For some time, I’ve been looking for one “source” that curates modern takes on HR Tech, perspectives from the people who build it, and its impact on enterprise — something that’s tailor-made by professionals for decision-makers.
I never found it — so I decided to build it.
Every week, I’ll be sharing fresh insights on tech platforms, design, data, and the future of work — straight to your inbox.
My Thoughts
There’s been a debate heating up corporate Twitter about the newly-named trend of “quiet quitting.” 🔇 Employees aren’t actually leaving their jobs; quiet quitting is a state of mind. They clock in, do their job, and clock out.
Is that really a bad thing? Well, that’s where the controversy lies. After all, the foundation of every employer-employee relationship is transactional: getting paid to complete a set of tasks outlined in a job description. 👐💰 Then again, organizations function best, and employees are happiest, when they actively find fulfillment in their work.
I’ve given it some thought and picked my side of the debate. While it’s unhealthy for people to center their entire lives around their careers, quiet quitting is one of the worst things that can happen to an organization. ☠️ Outside of very rare cases, it’s more likely that quiet quitting is indicative of poor workplace culture, where employees don’t feel engaged with their work and are uncomfortable bringing issues or concerns to leadership. So instead of dealing with the frustration of giving their all to a role they dislike, employees are doing what they need to do, then leaving. At work, this can manifest as a lack of motivation and disinterest in new challenges or initiatives.
I don’t need to explain how troubling these behaviors are. 😟 As leaders, we need to be hyper-alert to this not-very-new phenomenon. If you take a look around your (real or virtual) 🌐 office and feel that some of your team members may be struggling, take this as your sign to check in with them.
Tech Innovation at Work
LinkedIn has rolled out a new feature for recruiters and employers to improve diversity in candidate pools called “Diversity Nudges.” 👋 Similar to push notifications, recruiters will receive alerts when their candidate pool is disproportionately male or female, and are given suggestions for expanding search parameters to increase parity. ⚖️ This new feature is already built into the recruiter dashboard which, as Jennifer Shappley VP of global talent acquisition at LinkedIn explains, will hopefully increase use by making it a seamless addition to daily recruiter tasks. These nudges are currently limited to gender diversity, but it appears that LinkedIn is already brainstorming ways to extend this feature to boost visibility for people of color and minority groups. 🧠 ⛈️
The Changing Workplace
As waves of layoffs continue sweeping the world, there’s been a sharp increase in demand for a niche field of professionals who love to do what no one else does: fire people. ❤️🔥 Layoff specialists, as they’re formally known, provide support to leadership in developing, organizing, and deploying large-scale layoffs. This includes ensuring the company protects itself from liability, determining severance and career placement services, and creating the best day-of communication strategy. 📋 People may argue that using an external party to handle layoffs risks coming off as impersonal and somewhat disrespectful to former employees. However, when something has such a far-reaching impact on company culture and employer branding, having an expert to provide guidance seems perfectly reasonable, especially considering our country’s incredibly toxic ☢️ culture surrounding layoffs. Read more about the role of layoff specialists here. And while you’re at it, enjoy this story demonstrating what can happen if your organization doesn’t have plans in place to support employees during layoffs. 🤡
Chipotle 🌯 has agreed to pay out $20 million to 13,000 employees as part of a settlement for multiple violations of New York City’s Fair Work Week law 🗽 👩⚖️ , which requires employers to provide schedules at least fourteen days in advance and protects workers from various unfavorable scheduling practices. Historically, Chipotle has always presented itself as a model company in terms of employee experience. In 2019, the company expanded benefits to include comprehensive mental health care for all hourly employees, and rolled out new L&D programs. 📚 The company’s Chief Diversity and Inclusion People Officer, Marissa Andrada, has even spoken about their culture at SHRM events. In recent years, though, Chipotle’s employees have become more vocal about poor working conditions and experiences. There is even a growing effort to unionize. ✊ From the outside, it seems that Chipotle is doing everything right. However, it’s clear that their employees disagree. Lesson learned: you can have the best benefits in the world, but what matters most is that your employees think so, too.
Lastly, the newly-adopted Inflation Reduction Act, a series of legislation designed to, among other things, reduce inflation 📉 has some employers concerned about increased costs of healthcare plans. 💊 The Act gives Medicare historic power to control drug prices, which industry leaders worry will lead to higher prices being passed to employers. Learn more in this HR Dive Deep Dive.
