The Workspan Podcast takes on the day’s most pressing workplace issues with a healthy mix of insight, wit and irreverence. Produced and hosted by Tom Alexander and WorldatWork columnist Charles Epstein.
Anna Papalia gives us a sneak preview of her book, Interviewology, the New Science of Interviewing, published by Harper Collins and out this coming January. Anna is a career influencer with over 1.5 million followers across social media platforms and has coached over 10,000 clients to interview better. She discusses why conventional interviewing ad…
Dr. Mark Attridge is President of Attridge Consulting, Inc., which focuses on workplace mental health and employee assistance programs. He joins us to discuss four studies he led that measured EAP outcomes based on over 50,000 users of EAP over five years. The studies focused on: EAP-driven clinical and work outcomes; EAP and coaching; EAP and its …
Our conversation focuses on WorkatWork’s just published 2023-2024 Salary Budget Survey, which organizations have come to rely on to design competitive compensation plans that attract and retain high-performing employees. Joining us are Liz Supinski, Director, Research & Insights at WorldatWork, and Michaela Leo, Head, Compensation & Benefits for Ip…
Lulu Seikaly, in-house employment counsel for Payscale, joins us to discuss pay transparency: the law recently passed in Hawaii and how it’s different, varying levels of stringency by state, benefits to employers, unintended consequences and trends employers need to be on the watch for.
Rich Fuerstenberg, a Senior Partner with Mercer, works with clients on their healthcare and group benefit programs, connecting dots for employers and employees helping them reduce cost and risk while improving the benefits experience. The focus of our conversation is employer-sponsored sabbaticals – the different types, why they’re offered, ways th…
We’re joined by the two co-founders of Zayla Partners, an executive compensation and corporate governance consulting company: CEO Chris Crawford and Managing Partner Ian Keas. Our conversation focuses on solving the challenge of executive retiree incentive compensation: why more older employees are working past age 65 than the prior generation, the…
Steven Brink is President and Chief Revenue Officer of uFlexReward, providers of a digital total reward platform to improve the employee experience and enhance the organization’s global understanding of the total reward spend. He joins us to discuss total rewards optimization: the challenges/benefits of consolidating the various benefits silos, how…
Sunil Vatave is the U.S. product advisor to DarwinBox, an HCM platform that helps build better workplaces. He brings a broad perspective to the topic of compensation, having been an employment lawyer, Vice President of HR, and HR technology provider. He joins us to discuss how to make compensation management a strategic advantage.…
Jon Hyman is a nationally recognized employment and labor attorney, author, speaker, blogger, and most importantly, a friend of the Workspan pod. He joins us to discuss the three landmark decisions recently handed down by the Supreme Court on religious accommodations, affirmative action, and LGBTQ rights. He is just the guy to tell us what it means…
Mario Ceron, Managing Partner & CEO, Zereon Associates, gives us a global perspective on total rewards, workforce mobility, digital transformation, leadership and team development, and executive compensation. He also discusses emerging compensation trends, the impact of AI on total rewards, and how leadership must evolve to meet the challenges in t…
Joe DiMisa, Senior Client Partner and Korn Ferry’s Global Sales Force Effectiveness Leader joins us to talk about designing and implementing sales compensation solutions that increase sales and profits. We discuss how to set pay levels for sales roles, where to get reliable data, and how often you should benchmark, among a host of timely topics.…
Brett Christie, WorldatWork's Digital Content Manager and Strategist joins us to discuss an exciting new development – the eagerly awaited unveiling of a newly updated and expanded online resource for anyone in the total rewards and comp fields. Members (and non-members) now have easy access to every pay equity law, salary history ban law and pay t…
Julie Lammers is Senior VP, Advocacy and Corporate Social Responsibility, American Student Assistance (ASA). Julie has broad and extensive public sector experience (from the House of Commons to the US Senate) and was recently widely quoted in a #evolve article titled, “Apprenticeships are a Growing, Attractive Solution for U.S. Employers” - the top…
Arthur Woods is co-founder of Mathison, a technology platform equipping employers with everything they need to manage their diversity hiring, analytics and training. He is also partner at Plenty Search, an executive search firm for venture-backed startups with a strong track record on diversity. Over a year ago he joined us to discuss the latest in…
ESG is a very hot, not to mention, controversial topic – you’d think it just emerged on the scene, but it’s been around for a while. Dr. Hermann J. Stern, managing owner of the financial research company Obermatt, is an ESG expert who works primarily with Swiss and German companies. Few are better equipped to discuss the origins of ESG, how compani…
We’ve had guests on the pod who’ve spoken about empathetic leadership and the need for more empathy in the workplace, but none who brings the perspective and rigor to the topic as Katharine Manning. She spent close to 16 years as a senior attorney in the US Department of Justice specializing in victim’s rights and services, and is President of Blac…
