Carla Read, Head of People at Desana: “We work with humans and that requires a human approach, not a textbook approach”

If you’re reading this thinking “Desana, I know that name”, there’s good reason. Not only has the company’s hybrid workplace experience attracted global clients such as Microsoft, but we also featured Desana in our round-up of the top tech companies in Edinburgh. And interviewed CEO Michael Cockburn in our TakeOff series. We’re now delighted to speak to Carla Read, Desana’s Head of People.

We should be grateful that Carla has time, too. Alongside this full-time role, she runs her own HR consultancy, working with businesses in the UK and US as an advisor, coach and mentor.

Having looked at some of the stylish workspaces on Desana’s network, we wouldn’t be at all surprised to discover that Carla occasionally helped their partners with decor, too. Had life worked out differently, interior design could have been her vocation — but in the end it was the siren call of HR that held sway.

So why people rather than swags and tails? One key reason, Carla explains, is that HR is an area where you can have a real impact on a business. To find out how she became Head of People at Desana, and the ways the company is embracing the modern workplace, read on.

Tell us about your role at Desana

I oversee everything ‘people’ related at Desana. We’re a fully remote team and scaling internationally at a fast pace, which means I wear a huge number of hats! On any given day this could involve setting a talent management strategy, overseeing team operations with the senior leaders, and organising company benefits across multiple countries.

There’s a big focus on making sure we bring on the right team members and have the infrastructure in place to support them to do their best work. For me, the most important thing in my role is always striving to make Desana the best employer we can possibly be, and it’s an ever-evolving process.

What made you pursue a career in HR? And what advice do you have for anyone considering a career in HR?

Having realised at college that I no longer wanted to be the next Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, I ditched my interior design dream and instead pursued a degree in Sport and Business Management, where I really enjoyed the business modules of the course. I was working in the fitness industry at the time and wanted to learn more so approached the regional HR Business Partner, who became my mentor. She helped to develop my skills practically and transition into an HR role.

If I had to choose just one piece of advice for anyone considering a career in HR, it would be to gain practical experience wherever you can; whether that’s work experience, placements or finding a mentor. Courses and education are great, but we work with humans and that requires a human approach, not a textbook approach.

How do you think offices as we know them will change in the next decade?

In the next ten years there is no doubt that remote and hybrid forms of working will continue to grow, and the concept of an ‘office’ will mean something very different to the traditional idea of assigned desks and water cooler moments. The office can be a home desk, a café or a flexible workspace, and this means that HR will play an ever more important role in making sure that people are properly supported.

Related reading: How the world of work will look in 2030

Post-pandemic, what are your thoughts on hybrid work trends and how do you think they’ll shape the upcoming years? 

The shift to working from home as a result of the pandemic has undeniably been a crucial catalyst in driving remote and hybrid work trends, however, it’s a change that has been building for decades. This is both because the advent of technology has made it possible and because employers have realised that employees don’t need to be tied to one location or desk in order to work effectively.

There are huge benefits to providing employees with the flexibility to ensure work complements their personal lives, but not being able to see your team physically every day means it’s even more vital to integrate an effective HR approach as you build a team.

The continued evolution of these new work trends in the coming years presents an opportunity for HR to adapt and evolve, and ultimately make sure that we’re helping to build happy and productive teams.

What are the top three challenges HR professionals face today?

The first one is definitely driving effective learning and development. Continual technological advances and changing job requirements place huge importance on upskilling existing teams to meet these. It’s also important for nurturing existing talent and supporting our team’s professional development and growth.

Protecting mental health and well-being is always an important priority in my line of work. There’s a lot going on in the world at the moment, as well as the strains of people’s day-to-day jobs. It can be hard for people to balance those, so HR professionals should always ensure teams have the resources and support they need to navigate through. It’s also important to develop an open culture where people feel it’s okay to talk about mental health, whether that’s picking up with me or just popping on a Slack status if they aren’t feeling 100%.

The final one is optimising talent acquisition and retention. Finding and retaining top talent is increasingly competitive, particularly in tech. It’s even harder when you’re an unknown brand expanding into new countries. We continually have to think about strategies to not only attract new talent but to keep our existing skilled team members too, and that often involves monitoring the market and our competitors to ensure our employee offering remains competitive.

Related reading: Hiring for success: the case for skills and attitude

Many HR departments continue to digitise more and more of their processes and workflows – has this been the case at Desana and what has that experience been like?

Absolutely! When I joined Desana, we were a team of ten and it was pretty easy to manage everything using spreadsheets. As we’ve scaled, that’s just no longer possible, not only from a volume perspective but also being able to work asynchronously across different time zones. We’re always looking for ways of working more efficiently, using automation and systems wherever possible.

For example, we’ve changed our first-stage interviews to incorporate pre-recorded videos. It can often be difficult to coordinate interviews across different time zones, so we now use Willo to allow candidates to complete their interviews at a date and time that suits them and on any device. We can then review the interviews at a time that suits us too.

What do you think has been the most significant way in which technology has impacted HR?

Reducing the administrative burden on HR teams has been one of the biggest advantages of evolving technology. Automating processes using technology has meant that time can be spent focusing on activities that add greater value to the business. Having access to analytics and data has also had a big impact. Using accurate data from our own businesses helps us to make better-informed decisions.

What is an HR initiative you’ve spearheaded that you are particularly proud of?

There’s a lot I’m incredibly proud of in my career, but the most challenging yet rewarding was in a previous role where I was tasked with changing culture across an entire organisation — from a traditional manufacturing culture towards a more modern, collaborative culture. There were a lot of initiatives over a two-year period in order to get there, but the biggest efforts were focused on engagement. When you go into a business where HR is seen as the enemy, it means I had to build trust in order to implement basic feedback mechanisms. That involved consistent communication, visibility and taking action.

In a short space of time, both turnover and sickness absence had reduced dramatically. It’s a great example of the impact that a good HR team can have on the wider business and is an experience that I’ve absolutely carried through in my work with Desana. I believe we’ve been extremely successful in utilising engagement to build a collaborative company culture where the whole team is connected with each other, with senior leadership, and ultimately with what we’re trying to build as a business.