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