HR Data Labs podcast

Jacob Morgan is the author of best-selling books Leading With Vulnerability, The Future Leader, and many more. In this episode, Jacob talks about the key differences between simply being vulnerable at work and leading with vulnerability, the power in leading with vulnerability, and how doing so can improve your work relationships. Chapters [0:00 - 4:13] Introduction • Welcome, Jacob! • Today’s Topic: Leading With Vulnerability [4:14 - 14:48] Vulnerability vs leading with vulnerability • Why it’s important to pair vulnerability with solutions and action items at work • When and how to be vulnerable [14:49 - 26:44] Why most people do not lead with vulnerability at work • How to address the fear of being perceived as weak • Promoting the wrong employees could “pollute the pond” [26:45 - 32:38] Vulnerability at work vs vulnerability in our personal lives • How relationships at work differ from relationships at home • Why vulnerability and authenticity are not the same thing [32:39 - 34:01] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “Leading with vulnerability is about talking about a gap [in competence, knowledge, experience, etc.] that you have and then demonstrating what you’re trying to do to close those gaps. ” “The #1 response that came back [from 14,000 employees who were asked why they were scared to lead with vulnerability at work] was, ‘I don’t want to be perceived as weak or incompetent.” Contact: Jacob's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

During ADP Meeting of the Minds 2024, David led a panel discussion about the current and future state of Compensation. He was joined by Demetrice Saulsberry, Sr. HRIS Manager at Trulite Glass & Aluminum Solutions, Garrett Valencia, Total Rewards & Payroll Manager at BSH Home Appliances Corporation, and Lyndsey Benson, VP of HR at Steve Madden. In this episode, David and the panel of experts discuss some of the present day issues that Compensation practitioners face, upcoming events in 2024 that will impact the world of HR, and how future technologies could help HR teams save valuable time and effort. Chapters [0:00 - 11:38] Introduction • Welcome, Demetrice, Garrett, and Lyndsey! • First, some context for the current state of HR [11:39 - 26:33] Top 3 surprising HR events from 2023 • Surveys say that people do not think they’re being compensated fairly • The relationship (or lack thereof) between compensation, cost of labor, and cost of living [26:34 - 41:52] Anticipations for HR changes in 2024 • How companies should approach job descriptions, pay ranges, and career frameworks • Total direct compensation and long-term incentives [41:53 - 53:30] Looking forward to 2025 • How changes near the end of 2024 will impact organizations in 2025 • What about 2025 scares HR experts? [53:31 - 54:12] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “If you haven’t published [geographic differentials for employee pay], then it’s going to be a bigger problem for you because you’re making a one-off decision if an employee decides to move.” “When you’re deciding [an employee’s] pay, it’s the only time when you have to reference the person [not the job].” Contact: Demetrice's LinkedIn Garrett's LinkedIn Lyndsey's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Robynn Storey is the owner of Storeyline Resumes, the largest privately held resume-writing service in the US. Storeyline has been helping senior-level and executive professionals write better, story-driven resumes for over 24 years. In this episode, Robynn talks about how to use the power of storytelling to your advantage as your write or update your resume and how to find success in job searches. Chapters [0:00 - 5:01] Introduction • Welcome, Robynn! • Today’s Topic: Writing Better Resumes with Storytelling [5:02 - 13:26] How can you build a better resume? • Why your resume should tell a meaningful story and how • How to navigate keyword requirements for ATS [13:27 - 29:15] How to conduct the best possible job search • Leverage multiple tools and people connections; don’t just rely on job boards • What it means when a company instantly rejects you [29:16 - 36:50] How to focus on your story when writing your resume • Every story should be rooted in success • How long should your resume be and how much of your experience should it include? [36:51 - 37:55] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “What you need to be describing [on your resume] is your impact [at your company] and how that is being measured.” “Use a combination of [job search tools]—don’t get so caught up on just using the job boards.” Contact: Robynn's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Mei Kim is the Executive Director of Global Workforce Analytics at the Estée Lauder Companies, and Heidi Perloff is the SVP of Global HR Strategic Initiatives and Delivery Solutions at the Estée Lauder Companies. In this episode, Mei and Heidi talk about some practices that made adopting new technologies easier, whether they believe AI-based technologies pose a threat or present an opportunity to the workforce, and why it’s important to embrace data mindfulness in HR processes. Chapters [0:00 - 4:25] Introduction • Welcome, Mei and Heidi! • Today’s Topic: How to Make New HR Technologies Approachable for Everyone [4:26 - 14:06] What’s the difference between “digital” and “technology” • “Technology