Stephanie Mehta: Welcome, Anjali. I’m glad you’re here with us today.
Anjali Sud: Thank you, is great to be here.
SM: At Vimeo, you lead a of 1,300 people worldwide — you have creatives, you finance people, you have technologists. So I’m going to start a really easy question: what was it like to manage this diverse workforce through global pandemic, a racial reckoning and a very fraught to office?
AS: Oh, it was a breeze, Stephanie. No, was really challenging. You know, I think the only constant has been change. as a leader, you obviously — you have a workforce that’s looking for certainty, and they’re to control what’s happening around them. And I think we all found, as leaders, no matter what company you were … for, was that you couldn’t offer certainty, and you couldn’t always control the and the things around you. And so, you know, me, it was really about agility. How do we stay flexible as a team? do we communicate in real time and keep people informed as we and move through things? And then, also just how do we with more humanity? You know, for Vimeo, one of things I’ve really learned over the last few years we each experience the world so differently. We have employees who are remote. We an incredible team in Ukraine … employees who are on the front lines, who literally at war. On the other hand, you have people in different parts of the world who are mental-health challenges or burnout, and so I think it really just — the hardest part was not being able to everyone certainty, not being able to just apply a one-size-fits-all rule for everyone. I ultimately think it forced us, as a company, to more trust, because to be agile and flexible, and to with humanity, you have to trust each other. And so, I’m sort of optimistic that we’re emerging from this time with a culture that more flexible and nimble, and also, hopefully, has more trust.
SM: Can you give an example of something you put into place, perhaps during the pandemic, to communications or build trust or create a greater sense of community or even to communicate that there no certainty, that is a muscle that you think you’ll continue use in the organization far into the future?
AS: There’s a couple of that we did. One — and we are a platform, so I obviously have to talk about video, but I this sincerely — one of the hardest parts, when you’re all of disparate, is you lose context and you lose when you communicate. And we did make a concerted effort to move away from and chat, text-based communication, as much as possible, and actually try, particularly for our leadership team, when were communicating, to do it with your face, and your hands and your body your emotions. And we did that through live streaming lot of communications, recording a lot of videos. We sent asynchronous video messages. I send … I record my screen and just send a out to people. Every new hire does a video to welcome and introduce themselves. A lot our meetings we’ve actually replaced with just quick video presentations. And actually, that really did was allow the humanity and the context come through and I think that helped us a to, kind of, stay close. So that was one, I think, important thing.
Another important thing is, I think, just creating mechanisms to make it to talk about when things aren’t working, because a critical part of being agile is recognizing we have area that isn’t working. And so one of the things that we do at Vimeo we try — I do this in all of my town halls, we do it in lot of meetings — is always talk about what’s working, what are our three things, and what isn’t working — yet. And we’ve kind of created, I think, a framework that of takes the stigma away from talking about what’s not working. And you make that normalized and comfortable for people, I feel like it’s us to be more open, as an organization, about what do we need to change, what we need to pivot. And both of those, being more video-first our communication and being more transparent and normalizing what’s not working, I think has been really helpful, certainly something we’re carrying forward.
SM: I love that about being video-first. So many of our members of our workforce live in a video world. They’re to video as a means of communication. Which brings me to my next question. You’ve talked about how organization has changed. How do you see the workforce changing? What is different the young millennials, and even, now, the first wave of Gen Z coming into workplace?
AS: I think it’s incredibly different. And, you know, one of the things we think about at Vimeo a lot is a lot of the mechanisms and communication that we still use today, they’re really antiquated. They were designed a totally different environment and a totally different generation. But I see a lot differences. One of them, I think, is the line between personal life and work life is definitely blending. … you think about your personal life — look at TikTok. generation is used to consuming content, learning, engaging, in a very specific way. And they then have to come to work and to be on a job, read a 300-page manual? Like, it’s not going to happen, right? Or if you miss meeting, and you have to watch the Zoom recording of a three-hour meeting — that’s just going to happen. And so I think that there definitely sort of this — you know, we talk about the “consumerization of enterprise.” Those are just fancy for saying the way … we communicate and interact in our personal lives is going translate to work. And so I definitely think that’s an area of opportunity.
The other I see from sort of the generation, the newest generation into the workforce, is sort of, of course mission-driven, but I think there’s a desire really understand the “why” behind things. And one of our communication mantras is we never talk about “what” without the “why.” And I think there’s a desire — the idea that, well, there’s a hierarchy, or “My boss told me that this is what we’re to do” or — that, I think, is increasingly away, and people, they don’t just want to do something because with formal authority told them to do it. They want to do it they understand why it matters, why it ties to mission. And I think that that forces leaders to really bring more of “why” into how we communicate and motivate people.
So those two of the things I see, and then, you know, third I think is just flexibility. I think — this is true of all of us, but particularly the younger generation — I think they’re looking for and they want options and choices. And it’s not easy and feasible to provide ultimate flexibility, but this is I try and orient it more to agility. How can we have and principles and be committed to things, but also know when question, and when to actually pivot?
