Reflecting on Transform: 10 Big Takeaways

This past week at Transform , the essence of the conference was not just in the sessions but in every conversation, interaction, and the incredible community that surrounds this event.

Here are 10 Big Takeaways and feel free to share if helpful!

The Essence of Leadership and Strategy: A discussion between Lattice CEO Sarah Franklin and CPO Cara Brennan Allamano was enlightening, reminding us that more than 70% of business spend is on employees. Sarah celebrated how Cara often says, “let’s get back to strategy," underscoring the importance of not getting caught up in tactics and focusing on the bigger picture, which, in many ways is directly linked to the work I do of internal branding.

The big takeaway: leadership is about steering focus towards what truly matters — our people.

Scaling with Soul: Discussions ranged from maintaining culture during rapid growth with Sheila Murty Tillamook County Creamery Association and Becky McCullough from HubSpot , to embedding the company's mission into every facet of operation, as shared by Tim Betry from GoPro . Lauren Nunes , CPO of Twitch , shared the important point of making sure you have the same inside the company as you have outside — bringing the brand and it’s product’s enjoyment for consumers into the workplace more. She also spoke to an “adopt, adapt, reject system” that’s important for maintaining culture when being acquired by a bigger company.

The big takeaway: ”agility" emerged as a recurrent theme, emphasizing the need for adaptability in preserving a company's soul amidst growth.

Well-being on the Forefront: Scott Domann of Calm shed light on the critical intersection of mental health and workplace productivity, acknowledging that "mental health is health.” Margaret (Maggie) Ruvoldt from LEARN Behavioral spoke about “different lived experiences,” which I’ll dive into more in the coming weeks as it relates to a topic I’m developing materials around.

The big takeaway: there is a continued need for managerial training to support growth in emotional intelligence.

Embracing Change and Values: My former head of people at 雅虎 , Bryan Power , who is now at Nextdoor , sat down with the famous Brittany Pietsch (the girl who recorded her layoff) for one of my favorite sessions — evolving the employer-employee contract, emphasizing the shift towards viewing employees not as resources, but as individuals.

The big takeaway: we must think about “control and values,” highlighting the necessity of truth and transparency in building a culture of trust and the critical role of internal brand consistency in employee experience.

Change from Within: The panel discussion featuring voices like Aisha Thomas-Petit of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey and Nichelle Grant of 西门子 underscored the importance of leadership in driving change. Aisha emphasized using strategies like "heat mapping" for readiness of change, to adopting the "strategic unionization of your plus one,” for embracing different views. Nichelle shared “same change, different lenses,” to showcase how we all have different learned experiences which reflects in how we change. Kelley Steven-Waiss reminded us that you “need to put your oxygen mask on before helping others” and the importance of “building a muscle for change to learn, unlearn and relearn in cycles.”

The big takeaway: every environment is at a different point of ‘ready’ for transformation and it’s important to realize the diversity in views and perspective as you undergo change.

Science of Flourishing: Insights from experts like Xuan Zhao, PhD on the PERMA model, a positive psychology tool I use, and the significance of relationships in our happiness underscored the need for spaces that support mental and emotional well-being. Chris Hawley, MD to his realization in past work that “we didn’t have an information problem, we had an inspiration problem,” and emphasized the importance in values work. Leonardo Christov-Moore reminded us that “people don’t seek the truth, they seek meaning.”

The big takeaway: creating environments that foster happiness and well-being is a major part of internal brand work.

Redefining Workspaces: Francesca Molinari from Maergo shared the concept of “Stratistance,” a blend of strategy and circumstance, making us think about what we want vs what we’re faced with, and the embrace of a “remote-first culture: by Lynee Luque from NerdWallet Wallet demonstrated the evolving landscape of work environments. Paige Bailey, SHRM - CP of Carta reminded us that “connection doesn’t just happen when you pull people in the office.”

The big takeaway: there is a significance of intentionality needed to foster deep connections and engagement.

Revolutionizing Employee Experience: Gideon Pridor from Workvivo by Zoom gave us a deep dive into the essence of employee experience as a cornerstone of organizational success with the help of Erin Grau who made the important and strong point that, “managers have been undertrained for ever.” Gideon remind us that “the number one concern for CEOs in going hybrid is employee engagement.”

The big takeaway: from 50 years ago to now there has been a major shift from 80% of companies focus being on tangible assets to now being on it’s people, prioritizing the importance of how we envision work and engagement.

Transform Plus: An announcement by co-founder Samara Jaffe on a new service focused on extended learning and networking to foster a community of continuous growth was made. All attendees were offered not only a free membership until the end of 2024, but gave us all chance to invite a few others.

The big takeaway: if you are interested in receiving free access, let me know!

Transform was more than just a gathering; it was a catalyst for change. Each speaker, session, and interaction was a thread in he larger tapestry of our collective journey towards reimagining the future of work.

Here's to transforming our workplaces, one insight at a time.

Oh, and I met my spirit twin AJ Thomas ?? and that may be my favorite big takeaway!

#transform #transform24 #transform2024 #futureofwork #hr #people #peopleandculture #employeeengagement #employeeexperience #hrleadership