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