SM: Yeah. Anjali, can share a few examples of ways that you at Vimeo have tried to really proactive when it comes to addressing or understanding what your generation of employees are going to want, either in terms purpose or in terms of benefits or in terms flexibility? Are there programs or processes you’ve put in place that speak to this big sea change we’re seeing in terms values from the workforce?
AS: Firstly, of course, it’s all about listening, right? And I think, many organizations, the way we’ve tried to listen and understand workforce is very similar: it’s Q and As and surveys, and things like that. And some of the that we’ve done, we have a people and culture NPS, net score, the same way we have for our users, for internal teams. But I would say one of the things that we’ve really tried to do is that when we get inputs from our employees, 1,300 employees … you can’t look at averages. You can’t look at it all in totality and try and pull out an obvious “Oh, is how everybody’s feeling.” Because what you actually — you really dig into it and truly listen and do groups and talk to people — what you’ll find actually there’s very different experiences and desires among your employees. And so, I think us, what we’ve really just tried to do is have a bunch different listening mechanisms and then resist the urge to conveniently pull, like, “Oh, this what everyone’s feeling, let’s just do this thing as action.” And it’s hard, and we’re still kind of figuring it out, but will tell you, some of the things that we’ve heard employees have changed our approach to hybrid work or or even things like our approach to compensation or our approach to and I. So I think it’s more just like I said, agile listening, constantly really understanding what’s happening, but not treating everything as, like, average or the same. And for us, it’s been particularly stark because we have offices and teams so many different countries and the differences, they’re substantial. They’re really substantial, about the we solve different things. And we used to have a very, sort of, “One Vimeo” approach in the name of consistency and fairness, and what we found we have to be more localized. We really do. We have design mechanisms to support our teams in a very different way, because experiences and the world around them is quite different.
So I think that’s definitely been one, and will tell you, it has involved a lot of — as an executive team and team — it’s involved a lot of trying things, it not working, and changing them. And a great is our Q and A. I feel like every leader I know has a perspective on whether do open Q and A or anonymous Q and A, real-time Q and A. We’ve changed our approach there multiple times, and know we will again, because we’re still figuring out the right way to listen and have dialogue with a very diverse workforce.
SM: I want to on newcomers to the workplace for just another moment, because another thing I hear CEOs of my generation and older is a concern about making that we are not just providing our youngest employees the flexibility and the purpose that they need, but the training and the wisdom that comes, oftentimes, from being in close proximity to a mentor to somebody who’s done the job for many more years. What is your philosophy and take making sure that knowledge transfer is happening?
AS: I think it’s a major that I don’t know that everyone will sort of a solution for. I think about that all the time. We have very distributed workforce at Vimeo. We have people in over countries. My executive team is entirely distributed. So I’ve realized the benefits of being able to have a distributed workforce and being able to attract talent and be more inclusive. On the flip side, there’s definitely, I think, a lack the same kinds of learning opportunities and mentorship, particularly for youngest folks that are entering the workforce. So I it’s a challenge. One of the approaches that we’ve taking, and what’s sort of nice, is we’re modeling it at the top. So if my entire executive is distributed, that means I have to learn how to provide real-time feedback, mentorship and development for whole set of new executives who have just joined. We sort of changed up the executive team almost entirely in last twelve months. So I’ve had to deal with the same challenges. And we’ve had literally — we call it our operating system — we’ve had to design an operating system, as an team, for how we’re going to work together in that environment. How do we real-time feedback? How do we create the right communication loops? And I think, from my perspective, it’s more we have to able to do it ourselves and model it and then, think it’s a more proven mechanism for young people. will say, like many companies … I do believe that in-person collaboration really important for learning. We do have — we bring people into an office. you’re remote, we ask folks to come in and spend time in a with their team, do social activities, all of those things. I don’t they will go away, nor do I think they should. But, you know, candidly, it’s area that I don’t think we’ve really figured out perfectly and I think it’s really critical as leaders, we do that, so that this next generation able to get the same growth opportunities that we had.
SM: Well, and it’s interesting — the tools that mentioned at the very beginning of our conversation, around video, can really helpful there. I’ve heard of a number of organizations have really encouraged their young people to present, as a way of having to go out and the information they need. And then, because we have video tools available us now, you know, they have an opportunity to share their ideas with a group of people, but first, kind of going through fact-finding and the research, and then sharing their ideas. In an earlier comment, talked a little bit about mental illness and the different that people are bringing to work, whether it is, you know, exhaustion, burnout. the Black Lives Matter protests, we had a lot of coming to the office feeling trauma, and feeling really personal issues bubble to the surface. I’m if you can share a little bit about how you deal with this increasing — you know, when people bring their whole selves to the office, which encourage, sometimes, they bring things, parts of themselves that challenging.
