Employee Loyalty Leaders
Interviews with HR Leaders Building Exceptional Employee Experiences
Interviews with HR Leaders Building Exceptional Employee Experiences
To really be the most effective leader of people, you need to recognize where you are not healed and embark on a healing journey of your own. It’s the best way to get most in tune with yourself and be more authentic in order to be an effective leader of people.
– Whitney Kenter, Glowe Connective
Employee loyalty is a growing challenge in a post-pandemic world and companies are rethinking their approach to the employee experience.
In this interview series, we’re talking to HR leaders to get their insights on leadership and how companies can improve employee loyalty and thrive in this changing world.
Whitney Kenter is an entrepreneur, thought leader and creative visionary who launched the Glowe Connective after two decades in consulting and as an executive in finance. As CEO of Glow she helps companies unlock the value and potential of their business.
What did your eight-year-old self-love doing and how does it relate to what you do now?
When I was 8 years old, I lived on a farm, outside of a small town. There wasn’t a neighbor around, so I spent a lot of time alone with my imagination. Gratefully, we had a lot of land and a lot of places to play and create. My favorite thing to do was after they harvested the hay in the pasture to make hay bales, I would climb and jump from bale to bale and pretend that the hay bales were elephants and I was the ringleader of a circus riding on them into a ring. Being a ringleader in a circus is analogous to the role I’ve played in many organizations in my career.
As it relates to today, and Glowe, I would say that I am being more creative than I’ve ever been before. Instead of creating make-believe environments, I’m using my imagination to help my company and other companies create things that are real. It’s very interesting that you asked this question, because I reflected on this for my book, and that point in time in my life, where I felt the most joyful, free and creative, is exactly how I feel now. There was about a 40-year gap in between the two points where I lost myself and transformed into a better version of that 8 year old self.
If you could go back 10 years and share some advice with your younger self, what would it be? (This could be a specific mistake that you learned from)
Trust yourself and your inner knowing; and stop letting fear drive your life. Ten years ago I was reliving a familiar cycle of abuse and continuing to allow it in all areas of my life. I had taken steps to stop the pattern, but I was far from healed. The last 10 years have been the most healing and have led to my transformation.
How do you see your job as an HR leader changing over the next five years?
In the next five years, I see my role evolving in a way that allows me to spend the majority of my time engaging my superpowers: inspire, create, and connect. While I do this a lot right now, we are in the beginning stages of building Glowe so I’m a lot more immersed in the business operations and execution then I will be in the next five years. I don’t fear change or the threat of being replaced – I embrace both and feel it’s healthy for me and the company. What I’m committed to always is ensuring I am in alignment with myself and that I’m spending my time doing what I’m meant to do in this lifetime.
Do you have a podcast (or book) you have listened to in the last year you would suggest to other people leaders? Why?
Wow – this was the toughest question for me. I listen to a lot of podcasts and often they are related to healing and transformation. While I know I’m creating my own reality in thinking that these topics are EVERYWHERE, because I seek them out and gravitate towards those having the conversations, my hope is that people really are listening and beginning to think differently about their own healing.
One of the podcasts I was excited about and posted on our company Slack channel was Jay Shetty’s On Purpose episode from August 8 with Jenna Kutcher. She was very glowey. A few of her key points that I referenced to my team were: Being in pursuit of balance doesn’t make sense if you look at the definition of balance, learning to listen to yourself, not feeling guilty about ‘resting’, the romanticization of hustle culture, and giving ourselves permission to seek support. Honestly I could go on and on about this one, but instead give it a listen and just reflect on how you feel about some of these items and do not SHAME yourself. Just be honest.
What is one thing people leaders should start doing that will have the biggest impact on employee loyalty?
Help them understand their role and its connection to your radically clear vision. Connection between what they do, and your company’s purpose makes it more than a job and will create a deeper connection.
What is one thing people leaders (or other executives) should stop that would have a big impact on employee loyalty?
Stop making decisions for your business without thinking about the impact on your people. Stop ignoring that your own alignment, well being, and energy does not affect your organization.
How do you see your job as an HR leader changing over the next five years?
In the next five years, I see my role evolving in a way that allows me to spend the majority of my time engaging my superpowers: inspire, create, and connect. While I do this a lot right now, we are in the beginning stages of building Glowe so I’m a lot more immersed in the business operations and execution then I will be in the next five years. I don’t fear change or the threat of being replaced – I embrace both and feel it’s healthy for me and the company. What I’m committed to always is ensuring I am in alignment with myself and that I’m spending my time doing what I’m meant to do in this lifetime.
What is one thing Glowe is doing well to build employee loyalty?
We are very clear about our “Why”, which makes having conversations with people about their why and alignment more straight forward. We genuinely care about what they want to achieve; from money to purpose and everything in between. We have those transparent and open conversations and then we both go back and check in with ourselves before making any decisions. When it’s a “hell yes” on both sides, then we move.
What people leader do you admire and why?
Kara Pass, the CEO of Market Street Trust Company in Corning, NY. Well, first and foremost she’s very ‘glowey’. She has led multiple organizations through transformation and she has always put people at the center of all the change. She exhibits strength and compassion, while focusing on necessary evolution in order to achieve great results.
“There is a massive opportunity to introduce training that is relevant and impactful to the individual. So much training and development is to check the box for management”
What are the biggest opportunities and/or pitfalls companies face when it comes to training and development?
There’s a massive opportunity to introduce training that is relevant and impactful to the individual. I feel that so much training and development is to check the box for management. Since there is money and time invested in individuals spending time on training, wouldn’t you want to ensure that it’s the most impactful X hours possible? I’m not sure what the measurement is of most training other than getting feedback from the participants, but it would seem to me there could be another way.
What tips or guidance would you share that have helped make employee onboarding more successful?
Humanize it. Yes there are legal and compliance requirements, but make it human. Would this be an experience that would get you more excited about your decision to join? What did you learn about this person during the recruitment process that you can tweek or customize their experience so they feel seen?
What are the most important people metrics that companies should be paying more attention to? And why?
The people most in charge of metrics that would be important to the humans are the managers. I think managers have tough jobs. Because typically they are adding “people management” to a role that is already full-time, and they may not even be proficient in inspiring and leading people. I would like to believe there could be metrics for alignment of super powers to the role someone is playing. I’d also like to measure joy or enthusiasm.
The most important metric that I believe we should be paying attention to is burnout. Unfortunately there is a massive amount of shame attributed to this word which could make it difficult to get an accurate measurement. Perhaps the way around it is to measure the elements that are symptoms of or indications of burnout without ever using the word.
About Glowe Connective
We’ve been there: feeling frustrated, hustling with no real sense of progress toward a meaningful goal. Our team has seen organizations of all sizes come back to life with their energy and enthusiasm re-ignited by changing the way they work. So we took those lessons and created a business that dramatically improves productivity by enabling teams to get clear on what they’re working towards — and how exactly they do it.
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