Let’s power the future ready workforce
I know I’m not alone. We’ve all felt first-hand the personal and professional impact of the past 18 months. Navigating a global pandemic and the resulting “big reset” that turned our work and lives upside down, advocating for diversity, inclusion and equality for all people, and most recently, managing through the “Great Resignation.” All these things have fundamentally changed my own life and my work. I am still trying to balance the ever-evolving needs of my family and myself as we re-emerge from the effects of the pandemic. At the same time, I work to lead, motivate and engage a team of diverse, distributed people, ensuring that we stay connected and find common ground so we can execute huge, transformational work for our customers. As a team, we’ve found new and innovative ways to maximize our productivity while staying as agile as possible. And, we are all looking to the future with excitement, as we reflect on our personal and professional goals and seek new ways to grow — both individually and together. This is the picture of our work today The dramatic changes in our lives, the tectonic shifts in the way we work, and the new things we’ve learned about ourselves and each other shine a bright light on the opportunities we have in this moment. We are all searching for new ways to get inspired and to engage and grow at work and life — in a way that aligns with our ever-changing situations, which are all so uniquely personal. And whether change is required or chosen, it’s our human nature to try to “reweave” ourselves back into our new environments. To reconnect us back to purpose, to people, to the world around us. The experience of personal exploration, development and learning have been age-old ways to help us do that. But as important as this personal growth exploration is to us as humans, we can’t forget about the essential requirements of work. Enabling our people to grow and succeed in a way that works best for them AND enabling our business to grow and transform to meet the needs of our customers and markets is not an either/or conversation. Our ability to successfully navigate at this intersection is the lynchpin to the future of work. That’s the current gap we see in the market today Experience and intelligence must go hand in hand. To navigate the future of work successfully, we need to make a fundamental shift in the way we think about talent technology. To effectively adopt “back to human” strategies and elevate the people experience we need to harness — not ignore — the value of the essential talent tools, processes, workflows, and troves of people data and intelligence we’ve worked so hard to put in place. We’ve heard this from our vast and diverse customer base, and we believe Cornerstone is in a unique position to help solve this problem. It’s why we’re so excited that our latest innovation, Cornerstone Xplor, is launching today. It’s a new solution in our portfolio, but it represents more than that. Cornerstone Xplor works at the intersection of experience and intelligence Cornerstone Xplor is the manifestation of our company’s bold vision to revolutionize how people and teams will learn, grow, connect and thrive in this new world of work. It’s a holistic people growth experience that delivers a fully integrated and hyper-personalized journey of learning, skill development, growth and career mobility for every person. Cornerstone Xplor homepage See full image of Cornerstone Xplor homepage — The Cornerstone Xplor homepage is personalized to help employees see the content you’ve promoted, the training they need to take or the content that will help them meet their skill or learning needs. But unlike traditional Learning Experience Platforms (LXP) or other similar niche applications that create “experience silos,” Cornerstone Xplor brings every element of people growth into one single destination, so every person in your organization can: Design a personalized skill development and growth plan and a path to get there. Easily find the most engaging, relevant content that matches the skills they want to develop. Explore careers that are a fit for those skills. Connect with coaches and mentors who have mastered those skills. Join communities and explore gigs where they can practice those skills. Connect to an internal marketplace of job opportunities that align with those skills. Engage with others who share similar interests and ideas that have nothing to do with skills! Market response to Cornerstone Xplor is extremely positive. And here are two examples of how Cornerstone Xplor supports a better growth experience for people: Careers Explorer in Cornerstone Xplor See full image of Career Explorer — Career Explorer empowers employees to take career management into their own hands by providing a centralized location to explore career opportunities and to receive personalized development to support career advancement. Discover tab in Cornerstone Xplor See full image of Discover — Go beyond static content recommendations with Discover, a view into learning content recommendations inclusive of in-house and on-the-web content, all curated and filtered for quality, and searchable by skill and even by content vendor. And Cornerstone Xplor doesn’t detach this people experience from the systems and intelligence talent leaders need. Because the experience is only as powerful as the intelligence behind it. This is where the foundational strength of Cornerstone comes in. Cornerstone Xplor harnesses the power of our industry-leading learning, skills, content and talent capabilities, the broadest, deepest people data lake and purpose-built AI Engines to fuel continuous personalization and optimization of the people experience while delivering new levels of depth, flexibility, scale and insight for talent leaders. Supported by an AI-powered and skills-forward talent system As Cornerstone Xplor works on the experience layer, talent leaders have access to a whole new level of intelligence under the hood. They can easily identify their experts and offer them new opportunities to grow, visualize the skills they have across the organization, create new talent pools based on skills, and more precisely map and align the skills of their people to the evolving requirements of the business. They can auto-generate learning and skill development paths, create seamless skill and career journeys, deliver fresh, relevant, high-impact learning content — all surfaced by Cornerstone Xplor based on individual interests, goals and career aspirations — without all the heavy lifting. They can leverage Cornerstone Xplor to surface relevant learning and skills content, help people connect to mentors and experts, reveal options for both traditional and non-traditional career and skill paths, and connect people to an auto-matched “marketplace” of new jobs, gigs and projects. They can meet their people where they are with personalized learning, skill development and career growth opportunities – at scale and with more intelligence than ever — while keeping that experience tightly connected to their existing systems, workflows and essential learning and talent programs. Let’s meet this moment together How often do we REALLY get to shape the future of work? To inspire our people, help them achieve their goals and become their most extraordinary? To create a better world – the one we all aspire to live and work in? To empower our people to infuse their unique perspectives and personalities and strengths into work, and dazzle us with the results? It’s time to create this new world together. On behalf of everyone at Cornerstone, I’m excited to be on this journey with you, as we make our way together into the future of work. Today’s launch of Cornerstone Xplor is just the beginning of that journey, and we hope you like what you’re hearing. If you have questions, send me a message, I’d love to connect with you, even if we may not be able to do that in person, yet! To get a closer look at Cornerstone Xplor, check out this video
Behind the scenes of Cornerstone’s bold new vision to power the future ready workforce
Brand, schmand. This isn’t about a new logo, though you’ll notice we have one. It isn’t about a new purpose because, for over 20 years, we’ve been obsessed with helping people realize their potential and achieve extraordinary things. This is about the “never normal again” workplace and Cornerstone’s unwavering focus on blazing trails in learning and talent innovation and helping our customers meet the future, ready. The time is now (to rethink the way we work) We all know the future of work is upon us. It’s an environment of unrelenting business transformation and tectonic shifts in the way we work. And it’s a time of dramatic change for people. The lines between work and life have now been erased, and more than ever, we’re looking to our organizations for a sense of stability, community and purpose. And as humans, we’re in a mode of deep self-reflection. We’re all taking this moment to reassess our paths and reinvent who we are, who we want to be and where we want to go. This future demands more agility, resilience and alignment as priorities change, skills advance, and goals evolve. It requires a significant shift in organizational mindset as we partner together to build deeper connections with each other and rally around a shared sense of purpose and community. It requires that every one of us be more empowered to develop, grow and engage in ways that are so uniquely personal. That’s some heady stuff. And it’s why at Cornerstone, we knew we had to think differently. And that’s the genesis of not just our audacious new look but our bold new vision to power the future ready workforce, too. Rethinking how we work is about a fundamental shift to a more human approach to work, and we believe talent leaders are central to making that happen. The rise of the modern talent leader If there was ever any question of the importance of talent leaders within our organizations, that debate is now over. The dramatic disruptions in work over the past 18 months have catapulted talent leaders into the spotlight, expanding their influence across organizations and championing the shift to “back to human” models that re-focus on people. Today’s talent leaders hold the golden thread — they connect people with new growth opportunities and align business goals with a larger purpose to help their organizations achieve extraordinary success together. And for talent leaders to create inspired, aligned and successful workforces, Cornerstone knew they needed more than another disjointed piece of technology in their toolkit. We knew this was our opportunity to empower talent leaders — not just with technology iteration but with a leapfrog vision to reimagine the work environment. That new work environment is a place where everyone shares a common language of success, every individual has the flexibility to create a growth plan as unique as they are and everyone can work with more autonomy, freedom, creativity and agility than ever before. To make work a place that works for everyone. Experience how Cornerstone can help your organization unite people growth with business success to create work environments that inspire growth, productivity and success for all. Delivering a new system of work For more than 20 years, Cornerstone has been the leader in people development. So we knew one thing for certain — the future of work requires a new system of work. Along with our new brand, we’ve designed that new system of work. It’s an environment that embraces each person’s unique needs and goals, unites everyone in a shared language of growth and success and creates more freedom and agility in the way we work — no matter who we are, where we work or how work gets done. And this is why we’re so excited to announce the launch of Cornerstone Xplor. In the most meta scenario ever, we concepted, designed and launched Cornerstone Xplor with an incredibly diverse, distributed team. All working remotely, in the middle of a pandemic, during a period of intensive business transformation for our organization collectively, but also for our people — and this is the exact environment this solution intends to serve. This is what makes Cornerstone Xplor more than a new product offering. It’s the first manifestation of our bold new vision to revolutionize how people and teams learn, grow, connect and thrive in this new world of work. Learn how you can use Cornerstone Xplor to motivate your people with a personalized, purpose-driven growth experience that inspires. A unified growth experience for people Cornerstone Xplor brings every element of people growth into one single destination to deliver a truly unified growth experience for people. We created it to help talent leaders with the use cases that matter most: Modernizing their learning and development experience Delivering the most relevant content from anywhere to their people Accelerating career and talent mobility Establishing skills as the universal language of growth and success across the organization Cornerstone Xplor is powered by the deep expertise and innovation that can only come from the global leader in talent. To deliver such highly personalized, deeply connected growth experiences, we tapped into the serious talent intelligence and technology horsepower we’ve already got under the hood, like: The broadest talent management capabilities The deepest skills intelligence The best of curated content delivery Purpose-built AI that brings together skills, content and people data in exciting new ways An innovative architecture that improves connectivity, efficiency and scale It’s all here at Cornerstone. Join us on the journey to rebuild work We’re obsessed with helping our customers unite people and business success and meet the future, ready. Is this statement bold, daring and disruptive? Sure. But that’s what Cornerstone is all about, it’s what our new vision for innovation is all about and it’s what our new brand is all about. We also think it’s what our customers are all about, too. And we’re excited to take this journey with all of you!
Let’s power the future ready workforce
I know I’m not alone. We’ve all felt first-hand the personal and professional impact of the past 18 months. Navigating a global pandemic and the resulting “big reset” that turned our work and lives upside down, advocating for diversity, inclusion and equality for all people, and most recently, managing through the “Great Resignation.” All these things have fundamentally changed my own life and my work. I am still trying to balance the ever-evolving needs of my family and myself as we re-emerge from the effects of the pandemic. At the same time, I work to lead, motivate and engage a team of diverse, distributed people, ensuring that we stay connected and find common ground so we can execute huge, transformational work for our customers. As a team, we’ve found new and innovative ways to maximize our productivity while staying as agile as possible. And, we are all looking to the future with excitement, as we reflect on our personal and professional goals and seek new ways to grow — both individually and together. This is the picture of our work today The dramatic changes in our lives, the tectonic shifts in the way we work, and the new things we’ve learned about ourselves and each other shine a bright light on the opportunities we have in this moment. We are all searching for new ways to get inspired and to engage and grow at work and life — in a way that aligns with our ever-changing situations, which are all so uniquely personal. And whether change is required or chosen, it’s our human nature to try to “reweave” ourselves back into our new environments. To reconnect us back to purpose, to people, to the world around us. The experience of personal exploration, development and learning have been age-old ways to help us do that. But as important as this personal growth exploration is to us as humans, we can’t forget about the essential requirements of work. Enabling our people to grow and succeed in a way that works best for them AND enabling our business to grow and transform to meet the needs of our customers and markets is not an either/or conversation. Our ability to successfully navigate at this intersection is the lynchpin to the future of work. That’s the current gap we see in the market today Experience and intelligence must go hand in hand. To navigate the future of work successfully, we need to make a fundamental shift in the way we think about talent technology. To effectively adopt “back to human” strategies and elevate the people experience we need to harness — not ignore — the value of the essential talent tools, processes, workflows, and troves of people data and intelligence we’ve worked so hard to put in place. We’ve heard this from our vast and diverse customer base, and we believe Cornerstone is in a unique position to help solve this problem. It’s why we’re so excited that our latest innovation, Cornerstone Xplor, is launching today. It’s a new solution in our portfolio, but it represents more than that. Cornerstone Xplor works at the intersection of experience and intelligence Cornerstone Xplor is the manifestation of our company’s bold vision to revolutionize how people and teams will learn, grow, connect and thrive in this new world of work. It’s a holistic people growth experience that delivers a fully integrated and hyper-personalized journey of learning, skill development, growth and career mobility for every person. Cornerstone Xplor homepage See full image of Cornerstone Xplor homepage — The Cornerstone Xplor homepage is personalized to help employees see the content you’ve promoted, the training they need to take or the content that will help them meet their skill or learning needs. But unlike traditional Learning Experience Platforms (LXP) or other similar niche applications that create “experience silos,” Cornerstone Xplor brings every element of people growth into one single destination, so every person in your organization can: Design a personalized skill development and growth plan and a path to get there. Easily find the most engaging, relevant content that matches the skills they want to develop. Explore careers that are a fit for those skills. Connect with coaches and mentors who have mastered those skills. Join communities and explore gigs where they can practice those skills. Connect to an internal marketplace of job opportunities that align with those skills. Engage with others who share similar interests and ideas that have nothing to do with skills! Market response to Cornerstone Xplor is extremely positive. And here are two examples of how Cornerstone Xplor supports a better growth experience for people: Careers Explorer in Cornerstone Xplor See full image of Career Explorer — Career Explorer empowers employees to take career management into their own hands by providing a centralized location to explore career opportunities and to receive personalized development to support career advancement. Discover tab in Cornerstone Xplor See full image of Discover — Go beyond static content recommendations with Discover, a view into learning content recommendations inclusive of in-house and on-the-web content, all curated and filtered for quality, and searchable by skill and even by content vendor. And Cornerstone Xplor doesn’t detach this people experience from the systems and intelligence talent leaders need. Because the experience is only as powerful as the intelligence behind it. This is where the foundational strength of Cornerstone comes in. Cornerstone Xplor harnesses the power of our industry-leading learning, skills, content and talent capabilities, the broadest, deepest people data lake and purpose-built AI Engines to fuel continuous personalization and optimization of the people experience while delivering new levels of depth, flexibility, scale and insight for talent leaders. Supported by an AI-powered and skills-forward talent system As Cornerstone Xplor works on the experience layer, talent leaders have access to a whole new level of intelligence under the hood. They can easily identify their experts and offer them new opportunities to grow, visualize the skills they have across the organization, create new talent pools based on skills, and more precisely map and align the skills of their people to the evolving requirements of the business. They can auto-generate learning and skill development paths, create seamless skill and career journeys, deliver fresh, relevant, high-impact learning content — all surfaced by Cornerstone Xplor based on individual interests, goals and career aspirations — without all the heavy lifting. They can leverage Cornerstone Xplor to surface relevant learning and skills content, help people connect to mentors and experts, reveal options for both traditional and non-traditional career and skill paths, and connect people to an auto-matched “marketplace” of new jobs, gigs and projects. They can meet their people where they are with personalized learning, skill development and career growth opportunities – at scale and with more intelligence than ever — while keeping that experience tightly connected to their existing systems, workflows and essential learning and talent programs. Let’s meet this moment together How often do we REALLY get to shape the future of work? To inspire our people, help them achieve their goals and become their most extraordinary? To create a better world – the one we all aspire to live and work in? To empower our people to infuse their unique perspectives and personalities and strengths into work, and dazzle us with the results? It’s time to create this new world together. On behalf of everyone at Cornerstone, I’m excited to be on this journey with you, as we make our way together into the future of work. Today’s launch of Cornerstone Xplor is just the beginning of that journey, and we hope you like what you’re hearing. If you have questions, send me a message, I’d love to connect with you, even if we may not be able to do that in person, yet! To get a closer look at Cornerstone Xplor, check out this video
Behind the scenes of Cornerstone’s bold new vision to power the future ready workforce
Brand, schmand. This isn’t about a new logo, though you’ll notice we have one. It isn’t about a new purpose because, for over 20 years, we’ve been obsessed with helping people realize their potential and achieve extraordinary things. This is about the “never normal again” workplace and Cornerstone’s unwavering focus on blazing trails in learning and talent innovation and helping our customers meet the future, ready. The time is now (to rethink the way we work) We all know the future of work is upon us. It’s an environment of unrelenting business transformation and tectonic shifts in the way we work. And it’s a time of dramatic change for people. The lines between work and life have now been erased, and more than ever, we’re looking to our organizations for a sense of stability, community and purpose. And as humans, we’re in a mode of deep self-reflection. We’re all taking this moment to reassess our paths and reinvent who we are, who we want to be and where we want to go. This future demands more agility, resilience and alignment as priorities change, skills advance, and goals evolve. It requires a significant shift in organizational mindset as we partner together to build deeper connections with each other and rally around a shared sense of purpose and community. It requires that every one of us be more empowered to develop, grow and engage in ways that are so uniquely personal. That’s some heady stuff. And it’s why at Cornerstone, we knew we had to think differently. And that’s the genesis of not just our audacious new look but our bold new vision to power the future ready workforce, too. Rethinking how we work is about a fundamental shift to a more human approach to work, and we believe talent leaders are central to making that happen. The rise of the modern talent leader If there was ever any question of the importance of talent leaders within our organizations, that debate is now over. The dramatic disruptions in work over the past 18 months have catapulted talent leaders into the spotlight, expanding their influence across organizations and championing the shift to “back to human” models that re-focus on people. Today’s talent leaders hold the golden thread — they connect people with new growth opportunities and align business goals with a larger purpose to help their organizations achieve extraordinary success together. And for talent leaders to create inspired, aligned and successful workforces, Cornerstone knew they needed more than another disjointed piece of technology in their toolkit. We knew this was our opportunity to empower talent leaders — not just with technology iteration but with a leapfrog vision to reimagine the work environment. That new work environment is a place where everyone shares a common language of success, every individual has the flexibility to create a growth plan as unique as they are and everyone can work with more autonomy, freedom, creativity and agility than ever before. To make work a place that works for everyone. Experience how Cornerstone can help your organization unite people growth with business success to create work environments that inspire growth, productivity and success for all. Delivering a new system of work For more than 20 years, Cornerstone has been the leader in people development. So we knew one thing for certain — the future of work requires a new system of work. Along with our new brand, we’ve designed that new system of work. It’s an environment that embraces each person’s unique needs and goals, unites everyone in a shared language of growth and success and creates more freedom and agility in the way we work — no matter who we are, where we work or how work gets done. And this is why we’re so excited to announce the launch of Cornerstone Xplor. In the most meta scenario ever, we concepted, designed and launched Cornerstone Xplor with an incredibly diverse, distributed team. All working remotely, in the middle of a pandemic, during a period of intensive business transformation for our organization collectively, but also for our people — and this is the exact environment this solution intends to serve. This is what makes Cornerstone Xplor more than a new product offering. It’s the first manifestation of our bold new vision to revolutionize how people and teams learn, grow, connect and thrive in this new world of work. Learn how you can use Cornerstone Xplor to motivate your people with a personalized, purpose-driven growth experience that inspires. A unified growth experience for people Cornerstone Xplor brings every element of people growth into one single destination to deliver a truly unified growth experience for people. We created it to help talent leaders with the use cases that matter most: Modernizing their learning and development experience Delivering the most relevant content from anywhere to their people Accelerating career and talent mobility Establishing skills as the universal language of growth and success across the organization Cornerstone Xplor is powered by the deep expertise and innovation that can only come from the global leader in talent. To deliver such highly personalized, deeply connected growth experiences, we tapped into the serious talent intelligence and technology horsepower we’ve already got under the hood, like: The broadest talent management capabilities The deepest skills intelligence The best of curated content delivery Purpose-built AI that brings together skills, content and people data in exciting new ways An innovative architecture that improves connectivity, efficiency and scale It’s all here at Cornerstone. Join us on the journey to rebuild work We’re obsessed with helping our customers unite people and business success and meet the future, ready. Is this statement bold, daring and disruptive? Sure. But that’s what Cornerstone is all about, it’s what our new vision for innovation is all about and it’s what our new brand is all about. We also think it’s what our customers are all about, too. And we’re excited to take this journey with all of you!
