A Conversation with Patricia Jemibewon, Director of Organizational Transformation at gomoney on the Evolving Dynamics of Work Culture and its Impact on Employee Retention in the Contemporary Workplace.
What strategies have really made a difference in shaping gomoney’s work culture to be positive and inclusive, and how has this culture boosted employee engagement and retention within your unique structure?
We work with a lot of Empathy and Empowerment, which allows each person to be their authentic selves and gives them the freedom to succeed.
It also pushes the leaders to understand each individual and what drives them, so that we don’t have hierarchical structures which tend to inhibit engagement.
When it comes to conveying gomoney’s values and mission, especially in today’s world, how do you make sure it resonates with your employees’ expectations and aspirations?
I know some places force their employees to memorize their business statement and be able to recite it, but we take a more inclusive approach to our vision and mission.
The entire team comes together to determine what we want to work on, and they even have the space and flexibility to question things. So it’s their inputs, their expectations, and aspirations that develop and refine our values and mission.
Can you share some approaches employers can adopt to support their employees’ career growth and development while maintaining a healthy and supportive work environment?
I always found it funny that people would wait for HR to issue a training calendar, then you would go to a training and barely anyone would be there. So my best advice, throw away the calendar!
Figure out what each person needs, and then help that person get the support that they desire. It sounds simple, but too many times I see companies forcing employees into very expensive trainings that aren’t valued.
Could you tell us about any out-of-the-box people management methods that have proven surprisingly effective for gomoney so far?
I don’t think it is out-of-the-box, but people often are surprised at gomoney’s leadership style. It begins with what we believe the role of leaders are.
We believe leaders are at every level, and that the managers don’t sit at the top of a hierarchy, but rather sit in the center of teams where their role is to support people and find ways to make work easier. The empowerment and empathy that follows make gomoney a special environment to work in.
How have you witnessed the concept of work evolving for gomoney employees over time?
Work has changed pretty significantly for gomoney employees – it’s a very young organization, so our oldest employees have developed a product from nothing, launched it into the market, and grown its user base. Beyond the work changing, it’s also very much at the forefront of different ways of working – remaining fully remote after Covid, reorganizing virtual teams, and redesigning the structures that support the organization.
What’s your approach to collecting and acting upon feedback to continuously improve gomoney’s work culture?
Listening is a superpower! We do self-assessments and get management perspectives continuously, but I think the most important input is what team members say.
We have multiple methods of how we get that input so that we get as much input as possible to develop our strategies.
In your opinion, how do gomoney employees actively contribute to creating a healthy workplace, and how can fintech professionals apply these insights in their organizations?
The gomoney team is super supportive and each person puts in their very best. A healthy workplace is a shared responsibility, it’s not HR’s job, nor the CEO’s, nor a single person’s.
Just as in a movie, it takes actors, producers, and directors for a great film, each person also has to play their part in the workplace.
The faster that an organization can create a collective objective of ownership of their work environment, the better and happier they will be.
Are there any particular initiatives or programs within gomoney that stand out in terms of promoting belonging, inclusion, and diversity, and how have they contributed to better employee retention?
We had a huge turnover problem a couple of years ago and put in place a number of things to address it.
It started with Listening, and I mean Really Listening, and designing strategies that were right for this team, not just taking off-the-shelf programs and checking the box. For example, we redesigned how we looked at performance and development so that each person felt a greater sense of purpose in their work. We still have more to do, but so far, we’re seeing the results in retention.
What trends or innovations in work culture do you believe will have a substantial impact on retaining talent within the digital banking industry?
Remote and gig work are impacting the workforce tremendously already, and as they start to affect brick-and-mortar businesses more, the impact will only become bigger. It will eventually become the type of employment of choice, as tight labour conditions switch the power from employers to employees.
The companies that figure out how to leverage an employment ecosystem, rather than relying on traditional types of employment, will win the talent war. But to then retain the talent, companies also have to reinvent their people practices to focus on the employee experience and be able to leverage data insights better. And last but not least, the future leader has a very different skill set than before.
Leaders who make this switch will make the work experience better for talent and help set great companies apart.
Could you give us a glimpse into the wellness initiatives and mental health support programs gomoney has in place to enhance its work culture?
We have several resources that are available to our employees depending on the nature of the support that’s needed. For example, we’ve had employee sessions where we’ve driven awareness and education around mental health.
It even ranges to having physical workspace on demand for any reason — sometimes you just need to connect with your colleagues physically.
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