My secret human capital weapon in the 1990s. #mothers #women

My secret kind of human capital weapon in the 90s was I hired quite a few people who were brand managers out of really iconic companies who left because it wasn't compatible with having kids. They weren't nearly as generous with maternity leave back in the 90s. And I would say, come in two days a week, but you can be home three days a week. And I found that mothers were really efficient and disciplined because there was no like they had to leave at a certain time to get home to pick up their kids or whatever. And so I hired a lot of mothers and gave them remote work flexibility, which doesn't sound that progressive now, but it was back in the 90s. Why? Because I would learn about their situation and think, OK, I'm going to cater my management of you to what is your specific situation. If you can demonstrate to people that you have a vested interest in their success, that you are fighting for them, they will be loyal to you. That is a really powerful thing. I didn't figure that out until later in my management career. But understanding what's important to people and then giving them the sense that you're fighting for them and that they can trust you is really powerful.