing complexity of middle management. “I think middle-level people managers have the most difficult role nowadays,” she said. These managers must navigate top-down mandates while keeping their teams engaged and productive. That’s why BD has made a conscious effort to support mid-level leaders through initiatives like “second circle meetings,” where leaders one level below the executive team receive direct communication and context from the company president.Purpose, Recognition, and Well-BeingCertainly, effective recognition requires data—but not just from a single point in time, says panelist Florencia Porcaro, senior human resources director at Google.“Data is the guiding principle by which we make decisions,” she said. Google uses a variety of touchpoints—including annual, weekly, and initiative-specific surveys—to track the evolving needs of employees throughout their life cycle. “A single employee may have different needs at different times,” Porcaro noted, emphasizing the importance of understanding those shifts in order to personalize support.The panelists spoke about "Employee Recognition and Rewards: How Managers Can Be Empowered."That personalization takes many forms. For instance, Google’s annual benefits selection period allows employees to reassess their priorities and choose options that best match their current life stage. “It’s a moment to figure out what’s changing in my life, what I value more now,” Porcaro said. The company also offers funding to help make those choices more accessible, empowering employees to tailor their benefits in a way that supports well-being and engagement.Today’s managers face unprecedented challenges, from geopolitical shifts to navigating the AI era, all while being expected to coach, support, and scale teams effectively. Despite the growing demands, Porcaro noted that employees increasingly seek more than just monetary rewards—they want growth, fulfillment, and visibility.“We do things like design recognition programs tied to organizational OKRs,” she said. Top contributors have opportunities to present their work directly to vice presidents in open-floor sessions. “It creates experiences where employees feel seen, valued, and that their work is adding up to something bigger.”That sense of care and intentionality became even more evident during Covid, when Google rapidly mobilized to send Covid tests to employees’ homes. “That speaks loudly about a company thinking about the well-being and needs of a community.”Personalized ManagementWhat does employee recognition and rewards look like at a smaller company? Panelist Abhishek Budhraja, talent business partner (engineering) at Groq, says the company’s approach is to rely heavily on managers to meet each person’s unique needs.“Most people join startups because they believe in the mission—so the real magic happens when we align individual preferences, learning goals, and personal needs with the company’s direction,” he said.Budhraja emphasized the importance of recognizing employees as multi-faceted. “Take me—I’m a millennial, but also a parent and an immigrant. You can’t just look at one label and assume it tells the whole story. That’s why it’s in a company’s best interest to offer autonomy and flexibility, guided by empathetic managers who help individuals find what works best for them.”While tools and offerings have evolved, the fundamentals of good management remain the same. “Empathy, perceptiveness, and helping people feel connected to a greater purpose are still core,” he said. “Those are timeless.”He’s also seen how people’s choices can surprise you. “I’ve had employees turn down promotions because they weren’t right for their life stage. Or at Uber, we’d give two types of offers—one with more equity, one with more cash—and you couldn’t predict what people would choose. That’s why understanding where someone is coming from—and giving them a choice—is so critical.”The Affordability GapOne of the most persistent—and often misunderstood—challenges in employee benefits is the affordability gap: employees want to engage in benefit programs but simply can’t afford to participate.Panelist Aaron Shapiro, founder of Carver Edison, sees this gap firsthand in his work with companies of all sizes, from biotech startups to Fortune 500 firms.