Reflections by one of our Talent Summit Speakers - Jeni Brown, Chief People Officer at Teamwork
Yesterday I was delighted to not only attend but to have been part of a panel session at this years #talentsummit. It has been two long years since we had in person events - and this didn’t disappoint. It was the largest HR / People Leader event in Ireland and indeed Europe in 2022. There was so much energy, a jammed pack agenda with exceptional thought leaders sharing their insights and learning, as we focused on the theme of ‘Work in Progress’, and with the venue #CCD made it a memorable day. It was a gift to meet friends and acquaintances that I haven’t met in person for several years and I truly loved sharing ideas, pain points and solutions with everyone there.
What we have learned over the past two years is that where we work and when we work doesn’t really matter- it’s the experience of work that really matters. At Teamwork we believe that work is what you do, not where you sit. Our customers are global but so are our people. We have people in 21 different countries and we continue to grow and scale - focused on hiring the best talent, regardless of location.
We joked that the Chief People Officers role should be renamed to Chief Uncertainty Officer. With uncertainty comes great innovation. We now have the power to set ourselves up for success. We want to be the driving force for change. What that looks like isn’t yet clear and most definitely will not be a “one size fits all model” but my team are committed to shaping the future of working for our people.
In my session with Katy Ingle and Laura Flynn wonderfully moderated by Mike McDonagh we discussed what “Sustaining a Hybrid Culture” really means. We all agreed that we don’t have the silver bullet when it comes to success but we know what we need to do is equip and help out leaders in this new way of working, be accountable as a team and continuously learn from each other. At Teamwork we are introducing a new performance and engagement platform to enable our people and our leadership team drive success in a hybrid working model. The key value in this approach is ensuring a connected way of working, aligning what matters to what is done, encouraging more continuous conversations, feedback and empowering all our people to realise a rewarding career punctuated by growth and development. We are lucky to have a great product that supports this new way of working. We need to be mindful that when we are asking people back into the office it needs to be for moments that matter. They need to add value to the individual and the overall team: to create connection, encourage creativity and build collaboration.
I am more convinced than ever that we need to plan for the world we live in NOW and to ask ourselves how we can be doing better and more importantly NEVER get comfortable and stay connected with our people. There is much to be done but with great people we can achieve anything.
#talentsummit #life@teamwork #hybridworking