20 May 2024
Julian Lute, Senior Manager, Strategic Advisor, Great Place To Work
Show Transcript
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Please welcome to the stage Julian Lute, Senior Manager and Strategic Advisor at Great Place to Work.
Julian Lute (00:17):
Wow. What's up? No, what's up? What's going on? Y'all look good. Y'all look real good. I have to say, every time I come out on stage and I feel the energy of this room, it gets better and better. Did y'all feel that energy just off the video? And did you feel the energy when you touch down in New Orleans? That's what it's all about this week. So I want to welcome you. I can't welcome you to New Orleans because I know it's already been done for me. But I would like to welcome you to the 2024 Great Place to Work for All Summit. Thank you all for being here.
(00:58):
And if you didn't know, we've done this 19 times and there's a few people in here. I think I see you back there. I see one of you back there too. You've been here all 19 of these times. We appreciate that and we love that. I have to say this is a very special time of the year for us. It's a very special place that we're in and a good friend of Great Place to Work told us, when you come to New Orleans, you have to celebrate the people in the place and you have to acknowledge the people in the place. So if you're joining me, we're going to acknowledge some of the folks here. I want to acknowledge the Choctaw. I want to acknowledge the Houma and I want to acknowledge the Biloxi tribes and all the other native tribes who have made this place their home.
(01:46):
I also want to acknowledge that some folks made it to this land free and some folks arrived here in shackles. So I want to acknowledge that as well. What I really want to acknowledge is the warm spirit of hospitality of the people who make New Orleans their place to live and work. People in this hotel, people that we've seen on the streets. Everyone, thank you. Thank you. And of course, I'm going to acknowledge y'all. Y'all came here. You could be anywhere in the world but you choose to be with us this week. I want to acknowledge you for the passion that you bring to your work every day, for the investment of time and of energy that you give to us every single year. So thank you to you.
(02:38):
All right, so let's do a little bit. I got to see who's in the house today. If you've been to summit more than one time, so this is not your first time. If you've been here at least one time, make some noise. Wow, there's a lot of people in here. Wow. All right, so this is a good one. So for the people who have been here, when I ask this next question, I need you to look around. If this is your first time at summit, make some noise. All right, well, I have to tell you, if you've been here before, the vets, those folks who just whooped and hollered and made all that noise, it's our job to welcome them into our community. All right, so when you see someone who says this is their first time at summit, this is our community. These are our people. We gather once a year to do this, and it's our role to make sure that they feel comfortable. Okay, you guys with me on that? All good, good, good.
(03:36):
Let's see. Change happens here. And the thing that I've been thinking of since I've been here is what does it mean to change? What does it really mean to transform? And if you look at some of the signage, you'll see that part of the definition of change is going from something to something, right? It's a from-to gesture. And walking through the streets of New Orleans, I reflected on music. Now, anybody in here, in band when they were in school, anybody? Marching band, garage band, high school band, anybody sat through a band rehearsal, sixth grade band, orchestra practice? Okay, y'all are my people. Y'all are really my people. But I think about that in the context of New Orleans in the change and transformation through music. Now, I have a very favorite musician, my favorite jazz musician, Miles Davis. Anyone heard of Miles Davis?
(04:39):
Miles said this. He said, "It's not about standing still and being safe. If anyone wants to keep creating, they have to be about change." If you want to keep creating, you have to be about change. And so when we're here in New Orleans, in the birthplace of jazz, the thing that stuck out to me was by the time most of us had jazz in our lives, it was already an international phenomenon. It had already traveled around the world, but it started here. So if you're from another country and you didn't know where jazz music came from, it's this land, it's these people. It's this mix of unique cultures and identities that brought that music to the world. And when you think about how jazz traveled through the world, it was musicians, it was regular folk who lived down here who for economic reasons had to go from here to Chicago.
