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