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