(05:33):
They had to go from here to San Francisco. They had to go from here to New York City. And then the music started moving. By the time jazz got to me, it was A Tribe called Quest jazz. It was Digable Planets jazz. It was like Guru in that whole Jazzmatazz series. That's by the time jazz got to me. And I would say that there is another generation right now playing their instruments, getting ready to take this musical art form to the next place. And they're coming from here, but now they're coming from around the world. So when we think about what it means to transform, think about that from, think about that to. Where are you moving from and where are you heading to? I think all of us know what it means to go through change, but I think it's really how things change, how we change that really makes the difference.
(06:32):
I don't think I have to tell you this either, creating great workplaces is hard. Is it easy? It's not easy. It's tough. It's difficult. You're dealing with people like y'all and people sitting next to you. We're trying to bring the best out of each other. We're responsible for this. We're trying to make our businesses better. We're trying to make our worlds better. And what we know about being great is that it changes, it's ever-changing. It's not static. It has to move. It makes me think about the companies who have been taking a part of the great transformation that we've been working on for the last three years. Those companies have been doing things that are difficult and they've been doing them for the last few years specifically to make a change because it's hard. I also think about the people here who are employee resource group leaders. Those folks are taking on an extra challenge to make sure that our companies have this sense of belonging and inclusivity. So let me just ask if you're here as a part of ERGX, make some noise.
(07:40):
They're doing difficult things, y'all. Tough, tough things on our behalf. So we want to make sure that they get the props too. If you see them with the yellow lanyards, make sure you give them a high five or a whatever you do, a pound, whatever you like to do, but they deserve a little recognition there as well. But to sustain this work we know that you have to listen. That's the main thing. And we don't create great workplaces just for some of y'all or for some of y'all back there. And even for some of y'all. It's our role to create great workplaces for everyone. That's why we have to listen.
(08:15):
Now, when you're talking about things like equity, you're really talking about how do we move from this promise to progress? And when I talk about equity, I'm talking about equity of experience. I'm talking about the equity of representation in our organizations, having people have an equitable experience of their well-being, equitable experience of opportunities in our organizations. We've always promised but equity demands that we move because we know where the from is. We know where we are, we have to move to this next place. And I think equity is one of those things that we are all focused on, but we have to move from the promise of equity to the progress in equity.
(08:57):
And I'll tell you this, you would not be here if you did not believe in the power of creating great workplaces. No one comes to summit to just overhear what it means to be great. Someone just in the back of the room saying, let me dip into one of these main stage sessions and see what they're talking about on stage. Or let me go to one of these focus sessions and see if someone in there is kind of cool and I can connect with someone. We don't do that. We don't run our businesses that way. We run our businesses on KPIs. We run our businesses on outcomes. We run our businesses on goals, strategic areas. So what I would say is that you may not know what's going to happen here, but you know what you came to do. We're coming from somewhere and we're going to somewhere else.
(09:49):
You may not know what's going to happen while you're here, but you know what you came to do. And I'll say this, how do you want to leave this gathering? That's the question. How do you want to be changed through this gathering, through this place? Because number one, I know you can't come to New Orleans and not be changed. You cannot come to this place and not be different. And I also know you can't come to a for all summit and not be changed and not be different. So the question and the challenge that I'm going to leave you with at the beginning of the day is, how do you want to change? How do you want to be different when you come out of this? And I keep it real. I try to keep it 200 for y'all. If you ain't changing, you ain't doing this right. This ain't the right place. If you're here to change, you are in the exact right place for you to be. And I believe that's how we go from being great to really great.
(10:55):
Can't wait to be with y'all. I can't wait to hear your stories of transformation. I really can't wait to hear how all of the things have affected you over the next couple of days. You're going to hear great things from the main stage. You're going to hear great things in the focus sessions. I want to go on a couple brain dates. I don't know if anybody's got any openings in their brain date calendar for Julian, but I'd like to see a couple brain dates out there. But I want to make sure that you all know that we're going from somewhere to somewhere. So as they say here in New Orleans, let's let the good times roll and get this party started. Y'all ready? All right, let's do it. Thank you.
