More Than Data: Managing People With Purpose

When people join Thumbtack, they get access to the entire codebase, engagement survey data, benefits data, and even D&I data. Transparency is hard, but worth it for the company’s culture.

At Illuminate, Reflektive’s conference by people leaders, for people leaders, Justin Angsuwat, vice president of people at Thumbtack shared on “More than Data: Managing People with Purpose.”

SEE ALSO: The Executive’s Guide to People Insights

“Sharing context is just as important as sharing data. If you don’t, people take away the wrong thing,” Angsuwat said. “Share enough so people can interpret the data.”

For example, after running 360 reviews, Thumbtack looked at the feedback given to men and women, and found some differences.

Women got more feedback around confidence, such as “speak up” or “don’t be afraid,” as well as emotion feedback, using words like “stressed” or “angry.” Men’s feedback was more positive and future-focused, such as “find ways to” or “think about,” while women got phrases like “work on” or “be better.”

Providing this data to employees built trust in leadership.

Thumbtack also uses surveys to see what employees value. The ping-pong table or meditation room that was often requested by employees as perks actually showed up low on the list of what employees value. What topped the list were perks related to community and flexibility. Thumbtack was able to prioritize its perks to best fit its employee base.

See more from Illuminate here.