Nu Yang, editor of #evolve, WorldatWork’s digital-only publication, discusses the stories she and her staff are working on, her vision for #evolve going forward, and a recent story that she wrote that’s stirred up a lot of conversation, titled“Retaining and Developing Women Leaders in the Workplace."…
Patrick Dalin, Of Counsel with Fisher Phillips, represents employers in a full range of employment law matters. Patrick breaks down a recent 6-3 Supreme Court decision (involving rare agreement between liberal and conservative factions of the court) that delineated between exempt and non-exempt employment. We discuss tests to determine salaried and…
We’re joined by Sheetal Raut, Managing Director at WorldatWork India and Rahul Puri, Director of Business Development with WorldatWork India, to discuss the location’s growth from its inception in 2021 and what’s been driving it. We also discuss the adoption of total rewards in India, the impact of technology on benefits delivery and utilization, p…
We’re joined by the perfect person to demystify AI, machine learning and people analytics: Margret Bjarnadottir, Associate Professor of Management Science and Statistics, at the University of Maryland. Margret gives us a sneak preview of her forthcoming session at WorldatWork’s Total Rewards show in San Diego this coming June: from the explosive gr…
WorldatWork’s Liz Supinski joins us to discuss the just-published 2022 Year in Review: Inventory of Total Rewards Programs and Practices. Liz shares the most significant changes from last year, findings that most surprised her, among other fascinating tidbits, trends and insights she and her crack team unearthed. Bonus chat on Liz’s latest ambitiou…
Gregory Milano, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner of Fortuna, and his colleague Riley Whately, who leads Fortuna's research and advisory work, join us to discuss the growth of intangible investments and the challenges/opportunities for human resource managers trying to drive value in their organizations.…
Kathleen Schulz, Gallagher’s Global Innovation Leader for Organizational Wellbeing, makes her third appearance on the pod. Kathleen discusses Gallagher’s 2022 Benefit Strategy and Benchmarking Survey, and touches on an array of timely topics: what organizations can do to alleviate the issues that can compromise an employee’s ability to perform, sur…
We are joined by Dr. Atul Mitra, Department Head & Professor of Management, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company at the University of Northern Iowa - College of Business. Professor Mitra discusses his fascinating and insightful article (membership required) in the Journal of Total Rewards that compares the multiple drivers (digital infrastructure, c…
John Bremen, managing director and chief innovation and acceleration officer at Willis Towers Watson, talks about companies making a public stand on social and political matters: how to successfully navigate the various competing interests while creating more loyal employees and customers.
We kick off the new year in podcasting with Bobbi Kloss, director of human capital management services at Benefit Advisors Network, the premier international, credentialed network of independent employee benefit advisory & consulting firms. Bobbi joins us to discuss strategies for investing in employee well-being in 2023.…
We close out the year with one of our all-time favorite guests: John Zissimos, the Chief Marketing Officer at Okta, the leading independent identity provider, who joins the prestigious three-timers club. He previously spoke with us about his experiences with Google and Salesforce, and in this conversation discusses his role with Okta, his influence…
A timely conversation with Cheryl Brown Merriwether, Co-Founder, Vice President, Executive Director, International Center for Addiction & Recovery Education™ (ICARE). Many people struggle during the holiday season as it can give rise to – or heighten - addictions and mental health issues. Cheryl discusses how you, and/or those close to you, can pre…
WorldatWork is about to publish findings showing that employers continue to struggle with communicating internally and externally about their pay equity efforts. Nancy Romanyshyn, Director Pay Strategy and Partner Success with Syndio, joins us for a lively, informative discussion on what employers need to understand – and do – to better communicate…
We speak with Michael Piker, Global DE&I & Reward Director with Flutter Entertainment, a global sports betting, gaming and entertainment company. Currently based in London, Michael has lived and worked in 9 countries, and brings a broad perspective to a range of important issues: Talent Mobility, DE&I, Total Rewards, Executive Compensation, People …
Scott Pechaitis, a principal in the law firm Jackson Lewis P.C. and a national leader in the world of employment law, discusses pay transparency, specifically the new Pay Transparency laws that are taking effect November 1 in New York City and Westchester County, and will soon be sweeping the nation. What you need to know, how to prepare, the pros …
Darren Tse, North America Practice Leader Sales Effectiveness and Rewards for WTW, discusses setting caps on sales compensation. What may first sound like a narrowly focused topic turns out to have many fascinating dimensions and implications. Darren expertly takes us through the host of competing interests that need to be balanced: maintaining an …
A fascinating conversation with Liz Supinski, Director, Research & Insights at WorldatWork. Liz discusses how her background in I/O psychology and data science informs her research work, her plans to make WorldatWork’s research reports more narrative-driven, helping TR professionals carry the conversation into their organizations…and a sneak previe…
