Epoch held a Workplace Lunch & Learn in San Francisco, bringing leaders and innovators in the Workplace & Employee Experience space to learn and network with one another. The event featured a fireside chat where Laura Philpot, Regional Workplace Strategy & Operations Manager, West at DoorDash, shared about workplace strategies and employee experience.
In case you missed it, here are some key learnings and takeaways from our San Francisco Lunch and Learn!
Laura has been working at DoorDash for almost three years as a Regional Workplace Strategy & Operations Manager, West. She has a huge passion for employee experience and is constantly innovating and adapting to bring the best experience for her team.
Before COVID-19, there was a shared understanding that employees would regularly come into the office, and the focus was on supporting and fostering a traditional workplace culture. However, the post-COVID working landscape has created a shift where only a handful of individuals are willing to return to the office.
Laura uses new methodologies to ensure that workplace experiences are not only great for those who are physically in the office but for those virtually as well. She adopts to this new environment by organizing virtual opportunities such as online roundtable discussions, Ask me-Anything sessions, and offering gift options that employees can choose from and receive at their doorstep.
When it comes to offices and planning for the future, DoorDash takes a practical approach. They carefully think about whether having physical offices in certain locations is necessary and aim to avoid spending money on things they don’t need. They assess the realistic financial implications of their investments as they believe an office is not what is attracting top talent anymore. However, they still create an environment that encourages and nurtures people working in the office.
DoorDash does not only use its offices for corporate work but also for the use of on-site events. They strive to use the office to create experiences that their employees can’t get at home such as team-building activities, happy hour, and game nights, making it meaningful for their employees.
Although working in the office may not be as productive as working virtually, Laura believes it is a place to have fun and can be used as a tool to re-energize and motivate employees.
Laura employs various tools to measure the success of events. She primarily relies on tracked attendance, an analysis of post-event surveys, and feedback from focus groups. By examining the data collected from her events, she gains valuable perspectives that allow her to adjust for future events.
As a rule of thumb, she considers her growing number of on-site event requests at DoorDash as a positive indicator of her success.
Laura faces some challenges when it comes to event planning but uses various strategies to help her throughout the process. She relies heavily of marketing and communications by sending out frequent Slack messages to respective teams. She works closely with EBPs and EAs, to keep them in the loop when teams plan big events. Newsletters and word of mouth are also an important method of communication for Laura.
Epoch is a great tool to help with event communications and planning! The platform will streamline and automize pre-event marketing, invitations, registration, and reminders. Check out our article on ways that Epoch can help your company streamline communication for your events here.
Some valuable tips and tricks were mentioned in this discussion. It is important to synchronize workplace initiatives with the broader employee experience to ensure that both leaders and members of the team are aligned with one another.
Laura shares that it is important for management to go beyond ‘keeping the lights on’ and aim to create a positive and exciting atmosphere for all employees. Understanding and adapting to how employees want to interact with the office is key to creating an engaging work environment where they are happy to work at.
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