Integrating Physical and Mental Health Care to Improve Employee Outcomes
BY Riley Kaminer June 14, 2023In a past job working on a company’s benefits team, Accolade’s Shannon Rickert consulted with an employee who had been prescribed medication for an autoimmune disorder.“She was dealing with a lot of anxiety in general, but then also specific anxiety related to potential side effects of the medication she was prescribed,” Rickert shared in a recent webinar hosted by From Day One and moderated by her colleague, Katie Miller Blakemore.When the employee went to her provider and said she hadn't been taking the medication because of her anxiety, the provider told her that they needed to address the anxiety first. “It was a judgment-free conversation, where they were able to discuss options for therapy, options for medication, and ways for her to better control her anxiety to enable her to better manage her autoimmune condition,” asserted Rickert.This employee shared her story because she was pleasantly surprised by the fact that one provider could address both her physical and mental health – thereby successfully managing both of her conditions. For Rickert, this holistic perspective ultimately meant centering the human experience: “It’s really about considering what a treatment does for a person who is trying to get help for their needs.”Shannon Rickert, Accolade's director of product marketing presented during the webinar (company photo)And the need is greater than ever. A 2021 survey from the National Institutes of Mental Health revealed that around one in five adults, 58 million people, suffer from some type of mental health condition. Even more striking: 85% of those adults inflicted with a mental health condition go undiagnosed or untreated.This is not just a crisis for those affected, but rather the economy as a whole. A 2021 report from the NIH estimates that the economic burden of major depressive disorder alone to be $210 billion annually. Approximately half of that burden was attributed to workplace costs.What Can Employers Do to Make a Difference in Their Employees’ Well-being?The good news is that employers are far from powerless in this situation. Rickert shared a handful of ways that employers can better support their team members’ health. For instance: embracing mental health care practices, discussing the importance of self care and mental wellbeing, and approaching physical and mental health care in an integrated way.“This approach is critical to recruitment, retention, and productivity,” she said, emphasizing the importance of creating a culture of wellness. “Integrating physical and mental health opens up the chance for the early identification of mental health conditions so that the right intervention can take place.Dr. Leo Vieira, a family physician and medical director at Accolade, has seen this firsthand. He added that integrating physical and mental health care through a platform like Accolade offers an opportunity for more personalized, comprehensive, and intimate health care–all thanks to features such as virtual appointments. “Our virtual care model sets us apart and increases access to both medical and mental health care,” Vieira asserted. “I think that we can really overcome many of the barriers that block so many of our patients from getting the medical and mental health care that they need.”What Makes a Good Wellness Program?For Rickert, a good wellness program should be comprehensive and have options for all employees across risk levels and abilities.“It is vital to include mental health support options, along with physical health support options, and present them as equally important in your wellness messaging,” she said. Good wellness programs should also provide education on various topics around mental health such as stress management and work/life balance.“Most importantly, a strong culture of wellbeing helps ensure the access of your wellness program because you'll have employees that feel seen, feel accepted, and feel supported,” Rickert continued. In her experience, when employees work in an environment like that, they tend to be happier, healthier, and more invested in the success of their company.”An integrated approach to health care – one that supports both mental and physical health – ultimately can reduce absenteeism, create a healthier workplace culture, and lower health care costs.How Can Employers Ensure That All Employees Receive Comprehensive Care?It is far from a given that employees will receive comprehensive care. However, employers now have access to tools that can enable them to offer whole-person health care services to employees.“Employers can use a collaborative care model: an evidence-based practice that treats physical and mental health conditions concurrently,” suggested Rickert. Accolade’s platform enables this kind of comprehensive care. “That’s important because mental health is very much connected to physical health and vice versa,” Vieira added.Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, Accolade, for sponsoring this webinar.Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in publications including Forbes, the Times (UK), the Economist, and LatAm Investor.
