“HR Heretics” | How CPOs, CHROs, Founders, and Boards Build High Performing Companies
HR Heretics
After a decade+ of “blitz-scaling” companies, HR, talent, and People leaders now face an uncertain economy that has already seen big booms and busts. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact?
Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners – Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors.
This show is for those who are ready to ditch conventional wisdom and figure out from first principles what works for their culture, business model, and industry, with the goal of building a resilient and enduring company. You’ll come away with real guidance for seeing around corners, building enduring companies, and carving out an impactful career – plus a newly-honed bullshit detector.
Topics frequently touched on in this season include: building high performing cultures, compensation negotiation, performance reviews, company design, equity, M&As, recruiting the best talent, and how to manage your own psychology as a people leader. hrheretics.substack.com
Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners – Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors.
This show is for those who are ready to ditch conventional wisdom and figure out from first principles what works for their culture, business model, and industry, with the goal of building a resilient and enduring company. You’ll come away with real guidance for seeing around corners, building enduring companies, and carving out an impactful career – plus a newly-honed bullshit detector.
Topics frequently touched on in this season include: building high performing cultures, compensation negotiation, performance reviews, company design, equity, M&As, recruiting the best talent, and how to manage your own psychology as a people leader. hrheretics.substack.com
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 12, 2024 • 14min
We Don't Talk About Board Dynamics Enough
Diving into board dynamics, the discussion covers the removal of members, selection criteria, diversity, and equity approvals. Stories from DoorDash add real-life examples. The complexity of voting dynamics and the impact of preferred shares are emphasized. An open call for a future episode on board operations is extended.
Mar 8, 2024 • 16min
Emergency Segment: Chamath Wants to Abolish HR?
Discussion on the proposal to abolish HR and decentralize functions, reevaluating diversity measures, exploring HR's role in shaping culture and efficiency, and the necessity of maintaining key HR functions within a company.
Mar 5, 2024 • 16min
Is Shopify's "~Mastery" Blowing Up Levels?
Shopify introduces a dual track system 'Mastery', focusing on job leveling and performance reviews. Discussion includes DoorDash and Yahoo stories, evolution of organizational structures, and transition from management to mastery roles.
Feb 29, 2024 • 1h 8min
Building Radically Better Businesses with DHH of 37signals and Basecamp
In this podcast, DHH discusses 37signals radical policies like 'no politics at work', the 'no managers rule', and the impact of Ruby on Rails. They delve into overworking as a dated mindset, efficiency in a 40-hour work week, and the love of programming. They also touch on cancel culture, remote work, and the evolution of company building approaches.
Feb 27, 2024 • 16min
Segment: Bolt Slashes Valuation 97% and Screws Over Employees
Discussion on Bolt's 97% valuation drop impacting employees, importance of equity education, post-termination exercise windows, personal stories with options, early employees' challenges, and navigating stock market volatility in startups.
Feb 22, 2024 • 1h 1min
L.J. Brock, CPO of Coinbase Is Unflinching in the Face of the HR Status Quo
The podcast discusses Coinbase's innovative HR policies, including 'no politics at work' stance. They delve into talent evaluation, relationship dynamics, and the importance of empowering talent aligned with the company's mission. Also, exploring work trials in the hiring process and promoting diversity, pay equity, and leadership development within the organization.
7 snips
Feb 20, 2024 • 50min
Elizabeth Patterson of Sapphire Ventures on How to Get Noticed by a VC Talent Partner
Elizabeth Patterson, Partner at Sapphire Ventures, shares insights on finding CPO roles, engaging with VC talent partners, and recruiting top executives. The podcast covers the importance of cultural fit in recruitment, building relationships with talent partners, and navigating challenges in the venture capital world.
