[00:00:00] Welcome to episode 47. It seems like so many talent leaders I work with right now are charged with leading the creation of their organization's employee value proposition or EVP and their employer branding. the EVP is often a major undertaking even in smaller organizations. So how do you start, how do you roll it out, tune in to this episode for some really helpful examples to help spark your thinking?
[00:02:10] My guest is Carrie Fraser. She's the chief people officer at Westland insurance out of British Columbia. She's an inclusive collaborative leader with over 20 years experience and it was an absolute pleasure speaking. Carrie in this episode, I know you will walk away with all sorts of great little inspirational sparks about how to manage your EVP and get a little bit of a sneak peek into the insurance industry.
[00:02:34] Thanks for listening.
[00:02:36] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Hello, and welcome back to talent management truths. I'm your host, Lisa Mitchell. And today I'm joined by my guest, Carrie Fraser. Carrie is the chief people officer at Westland insurance group out of Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. Welcome to the show, Carrie. Good to see you.
[00:02:57] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: thank you so much. It's great to be.
[00:02:59] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: So I know this is going to be a fabulous conversation just based on what we've been chatting about in the, in the so-called green room. Could you start off as we typically do here with telling our listeners a little bit about, about your background.
[00:03:12] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. Sure. Thanks, Lisa. So, for my background in HR, I guess I got into HR over 20 years ago now. I actually, I didn't know HR even existed. I was taking program through a college and I took organizational behavior and that's where I had this aha moment. It really grabbed me.
[00:03:33] And from that course, I ended up getting a placement in HR.
[00:03:38] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: well, I just, I cuz you said grabbed me, which is such a great description. I just was wondering what was it in that course? That was so compelling.
[00:03:47] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: I just, you know, I didn't know that something like this existed and I think for me, I felt like, gosh, I feel like this really plays to my strengths. And you know, I'm like very sensitive. I'm really connected in with people. I've always had this like really strong sense. Right. Wrong fairness, justice.
[00:04:07] I'm not afraid to speak up and. I thought, huh? I feel like in companies, like that's a place that I could play really well. And so from there, the instructor actually helped place me with the HR co-op. That was my first HR job from there. I then switched my focus and then I am going into the B, C I T program and just pursuing HR from there.
[00:04:32] So 20 years later here I am.
[00:04:35] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Funny funny how that works. So you've, you've been at Wesland for, I think you said about two and a half years starting just before COVID and the world stopped there for a bit. And you spent about 11, I think, 11 years at Collier's before that and a couple other organizations. So, so tell us a little bit about, you know, at, Wesland, what you love about it.
[00:04:56] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Westland is such a fast paced high growth environment. So I love the challenge. It's so fun. I feel like I've been able to go in and build. And make an impact. And honestly, like I love the people and the values the organization started about 40 years ago with the Webbs family and, Jason Webbs, the son of the original owner is CEO and they have such a humble.
[00:05:36] Nice genuine kind approach to everything they do, but also extremely entrepreneurial. And so, those values are really, really important to me. And even as they've continued to grow, they're just so committed to maintaining that. And so that's something that really aligns with me that I quite.
[00:05:56] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Mm. Yeah. Well, it's interesting cuz you don't always hear, hear humble and gen genuine in combination with entrepreneurial. It's kind of like the, oh, the unicorn, right? What we all
[00:06:06] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: It
[00:06:06] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: well what many of us do? Yeah, so, you know, When, when you, you were talking to me earlier, you, you,
[00:06:14] you were saying how, you know, you'd been over a decade at Collier's and great environment, high growth yet again, and you kind of got to the point and as many of us do where you sort of thought this has been great and it's still great, but there's something, there's something kind of niggling at me.
[00:06:30] And it was around maybe it's time for someone else to come in and make that impact. Can you, can you expand on that a little bit for.
[00:06:37] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, sure. Yeah. You know, I was, as you said, I was there for almost 11 years and I had so much great opportunity there. I started off as the HR manager for Canada, I moved into the director role. Then I took on us also and added that into overseeing that. So of all of north America and. When I left, I was the VP of HR and I got to build out a lot. And I just got to a point where I felt like, I think I've done everything. Kind of like I wanted to experience, I got us experience. I got to help with employee engagement. I got to help launch Workday. There was all of these things that I wanted to do. And once they were done, I just felt like, okay, It's time for me to go somewhere else.