The Other Caregiving Crisis: How Employers Can Help Workers With Their Hidden Responsibilities
BY Riley Kaminer June 14, 2023While the pandemic revealed a crisis in childcare, it also exposed a parallel crisis in family caregiving for adults. One in five workers has responsibility for the care of one or more adults who are aging, ill, or have special needs, according to research by AARP. Yet many carry the burden in silence–more than half of these caregivers don’t tell their supervisors about it.Fortunately, that situation is changing. In a recent survey of 200 leaders in HR conducted by From Day One with support from AARP, 56% of the respondents said that workers are increasingly open with colleagues and managers about their caregiving responsibilities, while 60% said that their companies associate support for family caregivers with improving morale and strengthening a culture of belonging.“Before the pandemic, convincing employers to prioritize their support of working caregivers was an uphill battle,” said Tricia Sandiego, a senior advisor at AARP, in a From Day One webinar on the issue. But from the survey results, “we learned that there is an increase in awareness of this issue. Workers are talking about caregiving, and company leaders do realize and acknowledge that it’s important.” That said, there is still room for improvement: fewer than 15% of respondents said supporting family caregivers was a major priority at their companies.For Sandiego, this issue is personal. She is part of the so-called sandwich generation–she calls it the “panini generation”– which is caught caregiving for both a younger and an older generation.And she is far from alone. Sandiego noted that family caregivers are not just older workers. Rather, 50% of the 48 million caregivers in the U.S. are under the age of 50. About 25% of them are in the millennial generation, and already 6% of them are in Generation Z.Age is just one aspect of the diversity of caregivers. Despite the stereotype about caregivers being female, four in 10 caregivers are men. Lower-income workers tend to have heavier caregiving responsibilities, while shift workers and gig workers have less corporate support than full-time workers. Sandiego underscored that this diversity leads to a wide range of divides among the caregiver population and the need for different types of support.What Changes Can Companies Make?The good news is that there are many ways for companies to support their caregivers. These solutions are often affordable as well. Cheryl Kern, VP of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) for the office-furniture maker MillerKnoll, underscored the importance of creating an open and transparent culture. “We want employees to feel confident that they can step forward and make it known to their leadership and management that they need support and resources.”Kern noted some of the resources MillerKnoll provides, such as advice on eldercare. Her team also helps remind caregivers of some of the policies the company already has in place around childcare and nanny support–both of which caregivers could find helpful. “We aim to help caregivers feel better equipped, better prepared, and more confident in order to do their caregiving role,” said Kern. MillerKnoll additionally leverages business resource groups to support their working caregivers.The full panel of leaders: top row fromleft, Cheryl Kern of MillerKnoll and Krista Brookman of Northwestern Mutual. Bottom row: Tricia Sandiego of AARP, Nyasia Sarfo of Microsoft, and moderator Ericka Sóuter (Image by From Day One)Nyasia Sarfo, a global culture and people experiences lead at Microsoft, echoed these sentiments, highlighting her company’s goal of creating a culture of inclusion and belonging. “We believe that your well-being isn’t extra, it’s essential.” The company aims to make this mission come to life by putting people first and reminding employees to prioritize their well-being by, for example, taking time off when they need it. Sarfo added that Microsoft supports employees by reminding them to use their vacation days and prioritize spending time with their family. “These practices did not just begin—they are really in the fabric of our culture as a whole,” Sarfo said.What makes supporting caregivers tricky, noted Krista Brookman, a senior director of DEI at Northwestern Mutual, is that becoming a caregiver is often unplanned. “It puts your life on another trajectory,” she asserted. That is why she believes it is critical to develop a workplace culture where employers help employees through stressful times with robust policies and practices.“Being a caregiver is unplanned and puts your life on another trajectory,” Brookman said. That is why Northwestern Mutual has developed policies and practices to support caregivers. “We made sure our caregiving responsibilities were broadly defined,” she said. That way, different types of caregivers with different roles are all equally supported. “Having that broader definition helps ensure that these policies fit within our diversity and inclusion efforts.”What Risks Do Companies Run by Ignoring These Needs?Sandiego believes that companies that avoid prioritizing the needs of employee caregivers might have issues finding and retaining top talent. “Companies that can acknowledge the needs of–and help support–working family caregivers will be ahead of the curve when it comes to their talent management strategy and being able to hold on to really good talent in your organization,” she said.Kern agreed with Sandiego, further emphasizing that ignoring the needs of caregivers could threaten the company’s inclusivity goals. In Kern’s opinion, the best way to go about ensuring that caregiver needs are met is by focusing on building the business case for supporting them. “The