“A lot of times, lower-income employees get written off as not being interested in programs because they’re focused on other issues,” he said. “What we found in our data says that is not true at all.” Shapiro says participation drops when payroll deductions make programs inaccessible to those who need them most.This affordability barrier has a direct impact on retention. Many employees are seeking only modest increases in pay, but without support, even small gaps can lead to turnover.“Seventy-eight percent of people looking for a new job right now are primarily interested in just making more money,” Shapiro said, citing recent Federal Reserve data. “The answer was basically a 10% raise on average.” While that increase may not seem significant on an individual level, it adds up quickly for employers—and makes the case for more creative compensation strategies.Carver Edison addresses this gap through its product, Cashless Participation, which allows employees at public companies to join stock plans without upfront payroll deductions.“Last year that delivered about a seven-and-a-half percent raise to the average employee using our product,” Shapiro shared. “And what we found is that not only did 18-month retention rates go up by about 50%, but also click-through rates on simple things like emails were up 500%.” That kind of impact on both financial wellness and engagement shows what’s possible when companies think beyond the traditional benefits model.Customizing BenefitsAs companies work to improve employee engagement and retention, one truth remains clear: there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Customization is key.Panelist Jeff Hermosillo, northern California health solutions practice leader at Aon, emphasized that understanding employee needs starts with asking the right questions—and then placing the answers in context.“You survey, and you get as much information as you can,” he said. “But then you benchmark. Maybe you’re a tech company and want to know how you stack up. What your employees say matters, but context, comparing across companies or industries, helps you make sense of everything.”Aon’s employee sentiment study sheds light on generational preferences. “We tallied information across four generations and asked, ‘What are the most valued benefits?’” he said/ “Gen Z put health insurance first, followed by work-life balance, time off, career development, and retirement. Baby boomers, on the other hand, ranked retirement highest—and work-life balance came in fifth.”While preferences may differ, Hermosillo says there’s usually a shared core of value. “Even though baby boomers ranked health care third, they still care about it,” he said. “So you look to optimize the areas of common ground, then ideally provide some customization so people can choose what matters at their stage in life.”That personalization also extends to how rewards and recognition are delivered. “It’s like throwing a party—someone’s not going to like the meal or the venue,” Hermosillo said. “It’s the same thing with recognition programs. People have different preferences, and that’s okay. The key is understanding who you’re working with and having some flexibility.”Among the panelists, one thing was clear: the most effective recognition and rewards strategies are rooted in flexibility, empathy, and a deep understanding of employee needs. Whether it’s closing the affordability gap, personalizing benefits, or empowering middle managers with better tools and support, companies must move beyond one-size-fits-all solutions. By equipping managers to recognize their teams in ways that are timely, meaningful, and aligned with company values, organizations can foster a culture where employees feel truly seen, supported, and inspired to stay.Carrie Snider is a Phoenix-based journalist and marketing copywriter.(Photos by David Coe for From Day One)

