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Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why executives need to redefine what ‘hustle culture' means for their employees
Good morning! Hustle culture has long defined the American economy, with the general idea being that grinding hard and long enough will eventually lead to success. But a new generation of workers is out to undo that long-held belief and put a focus back on mental health and wellbeing, and it's changing how leaders invest in their people and motivate them to do high-quality work. 'I think high performance and sustained high performance and that leading to business outcomes have never gone away,' said Jolen Anderson, chief people and community officer at BetterUp, a management development platform, during the Fortune Workplace Innovation Summit on Tuesday. 'However, we often lack the metrics to demonstrate what exactly is going to lead to outcomes, and as a result, that's been replaced with this idea that face time, that just showing up, and spending more time in the office is going to lead to better outcomes when, in fact, it's exactly the opposite.' Put simply, people don't need to work harder, they need to work smarter and it's leading to a massive decline in performance across organizations. To overcome this, she said, leaders need to go back to what fuels performance: agency, optimism, motivation, and a focus on ensuring employees have the resources available to bring their best selves to work. 'When we focus on wellness and mental health and building resilience, there's a direct tie to whether or not people are driving the right outcomes in the organization.' Cesar Carvalho, CEO of Wellhub, a corporate wellness platform agreed, and took it a step further. Carvalho said bosses need to genuinely care about not just the work, but the person behind the work. 'We focus too much on individuals at work and at the workplace, and we forget about all the other hours that are not related to work. If you're not sleeping well, if you're not exercising, if you're not eating well, it will have huge consequences on the way you perform at work. And we can't forget that part.' And while most large Fortune 500 companies have some kind of wellness programs, what matters more is whether or not workers are taking advantage of them. Carvalho said that too often, benefits like these are implemented only for the company to find out a year down the line that less than 5% of folks are actually taking advantage of them, which is a waste of money. To get participation, Anderson says it starts with offering flexible benefits tailored to real problems employees are facing outside of work, such as help paying off student loans, having a child, or planning for retirement. 'With today's technology, there's so much opportunity to design personal solutions, things that feel custom and give people agency around their experience.' Brit This story was originally featured on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How smart CMOs are turning marketing into a launchpad to the corner office
The path to the CEO seat has traditionally run through finance, operations, or legal. But as consumer behavior shifts, digital disruption accelerates, and brand trust becomes a strategic imperative, a new contender is rising: the chief marketing officer. The CMO-to-CEO leap is still rare—only about 10% of Fortune 250 CEOs have marketing backgrounds, according to Spencer Stuart, far fewer than those from finance or ops. But that number is growing, particularly in sectors like retail, consumer tech, media, and digital-first businesses, where customer experience and growth are core to strategy. Today's top marketers are no longer just brand stewards or ad buyers. They're responsible for growth, product, customer experience, digital transformation, and data. Their scope often expands into hybrid titles—chief growth officer, chief customer officer, president of revenue—making them viable candidates for the top job. Examples are mounting. Mary Dillon went from CMO of McDonald's to CEO roles at U.S. Cellular, Ulta Beauty, and now Foot Locker. Andrea Jung served as Avon's CMO before ascending to CEO, with a stop as COO in between. Kristin Dolan rose through media and marketing to become CEO of AMC Networks. Starbucks' Brian Niccol and McDonald's Chris Kempczinski both held senior marketing roles on their way to the corner office. Crucially, they weren't just running campaigns—they were running growth. And in industries where brand and product are inseparable, that distinction matters. What sets these marketing heads-turned-CEOs apart is operational credibility. Many owned P&L responsibility—a near-universal trait among CEOs—and led cross-functional teams across product, tech, and strategy. Their digital fluency, crisis communication chops, and mastery of brand narrative are also additive skills in a volatile business environment. Still, barriers persist. Some boards continue to view marketing as tactical rather than strategic, which may explain why CMOs have among the shortest tenures in the C-suite. A lack of exposure to finance or supply chain can also be a limiting factor for most. But the pipeline is widening. Of the Fortune 500 CMOs who left their roles last year, 10% became CEOs, per Spencer Stuart. And 37% of current Fortune 500 CEOs have some functional experience in marketing. The takeaway: The modern marketing leader—fluent in digital, steeped in growth, and wired for customer insight—is no longer a long shot for the top job. Because in today's economy, a CEO isn't just a strategist. They're a storyteller, too. On that note, my Fortune colleagues and I will be hosting our flagship event at Cannes Lions this June, bringing together the world's most influential minds for thought-provoking conversations on what's next in creativity, innovation, and leadership. For speaker inquiries, contact Naomi Cykiert at feel free to shoot me a line. Hope to see you there. Ruth This story was originally featured on
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