is a thing; digital is a way of doing things” • It’s ok for new technology to be difficult to adopt [14:07 - 27:03] AI: opportunity or threat? • AI helped Mei’s team win back 10+ hours of their week by minimizing tedious processes • The major threat lies in HR not knowing how to use AI technologies or being curious about it [27:04 - 37:24] What is data mindfulness? • Analyze not only the data, but also the data flow and input processes as well • Will AI lull us into losing our critical thinking skills? [37:25 - 39:14] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “HR VPs who embrace being digital and embrace the use of technology . . . tend to go farther ahead in their careers than others who don’t.” “Yes, we can get automation from AI, but it’s really the augmentation of what it enables us to do as human beings that is super exciting.” Contact: Mei's LinkedIn Heidi's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Martin Low is the Founder and CEO of On Plane Consulting, a consulting firm that helps small businesses and startups optimize and scale. Having held HR Director positions at multiple successful companies, Martin bring a wealth of experience to the table. In this episode, Martin talks about the fact that despite the evergreen landscape of new and emerging technologies, businesses still need one essential resource: people. Chapters [0:00 - 9:17] Introduction • Welcome, Martin! • Today’s Topic: Why A Business’ People are More Important Than Its Technologies [9:18 - 18:23] Why can’t businesses just rely more on technology and less on people? • If you rely less on people, those you do rely on will matter much more • Emerging technologies likely won’t replace people so much as improve their productivity [18:24 - 27:15] As someone in HR, how do you facilitate technological change within your business? • Good data and insights into a business’ current state are essential • Why HR practitioners should be business minded (and vice-versa) [27:14 - 38:00] How HR practitioners can drive progress within their business • Data will help you identify problems and build a business case for the solution • Building a solution for reducing the people cost of a business [38:01 - 38:55] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “[HR] data will do a couple of things for you: . . . it’ll tell you if you really have a problem, and it’ll help you show others that it might be.” “If you can [reduce the people cost of a business] by 1 or 2%, it’s night-and-day for the profitability because that can all drop straight down to the bottom line.” Contact: Martin's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

With over 25 years of leadership in DE&I, Jason R. Thompson is the creator of the CAPE Inclusion model and the author of Diversity and Inclusion Matter. He led DE&I programming for a community of 150K students and faculty at Western Governors University; he influenced DE&I strategies for over 1,000 global startups at Techstars; and he helped the US Olympic Committee set new standards for DE&I in sports. In this episode, Jason talks about how HR data can help businesses take practical steps toward improving their DE&I and growing strategically. Chapters [0:00 - 4:52] Introduction • Welcome, Jason! • Today’s Topic: Using HR Data to Progress from Theoretical DE&I to Practical DE&I [4:53 - 15:01] How has Jason done DE&I differently than those around him? • Outsource consultants and data scientists to help clean up HR data • The problem with over-assigning unpaid special projects for the sake of employee growth [15:02 - 23:12] How to use HR data to create a DE&I scorecard • Exploring the DE&I journey of US Olympic teams • How DE&I and strategic growth are directly connected [23:13 - 28:04] How does a DE&I scorecard help an organization move forward? • Creating reasonable DE&I expectations based on turnover rates • Diversity in leadership [28:05 - 29:35] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “Diversity is a noun—it’s the outcome of actually managing some [HR] data.” “From a strategic point of view . . . if you looked at the [DE&I] data, you would say, ‘In which demographics do we have the best opportunity to grow?’” Contact: Jason's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Garry Straker is a Senior Compensation Consultant at Salary.com. As a total rewards professional with over 20 years of experience, he’s worked with a diverse range of businesses, higher education institutions, and non-profit entities. In this episode, Garry talks about some surprising trends from 2023 and whether he thinks they will carry into 2024. Chapters [0:00 - 3:07] Introduction • Welcome, Garry! • Today’s Topic: Will HR Trends from 2023 continue into 2024 and beyond? [3:08 - 10:15] Surprising trends of 2023 • Pay transparency legislation lost some of its momentum • Labor unions had a high-profile year and made some big moves [10:16 - 25:16] HR trends that will impact 2024 • AI and its role within HR • Employers will benefit from better managing their internal labor markets and developing employee skills [25:17 - 40:22] Garry’s predictions for 2024, 2025, and beyond • Even in the event of a change in administration, the economy is probably going to chug along • Salary budgets and their tie to the labor market [40:23 - 49:05] Q&A and Closing • Answering some questions from the webinar audience • Thanks