The Modern People Leader: Forward-Thinking HR

Tiffany Stevenson, former Chief People Officer at WeightWatchers and Patreon, joined us on The Modern People Leader. We talked about this being the CHROs toughest chapter yet, how AI is reshaping HR, and what HR brings to the boardroom.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of ChartHop.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (09:35) Tiffany’s career story: From Mirage Resorts to Sephora, Box, Patreon, WW(14:34) First career break & adjusting to downtime(16:59) Learning phase: Board readiness program & executive compensation course(19:01) Why being a CHRO is harder now than during the pandemic(23:49) Reframing today’s challenges as opportunities(25:11) Stephen’s thoughts on AI transformation as a once-in-a-generation shift(28:51) Finding focus amid economic, policy, and AI noise(31:36) Tiffany’s current purpose: Leading people through transformations(33:19) Defining individual purpose & aligning with business transformation(35:21) Why she chose to invest in human-centered board skills(37:48) What board service training looks like(39:34) Realizing CHROs often undersell their impact to boards(42:46) How to position yourself for board service(46:20) Typical board makeup & where CHRO expertise fits(49:21) Misconceptions about board work & time commitment---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Priscila Bala, CEO of LifeLabs Learning, joined us on The Modern People Leader.We explored how AI is transforming learning, the enduring role of middle management, and why the most impactful leadership skills are more human than ever.---- Resources Mentioned:🔗 Sign up for LifeLabs Learning’s Culture Club.Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of Workleap.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (07:25) Priscila’s Career Journey: From VC to CEO of LifeLabs(10:57) What LifeLabs Learning Does and Their Training Philosophy(13:10) Segue to AI: “Artificial Interns” and the Human Advantage(17:42) The Emotional Edge of In-Person Learning & Why AI Can’t Replicate That(21:52) Vibe Coding, Demo Days, and the Role of Human Feedback(24:34) What AI Can’t Replace: Judgment, Context & Culture(26:31) Why Priscila is Giddy About AI’s Impact on Human Skills(29:07) DIY Learning Teams: Practical Tips & The Q-Step Tool(31:30) The Secret Sauce Behind LifeLabs’ Facilitators(35:05) Priscila’s Personal “Aha” Moments as a Former Client(37:21) Middle Management: From Crisis to AI-Era Relevance(43:25) The Real Pain for Managers Today: Overwhelm & Role Clarity(47:29) Will New Careers Move Away From Management?(49:56) Reskilling in the Age of AI: How Managers Can Navigate Change(54:22) Resources Mentioned: Culture Club & Train-the-Trainer Preview(55:47) Rapid Fire: HR Advice, Superpowers, and Dream Guest---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn---- Past guests on MPL include Brené Brown, Annie Dean (VP of Team Anywhere, Atlassian), Josh Bersin, Katie Burke (Chief People Officer, Harvey), Liz Fosslien, Helen Russell (Chief People Officer, HubSpot), Dave Scott (Chief People Officer, ADT), Melanie Rossenwasser (Chief People Officer, Dropbox), Crystal Boysen (Chief People Officer, Sprout Social), and many more.

Jenny Molyneaux, VP of People at Vercel, joined us on The Modern People Leader.We talked about why AI is replacing HR tech spend before headcount, how Vercel’s people team is building custom AI tools to replace expensive SaaS products, and what HR leaders can do to start building with AI today.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Get your free 30-day Synthesia account.🔗 Request a demo of ChartHop.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (07:36) Jenny’s Career Journey: From Google to Startups & VP of People at Vercel(16:17) Lessons Learned as a People Team of One(21:37) What Vercel Does Explained Simply(28:15) How AI Will Cut Spend Before Headcount in HR(33:13) Cost Savings from Building Internal AI Tools Instead of Buying SaaS(37:22) Creating a Company Culture of AI Adoption(40:17) The Future of B2B Tech: Customization, Forking, and AI Marketplaces(44:23) Customizing Engagement Surveys for Better Insights(49:44) Jenny’s “Manager Stack” Vision for AI-Driven Performance Management(53:40) How to Start Building Internal Tools with AI(56:50) Advice for HR Leaders: Just Start Building---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