ROI for supporting caregivers is very clear, but there is much more work that remains,” said Kern.Top of this to-do list is ensuring buy-in at top management levels. Sarfo said she’s able to secure senior support by leveraging the power of storytelling. “We have a speaker series where employees can share the stories of what they are going through,” she said. “It’s about getting comfortable with being uncomfortable.”Kern notes that much of this power lies in the hands of employees themselves. “Influencing change is now bottom-up. Associates can voice the power they have as employees. That’s a wonderful way of getting leadership on board. And most leaders do want to listen,” she said.Editor’s note: AARP, who sponsored this webinar, is offering an Employee Caregiver Program Series. This series is an easy way to make your workplace more caregiver-inclusive via live, virtual programs that help employees balance their work and caregiving responsibilities. AARP has agreed to offer the caregiving program to members of the From Day One community free of charge. This is a unique opportunity. Learn more and apply by visiting Caregiving.FromDayOne.com.Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in publications including Forbes, the Times (UK), the Economist, and LatAm Investor.(Featured photo by Fred Froese/iStock by Getty Images)
Investing in Employee Well-Being: The Business Case for a Healthier Work Environment
BY Riley Kaminer May 29, 2023“Toxic workplaces are harmful to workers–to their mental health, and it turns out, to their physical health as well,” proclaimed Dr. Vivek Murthy, the U.S. Surgeon General, in a statement last October. In fact, Murthy added, workplaces should be engines for mental health and well-being.But most employees are experiencing the exact opposite phenomenon. In a June 2021 study of 1,500 employees conducted by Qualtrics, 76% of employees report that they have at least one symptom of a mental health condition, up from 59% just two years ago. And 84% of employees say their workplace conditions have contributed to at least one mental health challenge, while 40% of workers say their employers have not done enough to address mental health.Elizabeth Bille, SVP of workplace culture at the workplace training platform EVERFI, is on a mission to help employers have a net-positive effect on their employees’ well-being. “Employees are experiencing more challenges than ever before, both outside of work and inside the workplace,” Bille shared in a May webinar with From Day One. “And indeed, the line between our work and our personal lives is blurrier than ever before.”Equally though, Bille noted that workers are increasingly prioritizing their mental health, “and they want to work for a company that does too.” Two-thirds of employees say that they would take a pay cut to go to a job that better values their mental health.This state of affairs is not just bad for employees–it’s bad for business. Twenty percent of payroll costs are being affected by employee burnout, leading to poor retention and lower productivity. The good news? Investing in employee health and well-being can have a positive return on investment (ROI) to the tune of more than $4 for every $1 spent.New Approaches for Supporting Mental HealthTraditional strategies for supporting employees’ mental health see it as a personal issue that can be addressed by benefits-centered solutions such as wellness programs and days off. In contrast, new approaches recognize that mental health challenges are workplace issues that require people-focused solutions including prioritizing a healthy work environment and team culture and forging more open manager-employee relationships.Elizabeth Bille, SVP of workplace culture at EVERFIA hallmark effort of this new approach is to address toxic workplaces. One effective strategy is to provide training that addresses disrespectful behavior, teaches bystander intervention techniques, and includes culture-building subjects like respect, allyship, and inclusion.Another useful method to address toxic workplaces is by better aligning an organization’s values with the behavior of its employees. Bille provided some tips:•Check your organizational values•Ensure that your values come up in daily conversation•Check reward and feedback systems.•Address toxic behavior–even if not illegal, and even from superstar employees.•Follow up appropriately on complaints.•Hold people accountable.It is also essential to connect an organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategy with its employee mental health initiatives. “This demonstrates and communicates that everyone in our organization is welcomed and valued,” said Bille. “It helps to reduce bias, exclusion, and inaccessibility by increasing feelings of psychological safety, social connection, and belonging.” She urges employers to avoid one-size-fits-all mental health and DEI offerings while providing visible support from leadership. Managers Can Play a Role in Helping Employees’ Mental HealthBille suggests that managers be equipped with tools to support their employees having challenges, such as learning to identify the major signs of burnout. Other strategies for managers include adding time to the beginning and end of meetings for checking in, proactively acknowledging challenges and how hard they are, sharing how they are feeling, and communicating genuine care and concern for employee well-being.For managers, supporting individual employees can also have positive results. Managers can ask how their employees are doing and listen to their struggles. “Keep the door open,” said Bille. Asking how they can support employees’ self-care can go a long way–as can reminding employees to focus on the issues we can control. Additionally, prioritizing tasks and finding