Carrie Snider April 24, 2025

How Employers Are Strengthening Support for Employee Mental Health and Well-Being

Burnout has become a critical issue in healthcare, especially for providers treating chronic pain. The emotional and physical demands of patient care, combined with mounting workplace stressors, are pushing many to the brink of exhaustion. Experts say the solution lies in a holistic approach—one that recognizes the deep connection between physical pain, mental health, and organizational culture.Across industries, employee mental health remains fragile. In a post-pandemic world where wellness is a top priority, companies are grappling with a key question: how can they offer support that’s truly meaningful?At From Day One’s Silicon Valley conference, a panel of experts explored the evolving landscape of employee mental health and wellness. Moderated by Michal Lev-Ram, contributing editor-at-large at Fortune, the discussion covered the role of technology, personalized wellness initiatives, and global strategies for cultivating well-being at work.“Pain is never just physical,” said panelist Claire Morrow, senior manager, PT consultants at Hinge Health. “It’s influenced by psychological and social factors, and that applies to providers just as much as patients.” Healthcare workers who spend their days managing patients’ pain often struggle with their own, leading to a cycle of stress, fatigue, and burnout.Toxic workplace culture only makes it worse. Studies show that negative workplace relationships can delay pain recovery and contribute to emotional exhaustion, Morrow says. A lack of support from leadership or colleagues can push already overburdened providers to their breaking point.“A healthy work environment isn’t just nice to have—it’s essential for both patient care and provider well-being,” she said. “When providers are burned out, it directly impacts the quality of care they can give.”Thankfully, the rise of telehealth and flexible digital platforms is reshaping healthcare delivery, giving providers more control over their schedules. At Hinge Health, physical therapists can work remotely, reducing the stress of long commutes and rigid clinical hours.“Giving providers flexibility in their work helps prevent burnout and ensures they can keep delivering high-quality care,” she said. As healthcare continues to evolve, industry leaders are pushing for solutions that protect both patients and providers. The fight against burnout isn’t just about reducing stress, but about ensuring the future of quality care.Technology’s Role in Mental Health SolutionsTechnology has its place—it should enhance, not replace, human support. AI-driven tools provide employees with a confidential, accessible entry point to mental health care, especially for those hesitant about traditional therapy. Platforms like Unmind’s AI-powered system guide employees toward self-care and offer a seamless transition to professional support when necessary.Despite advancements, burnout remains high, a result of high-performance cultures that overlook well-being. Advanced analytics allow companies to measure burnout’s impact on productivity and healthcare costs, demonstrating mental health as a business priority. “The business case for mental health is clearer than ever,” said panelist Matt Jackson, GM, VP of Americas at Unmind. “When companies invest in prevention, they see reduced absenteeism, increased engagement, and ultimately, better business outcomes.”The U.S. healthcare system prioritizes treatment over prevention, but employers can lead the shift toward proactive mental health strategies. “The future of workplace mental health isn’t about reacting to problems—it’s about using technology to prevent them before they start,” Jackson said. Preventative tools offer real-time support and data-driven insights to address mental health challenges before they escalate.By integrating AI solutions, companies can scale mental health care, reduce costs, and build a resilient workforce. “Digital tools give employees the autonomy to access support on their own terms while ensuring organizations can offer consistent, scalable care,” he said. These tools also help foster a psychologically safe environment, equipping leaders with the resources to prevent burnout and enhance employee well-being.Global Approaches to Wellness As companies adapt post-pandemic, Enphase Energy has focused on helping employees prioritize self-care and family care in a world still adjusting. Panelist Vivian Hung, head of total rewards at Enphase said that “Post-Covid, everyone’s mental head space and self-care prioritization has shifted, and that extends to how they care for their family and how they care for themselves after they leave work.”To accommodate its global workforce, Enphase tailors wellness programs to meet regional and cultural needs. This includes offering fertility health benefits globally while also ensuring inclusivity for employees in different life stages. Executive panelists spoke about "Enhancing Employee Mental Health and Wellness Support" “I don’t have 100% of my workforce thinking about family formation,” Hung said. “So how do I take care of the rest of the population?” The company offers a wide range of benefits to ensure that every employee’s needs are met, irrespective of location.In addition, Enphase maintains a strong focus on work-life balance, particularly through its implementation of blackout meeting periods. They employ a blackout period to be respectful of local time zones. This ensures employees aren’t burdened with after-hours work, promoting true disconnection from work, she says. Financial wellness is another key pillar at Enphase, recognizing that financial stress is a global issue that impacts overall well-being. The company provides educational resources to help employees understand their total compensation, easing financial concerns and strengthening their connection to benefits.Fostering Meaningful ConversationsHuman connection is key to building a supportive work environment. Since each employee’s experience is shaped by their location, culture, and personal circumstances, companies must take a flexible, personalized approach to wellness. In short, panelist JoAnn Taylor, CHRO at Rakuten, says organizations must meet their people where they are. “We try to make sure that we know what’s going on, and we can be agile so we can react quickly to make sure that our employees have the support in place that they can access when they need it in confidentiality,” she said. This adaptability allows companies to offer tailored solutions, ensuring that employees feel understood and supported.While digital wellness tools play a role in wellness programs, the human element is just as crucial. “Having one meaningful conversation a day raises all the good hormones, and that builds your inner strength, so you can be more agile when things start to come at you,” Taylor said. In today’s hybrid work environment, balancing flexibility with meeting business needs is essential. That’s why they introduced Wellness Fridays, where employees get the afternoon off to recharge.As the panelists pointed out, with the right tools and a focus on human connection, companies can create a resilient, engaged workforce capable of thriving in today’s challenging landscape. By embracing flexibility, integrating preventative mental health tools, and fostering personal connections, companies can create a resilient workforce equipped to thrive in today’s dynamic work environment.Carrie Snider is a Phoenix-based journalist and marketing copywriter.(Photos by David Coe for From Day One)

