Episode 12: Flexible Hybrid Work Culture: Managing HR Risk

Speaker A: Hey everyone, it's Yash Chitre with the Turn On Engagement podcast brought to you by hubngage. I've got a great conversation today with Heather Stewart, Director of Employee health, Safety and HR Risk at First West Credit Union. And Heather talks all about their hybrid workforce in the financial sector, working directly with leadership and the importance of, of storytelling. It's all coming up next on the Turn On Engagement podcast. This is a good one. Stay tuned. Hello everyone, and welcome to the Turn On Engagement Podcast. I'm, um, Yash Chitre, Senior vice president at HubNgage. And today I've got a very special guest with me, uh, today, uh, Heather Stewart, who is the director of Employee Health and Safety and HR Risk at First West Credit Union. Hi Heather, and welcome to the podcast.

Speaker B: Hi Ash. Uh, thanks for inviting me.

Speaker A: Yeah, it's a pleasure to have you here today. So I know you guys are doing a lot of great, exciting things, um, at first, uh, West Credit Union, particularly as we start to return back to work, hybrid work schedules, um, you know, this whole, uh, um, the great resignation is kind of going on right now. That's a big theme of, you know, retaining your employees and making sure that they're happy and, uh, also attracting and retaining, uh, new talent, uh, as you need, uh, for your enterprise and as you grow, uh, but backing up a few steps. Uh, would love to hear your story, uh, just in terms of how you've managed the past two years, um, some of the great initiatives and programs that you've rolled out, um, in order to retain your employees and also attract new ones, um, and what does the future look like? So really looking to kind of dig into some of those themes and really hear your story today. So how has it been the past two years?

Speaker B: Okay, well, um, it's definitely, definitely been full of challenges, um, but great opportunities as well. And so when I think about the last two years, uh, you know, a number of our employees ended, um, up working from home. Uh, so we do have a core workforce. We're a financial institution. So they were serving our members and they did a phenomenal job, um, during the challenges of the pandemic. For those employees that were in shared service roles, um, a number of them, most of them, um, pivoted to working from home. And so, you know, initially nobody thought it would be a two year journey. And so, you know, you're thinking, okay, it's a couple of weeks, maybe a month, and then time goes on and on. And uh, I would say that really employees really stepped up to that challenge, um, as Though employees were able to start to return to work, um, this is where we really took a thoughtful approach. So if we went back prior to the pandemic, uh, we had launched a how we work guideline. So that was an opportunity for employees to think about, hey, could any of my job be done one day a week at home or two days a week at home? So we had actually launched our how we work program prior to the pandemic. And then as the pandemic was slowing down and it was time to bring employees back to work, we were very intentional about our approach. So we started with our leaders, and so we had leadership calls to talk about, okay, we have our how we work program. How is it going to look and feel differently as individuals start to come back to work? So, like I say, intentionally, we started with our leadership team and said, okay, we want you to come back, get familiar with the space. So we have collaboration centers. So for some of our workforce, they were actually coming back into, um, a brand new building. So it was great for the leaders to come in, see what the space was like, so they could then also talk to their employees about what it's going to look like, what it's going to feel like, and that we still, and to this day, care about their health and safety. It's paramount to us. So we wanted to really, uh, let our employees know that when you're coming back, things like your, uh, protective equipment will be here. Masks, hand sanitizers, um, wipes. And so we even had instruction about how you're going to prepare your workstation before you start work and then before you leave for the end of the day. So we felt that that was really important and our leaders were truly leading the way. So they were, um, here making use of our space, which is very collaborative, and then so they would get their lives organized. And then the, um, plan was that our employees were advised during the summer that we want you to start coming back to work. But we recognized that individuals had to make arrangements for child care, pet care, elder care, all of those things that sometimes we kind of took for granted and didn't have to think about too much, um, prior to a pandemic. And so we wanted to give the employees that transition time and that come September, kind of that end of September timeframe, we wanted to see the employees in the office more than less. And so that's really our philosophy. We offer a hybrid work environment that's flexible, but we're not dictating that an employee must work three days a week in the Office or four days a week. Because I think we could all agree that, uh, depending on the nature of your work, you might be in the office four or five days one week, and you might only be in there one day the following week. But it averages out over time.

Speaker A: Sure.