for listening! Quotes “The labor market is going to look very different in 2024, and it’s going to be important for employers to better manage their internal labor markets.” “If [employees] are underperforming, . . . [companies] need to have the systems and processes in place to be able to identify that and address it quickly.” Contact: Garry's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Amy Butchko is the Talent Acquisition Vice President at Maximus, where she’s focused on helping organizations recruit IT talent at scale. Her experience brings insights into both acquiring talent and communicating talent acquisition data. In this episode, Amy talks about the challenges surrounding talent acquisition data and the steps you can take to solve them. Chapters [0:00 - 5:45] Introduction • Welcome, Amy! • Today’s Topic: 4 Steps to Better Enterprise Talent Acquisition [5:46 - 12:16] What is the biggest challenge with talent acquisition today? • Challenges with where are how quickly are you going to find your next hire • Solving the data problems within talent acquisition [12:17 - 21:20] How do you develop talent acquisition acumen within HR teams that yield desirable results? • Identify the core requirements needed for candidates • Considering skill level vs legacy requirements (e.g., degree requirements) [21:21 - 29:07] How do you create a narrative around recruitment data? • The narrative should be built around the circumstances and goals surround recruitment • Learn who you’re presenting to and how to best communicate the data to them [29:08 - 30:09] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “The thing that’s really important is finding people who can help bridge the gap between all those seemingly irrelevant data points and turn them into something that looks like an executive could understand it.” “If you can home in on a couple of things that are really, strongly impacting your business, measure them effectively, and tell a story consistently, [you will be able to transfer data narratives]." Contact: Amy's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Perry Doody is the owner of Above the Rings Consulting and Performance. After over 10 years as the founding partner and president of CompTrak, Perry sought to continue his career in consulting with a newfound approach that combines insights from the worlds of business and fitness. In this episode, Perry talks about how people are an important asset to companies and why it’s critical for HR teams to be more strategic. Chapters [0:00 - 6:12] Introduction • Welcome, Perry! • Today’s Topic: How HR Teams Can Pivot From Being Tactical to Being Strategic [6:13 - 12:57] What differentiates a good HR department from a great HR department? • The CEO must recognize that HR is a critical component to the overall business • People need to focus on doing less and doing it well, instead of doing a lot of things in a mediocre way [12:58 - 17:07] Is busy work holding HR back from being more strategic? • Adapting legacy systems to new needs can often be more difficult than building new systems from scratch • HR teams should add people from diverse backgrounds [17:08 - 29:27] What enables a company to pivot from being tactical to being more strategic? • What is the CEO’s relationship with HR and its goals? • How bad administrative decisions can antagonize HR strategies [29:28 - 30:53] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “People are [a company’s] capital—they are an asset, and I don’t think every company looks at it that way. The strategic ones do.” “Becoming more strategic involves change, and a lot of us are resistant to change, . . . but the way you get over this is by looking to competitors, other industries, and even your personal life.” Contact: Perry's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Jason Averbook is a Senior Partner at Mercer and a global leader in HR transformation. He has more than 25 years of experience in the HR and technology industries, and he has guided industry-leading companies through strategic HR transformations. In this episode, Jason presents his takeaways from 2023 and talks about how current HR trends will shape the future of the industry. Chapters [0:00 - 5:10] Introduction • Welcome, Jason! • Today’s Topic: Perspectives on HR and Emerging Technologies [5:11 - 20:51] Jason’s takeaways from 2023 • 2023’s geopolitical events had significant mental health implications for American workers • Many organizations who have ignored their data are just now starting to uncover its flaws [20:52 - 29:20] Is 2024 the year of mass AI integration for HR? • Generative AI will help us see where our data problems are, but we may still need to solve the problems themselves • Data fitness should be prioritized before a generative AI rollout [29:21 - 35:20] How will emerging technologies affect HR one year from now, in 2025? • HR will be doing much less “hands work” and much more “heads work and hearts work” • Will HR roles be replaced by new technologies? [35:21 - 36:24] Closing • Thanks for listening! Quotes “AI has exposed the fact that organizations that don’t have good data can’t use [tools like large language models].” “The unlearning effort of 2024 to prepare for 2025 is more than the technology effort—it’s more than the data effort.” Contact: Jason's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us!