Geanne Weaver-Hepler (Director of EX, Charlie Health), Allison Vendt (VP, People Ops & Head of EX at Dropbox), Nick Freeman (Co-CEO, Marco), and Brian Elliott (CEO, Work Forward) joined us to talk about what’s broken with employee connection—and how to fix it. We explored practical frameworks for offsites, hybrid team building, and creating meaningful connection moments across distributed workforces.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of Workleap.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (06:00) Why we stopped talking about connection—and why that’s a mistake(08:00) Gallup data: engagement is falling, especially for managers(10:00) Geanne on building connection at scale at Charlie Health(13:00) From Airbnb bonding to 400-person team offsites(14:00) Dropbox’s shift from office-first to virtual-first with intentional team gatherings(16:00) The importance of milestone-based anchor weeks(17:00) Nick: What makes an offsite successful? Frequency, location, and shared space(19:00) Using AI to plan team retreats faster and smarter(20:00) Lessons learned: The pendulum swings of remote, RTO, and hybrid(22:00) Brian: Airbnb’s team cadence model and the importance of rhythm(25:00) Dropbox’s “gathering matrix” and designing for outcomes(27:30) Virtual connection challenges & async collaboration tips(30:00) Why structured rituals help sustain remote trust(32:00) Peer learning over presentations: How Charlie Health restructured their offsites(33:30) Role-playing, competition, and fun as part of sales team development(36:00) Common offsite pitfalls: over-indexing on logistics, under-indexing on experience(37:00) How to save 20–30% on offsites by avoiding weekends & bundling bookings(39:00) Q&A: What to say to executives who don’t see the value in connection(41:00) Q&A: How Dropbox uses Slack, swag, and planning to drive pre-event excitement(43:00) Q&A: Aligning in-office vs. remote culture differences(45:00) Q&A: Measuring success with post-event surveys and engagement impact(48:00) Q&A: Designing experiences for introverts and overstimulated employees(50:00) Playbooks: Charlie Health’s tiered gathering strategy & Founders Trip(51:00) Dropbox’s Offsite-in-a-Box and Virtual First Toolkit(53:00) Why group travel is the fastest-growing segment of corporate spend(54:00) Tips for booking better hotels, avoiding weekend rates, and maximizing ROI---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

Jessica Zwaan, COO at Whereby, joined us again on The Modern People Leader for a deep dive into Employee Lifetime Value (ELTV). We explored how HR leaders can adapt marketing-style metrics like LTV to CAC for talent, the different ways to calculate it, and how the process itself can reshape how People teams think about value, cost, and impact.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of ChartHop.🔗 Get your free 30-day Synthesia account.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (05:45) Wrapping up Jessica’s second book & reflections on avoiding hustle culture(06:31) How to balance multiple big projects without burning out(07:42) Personal habits that help prevent hustle culture(09:16) Stephen on using “extra time” with intention(11:29) Mary Oliver’s “Don’t Hesitate” poem and finding joy in work(13:02) Daniel on keeping play in work despite business growth pressures(14:05) Segue to main topic: Employee Lifetime Value (ELTV)(15:26) Why ELTV sparks debate and common misconceptions(16:25) Treating ELTV conversations like an AMA to address objections(17:05) Behind-the-scenes of Stephen’s LinkedIn post that started the conversation(18:21) Image generation with Midjourney & content process for MPL Build(21:42) Different ways to calculate ELTV depending on company context(24:23) Why People teams resist new metrics compared to Marketing teams(27:56) The value of the calculation process itself for HR teams(29:13) Why ELTV is calculated on an aggregate, not individual, basis(31:55) The halo effect of great employees & intangible impacts on value(32:29) Breaking ELTV down by department, team, or cohorts(36:27) Core cost factors in ELTV: recruiting, onboarding, L&D, benefits, comp(39:12) Why knowing cost per employee matters beyond ELTV(40:50) Tracking ELTV with different financial baselines (revenue vs. EBITDA)(43:32) The “gold standard” three-to-one LTV-to-CAC ratio and when to adjust it(44:58) Similar or alternative metrics for different business models(46:05) Why each company’s key metrics should look different(47:15) Recognizing others who pioneered ELTV concepts(48:22) Final advice: ELTV is a compass, not a map---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

Joanne Rodgers, the CHRO of New York Life, discusses her impressive 30-year journey from securities regulation to C-suite leadership. She highlights New York Life’s relationship-centric culture and the innovative use of AI tools, like the Eightfold platform, to boost career development and internal mobility. Joanne emphasizes the importance of HR leading in digital transformation and shares insights on supporting younger talent amidst AI anxieties. The conversation weaves together personal reflections and a vision for a future-ready workforce.

Jennifer Henderson (CEO, Tilt), Jessica Winder (SVP People, CoLab Software), Allison Whalen (CEO, Parentaly), and Justin Clifford (CEO, Bereave) joined us to talk about what most companies get wrong when it comes to employee leave. We discussed parental and bereavement leave through a human lens—from compliance and continuity to return-to-work strategies and performance review pitfalls.---- 🔗 Go download Tilt's Modern HR Leader's Guide to Leave that Works - this is a full recap of this conversation. ---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of ChartHop.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (06:26) The 3 core challenges of employee leave: compliance, continuity, and care(09:58) What “support” actually looks like during leave, not just compliance(16:09) Real-life examples of how broken leave policies hurt employee trust(18:57) Bereavement leave: why 51% of people leave their jobs within a year of loss(21:09) Building better return-to-work frameworks and communication plans(23:56) “Did you know?” HR comms and surfacing underused employee benefits(25:38) The manager’s role: why they’re the most powerful force during leave(26:49) Jessica’s childcare breakdown story + creative leave support solutions(30:22) Small, meaningful ways to show real care during a return to work(32:02) Why policies mean nothing without psychologically safe manager behavior(34:14) Performance reviews: how leave-related bias undermines careers(36:16) The need for written re-onboarding plans for every returning employee(37:42) The “10x” moment: leave as a defining employer brand experience(40:52) Why many managers never wanted to manage people—and how that shows up(43:44) SOPs for grief: standardizing human touch, not just tasks(44:57) Why outsourcing leave support can actually free managers to show up better(46:48) What not to do: excluding managers from leave conversations entirely(48:14) The untapped business value in training middle managers(50:04) Jessica’s fears returning from leave as a senior executive(52:12) Why sales comp during leave is never perfect—but always worth refining(54:45) Err on the side of employee-favorable: retention > replacement(56:07) Every leave situation is different—so start planning 3–4 months ahead---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

