The Modern People Leader: Forward-Thinking HR Build - How to structure a “People Ops as a Product team”
May 16, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Jessica Zwaan, an expert in structuring people operations as a product team, shares her insights on building effective HR squads. She emphasizes the value of using spider diagrams for squad design and proposes piloting a single squad before scaling. The conversation also tackles the importance of aligning skills and roles within teams, balancing core HR duties with innovative projects, and the power of a shared mission across squads. Jessica's real-world examples provide a practical perspective on revolutionizing people ops.
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People Ops Squad Model
- People Ops squads consist of about six cross-functional members focused on one specific HR problem or product area.
- They operate flexibly over varied time frames to deliver practical solutions and track outcomes.
Spider Diagram for Roles
- Use spider diagrams to map team members' skill spikes in key areas like operations, analysis, and communications.
- Assign squad roles based on complementary strengths, or adjust dynamically as team members develop.
Squad Alignment Approaches
- Align squads around funnel stages, employee experience parts, problem statements, or key metrics.
- Choose the structure that best fits current company context and iterate as needed.