70% of neurodiverse adults say they're facing increased stigma at work, and the ongoing corporate rollback of DEI programs could make the situation worse
Good morning! Neurodiverse individuals, including people who have ADHD or dyslexia, often face multiple barriers in the workplace. And despite an increased awareness about these conditions over the past few years, the majority of neurodiverse workers say discrimination against them is only getting worse. Around 70% of people who identify as neurodivergent say they face stigma at work, up from 60% in 2024, according to a new survey from a nonprofit that's dedicated to supporting individuals with learning and thinking differences. Around 77% of this group feels pressure to mask their behaviors for fear of retaliation, and another 64% worry that disclosing their condition will negatively impact how others perceive their abilities at work. 'There's an awareness around neurodivergency that has increased over the last few years, especially amongst young people, but there are still many myths and misperceptions out there,' Nathan Friedman, co-president and chief marketing officer at tells Fortune. 'So there's still a lot of work to be done, not only to continue to drive awareness, but for organizations to understand better what a learning difference is and how it manifests at work.' The fear among neurodiverse employees about potential repercussions for disclosing their conditions could hold these employees back from asking for the kind of accommodation that could make their work lives easier. Around 64% of this group says they feel comfortable asking their employer for an accommodation, but around 76% of neurodiverse employees still say that there is stigma attached to doing so. The current political climate around DEI is also causing workers to worry about what kind of options they will have in the future—inclusion for people with disabilities is considered an important part of many diversity policies. Around 64% of all workers—including both neurodiverse and neurotypical—believe that getting any kind of workplace accommodation moving forward will be more challenging because of how companies are rolling back DEI programs. 'The macro, political environment is not necessarily one that prioritizes inclusivity, and that's stemming from what the government has done regarding DEI,' says Friedman. Ultimately, it comes down to each individual workplace to figure out how they can embrace neurodivergent workers and make them feel that they belong, no matter what's happening in the world at large. 'The best way to work on reducing stigmas is by driving awareness, both overt and implicit,' says Friedman. 'When you have advocacy, our data shows it comes with bottom-line growth for the organization.' Brit This story was originally featured on
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The AI training gap: Business leaders expect their employees to use AI at work but they aren't providing them with any guidance
Good morning! It seems as if every business leader in the world is trying to figure out how to embrace AI to stay competitive in a rapidly-changing tech landscape. But when it comes to effectively incorporating the technology, their workforce expectations are not quite lining up with reality. Only 10% of C-suite leaders say that their companies are future-ready, according to new data from The Adecco Group, which surveyed 2,000 people, in a report shared exclusively with Fortune. That lack of readiness is likely the result of shoddy workforce training. While almost two-thirds of leaders expect employees to update their skills for AI, only one-third of companies are providing a clear policy on how employees should be using the technology. Caroline Basyn, chief digital and IT officer at The Adecco Group, thinks that the training gap can be partially attributed to 'ignorance' on the part of executives. 'Leaders need to grasp and understand that AI is going to transform the way we work,' she tells Fortune. 'There are some industries that have understood it. There are some industries that have not yet understood the relationship between leveraging AI and the results they will achieve, both in terms of revenue and in terms of productivity.' She adds that simply using AI isn't enough—businesses have to completely rethink their organization and workflow to best harness the power of the technology. 'Investing in AI products is potentially only half the battle,' she says. 'The whole leadership team, the culture and the learning structure, is as important as developing the product in [and of] itself.' The report recommends that leaders act to 'create, share, and adhere to a responsible AI framework as a matter of urgency' and ensure that employees are well-versed in the policy specifics. Leaders should also consider 'an AI ethics committee, company-wide training, and forum for workers to voice concerns.' Basyn says there's no one-size-fits-all model when it comes to training workers how to use AI, and emphasizes that the training program used yesterday may not work tomorrow. But she says that the more personalized AI workforce training is, the better. 'We need to make career mobility a reality. We need to make sure that we're planning for the disruption, and empower the employees to build new skills,' she says. Sara This story was originally featured on
National Business Review
30-04-2025
- Business
- National Business Review
Capital raise values Kiwi-founded Supabase at US$2b
California-based venture capital execs fly to Wānaka to line up the deal. Exclusive FREE offer for uni students studying at a New Zealand university (valued at $499). Exclusive FREE offer for uni students studying at a New Zealand university (valued at $499). Want to read more? It's easy. Choose your best value subscription option Wānaka-based co-founder Paul Copplestone told that Accel executive Gonzalo Mocorrea had 'literally showed up on my New Zealand-founded tech company Supabase has reportedly landed venture capital investment of US$200 million ($336m) at a post-money valuation of US$2 billion.