Summary: As Season 6 of HR Data Labs comes to a close, David and Dwight take a look back at its episodes, guests, and key takeaways. They also revisit their predictions from last season and put forth some new predictions for the future of HR. Chapters: [0:00 - 5:51] Introduction [5:52 - 15:26] Looking back at Season 6 [15:27 - 24:30] Looking forward to Season 7 [24:31 - 36:30] David and Dwight’s predictions for the future of HR [36:31 - 40:03] Final Thoughts & Closing Quotes: “My prediction is that we’re going to see a ton of upheaval in the ESG space as well as the DEI space [in the next six months].” “Because of some of the court cases and backlash, . . . I think we’re going to start to see more clamping on what AI can do in the world of HR.” Contact: David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Don Weinstein, most recently the former Chief Product and Technology Officer at ADP, has spent 35 years of his career working at Fortune 500 companies. With over half of those years being spent in HR roles, he’s acquired valuable knowledge about human capital management and HR data analytics. In this episode, Don talks about how some organizations have leveraged HR data to produce valuable business insights and what steps other organizations can take to get to that point. Chapters: [0:00 - 4:27] Introduction [4:28 - 14:53] How to turn HR data into business insights [14:54 - 22:32] Critical lessons from the early days of HR analytics [22:33 - 30:31] How mature are HR data analytics and how will they further develop in the future? [30:32 - 31:54] Closing Quotes: “When [HR] has the facts, and the analytics, and the data, [they] can make a real impact in an organization.” “Many organizations are still suffering from limited adoption [of HR data analytics] and one of the things that’s still hindering them is poor data quality.” Contact: Don's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Karen Catlin is a 25-year veteran of the tech industry turned leadership coach, acclaimed author, and speaker on inclusive workplaces. She coaches women to be stronger leaders and men who want to be better allies for underrepresented groups. In this episode, Karen talks about the Better Allies approach and creating more inclusive workplaces with everyday acts of allyship. Chapters: [0:00 - 3:54] Introduction [3:55 - 13:07] What gets in the way of people actually becoming more inclusive? [13:08 - 24:13] Tangible actions that can help you become a better workplace ally [24:14 - 31:11] How allies can help course-correct larger systemic issues [31:12 - 32:08] Closing Quotes: “People don’t want to be better allies, or speak up, or do something because they are afraid of getting it wrong.” “You can take action for one person, but then ask yourself if there’s something you can do to have a larger, systemic impact that really would be ideal for your organization.” Resources: Karen's Books Contact: Karen's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: The HR Technology Conference 2023 was held in Las Vegas, Nevada in October 2023 and our very own David Turetsky and Katie Stukowski presented on the pay trends that will dominate 2024. In recent years, the landscape of pay practices has undergone significant transformations. From employee demands for greater pay transparency and equity, to the growing importance of accurate job descriptions and skills assessments, to the unpredictable twists of a volatile economy, HR teams are adapting at lightning speed. This session will review anticipated pay trends for 2024 and how employers can use data and technology to stay ahead of these developments. In this episode, David and Katie talk about salary trends, pay equity trends, technology trends, and more. Chapters: [0:00 - 3:30] Introduction [3:31 - 18:32] Business and compensation trends [18:33 - 38:54] Pay equity and the skills taxonomy [38:55 - 54:03] Competitive pay and market pricing [54:04 - 56:47] Closing Quotes: “Compensation is the link between the employee and the employer to build the trust that they are valued within that organization, and you can’t get compensation right without accurate job descriptions.” “Pay equity is the right thing to do. That’s equal pay for comparable work that is internally equitable, externally competitive, and transparently communicated.” Resources: Surveys Contact: David's LinkedIn Katie's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Oshri Cohen is the founder of RedCorner, a CTO as a Service agency that provides organizations with highly skilled and experienced ex-CTOs who specialize in whatever industry, business model or engineering culture is needed. In this episode, Oshri talks about the current issues with technical recruiting and what we can do to fix them. Chapters: [0:00 - 4:13] Introduction [4:14 - 17:44] What is technical recruiting? [17:45 - 28:33] What can be done to improve the technical recruiting experience? [28:34 - 35:27] How will generative AI affect the world of technical recruiting [35:28 - 36:19] Closing Quotes: “[Companies should have proper technical leadership where the CTO is a business-minded individual and understands how to talk outside of their technical sphere.” “If you ask [ChatGPT] to write a specify function that does one small thing, it can do that beautifully, but it writes code like a junior developer.” Resources: RedCorner Contact: Oshri's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Dwight's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Sean Luitjens is a General Manager of Total Rewards Analytics at Visier. He has over 25 years of