Cornerstone Insights: Now Available to Clients
When we announced Cornerstone Insights in May, we shared a broad vision for our predictive analytics strategy – a suite of Insight dashboards that applies sophisticated data science to workforce data, enabling business leaders to answer burning questions about how to use data to better recruit, train and manage top talent. Since then our product and development teams have been hard at work to bring to life our first set of Cornerstone Insights dashboards -- Compliance Control Insights, Compliance Guide Insights, and Predictive Succession Insights – which are truly one of a kind. The Compliance dashboards help companies prevent regulatory fines, potentially huge liability payouts, and loss of employee productivity resulting from failure to complete employee training in a timely fashion. Predictive Succession Insights helps organizations identify good internal candidates to efficiently fill open positions. This serves to drive engagement and retention of a company’s high performers and promote internal and upward mobility within the organization. Now available, Compliance Control and Compliance Guide Insights dashboards take care of these issues by helping clients identify and prevent non-compliance activity well before it becomes a problem. Knowing the Answer Before Getting the Question Organizations no longer need to wait until the problem occurs to understand their compliance risk and can now take corrective actions proactively. Based on the models generated by our proprietary machine learning platform, the new dashboards will help clients understand and verify the major factors that drive non-compliance, who in the organization is at risk, simulate the effect of potential changes (both long term policy and individual changes), and ultimately take corrective actions within Cornerstone Learning. Analyzing more than 30 signals related to Compliance training, our machine learning platform performs millions of computations as part of a multi-dimensional analysis to generate unique models for all organizational units and determines which factors are actually predictive of on-time completion of compliance training. The signals are pulled from various parts of the application, analyzing: User profile data; Learning object properties; Training dependencies and purposes; and Behavioral data regarding how the user, his/her team, and the company have historically completed training. Through our Insights Dashboards, our clients can access all of these signals, predictions, and analyses instantaneously and for the first time stay ahead of compliance issues. Training Compliance Risk Impacts Many Industries We’ve been receiving great feedback from the initial preview program on the value Cornerstone Insights is providing to companies that in some cases require entire teams dedicated to monitoring compliance. In highly-regulated industries such as healthcare and financial services, Cornerstone Insights offers an entire new approach to monitoring and addressing non-compliance before it becomes a risk and has a chance to impact the business. Controlling compliance risk is just one of many Insights we have planned in the coming future. We’ll be back with more updates as we continue to rollout Cornerstone Insights products to more of our clients.
Realizing Our Potential: The Evolution of Cornerstone
In 1999, Cornerstone OnDemand started with a few modest start-up trappings: a whiteboard, a shared cordless phone, a meeting room at a Santa Monica bowling alley and a bold idea. We wanted to change the world through online learning. Sixteen years later, that idea has flourished into a multi-billion dollar global technology company with products in use by more than 20 million people in nearly 200 countries. Our company's journey to this point has been marked by significant changes. Along the way, we picked up a new name. We ditched a bright orange logo. We expanded our mission beyond online learning to people development in its entirety (our suite of products now meets your company's needs at every stage of the employee lifecycle). Yet, through all of these transformations, our core belief as a company has been steadfast: Learning and development are key to empowering people to reach their potential. And today, as we announce the next progression of the Cornerstone brand, this belief in potential remains the driving force behind our new identity. Meet the New Cornerstone Starting today, we are rolling out a brand new logo to better reflect where we’ve been and where we are headed as a company. For starters, as we enter a new world of work where immediate and constant access to information is table stakes, our new logo reflects this by dropping the "OnDemand." Over the years, we have helped define the on-demand (and later Software-as-a-Service) standard as the first unified talent management software company to operate in the cloud and offer its products solely via SaaS. The company has always taken a lead and embodied innovation in this area. To reflect our evolved brand, we've also designed the new logo to emulate our original and continued vision as a company: helping people develop at every stage in their careers, both personally and professionally. We have a new tagline communicating this vision — "Realize your potential," which certainly refers to our own potential as a company, but more importantly that of our employees, partners, clients and millions of users. The new logo reflects the tagline’s focus in several unique and creative ways. First, the angle of the logo is 30 degrees, moving up and to the right to represent positive growth. We want people to grow in their careers. Second, the diamond-shape behind the "c" is a graphic representation of a wall corner, exemplifying our role as part of the foundational strength that helps you build a strong business with your human capital. Look again closely and you will notice that the "c" also appears to be wearing a graduation cap — again personifying our passion for lifelong learning. Last but not least, the initial "c" and "o" join together to create an infinity symbol, reinforcing the idea that potential is limitless. Beyond our reworked logo, we are also reimagining our color scheme and welcoming two new bright colors to our brand palette: seafoam and tech green. While we take our work seriously, we also firmly believe in having fun along the way — and our new colors represent this key aspect of our company culture (just ask any Cornerstar about our arcade and candy wall). You'll see the new Cornerstone branding rolled out across all our products, websites and offices beginning today. As we embark on our next adventure as a company, we hope you'll join us in embracing the challenges and successes ahead — realizing your potential along the way.
Cornerstone’s Universal Profile: The New Employee Must-Have
As Cornerstone OnDemand continues to deliver the types of technology enhancements and innovations that completely reimagine the way every employee gets work done, I’d like to share with you one of my favorite things from the September ’13 Product Release—the Universal Profile. Similar to a personal profile from popular social sites, Universal Profile serves as the center of an employee’s universe within the Cornerstone suite. It offers a consolidated view of personal information such as contact details, work experience, skills and expertise, and activities in the Cornerstone system. It also serves as an access point for connecting with colleagues, completing tasks, searching for subject matter experts, and giving and receiving social feedback. Putting everything your employees need to know to do their jobs in one, always-available place with real-time access not only helps everyone work smarter, but also helps organizations of any size maximize work performance and improve employee engagement. Key Features include: Employee Skills & Interests- Each employee develops rich user profiles specific to their skills, interests, resume, and career preferences. Provide Social Feedback- Everyone can share private-or-public feedback to colleagues and employees Live Stream of Activities- See everything that is going on and share ideas and content with others in a streamlined collaborative feed Integrated Across the Cornerstone Application- One of the greatest benefits of the Cornerstone organic application, is the unified connectivity to other talent management activities including learning, performance, recruiting, and collaboration. Watch this great video and hear from our very own Cornerstars on how the Universal Profile improves each employee’s level of productivity and adds even more value to each Cornerstone client. Photo: Creative Commons
The Future of Talent Management – Coming to You Live
In the latest stop on our Converge Live national tour, we visited the Lone Star State to bring the future of talent management to HR & learning practitioners from around Texas. Converge Live is a special opportunity to discover the latest tools, tips and techniques that help organizations to reinvent work. In Houston – as in other stops along the tour – talent management professionals, consultants, Cornerstone experts, and Cornerstone clients discussed the latest talent innovations that are shaping organizations today. Live in Houston To address workforce challenges and plan for the future, we kicked off Converge Live Houston with an executive keynote by Cornerstone OnDemand’s VP of Platform & Strategy and visionary, Jason Corsello. Attendees received insight on major trends impacting today’s workforce, including how to manage a freelance workforce, keeping up with millennials and the consumerization of the enterprise. In short, talent management is changing – less focus on process and automation, and more focus on collaboration, social feedback and interaction. Is your organization ready to adapt? Attendees also got a sneak preview of the future of Cornerstone’s global talent management platform. We shared the latest Cornerstone features and the future of where the talent management field is heading. In-depth breakout sessions followed and we explored methods by which organizations can plan to become truly high performing, including in-person guidance on how to support social feedback and performance, how to increase user adoption of talent management technology, and the benefits of effective employee onboarding. A Client Story Throughout every Converge Live, our clients share their workforce success stories. In Houston, L&D leaders from BP shared their success in consolidating multiple learning vendors into one centralized solution – Cornerstone Learning. To improve a global workforce, BP uses the latest technology to improve compliance, certification, and enhance leadership development. For tens of thousands of employees, BP relies on Cornerstone to deliver a blended approach to learning. Coming to a City Near You You too can explore the future of talent management at Converge Live. There’s nothing like connecting with someone who can help take your workforce to the next level. See where your talent management practices match up and learn about key Cornerstone features to incorporate within your workplace. Share stories with peers and bridge gaps to improve your organization! Converge Live is complimentary, though availability is limited. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear the future of talent management, network and meet Cornerstone experts. Register today for a Converge Live near you: March 25, 2014 | Converge Live Denver | Event Website » April 8, 2014 | Converge Live Boston | Event Website » April 15, 2014 | Converge Live Atlanta | Event Website »
Business Unbound: A Vision and New Strategies for the New World of Work
Yesterday looks nothing like today. For some companies, the COVID-19 crisis has brought business to a grinding halt—but for others, it’s kicked things into hyperdrive. The trends that were emerging before the crisis have accelerated: Digital transformation initiatives have a heightened urgency as businesses are now required to pivot on a dime. The trend toward remote work has manifested in full. The need to reskill and upskill the workforce is now an immediate concern rather than a provision for the future. Change is not optional. How to change is now the critical question.  It’s an incredible challenge to adapt in these circumstances—but companies are doing it. Think about Medtronic’s sharp turn to accelerate the production of ventilators in their factories, or how Honeywell and many other companies are now making masks. These companies are demonstrating just how quickly they can move once they eliminate what was holding them back. They stopped using yesterday’s thinking, such as outdated business models or processes, to solve today’s challenges. But right now, companies are facing constraints, like pervasive shelter in place orders, that are unique to today’s historic moment and require new, creative approaches. These agile organizations have uncovered their own ability to adapt, and it’s critical that they don’t rebound to outdated routines and structures after the crisis has passed. Business volatility has beenincreasing for decades before the crisis and will only accelerate long after it. At Cornerstone, we are committed to helping companies take an unbound approach to business. An unbound business is one that’s not confined by conventions, remains open to fresh approaches in tune with their changing environment, and places a premium on continuous people development. Over the past 20 years, we’ve honed our software to help companies adapt quickly with the right people, skills and training. And with our acquisition of Saba, a global leader in talent solutions, we’re in an even stronger position to help companies lean into their change drivers: continuous learning, actionable data and workforce agility. The key? Keep removing constraints. Learning Unbound: Learning is the Accelerator Learning is the adaptability accelerator. Cornerstone People Research Labdata shows that training has skyrocketed in the last several weeks as companies help their employees adapt to this new normal, including a spike in courses about stress management and working from home. This shows that rather than use learning to only meet compliance requirements, we need to provide employees with more holistic learning to address all aspects of work life. To do that, learning must be: Ubiquitous: Available on any device, and, most importantly, delivered in their flow of work in the systems and tools where it’s happening. Courses should also be offered in a variety of formats, such as learning through social collaboration or in shorter forms—also known as microlearning—that are quickly digestible and easily applicable. Learning retentionsuffers when employees learn on the company’s schedule. Instead, learning retention and effectiveness is highest when employees need it and can immediately apply it to a real-world situation. Hyper-Personalized: Remove the time and energy it takes for employees to seek out learning. Technology can help present relevant opportunities to employees that are contextualized based on their skills, experience, aspirations and preferences. A Business Enabler: For businesses to adapt quickly and at scale, they need to promote real learning—the kind where information is actually retained— which requires repetition, reinforcement and nurturing. Real learning is always evidenced by change: changed mindsets, changed behaviors, and changed outcomes. To help administer this kind of learning, Cornerstone has been focused on providing people with the most modern, relevant learning content available through our subscription service offering,Content Anytime. Curated with thousands of courses from dozens of world-class content partners, we are committed to helping organizations provide their people with the right content to help accelerate learning. We also recently invested inTalespin to ensure we stay on the cutting edge of the emerging area of virtual reality training. By embracing these changes to learning at work, organizations will be prepared for whatever challenges lie ahead. In a truly adaptable workplace, learning is every worker’s constant companion, and people will always be learning. Careers Unbound: AI-Based Personalized Coaching to Empower Your People The number one reason people choose to leave a company is because they don’t have the opportunity to learn and grow. In addition to career growth, people want to be seen and valued for their unique strengths. As detailed in a recenttrend report from Mercer Consulting, they also want to feel a sense of purpose at work. Employees crave continuous and frequent check-in sessions with their manager, and they want to understand how to improve. They want guidance on how to best challenge themselves while also maintaining a sense of well-being, and they desire new experiences so they can put learning into practice and explore emergent interests. In essence, people want to be coached.  In order to best support their workforces, companies have to transform managers into coaches. Coaches are more effective because they guide individuals instead of roles and take time to truly understand who they’re coaching and where they’re headed. To encourage this transition, organizations will have to provide managers with tools to help them better understand their individual employees—such as their deep skills profiles, interests, personal and professional aspirations and their emotional well-being—as well as tools that will help them apply this holistic information into more meaningful conversations and personalized career navigation. In addition to turning managers into coaches, organizations can find new ways to supplement employee guidance with AI-powered digital coaching tools. These types of tools are embedded into technology that employees are already using and apply every employee’s personalized data to guide and make recommendations for growth and development. For example, after an employee completes a skill-building course, they will be recommended a sequence of more trainings and activities to truly bridge their skill divide. Employees will further benefit from AI-based recommendations, nudges and conversations with intelligent chatbots that can flag new trainings, upcoming projects they might be interested in and new roles that are suited to their skills. These tools, combined with rich conversations with managers (powered by data), provide truly personalized career navigation that’s informed by an employee’s skills, experiences and aspirations and results in them feeling more engaged and empowered in their careers. To help enable this vision, Cornerstone has launchedCornerstone Careers, a new product solution focused on helping employees to connect with their managers and navigate their careers. Cornerstone Careers includes Check Ins and Capabilities, and we’ll be adding more features in the coming months, including Career Center to help employees navigate their careers in a fully personalized way. Data Unbound: More Holistic People Data for Better People Decisions With technology has come an explosion of data and analytics. And for years, organizations have been striving to extract insights and important business value from people data. However, data sets have historically fell short in providing organizations with a holistic and meaningful understanding of their people both inside and outside of the organization. Businesses today crave more well-rounded, data-driven insights to know the whole person: their capabilities, strengths, experiences, aspirations, mood, learning preferences and well-being. Earlier this year, we took a big step in this area byacquiring Clustree, a French technology company that developed an industry-leading, AI-powered skills engine and extensive skills ontology to help organizations match their employees’ skills with specific job roles. The benefit of this comprehensive, elastic skills data set is twofold. First, the data will allow companies to dynamically develop and deploy the right skills to projects, roles and key investments. For example, looking at data across the global enterprise will allow companies to build teams that bring together the best skills and experiences regardless of geography. And with data on both internal and external talent, companies will be able to assemble the optimal mix inclusive of employees, candidates, contractors and freelancers. Second, and more importantly, inclusive data will allow companies to improve their employees’ well-being, engagement and retention, rather than just help them with productivity and efficiency tracking. For example, during development conversations, data will help employees and managers take a hyper-personalized approach to their personal growth rather than one that’s one-size-fits-all. Data has the power to create more meaningful work-life experiences that ultimately benefit both the employee and the business. Cornerstone Is Adapting and Evolving with You This extreme event we are currently experiencing, COVID-19, is proof that companies must be more agile than ever to succeed. And even after we move beyond this crisis, businesses can’t return to their old habits; for instance, they can no longer take 18 months or more to pivot the workforce. When unforeseen forces arise, businesses that are able to react quickly not only endure the change but thrive because of it. And to build this agility, companies need to remove the constraints that were holding them back and embrace a new world of work that invites change and innovation. The emergence of this new world of work comes at a pivotal time for our company as well. With our recent acquisition of Saba, we are in an even better position to help our clients transition to this new reality. Not only will we increase the speed and scale of our innovation, but we now have access to nearly twice as much client data which will help us improve AI within our products. As a combined company, we are committed to accelerating these strategic innovation initiatives with the intent of helping companies address these sudden new challenges, create opportunities and transform into a resilient unbound business.