Co-authors Solange Charas and Stela Lupushor discuss their timely and very insightful new book, Humanizing Human Capital. Topics include: the difference between people analytics and human capital analytics, the value of “purpose audits,” AI and its potential impact on leadership, why HR needs to improve their numeracy and understand how data can ac…
Master Corporate Executive Coach Jordan Goldrich on how successful leaders can get better. Jordan discusses how to promote successful leadership in today’s increasing remote business world, his work with “abrasive” leaders and what he means by applying the Navy Seals “ethos” to effective, responsive leadership.…
Cindy Robbins is an independent board director, corporate advisor, and senior executive with 20+ years of experience counseling CEOs and other senior executives. As President and Chief People Officer of Salesforce, she designed and oversaw a global workforce that became a model of innovative corporate culture. Cindy joins us to discuss pay equity: …
Judy Canavan is Managing Director, Compensation & Benefits, Global Employer Services at BDO, and leader of their Compensation Surveys practice. Judy joins us to discuss BDO’s 2022 Study of CEO and CFO Compensation, which is based on the practices of 600 mid-market public companies. She shares the key takeaways, differences between the 2022 and 2021…
Our guest Dan Beaudry is the founder of LDP Connect, a community of professionals who lead, manage or support early career talent development programs at some of the world’s largest employers. We discuss what young, high potential employees are looking for and the skills/attributes/support they need to advance and flourish. With a special cameo app…
Awestruck by the images pulled from deep space by the James Webb telescope? We are too! We have the perfect guest to bring it all down to earth: Ann Jenkins, principal science writer at the Space Telescope Science Institute, the science operations center for the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes. We also discuss her fascinating career that beg…
We are joined by Debbie Gunning, VP of People at Human Interest, a fast-growing fintech firm providing 401(k)s to small and medium businesses. Debbie’s team runs the company's talent and culture programs. We discuss geographic pay differentials and the challenges of promoting coherent company culture for a company experiencing exponential growth – …
Emily Cervino and Ranjan Dutta from Fidelity Investments on pay equity and the complexities/nuances of pay equity assessment. We discuss why companies are considering non-base pay in pay equity assessments and highlights from the WorldatWork/Fidelity Pay Equity Study (the study can be found at: https://worldatwork.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cI0o…
Our guest is Dr. Stephen Ezeji-Okoye, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Crossover Health, the leader in delivering value-based hybrid care. We discuss Social Determinants of Health and a case study he wrote called Cracking the Code on Referral Management, which shows how an integrated, team-based care model removes cost and improves satisfaction.…
Neena Kovuru is a strategic HR and technologies consultant who creates value for organizations via insightful analysis and data driven solutions. We discuss the need for HR to become more comfortable and adept with analytics, what HR is doing to meet the challenges of today’s changed business landscape, and emerging technologies that will have the …
We're joined by Rob Whalen, co-founder and CEO of PTO Exchange, the first benefits platform that allows employees to self-direct the value of their unused paid time off (PTO) for other needs and causes. We discuss how this will lead to more employee engagement, increased loyalty, reinforce a healthy workplace culture and move the needle on DEI.…
Kristin Pozen, practice leader and senior executive recruiter with the Duffy Group, on boomerang interviews: those you conduct with former employees who are seeking to return. We discuss why they’re on the rise, whether it’s a good or bad thing for employers, and how to make sure the “sequel” is better than the original.…
Mark McGraw, managing editor of both Workspan and #evolve, joins us to discuss the Q2 Workspan, which focuses on wellbeing. Features include “Family Time, which addresses parental leave and “Do Not Disturb,” which looks at how some companies are expanding their PTO offerings to help workers refresh and recharge.…
Serial entrepreneur Shannon Scott, the CEO of OnCentive and SyncStream, on lessons learned from starting and growing successful companies, what drives him, why he prefers the term corporate “vision” to corporate “culture” and how it’s factored into his success. He also shares what’s on his entrepreneurial “bucket list” – spoiler alert: a local flav…
Ravin Jesuthasan, a recognized global thought leader, futurist and author on the future of work, automation and human capital. He is the co-author of the just published “Work Without Jobs: How to Reboot Your Organization’s Work Operating System,” about how work is changing in ways that will eventually transform every aspect of society. It debuted a…
We're joined by Michele Ruiz, co-founder and CEO of BiasSync, a science-based approach to combatting unconscious bias in the workplace. She speaks about her journey from the anchor chair (she was an award-winning broadcast journalist) to serial entrepreneur (BiasSync is her third company) and the ways organizations can systematically identify and a…
We’re joined by Kimberly Harris, Director of People Operations at Poll Everywhere, a company that turns presentations into a two-way dialog, providing employees with ways of getting involved instead of getting distracted: “2022 will be the year of conquering the new workforce rhythm.” Which begs the question: can we dance to it? This and more on pr…