Priyanka Singh
Chief People Officer
Braze
Episode 301
Beyond Resumes: Why Prioritizing 'Who' You Work With Unleashes Innovation
Current chapter: Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built By PeopleFebruary 13, 2025 · 11:23
Thesis
“Priyanka Singh believes that prioritizing 'who' you work with and fostering a culture of trust and empathy are paramount to building successful, innovative organizations, especially in fast-paced environments.”
Show notes
Navigating a Non-Traditional HR Career Path with PriyankaIn this episode of the Built by People podcast sponsored by Previ, host Dave D'Angelo welcomes Priyanka, an HR executive who shares her unique career journey from journalism to HR leadership at companies like Bridgewater and Braze. Priyanka discusses the importance of selecting the right people, fostering a culture of innovation, and aligning HR initiatives with business goals. She emphasizes the value of empathy, understanding business drivers, and building scalable organizations. Priyanka concludes by offering advice on career development, focusing on meaningful professional relationships, and maintaining trust in the people function.00:00 Introduction to the Built by People Podcast00:16 Sponsor Message from Previ00:44 Meet Priyanka: A Non-Traditional Career Path02:33 Lessons in Leadership and People Management04:39 Driving Innovation in HR07:25 Aligning HR with Business Goals08:44 Collaborating with Executive Teams10:47 Parting Advice for HR Professionals12:04 Closing Remarks
What you'll take away
- 1Prioritize 'who' you hire and work with over 'what' they will do, focusing on values alignment and enjoyment.
- 2Practice direct and transparent communication, but always filter it through empathy, remembering how you make people feel.
- 3Foster an innovative culture by valuing, encouraging, rewarding risk-taking, and holding all levels accountable.
- 4For HR teams, deeply understand the business drivers, goals, and challenges to design relevant and impactful programs.
- 5When collaborating with executive teams, act as a bridge builder, actively listen, ask probing 'why' questions, and foster mutual respect and empathy.
What most organizations get wrong
- •She took a non-traditional path into HR, starting as a journalist and moving through various non-HR roles before cementing her focus on people.
- •She made 'non-traditional bets' by hiring a software engineer into an HR role who proved to be one of the most successful team members.
- •She didn't focus on the size or scope of her next role, but rather on 'who' she would work for, if she admired them, and if their values aligned.
In Priyanka's words
“Make sure you're making the right choice. More often than not, people spend a lot of time thinking about what they're going to ask those people to do. As I said, focus more on who is it that you're asking to do.”
This highlights her core philosophy of prioritizing people's alignment and values over specific tasks or roles.
“Remember at the end end of the day, people won't remember what you asked them to do or what you did with, you know, for them, but they will always carry with them and remember how you made them feel.”
Emphasizes the critical role of empathy and emotional intelligence in leadership, underscoring the lasting impact of interpersonal interactions.
“You must build a community that is very comfortable with disagreeing and challenging each other's ideas to make sure that the best product and the best ideas come to life.”
Advocates for a culture where constructive conflict and intellectual sparring are encouraged to foster true innovation.
“The most important thing for a people team is understand the business.”
Stresses the foundational need for HR professionals to be deeply integrated with and knowledgeable about core business strategy.
“Once you lose credibility in the people function, there's really nothing much to be done.”
Underscores the foundational importance of trust and credibility as essential for the effectiveness of the HR function.
The problems this episode addresses
- •Employees are significantly concerned about covering monthly expenses, highlighting a need for financial wellbeing benefits (Previ sponsorship, 0:25).
- •HR programs risk becoming theoretical, out of touch, and bureaucratic if the people team doesn't deeply understand the business realities and goals (7:30-7:55).
- •Executive teams often have diverse communication styles and thinking approaches (legal, finance, sales, product, tech) that require a 'bridge builder' to align (8:30-8:45).
- •Losing credibility within the people function makes it largely ineffective in driving impact and achieving organizational goals (10:48).
In this episode
Covering monthly expenses is the number one concern for employees in 2024
Built by People
I've had a non-traditional path into the role I have right now
Tim Braze on His Career Path
Priyanka says who you select at Bridgewater is most important leadership lesson
Priyanka on Her Leadership
HR plays a critical role in driving innovation at Braze Software
The role of innovation at Braze
The most important thing for a people team is understand the business
How to align HR Policies with Business Goals
Priyanka says working with executive teams requires a lot of listening
How to Collaborate with Executives
Priyanka has some parting advice for budding entrepreneurs
PeeCee On Her Career
Topics covered
Organizations and entities mentioned
Full transcript
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