Modeling a growth mindset + talking ROI

Tricia Hollyer shares thoughts on understanding the business, modeling a growth mindset and the benefits of learning at work.

Tricia Hollyer, Chief People Officer at MineSense Technologies, recently sat down with Jason Lavender of Electives for a People Developing People interview.

During their conversation, Tricia shared her thoughts on:

• Why HR needs to understand the business
• The importance of leaders modeling a growth mindset
• How to talk ROI of people development to CFOs
• The expansive value of learning at work
• Why soft skills will always be needed
• Trusting instincts

Jason Lavender, Cofounder & CEO of Electives: Tricia, can you kick things off by sharing your background and what led you to People leadership?

Tricia Hollyer, Chief People Officer at MineSense Technologies: Like many HR leaders, I went into HR a bit sideways. I came from a customer service and technical support background, and my undergrad degree is unrelated. But I really just loved the challenge of figuring out how to lead people and how to develop people in organizations. So, I started getting asked if I would take on HR tasks, even though I wasn't officially responsible for them.

I moved to Vancouver about 20 years ago and decided to get my HR certification, do coaching & training and went to school for a Master's in Leadership. Since then, I've worked mainly in the tech industry in progressive leadership roles. And I've had the great privilege of building HR teams a couple of times.

It’s really fun to think about what a company needs when you're just starting to think about your people function. What are the aspects you need? And how do you grow that over time for high growth?

Jason: Can you speak to the evolution of the role of People leadership, especially in the last couple of years? 

HR adds value when they are business partners.

Tricia: We've seen HR moving from a very operational and tactical function. Of course, that still has to exist in all companies. Often HR starts with the tactical stuff: How do we hire? How do we do paperwork? All of that.

The evolution is shifting People leadership from a service provider that is not really connected to the company's business to People teams that are business partners. That's the critical shift, and it’s where we add value. If we understand the business that we're in, we can find opportunities for much more effective People strategies. 

The pandemic, obviously, changed the world of work in a way that we couldn't anticipate. And that created a lot of opportunity for business leaders outside the People teams to say, “Oh, wow! How do we develop our people? And how do we manage not working together in the office?” Recognition of our strategic value has shifted HR to be seen as a partner, not a service provider.

Jason: Some organizations are really good at developing their people, with employee development front and center. And there are organizations that struggle to build that development culture. What would you say defines each group?

Leaders must demonstrate their commitment to L&D.

Tricia: I think it’s related to the fundamental People philosophy: Do you believe developing people is as important to achieving your business objectives? Do you see the People experience at your company as a competitive differentiator that attracts and retains great talent?

If your leadership team understands the connection between developing your people (and creating a People experience) and performance, then that's the big difference. 

Do you have a culture of continuous learning? Do you have leaders who can talk about making mistakes or trying crazy ideas? How important is innovation or ideation to your business? 

The more the leaders at the top demonstrate and talk about learning and development, the more it will be part of the culture. People do what they see their leaders in the organization do.

Jason: How do you finish this sentence? Building a learning culture at work would be easier if _____?

Tricia: Building a learning culture at work would be easier if leaders modeled continuous learning and safety in making mistakes and trying new things. If leaders do this, the rest of the organization will follow.

Jason: What percentage of companies do you think have leaders who model continuous learning effectively?

Tricia: That's a tough one. It certainly wouldn't be in the majority.

For leaders who model continuous learning, you see stickiness. When they leave an organization, people go with them.

Jason: I remember when Microsoft rolled out their learn-it-all culture. When I saw that news, I thought, “I love that.” We all can be learning, no matter what our role or seniority.

Tricia: It's a great example. Microsoft's culture & reputation is directly attributable to its leadership putting in place attitudes, programs and focus areas [to support their learn-it-all culture]. 

People leaders need to be able to articulate the value of developing people.

Jason: We often hear about the tension between People leaders and finance. It feels like finance, especially when times are tight, believes they can't invest in the growth of people. Have you found ways of presenting the investment in people as a priority and not a liability?

Tricia: I've been fortunate to work with some great CFOs who are great people leaders. The CEO, CFO and CPO are a very important triad in any business, so I work really closely with CFOs.

When making a business case for investing in people, it’s important to articulate value. And I don't think it's that hard to do. The metrics and stats around turnover and developing people are the tangibles. 

Part of the business case is that you’re investing in programs with proven value so that you can talk about the ROI for the investment. Especially if a CFO isn't knowledgeable about the subject area, it may be difficult for them to evaluate a vendor's or program's credibility and business impact.

An HR team has to talk the language of business, and the language of businesses is return on investment. 

Jason: Let’s zoom in on the employee development side of your role. What are you most passionate about? 

Learning at work has benefits far beyond work.

Tricia: Developing people is really what brings me happiness. But to be more specific, it’s about seeing people see opportunities.

