The Era Recap: Six Lessons Learned From Six Podcast Episodes
It’s time to make employee experience a priority. And since joining BambooHR in 2019, CEO Brad Rencher has championed this philosophy. The Era, a BambooHR podcast hosted by Brad, features leaders who are bringing the era of employee experience to the forefront of human resources.
In season one, Brad is joined by leaders who are shaping the future of people-first strategies in HR. In each episode, Brad and his guests approach these employee experience topics through the lens of one of BambooHR’s company values. Get a glimpse of how Brad and his guests explore employee experience in each episode, and decide which one you’ll listen to first.
Episode 1: Grow from Good to Great
In this episode, Brad discusses how putting employees first can help organizations grow from good to great and explores the psychological contract between employer and employee. We also hear from Katie Burke, chief people officer at HubSpot, as she shares her take on what it means to grow better.
“Culture fit,” as Katie describes it, “Is limiting, and we need people who are going to stretch and add to our culture and not fit it.” Katie’s unique approach to recruiting also calls on HR leaders to be more thoughtful about the candidates they consider. She believes candidates should be hired not only for their opportunities within the company, but also the company’s opportunities for hiring against traditional culture fits. She continues to note that if a company hires talent based on someone’s ability to fit a mold, the company will suffer in how fast it can adapt, improve and innovate.
Episode 2: Enjoy Quality of Life
Anita Grantham, chief people officer at Pluralsight, and our very own Cassie Whitlock, director of HR at BambooHR, discuss the important roles culture and inclusion play in helping employees enjoy a high quality of life.
Sara Jones, CEO of InclusionPro, also adds her thoughts on authentic self-representation. “There is definitely a drive to create cultures where people feel like they’re not having to put on this armor,” says Sara. “We’re trying to shift that. We’re trying to make it so that people can be themselves.”
Episode 3: Make It Count
In this episode, Momentive chief people officer Rebecca Cantieri, employment attorney Mark Kluger, and Soapbox Project CEO Nivi Achanta each share how to Make It Count.
“As an organization,” shares Rebecca, “You have to be able to get through hard things. Sometimes, your hard things are a pivot in your business strategy, sometimes your hard things are talent-related.” Rebecca goes on to share that when organizations are faced with difficult situations, what really “makes it count” is being able to remain authentic to the company’s core values through challenges.
Episode 4: Be Open & Assume the Best
Being open and assuming the best means being willing to see another’s point of view and remain judgment-free. Brad speaks with an industry expert on this topic, Joseph Grenny. Joseph is the co-author of the pivotal book Crucial Conversations. Brad and Joseph discuss what being open means, and how honest communication and reducing lag time leads to better relationships—even though it may not always be easy.
Episode 5: Lead from Where You Are
In this episode, guests Jordan Monroe and Zack Bomsta, co-founders at Owlet, talk about leading from where they are while staying true to their vision. We also hear from Tim Mulligan, co-author of Roar: How to Build A Resilient Organization.
Tim has this to share about empowering people to lead from where they are: “I want to help our employees feel inspired and connected and look forward to waking up in the morning with this roar of purpose and passion. What’s gonna make them excited to get to work? I think it lands on the shoulders of the HR team.”
Episode 6: Do the Right Thing
Brad chats with our founders Ben Peterson and Ryan Sanders, who share why they
created a company that promotes doing the right thing. We also hear from company culture advocate and CEO of Great Place to Work, Michael C. Bush.
Michael shares his thoughts on how trust drives high performance. He says, “Everything is built around a foundation of trust. Without trust, there is no innovation, there is no inclusion, there is no collaboration. (But) when you’ve got that trust above a certain level, you actually care for the people you work with, and you care for the person you work for. Which is what drives high performance.”
Ready to dive into The Era? You can find episodes on our website and popular podcasting apps like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Danielle Cronquist is a copywriter for BambooHR. Her six years as a professional writer are supported by a degree in English with a minor in editing. At BambooHR, she focuses on creating content that gives people the tools and knowledge they need to do great work and create great workplaces.
