What’s your talent strategy when skill requirements are shifting rapidly? What approaches have worked to keep your teams adaptable yet focused?

Job hugging is a concern, so cross-training and self-paced learning are prioritized. We provide external training tools and focus on upskilling when roles change or team members leave. Flexibility, including remote work options, is offered to attract and retain talent.

We identify area-specific needs and enable teams to research and propose training plans, whether through free resources, conferences, or vendor services. Cross-training is emphasized, leveraging team members’ varied experiences to educate others. This keeps teams adaptable to new technologies and ensures knowledge is shared and reproducible.

We’ve adopted a product-oriented structure, centering our talent strategy on proactive upskilling. Internal classes focus on emerging technologies like AI, cloud-native architecture, and data engineering. External experts are brought in for new skills, and engineers rotate into adjacent disciplines to broaden capabilities. This approach has increased resilience and adaptability while maintaining core skills.

I want to comment on how our hiring has changed. Traditionally, the company hired for very specific job titles—specific technologies or roles like analyst, tester, or developer for a particular platform. The challenge was that if you ever asked those people to stretch themselves, they didn’t want to move beyond their specific role or technology. That’s always a problem for leadership. Now, all new hires are coming in as more of an engineer-type role, where we use them for whatever they’re capable of. We’re seeking people who want to keep learning and don’t get trapped in a single technology. We want universal players who are willing to lean into new areas like AI and configuration-based work, rather than those who only want to do one thing.

We have an innovation team, but our approach is to create fusion teams by bringing in individuals from the business. For example, if a project could impact operations or security, we include a cybersecurity SME; if it relates to health and safety, we bring in a subject matter expert from that area. We also augment the team with AI or machine learning engineers as needed. Beyond technical skills, we look for people who demonstrate a growth mindset or have contributed ideas through our idea management program. Being part of a high-visibility innovation project is one of the opportunities we offer for growth and development.