[00:07:30] And I do think sometimes like the team probably needed a new leader
[00:07:36] because I wasn't as interested and engaged. And I think that impacts people. I think it needed a new, fresh set of eyes. Like, I'm not sure if I could have taken it much further. And so it was a really, I had a really lots of Inward, you know, like thinking on that it's very humbling and lots of discussions with an executive coach that I work with and yeah, it was time for me and I, I did felt it was best for call years too.
[00:08:04] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. So it's, I'm really, you know, grateful for you being so honest about that, because I, I see this in a lot. I work with talent leaders, both as an executive coach and in my group programs and consulting. And, and I see this with so many people, right, where they're loving everything that they do, they're working really hard.
[00:08:21] And then. Sometimes, and it's just natural. They come across a period in their life for whatever reason where it's just. Taking all the boxes quite the same. They're not feeling like they're eight, you know, it's, nothing's wrong with them or the organization, but it just almost feels like there's an expiry date or a shelf life.
[00:08:38] And, and yet it can be a real struggle to recognize that sometimes and make that call to, to move on and start looking out beyond to see what else is out there. I know for me, When I went out on my own five years ago, I mean, it was huge. I, you know, part of it was, I was, I was no longer, really happy with the, the stuff I was doing.
[00:08:55] I love the team, but it was about, I, you know, like you, I'm a builder. And I wanted to
[00:09:00] challenge myself in a different way. I wanted to, to line up with what I thought was my higher purpose at that point. So it, so this is something that also came up in our conversation, which is around. You know, your, the alignment to your values that you found at Westland, not to say that you didn't have that in place before, but it's really sort of taken pride of place here.
[00:09:20] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, it's so true. You know, you know, Collier's was great. And I think there was a lot of things that aligned to my values, but there were some things that didn't. not bad or good. It just didn't. And I just knew that my next experience, that was such a significant piece. And I was sharing with you, like I'm gonna be 50 next year.
[00:09:40] And you really think when, as you get older, what's really meaningful to you. Like how do I wanna spend the last, let's just call it my last decade of work and not only do I wanna make an impact, enjoy what I'm doing, but it's gotta be somewhere that's really clicked in with my values and where I can I show up be myself.
[00:10:05] I know that sounds really. I feel like that's a bit of, like, you wanna show up and be yourself. It's such a saying right now, but it's true. Like where can I really show up and not mute who I am and have a strong voice and be heard. And that was something that Westland really aligned with me on it.
[00:10:25] It, it surprised me to be honest. Like when I, when I got reached out to about the job and the insurance. I thought insurance, like, is that gonna be any different than commercial real estate? I, I and my dad, my father, actually he worked his career in insurance.
[00:10:41] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Okay. Oh,
[00:10:42] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: So, when Wesson reached out, I was like, okay.
[00:10:45] And I got to get some good Intel from him. And so he was able to share with me and he was like, you know, Carrie, if there's one brokerage that I would look at it's them. And as I went through the interviews, I just kept walking over there. Think. Are these people really like that. Nice. And kind like I was almost suspicious.
[00:11:05] and it's a hundred, like the interviews that I had are a hundred percent, my experience, even thereafter two and a half years.
[00:11:13] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. It's so insurance is one of those funny things, right? Where we all love to hate it in a while, or we hate to pay for it, but we love it when, when we need it. Right. I always get the, the travel insurance, the cancellation insurance, you know, and it, you know, and, and, and it's funny, cuz it it's because you have to pay money and you know, we're all conscious of that.
[00:11:31] It's easy to say. Well, they're just profiteering and yet it's really an industry. That's that's about protect. About protecting what's important, whether it be
[00:11:40] health or home or, you know, stuff in it.
[00:11:43] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, it is. It ends up being one of the most important things. That you can have in some of the most critical moments of your life. Right.
[00:11:54] and and so I, I, that's something that really appeals to me. And I'm actually really interested in being able to like, as we're going through, we're working on an employment branding and EVP project.