efficiencies in daily workflows can help promote a healthy work environment.Managers play a critical role in destigmatizing mental health. “Share how you are feeling because it helps normalize talking about struggles,” Bille asserted. “There’s a misconception that leaders need to be stoic, and that’s actually not true. There’s a lot of literature that's been written about toxic stoicism and the harm it can cause when leaders don't show any emotion because they're trying to be strong.”While it may seem daunting to help manage their employees’ mental health and well-being, businesses are not alone. EVERFI has a wide range of resources to help, Bille said, including an inclusive meetings checklist and a DEI facilitator workbook and scenario builder. With tools like these, it is more possible than ever for employers to prioritize their employees’ mental health and support their wellbeing.Editors’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, EVERFI, for supporting this webinar.Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in publications including Forbes, the Times (UK), the Economist, and LatAm Investor
How Well-Being Fosters a Resilient and Equitable Workplace
BY Riley Kaminer March 04, 2023What would be possible for your organization if everyone showed up as the best version of themselves? This is the bold question fueling Shannon Hopkins’ work as regional VP at BetterUp, an online coaching platform. Hopkins is laser-focused on empowering employers with the tools necessary to improve their workers’ well-being. “Unlocking peak performance from your employees starts with building a healthy, resilient mind,” she told attendees of From Day One’s February virtual conference. However, Hopkins asserted that achieving this resilience has never been more challenging. A Harvard Business Review survey indicated that 85% of workers believe their well-being has declined since 2020. There has also been a 25% increase in the global prevalence of anxiety and depression since 2020. Meanwhile, the average lifestyle of a skill, and how long a skill is relevant, has shrunk from five years to just 18 months over the course of the last decade and a half. And with today’s global macroeconomic uncertainty, there is increasing pressure for employees to do more with less. Well-Being Drives Performance, Especially in Times of Uncertainty Well-being can be the key to successfully navigating turbulent times. It is a major driver of resilience: the ability to bounce back in times of change. Resilience helps increase the competitiveness and profitability of an organization, even under highly disruptive conditions. In an analysis of 16,000 BetterUp members, the company identified a 35% difference in resilience between those who score low on well-being and those who score high. There is also a strong link between well-being and productivity, noted Hopkins. “Well-being actually can drive an increase in performance, or productivity in times of change–not just maintain it.” Shannon Hopkins, regional VP at BetterUp (Company photo) In an attempt to understand the complex interplay between productivity and well-being, BetterUp studied a group of 1,000 people. They tracked how these participants’ productivity changed before the pandemic compared to immediately after. “The results were surprising,” Hopkins said. “We had expected to see that all participants would experience some decline in their productivity, given the extreme circumstances of that period. But what we saw was those that received coaching actually saw an increase in their productivity. So people that were actively working on their well-being during this period scored higher than those that didn't.” A partnership with Salesforce provided more data to back up this story. Employees that used BetterUp’s well-being solutions increased their productivity by 25%, were 56% less likely to miss work due to health reasons, and were five times more likely to be rated as a top performer. Having high well-being is also closely correlated to increased cognitive agility, or the ability to make the right choices in moments of uncertainty. The good news? “This is highly coachable,” said Hopkins. “We need to make improving our cognitive agility a proactive daily practice and invest in it over time, and in advance as well.” How Can You Enhance Well-being in Your Organization? Hopkins believes that most employers still lack the right solutions to support the majority of their workforce–moving beyond training sessions, digital health tools, and employee–assistance programs (EAPs). “What we need now more than ever is a new, comprehensive well-being solution,” she said, advocating for an approach that builds employees’ mental strength and enables their peak performance. “Ultimately, that creates organizations that employees seek out and where they want to remain, which is super important for today’s times.” In Hopkins’ estimation, these programs should have measurable outcomes, be culturally and globally relevant, and be integrated in the normal flow of everyday work. “What would be possible for your organization if everyone showed up as their best self?” Hopkins asked the virtual audience. “And what would that look like for your people, your team’s diversity and inclusion efforts, and ultimately for your organization? And more importantly, how would it feel to work there for the employees?” These are difficult questions. But as Hopkins explained, keeping well-being top of mind is an excellent first step towards a productive, fulfilled, and equitable workforce. Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, BetterUp, who sponsored this thought leadership spotlight. Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in publications including Forbes, the Times (UK), the Economist, and LatAm Investor.
