Alexandra Erman
Chief People Officer
BforeAI
Episode 255
Why 'Trust by Default' HR Transforms Global, Distributed Workforces.
Current chapter: Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built By PeopleMarch 26, 2025 · 15:19
Thesis
“To succeed as a fully distributed, global company, HR must be intentional in building a 'trust by default' culture through robust asynchronous communication, equitable practices, and continuous, growth-focused performance management, leveraging technology to empower autonomy and connection.”
Show notes
Navigating Distributed Team Dynamics and Psychological Safety with Alexandra ErmanIn this episode of the Built by People podcast, sponsored by Previ, host Dave D'Angelo welcomes Alexandra, a seasoned HR executive with experience in managing global teams in various startups.
Alexandra shares her career journey, from internal operations in finance and administration to focusing on the people function.
She discusses the unique challenges and opportunities in building the people function in a fully distributed company, including navigating complex legal landscapes and maintaining company culture.
Alexandra emphasizes the importance of intentionality, psychological safety, and dual management in a remote setup. She also provides insights into performance management, compensation strategies, and fostering equity in a distributed workforce.
Alexandra concludes with advice for HR leaders to start with a strategic vision and reverse-engineer their programs to align with the company's philosophy.
00:00 Introduction to the Built by People Podcast
00:16 Sponsorship Message from Previ
00:45 Guest Introduction: Alexandra's Career Journey
01:57 Challenges and Opportunities in a Distributed Company
04:50 Maintaining Culture and Equity in Global Teams
08:17 Fostering Psychological Safety in a Distributed Workforce
11:25 Performance Management and Compensation Strategies
14:08 Parting Advice for HR Professionals
15:07 Closing Remarks
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What you'll take away
- 1Prioritize intentionality in distributed company design, focusing on documentation and asynchronous communication rather than mirroring office structures, to navigate challenges like complex legal landscapes effectively.
- 2Cultivate a 'trust by default' culture where employees are encouraged to 'ask for forgiveness rather than permission' (D.U.E.R. principle) to empower autonomy and accelerate decision-making in fast-paced startup environments.
- 3Implement a 'dual management' system, separating functional leads from people managers, to provide continuous support for employee well-being, personal growth, and development, fostering psychological safety.
- 4Shift performance management from annual reviews to a daily, goal-oriented process, utilizing clear job descriptions, 30-60-90 plans, and integrated HR tech (like Flint) for automated journal entries and continuous feedback.
- 5Establish equitable global compensation and benefits by setting a high baseline (e.g., 25 days PTO for all) to ensure fairness across diverse country regulations and prevent feelings of competition or disparity.
What most organizations get wrong
- •If you're trying to mirror an office work-life in a distributed setting, you're probably looking at it from the wrong angle because it's not going to happen.
- •Ask for forgiveness rather than permission because time is of the essence. So we have this thing where we say, okay, Use a little acronym, D.U.E.R., unless otherwise directed, and say, okay, D.U.E.R., if I don't hear in 4 hours, I'll run with this.
- •For me, performance management is a daily job. It's not an annual review thing.
In Alexandra's words
“I realized numbers are numbers, but people are much more fun, and I want to focus on the people function.”
Highlights a passion-driven career shift towards HR, underscoring the human-centric nature of the role.
“The challenges is, do you have enough documentation to make sure that everything can happen asynchronously? Do you make sure that your communication style is asynchronous?”
Emphasizes crucial elements for successful asynchronous work in a distributed setting: robust documentation and communication design.
“The tone we give to our company is one of trust by default. It's one of ask anything. It's one of everybody collaborates.”
Defines the foundational cultural principles for a high-performing, globally distributed startup environment.
“Everybody has a manager who's not their functional manager and who really supports them in their everyday work, their work life, in their personal growth and their development.”
Describes a unique 'dual management' structure designed to provide continuous, holistic support for employees in a distributed context.
“Ask for forgiveness rather than permission because time is of the essence. So we have this thing where we say, okay, Use a little acronym, D.U.E.R., unless otherwise directed, and say, okay, D.U.E.R., if I don't hear in 4 hours, I'll run with this.”
Illustrates a practical application of a 'trust by default' philosophy, empowering autonomy and speed in a startup.
“For me, performance management is a daily job. It's not an annual review thing.”
Articulates a modern, continuous approach to performance management that moves beyond traditional, infrequent review cycles.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Navigating complex global legal and compliance landscapes (contractors, EORs, entities) for a fully distributed workforce.
- •Ensuring genuine inclusiveness and avoiding a 'mothership' mentality in HQ-centric companies with remote teams.
- •Establishing sufficient documentation and asynchronous communication styles to enable effective global operations without constant real-time interaction.
- •Achieving equity in global compensation and benefits when local country mandates for things like time off vary significantly.
- •Fostering psychological safety and preventing isolation in distributed teams, where traditional in-person cues are absent.
- •Ineffectiveness of traditional annual performance reviews in providing timely and relevant feedback, leading to a need for continuous approaches.
In this episode
Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built by People
Dave is the founder and CEO of Beforeai. Hi. Thanks for having me
How Did You Get To Where You Are Today?
Alexandra, as someone who has built the people function in a fully distributed company
Working in a Fully Distributed Company
How do you maintain culture, integrity, and equity across different time zones
How Can a Global Company Maintain Its Culture?
Alexandra, I want to talk about psychological safety in a distributed environment
Strategic Safety in a Distributed Workforce
How do you approach performance management and compensation strategies at Series B
How Do You Approach Performance Management?
Alexandra: Start with a strategy, not the operational
Alexandra On Managing Remote Teams
Alexandra, thank you so much for joining us on Built by People podcast
Alexandra On Built by People Podcast
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Organizations and entities mentioned
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