[00:12:08] What I, what I'm really excited about this program is, is I want to be able to share. What insurance is and the opportunities insurance and that it is interesting and it is important and there's so many different career paths. And, and I had the same reaction like, oh, insurance, and I wanna help change that reaction.
[00:12:26] And, and I didn't know much about Westland and so I wanna help change that. And when people think of Westland, they really understand who we are and it's this unique, special place. And so. That's something that I'm really enjoying, getting to work on. And it, it interests me about being able to share that.
[00:12:44] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. And I wanna dig into that a little bit, cuz I have a, a couple clients I know will, will hang on your, every word about the EVP piece, cuz they're working on it themselves just before we move there though, you know? I just think again, I, I really appreciate you bringing up this, you know, approaching 50 thing and sort of thinking, okay, you know, how do I wanna spend the last decade of, of my career?
[00:13:05] Cuz I know this will resonate with lots of folks listening. It is sort of, a turning point, right? Cuz I think you're different. Things are important. So what kind of showed up for you in terms of things that you decided. Now had to be part of your career or things you had to let go of.
[00:13:23] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: it was really important for me to be at a place where that wasn't afraid to evolve and make decisions like really like really take some action on stuff and change. And I think. You know, we could take a couple of topics, whether it's the hybrid work model that you hear about or diversity and inclusion.
[00:13:50] And I still see so many organizations afraid to make decisions and take the. Action and risk to like move forward. And I had to be someplace that was gonna be up for it. And Westland is up for it. Our CEO is up for it. Our executive team is up for it and the fight gets tiring sometimes,
[00:14:17] you know, and that's what I found.
[00:14:20] Again, I was able to influence a lot of change at call years, but probably only to a certain point cause it's huge right. And publicly traded and all of these things. And there's just a lot of stuff that excuses and stuff that would get in the way to be able to really drive things forward. And I love that I can be someplace where it's like, they're up. Does that make
[00:14:46] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. Yeah. I think there's, that's, that's important. Very important. They're up for it. It's sort of, you know, we, we, we talk about needing the, the top support, right. Support from the top for any kind of change initiative or really important work. And it sounds like you, you have that, but it's also about the action orientation that forward momentum.
[00:15:06] You know, and I, I liked how you, you described it kind of, you know, being willing to take action, to make decisions, to almost
[00:15:12] initiate change. And it, and it's tricky cuz I know you're very interested in, in, you've been pursuing education around diversity equity inclusion and so on. And tell us a bit about that because I know for, for a lot of people, they know it's the right thing to do and in our line of work and sometimes they're a little stymied around how to get started.
[00:15:33] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. I mean, the first thing for me is I've been focusing on educating and learning myself, which I,
[00:15:40] I think is really the first step for everybody. And it's something that became really. Really really important to me personally, while I was at call years, like a lot of industries, very, very male dominat, very male dominated, mostly white middle middle-aged men.
[00:15:56] And so I probably was looking at it back then from such a gender place. So I ended up taking diversity and inclusion certificate through Ecor. And then I just, over the past year, I completed my anti-racism certificate through UBC and just really trying to expand my own learning around it. I think personally it's really important for me.
[00:16:19] It's also really important for me as a leader. I lead a team and so. To be more open-minded and inclusive. I also have a lot of influence and privilege as a white cisgendered able bodied woman. Right. So I, and I, and I sit on the executive team. I wanna be able to utilize that for good and be an ally and help, help create action.
[00:16:45] So I really spend a lot of time And yeah, I almost feel like I have, I call it like a new, like I put a new lens on, like I just look at, I'd really try to look at everything so differently. And whether how I'm approaching a meeting, I watch other people, how they approach meetings, the language I'm using, the language that other people are using.
[00:17:07] Like, I really try to keep that lens on all the time and just trying to grow as a person and a leader that.
[00:17:15] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, I think that's really a an excellent reminder, this idea of starting from educating yourself. Right. And, and being so focused on that. And then, and then recognizing privilege, you know, I'm same as you, right? This, this, you know, white privilege, cisgendered, able bodied and. and it, you know, I think it might be interesting for people to hear that.
[00:17:34] I mean, we are what we are so what do we do about it in terms of helping not hindering? And it's, it's something that I've been learning part probably through guests on this podcast has been around this idea of being an active ally. So I'm really trying to. Provide platform where I can, for people who know more about this than I do right.
