4 Reasons We’re Excited to See Laszlo Bock at HR Tech

HR Tech is just around the corner. For those of us in the Bay Area, the price is right and Vegas is a hop, skip and a jump. But what else excites us, you ask? For one, the topic this year is “Women in HR Technology” – and the keynote happens to be Laszlo Bock, a brilliant mind in the HR space who partners with founders and leadership teams of organizations experiencing hyper-growth on how to scale and lead while keeping company culture top of mind.

Here are the top 4 reasons we’re excited to hear Laszlo Bock speak at HR Tech:

1) He was CHRO of Google

Arguably one of the most influential executives at Google, Laszlo Bock stepped down after 10 years of influencing their culture and workforce. His model of leadership not only shaped one of the largest tech companies of our time by welcoming over 65,000 employees, but also influenced Silicon Valley as a whole. And although Google has its pros and cons (like many other companies with profiles on Glassdoor), Bock created a tried-and-true model that works. And he now uses that model to consult and help other large companies steer through the bureaucracy and politics that often plague organizations as they scale.

Pro Tip: Bad reviews can actually be good for business. For one, candidates are often skeptical when reviews are all positive. In fact, 95% are skeptical when reviews are all positive. Secondly, no employer is perfect and free advice on what we need to work on presents an opportunity to improve your business as a whole.

2) He Authored the Book: Work Rules!

Bock’s book Work Rules! Insights From Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead can be found on the shelves of Harvard’s Business School. The book is founded on three core principles, which we at Glassdoor also support: “finding a compelling mission, being transparent, and giving their people a voice.” Other helpful tips – some of them completely outside the box – featured in the book include: paying unfairly, rewarding with experiences (not pay), training underperformers, and collapsing levels to  minimize bureaucracy.

Pro Tip: Buy the book right away. Trust us when we say you need this on your shelf.  And for a quick intro and overview, download  Blinkist, an app that lets you skim great business reads in 15 minutes.

3) He's Now CEO & Co-Founder of Humu

Bock’s new company, Humu, which he started with partner and ex-Googler Wayne Crosby, excites us in the sense that people analytics will finally be married to company culture. This grand union allows your job to be so much more. Alarmingly, 30% of Americans only see their work as “just a job.” We also can’t help but love the name of the company: Humu, short for Humuhumunukunukuapua’a, after Hawaii’s state fish. Who is not happy in Hawaii? If only our jobs could be closer to that small slice of paradise. We look forward to watching what this company brings to making work better through science and machine learning!

4) He Knows Strong Leaders

Bock, as featured on Inc.com, said instead of focusing on promoting people with technical skills into leadership roles, it’s key to elevate people who make connections and make themselves accessible. Michael Schneider, Human Capital Specialist, writes that a study of 10,000 individuals revealed that it took more than tech skills to make a great leader – namely being a good coach, empowering your team, expressing interest in their well-being, focusing on results, communicating, and having a clear vision all ranked above “technical skills” when it came to job requirements.

Here at Glassdoor, we’re obsessed with what it takes to make a great leader. In tandem with publishing the Employees’ Choice 2017 Highest Rated CEOs Awards, we published an overview of what makes those winners stand out from the crowd. Download our eBook, Actionable Advice from Top Company Leaders, to find insights on how top leaders – from Clorox, Rolls Royce, SpaceX, Expedia, Hilton and more – empower and inspire their employees to do their best work.

Glassdoor’s Chief Economist, Andrew Chamberlain – also speaking at HR Tech, surfaces another key learning from analyzing the winners: being a great individual CEO is not enough; top-rated CEOs also tend to surround themselves with great senior management teams. We find that a company’s overall senior management rating on Glassdoor is a powerful predictor of high CEO approval ratings. Several CEOs on this year’s list exemplify this idea that being a great CEO often means hiring managers who are smarter than yourself.

Speaking of surrounding yourself with people smarter than yourself: we’ll see you at HR Tech!