Feb 15, 2024 • 53min
What’s Next For DEI: A Conversation with Mita Mallick of Carta
In this episode, Nolan and special guest co-host Colleen McCreary delve into diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) with Mita Mallick of Carta. Mita is the Head of Inclusion, Equity and Impact at Carta and the author of Reimagine Inclusion. They discuss the benefits of cross-cultural marketing, how DEI roles aren't set up for success in tech companies, inclusion as a business driver, and successful career succession planning.Want more Colleen? Check out her DEI Roundtable episode here (https://hrheretics.substack.com/p/colleen-mccreary-on-layoffs-m-and-7cb) and our 3rd ever episode interviewing Colleen about her career ups and downs (https://hrheretics.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web&r=39tmjr)SPONSOR: AttioAttio is the next generation of CRM. It’s powerful, flexible and easily configures to the unique way your startup runs, whatever your go-to-market motion. The next era deserves a better CRM. Join OpenAI, Replicate, ElevenLabs and more at https://bit.ly/AttioHRHereticsWe highly recommend you subscribe to HR Brew: a free daily newsletter for people leaders and operators https://bit.ly/hrbrewTIMESTAMPS:* (00:00) Introduction * (01:09) Welcome to HR Heretics* (01:31) Intro to Mita Malik* (02:56) Shout Out to HR Brew https://bit.ly/hrbrew* (04:00) Mita's Book Reimagine Inclusion* (05:42) Mita's Career in DEI* (08:52) The Importance of Inclusion in Business* (14:37) Sponsor: Attio* (15:40) Measuring Success of Inclusion* (20:54) The Role of Leadership in Diversity* (28:55) The Myth of Meritocracy* (30:02) Realities of Career Progression* (31:36) Talent Management* (34:59) The Importance of Honest Feedback* (38:12) The Role of Inclusion in Competitive Advantage* (49:05) The Impact of Generational Shifts on Workplace Norms* (49:55) WrapLINKS: Mita Mallick’s book Reimagine Inclusion: Debunking 13 Myths to Transform Your WorkplaceKEEP UP WITH MITA, COLLEEN, NOLAN, + KELLI ON LINKEDINMita: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mita-mallick-2b165822/Colleen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colleenmccrearychiefpplofficer/Nolan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nolan-church/Kelli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellidragovich/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hrheretics.substack.com
Feb 13, 2024 • 13min
On The Record: New Norms for Layoffs in 2024
This segment is sparked by a recent viral video of a layoff recorded by an employee. Kelli and Nolan cover the recent layoffs at Google and Cloudflare, how treatment of an employee during the layoff impacts both the employee and employer, and how companies should handle parting ways with an employee in 2024. Forward this to any HR Pro who needs to hear it - and tell them to subscribe: https://hrheretics.substack.com/.Timestamps:(00:00) Special segment alert(00:17) January is the biggest month in the last 20 years for layoffs in tech(01:10) Kelli's take(02:41) Bad behavior, bad policies and the need for big tech companies to be called out for doing rolling layoffs(04:32) Google layoffs(05:20) Cloudflare employee records her layoff(06:10) The litmus test of being part of a team (not just HR teams)(07:03) When CEOs think they can get away with bad behavior since other companies do it(08:05) What happens when you don't treat employees in good faith(10:05) Accountability checks on companies during layoffs(11:20) Back to the golden rule(11:41) Important reminder for employersGET IN TOUCH WITH NOLAN, + KELLI ON LINKEDINNolan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nolan-church/Kelli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellidragovich/HR Heretics is a podcast from the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more at turpentine.co This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hrheretics.substack.com
Feb 9, 2024 • 49min
Inside M&As, Redesigning Comp, and a Public Company's CPO HR Tool Kit with Brigette McInnis-Day of UIPath
Brigette McInnis-Day, the Chief People Officer of UIPath, shares her expertise on HR leadership in high-growth companies. She delves into the intricacies of M&A, using the Looker acquisition as a case study for effective cultural integration. Brigette emphasizes the importance of pay transparency and equity, especially following a public compensation incident at UIPath. She also discusses innovative strategies for recruiting and building a strong company culture while learning from HR failures and prioritizing the right tools.