[00:17:52] To, to help educate me and others. What else can, can people do, would you say, you know, in terms of really making a difference with DEI, both personally and in their organizations.
[00:18:04] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, I think the, so I do think the learning is number one. I think listening is really important. And that could be like one of the ways that I have found really helpful to listen is like, who am I following on social media? And really diversifying who I'm following and hearing different, listening to different voices and voices that are gonna challenge me.
[00:18:29] And I think those are easy steps that anyone can take. And also with courses, like there are courses that are. Very low cost are free. There's tons of podcasts to listen to and books and articles. So I really recommend people doing that. And then if there's a way to get involved at work, like I love like, as the head of HR, I love when people bring forward ideas for me to me like, Hey, what have you thought about participating in the pride parade?
[00:18:58] And so like, This year, we made sure that we had pride stickers on all of our branches and we applied and we're gonna participate in the pride pride parade and our CEO is gonna be involved. And or have you thought of doing this? And so I, and so I think it's just like bring forward ideas. Like we, I think
[00:19:16] people wanna hear them and wanna be able to action them.
[00:19:21] instead of, I think. Sitting and waiting like let's like bring forward some ideas and be part of it.
[00:19:28] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Well, and you know, it kind of ties back to what you were saying about, you know, there's the learning piece and there's the listening and that's really you listening. And, you know, people clearly sense that, okay, here's somebody who's going to be open to, to our ideas about ways that we can expand our focus.
[00:19:43]
[00:19:43] and, active support of, of DEI. we could keep going on that, on that particular thing, but I do wanna get back to this piece around the employee value proposition and the employer brand. And I, I think that's really important work. Where did you start? Like, how did you start to, to dig into this particular project?
[00:20:02] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Well, honestly, the first place we started, which was led by marketing, but I was involved is we went through a full culture and brand refresh. And I think one of the key things there is, is partnering and working very closely with marketing. So we started off there. I was quite involved with that project.
[00:20:20] And then we started the employment branding cuz they have to be aligned. we, we looked for an external consulting company that does This is all they do is they help employers with employment branding. so the first thing we did is like an internal and external research and audit. So they did, they looked at all of our internal programs and documents to see, they could understand like our language and culture.
[00:20:46] They did focus groups with our employees to really understand, like, why did you join Westland? Why. Stay, what could potentially cause you to leave? They did a ton of research for us externally, like against all of our competitors, our Glassdoor ratings. And then they came back to us and were able to say, okay, like here's everything that we see internally and externally based on that, here's what we.
[00:21:11] Your EVP is. and that was really developed from our employees is like, what are those top reasons that are really unique to Westland that we should make sure that we're talking about? And so we worked with three pillars that are part of our EVP. Once we did that, then we worked on our employment branding and worked through the creative piece of it.
[00:21:34] So we're just working through that now. And yeah, we're doing tons of fun stuff. We're actually doing a photo shoot at our new head office, July 18th. And we're. We're gonna be featuring our own employees. We had them submit stories. We really wanted them to share their own career stories at Wesland.
[00:21:50] They're gonna be part of that photo shoot. And then we'll be using that internally and externally for all of our different collateral and, and assets and social media, and then also building out a social media strategy. so we've got a pretty fulsome plan that we've been working through for about a year, but those are kind of the main components.
[00:22:11] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, super interesting. So this is your a year in and it looks like there's quite a bit to go, cause this is a big undertaking.
[00:22:18] So yeah. So with the three pillars approach, are, can you share with us what they are?
[00:22:24] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. I just have to remember it's
[00:22:28] belong. Well, it's hard when you're on the spot in front of me. So belong here. It's create opportunity. and great opportunity belong here. I'm sorry. I have to remember the other one.
[00:22:42] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: don't worry. Don't worry. But just, just, it just gives it's interesting, cuz it just, even if, just one of them, if we look at belong here,
[00:22:49] so so how. you know, how did that show up in all this research in the audit? Like what it's such a concise phrase belong here.
[00:23:00] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. So the, the top thing that came out, why people stay at Westland and why they like it is they feel very supported. They feel like they can be themselves. They feel very supported by their teammates and their managers. So that's really what showed. So we heard that from employees directly.