Kahina Ouerdane, Chief People Officer at Workleap, joined us on The Modern People Leader.We talked about her journey from international human rights law to tech, how software is the new workplace, why AI is forcing a rethinking of learning and org design, and more.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of Workleap.🔗 Get your free 30-day Synthesia account.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (05:43) Kahina’s Origin Story: From Human Rights Lawyer to People Leader(07:56) Discovering Her “Why” and the Power of Collective Harmony(11:11) Intro to Workleap: Origins of Gsoft (12:34) Workleap's Growth and Mission to Make Work Simpler(14:54) Overview of the Workleap Product Suite(16:21) Officevibe, Pingboard, Barley, and the Future of the Platform(18:34) The “Foggy Road” of AI (19:22) AI is a New Language: Learning Amidst Uncertainty(21:38) Why IT Now Reports to HR at Workleap(24:34) IT and Onboarding: Lessons from M&A and Employee Experience(26:46) Why HR May Be Better Suited Than IT to Lead Change(28:33) How IT and HR Are Co-Learning AI Together(29:52) Rethinking What Learning Means in an AI-Powered World(31:32) The “Third-Life Crisis” of the Knowledge Worker(34:02) Why Nobody’s Talking Enough About Re-skilling(36:17) Vibe Coding and L&D Reimagined with AI(37:26) The Accidental On-Ramp to Using Workleap AI(39:22) Weekly Rituals and Cross-Functional Learning Moments(41:40) The Limits of Our Imagination in Predicting the Future of Work(43:13) How Workleap Dogfoods Its Own AI Tools(44:50) Data as the Engine: The Power of Connected People Analytics(47:25) Future Vision: Org Charts with Real-Time Engagement & Performance Insights(48:48) Innovation From the Ground Up: HR Leading a Company-Wide Sprint(51:35) Why Canada Might Be Leading the Way in Future of Work Innovation---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

Alex Buder Shapiro, Chief People Officer at Jasper, is leading the charge in rethinking organizational design amid the AI revolution. She discusses how AI is transforming early-career roles and the urgent need for HR teams to adapt through experimentation and innovative workflows. Alex reveals the importance of real-time learning and reskilling at scale, while provoking thoughts on HR’s evolving leadership role. From prototyping with AI to the complexities of organizational structures, this episode dives deep into the future of work and the unique challenges ahead.

Eliza Jackson, Chief People and Administrative Officer at ButcherBox, joined us on The Modern People Leader. We talked about how operational excellence can protect and scale company culture, how her team built a "work in service of" mindset, and how ButcherBox is using AI agents to unlock capacity—not replace people.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of Workleap.🔗 Get in contact with the Career Sandwich team.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (05:59) Eliza’s Career Journey: From Finance to Education to ButcherBox(08:04) What ButcherBox Does & Its B Corp Mission(09:23) Why Ops Isn’t Just for Efficiency—It’s for Culture(11:44) How Eliza Assessed ButcherBox’s Ops When She Joined(13:52) Creating the Business Operations Team & Their Embedded Model(16:30) Eliza’s Nerdy Toolkit: Time & Task Management(17:58) People Ops & Biz Ops Tech Stack at ButcherBox(21:09) Managing Hybrid Work: Boston-Based Flexibility(23:47) Protecting Company DNA & Building Connection in a Hybrid World(26:48) Evolving ButcherBox’s Return-to-Office Strategy(29:35) Culture is the Differentiator in a Post-COVID Workplace(33:31) What Great Leadership Looks Like in a Talent Factory(35:46) The Shift in Leadership Mindsets Since COVID(38:04) Belonging, AI, and the Performance Push: Can They Coexist?(39:28) ButcherBox’s AI Task Force: Building Capacity with Agents(41:50) Example: AI Copy & Design Agents That Talk to Each Other(44:39) Why an AI Coach Can Sometimes Be Better Than a Manager(45:57) AI Adoption at ButcherBox: What’s Sticking & What’s Scaling(47:29) The CPO of the Future: People + Digital, Inspired by Moderna(50:41) Why HR Should Lead AI Transformation, Not Just IT(52:01) Rapid Fire: Advice, Superpowers & What to Steal from Slalom(55:27) BetterUp & the Human Condition at Work(55:40) One-Word Close: Inflection Point, Moderna, Baby---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn