Angela D'Acquisto
Chief Administrative Officer
Nova Home Loans
Episode 106
Post-Downturn Playbook: Rebuilding Trust, Resilience, and Culture with Transparency.
Current chapter: Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built By PeopleJuly 16, 2025 · 12:45
Thesis
“Transparent communication, individual employee care, and strategic investment in both people and technology are critical for rebuilding trust and fostering a resilient, efficient, and engaged company culture, especially when navigating significant industry downturns and workforce reductions.”
Show notes
In 2020 and 2021, the mortgage industry was on fire. Record-low rates, historic demand, rapid hiring. Then 2022 arrived, interest rates climbed, loan production cratered, and companies that had overhired aggressively had to make cuts just as fast. At Nova Home Loans, Angela D'Acquisto was 14 years into her tenure — and the cuts came.
The hardest part wasn't the reductions themselves. It was what came after: the daily reality for remaining employees who came to work each morning wondering if today was the day. Angela describes it plainly as a "deterioration of trust" — and her team's response was one of the more labor-intensive rebuilds you'll hear about. Every single employee got an individual 1:1 with HR. The CEO committed to monthly company-wide meetings with full transparency on financial and production metrics. Wellness funds and mental health resources were actively promoted rather than passively listed in a benefits guide.
Her broader lesson: responsible workforce planning requires investing in technology and automation during growth so that headcount decisions are made strategically, not reactively. And her candid observation about senior HR leadership is one of the most honest you'll hear: "HR can be a lonely place. You have to have a guard up — and you need to build an external support network for yourself."
- What the 2022 mortgage industry collapse looked like from inside the HR function — and what broke in the culture
- Why Nova HR met individually with every employee post-layoffs — and what they heard
- How CEO transparency (monthly company-wide financials) rebuilt employee trust from the top
- The strategic bet on technology and automation to avoid future overhiring cycles
- The "guard up" reality of senior HR leadership — and why an external peer network is essential
This episode is brought to you by Previ — an employer network that saves employees thousands on the necessities they already pay for, at no cost to the company.
What you'll take away
- 1Meeting individually with every employee is a powerful tool for rebuilding trust and demonstrating care after difficult organizational changes.
- 2Increasing transparency on financial and production metrics from senior leadership fosters greater individual investment and collective success.
- 3Actively promoting and providing comprehensive mental well-being resources and wellness funds are crucial during times of stress and uncertainty.
- 4Empowering HR team members with true ownership of their responsibilities fosters growth, new ideas, and allows leaders to serve as trusted advisors.
- 5Avoiding irresponsible overhiring by investing in technology for automation and efficiency, combined with strategic hiring, creates a more resilient workforce.
What most organizations get wrong
- •In a senior HR leadership role, it's important to maintain professional boundaries and a 'guard up' rather than seeking to be 'friends with everybody,' due to the necessity of difficult conversations and employee relations matters. This requires developing an external support network for oneself.
In Angela's words
“The greatest impact on our culture was a deterioration of trust in the organization, and this is understandable given we were coming off such a significant high point, only for our people to find themselves coming to work each day wondering if this would be the day they would be let go.”
This highlights the profound psychological impact of layoffs on employee trust.
“Our HR team proposed the idea of meeting with each employee individually. The motivation behind this strategy was to demonstrate that we recognize each person has a voice and deserves the opportunity to be heard.”
This demonstrates a highly personal and empathetic approach to rebuilding trust after workforce reductions.
“Our CEO also made a commitment to increase transparency in how we communicate. He continues to facilitate a monthly company-wide meeting where he reviews our financial and production metrics. And shares his vision and our collective goals.”
This illustrates a direct strategy for fostering trust and alignment through open communication from the top.
“As an organization, we've made significant investments in technology that provide more automation and allow our team members to work more efficiently. We do not wish to hire irresponsibly. We want to make continued investments in the team members we already have and make strategic hiring decisions.”
This reveals a strategic shift towards technology and responsible staffing after a period of overhiring.
“I've learned and become more comfortable with giving my team true ownership of their areas of responsibility and tasks. They continue to impress me as they rise to every challenge and contribute new ways of doing things that make us stronger as a team.”
This emphasizes the benefit of empowering direct reports for team growth, innovation, and overall team strength.
“One thing that I've learned as I've worked in HR is that it's important to be comfortable in your own skin. And what I mean by that is that in any other department or role you may have had in the past, it was okay to become familiar or friends with everybody that you work with. But I found that in being a senior HR leader, I have to have a guard up around me.”
This offers a candid perspective on the unique relational challenges and necessary boundaries required in senior HR roles.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Companies experience a significant breakdown of trust among employees after staff reductions, leading to daily uncertainty and fear.
- •Rapid hiring and increased demand during boom periods can lead to widespread employee burnout.
- •Lack of transparency from leadership during industry downturns exacerbates employee stress and reduces investment.
- •Responding to demand spikes with excessive 'overhiring' creates an unstable workforce prone to future reductions, negatively impacting morale.
- •Despite offering mental well-being support, companies struggle with low uptake if resources are not actively promoted and discussed by leadership.
In this episode
Built by People podcast features insights from world's top HR leaders
Built by People
After graduating from University of Arizona, I worked in hospitality and restaurant management
What Is Your Career Journey?
Angela says staffing reductions impacted company culture during 2022 mortgage downturn
Employment Pandemic: The Housing Industry downturn
NOVA implemented strategies to repair trust between leadership and employees after the reduction
How NOVA Rescued Trust Between Leadership and Employees
Angela says working alongside HR team enhances leadership effectiveness and workplace wellbeing
What Collaborative Approach Has Boosted Your Leadership
Angela says leadership development has helped rebuild company culture
Six Ways We're Integrating Leadership Development into Our Company Culture
Angela Johnson: Being a senior HR leader can be lonely at times
A Human Resources Leader's Last Words
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
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