[00:23:24] And then when we looked at the gap analysis in the market of like competitors and some other companies of what we wanted our voice to be, there is a real opportunity for us to own that more human side. So. Not only is it unique to us, but there is an opportunity for us to delve into that. And it is more and more what people are interested in.
[00:23:47] And so, that's, that was a very important one for us to have is belong here
[00:23:51] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: You know, you know what it, it makes me think of if, if we look at other industries, you know, this, this opportunity to own the human side in the insurance interest industry for indu, for instance
[00:24:02]
[00:24:02] Southwest airlines in the
[00:24:04] aviation industry, right. Like they really knowing for their focus on employees and on.
[00:24:09] Customers that human side really important, same with Virgin in the communications. Right. They, you know, Richard grants and employee experience drives the customer experience. You know, a lot of quotes attributed to him around that piece. so I think that'll be really illustrative for, for people listening.
[00:24:26] Right. You know,
[00:24:27] how, how stuff, how, how he can pull this out of
[00:24:31] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah.
[00:24:31] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: already there, you
[00:24:33] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, cuz it's quite a, it's a bit of an art and science, right? Cuz you're looking to make it unique, but also authentic to who you are. And the other two pieces, which is a really around growth and opportunity is growth because there's so many different career paths that you can have within insurance.
[00:24:51] And especially within Westland and then because we're growing so much. Through acquisitions. Like the opportunities for people are really quite endless. That could be a new role, but it could also be being part of a project or just something interesting like that, that you can be part of. So those are the three it's like growth opportunity and belonging.
[00:25:12] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Okay. Well, yeah. And you were sharing with me earlier just to, just to fill everybody else in. I mean, in the two and a half years, you've been there. You've grown the team from six to 35.
[00:25:22] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, I know we've grown a lot. Yeah,
[00:25:25] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: And how, how many mergers and acquisitions are happening every month?
[00:25:28] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: we probably do about four or five a month.
[00:25:31] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Oh my goodness. And my last, my last organization there were often mergers happening. And each one though, just took so much time and energy from people right on top of their regular work. So, wow. That's, that's
[00:25:44] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: does. Yeah. Yeah,
[00:25:46] it's very interesting. And, and some are very small. Like some might only be like less than 10 people and then some might be closer to a hundred people, but I would say they're all. They're almost just as much work, no matter what size, cuz you're still doing everything and you are you know, it's change for people and people have a lot of questions and they worry.
[00:26:07] And I've, you know, thankfully I have a lot of M and a experience from Collier, so was able to bring that here. And then a couple of team members came over with me. So within the HR team, we have a team. In HR that's they focus on M and a and integrating it's a really important aspect of the role to make sure that that's done successfully and people feel welcomed into Westland and supported.
[00:26:29] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: that makes me smile to hear that. So you've, you've got dedicated resources for it.
[00:26:34] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, A
[00:26:34] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: yeah. Instead of, yeah. Cause that was part of what drained people, where I used to be. Right. Because they were, they were trying to do it on the side of their desks and that's, Yeah. Well, and you can't always justify having a dedicated team. You know, there's, there's, you know, quite a bit of time between these different mergers and so on. So it's interesting, but having a, having a team that can even, you know, pivot when needed is a great approach when you can make it work Okay. So, The other thing I'm curious about is where you're going next.
[00:27:02] So you've got this employee value proposition. It sounds like there was the overall Wesland insurance branding. And now it's looking at the employee Euro branding that you'll use. What, what kind of, what comes next in terms of, you know, before you start using it and all that collateral, you mentioned, what else has to happen to map that out?
[00:27:21] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: well, it's really important for us to do, we're gonna call it live the brand training. So how do people talk to it? Talk about Westland. So if I'm a manager, how am I talking to my friends potential? Potential candidates and clients about Westland. So we're gonna be doing training with all of our managers.
[00:27:42] That's a big component of it. We definitely want to continue capturing employee stories. We want them to be part of this to make sure that. It's very, people see this as very genuine because a candidate behavior is to go and check those things out. Right. They're gonna go on LinkedIn and Instagram and maybe talk to peop, see who they know and talk to people.
