How workplace culture can empower your employees

Having the right culture matters. And how an employer manages culture can be key to everything from sparking innovation, attracting the best talent and even preventing harassment in the workplace.

But what does it take to build a strong company culture? How do employers reinvent themselves as a great place to work? And what do all inspirational leaders have in common?

Those are just some of the questions Jim Barnett, senior vice president of product at LinkedIn and founder of Glint, is exploring in a new video series titled, “Inspiring happiness at work.” The new series is a collaboration between LinkedIn and Employee Benefit News, which kicks off this week. In each episode, Barnett will interview HR and other people management leaders about their strategies and best practices for creating a “people-first culture.”

“Recently, I’ve been on a journey to speak with people leaders at brands you love about how they keep their teams engaged and inspire authenticity at work,” Barnett said in a LinkedIn post announcing the series. “The tactics are different, but the common thread is a people-driven mindset — giving employees a voice and sense of ownership over company culture.”

As the founder of Glint, Barnett is no stranger to employee retention strategies. Glint is a workplace management platform that measures employee engagement using surveys. Barnett said he created the platform to help employers address workplace management issues in real-time, so they can be addressed before employees suffer from workplace burnout. LinkedIn acquired the platform in 2018.

“Our mission is to create a happier work environment for companies and their workforce,” Barnett said in a previous interview. “The components of being happier at work revolve around mental health and creating a safe place for people to be themselves.”

Carmel Galvin, chief human resources officer and senior vice president of Autodesk — a computer software company in Northern California — is the first guest of the series. During the interview, Galvin discusses how she and the Autodesk executive team worked to redesign their culture after the company experienced significant growth.

“Companies are doing everything they can to compete for the best talent,” Galvin said. “What are we doing to create an environment where everyone can grow to be successful? Because that’s at the heart of engagement; it’s given us a backstage pass to how employees can contribute to the mission of the company.”

Tune in to the pilot episode of “Inspiring happiness at work” to learn how Galvin and her team defined Autodesk’s culture, and what she considers “people-first” leadership.