Speaker B: So really, when we think about attracting, um, individuals to the organization, which is, again, a challenge for a number of organizations out there, is that we talk about our how we Work program. And the benefit of our organization is we actually have locations throughout British Columbia. So even though someone may start to work, for example, in our Lower Mainland or Vancouver, um, area or Fraser Valley, their lives might change over time and they may relocate to Vancouver island or to our beautiful Okanagan Valley. So when employees join, they're not thinking, okay, I have to work in this location for the term of my employment. So, again, that builds in some flexibility and opportunity depending on where they are in their life stage. So, um, it's really been a journey for all of us and a continuing journey. How we developed our how we Work guideline three, four years ago looks a little bit different than what we're saying and seeing today.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, I can imagine. And it's great to hear that it all started with your leadership, right, and your leaders really embraced, you know, the idea of, look, we have to set the example and, uh, you know, we have to actually practice it and try it first and see does it feel right. I think a lot of times, uh, you know, leaders tend to just, you know, come up with ideas and say them, but they don't really understand the practicality of the execution of it. Is it even a good idea if once you actually put that idea to the test and actually do it right, and it sounds like you had the resources, you had the new building and all that kind of stuff, um, which certainly helped, um, particularly when you think of clean, uh, office environments and health and safety and all that, that's a blessing right there. So you had that, uh, going for you, so that's great to hear. Um, so it's good that it came top down and that you had some of these programs in place, um, that you just needed to modify a bit given, um, you know, the world we live in now and the current realities of how we have to go moving forward. Um, I'm curious now, moving forward, uh, in order to, uh, get back to this new normal or get into this new normal now, um, are there new things that you're rolling out, uh, new programs, initiatives, um, not just around employee health and safety, but anything that you're doing also to mitigate, uh, the risk of losing the workforce. Uh, HR Risk is in your title. So what types of things are you doing around that?

Speaker B: Okay, great question. And, um, there's so many ideas, um, out there. And I think we have. And maybe some companies, a number of companies have these. But when I think of talent attraction, our employees are an amazing resource. So we have our employee referral program. And so individuals, if they recommend somebody and they're successful, they're hired, then there is a monetary payment made to that employee and they can even direct that to a charity of their choice should they wish to do that. Um, we also, our talent attraction team did these, um, sort of Thursday, um, build it into your calendar and help the talent attraction team share out postings on LinkedIn. We also have a high five program for our employees. So, um, you know, to recognize when good work is done. And it's not just by your leader. So if it's seen by other leadership in the organization or by other individuals. Um, a great example, um, yesterday I was talking to one of my employees and she was so grateful to another employee in, um, actually in the risk department, um, how helpful he's been. And she was just saying how awesome it was to work with him. And I said, would you like me to, um, give him some high five points, um, because it's made your job easier? And she said, oh, that would be awesome. So a lot of it comes through word of mouth. And that also helps, I think, to mitigate that risk because individuals are being seen recognized by others. So, you know, if they were tempted to say, oh, I don't know how I'm feeling about this organization, you know, what are they doing to try and keep me? And someone gets recognition from a leader that isn't their own leader, I think goes a long way.

Speaker A: Wow. Yeah, that's very powerful stuff. I think the peer to peer effect definitely, um, provides that sort of intrinsic motivation to want to participate and also see that, you know, the company's listening to me. I've got some skin in the game. You know, I feel like a valued member of our little community that we have inside. Um, so, I mean, you touched on recognition there, and I think that's a big part of it. And I think every company needs a, uh, solid recognition program in order to, uh, not only attract but retain their current employees right now, uh, as well. So that's great to hear. Um, ah, in terms of, uh, recruiting and finding talent, how has that been? I mean, I know it's a challenge Particularly in financial services and you know, in banking, it's, you know, you may have some hourly employees, different, different types of workforces. Salaried versus hourly. Um, how is that, how has that been for you right now? And what does the future look like?

Speaker B: It's, it's been a challenge. Um, you know, I think our talent attraction team is doing an amazing job. You know, they know they have such a broad network themselves, and I think that's really key. You know, they work directly with the leaders and other employees. Like for examp, in our branch network, um, you know, there's people know people and so it's just finding those right techniques to get in there and say, you know, the best people that you want to work with. So let's leverage, honestly, let's leverage our network. We've shared stories, for example, on our company website. Um, you know, what's been your experience working here and getting that message out? So it's really digging deep, but I think it's leveraging every opportunity. Talk about, for example, our total compensation package. We talk about, um, we offer Our all employees 3 paid volunteer days to give back to the community. Um, because we are a credit union, we are invested in the local communities that we serve. So there is lots of opportunities for our employees, potential employees. So those are the types of things that we want to share that make people want to come and say, oh, you know, I can actually give paid time off to go to this neighborhood house or, um, you know, something with seniors programs or it could run the gamut. Our, um, sort of leading, um, charity and cause is full coverage. So addressing the hunger, uh, that's out there. So really, it's just, it's really telling what can this organization offer? And that helps tremendously in the talent attraction story and effort.