Cornerstone Partners With Microsoft to Bring Learning into the Flow of Work
Making time for learning during a busy workday is challenging. According to a recent survey, a majority of employees reported thattime is the biggest barrier to their development. But over the course of the pandemic, and even in the years before, we’ve seen how quickly business needs—and therefore, the needs for employee skills—change. Learning is more important than ever and needs to be delivered in new ways that drive accessibility and information retention. To help companies remain truly adaptable and nimble, they need to integrate learning into the flow of work. It’s why Cornerstone and Microsoft are partnering to make learning in the flow of work possible and support employees’ growing learning needs. Both of Cornerstone’s LMS platforms (Cornerstone Learning and Saba Cloud) will be integrated into Microsoft Viva—Microsoft’s new Employee Experience Platform (EXP)—to make it easy for employees to discover, share and engage with learning content without having to switch back and forth between solutions. "Cornerstone is bringing great value to organizations by integrating its solutions within Microsoft Teams, right where employees are working every day," said Kirk Koenigsbauer, COO, Experiences + Devices at Microsoft Corp. "The new Microsoft Viva empowers employees to make learning and development a natural and intuitive part of their daily work." How Cornerstone Powers Learning in the Flow of Work on the Microsoft Employee Experience Platform Powered by Microsoft 365 and experienced through Teams, Microsoft Viva seamlessly helps your organization build human connection, foster growth and wellbeing, and drive peak business performance. And now that experience encompasses learning, including the integration with Cornerstone. Incorporating learning opportunities from Cornerstone’s LMS offerings into Microsoft Viva Learning makes it easy not only to access learning, but also integrate it into the flow of work. Employees using Teams can seek out, share and/or assign learning content based on their current needs. For example, if an employee is struggling with their workload, a manager could engage in a real-time 1:1 conversation and based on that discussion, serve up training on time management or organization skills. This way, in addition to providing real-time coaching and feedback, the manager is also able to give their employee development resources in a timely and relevant manner. In another instance, an employee that’s familiar with HTML but hasn’t used the skill for a while might find a quick refresher course—rather than spending time and energy re-learning through trial-and-error. For more on the power of this partnership, watch this video announcing Microsoft Viva Learning Removing Barriers to Learning Cornerstone and Microsoft’s collaboration will help remove barriers to learning and empower organizations and their employees to grow and adapt for the future. Our learning solutions contain training to meet employee needs across on-demand learning, compliance and career development. Through this partnership and through Microsoft, employees will soon have the ability to access learning where they are, when they need it, to power stronger individual and company performance. As a leader and pioneer in learning, we’ve accumulated the largest pool of learning data and insights in the world over the course of our 20 years in business. We are thrilled to share that experience, expertise and passion with Teams and its users. Read the full announcement to learn more about Cornerstone’s partnership with Microsoft.
Customers at the Heart: Cornerstone Wins 4 Gold BHG Excellence in Tech Awards
At Cornerstone, we’re on a mission to help organizations and their people rise to become extraordinary. And we don’t take this mission lightly. As a SaaS company, one of the primary ways we realize this mission is by delivering tools and strategies that can help people grow and succeed. Our lens is not just focused on addressing a business challenge or need but also on providing a great experience for our customers and the millions of users who interface with our solutions every day. It’s why on behalf of the Cornerstone team, I’m pleased to share that Cornerstone has won Gold in four categories of the Brandon Hall Group (BHG) 2020 Excellence in Tech awards! Best Advance in Technology Innovation for the Remote Workforce: Remote Work Essentials and Cornerstone Content Anytime Best Advance in Talent Acquisition Technology: TalentLink Best Advance in Performance Management Technology: Cornerstone Performance Best Advance in Talent Management Technology for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses: Cornerstone Recruiting, Learning, and Performance As BHG explained in its announcement, "Winners of Excellence in Technology Awards are critical drivers of their organizations’ success, especially in these disruptive times. Their solutions resulted in substantial benefit to their business and the human capital management function. That is the ultimate differentiator: the positive business impact of technology these awards recognize." You can learn a lot from others' experiences, especially when the experiences are those of your peers. With this thought in mind, here are a few customer success stories that demonstrate how the above award-winning solutions are taking their organizations to the next level. The County of San Mateo helps employees adapt and transition to remote work with Cornerstone Content Anytime BHG Award: Best Advance in Technology Innovation for the Remote Workforce To help our customers shift to remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cornerstone launched Remote Work Essentials, a Cornerstone Content Anytime (CCA) subscription. This curated subscription helps organizations adapt and transition to a virtual working environment. It provides modern learning content on all of the skills needed to stay productive, connected, and mentally fit while working remotely. Take the County of San Mateo, California, as an example. CCA became a solution to help thousands of County employees adapt and transition to a new virtual working environment. Gabe Aponte, the L&D program manager at the County shares, "We’re so glad the timing [of our CCA launch] worked out because a lot of employees had to upskill at the start of shelter in place...we were getting a lot of questions, and we would send employees deep links to recommended courses, and they were taking them." Read more about the County’s story and how CCA courses became an integral part of how they support employees in the time of COVID-19, providing their people new tools and methodologies to effectively continue to perform their jobs and provide critical services to County residents. Fagron enhances the candidate and recruiter experience with TalentLink BHG Award: Best Advance in Talent Acquisition Technology One of the most effective ways to find and onboard better global talent faster is to build strong relationships between your organization and your candidates. TalentLink helps organizations like Fagron, a global pharmaceutical multiple brand organization with over 2,000 employees worldwide, identify great candidates, engage them across multiple channels, and build deeper candidate connections at every touchpoint. Auralie Blauwbloeme, global HR project manager at Fagron, put it best when she said this about TalentLink, "Our reporting not only shows us what’s going on at a hiring level but our costs and savings by not having to outsource recruitment." Learn more about how Fagron transformed its recruitment experience and improved hiring cost savings with TalentLink. RMS shifts toward agile performance management with Cornerstone Performance BHG Award: Best Advance in Performance Management Technology How do you empower your employees to do their best work? At RSM US LLP (RSM), the leading provider of audit, tax and consulting services to the middle market, good work starts with putting employees first—embracing all of the passions and talents that make them who they are. Chief talent officer for RSM Katie Lamkin and her team phased out annual performance reviews at the organization in favor of more regular performance conversations using Cornerstone’s Performance Suite. The RSM talent management team also worked with business leaders to develop a new career development framework to identify the knowledge, skills and attributes that describe success at various levels of the company. This framework became the backbone of ongoing performance discussions at RSM. Managers are encouraged to share feedback with employees regularly through the Cornerstone Performance Suite—an effort known as "Project Feedback" internally—and research shows employees feel more engaged when they have regular feedback conversations with their manager. "We know—whether it’s with our clients or our teams—the power in a relationship comes from being understood," said Lamkin. "When you feel truly understood, you feel supported and confident in achieving both your personal and professional goals." Read the full case study for more on how RSM has shifted toward agile performance management, improving the way everyone works. How Assurance provides individualized coaching and development experiences for its people BHG Award: Best Advance in Talent Management Technology for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses It can be challenging for small and medium businesses (SMB) to find the right learning and talent solutions to advance their talent game. They need the flexibility to support their people as they grow while also boosting individual employee engagement. The story of how insurance provider Assurance used Cornerstone’s end-to-end talent management solution for SMB to coordinate and execute a comprehensive people strategy is best when they tell it. "For us, Cornerstone was an investment which allowed us to provide every person at Assurance an experience that’s as unique as them," said Michele McDermott, senior vice president of human resources at Assurance. "As we expand our business and add new members to our team, we know that Cornerstone can grow with us and help us maintain and continue to refine this amazing employee culture we’ve built." With their new unified approach to performance and learning, Assurance streamlined compliance reporting, created a centralized place for all learning content, and improved the feedback process. Now, managers say they feel more empowered to have honest conversations, and employees look forward to receiving feedback to improve their day-to-day performance. Furthermore, the HR team and leaders are using performance review data to close skill gaps and to set the stage for succession planning. Read the full Assurance case study here. Our clients’ success was foundational for our success at the BHG Tech Awards "It’s clear Cornerstone has increasingly demonstrated its position as an innovator that supports the entire employee lifecycle from talent acquisition to learning management and career development, in addition to its longstanding position as a leader in learning," says Michael Rochelle, chief strategy officer at the Brandon Hall Group. Our team at Cornerstone takes great pride in this distinction. It’s an honor to help our customers bring their talent strategies to life. An unbreaking conviction drives us to ensure our clients successfully guide their people through their careers and advance their skill sets. Wherever you are on your talent journey, if you’re looking to explore how to take the right next step, talk to us. We’re here to help.
Sylvan Learning and Cornerstone Address K-12 Learning Loss with Virtual Tutoring
If anything was clear from 2020, innovation and adaptability are the foundations of a sustainable and thriving community. While I am relieved to know COVID-19 vaccinations are underway, the long-term effects of this pandemic are still unknown. How will global health be managed moving forward? When will our economy recover from closures and unemployment? And, one area I’m particularly concerned about, when will all children return to in-person learning, and how will the cumulative hours spent learning at home impact their future? Fortunately, I do believe this move to remote K-12 learning is only temporary. But what keeps me up at night is the potential long-term effects that this disruption will have on our students—particularly those more vulnerable to disruption. According to STAR Assessment results of 5.3 million students, schools reported lower rates of achievement in the areas of math and reading in 2020. And based on student assessments conducted in January 2019 and during the initial months of the pandemic in 2020, Sylvan Learning confirmed that students’ grades 3-8 are roughly three months behind in skill knowledge. And as John Bielinski, senior director of research & development at FastBridge, noted, "the data shows that we’ve reached a critical point. If we don’t place greater emphasis on remedying losses now, achievement gaps are likely to widen later." Parents Can’t Do It Alone Last Spring, when schools first closed their doors, a wave of panic rushed over many parents. How would they ensure their children properly finish up their school year from home? How would they keep an eye on their kids while juggling their own remote work situations? Like many parents, I came to terms with the fact that my kids weren’t going back to school anytime soon and got creative with their learning setup. I turned my dining room into a classroom. I got my kids computers, chairs, and headphones, and I buckled up for a few more months of balancing being a parent, a teacher, and a full-time executive director running the Cornerstone OnDemand Foundation. I'm certainly not alone. One of our incredible Cornerstone employees, Payal Shah, Director of Content Strategy and Operations at Cornerstone, who is working remotely with her husband and school-aged daughter while also completing an eMBA, candidly shared her experience: "Both my husband and I find ourselves wearing multiple hats—employee, parent, teacher, student, cook, cleaner, son, daughter. On any given day, we are hosting virtual meetings and working on deliverables while answering all clarifying questions and assisting our second-grade daughter to the best of our ability during her asynchronous study time. We would love to spend our afternoons teaching our daughter math and reading books, but with so many demands, it’s not always possible to give her the one-on-one educational support she requires right now." For all parents, keeping your kids on task during the school day while managing your own work obligations feels nearly impossible, even for those lucky enough to have flexible schedules and generous vacation time. Partnering with Sylvan Learning We at Cornerstone have taken this issue to heart. Late last year, we kicked off a collaboration with one of our long-time customers, Sylvan Learning, a leading provider of personalized tutoring for students in grades K-12. Together, we created a program called Always Learning @Home to provide discounted tutoring to the school-aged children of our employees. The tutoring sessions are held virtually and consist of one-on-one lessons with certified tutors with an emphasis on math skills and reading comprehension. This is more than just a timely perk for our employees. This type of supplemental educational support is an important tool for minimizing education loss and achievement gaps as a result of the pandemic. In fact, according to an open letter to President-elect Joe Biden proposing a solution for healing the massive learning losses of our students in math and reading, the Center for Research and Reform at Johns Hopkins University revealed new research suggesting the most effective strategy for struggling students is one-to-one tutoring. Based on the initial rollout, the program has been well-received by Cornerstone employees across the U.S. Over 100 tutoring sessions have been completed to-date, and that number is expected to grow as students return to classes in the new year. Payal, who I mentioned above, was one of the first to join the program, elaborated on her experience: "When we found a tutor that could understand my child’s needs, pace and interest, I could see the immediate benefit of this program. In addition to providing helpful resources for me and my husband to review with our daughter, the tutor we are working with makes the sessions engaging using creative learning techniques to teach math. Never before have I seen my daughter so excited to learn math, especially in a virtual setting. To witness my child’s academic confidence levels rise during a challenging time is one of the most valuable benefits I could imagine." Additionally, I was particularly warmed by the responses we heard from employees without school-aged children. They expressed deep appreciation for this benefit from Cornerstone and even offered to further support their colleagues with kids. Building on the early success of this program, I'm thrilled to share that we are now able to offer Always Learning @Home to our U.S. customers and their employees as well. This means thousands of families around the nation will have the same opportunity to support their children in the coming weeks. Putting Our People First Amidst changing circumstances, it’s critical for organizations to re-assess the needs of their people and implement policies and programs that truly put people first. Rooted in the concept of unlocking potential, Cornerstone continues to work towards making learning more accessible through its technology solutions, work with non-profits, and unique people-first policies. Through Always Learning @Home, Cornerstone is not only investing in the wellbeing and success of its people, but is also extending this investment in education to the next generation. To learn more about the Always Learning @Home program, click here.