experience working on talent acquisition software and compensation benefits software for various companies. In this episode, Sean talks about how people analytics can help businesses make informed decisions about compensation allocation and pay equity. Chapters: [0:00 - 4:30] Introduction •Welcome, Sean! •Today’s Topic: Leveraging People Analytics for Compensation Allocation [4:31 - 11:36] Why is it difficult to allocate compensation despite all the technology available? •HR practitioners are asked to differentiate pay while also making it equitable •An increasing amount of data must be pulled together to make a business case for the CFO [11:37 - 22:14] How do companies address pay equity in relation to talent retention? •Why most companies are implementing long-term pay equity remediation plans •Sometimes doing the right thing means that organizations need to endure some turnover [22:15 - 26:18] What could companies do to start fixing their pay inequities? •Build a foundation of tools to identify pay equity issues and develop a pay philosophy to address those issues •Companies should not be afraid to be wrong [26:19 - 26:57] Closing •Thanks for listening! Quotes: “At a high level, the [HR] practitioner is being asked to pay differently but the same.” “Don’t be afraid to be wrong . . . The good and the bad with pay equity is that you can’t fix it on one given day, so you have the ability to aim, fire, aim, fire as you go.” Contact: Sean's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Schon Parris is the Future of Work Practice Leader at ADP where he helps clients better use their data to make well-informed business decisions. In this episode, Schon talks about what typically prevents HR teams from effectively using the data available to them and how they can overcome those obstacles and start making data-driven decisions today. Chapters: [0:00 - 5:46] Introduction [5:47 - 12:10] What gets in the way of HR using data successfully? [12:11 - 18:01] Client success stories and commonalities among them [18:02 - 28:01] What are clients building into their models to accommodate AI? [28:02 - 30:19] Final Thoughts & Closing Quotes: “Somebody has to take it upon themselves to make [data analytics] important. . . . Unless you have at least one person that’s going to dive in and do the work, it’s not going to go anywhere.” “There’s no need for someone within HR to fear the evolution of AI stealing [their job].” Contact: Schon's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Mark Stelzner is the Founder and Managing Principal at IA, HR “anti-consultants” who specialize in distilling key points from large amount of HR data. In this episode, Mark talks about the various tools HR practitioners can use to help organizations make sense of their data and streamline their processes. Chapters: [0:00 - 2:37] Introduction [2:38 - 10:20] What new observations surprised us at HR Tech 2023? [10:21 - 20:20] Where have we seen AI impact other (non-HR) departments of organizations? [20:21 - 32:19] How can practitioners approach organizations that might be reluctant to change? [32:20 - 32:59] Closing Quotes: “If you wan to ideate about [implementing disruptive technologies], you have to derive prioritized use cases.” “If it’s never been written down how [current processes work] or if we’re inferring how [current processes work], we don’t know what we’re moving from and to.” Resources: IA HR Contact: Mark's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Brian Escobar is the Director of Human Resources Operations at Endeavor Schools, and Walter William Duncan III is the Payroll Manager at Endeavor Schools. Brian and Walter co-host the podcast It’s About Payroll, a weekly podcast designed to help spread knowledge about pay. In this episode, Brian and Walter talk about why organizations can find empowerment in treating their employees like customers when it comes to payroll. Chapters: [0:00 - 7:59] Introduction [8:00 - 15:43] Why is it important to educate employees about their pay? [15:44 - 22:55] What are the most common challenges in educating people about their pay? [22:56 - 28:21] How can we better educate people on taxes? [28:21 - 29:43] Closing Quotes: “[As an employer], you want your employees to be financially savvy.” “[The key to understanding income taxes] is consuming multiple resources until you understand it, and that’s the thing: the resources are scarce.” Resources: It's About Payroll! Walt's personal SoundCloud from his one fun thing Contact: Brian's LinkedIn Walter's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media

Summary: Robert Mattson is a Principal at INTRIGUE Communications and Coaching, a marketing and messaging consultancy based on the idea that stories connect people to each other, their interests, and brands. In this episode, Robert talks about how you can communicate by telling stories that will resonate with your audience. Chapters: [0:00 - 9:18] Introduction [9:19 - 17:51] What is the key to effective communication? [17:52 - 25:59] How does expectation-setting set the framework for conversations? [26:00 - 32:04] How do you tell someone that they should improve their emotional communication skills? [32:05 - 33:09] Closing Quotes: “One thing people tend to be bad at is setting painfully clear expectations.” “Look at the challenges you have in your communication . . . and always take responsibility that there’s something you can do to improve the situation.” Resources: INTRIGUE Contact: Robert's LinkedIn David's LinkedIn Podcast Manger: Karissa Harris Email us! Production by Affogato Media