Hear This From SXSW: Benefit Boosters
The Forrest Four-Cast: March 18, 2018
In a world where a private corner office is just as likely to be a shared open workspace bedecked with a barista, bespoke couches and free dry cleaning, what should companies offer workers to drive satisfaction, creativity and retention? If you missed any of these SXSW sessions on compelling approaches to employee benefits — and one on how to be the boss who manages them — learn more from these full-length audio replays.
How Five Months on the PCT Made Me Better at my Job. In 2016, Square Root COO, Elizabeth Schwartz, put one of the company’s award-earning programs (unlimited paid time off) to the test with a five-month sabbatical to hike the Pacific Crest Trail. The lessons she learned along the way helped transform the company’s culture and business long-term. This session covered how other companies can find success with programs like sabbaticals, offering ways they can make it work for not just the employee — but for the company as a whole.
Dear HR: Ditch the Pool Table and Pay Student Loans. Total outstanding student debt exceeds $1.4 trillion with a significant portion held by millennials, the largest cohort in the U.S. workforce. To address this, more and more companies are starting to provide their employees with student loan repayment assistance. This benefit is a powerful new tool to improve employee acquisition, engagement, and retention. Four speakers delved into how companies implement loan repayment programs and highlight the positive impact on employees.
Generous Parental Leave: A Liberty or a Luxury?. Many U.S. companies have meager parental leave policies that leave behind fathers, adoptive parents and low-wage workers. For example, American fathers take an average one week of leave — with over half saying they took less than they needed. Four panelists debated the value of having generous parental leave for all parents and how to build out a parental leave policy in today’s corporate climate.
How to be a Boss: Even if You’re Not Bossy. Jennifer Romolini dropped managerial knowledge-bombs based on the lessons from her book, “Weird in a World That’s Not: A Career Guide for Misfits, F*ckups, and Failures.” Using cringeworthy anecdotes and relatable real-world scenarios, Romolini helped her audience recognize (and take advantage of) their own innate leadership abilities while avoiding the pitfalls that have swallowed many newbie bosses.
Find more podcast content by exploring the SXSW online schedule. When you click on a session and see an audio bar, then you’ve got your listening assignment for the day! Also, we’ve made it easier for you by recapping some of the SXSW highlights. Check out previous roundups of audio content related to Senator Bernie Sanders, The Future of Work and Building Inclusion.
Lock in SXSW 2018 prices by purchasing a badge for SXSW 2019 during our limited pre-sale, which ends at 11:59 pm PDT on Saturday, March 24.
Hugh Forrest serves as Chief Programming Officer at SXSW, the world’s most unique gathering of creative professionals. He also tries to write at least four paragraphs per day on Medium. These posts often cover tech-related trends; other times they focus on books, pop culture, sports and other current events.