How AI Is Shaping the Future of Work
If there’s one thing that 2020 has taught employers, it’s that agility and adaptability are essential for dealing with disruption. For many organizations, that means leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to do everything from optimizing retail operations, to streamlining supply chains and creating faster, more personalized customer service. But there is one area in particular where organizations are less bullish: how to leverage AI in the workplace to transform their people’s experience, and drive success. This doesn’t just mean using AI to automate mundane tasks that bog people down. It means using AI to help them be better at their jobs and grow in their careers. This, in turn, helps organizations uncover better insights about their business and their people, such as making helpful predictions to support productivity, restoring stability—especially in times like these—and creating long-term resiliency. But today, only 17% of organizations use AI-based solutions in their HR function, and only another 30% plan to do so by 2022, according to the Gartner Artificial Intelligence Survey. And yet, AI has the potential to increase HR scalability, recognize patterns in people’s behavior and offer personalized support where and when needed. For example, AI can surface prescriptive recommendations in areas like recruiting, learning and development, boosting engagement and retention and others. But turning this AI potential into reality doesn’t come without its challenges, from ensuring ethical and unbiased use, to implementing practical, day-to-day applications. Enter: The Cornerstone Innovation Lab for AI Today, we announced the Cornerstone Innovation Lab for AI, a new center of excellence within Cornerstone, bringing together data scientists, machine learning engineers and other experts from across the company to innovate practical and ethical ways to apply AI technology to the workplace. Through research and collaboration, the Lab aims to tackle the toughest AI questions that organizations are concerned about, such as how to preserve the human elements of work while relying on automation, and how to operationalize sensitive people data—all while preserving ethics and eliminating bias. The ultimate goal? Use AI to elevate people’s experience at work into a better, more personalized and rewarding one. The Challenges of Applying AI to the Workplace—and How to Overcome Them There’s plenty of opportunity to use AI in the workplace. From helping with HR’s recruiting activities, like filtering candidate applications and automating interview scheduling, to offering employees personalized learning recommendations to support career growth. But as more organizations consider practical use cases like these, there’s a central challenge that stands in the way: effective analysis of people data. And that’s one of the major topics that our new Lab is exploring. The format of HR data is uniquely diverse. It takes both AI algorithms and a rich breadth of HR data to derive effective, data-driven insights from the workplace. HR data tends to fall into two, diverse categories. The first is structured data, which arises from quantifiable events like how often employees engage with their training curriculums, the data candidates submit during their hiring process, employee attrition data, and career path data as employees advance and grow within their organization. Then, there is textual, unstructured data, which comes from resumes, job profiles, performance reviews and descriptions of training courses. Collectively, structured and unstructured data forms a large and varied gamut of HR data. It takes a rich collection of AI algorithms to feed off this data to generate valuable insights into the workplace. Other major challenges include privacy and security. Workplace data has powerful implications, but it is also some of the most sensitive data at any company. In addition to shielding it from external bad actors, organizations also need to consider protecting it from exposure internally, too. I asked Cornerstone’s Vice President and Chief Analytics Architect Asif Qamar to explain it: "As we analyze the data, we should not, even ourselves [at Cornerstone], become aware who this person is. We have to deal with data completely stripped of personally identifiable information." Looking beyond big data to cross-functional use cases. Many companies today claim they have AI solutions, but in actuality, they are just business intelligence tools (a.k.a. big data). Their use case streamlines one specific operation using a finite data set. To truly be AI, a solution must be applicable to a variety of flexible and changing situations, leverage data from across the organization and be able to provide predictive and intelligent decisions and recommendations. When this type of AI-driven insight is culled from a comprehensive window into the workplace, it transcends usefulness that traditionally derived analytics enables with business intelligence tools. AI Will Humanize Work—and Improve People Experience As our new Lab continues to explore these and the myriad other unique facets of AI in HR, we’re already seeing some success in applying best practices to our own AI engine. Recruiting. A component of Cornerstone’s AI engine, the Cornerstone Skills Graph, can analyze a job applicant’s resume and capture their skills even when they aren’t explicitly mentioned—a major innovation that recruiting teams can tap into. Asif explains it like this: "What our AI engine can do is infer things not mentioned in a resume. It’s studying the resumes of hundreds of millions of people and seeing the relationship between skills. It’s learning to understand those relationships in order to make accurate predictions." Learning and development. By analyzing how people engage with existing learning content—what topics they choose, how often they view it and how well they retain information—our AI engine can identify their personal learning preferences and provide methods to optimize their learning experience. Career development. And because Cornerstone’s AI engine is designed to be cross-functional, it has the capacity to extend its prescriptions beyond a single use case. For example, the Cornerstone Skills Graph not only analyzes learning behaviors, but also career trajectories. This makes it possible for the system to offer recommendations that empower employees to use their newly acquired skills to propel their careers forward. Here’s Asif again, to explain: "We have data from thousands of employees who have followed well-trodden paths. This makes it possible to make a probabilistic model for where others want to go. When we can infer that, we can make recommendations not simply based on what you have been learning recently, but also what will help you with career growth." The result is not only a better learning experience, but also a more personalized, holistic work culture designed around development. Humans Are Still More Essential Than Ever When AI is implemented successfully, the possibilities to transform (read: personalize, humanize and improve) people's experience at work become virtually limitless. But there’s one important caveat as Asif shares here: "At the end of the day, the interpretation of data is human. AI can surface interesting things for observation, but it cannot replace people. It is a decision support system to bring efficiencies and optimizations for the HR team and employees." In the pursuit of these transformative use-cases for AI in the workplace, it’s important not to overlook ethics and bias. After all, AI systems can pick up on and learn from existing patterns of, say, conscious or unconscious bias in hiring, at an organization. This is another ongoing area of focus for our data scientists. Fundamentally, AI will continue to make potentially biased predictions if the data sets are inherently biased. Two important ways to address this are to ensure the AI team is diverse and conduct adverse impact studies, something we are making a point of doing at Cornerstone. Employee-centric AI Is Key As organizations increasingly implement AI across their businesses, they must keep this goal in mind: leverage AI to improve the experience for their people in real, practical ways. Moving forward, our Lab will continue to educate business and IT leaders—as well as employees —about the role AI can have in the workplace. We’ll explore how AI can restore workforce stability, how it can support diversity initiatives, ethical ways to apply AI, and more. We look forward to sharing these topics with you in future. To learn more about the potential of AI in the workplace, visit the Cornerstone Innovation Lab for AI web page.
The H Files: Project Management, a New Series from Cornerstone Studios
While it might not be in everyone’s title, most of us have at least some experience as project managers. HR departments use project management skills when orchestrating company-wide events, and design teams might also need them when assigning roles and tasks for an upcoming website redesign. People use this skill set outside the workplace too, like planning birthday parties or mapping out vacation itineraries. Most employees already use project management skills on a daily basis, even if they aren’t a "project manager" by title. But in order for companies and their employees to succeed in the future of work, all employees need to master this skill set: According to the consultancy firm Bain & Company, by 2027 most work will be project-based. In fact, a study from the Project Management Institute estimates that employers will need 87.7 million individuals working in project management–oriented roles by 2027. The need for employees with project management skills and experience is growing and will continue to become more important into the coming decade. Project management skills encompass a variety of competencies, including organization, time management, critical thinking and effective communication. Simply put, project management skills include all the strengths necessary to complete a project on time and within the optimal parameters. While everyone has at least some level of experience using these skills, most still need training to do it better. A 2018 study from the Project Management Institute found that organizations that take steps to mature their employees’ project management capabilities have higher project success rates (92% versus 32% of underperformers), enjoy more successful business outcomes, and waste less money due to poor project performance—only 1.4% of every dollar is wasted versus 29.1% for those who don’t pay attention to their workforce’s project management capabilities. But there's a major gap when it comes to availability of training. Typical project management-specific certification and training programs are often too comprehensive for learners who just want to develop these skills, not pursue a career as a project manager. Project management training programs are becoming less common—a 2019 survey from the Project Management Institute noted that only 28% of organizations globally have planned development programs for the development of this skill set, and 61% of organizations rely instead on employees’ self-assessments to identify their project management capabilities. There is clearly a need for better, more holistic project management skills training programs. But with the COVID-19 pandemic still ongoing, asking employees to spend time on L&D training and coursework can further overwhelm workers who are already feeling burned out. What if learning was more like watching a Netflix series than taking a class? Or a fun diversion from the typical workday rather than another item on employees’ to-do lists? With Cornerstone Studios new learning series, The H Files: Project Management, it’s possible. The H Files Is Learning Content that Edutains Viewers As Head of Original Content at Cornerstone, I oversaw the Cornerstone Studios team that worked on The H Files: Project Management series. This team—a scrappy group of learning content creators—is on a mission to create innovative content that’s entertaining, effective and geared towards the preferences of today’s media-savvy learners. In The H Files: Project Management, my team pulled inspiration from some of today’s most popular shows—we wanted to create a series that was as quirky as Comedy Central’s Drunk History but as educational and visually pleasing as Netflix’s "Explained." When production for The H Files: Project Management began, the world was two months into the COVID-19 pandemic. With lock-down orders in effect, we couldn’t go out into the field to produce or shoot new content. We had to pull from existing sources so they turned to history textbooks. In each of the ten, four-minute long episodes, The H Files: Project Management uses archived footage, videos and images combined with original animation to transport viewers back in time to examine some of history’s mismanaged projects and how these blunders could have been avoided if basic project management skills were implemented. Video of Introducing: H Files (full trailer) But this series isn’t your average history lesson (or L&D course). It’s specifically designed to "edutain" viewers—to educate and entertain them at the same time. And with its tongue-and-cheek narration, fast-paced episode arches and quirky design and animation choices, The H Files does just that. In each episode, viewers learn about the importance of certain project management skills, like setting clear goals at the start of a project, through the mistakes made during the construction of some of history’s most well-known landmarks, like Sydney Opera House and the Brooklyn Bridge. For example, in one episode, viewers examine the hefty consequences that one architect faced because he didn’t set realistic expectations on the costs and timing of a construction project. The series is more effective and memorable because it’s connected to historic examples that individuals already know, understand and can imagine. And to help ensure employees are able to use the series’ takeaways in their everyday job tasks, each episode of The H Files comes with a worksheet that highlights key takeaways that employees can refer back to in the future. For example, if employees forget how to set up a risk table—a topic explored in the series—they can refer back to the worksheets to remind them. Right now, employees don’t need another assignment—they need an opportunity to relax and take care of themselves, all while continuing to learn and develop. The H Files: Project Management aims to satiate both of these needs and entertain learners while giving them the opportunity to invest in themselves and their company’s future. To learn more about Cornerstone Studios’ new series, The H Files: Project Management, and its project management skills training, click here.
Cornerstone Originals — It's Our First Birthday!
Just about a year ago, we launched our first-ever Cornerstone Originals learning series—Digital Native Advancement (DNA)—and watched with excitement as our customers took it and ran! DNA embodied everything we wanted in our flagship Cornerstone Original. It was innovative and strategic, but it also captured our goal of amplifying a trending topic in a new way. And that type of innovation doesn’t come easy. This team—Cornerstone Studios—represents the best of the content business. We’re storytellers, videographers, writers, curators, dreamers, strategists, artists, but most of all, we’re a team of learners. And over the past year, this team has accomplished incredible things. We’ve stretched ourselves to create and innovate through constraints—and boy did we have a lot of constraints in 2020. The biggest of which was when our workplace shifted overnight from in-person to work-from-home. We closed both our New York and Los Angeles Studios back in March. And since then, we’ve had to find a new way to produce content. Enter the Cornerstone Boom Box—our remote production kits. Our team valiantly took on the task of shooting all new footage using iPhone 11s and remote set-directing through WebEx without missing a beat! All in all, we produced 10(!) programs using the Cornerstone Boom Box. It’s been an honor to lead such a talented, hardworking team and to see everything they’ve accomplished in the face of adversity during the first year of Cornerstone Originals. For those of you who have been with us along this journey, thank you. We’re just getting started. You’ll love what we have planned for this next year. Stay tuned to find out. If you’re not as familiar with all of the great Cornerstone Originals content, you can explore it here.
Top Five Takeaways From Convergence 2020
This year’s Cornerstone Convergence was like no other—but then again, this entire year has been like no other. Though virtual, the conference had no shortage of announcements, energy and predictions for the future as attendees gathered remotely to reflect on the changing world of work. The consensus? Work is undergoing perhaps its biggest transformation yet, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Employers have the opportunity to help employees thrive under today’s difficult conditions and emerge more productive, engaged and happy on the other end. How? Read on for our top five takeaways from Convergence 2020 and learn more ways to set your workforce up for success, resilience and growth and check out this recap video for more! 1. Change Is Constant It’s tempting to believe that there will come a day when the pandemic is over, and disruption will cease. But even if COVID-19 disappears tomorrow, change will always happen one way or another. Whether it’s technology that redefines a certain element of work, or a law that shakes up hiring practices, there’s no way to know what’s coming next. But that doesn’t mean companies can’t prepare, Cornerstone CEO Phil Saunders said during his Convergence keynote. The best way to get ready for change is to accept its inevitability, and embrace it as an opportunity for healthy transformation and growth, recommended Jeff Miller, Cornerstone’s CLO and VP of Organizational Effectiveness, 2. Learning Is Key For Thriving Through Disruption Learning is fundamental to developing the kind of nimbleness that work today requires. From soft skills that make workers more flexible, to hard skills that are required for some roles and everyday tasks, gaining knowledge means personal growth and better professional contributions, analyst Josh Bersin explained. Skills are the currency of the future, and while it’s up to employees to seek learning and development, it’s also up to employers to provide the right learning platform and content. To be effective, learning content has to be easy-to-digest, relevant and delivered when it’s most needed, typically in the flow of work. And, the platform that content is delivered through must be smart, user-friendly and dynamic, constantly evolving to meet changing needs. "Imagine a tomorrow where skills are obsolete in months not years. Where careers are a portfolio, not a life-time job. Where reskilling, upskilling and unlearning is everyone's job. Welcome to the New Normal," Ira Wolfe, president of Success Performance Solutions said, reflecting on the Convergence conference. 3. Transformation Requires the Right Toolset One of the key themes at this year’s Convergence was that anyone can be extraordinary and unbound, meaning uninhibited by yesterday’s constraints or today’s obstacles. But this level of transformation requires technology to enable it, Heidi Spirgi, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer, said. Tools like blockchain, skills ontologies, AI and machine learning will play a role in making work better by optimizing key "people" processes, like performance management, hiring and employee development. "A robot isn’t going to take your job. But unless you master tomorrow’s most important workplace characteristic—adaptability—you may give your job away to one," Wolfe said. 4. Personalized Journeys Will Drive Employee Engagement Gone are the days of career "ladders." There’s no pre-defined template for development as employees gain more autonomy than ever in shaping their careers, developing their skills and growing as individuals. To support efforts like succession planning and prevent challenges like organizational skills gaps, employers must recognize the importance of personalized employee journeys and facilitate them, providing ample ways for employees to identify their goals and attain new skills. When given the freedom and resources to learn and challenge themselves, employees will step up to the plate, eventually rising to fill greater roles as they gain new skills—even without a metaphorical "ladder" to climb. 5. Technology Is Important, but Humanity Matters Most While technology will continue to play an increasingly important role at work, humanity still matters above all else, said Vincent Belliveau, Cornerstone’s EMEA Chief Executive. People should be at the center of every organizational decision, whether it’s the introduction of a different remote work policy, the adoption of cutting edge tools or the rollout of a new initiative. From iterating DE&I practices to reflect the growing calls for social change, to providing adequate support to working parents as they navigate their new normal, there are so many difficult challenges to solve in the months ahead. As employers and employees continue to grapple with these difficult questions, our shared humanity is the only way forward. Missed Cornerstone Convergence? Visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. All sessions are available on demand until October 31, 2020. And keep the conversation going! Follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media channels, visit: Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Adam Grant at Convergence: Do You Empower Your Organizational "Givers"?
