204: How Leaders Inspire, Connect, and Achieve at Ball Corporation

What happens if you refer to new initiatives in scientific terms like “experiment” and “test”? That’s exactly what Mark Kaestner, Ed.D., does at Ball Corporation. You’ll be fascinated to learn how that approach ensures success later, when scaling the program. Mark also explains why continuous feedback is a critical piece of the process.

Mark is Vice President of Talent Development, Learning and Development, People Analytics and Transformation at Ball. He has more than twenty years of executive experience in these fields with companies like Coca-Cola and Graphic Packaging. Mark finds it exhilarating to have the opportunity to impact leaders and employees through talent solutions, and you’ll feel his enthusiasm come through in this conversation.

You’ll discover:

3 core values that drive behavior and performance at Ball
Why Mark uses the words “experimenting” and “testing” with initial implementation of a new program instead of “pilot”
How continuous feedback is used by managers coaching employees and by employees giving upward feedback
The 3 power questions that managers are encouraged to ask employees in their monthly meetings
The key lessons Mark has learned in his own growth as a leader

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Connect with Mark

Mark’s Resources

Website

Ball Corporation

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203: UofM Global’s LIFE Program: A Superb Benefit for FedEx Employees

What happens when a major university partners with a huge corporation to offer a program that helps employees earn college degrees? You get University of Memphis (UofM) Global’s LIFE: Learning Inspired by FedEx.

Dr. Richard Irwin and Courtney Brafford, both of UofM Global, describe how the two organizations worked together to create a program that requires no out-of-pocket payments by employees and has resulted in high retention rates.

Dr. Irwin is the Executive Dean, Academic Innovation and the College of Professional & Liberal Studies, and Courtney is Director of Student Success. They’ve created corporate partnerships that provide employees with opportunities for professional development that translate into college credit.

You’ll discover:

The need FedEx had that caused them to approach UofM Global
Key elements of the LIFE program that have led to great results for participants
The PREP Academy that UofM Global created to ensure participants succeeded with their coursework
Benefits that both FedEx and their employees have experienced
Why the LIFE program now serves as an excellent recruitment tool for FedEx

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Connect with Dr. Richard Irwin

Connect with Courtney Brafford

Websites

University of Memphis (UofM) Global

UofM Global LIFE program with FedEx

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202: UC Berkeley’s Focus on People and Culture

What’s wrong with the term, Human Resources? In this enlightening conversation, Eugene Whitlock explains why he prefers People and Culture. He also describes the valuable work his DEI team has done to put in place an Equity Training Series and an Inclusive Leadership Academy for faculty and staff.

Eugene is Associate Vice Chancellor for Human Resources and the Chief People & Culture Officer at the University of California Berkeley. Eugene leads a 75-person human resources department including talent acquisition, people and organization development, employee and labor relations, total rewards, diversity equity, inclusion and belonging, and human resources information systems. During his time at UC Berkeley, Eugene has emphasized the creation of a workplace where everyone can be themselves and feel like they belong.

You’ll discover:

What Eugene did when he became a leader for the first time
Why he’s a big believer in feedback
The reason for changing from Human Resources to People and Culture
Why Eugene set up a DEI team and the programs now offered to faculty and staff
Two research projects in the Psychology Department and the Haas School of Business that Eugene is involved with

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Eugene’s Resource

Website

UC Berkeley’s GROW Program Offerings

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201: WM’s Award-winning Program for Front-Line Leaders

In many organizations, those who supervise individual contributors are often neglected when it comes to development opportunities. Not at WM. Phil Rhodes describes how they are providing a transformative program for all 3,600 of these leaders, which has led to 90%+ retention rate for those who complete the program. You’ll want to take notes to capture all the fantastic strategies Phil shares.

Phil is Head of Learning and Leadership Development at WM, formerly Waste Management, a Fortune 250 company and North America’s largest environmental services company. Phil joined the People Organization at WM in 2021 and led the successful reorganization of WM’s learning organization. This effort supported the design and delivery of more consistent learning and leadership development solutions for the company’s 50,000+ employees.

Phil and his team at WM were just named Bronze Winner of the Learning in Practice Award by Chief Learning Officer for their first-line leaders program.

You’ll discover:

The “listening tour” Phil conducted before re-designing WM’s learning organization
How the CEO and the leadership team consider “People First” before making decisions that impact employees
What WM did to provide a virtual coach to every front-line leader
How Cohort Learning is used to support learners and ingrain skills
WM’s generous program for educational assistance

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Connect with Phil

Phil’s Resource

Website

WM (Waste Management)

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200: How Moderna Attracts and Develops Top Talent

Do you know of a company that’s created 12 powerful mindsets that are used daily by all employees? You do now, because Moderna is that company. And in this powerful interview, the team of April Eldred (VP, Talent Acquisition) and Noah Rabinowitz (VP, Learning & Development) describe with great enthusiasm what the Moderna Mindset looks like in action.

As VP and Global Head of Learning and Development, Noah leads Moderna University, the team responsible for providing world-class learning solutions for all segments of Moderna’s employee population. Noah has almost 25-years of experience in the HR and learning industry.

As VP of Global Talent Acquisition, April has recently been focused on building Moderna’s AI-capabilities in talent acquisition. She has spent more than 20 years creating recruitment teams that are passionate about building diverse talent pipelines and ‘making the match’ in a differentiated way.

You’ll discover:

Moderna’s mission statement and the unique culture that’s been created from it
A sampling of the 12 Moderna Mindsets and how they’re applied in everyday work situations
How April and Noah are using AI in talent acquisition and talent development
Why Moderna University is set up to serve those both internal and external to Moderna
The kind of data they’re using in their HR decision-making

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Connect with April

Connect with Noah

Website

Moderna

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