Making Family Benefits Truly Inclusive for Working Caregivers
BY Riley Kaminer February 02, 2023Jessica Nam Kim had it all. Three beautiful kids. Her own successful business. She took pride in expertly juggling her various commitments, never dropping the ball on any task, small or large. But when Kim’s mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, that all changed. Her mother moved in with Kim and her children, who were 10, 7, and 5 years old at the time. Kim began to take on the role of full-time caregiver for her mother. She was doing everything from nursing, to ferrying her between doctors’ appointments, to managing her finances. “I felt forced to quit my job for the first time ever in my life,” Kim told attendees at From Day One’s recent webinar, Making Family Benefits Truly Inclusive for Working Caregivers. “It was the hardest, loneliest time in my life as I cared for her through hospice.” From Identifying a Problem to Devising a Solution This difficult experience allowed Kim the realization that she did not have to go through the trials and tribulations of caregiving alone. Rather, it was Kim’s support network that enabled her to make it through the most challenging moments of being a caregiver. “Realistically, people cannot do this alone without sustainable support,” Kim shared with journalist and author Ericka Sóuter, who interviewed Kim in this engaging conversation. That inspired Kim, a seasoned entrepreneur and former Kraft Foods executive, to launch ianacare: a startup that provides the infrastructure needed to support caregivers. “IANA” stands for “I Am Not Alone.” The problem, in Kim’s view, is that caregivers often lack the support needed to successfully navigate their caregiving responsibilities. “When we think about caregiving, we tend to think about the beginning and the end of life,” asserted Kim, especially from the perspective of employee benefits. However, caregiving takes on many different forms, including helping a loved one manage a chronic condition, a disability, a special need, or a major issue like a broken leg. Speaking on family caregiving, Jesssica Kim of ianacare, top, and moderator Ericka Sóuter (Image by From Day One) Ianacare’s platform takes all of these different types of caregiving into consideration on its platform. Designed for businesses to provide as a benefit to their employees, ianacare brings together caregivers’ personal social circles, local resources, and employee benefits all in one centralized location. Ianacare does not dispense clinical advice; rather, it helps users access the resources they need. Ianacare supports this information with content created by caregiving experts, on top of providing access to one-on-one advice from a caregiver navigator. These navigators have a minimum of 10 years of clinical experience, typically as a nurse, case manager, or social workers. They also have more than five years of experience with family counseling and navigating local resources. “We evolve with you–we’re not just a solution that solves one trigger point,” Kim noted, underscoring the reality that caregivers’ needs can dramatically change over time. So, what’s ianacare’s secret ingredient? Technology. It leverages digital tools to provide users with a better caregiving experience. For example, Kim said that ianacare’s navigators are four times more productive than the average. “Each navigator can handle over 400 clients and still be very personalized with them because the tech on our backend empowers navigators to be efficient with their time.” That time savings is especially critical, considering today’s labor shortage in the health care industry. Equally, ianacare’s platform has been clinically validated by a peer-reviewed medical journal. “That proved that we gave each caregiver up to $10,000 of out of pocket savings every year, while also saving them 200 hours per year,” said Kim. Empowering Employers to Support Their Caregivers According to a Harvard Business School study, 61% of employees are caregivers, and over 32% of caregivers voluntarily leave their jobs because they have an insufficient support network. That adds up to $530 billion in lost productivity due to caregiving responsibilities. By partnering with ianacare, employers can help ensure that their employee caregivers are sufficiently supported. Kim outlined three major human resources initiatives that ianacare can help support. First: diversity, equity, and inclusion. “You cannot move the needle on DEI if you don’t deal with caregivers’ needs,” she said, noting that these responsibilities often fall on the shoulders of already underrepresented employees. Second, ianacare arms companies with another tool to alleviate employees’ mental health struggles. “The mental health surge we’re all seeing now due to the pandemic is highly felt by family caregivers,” said Kim. Third is retention. Employees increasingly value workplaces that prioritize work-life balance and are aware of their ‘whole person,’ not just the person that shows up from nine to five. In today’s war for talent, employers can stand out by working with ianacare and extending the sustainable support caregivers need. But Kim’s vision for ianacare goes beyond the employee-employer relationship. “Ianacare is not only aiming to change employer culture, but society overall. We've pulled together key executives, influencers, policymakers, and private and public sector leaders to create this important infrastructure. And we want to lead the way to a more inclusive world for caregivers.” Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, ianacare, who sponsored this webinar. Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in Forbes, the Times (UK), the Economist, Rest of World, LatAm Investor, Refresh Miami, and more.
