Employee Spotlight: “Be open to the ride” — advice from Xurrent's Director of People Operations

Be open to the ride. Buckle up, roll up your sleeves, do the work, ask questions, and share ideas. It is a lot of work, but seeing your efforts come to life is incredibly rewarding.

That was Xurrent’s Director of People Operations, Kelsey Bardfield’s answer when asked, “What advice would you give to someone looking to join Team Xurrent (or ‘become a Xurtians,’ as we call ourselves)?”

Our team recently sat down with Kelsey Bardfield to learn more about Xurrent’s:

• Culture and work environment
• People programs and growth initiatives
• Passion for building and making a positive impact

Along the way, Kelsey also shared details about her involvement with Planet Protectors as well as her several loves: books, Gilmore Girls, Sociology, Pilates, and Real Housewives (of course).

Teaming. Service first. Better every day.

Those are Xurrent’s 3 company values.

Kelsey shared how cool it is to significantly impact outcomes when working at a smaller organization. “You can turn to senior leadership and talk through something. They are more flexible and quick to get things done when trying new things.” 

She loves that Xurrent is a “low ego environment” where everyone is “really scrappy,” jumping in and doing tasks that may be out of the typical job scope. “This climate makes Xurrent more of a true crowd-sourcing effort. We all want this place to be really successful, and to have that big impact on it is nice.”

Kelsey loves how everyone’s viewpoint is heard and respected. Even if we disagree, the fact that others’ ideas are welcomed creates an engaging environment.

Xurrent is growing.

Every organization thrives on maintaining a strong culture and ingraining company mission into all new hires — especially during that growth. 

Easier said than done.

“As the Director of People Operations, I feel very strongly that the company’s culture is not solely my responsibility; it’s everyone’s.

“How people show up and interact with their peers, their managers, and our customers is incredibly important. We are all collectively creating and driving that culture, so it is ensuring that we continue to hire people who understand that ownership and treat each other with respect and kindness.”

Inclusivity is integral to Xurrent, central to our culture

Kelsey is passionate about creating inclusive workplaces. She describes herself as “big on data and behavioral science.” 

Kelsey ensures inclusion is “naturally embedded” in every program. This, she says, “helps break down biases.” She constantly brainstorms and researches ways to create consistent and lasting behavioral change. 

Xurrent’s quarterly feedback program is called “Top 2s.” At the end of every quarter, employees and managers discuss two tangible things that went well and two that can be improved upon – and this feedback goes both ways. “It allows us to focus on specific actions, not personalizations, and gives us the tools, resources, and support to become better every day.”

And to be clear, it’s not all on Kelsey to ensure an inclusive culture at Xurrent. Leadership is on the hook as well. “This occurs through a combination of education and how we design programs to break away biases. Xurrent has done an amazing job of creating a culture of inclusivity.”

Work. Play. Community involvement.

While Kelsey loves Xurrent, it’s certainly not her only passion. And that’s a good thing, of course.

Kelsey is also on the board at Planet Protectors, a local environmental non-profit.

“At Planet Protectors,” shared Kelsey, “We divert single-use plastic from landfills and turn it into outdoor decking material. This is an entirely grassroots, word-of-mouth bi-weekly recycling program with about 1600 households and another 20 or so businesses that contribute. Volunteers lovingly hand-sort through the plastic and then bundle, bail, and save it from landfill. Every 5,000 pounds or so, we ship it off to turn it into new material, which is funded by people who donate and recycle with us. I work with an incredible group of people, both volunteers and community members.” 

That’s how Kelsey spends many of her Saturday mornings. Oh, and she also teaches pilates and reads – a lot (70+ books per year!).
“I’m always challenging myself to learn more about the human experience and ways I can integrate that into my role at Xurrent to best support our employee base. I’m fortunate that — while my job is hard and busy (and challenging, in a good way) — I have the support from Kevin and the leadership team to do pilates and volunteer. It’s never an issue.”

If you join the Xurrent team, expect to be invited to a few pilates classes … as well as some conversations about books, plastic recycling, and Real Housewives.

Stay tuned for next month’s Xurrent Employee Spotlight.