Speaker A: Fantastic. Um, I always ask this as an employee engagement guy, um, are there opportunities to take what you're doing internally and somehow connect the dots and show the world that externally? So really connecting your internal branding and your internal brand, uh, to your, uh, external marketing efforts and uh, somehow showing your customers, uh, that your people are your brand essentially at the end of the day, and, um, sharing some of these great stories and then also at the same time, uh, highlighting your employees, it leads into them recognizing them, giving them the attention that they deserve as well. Create your sort of employer brand, but at the same time sells to the customer and makes me feel like, hey, you know what, I want to have an account at First West Credit Union, uh, because they get it and I appreciate the values that this institution serves particularly coming out of, uh, you know, the 2008 era, where nobody trusted the banks. Right. Uh, so, like, are there opportunities to do that and how do you position that?

Speaker B: Right. So we have, like, our member events. So, you know, obviously we have, um. We have. We deal with businesses and they come to us. So we have opportunities, um, called member events, so they come into our locations. Um, you know, the volunteering that goes. So we have. We have a number of our employees, and not just leaders, right, that sit on boards and associations, and we do visits out to those businesses. We may showcase, you know, something that one of our business clients, you know, are doing, and they'll come out and talk to us and talk to our employees. So then we can. It's almost that collective sharing, if you will. Right. And, you know, speaking from hr, like, um, with our introducing, like, our mental and physical health program as an example, we're partnering with our, um, vendors. So, like Steelcase, for example, our insurance companies, um, I'm giving showdowns to, for example, Desjardins and Arthritis Research, our partnership with the Canadian Cancer Foundation. So all of those things, you know, it's almost like an octopus. It has so many of those tentacles. Right. And then we have, uh, the running boards in our branches. So if we're celebrating certain things or we're partnering with Conquer to cure cancer, or, you know, different cultural events that are happening in the community, we want to do that. So then our members will come in and they may ask us questions and, oh, so what is first west doing with that? Or what is Valley first or Envision Financial, Island Savings? All of our brands that fall under First West Credit Union.

Speaker A: Wow, that's great. Uh, it's great to hear this. And I know a lot of people listening are trying to wrap their heads around strategy, right? A strategy of what to do, how to do it. And I think a lot of what you talked about are tentacles on that octopus, uh, to use your phrase there, um, in order to put that strategy together. Uh, and I know, uh, a big part of this is also, um, diversity, equity and inclusion. And I think we'll do another podcast with you on that. I know that's a big topic that you're going to be working on this year. So we'll definitely have Heather back, uh, in a future episode as well, to talk about the DEI stuff, because that's a big part of a theme of what we constantly hear, uh, in the HR and employee comms world of, um, how does that spoke play in the wheelhouse of everything else that we have going on, um, how important is it and you know, what priorities do we put in front of other priorities in order to achieve those goals? And I think, you know, diversity, equity, inclusion is obviously a big part of that and it's always rising to the top, particularly for leaders. Uh, leaders want to embrace that, uh, uh, as well. So with that, I think we'll wrap for today. Thank you so much, Heather, for being on the Turn On Engagement podcast. Uh, and as I mentioned, uh, stay tuned. We're going to definitely have Heather back because she's got really, really great stuff going at First West Credit Union. Um, so thank you for your time, uh, for joining us today.

Speaker B: You're welcome. Thanks so much. Yes, thank you.

Speaker A: Okay, thanks everybody and stay tuned for the next podcast uh, we will have coming up shortly. Hey everyone, do you want to get the latest insights on employee communications and engagement delivered right to you? Well, check out an all new thought leadership experience. Visit hubengage.com blog and get all the insights right at your fingertips. You can sign up for the newsletter and even download the interactive all new Turn On Engagement mobile app available in the App Store and Google Play. We've got podcasts, webinars, tips, ideas and so much inspiration. Lots of different ways to get insider insights and learn from the best and brightest pros out there in the industry. So you too can turn on engagement. Visit hubengage.com and check it out today.