The Workspan Podcast

Joe DiMisa, Senior Client Partner and Korn Ferry’s Global Sales Force Effectiveness Leader discusses designing sales compensation solutions, setting pay levels, obtaining reliable data, and benchmarking frequency. Topics also include successful sales traits, challenges in sales organizations post-lockdown, and traits of effective sales professionals.

Brett Christie, WorldatWork's Digital Content Manager and Strategist joins us to discuss an exciting new development – the eagerly awaited unveiling of a newly updated and expanded online resource for anyone in the total rewards and comp fields. Members (and non-members) now have easy access to every pay equity law, salary history ban law and pay transparency law for every state in the U.S. It includes an alphabetical search bar at the top that allows users to easily navigate to the state they are looking for. You can find it here: https://worldatwork.org/resources/tools.

Julie Lammers is Senior VP, Advocacy and Corporate Social Responsibility, American Student Assistance (ASA). Julie has broad and extensive public sector experience (from the House of Commons to the US Senate) and was recently widely quoted in a #evolve article titled, “Apprenticeships are a Growing, Attractive Solution for U.S. Employers” - the topic of our conversation. We discuss apprenticeship programs for tech workers – which is a relatively recent phenomenon – to what organizations need to do to implement a successful apprenticeship program.

Arthur Woods is co-founder of Mathison, a technology platform equipping employers with everything they need to manage their diversity hiring, analytics and training. He is also partner at Plenty Search, an executive search firm for venture-backed startups with a strong track record on diversity. Over a year ago he joined us to discuss the latest in DEI; we asked him back to discuss the developments since in light of the increasing push-back DEI has received. He also shared fascinating insights on what's ahead, with a "bonus" chat on the implications/challenges of AI.

ESG is a very hot, not to mention, controversial topic – you’d think it just emerged on the scene, but it’s been around for a while. Dr. Hermann J. Stern, managing owner of the financial research company Obermatt, is an ESG expert who works primarily with Swiss and German companies. Few are better equipped to discuss the origins of ESG, how companies he works with apply it to assess/mitigate risk, and how it will be used in the coming years. He also gives his perspective on the increasing push-back in the US on ESG. It’s one of the best conversations we’ve had on a broadly misunderstood topic.

We’ve had guests on the pod who’ve spoken about empathetic leadership and the need for more empathy in the workplace, but none who brings the perspective and rigor to the topic as Katharine Manning. She spent close to 16 years as a senior attorney in the US Department of Justice specializing in victim’s rights and services, and is President of Blackbird DC, which provides training and consultation on empathy at work. Katherine is also the author of The Empathetic Workplace: Five Steps to a Compassionate, Calm, and Confident Response to Trauma on the Job. One of the most fascinating and insightful conversations we’ve had on this podcast – check it out!

Nu Yang, editor of #evolve, WorldatWork’s digital-only publication, discusses the stories she and her staff are working on, her vision for #evolve going forward, and a recent story that she wrote that’s stirred up a lot of conversation, titled“Retaining and Developing Women Leaders in the Workplace."

Patrick Dalin, Of Counsel with Fisher Phillips, represents employers in a full range of employment law matters. Patrick breaks down a recent 6-3 Supreme Court decision (involving rare agreement between liberal and conservative factions of the court) that delineated between exempt and non-exempt employment. We discuss tests to determine salaried and hourly workers, and the broader implications for this ruling, particularly in today’s gig economy.

We’re joined by Sheetal Raut, Managing Director at WorldatWork India and Rahul Puri, Director of Business Development with WorldatWork India, to discuss the location’s growth from its inception in 2021 and what’s been driving it. We also discuss the adoption of total rewards in India, the impact of technology on benefits delivery and utilization, plus the demand for personalized benefits and sophisticated rewards solutions. Sheetal and Rahul also share several exciting initiatives they have on tap in the coming months. Check it out!

We’re joined by the perfect person to demystify AI, machine learning and people analytics: Margret Bjarnadottir, Associate Professor of Management Science and Statistics, at the University of Maryland. Margret gives us a sneak preview of her forthcoming session at WorldatWork’s Total Rewards show in San Diego this coming June: from the explosive growth in the use of people analytics tools to how to guard against machine learning bias. Fascinating stuff.