Please welcome to the stage Julian Lute, Senior Manager and Strategic Advisor at Great Place to Work.
Julian Lute (00:17):
Wow. What's up? No, what's up? What's going on? Y'all look good. Y'all look real good. I have to say, every time I come out on stage and I feel the energy of this room, it gets better and better. Did y'all feel that energy just off the video? And did you feel the energy when you touch down in New Orleans? That's what it's all about this week. So I want to welcome you. I can't welcome you to New Orleans because I know it's already been done for me. But I would like to welcome you to the 2024 Great Place to Work for All Summit. Thank you all for being here.
(00:58):
And if you didn't know, we've done this 19 times and there's a few people in here. I think I see you back there. I see one of you back there too. You've been here all 19 of these times. We appreciate that and we love that. I have to say this is a very special time of the year for us. It's a very special place that we're in and a good friend of Great Place to Work told us, when you come to New Orleans, you have to celebrate the people in the place and you have to acknowledge the people in the place. So if you're joining me, we're going to acknowledge some of the folks here. I want to acknowledge the Choctaw. I want to acknowledge the Houma and I want to acknowledge the Biloxi tribes and all the other native tribes who have made this place their home.
(01:46):
I also want to acknowledge that some folks made it to this land free and some folks arrived here in shackles. So I want to acknowledge that as well. What I really want to acknowledge is the warm spirit of hospitality of the people who make New Orleans their place to live and work. People in this hotel, people that we've seen on the streets. Everyone, thank you. Thank you. And of course, I'm going to acknowledge y'all. Y'all came here. You could be anywhere in the world but you choose to be with us this week. I want to acknowledge you for the passion that you bring to your work every day, for the investment of time and of energy that you give to us every single year. So thank you to you.
(02:38):
All right, so let's do a little bit. I got to see who's in the house today. If you've been to summit more than one time, so this is not your first time. If you've been here at least one time, make some noise. Wow, there's a lot of people in here. Wow. All right, so this is a good one. So for the people who have been here, when I ask this next question, I need you to look around. If this is your first time at summit, make some noise. All right, well, I have to tell you, if you've been here before, the vets, those folks who just whooped and hollered and made all that noise, it's our job to welcome them into our community. All right, so when you see someone who says this is their first time at summit, this is our community. These are our people. We gather once a year to do this, and it's our role to make sure that they feel comfortable. Okay, you guys with me on that? All good, good, good.
(03:36):
Let's see. Change happens here. And the thing that I've been thinking of since I've been here is what does it mean to change? What does it really mean to transform? And if you look at some of the signage, you'll see that part of the definition of change is going from something to something, right? It's a from-to gesture. And walking through the streets of New Orleans, I reflected on music. Now, anybody in here, in band when they were in school, anybody? Marching band, garage band, high school band, anybody sat through a band rehearsal, sixth grade band, orchestra practice? Okay, y'all are my people. Y'all are really my people. But I think about that in the context of New Orleans in the change and transformation through music. Now, I have a very favorite musician, my favorite jazz musician, Miles Davis. Anyone heard of Miles Davis?
(04:39):
Miles said this. He said, "It's not about standing still and being safe. If anyone wants to keep creating, they have to be about change." If you want to keep creating, you have to be about change. And so when we're here in New Orleans, in the birthplace of jazz, the thing that stuck out to me was by the time most of us had jazz in our lives, it was already an international phenomenon. It had already traveled around the world, but it started here. So if you're from another country and you didn't know where jazz music came from, it's this land, it's these people. It's this mix of unique cultures and identities that brought that music to the world. And when you think about how jazz traveled through the world, it was musicians, it was regular folk who lived down here who for economic reasons had to go from here to Chicago.