[00:28:07] So we really wanna make sure that we're involving people in that. And we'll probably do some fun stuff with activation with our employees and making sure that they get that messaging out there. Another big piece for us is we've just brought somebody into the team. That's gonna be focused on building programs and partnerships with universities, schools, associations associations to really.
[00:28:32] Connecting with indigenous communities or black professionals really in areas of diversity and inclusion. So that branding is really important for us to have, because we want people to go there and feel really confident. And how do I speak to about Westland and who we are?
[00:28:48] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: well, it's getting everybody on the same page. It's that shared language that is so key
[00:28:53] yeah. And it really sounds like you're kind of embedding it throughout wherever you can. So.
[00:28:57] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. And then we go through all of our, it's kind of the, not, maybe not so fun part, but we look at, kind of do an inventory of all of our stuff and update it with all of the creative and language. We have a hashtag that we're gonna use hashtag grow your potential, grow with Westland. We've got this like beautiful color colors that we're using that are like very modern and fresh.
[00:29:19] So just updating all of that, our career site All of those types of things need to be updated to reflect who we are.
[00:29:26] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Absolutely. Yeah, it's a bit, it's not the sexy part, you know, the, the
[00:29:30] ideation meeting, but it's a really critical part of implementation execution, so.
[00:29:36] Okay. Yeah. Yeah. I think that's gonna be helpful, like in terms of painting a picture
[00:29:40] for people that are just getting started that have been charged with, you
[00:29:43] know, creating an EVP.
[00:29:45] So that's excellent. So the other thing too, that I, that you had told me about, which I think is super interesting is. This you being as chief people, officer the executive sponsor of the new office, which was 15 million or so I
[00:30:01] think.
[00:30:01] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: it was a pretty big project. Pretty
[00:30:03] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. Yeah. Tell us a little bit about that project.
[00:30:06] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. So, gosh, when I interviewed for the role my boss, the CEO said, you know, when you join, I, I want you to be the executive sponsor on the new head office. And I think it was initially because I was from commercial real estate, I thought, oh gosh. Okay. Sure. Sounds great. but it has been amazing. So we leased seven floors in a brand new build in.
[00:30:29] King George, which is the center of Surry, a real transit hub for people. Because we've grown so much and our head office has grown so much. We didn't have enough space for people anymore. This is pre pandemic and we were split out over between three different offices. So we decided that we wanna bring everyone together and also have room to grow knowing our growth trajectory.
[00:30:51] Then the pandemic hit. And to be honest, it was kind of good timing because it allowed us to really rethink how are people going to work? And so as the executive sponsor I've led the. Making sure that the design of the space really encompasses our culture. So when people walk in, what does it say about Westland?
[00:31:12] We've thought a lot about diversity and inclusion in the space. So gender neutral washrooms we've made sure to really remove the hierarchy that you see in a lot of offices. So no one gets bigger offices, the nicest space it's no one actually get you book a. Actually now for yourself, the offices are in, in the inside.
[00:31:37] They're all the same size. So we've really tried to be thoughtful to remove that kind of again, like hierarchy that you see in offices.
[00:31:44] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Kind of connects back to what you were saying is the, the, the, the human side,
[00:31:48] right?
[00:31:49] The opportunity to own your human side
[00:31:51] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Exactly. Yeah. And then as the pandemic hit we then did a workplace assessment survey to figure out how people wanted to work. And what we learned is no surprise is that people wanna work hybrid. They wanna work a couple days at home and a couple days in the office. So we made the decision to do that and it completely changed how we designed the.
[00:32:13] And the space planning of it, we moved to a hybrid booking app. And then I've also built out with the team, our way of working with hybrid. And the office now is much more about employee experience, right? It's not just a place to go and work the same thing and do the same things every day. It's like if people are gonna commute and come in, I think there's gotta be a real meaning and purpose, and it is about an experience.
[00:32:38] So I actually think in so many ways, it makes sense that. HR has led it, but I don't think that that was intuitive to me two and a half years ago. But I've had so much learning through managing a project like this and yeah, we're moving in this week, so it's pretty exciting.
