Session: From the Outside In: Being Real to Build Culture
What does a welcoming company culture look like? If you asked ten people you’d likely get 10 different answers. However, some things often resonate - the need to feel included, be heard, and be counted. Creating a culture that is open and welcoming doesn’t require expensive events or high profile speakers, it’s about asking for and responding to feedback, and creating space for people to be real. It’s about showing up authentically and creating space for employees to come together in ways that recognize the fullness of their experiences and lives, giving them confidence to share their own stories.
In this presentation, you’ll hear one woman’s less than typical journey into the corporate world, which began with getting expelled from high school and feeling like a social outcast to helping to build better conditions for engagement and expanding company programs for a company of 700+ employees. She’ll share tips, tricks and what she has learned along the way that has helped her and her team build a company culture that has been recognized by San Francisco Business Times, Fortune and Fast Company as one of the best companies to work for.
Session Takeaways:
1. The value of sharing personal stories and experiences to allow employees to connect on a personal level
2. Ways for leaders to create space for everyone to feel belonging, without forcing people to be vulnerable
3. Tips, tricks and insights on how to implement programs that support true inclusion
4. Actionable steps on how to obtain employee feedback in a way that makes everyone feel safe enough to answer and what to do with feedback once you receive it
Bio
Jenny Strauss (she/her), Senior Director of Employee Experience and DE&I at Demandbase has driven strategic employee communications and engagement for over 16 years in a variety of settings, ranging from a 300-person start-up to a large multinational solar company. Her work has been characterized by a combination of rigor and heart, personalization and scale. She has a remarkable capacity to have a measurable impact on culture, an area that is famously un-measurable, and makes sure that no one she encounters feels like an outsider.
Now in her seventh year at Demandbase, Jenny is a member of the People Leadership Team where she focuses on DE&I, culture, and communications. She is a strong advocate for Fair Chance hiring, and is humbled to have supported the journeys of numerous formerly incarcerated individuals. Jenny and her kids share an appreciation for music and live concerts. She also loves stand-up comedy, movies, fashion, and her current role, where she gets to live out her dream of making the world of work truly inclusive.