Hiring GlossaryWhat is people management?
What is people management?
Some companies see their employees as costs to minimize. People-first companies see them as investments to maximize. And that difference changes everything.
People management is a philosophy that guides all aspects of the employee experience, from recruiting and onboarding to performance management and learning and development to offboarding (and maybe eventually re-hiring some of those same people in the future!).
Companies that take a people management or people-first approach understand that their business wouldn’t be productive or innovative without the people who work there. And this understanding creates a fundamental difference in how the company operates.
When introducing this difference, Greenhouse Chief Marketing Officer Carin Van Vuuren explained that traditional HR takes an operational excellence (OpEx) mindset, considering employees’ salaries and hiring costs to fall into the same expense category as day-to-day expenses like rent, utilities and property tax.
In contrast, people-first companies take a capital expenditures (CapEx) mindset about hiring. “They know that having the right workforce increases company profits, so hiring the right people has a compounding value,” wrote Carin.
A few signs that a company is people-first or committed to the people management philosophy include:
- Acting with intentionality about purpose, values and culture, including diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I)
- Caring about fair and equitable hiring as part of their competitive business strategy
- Focusing on collaboration and the employee experience
- Taking a human-centric approach to technology
In a people-first company, people managers have a big responsibility to communicate the company’s values and make sure their direct reports feel respected and supported. People managers can accomplish this through the way they hire and onboard new team members, offer learning and growth opportunities, promote work-life balance and recognize and reward top performers. For more on this topic, see The future belongs to people-first companies.
Why is people management important?
It’s a major transformation to shift from being a traditional compliance-focused company to the people management approach, but people-first companies have a competitive advantage because great talent prefers them. Let’s explore a few reasons why this is the case.
People management allows employees to do their best work
A cornerstone of the people management philosophy is shifting from the model of “command and control” toward “support and empower,” said Jennifer Remling, former Global Chief People Officer at WPP, in episode 4 of the Greenhouse People-first podcast.
Jennifer spoke about the importance of giving people a platform and opening doors so they have the opportunity to present their own work and gain visibility. “If you feel like you’re supported and empowered, you can come up with breakthrough ideas,” said Jennifer. The other guest, former Global Chief People Operations Officer at WPP, Robyn Tombacher, shared a similar perspective, describing the importance of learning people’s strengths and motivations. “The leaders that stand out are the ones that think about how to empower and excite the people that work around them,” said Robyn.
People management promotes career growth (and boosts retention)
People management involves proactively keeping high performers engaged by giving them opportunities to take on stretch tasks and develop new skills.
The good news is that offering growth and development opportunities doesn’t just keep your high-performing employees motivated and engaged – it also helps your company adapt to future needs and challenges. Plus, when you focus on internal mobility, you can place employees in their new roles with shorter time-to-hire and ramp-up time.
Maria Culbertson, Senior Manager of Internal & Executive Communications at Greenhouse, put it this way: “As companies continue to scale, the likelihood of finding talent within the walls of your own organization grows significantly. You have entire talent pools of candidates on hand, fully bought into your mission and ramped on your company. So why not go there first?”
People management creates a thriving company culture
When you take a people-first approach to management, you create a company culture where employees feel seen and supported – you’re not just viewing them as a resource, but a multifaceted human. Being people-first means finding ways to give employees the essentials and flexibility they need to thrive.
Donald Knight, former Chief People Officer at Greenhouse, explained that people-first companies involve their employees in defining and creating the company’s culture. “The number one tool for buy-in is co-creation. When people feel like they have helped create something, their buy-in on it is a lot higher,” said Donald. The people management approach allows you to focus on building something together.
Essential skills for people managers
We’ve considered what the people management philosophy looks like when it’s applied across the company. But now let’s focus on what it takes to be a good manager in a people-first company. As you can imagine, it’s less about telling direct reports what to do and more about empowering them to be successful.
A few skills that allow people managers to do this include:
- Interpersonal skills: People managers need to have good emotional intelligence, which involves understanding their own emotions and the emotions of the people around them.
- Communication skills: A manager’s ability to communicate clearly in different formats helps their team members understand expectations and know what it takes to be successful.
- Conflict resolution and problem-solving abilities: Skilled people managers recognize that conflict is a natural part of working with other humans. Instead of ignoring this fact, they develop their ability to resolve conflict and handle difficult conversations with confidence.
- Coaching and mentoring techniques: Taking a people-first approach to people management means trusting your team to do their jobs and giving them the space to find the right solutions to the problems they’re facing. This involves taking less of a directive “do this” approach and acting more as a coach or mentor who prompts team members to reflect and arrive at their own solution.