In High-Performing Workplaces, Compassion Flows from the C-suite
BY Riley Kaminer December 10, 2022A senior manager recently came to Federico Demarin, the chief people officer for advertising giant GroupM’s Latin American business, seeking advice on how to manage his team’s pandemic-induced burnout. “He said, ‘I keep fighting for more resources so my team can have a break,” Demarin recalled to attendees at From Day One’s recent Miami conference on “Workers and the Corporate Values Revolution.” Unfortunately, there were no additional resources to be had–something that this manager knew well. So Demarin instead focused on the manager’s behavior. “I asked him what he himself was doing on a daily basis to help his people. ‘Are you stepping up? Are you giving your hours so they have more time?’’’ For Demarin, this experience was a prime example of how business leaders need to “show that they really mean business” when cultivating a high-performing yet compassionate workplace–the topic of a panel discussion moderated by Trina Robinson, a Miami NBC News anchor. The Pandemic Has Changed How Managers Create Compassionate Workplaces “The pandemic taught us that you have to be the voice to put people first,” said Demarin of the power of HR professionals in a post-pandemic world. “Your decisions matter, and you need to show how you care for employees.” Debi Yadegari, founder and CEO of Villyge, a digital platform that helps managers lead with empathy, asserted that the major change in a post-pandemic HR environment has been employee expectations. “Pre-pandemic, most employees were narrowly focused on benefits,” Yadegari said. Now, there is an increased focus on the overall experience of workers, including initiatives to promote a healthy work-life balance. “What are the behaviors to look out for and encourage?” asked Microsoft’s Tracey Haynes “Employees have had their lives turned upside down,” continued Yadegari. “We need to respond to that.” This is particularly true for Millennial and Gen Z employees, who place an outsized importance on having their voice heard. Yadegari added that showing empathy can drive profit. “We need to empower managers to care for employees. We’ve seen that reminding them to do something as simple as check in on their employees can lead to a positive return on investment.” Spreading Compassion From the C-suite to the Whole Company For Tracey Haynes, HR director for Microsoft’s U.S. Commercial Business, a compassionate attitude must start in the C-suite. “First, it is important to define what empathy means for us. How do employees demonstrate empathy? What are the behaviors to look out for and encourage?” Haynes said that storytelling plays a key role in spreading these values at Microsoft. “We need to give managers the messages they can evangelize,” she said, noting the usefulness of symbolism in everyday things like coffee cups with inspiring messages. Isabel Montes, VP of HR at gold-mining company Newmont, asserted that the key to compassion is curiosity. “We have to be very active listeners and show that we as leaders are open to devising solutions that are tailored to their needs.” Montes urges executives to get out of their office and visit workers in the field, where they can hear about and see their experiences first-hand. “We listen thoughtfully to our people and respond to their needs,” she said. David Bator, managing director of the Achievers Workforce Institute, the research arm of the employee-recognition platform Achievers, agreed with Montes’ perspective. “Rarely do the best ideas come from the boardroom,” he said, noting a disconnect between the business that executives are building and the lived experience of workers. Trina Robinson, a Miami NBC News anchor, moderated the conversation “We can create an experience that makes employees feel welcome, feel known, included, supported, and connected,” said Bator. “By talking with employees and understanding who they are as individuals, we can recognize the things–small and large–that drive their success.” What Does Empathy Look Like in Competitive Workplaces? Employers must delicately manage motivating employees while also showing sensitivity. “Empathy does not scale, but it’s an investment we need to make,” said Bator. “We need to disabuse ourselves of the notion that everything we build for emotions will scale,” and that’s OK, he asserted. For example, starting a team huddle by asking how employees are doing is not necessarily a scalable activity. But, in Bator’s experience, it can go a long way in reminding employees that their employers prioritize their well-being. “Driving empathy in the workplace is not just telling your employees to be nice,” Yadegari added. Instead, the key is continuing to push productivity forward while meeting the needs of employees today. “There is a direct correlation between compassion and productivity,” she said. Haynes echoed this sentiment, further emphasizing the business case for compassion. She shared a story of a Microsoft employee who created technology to enable a blind colleague to read menus at restaurants, so he could go alone. This innovation was eventually deployed more widely across the company. “That is a great example of how building empathy can bring real business solutions,” she said. The full panel, from left: Robinson, Yadegari, Haynes, Bator, Demarin, and Montes Demarin offered some practical advice for building an empathetic and compassionate workplace. “In the infinite game of human progress, you can’t worry about moving mountains. But you can move a stone. Always focus on progress, on evolution.” He encouraged the audience to think about their personal role in large-scale change. “We all have this opportunity. What are you doing? What is the little stone you are moving?” Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in Forbes, the Times (UK), Rest of World, LatAm Investor, Refresh Miami, Cities Today, and more.
