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