Common challenges in people management
The traditional, compliance-based approach tends to be one-size-fits-all, but the people management approach takes people’s unique backgrounds, perspectives and preferences into account. This can involve some challenges, including:
Navigating diverse work styles and personalities
By its very definition, the people management approach takes into account the individuality and complexity of a company’s workforce. And while we’ve already considered some of the benefits of working this way, it’s worth pointing out that it will be a significant change for many companies and managers. Since every employee has their own preferences, communication styles and motivations, it means people managers will need to take the time to understand these differences and tailor their management style to their team members’ individual needs.
Managing remote teams effectively
The old-school approach to management relied a lot on in-person interactions – stopping by someone’s desk for a quick chat or grabbing coffee together to catch up. But people-first companies tend to be more supportive of letting their employees work when and where they prefer, which means remote and distributed teams are much more common.
In a remote setting, people managers need to prioritize communication and engagement to help their team members feel a sense of belonging and purpose. Check out Distributed hiring and remote working – The essential guide for tips and tricks to help you manage remote teams effectively.
Addressing performance issues and feedback
The people management approach centers around the idea that your people are what will drive your company to greatness, so people managers can place a lot of trust in their teams to work with minimal supervision. But it’s also important to understand that performance issues will arise and to have a structured way to provide feedback. This new approach will involve creating regular reviews and informal check-ins to provide timely feedback that reinforces positive behaviors and addresses areas for improvement.
Strategies for successful people management
Ready to bring the people management approach to your company? Here are a few of the strategies that people-first companies tend to have in common.
Recognize and reward top performers
People want to be recognized for the hard work they do – and unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. According to Pew Research Center, 51% of workers said they weren’t satisfied with the amount of feedback they received from their manager. And it’s not just about feedback – only 44% of employees are satisfied with their opportunities to learn new skills and that number drops to 33% of employees who are satisfied with their opportunities for promotion.
You can make recognizing and rewarding top performers part of your people management strategy by creating clear career ladders and regular promotion cycles. You can also be intentional about creating regular, public opportunities for recognition, like a Slack channel or a segment during your company all-hands meeting where people share positive feedback.
Integrate feedback into your company culture
Being people-first means you continue to grow and develop the talent you have. In episode 6 of the Greenhouse People-first podcast, Anilu Vazquez-Ubarri, Partner and Chief Operating Officer at TPG Global, and the co-founders of Medley, Edith Cooper and Jordan Taylor, discussed the importance of feedback loops.
Anilu described the role of managers in people-first companies and how training your managers to develop their skills can have a multiplier effect throughout your organization. As former coworkers, Anilu and Edith also shared how feedback has been critical to their own growth. Edith was grateful that Anilu took the time to share feedback about her communication style that was unintentionally preventing her team members from feeling confident and effective.
Tap into the power of technology to enhance people management
People-first companies understand how the correct technology can help them hire the right talent and achieve their goals. Because employee experience is one of their top priorities, people-first companies invest in tools and systems that increase the lifetime value of their employees. They invest in technology that makes hiring more collaborative, inclusive, productive and equitable, and avoid compliance-focused solutions that provide a subpar user experience.
The future of people management
While the fundamentals of people management will stay the same, there are likely to be some changes and trends that impact it in the future. Here’s a preview of how this approach may change in the coming years.
Continuing to evolve the role of artificial intelligence in people management
We’ve already seen that artificial intelligence is transforming recruiting and nearly every other aspect of the employee lifecycle. And we don’t expect this to slow down – companies will increasingly turn to AI to automate repetitive tasks and provide insights into employee performance and engagement. The big question remains how to use this technology in a way that benefits both your people and your business.
Being aware of changing workplace dynamics
The people management philosophy views employees holistically, and that trend is likely to continue. As the people management philosophy develops, companies may implement more work-life-balance initiatives that give employees control over their schedules, the ability to work from home and the chance to take time off to recharge.
It’s becoming increasingly common for companies to offer sabbaticals – an extended period of paid leave available for all employees who have achieved a certain tenure. Ariana Moon, VP of Talent Planning & Acquisition at Greenhouse, wrote: “With the right kind of preparation and intention, sabbaticals enhance the well-being of the person going out of office and provide an incredible opportunity for accelerated growth and business exposure for the coworkers stepping in and up to support them.”
Doubling down on continuous learning and development
With all the changes that are transforming the world of work, your best bet for preparing your employees is to help them keep their skills relevant. Companies that create a culture of continuous learning and development can help their employees adopt a growth mindset and adapt to future changes with more ease.
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