[00:32:53] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: it's very exciting. Oh my goodness. Okay. You have to
[00:32:56] send me some pictures. So it, with the, the, the office being more about employee experience. So just a, a follow up a question on that. So is that because. Well, I'm probably making an assumption here, but then when people come in, they're a little more purposeful about the fact, okay, I'm gonna leverage the fact that other people are around me and, you know, not
[00:33:14] bring in the work I could just be doing at home.
[00:33:17] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: that's right. I think it's
[00:33:18] all about purpose. I think it is being purposeful. And what's the work I'm doing. Today and where am I best to do it? Am I best to do this work at home? If I'm, you know, focused on a project or heads down that I just need to get stuff done, or I know I'm just gonna be on a zoom or teams call all day or, oh, like I'm going tomorrow because I have a performance check in one on one with my employee, with one of my teammates.
[00:33:43] And I really wanna do that in person. I'm also gonna go for a coffee walk with one of somebody on the team, so it just feels so much more purposeful. I think that's really nice for people to be able to think about and you get to consider your work life and your personal life too.
[00:34:00] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: the other thing too, is it's treating people
[00:34:03] like adults, right. You know, you know, like, okay, you you're gonna decide one that's the right day to go in, you know? And I'm. Seeing this happen more and more now there's certain standouts where, where, you know, it's not happening, but I think it's really powerful when people, I, I think they're going to be more purposeful when they know that they can be, you know what I mean?
[00:34:24] That there is that opportunity and it's been clearly articulated.
[00:34:28] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. I, I, I, totally agree. That's what I say is, and people have always wanted this. I just don't think they knew how much they wanted it or needed it. And now that companies were, we were forced to do it through the pandemic. It works. For most people and people want that and they're demanding it now.
[00:34:46] They expect it. so I think it really is important to evolve and it, it does take new management skills and thinking about how do I run my team meetings differently now? Or how do I make sure I'm connecting in with that person that I don't see every day, but we should be evolving as leaders anyways.
[00:35:01] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Oh, great point. Yeah, absolutely. Great. This is just a
[00:35:04] bit of an impetus and, and, you know, been a tough couple years, you know, with the, the whole pandemic and yet, some silver linings coming out of it. Right. Some really key learnings that, that we
[00:35:14] can apply, so.
[00:35:15] Okay.
[00:35:15] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: agree. Yeah.
[00:35:17] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Thank you. Well, we we've come to, to kind of the end of our time together.
[00:35:21] So as, as always, it flies. So just a, you know, final question. What, what would you say in your 20 years in HR has been your proudest achievement?
[00:35:31] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Ooh. Okay. I would say that. Leading the employee engagement strategy at my last, at the last organization,
[00:35:40] when we started that we had low engagement, it was quite low and we ended up at some point being a best employer in Canada. And it took about six years to get there. It was a lot of, lot of work and it was more than just about being on a list and it wasn't just doing a survey every year.
[00:36:01] It. The momentum that we got, the actions that we took and just getting senior leaders behind to help drive the strategy. I think I would say that's one of my biggest achievements.
[00:36:14] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: It it's massive. What, what did it give you personally?
[00:36:17] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Oh, I felt, I actually felt really emotional when it happened.
[00:36:21] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah.
[00:36:22] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: I just felt like, yeah, it's possible to make change. And it, it did feel impossible at. and it just felt like if if you listen and take action, you can create change.
[00:36:40] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah, push
[00:36:41] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah.
[00:36:42] Yeah.
[00:36:42] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: when you think, oh my God,
[00:36:44] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah. But it's not easy. It wasn't easy. And in some ways that made it better, it made that, that moment better because it wasn't easy.
[00:36:53] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: Yeah. Well, it
[00:36:54] stands out, right? Because you, you, you,
[00:36:56] know what you went through to get through.
[00:36:57] yeah.
[00:36:58] Huge, huge
[00:36:59] achievement. Thank you for sharing that with us. Thank you for
[00:37:01] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: you.
[00:37:01] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-33pm--61157a395affa4006d0cfc64--lollyg: that you've shared. In fact, it's really been an absolute pleasure.
[00:37:05] keri-fraser-march-30_recording-1_2022-07-06--t07-20-34pm--guest119313--keri-fraser: Yeah, it's been fun. Thank you so much. It was great to be able to meet you.
