E77: Shifting to Feedback-Driven Approach in Performance Management

In this episode, Lindsay Patton interviews Carolyn Moore, Chief People Officer at Influx Data, about her journey in HR and the importance of empathy in leadership. They discuss the negative impact of traditional performance management systems and the need to shift towards a feedback-driven approach with open communication and support. They also highlight the evolving nature of HR, with a focus on empathy, strategy, and data fluency. The episode explores how HR professionals are becoming more involved in understanding the business and driving strategic processes, envisioning the future of the HR landscape.

• HR plays a vital role in shaping and preserving company culture.
• Traditional performance management models instill fear and hinder growth in the workplace.
• Emphasizing career discussions and supporting employees’ long-term goals enhances loyalty.
• Understanding employees on a personal level promotes engagement and meaningful connections.
• Empathy is a running theme in HR, influencing how HR professionals are shaking things up and helping the field evolve.
• There will be a need for more oversight around innovation and creativity, especially regarding the balance between pushing boundaries and potentially putting employees at risk.
• HR professionals should prioritize building credibility and connections within the company to effectively push strategy and contribute to overall business success.

• Chief
• InfluxData
• StaffGeek 
• The Advantage

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• 07:01 – “I think the words are important, but the words have to be meaningful, and you have to be able to ensure that it’s sort of ingrained in you as an employee as well as, you know, any of the executives across the company.”
• 10:30 – “And I’ve been really working very hard leadership development wise, particularly with, with, you know, first level and second level managers to make sure that they take that and kind of sweep that away and think more about being empathetic, understanding what the employee is bringing to the party, and helping them to figure out what to do. Not by telling, but by coaching, by asking good questions. And I think that that’s a, you know, that’s, that’s a skill that needs to be developed, but what I find is once leaders have got the hang of it, if you will, it makes it so much easier on them, honestly.”
• 11:54 – “One boss told me you need to do whatever I say because I’m the owner of the company. Another one said, and that didn’t really motivate me to want to do a good job at all.”
• 20:16 – “I think a habit in the workforce is loyalty and expecting that, and, you know, getting ego in when people do choose to leave and grow and, you know, you can’t, you can’t fault someone for wanting to do something for themselves.”
• 14:25 – Lindsay: “And it just made me realize how much fear there is in the workplace in general. So, yeah. Can we talk about that a little bit? Because it’s something that I think is, you know, is too prevalent.”.. Carolyn: “I’ve been thinking a lot about that, about fear in the workplace. And I, I think that just the structure of the workplace has driven that we’ve as a society for a long time have driven a model in into the workplace that’s very militaristic.”