AS: Yeah … I’ve always thought the responsibility of a leader is to empower to do their best work and the responsibility of company is to empower our people to do their work. And so, of course, we have a real role to in supporting things like mental-health issues or burnout. And, you know, the way I think, like many companies, way we initially probably sought to do that was more, know, you’re seeing a problem and you’re reacting by trying to provide mental-health resources or or time off. And, I think — and empathy, empathy. I think that’s really important. And I always say, to so many our managers … just care. If we just care, a lot of things get easier. You don’t have design a hundred mechanisms if you just have the right in place who care. At the same time, I will say what we’re realizing now, in sort this next phase, is that that’s a reactive approach actually the root cause — that we can control at Vimeo — the root cause of a of stress and burnout is sometimes people either don’t enough … focus, we’re asking people to do too things or they don’t feel like they’re supported in doing things. And that, I think, is actually where we should be spending time — is how do we actually set the right prioritization and focus. There’s some there, right? There’s a root cause there that’s a “Oh, I like I’m stressed because there’s too much going on. I don’t feel equipped solve it.” Then, we should get into the “What is the detail there, and do need to do things differently?” And, you know, one of our themes Vimeo this year was “Do less, better.”
SM: As the economy to, maybe, move sideways, do you think that there are to be stakeholders who say, you know, “Out with all of touchy-feely, the workplace-as-a-family stuff. Where are my results?”
AS: Absolutely. I think the pendulum has already swung pretty clearly. mean, I work in SAS, software as a service, so we already went “growth at all cost” to “profitability,” you know, pendulum swing. My perspective on this — and hasn’t changed — I think the best leaders and deliver results and treat people well. And I actually think, you treat people well, with kindness and empathy, you will better results. And so, you know, for me, I think what I observed over the few years is — that part, I think, hasn’t changed shouldn’t change. There were, I think, a lot of times when companies, we did things because it was lip service or we felt pressured. And that’s not going be sustainable. But that’s not what — ultimately, that’s what people need, in any case. So, you know, sort of see it as — the way you channel how you caring towards your employees and how you are empathetic, always should be in service of helping do their best work, which will deliver results, which will be good for the bottom line. you have to believe that. You have to be committed to and if you use that consistently in your decision-making, should not be a trade-off. These are not mutually things.
SM: Anjali, how have you been taking care of yourself this period of tremendous turmoil and change, but also growth? You mentioned you just a baby. There’s a lot on your shoulders. How, a leader, do you practice some self-care or how do make sure that you’re getting the balance you need to be the most effective leader can be?
AS: I think — recently, the phrase I use a lot to is “two things can be true, both can be true.” say this a lot. And for me, I think of as, like, “This job is hard, and it’s gotten harder.” went public at the height of the pandemic and year, market volatility has been tremendous. You know, we’re obviously going through a ton with post-pandemic, have a team in Ukraine going through a war — these things that have happened. And so, it’s a hard job, and it’s an privileged job. It’s a gift, right? And so, I for me, it’s sort of acknowledging both of those has helped me a lot. The way I’ve tried to of lead, has been — it’s always been this way, which is, me, it’s I have to have passion. I have have passion. I have to believe so deeply that what Vimeo is doing is and matters for the world. And if I have passion, have energy and then I will — I can of move through anything. I have to find joy in my team. I feel like, especially hard times, I look back at my career and actually, some of my most fulfilling times in were when — in the hardest business situations. But it’s because it brought a group of people together all one team, and so I think that’s been, you know, a really big part it. And then, yeah, like, you have to be a little sometimes, and take care of yourself. And I am really fortunate. I I have a great support network around me and I … My husband and I have a deal, where on Sundays, I for a couple of hours. I just disappear and I walk the city and I listen to my music and do whatever need to do, and that’s really important.
SM: So talked about how hybrid work is going to look different in the future than how we describe it today. It’s basically in office a of days, work from home a couple of other days. Tell us a little bit more about you could potentially see that evolving into.
AS: I think idea of an office as a time and place goes away. And I think it’s really going to be people are going to to work from anywhere, anywhere in the world. Even the concept of you’re located is going to change. And then the idea like “I’m going to work on this time zone” or “I’m going to this meeting that’s scheduled on this date” — I think that’s to go away. And I think what you’re going to find more and more work, particularly from knowledge workers, is going be done anywhere, anytime. Communication and collaboration will happen asynchronously and we will using tools and technology — whether it’s video, whether it’s AI — basically enable that at scale among many people, anywhere in the world. And then I leadership, leaders are going to look different. Because I it’s going to require — if you think about the set to be a global CEO 30 years ago what that will require now — I think in the … the skill set is going to be like, “How you communicate with diverse, global audiences and employees across time zones a way that is effective, that provides context and at scale? How do you organize programs, whether it’s compensation, whether it’s, know, training?” All of that is going to look different. But I think the ultimate thing you’ll see is … there were these constraints that we’ve lived with, it was time or place or budget, in some cases. And I think those constraints are going go away. And the promise is that if we are flexible and smart we use technology in the right way, that we’ll actually come away a more evolved and efficient workforce.
SM: Well, I think you showed us some of the passion that you’ve talked about being the thing that gives you energy to lead that of 1,300 people worldwide. Anjali, thank you so much being here today.
AS: Thank you. This was great.