At our fully virtual Convergence conference, organizational psychologist and host of the WorkLife podcast Adam Grant began his closing keynote session with a statement: Takers are people who ask, "What can you do for me?" while givers are people who ask, "What can I do for you?" What does this mean in an organizational setting? For companies, hiring "givers" and empowering them at work could mean the difference between a productive, happy work culture and a toxic one. In a world overcome with a global pandemic, social unrest, blurred work-life balance, and more, leaders must work to build a culture of givers and productive generosity. Adam offered these strategies for making it happen: Keep the Wrong People Off the Bus: When it comes to hiring, screen out the biggest takers, those who put on a façade of generosity. Don’t ask about their own behavior—instead ask about other people’s behavior. When we answer questions about others, we often end up projecting our own behavior. Takers anticipate selfish behavior from others—and that’s how they justify their actions. Start on the Right Foot: Once you’ve screened out the selfish takers, consider onboarding practices that help people contribute in meaningful ways. Flip exit interviews upside down and conduct entry interviews. Ask employees about their first month in the job and learn how to customize their role to their strengths. Strengthen Remote Culture: People miss structure and the sense of community that comes with working in an office setting. One of the challenges of remote work environments is disengagement. Set structured time to interact and solve problems together. If you want to let your givers shine, encourage them to come up with independent ideas and then bring the group together to evaluate and refine ideas. Create Psychological Safety: When people feel psychologically safe, they are more likely to innovate and less likely to make mistakes. "Don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions" is a dangerous philosophy. If people can only speak up when they have a solution, you’ll never hear about problems. Create a space where people can safely raise issues: turn a question box into a problem box and encourage participation from givers and takers. Harness the Strength of Weak Ties: Assist others in giving and receiving help from and to other individuals they consider to be "weak ties" because the best person to ask isn’t always the one you’re closest to. In most cases, people are willing to be givers but often don’t know what other people need. The cultures of help-giving are also the cultures of help-seeking. Prevent Giver Rebound: This is particularly important in the current world as the boundaries of work and home are blurred. You don’t have to give in every relationship. Effective givers are at high-risk for burnout and exhaustion. As a giver, be thoughtful about who you help, how you help and when you help. Want to watch Adam’s keynote in full? It’s available on demand, along with all the other Convergence sessions until October 31st! To watch anything you missed during the conference, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. All sessions are available on demand until October 31, 2020. And keep the conversation going! Follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media channels, visit: Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Convergence Day Two: Technology Can Empower People to Be Extraordinary
Day 2 has come and gone. Our first fully virtual Cornerstone Convergence is now in the books! On Day 1, presenters introduced all of the future opportunities that working in the new normal promises, and Day 2 speakers continued the conversation, highlighting the role that technology will play in empowering people to be extraordinary in the new world of work. The day was bookended by two awesome keynotes, starting with our Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer Heidi Spirgi, and concluding with the inspiring Adam Grant, organizational psychologist and host of the WorkLife podcast. Jam-packed in between were hours of information and engaging sessions, networking, learning and fun—let’s dig in! People Can Be Extraordinary—Opening Keynote from Heidi Spirgi Heidi’s keynote was a great jumping point from the introduction of Cornerstone’s new mission and vision shared yesterday by Cornerstone CEO Phil Saunders in his opening address. She acknowledged that yes, the world is changing but that we can choose to be a driver of that change or become a victim of it. Decide to be extraordinary—to adapt, create, learn, grow, change. To become unbound. So what does it mean to be extraordinary? Heidi shared this video to explain it further. Video of "Unbound" Technology plays a key role in meeting these needs, and Heidi shared how Cornerstone is tapping into emerging technologies to deliver a more modern, personalized, intelligent and uniquely human people development experience. Tools like blockchain, skills ontologies, AI and machine learning are no longer buzzwords. They enable people to become extraordinary, and allow employees to be understood, guided and belong. Heidi closed out her session with an inspirational message. "The world will change after this pandemic but human ingenuity can change it for the better," she said. People can be extraordinary and can be unbound by yesterday’s constraints. And when people are unbound, when people are extraordinary, they can deliver extraordinary results." Hitting the Digital Transformation Highway Our EMEA attendees also had the opportunity to hear from Vincent Belliveau, Cornerstone’s EMEA Chief Executive, on how HR plays a crucial role in helping organizations not only navigate uncertainty, but also accelerate through it as they embrace digital transformation. Vincent emphasized that while it can be an enabler, no amount of new technology or innovative approaches will work if they are not fundamentally people centric. He then shared four priorities that will accelerate HR transformation. Help your company adapt to the new ways of work. Develop a strong skills strategy—it’s business-critical. Get behind the power of data to speed up decision-making, increase efficiencies. Embrace automation in order to make space for people to grow or try something new. Vincent closed by urging attendees to put their people first at every stage of change and to "never take your foot off the pedal" of transformation. Emerging Tools for Transformation Empowering people to be extraordinary requires giving them the tools to do so. In Performance and learning: The key to unlocking people potential, a panel of Cornerstone customers including Kristy Touchet from Home Bank, Patrick Sorensen from GSI and Lorie Hess from The Bama Companies discussed how combining the performance and learning platforms has been a game changer for employee development—even during COVID-19. "Development doesn’t stop during tough times, in fact it’s more important than ever," Lorie said. But employees aren’t the only ones that must be empowered to be extraordinary—HR teams need the right technology as well. In How to leverage AI to create an exceptional user experience, Cornerstone’sownLars Eichhof and Duncan Miller shared their recommendations for AI, machine learning and automation. These tools, they said, are tackling the challenge of scanning an increasing volume of candidates and choosing quality talent among them. Learning Will Drive Work in the New Normal The "new normal" isn’t quite "new" anymore, Cornerstone’s Jeff Miller, CLO and VP of Organizational Effectiveness, and Kimberly Cassady, CTO, pointed out in 10 things leaders need to know in the new normal. "We need to be proactively making change before we have to reactively make or respond to it," Jeff said. What does that look like in practice? Jeff and Kim offered these 10 recommendations: One other critical ingredient for the new normal? Learning.In a panel discussion on Creating A Scalable Skills Development Culture, Vincent Belliveau connected with Meredith Taghi, from Deutsche Post DHL, Nina Bressler Murphy, from Novartis Learning Institute and Loh Gek Khim, from the Singapore Skills Framework. The conversation focused on how "skills are really the currency of the future" to power people development that in turn powers organizational growth and business transformation through skills mastery. Global Industry Analyst Josh Bersin echoed the importance of skills in his session on High Velocity Learning in the Pandemic Every individual, every employee, every manager and every executive must understand that there is a transformation going on in their jobs, in their individual lives, in their companies and their business models. And learning is key to transformation. For learning to be effective, organizations need to rely on the right content, the Cornerstone Content team explained in Delivering the right content to the right people at the right time. As we adapt to the new normal, professional skills training is essential and learning must be accessible anytime, anywhere. The key takeaway? Employees need to be equipped to adapt and prepare for the changes in their personal and professional lives—our content offering has the courses to enable your employees to do just that. Already, clients are using content to more effectively reach learners with timely, relevant resources. In How to engage learners in a rapidly changing world, a client spotlight session featuring Bancorp, Hulu and Davita Kidney Care, customers shared how they’ve used content to cope with the pandemic and ongoing social issues. Bancorp, for example, introduced a playlist of courses to train employees and managers around racial bias. Hulu, meanwhile, has recently rebuilt its learner experience to model its consumer platform, creating a more intuitive and easy-to-use platform for their employees. Building a Resiliency for Change—and the Future As employees accept the "new normal" and work towards embracing it, mindset and organizational culture will be foundational to empowering them. In his session, Building mindfulness, resilience and mental wellbeing skills in a changing world, Joe Burton, founder of Whil, shared some of the key stressors, both big and small, that occupy employees’ minds today. But, there is a way to cope with these anxieties: practicing mindfulness, self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills. "Employees need to bring these skills with them every day," Joe said. "Cornerstone and Saba, through the partnership with Whil make these skills attainable." Closing Keynote by Adam Grant on Creating a Culture of Productive Generosity To wrap up day 2 of Convergence and the conference as a whole, organizational psychologist, bestselling author, and host of WorkLife, a TED original podcast, Adam Grant took the virtual stage to share his tips for nurturing givers, who are essential to a positive—and resilient—organizational culture. Adam stated a simple goal for organizations: Recognize the importance of people who believe in generosity and care about each other—they aren’t values you should leave at the (home) office door. If we can do a better job supporting and nurturing givers (and shielding them from takers), we’ll move towards a world where people can build better relationships and strong communities, and get more work done, too. Thanks for an inspiring keynote to end Convergence, Adam! Exploring, Networking and Learning In between sessions, attendees today also took time to explore Cornerstone and Convergence sponsors (thank you, sponsors!). In the virtual expo hall, sponsors including JazzHR, Kokoroe, XOS and many others shared engaging videos about their products and answered questions via live chat, from explaining how to use certain features to sharing origin stories about their company name. As part of the Explore Cornerstone feature, attendees learned about Cornerstone’s products too, scheduling demos and speaking directly to product experts. There was plenty to learn, and plenty of ways to engage, from getting involved with the Cornerstone Foundation, an organization service nonprofits around the world, to applying for a client RAVE award! Our favorite part of exploring? Seeing attendees exchange recommendations in the product chats! With a shorter day of sessions on day two, attendees enjoyed some moments of zen, following guided meditations from Whil, and squeezing in some yoga. Even ten-minutes was enough to take the pressure off and decompress! And That’s a Wrap of #CSODConf20! With this first ever virtual Convergence behind us, we eagerly await our next opportunity to connect with all of you. Until then, we’re so grateful that you’ve joined us on this journey. Let’s take a look back on some of our favorite social moments of the day. We’ll see you again soon! To watch any sessions you missed during the conference, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. And keep the conversation going! Follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media channels, visit: Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Convergence Day 1: Today’s New Normal Promises Future Opportunities
The first fully virtual Cornerstone Convergence kicked off today and there is just so much to tell you about the event! Under the conference theme of "unbound thinking," Cornerstone clients, partners and employees from across the globe engaged in sessions, networking chats and Q&As to explore how organizations—and their people—can revisit and replace yesterday’s thinking with fresh perspectives needed for our new world of work. On behalf of everyone at Cornerstone we’d like to send a special thank you to our remarkable customers for sharing how they're using our technology to drive talent development outcomes in their organizations. Now, let's check out some highlights from Day 1! Navigating the Now of Work—Opening Keynote from Cornerstone CEO Phil Saunders "Is this what you expected?" To kick off Convergence 2020, Cornerstone CEO Phil Saunders asked a question that over 17,000 attendees likely had the same answer to: definitely not. None of us could have predicted that we’d be attending Convergence from our home office (or couch or kitchen table). The future of work is now, and this new reality is calling on people and organizations to think and act differently. Phil touched on the changes that are on the horizon for Cornerstone that will enable people to rise to be extraordinary and be drivers of innovation. The company’s new mission and vision is customer-centric, focused on investment in innovation and a continued commitment to the work of the Cornerstone OnDemand foundation. Phil also introduced three key tenets guiding Cornerstone’s vision and mission: to help people be understood, be guided and belong. Phil closed his talk with a note of appreciation for the opportunity to foster connections and conversations with customers, partners and employees at Convergence. With over 50 sessions across five tracks, Convergence 2020 delivers an unmatched opportunity to learn from an amazing group of talent leaders and innovators about navigating change, empowering employees, embracing innovative technology—and much more. Navigating Constant Change—in 2020 and Beyond The need to navigate constant change echoed across almost all of the sessions on Day 1—no matter the topic. In the panel discussion, Identifying the right skills and content strategies to navigate unprecedented change, Cornerstone’s own Summer Salomonsen and Mark Lamswood engaged Liggy Webb, award-winning author and thought leader on human resilience, in a conversation adaptability. They discussed how curiosity and an openness to challenging ourselves are key to handling unprecedented transformation. Learning content can also help drive change in the workplace—so that organizations can transition from a place of anxiety to action, achieving in a matter of weeks what might have taken years. Another critical role of learning content is its ability to advance diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across companies. Several sessions today reminded us that addressing racism doesn’t have an end date; and fostering a more diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace is more than an HR strategy. Supporting leaders in developing inclusive leadership capabilities is just the start. Embracing a Personalized, Enriched Employee Journey The three key tenants (be understood, be guided and belong) CEO Phil Saunders outlined in his keynote came alive in many of today’s sessions focused on putting employees first. The onboarding experience is a critical step to encourage new hires to feel welcomed and have a clear vision about their role. In Building a world-class onboarding approach, Pamela Greenwood, IT Officer and Makarand Kulkarni, Senior Business Solutions Officer for World Bank Group shared how they used Cornerstone Onboarding to successfully onboard 940 new hires in one year! In LEADing the way: Innovating an award-winning leadership development strategy, John Niedzielski and Lynda Cribari from Davenport University shared how they partnered with Cornerstone to develop a suite of leadership offerings to increase employee engagement. Driving Innovation with Disruptive Technology Once employees are comfortable navigating change and feel engaged in their growth, they’re able to lean into new technologies to drive innovation. Candidates, employees, hiring managers, and HR are all feeling the impact as talent acquisition teams undergo a period of unique change. In Assemble the best people for today and tomorrow, TalentLink experts shared the key to better communication—trust, transparency and authenticity—and the capabilities available within TalentLink to enable it. Another session highlighted the massive opportunity of blockchain to match talent to career opportunities with a single, employee-owned source of truth. Finally, Talespin CEO Kyle Jackson engaged Manal Houri, Head of Digital Transformation, Facebook Learning and Development and JoAnne Rossouw, Head of Digital Learning at Nestle in a discussion aboutBuilding leadership and communication skills using virtual reality. Both Facebook and Nestle are at different stages of their journeys in implementing VR as a learning modality but the potential is recognized. "It provides a safe space for learners to learn," commented Rossouw. "Once we started using the format where a person gets in a VR headset, we started to see mindsets shift," Houri added. Of Course, Cornerstone Made Several Announcements at #CSODCONF20 While sessions kicked off on Day 1 of the conference, Cornerstone also made several key announcements aligned to its new vision, strategy and innovation commitments, and we’re excited to share them here. Cornerstone welcomes Ajay Awatramani as Chief Product Officer! Ajay will lead product strategy, management and design as the company doubles down on its vision to accelerate innovation and further strengthen its leading people development solutions. Introducing the Cornerstone Skills Graph, an AI-powered skills engine that has been built into the company’s portfolio of products. The technology enables organizations and their people to implement "strategic skilling" — the practice of matching skills to people, learning content and job roles — to predict, prepare for and quickly respond to dynamic business changes. Cornerstone report on Skills Development reveals significant confidence gap between businesses and their people. This global study uncovers the greatest challenges organizations face when it comes to helping their employees develop new skills and offers practical advice for closing confidence gaps related to skills development. Read a conversation about the findings between Heidi Spirgi and Mike Bollinger on Cornerstone’s ReWork, or click here to access the full report "A License to Skill: Embracing the Reskilling Revolution." Expanded collaboration between the Cornerstone OnDemand Foundation and Project HOPE, a nonprofit global health and humanitarian organization. This new online curriculum teaches frontline healthcare workers how to safely screen, triage and treat COVID-19 patients in remote regions. Starting today, the courses offered through Project HOPE will now be available in more languages, including English and Spanish, and in new regions, including Africa. To date, more than 2,800 learners in 139 countries have taken approximately 5,000 hours of training, and demand for the online learning program continues to grow. Amazing! Academy Award-winning Actor, Producer and Philanthropist Viola Davis on "Being True to Yourself" Day 1 of Convergence ended with an inspiring closing keynote with the truly awesome Viola Davis and Cornerstone's Chief Learning Officer and VP of Organizational Effectiveness Jeff Miller. Their conversation centered on why we need to embrace and own our life story. As Viola explained, we are the amalgamation of everything that has come before us. Not only must you accept and own your life story, you also need to share that story. Because when we share our stories, we begin to understand ourselves and others more, which fosters empathy. Viola's final guiding message was centered on developing a giving mindset. Recognize that every decision you make leaves a crumb, a legacy for the future generation. Accept your past to release your blessings, then give of yourself - however small, to build something better. Fun, Networking & Food! Yes, Food! Finally, it wouldn’t be Convergence without great conversations, fun and food! Live from Los Angeles, Chef Curtis Stone joined Convergence to teach us how to cook a mouth-watering pasta dish: ricotta cavatelli with sage brown butter and parmesan. Yum-mazing! And for the home chefs who really wanted to kick it up a notch, Chef Curtis taught attendees how to make homemade ricotta. The chat was buzzing with hungry attendees - and if you watched live, you know that the automatic pepper mill really stole the show! Take a look at a few of the Day 1 moments captured and shared by attendees! Look at that mise en place! And That’s a Wrap for Day 1 of Convergence! Thanks again to everyone who participated. There were so many insightful speakers and sessions today—with more to come in Day 2! To watch any sessions you missed on Day 1 and to see what’s planned for the Day 2 agenda, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. And keep the conversation going! Follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media channels: Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Countdown to Convergence: Customize Your Conference Experience
