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Kristen Ludgate
Chief People Officer
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decision , with input from her two adult children and her husband , Grant . “ We thought it would be fun to have a second center of gravity in California .”
Ludgate spoke to Innovation from her Twin Cities home about what attracted her to HP and the importance of cultural transformation .
You started in July 2021 . Welcome ! What about HP ’ s culture drew you to the role ? HP has a great history and great values that align with my own . The people are really nice and very supportive , but they ’ re also supersmart . That ’ s a unique combination that interested me . Building on this great legacy , how do you recharge innovation ? How do you use your culture as a competitive differentiator ? These are very compelling things to work on , and I ’ m excited about the culture and talent agenda Enrique [ Lores , HP ’ s president and CEO ] wants to bring to life at the company . I ’ m passionate about companies winning through their culture and their people . I ’ ve had a lot of experience with transformation , and I think I can help with this journey at HP .
What does cultural transformation mean to you ? If we ’ re going to lead and win in the market , we know the culture has to evolve , but without losing the secret sauce of what makes HP special . Cultural transformation has four parts : understanding where we are , including insights from HP employees ; articulating the next version of the winning HP culture that builds on our strengths and stretches us into the future ; then activating this culture through leadership ; and
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finally , bringing the culture to life in everything we do , a process I call alignment .
Cultural change is about how things actually get done in your company : how you prioritize and allocate resources , how you reward employees and who you advance into leadership roles , and how you make hard decisions . For HP , I am listening carefully to understand what ’ s next in this journey . One opportunity is to look at our decision-making processes , our roles and responsibilities , and how we work day to day to get faster and more agile . Another question is , What do we need to change to put customers first ?
How does HP ’ s history and legacy affect its ability to transform for the future ? On the positive side , HP already thinks culture and values are important , and that people need to feel like they ’ re part of something with purpose and part of a community that takes care of one another . Employees know that ’ s what the whole founding story of the company is about , and they know this culture has propelled HP through many generations of innovation and accomplishment .
At the same time , it can be more difficult for companies with a strong heritage culture to see where they need to stretch into the future . You don ’ t want that heritage to become an anchor . It should become a source of inspiration : What ’ s the next version of inventing Silicon Valley in a garage ? What would it look like for us to be 10 years ahead of our time ?
What are the biggest changes in how companies are engaging with employees ? I think there ’ s a lot more
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transparency in how companies work with employees now . It ’ s not just top down , but a real two-way communication : “ What does it take to make this a good place to work ?” There ’ s a more open focus on the different situations that people are living in , and the need to find ways to make work a positive , engaging experience for people from all kinds of circumstances .
It ’ s hard to do at scale , because you ’ re now trying to have almost a mass customization of people ’ s work experience . It ’ s a much more mutual relationship between employers and employees , and that equalizing of the relationship is a healthy thing . I also think it is key to innovation . But it means there ’ s a lot of change that has to happen .
When it comes to attracting and retaining talent , what should HP managers keep in mind ? First , many people have lots of choices , and they ’ re empowered because so many companies are offering location flexibility . Our role as leaders in the modern era is to earn the right to have these wonderful people come work for us . It ’ s a mindset shift . Second , how do we offer a differentiated career experience for people ? There are so many things that we can offer that a lot of companies can ’ t . We ’ re in these different platforms and technologies and in all these different geographies . How do you help unlock the HP experience for people ?
Third , we ’ re a network-based company , so managers need to help people connect . The sooner you can bring people into HP and help them navigate the company , the better .
Most importantly , managers have the biggest influence
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