You’ve spent the past 25 years leading organizations focused on leave of absence administration. In what ways has the space changed the most during that time?
“As I think back, FMLA was pretty new 25 years ago. And so the focus was really around compliance with what was a new federal law. Fast forward to now, we have 13 states with paid family leave. We also have consumers who expect a different experience around the moments that matter for them.
As the workforce has become more diverse, we need to think about the individuals who are caring for a parent and what are the benefits when starting a family. The consumer or user of the service wants you to take all the complexity [of taking leave] away, so in a way, it's more challenging today than it was in the past, because it's really tailoring that experience to drive the outcome.”
Employers are fighting for talent and leave is one of those things that can either go great or it could go really bad. And that could be the loyalty of a great employee who doesn't come back from leave or leave soon after that.
You know everyone in this industry and your time is in high demand. Why did you decide to join Parentaly as an advisor, and what gets you most excited about our mission?
“First of all, you had courage and you just blindly reached out to me. It was truly a ‘get to know you’ and I think that got us off to a great start. And then, as I started to learn more about the problem you were solving for and how unique that is…your data really shows that need for coaching and manager training. And so you have a purpose-driven company that you've built.
And then I've gotten to meet more of your team, and your values align with mine, which is—I like to move fast; you like to move fast and iterate. I think growing is a team sport; that’s one of your values. And you're trying to solve a really big, complicated problem.
People think leave can be easy, but it's not easy, and it's different from employer to employer and state to state. And so you're trying to solve something at its core. And that got me excited and is why I wanted to work with you.”
Fast forward three years—what do you hope to be able to say about your work with Parentaly?
“I hope that we help 10,000 new families a year. I think as we continue to grow together and look at the data and start to really understand what that new mother or father is looking for, the products and services will obviously evolve over time. But I think that the core is to help more families. And I'd be proud to be helping Parentaly three years from now if we were helping 10,000 new families each year.”
What types of companies should be working with Parentaly?
“I had a conversation with the head of HR for a technology and services company. And what she told me was: ‘I need to have a great leave experience because if my employees don't, I'm going to either lose talent, or they're never going to apply.’
And so, with record-low unemployment, I think employers are looking at how they can differentiate, and there is data that people make decisions based on the leaves and time off that are available.
So, as more and more companies prioritize it, these are the companies that are a perfect fit for Parentaly because they want to change that experience, right? They’re mindful about the link between retention, hiring, and people going out on leave, and how that all intersects together. And I think those are the perfect employers for us to be working with.”
“We nurture our people leaders with a lot of different trainings, but parental leave support is not something I’ve seen repeated from employer to employer…it really is a gap.”
Looking back at your career so far, what accomplishments are you most proud of?
“I would have to say two pieces. I was at ReedGroup, now Alight, for 15 years and I’m proud that I was able to mentor and help grow the careers of the people I worked with 15 years ago. And now they're the leaders of Alight today.
And then the moments that matter. When you listen to the phone calls that come into the contact center, these are real problems that are hitting a family and [knowing our team is] doing it well and with compassion. I'm super proud that we served 7 million employees - so it could be 7 million transactions - and we did a great job thinking about the moment that mattered vs. the transaction.”
What do you like to do for fun when you’re not working?
“I am a cook and I mostly cook Asian, South Asian food. I look at the New York Times every Saturday and I pick out one new recipe to make during the week. On the flip side, I also love to eat food. And then just running and spending time with family. My running gives me solitude;. it's my no electronics mind space. So when the weather gets not good in Colorado, running helps me keep my head screwed on correctly.”
–--
We’re beyond thrilled to welcome Kevin to the Parentaly team. His experience and commitment to supporting families and driving positive change is unmatched.
We look forward to his partnership in helping thousands of families and setting a new standard for how companies support employees through life’s pivotal moments.
%20(1).jpg)