Navigating Through a Historic Crisis: the Carnival Cruise Journey
BY Riley Kaminer December 09, 2022From the moment Bettina Deynes took on the role of SVP and chief HR officer for Carnival Cruise Line, she was already feeling overwhelmed. “It was 2019, a historic year for Carnival, and I was brought on to develop a world-class HR team,” Deynes told participants at From Day One’s recent Miami conference on “Workers and the Corporate Values Revolution.” “Within a few weeks of arriving on the job, I had concerns that I made the wrong choice in taking the position,” Deynes said. She described feelings of self-doubt, and a sense that she would have difficulties understanding the intricacies of this highly complex business. And then Covid hit. “I went from feeling inadequate and thinking about things like overall strategy, goals, and tackling environmental concerns to managing this monumental moment,” she said in a fireside chat with Tim Padgett, the Americas editor for Miami NPR affiliate WLRN. Before the pandemic, Deynes fought to ensure HR got a seat at the table where cruise-line executives made major decisions. “During Covid, HR became the table,” she said. “There was not a single conversation in which our team was not involved.” This pandemic hit the cruise-line industry harder than any other, essentially shutting it down and triggering mass layoffs. This traumatic period was an opportunity for Deynes to learn how to do more with less. Her 90-person team shrunk to 27. A staff reduction of magnitude would be difficult to navigate even in the best of times, asserted Deynes. But it was even more challenging during the early days of the pandemic, when her team was tasked with assisting tens of thousands of team members from 200 different countries, each with their own laws and regulations regarding the pandemic. Deynes underscored the magnitude of this task. “The employee-relations issues we had to deal with were life and death.” “We had to help employees regain their lives,” she said. “Throughout the pandemic, we were very conscious of taking care of our employees. At the end of the day, this business is all about our people.” In the face of this uncertainty and upheaval, Deynes thrived. “This period is when I gained my confidence,” she said. How exactly did she do it? She credits the spirit of garra charrúa, a refrain from her native Uruguay referring to the resilience of this small, underdog nation. “Being an immigrant and being a woman, sometimes you have to work in industries where you’re underrepresented,” she said, highlighting her years leading HR for the Washington Nationals baseball team. Deynes was interviewed by Tim Padgett, the Americas editor for Miami NPR affiliate WLRN While Deynes’ key to success was having grit and breaking through self-doubt, she was conscious of remaining humble and honest. “It was about realizing that we will get through this, and knowing that I worked for a company that was committed to doing what was best for our employees.” Over the course of the pandemic, Carnival ended up re-engineering almost all its HR processes, from benefits to remote-work policies to how they respond to new legislation. These efforts were ultimately a success, with Deynes retaining every member of her HR team. But getting through the pandemic would turn out to be the easy part. “The return was twice as hard as the pause,” she said. To get operations back to cruising speed, Carnival was now competing with every other cruise line to ramp up operations and attract as many consumers as quickly as possible. From an HR perspective, Deynes and team had to deal with a deluge of logistical headaches such as visa delays and quarantine requirements. Despite it all, Deynes maintains that Carnival emerged from the pandemic stronger than ever, noting that the company now has 27 ships, up from 24 in 2019. Looking forward, Deynes painted a picture of Carnival as a leading employer in the cruise industry and beyond. “The most important thing is to create a culture that is inclusive,” she asserted, noting the continued importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. Deynes signaled that questions of remote work, benefits, and environmental footprint will also remain top of mind in Carnival’s HR plans. Successfully managing the pandemic has equipped Deynes to accomplish these initiatives as well. “I learned to have faith and to keep reminding myself that everything is OK, that everything will be fine, and that I have the tools to get through tough times.” And now Deynes is in an even better position to spearhead this mission. In October 2022, the executive who was at first unsure of herself was promoted to global chief HR officer for the cruise line’s parent company, Carnival Corp., a tenfold increase in her responsibilities. Riley Kaminer is a Miami-based journalist, researcher, and content strategist. As a freelance tech writer and researcher, he has profiled more than 400 of the world’s top entrepreneurs and investors. His work has been featured in Forbes, the Times (UK), Rest of World, LatAm Investor, Refresh Miami, Cities Today, and more.