Cornerstone Convergence is only six short days away! Since it’s an all-virtual event this year, you have the unique opportunity to personalize your Convergence experience by designing a custom schedule and choosing the sessions that most interest you. Below you’ll find details on the different tracks you can attend this year, along with a video guide for customizing your schedule. This is your Convergence—here’s how to make the most of it! Introducing the Convergence Virtual Event Platform Before you start designing your conference experience, take the time to explore your options and access the full agenda on the Convergence website. In addition to the keynote sessions, there are five different tracks to choose from: Product Training Labs, Product Discussions, Bold Thinkers, Tech Talks and Client Spotlight. And keep in mind—you don’t have to commit to one track. Feel free to mix and match your session options! Maybe you start the day in the Bold Thinkers track, and then shuffle to Product Discussions or Tech Talks tracks later in the day. Here’s a little more information on each track: Product Training Labs: Go beyond "what’s new" to "how to" with guidance from our training experts. Each lab will explore a variety of practical use cases and provide tips and tricks for better administering your current solutions, helping you develop a sharper understanding of your current products and expand your proficiencies in managing them for your organization. Product Discussions: Learn more about the latest capabilities and plans for your current solutions and the new offerings your organization might want to explore. You’ll not only get exclusive looks at our upcoming product roadmap but you'll also get to explore several hidden gems that can help you drive adoption and make the most of your current products. Bold Thinkers: Cornerstone and other industry bold thinkers discuss topics that will help you align your talent strategy to your evolving business strategy. Covering the latest talent research and the bold concepts shaping industries, these talks are designed to inspire you with new ideas about the future of work and your role in shaping it. Tech Talks: These sessions focus on some of the most popular topics your IT experts want to explore — from cloud and products to data and privacy — you’ll hear firsthand from our technology team about our latest platform advancements and technology direction. Client Spotlights: Imagination. Innovation. Inspiration. These sessions bring together industry peers from across our customer community to share ideas and success stories. Hear about lessons learned in using Cornerstone solutions to attract, develop, and retain talent, and how these clients delivered strategic outcomes for their organizations. Choose Your Convergence Adventure! Once you’ve explored the conference agenda and have an idea of which sessions you’d like to attend, it’s time to choose your Convergence adventure! Start by signing into the Convergence platform using your login information, which will be sent Monday, September 14th to all registered attendees via email. If you haven’t received an email by September 14th, try searching your inbox (including your spam folder!) or contact us at convergence@csod.com). Once you’re logged into the event platform, you’ll want to create your profile and make sure that your time zone and region are correct. Then, it’s time to select the sessions you’d like to attend! To add events to your agenda, simply enroll in the sessions you’d like to attend and they will be added to your ’My Agenda’ page. Click here to watch a video explaining how to bookmark a session and explore other Convergence activities via the platform. Network with Speakers and Peers Throughout Convergence Once the conference starts, follow your agenda to attend the sessions you’ve selected. In between sessions, use the chat bubble icon at the top of the homepage to chat with peers and Cornerstars. Each session will also have a chatroom where you can engage in discussions with fellow attendees. Some sessions will also have live Q&A to engage speakers too! Announcing a Cook-Along with Curtis Stone! You’ll want to get shopping for the latest addition to the agenda: an exclusive LIVE cook-along with celebrity chef Curtis Stone on September 16 from 1:30–2:30 pm PT / 4:30–5:30 pm ET / 12:30-13:30 pm BST. Chef Curtis is a master when it comes to rolling pasta dough, and he’ll share his tips and tricks while teaching you how to make handmade ricotta cavatelli with sage brown butter and parmesan. Yum. No need to sign up for the live cook-along in advance. You already have free access to the session because you registered to attend Convergence; simply enroll in the activity when you access the platform—along with the 40+ other sessions you won’t want to miss. ;) Here are the ingredients you need to cook along with Chef Curtis: Cavatelli 115 g (4 oz) fresh, very soft ricotta cheese 5 g (≈1 1/2 tbsp) beaten egg 15 g (≈1 1/8 tbsp) parmesan cheese, microplane 100 g (≈3/4 cups) plain flour Sauce 13 oz broccoli florets with 1-inch stems 8 tbsp unsalted butter 1/2 cup coarsely chopped basil 1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice Salt and pepper Extra virgin olive oil for serving Parmesan Tuile 3 oz grated parmesan cheese Don’t fancy getting your hands dirty? Then join the session to pick up tips and tricks, save a new recipe for later and have a good time! Join in on the Fun and Games! While Convergence is virtual this year there is still tons of opportunity to network and engage in fun experiences throughout the conference. From the Convergence platform select the "Fun and Games" icon to join a yoga or meditation session, check out what people are saying on social, or as mentioned earlier, cook along with Curtis Stone! Every action you take during the conference, whether it's participating in Fun & Games, completing your profile, attending sessions, participating in chats or visiting our sponsor booths, will help you earn points. And you’ll want to collect as many points as you can because they will put you in the running for some amazing prizes—like a Peloton bike package, a Breville Express machine, Apple Airpods and more! Join the Convergence Experience From Anywhere, At Any Time We’re excited to offer you a global conference this year, enabling attendees to watch from anywhere in the world. And if you can’t make all of the live sessions, that’s okay! They will all be made available on-demand, so you can watch them at a later time. Will we see you at #CSODConf20? If you haven’t registered for Convergence yet, then what are you waiting for? It’s all-virtual, all free and offers plenty of learning, connection, and fun! To register and build your personalized session schedule, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. If you’ve already registered, be on the lookout for your registration email. See you September 16th and 17th! Click here for a video on how to navigate the virtual Convergence platform and create your own conference agenda. And to follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media, visit our Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Cartoon Coffee Break: Virtual Conferences Are Here to Stay
Editor's Note: This post is part of our "Cartoon Coffee Break" series. While we take talent management seriously, we also know it's important to have a good laugh. Check back regularly for a new ReWork cartoon Virtual conferences are a relatively new addition in our world of work—and even after the pandemic has passed, they’re likely here to stay. They offer numerous benefits, like increased accessibility, cost savings and have smaller environmental footprints. And the attendee experience is only improving as companies across industries learn how to make these events as worthwhile online as they were in-person. For example, we’ve learned that virtual conferences feel fake if they’re too polished. Organizers should make space for ’human’ moments and shouldn’t edit out pauses, stumbles or bits of raw emotion. In a recent webcast, Arianna Rehak, the CEO of Matchbox Virtual, reiterated the importance of ’being real’ with attendees, saying: "Create a positive conversational environment that signals to others that they can join. That can be as simple as being the first to say, ’Hey, really excited to be here and get started.’ That will set the right tone." Including interludes or adding breaks to the event schedule can also help with attendee engagement. In addition, it’s important to make time for the breaks that occur naturally in-person. Virtual musical performances, games, quizzes, workout classes—or even dance parties!—are a great way to give everyone’s mind a break. This month, Cornerstone’s annual Convergence conference is going all-virtual—and we took these lessons to heart when building out our two-day program. We’ll not only include inspiring, authentic keynotes from different personalities and experts, but we’ll also offer attendees a place to connect and network with other industry professionals through digital forums and in-session chats. And to ensure that attendees have an opportunity for a break, Convergence will offer virtual yoga and meditation sessions, virtual photo booths and a cooking demonstration from a Michelin-starred chef! We hope you'll join us on September 16 and 17! To register for either the Americas or EMEA Cornerstone Convergence and build your personalized session schedule, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com.
Meet the Bold Thinkers Taking the Stage at Convergence 2020
Last week, we announced the agenda for our first ever, fully-virtual Cornerstone Convergence conference! Convergence Unbound is a two-day conference jam packed with insightful content geared toward helping global HR and talent leaders navigate an unbound, uncertain future. Now, we’re delighted to share more about Bold Thinkers, a dedicated track designed to highlight industry leading perspectives on the future of work—and talent management’s place in it.These experts will cover the latest research and concepts shaping our industry—designed to inspire with new ideas for shaping the future of work. Here’s a preview of what our Bold Thinkers will talk about—everything from skills development to mental wellbeing. Liggy Webb on How to Navigate Unprecedented Change We are all experiencing a time of intense change as employees navigate new normals. Today, teams reckon with what ’remote’ means—all while processing the impact of a global pandemic. Liggy Webb, award winning and bestselling author and thought leader on human resilience has some ideas on the matter. She’ll join Summer Salomonsen, head of Cornerstone Studios and Mark Lamswood, regional director for Cornerstone Content, as they discuss the best ways to address change head-on and highlight the value of designing plans for an uncertain future with skills front-of-mind. Here’s Liggy Webb explaining her Convergence 2020 session: Video of Convergence 2020: Liggy Webb Josh Bersin on the Marketplace of Innovation In this research-based presentation, global industry analyst Josh Bersin will present a comprehensive overview of the state of corporate skills development. He’ll discuss the emerging role of skills platforms, how they work and how to make sense of the market. Bersin will also explore how content and skills converge for employee learning, development, recruiting, and careers. Attendees will walk away understanding the answers to these questions: What is a skills cloud and how do I understand these platforms? What is the emerging role of technical skills and soft skills and how can we develop people in an integrated way? Joe Burton on Building Mindfulness, Resilience and Mental Wellbeing Skills Did you know that the emotional wellbeing of employees is the top concern for 93% of employers? In this experiential session, Joe Burton, CEO of digital training platform Whil (Cornerstone’s new content partner), will share why mindfulness can—and should—be a central element of the workplace of the future. Burton will also offer tactical and practical mindfulness techniques for use in work and life. "At Convergence, I’ll be speaking about mindfulness as the foundational skill for resilience and wellbeing," says Burton. "In my session you’ll learn practical techniques that you can immediately apply. You’ll walk away understanding how best to help employees manage stress while improving focus, learning and collaboration in high performance cultures." Kim Cassady and Jeff Miller on What Leaders Need to Know in the New Normal What do leaders need to be thinking about when it comes to the future of work? This is a question that goes beyond operational and health and safety necessities of reopening offices. The future of work requires a fundamental shift in how organizations empower people to connect, collaborate and get work done. And that shift requires a people-centric approach across a broad spectrum of talent and development strategies. In this session, Cornerstone’s Kim Cassady, Chief Talent Officer, and Jeff Miller, AVP, Learning and Organizational Effectiveness, will provide a deeper understanding of how leaders cultivate a more mindful approach to coaching and developing people to adapt and thrive in the face of uncertainty. A preview of the conversation from Kim Cassady: "The amount of dramatic change we’ve all experienced in 2020—in life and at work—has left people feeling insecure about today and uncertain about tomorrow. Organizational leaders need to help their people cultivate the right skills and mindset to adapt and move forward. This session is a conversation about how important it is for leaders to cultivate a more people-centric approach to connecting, developing and meeting the unique needs of their people to adapt and thrive through change and uncertainty." Novartis and the Government of Singapore on Creating a Scalable Skills Development Culture Organizations are struggling to keep pace with the acceleration of technology in today’s world amidst major shifts in employee and customer expectations. As organizations adjust their strategies to meet these shifting dynamics, how can talent leaders identify the expertise required today (and tomorrow) to deliver on key priorities and stay competitive? How do you engage your people in upskilling and reskilling so they are ready to adapt and lead through change? This panel will feature leading organizations—Novartis and the Government of Singapore—as they share insight into their ambitious visions for scaling skills development. The session will cover strategy and capability-building at both the organizational and personal level. It will also offer recommendations for engaging people in skills programs that create a culture focused on people development to help thrive through innovation. "Skills are top on every CHRO mind these days. What was true six months ago in the urgency of preparing your people for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges is acutely more important now in our new reality of work" says Vincent Belliveau, Chief Executive, EMEA, Cornerstone. "I’m very excited to be moderating this panel from our global community and sharing their insights into the importance of understanding organizational needs, identifying and mapping workforce skills, and developing their people’s skills to adapt and innovate in the future. We’ll be talking more about the outcomes they are working towards, the importance of creating an employee experience that creates a learning culture, the notion of an internal talent marketplace and how individuals play a role in creating broader change." The Bold Thinkers track at Convergence 2020 promises to deliver authoritative perspectives on the very future of work—and offer guidance to talent leaders looking for clarity during a time of immense change. It’s going to be insightful, useful and interactive. What more could you want? To learn more about the Bold Thinkers line-up and build your personalized Convergence session schedule, visit: www.cornerstoneconvergence.com. To follow Cornerstone Convergence 2020 on social media channels, visit: Twitter @CSODConvergence, Instagram @CornerstoneOnDemand and Facebook @Cornerstoneconvergence. You can engage with the conversation using #CSODConf20.
Sneak Peek: Preview the Customer Stories You’ll Hear at Convergence
Our first fully-virtual Cornerstone Convergence is less than a month away and our customer speakers can’t wait to share their stories with you. Even before COVID-19 hit the U.S., the world of work was facing massive disruption, driven by the introduction of new technologies and challenges such as the growing skills gap. And when the pandemic began and workforces were driven into remote environments, there were even more obstacles to grapple with—like how to continue providing learning and development opportunities or effective performance reviews when employees were no longer coming into the office. For many of our customers, these hurdles are all too real—and a few are ready to talk about how they’re overcoming them (and how you can, too) at Convergence 2020. Here’s a sneak peek of who’s hitting the virtual "stage" and what you can expect to hear during customer-led sessions. Performance Review Revamp, with Susan Dudley, Horace Mann "Are you interested in moving from the traditional annual rating process to one that is more conversational and truly focused on performance and development? I encourage you to attend my session, Goodbye Performance Ratings, Hello Ongoing Conversations. I’ll share with you how our company successfully implemented a quarterly, ratingless review process. It’s allowing us to evolve to a culture where performance conversations are a way of life, with employees leading the conversation." Engage Learners in a Rapidly Changing World, with Sari Daisey, Bancorp Video of Convergence 2020: Sari Daisey from Bancorp Training Is as Easy as 2+2+2, with Tom Kramer, University of Nevada Las Vegas Partnership for Training "I’ll be leading a session on how brain science and a systematic approach to learning builds skills. In this session, hear how two organizations have implemented an approach to upskill their workforce and how brain science can help systematically reinforce knowledge gained in training. I’ll explain how our organization is using Dr. Art Cohen’s 2+2+2 method of reinforcement to help retain learning and I’m excited to offer advice to help you do the same." Content Is Key for Growth, with Joseph Cunningham, KAR Global "I’ll be participating in a panel discussion on Content Anytime. I’ll be sharing KAR’s reasoning for adopting Content Anytime, successes we’ve had and how we’re using it to provide our people at KAR with the tremendous breadth and depth of content that we’ve never had access to before. I’ve been fortunate to be there in person in the past and of all the conferences I’ve been to, the best I’ve ever attended are Convergence, Convergence, Convergence and Convergence. I’ve learned a ton every time. Both Cornerstone and the fellow clients share ideas, inspiration and motivation and my best ideas for the coming year always seem to come out of this event." Transforming Your Learning Ecosystem, with John Abrahamson, Spectrum Video of Convergence 2020: John Abrahamson from Spectrum These are just a few of the exciting and informative sessions you’ll hear at this year’s fully-virtual Convergence. Be sure to learn about our Bold Thinkers track as well, and snag a preview of our upcoming keynotes. Don’t forget to curate your own agenda before the event—go to www.cornerstoneconvergence.com to get started. Want to share your story as well? Our RAVE Awards deadline has been extended! Cornerstone’s annual awards recognizes and honors organizations that have developed and implemented innovative approaches to using Cornerstone solutions. Share your RAVE-worthy story by Sept. 30 for a chance to be recognized!
Cornerstone’s Content Anytime Library Recognized As An Industry Leader in Online Learning Libraries
As anyone balancing work and life during the COVID-19 pandemic can attest, maintaining positive forward momentum requires skills like adaptability, stress management and communication. With this in mind, Cornerstone launched its #DigitalLearningEvent, an ongoing initiative that delivers targeted courses via our Content Anytime learning platform. Our aim is to empower employees to build their personal and skills development—even in the midst of a pandemic—and we’re honored that Training Industry Magazine recently recognized us as one of the 2020 Top Online Learning Library Companies for our effort. We’re humbled to have been chosen not only for the breadth and quality of our Content Anytime platform, but also because of the impact that this library has made recently. Since the onset of the pandemic, more than 27.5 million hours of Cornerstone content have been streamed around the world—that’s six times more than other corporate learning platforms. The content we delivered was strategic, and based on research. Using anonymized data from the 40 million learners across Cornerstone’s platforms, we determined which soft skills were most important to employees and organization right now, throughout this pandemic. This study revealed the 13 most important soft skills, ranging from communication techniques for remote teams, to coping with stress and combating unconscious bias. And, as we usher in a new, post-pandemic world of work, these skills are continuing to shape our core curriculum on the Cornerstone Content Anytime platform. Targeted Training for the New Normal Professional skills training needs to be a focus for any company hoping to adequately prepare their workforce for future growth and success: A 2019 analysis of workforce training programs by the American Enterprise Institute revealed that soft skills were the differentiator enabling workers to sustain and advance in their careers. But many organizations are still behind—another survey found that while 91% of companies felt they should be providing reskilling opportunities, only one in five were actually doing so. The Cornerstone Content Anytime platform and its #DigitalLearningEvent offering can help companies get started on these learning initiatives. As a part of the #DigitalLearningEvent, our courses targeting the 13 key skills are currently available to all learners free of charge. Companies and organizations will be able to access four courses under each of the identified skills, for a total of 52 digital education programs. The offerings run the gamut from practical skills to soft skills and people management advice. The working landscape is constantly evolving—that’s certain. But Cornerstone remains committed to raising awareness about what skills are most important, reducing barriers to access for anyone looking to continue their professional development and inspiring workforces to continue thriving—even during difficult times. To sample some of the courses in Cornerstone’s award-winning library, click here.