Carrie Snider April 16, 2025

The Debate Over RTO and WFH: What the Research Really Shows

Despite headlines over the last year touting the full RTO of major corporations like J.P. Morgan Chase and Amazon, Nicholas Bloom the foremost expert on remote work and professor of economics at Stanford University, says the RTO trend seems to have already passed. Citing a recent study of more than 1,000 companies, he said “we asked them about their return to office plans, looking ahead a year, and 85% of them said they have no plans to change.”“The big data I’ve seen suggests there is not a major return to the office. I don’t think there’s going to be much major change outside of the government sector,” said Bloom. Some companies have been tying bonuses to office attendance to incentivize employees to come in, which Bloom finds ineffective. “There are only so many dollars you can give [an employee] for a bonus,” he said. “If you start to take away some of that from performance and put it onto days in the office, you’re just giving her less bonus for performance. You’re basically saying, as a business to a manager, ‘We care less about performance.’”And still, latest headlines regarding return to office are contradictory. “One will say that being in the office full time will make your workers more productive, and then the next day you might see one that says being hybrid or fully remote will make your workers more productive. What is the actual answer?” asked moderator Katherine Bindley, technology reporter at the Wall Street Journal during a fireside chat at From Day One’s Silicon Valley conference.As more large employers enforce a return to office, Bloom shared insights on what the latest research shows about productivity, employee engagement, and other factors that companies need to take into account when developing their policies. For employers insisting on RTO, what can they do to make the arrangement more effective? And for those offering flexible arrangements, what approaches provide the best results?We all want to know: which is the more effective strategy, RTO (return to office) or WFH (work from home)? “It really depends on the task,” Bloom said. Certain duties like call center work benefit from the quiet of home. Generally, Bloom and his student researchers have found that a hybrid model is optimal.A recent two-year study on the company Trip.com did an A/B test of their workers, with half working from home two days per week and the other half in the office full time. The study showed no demonstrable effect on performance.“[In interviews] they’d say there’s a huge benefit of coming into the office. It’s great for mentoring, it’s better for innovation, it’s better for building culture,” Bloom said. “But by the time you’ve gone three days a week in the office, it’s not obvious that days four and five are useful.”In fact, spending the other two days at home allowed for deep work and an additional 90-minutes of working time. And the employees who were allowed to work part-time from home were 35% less likely to quit. “The Trip.com CEO and the board said this is massively profitable, because every person that quits costs us something like $30,000  to $50,000,” Bloom said. It can be hard to measure performance among certain professions–even more so when employees are working from home and you can’t physically see or hear what they are doing, says Bloom. But it’s crucial for employers to figure out how to gauge results to allow employees this highly sought-after benefit. “Make sure you have good performance evaluations,” Bloom said, suggesting complex metrics and sliding scales based on each role.How to Enforce RTOBloom cautions against using RTO as a method of downsizing, referring to Amazon and even DOGE as guilty of versions of this, essentially making work so uncomfortable through RTO and other mandates that people quit. But organizations that do really need a full RTO need to roll it out in a way that is both enforceable and attractive. Companies that announce RTO, he says, see an uptick in “card swipes and Wi-Fi logins” at the office at first, but after the initial mandate, compliance starts to slip. Buy-in from managers is key, as they set the tone for their teams. “What’s happening is this very weak enforcement. In order to enforce, you have to have a strong mandate and incentives,” he said. Bindley also notes the importance of having the actual space to bring back workers, especially after so many companies downsized their spaces during the pandemic. “You have to have enough desks,” she said. Nicholas Bloom, William D. Eberle professor in economics and foremost expert on remote work, was interviewed during the fireside chat The Best Model of Hybrid With hybrid schedules, it can be hard to coordinate workers, Bindley says. You don’t want a situation where people head to the office just to be on Zoom with colleagues at home. “The most common model is three days in the office: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday,” Bloom said. “There’s no exact science on which days, but you want to coordinate two or three days.” People still work on Fridays, but most do it from home, Bloom says. In fact, the London Underground has even made Friday an off-peak travel day due to the change in work-styles.And with coordination must come enforcement. “There’s an old Roman saying that a good law is an easy to enforce law,” Bloom said. Allowing employees to work from home means “treating employees more like an adult,” Bloom said. It means you trust them, knowing that even though they might be technically working fewer hours as they pick up their kids or go to the dentist, they will still make it up on the other end to get everything done. Workers end up less stressed, and more personally and professionally productive, when they are trusted to manage their own time. Looking ahead, WFH is the way of the future, Bloom says. And we’ve been moving toward it for years, with the advent of personal computers in the 1980s, inexpensive Wi-Fi phone calls in the 2000s, and the like. Innovations like Google’s Starliner project and other technological advances will make remote work that much easier.And perhaps most importantly, it’s what the next generation wants. “If you look at the people that are against working from home, they tend to be 50 plus. As time goes on, those folks tend to drift out,” Bloom said. “If you look at leaders in [their 30s-40s], they’re much more balanced on this. Those folks, in 10 years, are going to be the CEOs of the future.” 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 David Coe for From Day One)

Katie Chambers April 15, 2025