Possibility excites me the most about developing people because people may not have a sense, especially earlier in their careers, of what's available or what's possible. 

Often we don't know our impact early in our career. And, when people start to connect their intentions to their impacts or their desires, their drive, their ambitions to their impact… that’s when you see the light bulb turn on.

Developing people gives us permission to step out a little bit, go to the balcony and look at ourselves, our teams, and our organization. There's a huge amount of creativity that gets generated by that pause. There's an ability just to be a human and show up in vulnerability and in learning and not knowing things. That humanity creates a connection between people and the business. Because then, when you learn something, when you've developed further and you look back, you can say, “This organization helped me learn something about myself.” 

What we learn at work doesn't just apply at work. As leaders and organizations, we have a ripple effect. The most important learning I've done at work has made me a better mom, a better spouse and a better sister. Our learning doesn't stop at the door of the workplace. We’re helping people have fuller, happier lives. For me, it's all about possibility.

Jason: What predictions do you have for skills that employees will need more than ever in the coming years?

Soft skills will always be in demand.

Tricia: We all talk about AI in our workplaces and our world. We need to know how to use the tools, including what’s being integrated into the systems and things that we’re using. People teams are also thinking about what the organization needs and what its rules are regarding AI. That digital literacy is critical.

We often look for the new and shiny. AI is new and shiny, and that's great. And it's important that we know it. But we still have to have those foundational human skills — the “how” of what we do, not just the “what” of what we do.

Change agility and the ability to navigate oneself are other skills that are always important, especially as the pace of change accelerates.

The ability to learn and self-awareness are meta skills that we must have above all else, especially as we work to create inclusive spaces and a sense of belonging. Understanding our biases, how to show up and how one person’s experiences might be different from another’s is important. 

Having hard conversations is another skill that everybody needs. 

Jason: How have you facilitated connections amongst employees at your company?

Connection before content.

Tricia: I have followed a principle that I learned from a mentor early in my career: connection before content. I bring that philosophy to every team I'm on and to every organization I work in.

I make sure we connect people to each other and to what we’re doing. Adding that additional layer of connection to why we're doing this thing makes the connections between people richer.

My team, for example, has an hour-long meeting once every two weeks, and we spend almost 20 minutes on connection. Even though we're a distributed team, we've learned more about each other because of that. Connections are built into the fabric of how we engage. 

But it's also about having more frequent opportunities and more open space for connections. During the pandemic, for example, one of the things we instituted was a social every other Friday. It was just a free-standing meeting, and all we did was connect. There was no content or agenda. It was an optional meeting. If you were too busy to come, it was okay. There was no pressure. It was just a space for people to connect. It really helped our virtual team feel like they could connect with each other — even through different languages and in different hemispheres.

I think the mistake that many companies keep making is being focused on quotas of time in the office as opposed to its value. We have to rethink our real estate and the design of our offices. Do you have collaborative spaces where people can sit around and be social, gather, eat and have coffee together? 

I can do my concentrated work at home, but I want to come in because I know we're going to engage as humans. You have to facilitate that.

And food works. Food always works. I'm always amazed at how you provide some food, and people will come. That's remained true for as long as I've been doing this.

Jason: What words of wisdom do you have for your peers or people who are up-and-coming in People leadership?

Trust your instincts, and surround yourself with people who support you.

Tricia: Trust your instincts around your culture and your company, and work on your courage to say the hard things. 

Make sure you understand the business. How does your company make money? How does your team contribute to that? And speak the language of the business.

Find the people who will keep you encouraged and feeling like it's worth it. Sometimes it can feel like you're going upstream against the current a little bit, so find people who share your philosophy and help you be brave enough to give feedback and stand up for what you think is right.

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About Tricia Hollyer

Tricia Hollyer is an accomplished executive with over 25 years of experience in People strategy and leadership across diverse sectors including technology, manufacturing, engineering and public organizations. As the Chief People Officer at MineSense Technologies Ltd., Tricia is dedicated to fostering a people-first culture aimed at enhancing productivity and sustainability within the mining industry. She is also the CEO and Founder of Compassionate Leadership, providing executive coaching and consulting to senior leaders and teams.

Tricia’s previous roles include CHRO and Executive Vice President, People Culture & Community at Nexii Building Solutions, where she led robust people strategies to support the company’s mission of creating a vibrant future for both people and the planet. Tricia’s expertise spans across talent management, organizational development, strategic planning and cultivating highly engaged workplace cultures. Her leadership philosophy centers on purpose-based leadership, believing in the profound impact of leading with a vision for the greater good.

Tricia holds a Master’s degree in Leadership, Business and Organizational Development from Royal Roads University and several professional certifications related to coaching and human resources. She is actively involved in a variety of volunteer roles, including as a board member at Hollyhock and a mentor with the Women in Leadership Foundation, further showcasing her commitment to nurturing leadership and personal growth in diverse community settings.

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