New eeds Integration For Healthcare Workers Enables Learning Unbound
Learning is an accelerator in virtually any industry, but nowhere is it more critical than in healthcare. Continuing education (CE) for healthcare providers can, quite literally, be a matter of life and death. According to the Institute for Health Care Improvement, CE is a vehicle for spreading best practices and improving patient outcomes. It’s vital for medical professionals to keep up with new medications, technologies and protocols to provide the best possible care. As medical professionals continue to grow and gain their skills, however, a challenge they’ve historically grappled with is tracking all of their certifications, credits and progress reports. This disorganization is problematic because a lack of effective tracking and thorough transcripts can make it difficult to pinpoint areas of expertise and need for improvement. But a new integration between eeds and the Cornerstone LMS is streamlining this process, and eliminating existing hurdles. Prior to this enhancement, healthcare organizations that actively relied on Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits had to toggle between different systems to view the full details of a learner's training and transcript. In line with Cornerstone’s evolution into a true hub for learning among healthcare organizations, however, the new integration provides a means of capturing these credits in one place—enabling total visibility. Automating and Streamlining Credit Tracking with Cornerstone and eeds At its core, eeds is an online CE tracking system that healthcare providers can use to compile CE transcripts, attendance certificates, record self-reported CE credits and even earn credits with point-of-care learning. For educators that use it, eeds is an intuitive platform packed with powerful features that eliminate paperwork and simplify accreditation processes to free up educators so they can focus on providing the best possible learning experiences. And now, thanks to the new Cornerstone LMS integration, the experience of tracking continuing education through eeds is even more straightforward and devoid of common pain points. "From talking with our customers, we’ve learned of several ways that integration with Cornerstone will assist end users. First, many organizations post all of their required education in the Cornerstone catalog but haven’t had an easy way to post their continuing medical education (CME)," Chad Kroll, CTO at eeds, explains. "With a click of a button in eeds, CME course information can be posted on Cornerstone so that learners only have to look in one spot to see the resources available to them." Plus, the integration allows CME credits earned in eeds to automatically flow into the learners’ transcript in Cornerstone. For instance, let’s say a hospital schedules a weekly session of cardiology Grand Rounds. If a doctor wants to see the upcoming schedule, she searches for these rounds in the Cornerstone LMS, finds the event and clicks a link in the description to see the schedule for the event. On the day of the event, the doctor is able to sign into the session via the Eeds app or on the website. And, after she completes the various requirements for the course, such as an evaluation and post-test, her attendance data is sent to the Cornerstone LMS. The next day, the doctor can view her transcript with the event information in the LMS, along with her new certificate and training details—all in one system. In addition to CME credits, there are other types of important information that can be attached to CE activities on providers’ transcripts, Kroll explains. He also notes that there are specific "classifications" in eeds to mark an event as relevant to a specific topic. In Pennsylvania, for example, physicians are required to earn a certain number of CME credits related to "Patient Safety/Risk Management." That information is tracked in eeds and automatically sent to the learners’ transcript in Cornerstone. eeds also supports sending maintenance of certification (MOC) points to the learners’ transcript in Cornerstone—these are vital to many physicians for re-credentialing purposes. "Ultimately, the benefit to learners is that they will have a one location where they can access all of their CME/CE information. The magic is that the credits will appear automatically in their Cornerstone account without any intervention at all," Kroll says. For all users, having the ability to see all continuing education data in one seamless portal provides a more holistic approach to learning. And, through the tracking capabilities of the eeds and Cornerstone LMS integration, users will be able to identify high performers, assess capabilities and close skill gaps—all in an effort to empower their continued personal and career development. Cornerstone LMS clients can learn more about the new integration with eeds here. About Cornerstone Healthcare Built and based on successful use cases in healthcare settings, Cornerstone offers solutions for healthcare companies to help them strategically manage and continuously develop their talent throughout the entire employee lifecycle. Find out more now.
Business Unbound: A Vision and New Strategies for the New World of Work
Yesterday looks nothing like today. For some companies, the COVID-19 crisis has brought business to a grinding halt—but for others, it’s kicked things into hyperdrive. The trends that were emerging before the crisis have accelerated: Digital transformation initiatives have a heightened urgency as businesses are now required to pivot on a dime. The trend toward remote work has manifested in full. The need to reskill and upskill the workforce is now an immediate concern rather than a provision for the future. Change is not optional. How to change is now the critical question. It’s an incredible challenge to adapt in these circumstances—but companies are doing it. Think about Medtronic’s sharp turn to accelerate the production of ventilators in their factories, or how Honeywell and many other companies are now making masks. These companies are demonstrating just how quickly they can move once they eliminate what was holding them back. They stopped using yesterday’s thinking, such as outdated business models or processes, to solve today’s challenges. But right now, companies are facing constraints, like pervasive shelter in place orders, that are unique to today’s historic moment and require new, creative approaches. These agile organizations have uncovered their own ability to adapt, and it’s critical that they don’t rebound to outdated routines and structures after the crisis has passed. Business volatility has beenincreasing for decades before the crisis and will only accelerate long after it. At Cornerstone, we are committed to helping companies take an unbound approach to business. An unbound business is one that’s not confined by conventions, remains open to fresh approaches in tune with their changing environment, and places a premium on continuous people development. Over the past 20 years, we’ve honed our software to help companies adapt quickly with the right people, skills and training. And with our acquisition of Saba, a global leader in talent solutions, we’re in an even stronger position to help companies lean into their change drivers: continuous learning, actionable data and workforce agility. The key? Keep removing constraints. Learning Unbound: Learning is the Accelerator Learning is the adaptability accelerator. Cornerstone People Research Labdata shows that training has skyrocketed in the last several weeks as companies help their employees adapt to this new normal, including a spike in courses about stress management and working from home. This shows that rather than use learning to only meet compliance requirements, we need to provide employees with more holistic learning to address all aspects of work life. To do that, learning must be: Ubiquitous: Available on any device, and, most importantly, delivered in their flow of work in the systems and tools where it’s happening. Courses should also be offered in a variety of formats, such as learning through social collaboration or in shorter forms—also known as microlearning—that are quickly digestible and easily applicable. Learning retentionsuffers when employees learn on the company’s schedule. Instead, learning retention and effectiveness is highest when employees need it and can immediately apply it to a real-world situation. Hyper-Personalized: Remove the time and energy it takes for employees to seek out learning. Technology can help present relevant opportunities to employees that are contextualized based on their skills, experience, aspirations and preferences. A Business Enabler: For businesses to adapt quickly and at scale, they need to promote real learning—the kind where information is actually retained— which requires repetition, reinforcement and nurturing. Real learning is always evidenced by change: changed mindsets, changed behaviors, and changed outcomes. To help administer this kind of learning, Cornerstone has been focused on providing people with the most modern, relevant learning content available through our subscription service offering,Content Anytime. Curated with thousands of courses from dozens of world-class content partners, we are committed to helping organizations provide their people with the right content to help accelerate learning. We also recently invested inTalespin to ensure we stay on the cutting edge of the emerging area of virtual reality training. By embracing these changes to learning at work, organizations will be prepared for whatever challenges lie ahead. In a truly adaptable workplace, learning is every worker’s constant companion, and people will always be learning. Careers Unbound: AI-Based Personalized Coaching to Empower Your People The number one reason people choose to leave a company is because they don’t have the opportunity to learn and grow. In addition to career growth, people want to be seen and valued for their unique strengths. As detailed in a recenttrend report from Mercer Consulting, they also want to feel a sense of purpose at work. Employees crave continuous and frequent check-in sessions with their manager, and they want to understand how to improve. They want guidance on how to best challenge themselves while also maintaining a sense of well-being, and they desire new experiences so they can put learning into practice and explore emergent interests. In essence, people want to be coached. In order to best support their workforces, companies have to transform managers into coaches. Coaches are more effective because they guide individuals instead of roles and take time to truly understand who they’re coaching and where they’re headed. To encourage this transition, organizations will have to provide managers with tools to help them better understand their individual employees—such as their deep skills profiles, interests, personal and professional aspirations and their emotional well-being—as well as tools that will help them apply this holistic information into more meaningful conversations and personalized career navigation. In addition to turning managers into coaches, organizations can find new ways to supplement employee guidance with AI-powered digital coaching tools. These types of tools are embedded into technology that employees are already using and apply every employee’s personalized data to guide and make recommendations for growth and development. For example, after an employee completes a skill-building course, they will be recommended a sequence of more trainings and activities to truly bridge their skill divide. Employees will further benefit from AI-based recommendations, nudges and conversations with intelligent chatbots that can flag new trainings, upcoming projects they might be interested in and new roles that are suited to their skills. These tools, combined with rich conversations with managers (powered by data), provide truly personalized career navigation that’s informed by an employee’s skills, experiences and aspirations and results in them feeling more engaged and empowered in their careers. To help enable this vision, Cornerstone has launchedCornerstone Careers, a new product solution focused on helping employees to connect with their managers and navigate their careers. Cornerstone Careers includes Check Ins and Capabilities, and we’ll be adding more features in the coming months, including Career Center to help employees navigate their careers in a fully personalized way. Data Unbound: More Holistic People Data for Better People Decisions With technology has come an explosion of data and analytics. And for years, organizations have been striving to extract insights and important business value from people data. However, data sets have historically fell short in providing organizations with a holistic and meaningful understanding of their people both inside and outside of the organization. Businesses today crave more well-rounded, data-driven insights to know the whole person: their capabilities, strengths, experiences, aspirations, mood, learning preferences and well-being. Earlier this year, we took a big step in this area byacquiring Clustree, a French technology company that developed an industry-leading, AI-powered skills engine and extensive skills ontology to help organizations match their employees’ skills with specific job roles. The benefit of this comprehensive, elastic skills data set is twofold. First, the data will allow companies to dynamically develop and deploy the right skills to projects, roles and key investments. For example, looking at data across the global enterprise will allow companies to build teams that bring together the best skills and experiences regardless of geography. And with data on both internal and external talent, companies will be able to assemble the optimal mix inclusive of employees, candidates, contractors and freelancers. Second, and more importantly, inclusive data will allow companies to improve their employees’ well-being, engagement and retention, rather than just help them with productivity and efficiency tracking. For example, during development conversations, data will help employees and managers take a hyper-personalized approach to their personal growth rather than one that’s one-size-fits-all. Data has the power to create more meaningful work-life experiences that ultimately benefit both the employee and the business. Cornerstone Is Adapting and Evolving with You This extreme event we are currently experiencing, COVID-19, is proof that companies must be more agile than ever to succeed. And even after we move beyond this crisis, businesses can’t return to their old habits; for instance, they can no longer take 18 months or more to pivot the workforce. When unforeseen forces arise, businesses that are able to react quickly not only endure the change but thrive because of it. And to build this agility, companies need to remove the constraints that were holding them back and embrace a new world of work that invites change and innovation. The emergence of this new world of work comes at a pivotal time for our company as well. With our recent acquisition of Saba, we are in an even better position to help our clients transition to this new reality. Not only will we increase the speed and scale of our innovation, but we now have access to nearly twice as much client data which will help us improve AI within our products. As a combined company, we are committed to accelerating these strategic innovation initiatives with the intent of helping companies address these sudden new challenges, create opportunities and transform into a resilient unbound business.
The G2 Best Software Awards Results Are In: Users Love Us
At Cornerstone, innovating on behalf of our clients and listening to their feedback has been at the core of our business for over two decades. That’s why we are over the moon to hear that G2, one of the world’s largest software review platform that takes into consideration over 1 million customer reviews, recognized Cornerstone as a leader in several categories this year. After collecting at least 20 reviews with an average rating of 4.0 stars or above, Cornerstone earned "Users Love Us" badges across four of our talent management solutions: Learning, Content Anytime, Performance and Recruiting. Moreover,Content Anytime received a badge for Highest User Adoption and Cornerstone Learning was recognized as a Leader in the categories of LXP, Corporate LMS, and Enterprise software. Solutions in the Leader quadrant in the Grid® Report are rated highly by G2 users and have substantial Satisfaction and Market Presence scores. You can learn more about the G2 2020 Best Software Awards (LINK) and read reviews about each of Cornerstone’s talent management solutions here: â— Cornerstone Learning â— Cornerstone Content Anytime â— Cornerstone Performance â— Cornerstone Recruiting We thank those who took the time to review and provide feedback so that we can continue to innovate for many years to come. If you are a Cornerstone client looking to share your own feedback on G2,please leave a review here!
Cornerstone Earns Multiple 2020 Top Rated Awards by TrustRadius
As a global people development leader, Cornerstone is obsessed with enabling our clients to achieve significant business results through world-class learning, recruiting, performance and HR technology solutions. Because innovating for the success of our clients is our top priority, we are honored to be named a leader among Corporate Learning Management, Talent Management and Employee Performance Management solution providers! The recognition by TrustRadius holds significant value to our company as these lists are based purely on above-average customer satisfaction ratings for business technology. Since 2016, the TrustRadius Top Rated Awards have become the industry standard for unbiased recognition of B2B technology products. Based entirely on customer feedback, they have never been influenced by analyst opinion or status as a TrustRadius customer. Learn more about the TrustRadius Top Rated Awards and hear from verified users on how much they value Cornerstone: â— Corporate Learning Management â— Talent Management â— Employee Performance Management Are you a Cornerstone client and looking to share your own feedback? Please leave a review here!
