Ben Eubanks's Recent LinkedIn Posts

I'm packing up. Tomorrow is one of my favorite events of the year. No, it's not a conference. It's a race. The Delano 12 hour. The concept is very simple. How far can you go in 12 hours? Last time I did this race I set my personal best at 50 miles. 🥱😉 Tomorrow I'm working on setting a personal best for my fastest 50k. 🏃 What I love most is that my son will be participating on a kids relay team. He and the other kids get to see and experience this up close from an early age. They are seeing and feeling what it means to challenge yourself. To press through when you're uncomfortable. To push your own boundaries and find out that they're farther than you would have imagined. There's a lesson in there for all of us. When I spoke at the MRA HR conference a while back, One of the attendees stood up and told me that she had done a 12-hour walk as a personal challenge and was astounded not just at how she felt but at what it did to her brain and the ideas and passion she felt following the experience. 💥 We're all capable of more than we ever dreamed. I hope you have a chance to press your own limits and see what you can accomplish. 💪🧠 And I hope you are pleasantly surprised by what you discover. ♥️

Culture is not a poster on the wall. It is how people are treated every single day. When positivity is the mission, it shows up everywhere. In who you hire. In how you serve customers. In how partners and communities are welcomed. This is what it looks like when values are lived, not scheduled. Not a one-day event. Not a slogan. A system. Real culture is consistent, contagious, and impossible to fake. Hat tip to Michele Corkins

In a few weeks I'll be hosting a panel focusing on measurement and KPIs for HR teams. We'll examine some common metrics that teams can/should use, how to use data effectively, and the best way to communicate to drive change. This isn't a session for my friends who are already HR analytics data nerd whiz pros. 🤓 It's a practical session for those HR pros who feel like: …they are drowning in data but starving for actual insights. …their data is such a "mess" that they don’t even know where to start. …they’re stuck in "Spreadsheet Purgatory" while everyone else talks about fancy AI dashboards. …they are secretly afraid of what the numbers might show about a favorite project. …quantifying people feels like it takes the "human" out of HR. …they already know what the problems are and don’t need a chart to prove it. …their leadership only cares about the bottom line, ignoring the "soft" metrics that matter. …they are tracking things just because they’re easy to measure, not because they’re important. …their reports constantly fall on deaf ears once they hit the leadership suite. …they feel a bit of "imposter syndrome" when sitting across from the Finance team. …they have the "what" (the numbers) but no idea how to explain the "so what?" (the story). …they’ll be held accountable for metrics they can't actually control, like the macro-economy. …their company’s goals change too fast for the KPIs to ever stay relevant. …they spend more time pulling the data than they do actually fixing the problems. …they need a PhD in statistics just to have a meaningful seat at the table. If one of those describes you and you were sitting in a session like this, what is one thing you'd want to know? I'm trying to channel my inner brilliance a la Richard Rosenow Nicole Eisdorfer, PhD 🦒 Zach Frank Cole Napper Matthew Hamilton Kamaria Scott while being as practical as possible with this session! 🙂

Experimentation time! It's an employer's market today in most industries, but I'm always curious about how job seekers are thinking about the hiring process and what companies can do to set themselves apart from the rest without investing a ton of money or time. In this year's edition of the Lighthouse Research & Advisory Talent Acquisition Trends study, we surveyed 1,000 people currently looking for work. We ask them a wide range of questions from their current sentiment on the hiring market (hint: not good) to perceptions of fairness, respect, & more. One of the questions we've used in the past lets us understand how candidates feel about AI usage in the hiring process. But instead of just asking about their sentiment or feelings, we give them options for CONSENT language to be screened by AI. The results are predictable in some ways (people prefer humans--shocker!), but there's a clear lesson for employers that will increase candidate trust & perceptions of fairness, and it only takes a few minutes to make sure it's incorporated into the job postings and/or career page. Candidates were given the attached images representing job ads and the opportunity to select the one they were most comfortable applying for. Each has a different AI consent language phrasing. Paraphrasing least to most preferred: 1) Vague general "we use automation/AI" statement 2) Descriptive "we use automation/AI" statement focusing on protecting candidates from bias due to race, age, etc. 3) Descriptive "we use AI/automation" statement focusing on skills/experience 4) Descriptive "we use AI/automation" statement with a clarifier that humans make the final decision [WINNER] The takeaway is clear: companies that are only highlighting AI usage as part of the hiring process without thinking about the candidate side of the equation are missing the chance to address + alleviate one of the biggest fears candidates have today. Want candidates to be more comfortable applying for your jobs, regardless of AI usage? Commit to human reviews at the end of the process. The vast majority of companies already do this, but they don't realize candidates believe the myth that ATS technology screens out candidates automatically, that humans never see any applications unless they're in the top five, etc. Tons of myths + misinformation floating around. Let's put some of it to rest. ----- Like this insight? On April 1st we will be hosting our annual Talent Acquisition Trends Virtual Event. We will feature an all star talent executive panel, highlights of the brand new research studies of over 1,000 global employers & 1,000 global candidates, and market conversations with partners like Phenom and Criteria Corp. Last year hundreds of employers signed up to hear about the new research and learn from our partners delivering innovative ATS, CRM, assessment, recruitment services, and other solutions. Sign up today: https://lnkd.in/gQvfe5KS

