I have always advocated horizontal growth within a company. Whenever it seemed like a sound decision, I didn't hesitate promote people or adjust their responsibilities to maximize their strengths or passions.

A special case turned out to be a special success story when I promoted ours CMO to the CPO.

Sintija started working at DeskTime three years ago. She had a decade marketing and copywriting experience, which made her ideal for the CMO role. Afterward, she discovered that one day she would like to work in human resources.

Note taken.

Marketing mind for HR

This was a turbulent time for our team, which had doubled in size in a relatively short time. We didn't have a clear direction or distinct roles. And, on top of that, we struggled with low productivity.

Previously, our HR processes leaned heavily towards clerical tasks and document management, with an HR specialist focused primarily on recruitment and legal documentation. But that wasn't enough – we needed a people officer who could elevate HR beyond simple administrative tasks.

Sintija came with a vision of optimization of human resources processes and changing group dynamics. She knew the business like the back of her hand, from market conditions to technical specifications, and could answer all the questions of new recruits. Plus, she had people skills like diplomacy, active listening, empathy, and humor—things that would disarm even the toughest software developer.

For these reasons, I was confident that she would be the right person for the newly created role of CPO. In addition, four other benefits came from her taking this position – ones I didn't expect. All were related to her marketing background, which she used to improve the company's HR processes.

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1. Leverage marketing skills to attract top talent

Showing and selling ideas and products are the main pillars of marketing. It turns out that these components are also effective when applied to human resources. Similar to marketing, the HR department should function as the face of the business.

When you have a marketing specialist working with talent acquisition, you kill two birds with one stone. This person knows how to attract new talent, how to “package” our company's benefits and where to distribute job postings. In our case, we also benefit from Sintija's willingness to speak at public events, podcasts, etc., and be one of the faces of the company.

2. The login time is halved

Like customer churn in marketing, high employee turnover means dissatisfaction.

An experienced marketing specialist understands that the first steps of meeting a product or service affect the rate of inhibition. Onboarding is like a marketing funnel; The first 3 months are crucial for employee satisfaction. During these first months, new recruits should feel welcome and 100% included on board.

Sintija put her marketing experience to use and as a result, our organization has seen an increase in employee satisfaction and retention, which has been accompanied by a significant decrease in turnover. Some of the adjustments to our onboarding process that have contributed to these positive results include:

• Comprehensive documentation (from software techniques to parking arrangements),
• Monthly records to identify early concerns of new recruits,
• Buddy system for personalized support,
• Team Presentations with Communication Styles (DiSC).

Given the rigorous and expensive selection process our recruits undergo, it is in our best interest to ensure their satisfaction and catch any problems early. By paying attention to seemingly small details, we have managed to simplify our onboarding process, reducing its duration from six months to three, and we hope to reduce it even further.

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3. Improving the “employee experience”

Another metric that plays a crucial role in a successful marketing funnel and reducing bounce rates is good user experience (UX). When we treat employees as “users” and their employment experience as a user experience, we strive to make their work experience as smooth and enjoyable as possible rather than taking their work for granted .

Our revamped onboarding process illustrates this change. We've segmented it into manageable steps, starting with an informational email a week before their first day on the job. This phased approach prevents information overload, ensuring new hires feel supported and confident as they begin their journey with the company.

As employees acclimatize, they gain access to comprehensive documentation on our platform and company processes, empowering them to navigate their roles and company processes efficiently.

Finally, positioning the business processes in the right way is very important. Take, for example, our approach to all company meetings. Inspired by Cynthia's vision, we renamed them 'symposia'. This 'rebranding' (coupled with the lure of wine and food) resulted in a much higher rate of participation and engagement than traditional meetings or sessions.

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4. New tools simplify HR processes

Marketing is typically more advanced than HR in terms of technology applications and automation. Sintija's marketing background allows her to see opportunities for automation and adoption of new tools, which save hours of everyone's time spent on manual work.

For example, to improve the candidate experience, we've automated the recruitment process with regular bulleted emails. These emails keep candidates informed of their progress and next steps, ensuring a smooth journey.

Despite being a data-driven company, we lacked comprehensive employee data to effectively assess team dynamics. Sintija introduced Employee Net Score Surveys (ENPS), providing insight into the sentiments of our employees. This action eliminated the guesswork, allowing us to make informed decisions based on collective feedback rather than isolated incidents.