(05:33):
They had to go from here to San Francisco. They had to go from here to New York City. And then the music started moving. By the time jazz got to me, it was A Tribe called Quest jazz. It was Digable Planets jazz. It was like Guru in that whole Jazzmatazz series. That's by the time jazz got to me. And I would say that there is another generation right now playing their instruments, getting ready to take this musical art form to the next place. And they're coming from here, but now they're coming from around the world. So when we think about what it means to transform, think about that from, think about that to. Where are you moving from and where are you heading to? I think all of us know what it means to go through change, but I think it's really how things change, how we change that really makes the difference.
(06:32):
I don't think I have to tell you this either, creating great workplaces is hard. Is it easy? It's not easy. It's tough. It's difficult. You're dealing with people like y'all and people sitting next to you. We're trying to bring the best out of each other. We're responsible for this. We're trying to make our businesses better. We're trying to make our worlds better. And what we know about being great is that it changes, it's ever-changing. It's not static. It has to move. It makes me think about the companies who have been taking a part of the great transformation that we've been working on for the last three years. Those companies have been doing things that are difficult and they've been doing them for the last few years specifically to make a change because it's hard. I also think about the people here who are employee resource group leaders. Those folks are taking on an extra challenge to make sure that our companies have this sense of belonging and inclusivity. So let me just ask if you're here as a part of ERGX, make some noise.
(07:40):
They're doing difficult things, y'all. Tough, tough things on our behalf. So we want to make sure that they get the props too. If you see them with the yellow lanyards, make sure you give them a high five or a whatever you do, a pound, whatever you like to do, but they deserve a little recognition there as well. But to sustain this work we know that you have to listen. That's the main thing. And we don't create great workplaces just for some of y'all or for some of y'all back there. And even for some of y'all. It's our role to create great workplaces for everyone. That's why we have to listen.
(08:15):
Now, when you're talking about things like equity, you're really talking about how do we move from this promise to progress? And when I talk about equity, I'm talking about equity of experience. I'm talking about the equity of representation in our organizations, having people have an equitable experience of their well-being, equitable experience of opportunities in our organizations. We've always promised but equity demands that we move because we know where the from is. We know where we are, we have to move to this next place. And I think equity is one of those things that we are all focused on, but we have to move from the promise of equity to the progress in equity.
(08:57):
And I'll tell you this, you would not be here if you did not believe in the power of creating great workplaces. No one comes to summit to just overhear what it means to be great. Someone just in the back of the room saying, let me dip into one of these main stage sessions and see what they're talking about on stage. Or let me go to one of these focus sessions and see if someone in there is kind of cool and I can connect with someone. We don't do that. We don't run our businesses that way. We run our businesses on KPIs. We run our businesses on outcomes. We run our businesses on goals, strategic areas. So what I would say is that you may not know what's going to happen here, but you know what you came to do. We're coming from somewhere and we're going to somewhere else.
(09:49):
You may not know what's going to happen while you're here, but you know what you came to do. And I'll say this, how do you want to leave this gathering? That's the question. How do you want to be changed through this gathering, through this place? Because number one, I know you can't come to New Orleans and not be changed. You cannot come to this place and not be different. And I also know you can't come to a for all summit and not be changed and not be different. So the question and the challenge that I'm going to leave you with at the beginning of the day is, how do you want to change? How do you want to be different when you come out of this? And I keep it real. I try to keep it 200 for y'all. If you ain't changing, you ain't doing this right. This ain't the right place. If you're here to change, you are in the exact right place for you to be. And I believe that's how we go from being great to really great.
(10:55):
Can't wait to be with y'all. I can't wait to hear your stories of transformation. I really can't wait to hear how all of the things have affected you over the next couple of days. You're going to hear great things from the main stage. You're going to hear great things in the focus sessions. I want to go on a couple brain dates. I don't know if anybody's got any openings in their brain date calendar for Julian, but I'd like to see a couple brain dates out there. But I want to make sure that you all know that we're going from somewhere to somewhere. So as they say here in New Orleans, let's let the good times roll and get this party started. Y'all ready? All right, let's do it. Thank you.
