Many employers are coming to a huge realization: there’s power in investing in people. But keeping teams happy, organized, and engaged at work can be easier said than done. That’s why in recent years, dozens of digital products have emerged to give rise to the challenge. So-called people operations, or people ops, products exist to give workers better processes that can help them believe in (and stay) at their companies amid challenges like the Great Resignation. In this series of Better Product, we’re exploring how people ops products are one way employers can ensure their teams are seen, heard, and respected, and why these products are growing in popularity. 

We’re talking to leaders in the people ops space, including: 

• John Wetzel, CEO & Co-Founder of Gather 
• Tim Prohm, VP at the KellyX Digital Innovation Lab 
• Julie Jeannotte, Employee Engagement Expert & Senior Researcher at Officevibe by GSoft

Our producer Erica is joining the conversation to ask the tough questions and be an advocate for you, our listeners. Want to add your own take? Write a note or record a voice memo, and send it to erica.irish@innovatemap.com to join the conversation.

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Takeaways

• People ops products are multiplying, but the shift from HR isn’t new. 
• Companies that take people ops seriously keep their employees at the center and create a culture with them in mind. 
• Product leaders in people ops are trying to measure and respond to human nature with tech.

Things To Listen For

• [3:00] Why we’re talking about people ops, vibe shifts, and the future of work
• [6:30] How we define people operations vs. HR
• [7:30] “People ops is about creating a better holistic experience for teams”
• [8:30] Exploring our different levels of work experience
• [12:30] Tying today’s people ops products back to 2006, Laszlo Bock, and Google
• [13:00] People ops products ask: how can companies fit the way they operate into people’s lives—not the other way around
• [14:30] Design to design ops, security to security ops, and people to people ops
• [16:00] In the age of remote work, companies have to consider, “what else do I have to offer?”
• [17:00] People ops lets companies “create the canvas for culture to emerge”
• [19:30] People ops products have to be intentional about fostering interactions
• [20:00] How the people ops transformation is “making the attention to people and experience more systemic”