Cornerstone Data Tells a Story: Online Learning Is Key as Organizations Shift to a New World of Work
As people navigate a new world of work, there has never been a greater demand for learning opportunities. In the many roles I personally play in life—leader, mother, wife, friend—it has been no easy task learning how to support my team at Cornerstone and help pivot the business while caring for loved ones at home and from afar. Like many others, I’ve come to realize that connecting with teammates virtually, managing our time effectively and balancing work and life are skills that need to be developed and nurtured over time. And in a moment of time where many of us are either struggling to focus at home or finding it difficult to check out from work without an office, it’s critical that we reassess our skill sets and make time for our personal and professional development. For the past two decades, Cornerstone has been helping organizations recruit, hire, train and manage their people. At the core of these initiatives has been online learning and development. Whether providing compliance training or helping employees enhance their skills, we’ve been collecting learning data from millions of people over the years, which has enabled us to pull key insights and trends about how people are learning, what they’re learning and how that has changed over time. While we’ve used this data to inform our product decisions and roadmap, you’re going to see us bring this data to life through the Cornerstone People Research Lab. This is our new research lab within Cornerstone that is going to be identifying and sharing emerging trends that will give rise to new work models. The launch of the Cornerstone People Research Lab couldn’t have come at a more impactful time. As COVID-19 completely disrupts the world of work as we know it, we have seen a greater demand for online learning from organizations and their people. New insights from Cornerstone data suggest organizations are relying on online learning to help their people adapt to new work models, such as remote working, and enable them to become more productive and efficient while staying healthy during this uncertain time. In March alone, people across the globe engaged with 27.5 million hours of content on Cornerstone’s learning platform. And, when looking at our Cornerstone Learning clients, nearly half (40%) of them saw an increase in logins in March compared to February. These clients experienced a significant spike in logins, 135% on average. What’s more is that we’re seeing this trend across both the corporate and academic sectors, which is particularly meaningful as millions of students and teachers transition to online learning for the first time. As we collectively navigate this new world of work, I invite you to explore the data that tells a meaningful story around the need—and want—for individuals and organizations to adapt in the face of change. What Does the Data Say? While digging into the learning trends in response to the COVID-19 crisis, we’ve seen a heavy increase in search activity, a notable rise in mobile learning and an increase in repeat visits—all of which show that the demand—and potential—for online learning is greater than ever before. On top of the uptick in logins on the Cornerstone Learning platform, we’re also seeing an increase in people taking online courses, especially in those countries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands saw a 2X increase in course registrations; South Korea saw a 5X increase; and Japan saw a dramatic increase at 70X from February to March. While the upward trend is significant, it’s not entirely shocking. Let me tell you why. There’s an incredible amount of knowledge and skills we all need to acquire to adjust to any form of new realities, whether that’s onboarding for a new role or learning how to manage a remote team for the first time. Learners are hungry for ways to set themselves up for success—whether it’s picking up best practices for virtually communicating with coworkers, useful time-management tips or smart ways to stay healthy while working from our couches and kitchen tables (which just so happen to be among the most popular courses taken in March 2020). Searches for online courses on digital tools, working and learning remotely and stress management have dramatically increased on the Cornerstone Learning platform. For example, comparing the first half of March to the second half, there was a 3x increase in searches for "Google Classroom," a 2x increase in searches for "Learning at Home" and a 1.7x increase in searches for "Stress Relief." Employees aren’t simply waiting around for guidance; instead, they’re taking learning into their own hands to better navigate new work environments and take care of their mental health. And studies suggest that this kind of learning—done in the flow of work, to meet an immediate need—increases learning retention. Now more than ever, employees need the flexibility to learn anywhere, and anytime, rather than in one-size-fits-all Powerpoint presentations, mandatory lectures or multi-hour courses in conference rooms. And our data from the last month backs this up: Without many of the constraints associated with an office environment, workers are actually taking more time to learn and doing so in ways that fit their unique schedules and preferences. Mobile logins increased by 3x in one week at the end of March, and usage from the Cornerstone Learn app continues to increase significantly month over month in 2020, up 45% in March over February. Let’s Prepare for a New World of Work We can see that individuals and organizations are clearly ready to take advantage of online learning courses that will help them improve their work and their lives. In fact, according to a survey of 900 telecommuting professionals done in partnership with YouGov, a global public opinion and data company, Cornerstone found that 60% of respondents prefer remote work and will expect a remote work option to be offered as a benefit after re-entry. Organizations will need to be prepared for that expectation of flexibility—even though many hadn’t necessarily before COVID-19. But only about half of those same respondents stated that their employer had preparations in place for them to transition to remote work. Rather than fight this evolution, companies should lean into the opportunity to create a more agile workforce that can weather future crises and downturns. A renewed focus on learning, including thoughtful online resources and development opportunities, is what’s going to help businesses—and all of us as human beings—thrive. For more insights on the state of work and learning in the future sourced from millions of workers across the Cornerstone Learning platform, visit: https://www.cornerstoneondemand.com/infographic-navigating-new-world-of-work
Giving Back to our Community with Cornerstone Cares
It’s been incredible to see people around the world step up to support one another during these wildly uncertain times. In my personal network of family, friends and colleagues, I've witnessed a profound use of empathy and caring for one another unlike anything I've seen in my lifetime.And in the extended community, I am impressed and grateful for the many organizations around the world who are stepping up to put humanity first. From companies that are offering supplies and manufacturing capabilities to those that can share their knowledge and resources, there is a tremendous amount of help and support being offered to local and global communities. Here at Cornerstone, we work every day toward the mission of educating the world. That’s exactly why our team banded together to develop Cornerstone Cares, a free website filled with online learning content about topics that are exceptionally timely, critical and evolving day by day. We packaged together a wide-range of trusted and informative content about COVID-19 and infection prevention, working-from-home best practices and how to manage stress—a particularly difficult skill to practice right now. We also just released a dedicated set of training resources for K-12 teachers, who, for the first time, are urgently adjusting to online teaching models for more than 55 million children in the U.S. alone. We realize that not everyone has had the access or opportunity to develop the skills needed to tackle the personal and professional challenges that lie ahead. We believe it’s incredibly important that we curate specific learning opportunities that deliver community value in an accessible way, and to do so in a variety of languages. Our resources are now your resources. The four playlists include: A "COVID-19" playlist, which features information about infection prevention and control from leading health organization A "Working from Home" playlist, which includes best practices for staying productive and motivated while working remotely A "Mental Health and Stress Management" playlist, which features tips and techniques for effective self-care and promoting positive mental health "A Teacher’s Guide to Online Learning," which includes expertly created training content to help K-12 teachers rapidly transition from a traditional classroom to an online learning model So far, we’ve received incredible feedback on these offerings. Some of the amazing organizations we work with are sharing the playlists with their people to reinforce how they can stop the spread of COVID-19. Other organizations that are not accustomed to a remote workforce are using Cornerstone Cares to help their workers adopt virtual technology for the first time. And several global corporations are sharing the multi-language content with their teams in different countries. Our global team will continue to update Cornerstone Cares with relevant courses and learning opportunities as this situation evolves. We are committed to supporting a stronger and more connected community as we venture through this unprecedented situation together.
From the CEO's Desk: Together, We Can Make A Difference
As COVID-19 continues to spread globally, it is profoundly changing the way we live and work. Our hearts go out to those already impacted by the virus, and we want to do everything we can to protect and support our global community through this unprecedented period of uncertainty. Since millions of people around the world turn to Cornerstone for continued learning, we wanted to use our tools to help the community during this crisis. In collaboration with our content partners and the Cornerstone OnDemand Foundation, today we are launching Cornerstone Cares, an online destination that includes free, online learning content to help you stay informed and navigate this extraordinary situation. The site provides training playlists with content to help you learn more about the virus, stay productive while working from home, and deal with anxiety. All of us at Cornerstone will continue to do our part to support the safety of the community, and we’ll continue to update the Cornerstone Cares site with resources as they become available. Please take care of yourselves and each other – we are all in this together. Stay safe and well, Adam Miller
Finding Inspiration and My 2020 Intentions at the TEDWomen’s Conference
It’s the start of a new year, which means it’s time to make resolutions for the next 365 days. But in 2020, I’m aiming to set an intention instead. While resolutions focus on ways to fix, change or improve oneself, intentions are more about the determination to act in a certain way and bring something about. My New Year’s intention is two-fold: I want to make more use of my leadership platform, and I want work to advance my company’s social enterprise mission. Achieving these intentions won’t be easy, but luckily, I’ve had a head start: I began working toward this goal late last year when I attended the 2019 TEDWomen Conference in Palm Springs, California. The three-day event brought together women (and men!) from various ethnicities, nationalities, backgrounds, industries, ages and demographics to discuss the ideas and achievements of astonishing individuals, world leaders, entrepreneurs and thinkers who are looking for new ways to make the world a better place. I’ve admired TED and its speakers for years, and I knew I could rightfully assume my fellow attendees would offer interesting ideas and lots of inspiration. But I also wanted to attend the conference for my personal career development: I’ve always found that the best inspiration is derived from exposing oneself to people and ideas outside the industry. And so, my leadership team and I decided to attend as a way to spark new ideas and fuel our creative spirits in 2020. Attending the TEDWomen Conference was a way for us to gain inspiration from bold and brilliant leaders that we could take back to our work and personal lives and use to drive bigger impact in all that we do. Here are some stories that particularly inspired me — as well as my takeaways around the profound impact that women can have in the workplace. The Ability to Take Risks Is Essential (Oh, Shit! Moments) Audacious outlooks and constant risk-taking was an inescapable theme at the conference. Each speaker was proof that in order to make any kind of real impact in the world or workplace, boldness is required. These women were brave enough to color outside the lines and innovate to solve problems old and new. Take, for example, Jasmine Crowe, a hunger hero and social entrepreneur who had the courage to reexamine how the United States handles its hunger epidemic. Today, one in nine people in the U.S. struggle with hunger or food insecurity and, according to Crowe, our modern approach to the hunger epidemic is doing little to effectively solve the problem. For instance, most food bank donations aren’t exactly healthy—Velveeta and CapriSun are technically edible, but they do not make up a balanced diet. In her session, Crowe explained how and why she developed Goodr, an app that helps organizations track and then donate their surplus fresh food waste. A restaurant can use the app to donate its leftover produce to food kitchens at the end of a week instead of sending it to a landfill. Crowe and her Goodr team even fund pop-up grocery stores that collect leftover foods and sell them on a pay-what-you-can basis. Jiabao Li, a perception engineer, was another speaker who is using her design and engineering skills to solve a more modern problem: the negative effects of algorithms and their ability to influence our perception of the world, our knowledge and even our identities. During her session, she demonstrated the frightening power of algorithms with a helmet-like wearable that, when worn, turns everything to a shade of red. Algorithms have a similar effect. Most Instagram feeds, for example, are littered with bias and deliver only the shades of the world deemed most preferable to the user based on past social engagement. As part of this project, Li is also working on a plugin for devices that dilutes the power of an algorithm. Hearing about this plugin gave me a glimmer of hope that we can fight the bias created by technology. The transcending work of women like Crowe and Li requires risk-taking: Both looked past constructs and thought critically about today’s problems to find solutions that not only work better, but also may result in a better world for us all. They reaffirmed the power of audacity for me; as a result, I am going to continue deliberately creating what I like to call "Oh, Shit! Moments" for my team where I reframe failure as an opportunity to shift perspectives. Fostering New Models of Leadership I was also inspired by the conference’s exploration of new, more female-focused leadership models. These conversations reminded me of a New York Times op-ed piece by Ruth Whippman, titled "Enough Leaning In. Let’s Tell Men to Lean Out." In her piece, Whippman argues that instead of encouraging women to mimic the assertiveness and confidence of their male peers to get ahead in the workplace, we need to rethink and possibly even replace this male-defined value system with one that incorporates the strengths and priorities of women. One speaker experienced this change herself: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a Nobel Laureate, former president of Liberia and the first democratically-elected female leader in all of African history. During her time in office, she led Liberia to recovery following a decade-long civil war and helped stem the nation’s Ebola crisis of 2014-2015. Sirleaf also purposefully appointed as many women as possible to her cabinet and, in doing so, drew a conclusion somewhat similar to Whippman’s: When women are in positions of power, they have different priorities and focus on other issues as compared to men. In Liberia’s case, this meant better health care for women and children. By the end of Sirleaf’s presidency, most of the women and children in Liberia had received the HPV vaccine. If we incorporated the perspectives of women (and mothers) into our value systems like Sirleaf did during her presidency, society as a whole could reap the benefits. I plan to promote emerging model of leadership in my workplace by fostering greater ’micro-visibility,’ a tactic that brings attention to the accomplishments and strengths of women in an effort to help them rise in the ranks at work. As the name implies, these are small but effective moments of praise and can include anything from mentioning their name in an executive team meeting or sharing a successful female-led project. I am also talking with my team about modeling the "shine theory" — a practice of mutual investment based on the premise that if you don’t shine, I don’t shine. The term was coined by Ann Friedmann and Aminatou Sow to describe a commitment to collaborating with rather than competing against other people—especially other women. Agnes Binagwaho, another speaker at the conference, reiterated the power of this theory for me. A global health fighter and former minister of health in Rwanda, Binagwaho founded a rural medical university in her native country of Rwanda that requires a minimum of 50% female enrollment. The program’s first class was about 70% women and most of them are expected to work in underserved rural communities. Rediscovering the Power of Inclusion This TEDWomen experience had just as much to do with my fellow attendees as it did with its impressive speaker lineup. The environment was palpably inclusive, supportive and allowed for open dialogue between people from different backgrounds, ethnicities and age groups. There was a refreshing lack of otherness. In fact, attendees seemed to embrace a collective "we" rather than an individualistic outlook — or a "me" vs. "you" approach. Egos were checked at the door and were substituted with a palpable sense of community where we were all working together to solve the world’s biggest problems. The TEDWomen Conference humbled me and reminded me that I have so much left to do in the world. It left me inspired and with a greater commitment to act for social good. The bold and brilliant speakers gave me hope, light and the courage to drive change both in the world and at work.
I Host a Podcast, Tour the HR Conference Circuit and Hit the Gym Once a Day—Here's How I Make Time for Learning
In our Learning Diaries series, seasoned HR and business leaders share how they make time for a critical but often overlooked aspect of their jobs: learning. It's an inside look at how successful people navigate their busy schedules to continuously improve their skills—and advance their careers. As a prominent speaker on the HR conference circuit, Ira Wolfe needs to stay ahead of current and future trends that impact the world of work. In this week's edition of Learning Diaries, the author, speaker and HR guru gives us a glimpse into how he fits learning and development activities into his jam-packed schedule. Best Advice For Approaching Learning: "Learning is personal, and everyone learns differently. I tend to learn on-the-fly. I rarely can find the time to read a book or even listen to a book in its entirety, so I often read or watch a video in short bursts." Biggest Struggle With Learning: "There is just so much to learn. It's both exciting and exhausting. With so many learning materials available online, the biggest limitation to learning is time." Total Time Spent Learning This Week: 18 dedicated hours Day One: Podcasts, Print Journals and Newsletters, Oh My! 8:15 AM: This morning, I catch up on newsletters and read articles from the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, HRdive and ERE Daily. Keeping up with the news cycle is one of the easiest ways to embed learning into the day—staying informed on forces outside your industry helps build an understanding of how they may shape the trends inside it. I also check my email and review offers for new marketing software. It helps me stay educated on products that are on the leading edge of marketing trends. Favorite email newsletters: Shelly Palmer, ERE, The Digital HR Leader, Seth Godin's Blog 10:00 AM: It's time to prepare for and shoot today's episode of my podcast, Geek Geezers and Googlization Show. In each episode, I interview a thought leader about trends and challenges in the future of work, like the rise of automation and the challenges of talent management. Every guest on my show teaches me a little something about our industry that I hadn't considered. My guest today is Rob Kelly from Ongig, a job description software company. He discusses the evolution of job descriptions, and how each great job listing requires a high level of detail and customization. 2:30 PM: I spend the rest of the afternoon responding to emails, leads and client phone calls, but I also take time to read some of my favorite HR industry blogs. Reading content from other experts often introduces me to perspectives that I hadn't considered. Just recently, on ReWork, I read about reverse performance reviews, a unique approach to offering employees feedback. Favorite online blog or magazine: ReWork, OnGig, Hubspot. Day Two: Info-Sponging 6:30 AM: Today's early rise is my attempt to get a head start on the tasks of the day. Serial entrepreneur and Priceline co-founder Jeff Hoffman describes this early morning practice as "info-sponging." He spends up to 20 minutes a day reading about something new to him. Building off Hoffman's methodology, I begin my morning practice by delving into a new and unfamiliar topic—today, I explore blockchain. Did you know that while its key applications have traditionally been in the financial services industry, it can also be used to improve recruiting? I sure didn't. 11:15 AM: I receive a LinkedIn message from a new connection. He left an audio recording in the message, which gets my attention. Turns out it's a new and relatively unknown feature that LinkedIn has added to its mobile app. My mind starts racing with ideas for how recruiters can use this, and I make a note to discuss this new feature at my upcoming conference presentations. This bit of learning is a welcome surprise. Favorite recent article on LinkedIn: 15 Best Articles on People Analytics April 2019 6:30 PM: My wife and I head to the gym. I listen to the news of the day and tune into a podcast. Listening to podcasts is a great way to absorb learning, because it can happen almost passively. You're not sitting at a desk and actively taking steps to learn a new skill or task, and yet you absorb and retain information quite effectively. Podcasts are the ultimate learning/entertainment hybrid. Favorite podcasts besides my own: Fresh Air and TED Talks Daily. Day Three: A Jam Packed Keynote 8:45 AM: Today I'm at the Society for Human Resource Management 2019 conference in New York City. After grabbing a quick bite to eat, I attend a few minutes of SHRM CEO Johnny Taylor's keynote. Under his leadership, the society has grown to a record 300,000 members in over 165 countries who impact the lives of 115 million workers every day. His lessons on leadership, which include an emphasis on diversity, inclusion and equality, are truly inspiring. 10:15 AM: It's time for me to present and my sessions and the room is packed. I begin the presentation by asking the audience how many of them use Google for Jobs. To my surprise, no hands go up. This means I'm on track and my content will be new and relevant for everyone. I only have time for one or two questions from attendees, but these questions are important because they provide me feedback: What did I miss? What didn't I explain well enough? I begin to notice patterns in audience reactions, and get a better sense of how I can improve future presentations. 2:45 PM: I've been eagerly waiting for this keynote presentation all day. The speaker is Dima Ghawi, author of Breaking Vases. She shares her experience as a woman living in the Middle East. Sometimes learning opportunities come in the most unexpected ways—it's not just her story that resonates with me, but her method of storytelling. She not only discusses the concept of "breaking vases" to metaphorically represent breaking cultural barriers, but also illustrates her point by breaking the vase she is holding, which certainly gets everyone's attention. This gets me thinking about how I can be more creative in my own presentations. 5:20 PM: My wife and I arrive at a post-event happy hour nearby. We join a gentleman sitting alone in the corner. He's an HR consultant and for the next 60 minutes we enjoy a very engaging conversation. My approach to business and HR differs significantly from his. I tend to live on the bleeding edge of technology, while he, like many of my peers, is a bit more old-school. I suggest we connect on LinkedIn, but he's not on it. Instead he pulls out an address book and asks me to write down my name and number. I find conversations like this simultaneously frustrating and enlightening. It reminds me how diverse the HR industry is, and that we need to walk in one another's shoes every now and then. Header photo: Creative Commons