Attuned Takes Boston!

Now that in-person events are back on the agenda after what seems like an eternity, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to attend From Day One’s recent live conference at the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter in Boston, of which Attuned was a proud sponsor.

Embracing the theme of ‘Rediscovering Community Amid Changing Corporate Values’, the event was packed with human-centered leaders and featured an intriguing lineup of sessions that explored the question of how employers can create a consistent community that builds enduring bonds of trust with workers.

Kicking off the one-day conference was Wall Street Journal’s Callum Borchers, who moderated a discussion with Christine Kinahan, Chief People Officer at Welch’s. Kinahan talked about how the 154-year old Welch’s cooperative continues to adapt and cultivate a culture of engagement and belonging even as conditions and circumstances evolve.

Later that morning, Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO & Co-founder of Coursera, talked about how Chief Learning Officers play a vital role in leveraging AI to implement agile talent strategies that will nurture the skill development necessary for long-term success.

Another notable conversation was between Jamie Adasi, Head of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Allyship at Greenhouse, and Mita Mallick, Head of Inclusion, Equity and Impact at Carta, who discussed the role of hiring in building a culture of belonging. Their conversation covered a range of strategies that help create an inclusive team culture, including having diverse hiring panels and empowering employee resource groups and affinity groups.

Left to right: Alexis von Kunes Newton, Deborah Merkin, Paris Alston, Amina Lobban, Jacqueline Fearer, Matt Stone.

Kristopher Gunther of Axomo introduces the panel discussion in the main forum.

The conference in full swing.

Matt Stone with fellow conference attendee Jamelle Lindo, EQ Executive Coach, PARADIGM People Development.

In the afternoon, I had the distinct pleasure of participating in a panel discussion titled “Building Upon Workplace Culture Through Recognition and Engagement.” My fellow panelists were Jacqueline Fearer, Head of Global Culture & Engagement Communications at Iron Mountain; Alexis von Kunes Newton, Head of Global Talent Development & Performance at Wayfair; Amina Lobban, Head of HR business Excellence Global Manufacturing, Supply & Quality at Takeda; and Deborah Merkin, CEO and Founder at GiftCard Partners. The panel was moderated by Paris Alston, co-host of Morning Edition at GBH News.

Key takeaways from the panel included:

The importance of having a program for rewarding team members so that it actually happens. Everyone agreed that process matters and that, given how overloaded leaders are these days, it is critical to have an infrastructure of rewards so that they don’t get forgotten about or fall by the wayside.
At the same time, recognition can also happen organically when the culture is healthy. Jacqueline Fearer told an unforgettable story about a frontline worker who made it a habit to send a thank-you postcard to the home of every colleague who demonstrates behaviors worthy of recognition. Jacqueline noted that the postcards are especially effective because family members also get to see the recognition. But that kind of individual action is more likely in a culture where recognition is normalized.
I (and others) talked about how everyone is unique, so recognition must be seen as inextricably linked to relationships—the better managers know their team members, the more impactful their recognition can be. And the more managers invest in healthy relationships, the more effective their recognition will be in leading to positive outcomes.

The conference ended on a high note when Harvard Business Review Editor-in-Chief Adi Ignatius moderated a conversation with Zeynep Ton, professor of the practice in the operations management group at MIT Sloan School of Management.

Professor Ton mesmerized the audience talking about the subject of her latest book, The Case for Good Jobs: How Great Companies Bring Dignity, Pay & Meaning to Everyone’s Work. Fresh from her recent appearance at Davos, Ton made a compelling case why the best strategy for building the most productive and competitive companies is to create both good frontline jobs and solid business operations.

All in all, the conference was a high-energy day with lots of insights and meaningful personal connections. I was delighted by the number of people who stopped by the Attuned table to learn more about tapping into intrinsic motivation to improve engagement and performance, and make work more meaningful. One person who stopped by actually took the free assessment we offered immediately, and I had the pleasure of going over her results with her right there. I saw her eyes light up as she developed new insights about her deepest motivators and what that means for her career and leadership.