'I know it sounds really cliché, but there it is'
What do we mean when we talk about ‘culture’? Is it a shared set of values? The way an organization presents itself? Or a focus on authentic, compassionate, leadership?
For Diana Godfrey, SVP of HR at Fidelity Canada, she believes her culture centres around employee experience. Having just landed one of HRD’s Best Places to Work Awards, Godfrey attributes their success to one thing.
“It's our people, for sure,” Godfrey tells HRD. “I know it sounds really cliche, but the reality is our team is committed to our clients, to each other, to the organization, and importantly, to the communities that we live and work in. Our culture is shaped by everything that they do - and I think that's really what sets us apart.”
If there’s ever been a challenge of ‘sink or swim’ for organizations, it was the pandemic. In the face of overnight digitization and complex new safety regulations, HR leaders had to upskill – and fast.
“It's been a very different journey than what we were accustomed to - especially in the remote working environment,” says Godfrey. “We worked really hard at articulating the employee experience. I think we've always had it, but we haven't articulated it in a way that in a way that reaches everybody. As such, we're currently developing an Employee Ambassadors program which will help us to better tell our story.”
At Fidelity, they focused on looking at flexibility, and by extension at wellness. Godfrey tells HRD that they questioned everything they were doing – specifically around culture in remote work.
How do you have fun when everybody's not together? How do you have fun remotely? How do you change your development program from one that has focused on in-person experiences to one that recognizes hybrid experiences?
“We want to ensure everybody understands that development doesn't have to mean landing a new job,” Godfrey says. “It can be a new experience, leadership committee work, going on a training program, or temporarily taking on a new role. We looked at people who would typically have worked in the office, whose work couldn't be done remotely, and we redeployed them. As such, they took on different roles temporarily. Some have stayed there. So I think when we talk about the employee experience, it's about being very holistic and trying to find a way to share that with everybody.”
Watch HRDTV’s full interview with Godfrey here.