Rocking out to my new isolved speaker cooking Valentine's lunch for the family today! What's your go to cleaning/cooking music? Some love flavor today in our music, but we typically mix it up between 80s hits, contemporary Christian (For King and Country, Cain, Tobymac, and others), 90s country when the mood strikes, with some newer stuff sprinkled in like Imagine Dragons, Kpop Demon Hunters to satisfy the younger three kids, etc. 🧑‍🎤🎧 (thanks Paige La Fever!)

Learning does more than build skills. It gives people agency. Agency creates control. Control creates hope. And hope creates dignity at work. Titles change. Jobs change. Companies change. But what you learn stays with you forever. That is why learning is never wasted. And why investing in it is one of the most human decisions an organization can make. Hat tip to Adaluz Julia Veloz (Julie Veloz) 🇩🇴

In just two hours our team will go live to share this year's Lighthouse Tech Awards finalists and WINNERS in this 7-year program. George Rogers and I will be hosting and shouting out to the companies making it easier for employers to hire, compensate, retain, recognize, support, develop, and measure the most important resource in the business: their people. 💪 Always get excited about this! Good things to come. Check out the LinkedIn Live session below at noon central time. HR Tech Awards

Great teams are never great by accident. Behind every winning team is someone helping people see their potential and push beyond it. A coach. A mentor. A leader who creates the conditions for growth. That same idea applies at work. Learning and development is not about programs or content. It is about enabling people to become more, so they can show up stronger for their teams, their organizations, and their lives outside of work. That is not just a job. It is a privilege. Hat tip to Al Dea

For years we’ve been told the workplace is divided by generations. Boomers want loyalty. Gen X wants independence. Millennials want purpose. Gen Z wants flexibility. It makes for great conference slides. But the research tells a different story. A growing body of organizational psychology research suggests that many of the differences we attribute to generations are overstated, misunderstood, or simply unsupported by evidence. For example: • A major review in the Journal of Business and Psychology concluded that many widely cited generational differences are actually myths created by weak research designs and stereotypes rather than meaningful behavioral differences. • Other studies show that when researchers properly control for age and life stage, generational membership explains very little about work motivation or attitudes. • Across many workplace outcomes such as engagement, commitment, and work ethic, the differences between generations are typically small to nonexistent. In other words, what we often call a “generation problem” may actually be something else entirely. It might be: • Career stage • Life circumstances • Economic conditions people experienced early in their careers • Organizational culture • Leadership quality Those factors shape behavior far more than whether someone falls into a labeled generation. Which brings me to a point that rarely gets mentioned in these conversations. Can we stop with the “five generations at work” talking point? At almost every point in the entire history of work, organizations have had people roughly 18 to 60+ in the workforce at the same time. The only real exception would be centuries ago when life expectancy was dramatically lower due to infant/child mortality rates. Having a wide age range in the workforce isn’t new. It isn't novel. And it shouldn't be used as a strategy, talking point, or decision-making filter. Strangely, this topic became a common narrative that those age differences represent fundamentally different generations that require entirely different leadership approaches. Ironically, repeating that narrative can actually make the problem worse. When leaders expect big generational differences, they can unintentionally reinforce stereotypes in how they manage, hire, and develop people. The better question for leaders isn’t: “How do we manage five generations?” It’s: “How do we create a workplace that works for humans at different stages of life?” Because when you strip away the labels, most employees want the same basic things: Good leadership. Meaningful work. Fair treatment. And opportunities to grow. Generations make for interesting headlines. But humans are a lot more complicated than that. 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼 some citations for my fellow nerds

For all of my HR friends out there that are using AI tools to answer questions about employment law, regulatory requirements, and specific situations with your employees... Think again. WOW

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before… A company spends $50k on a leadership training program. Employees spend four hours in a windowless conference room. Everyone passes the quiz. 30 days later? Nothing has changed. Old habits are back. The binder is gathering dust. We’ve all been there. It’s the "disposable learning" trap, and it is a risk we can't afford to take. I was recently reading about the shift toward Durable Learning, and it hit home. As an HR leader, I felt the pressure to just "get the training done" so we could check the box. But as a researcher, I know that "done" doesn't mean "effective." Here is the reality check: The shelf life of a technical skill is now roughly five years. Some say even less, depending on the skill. Are we training for skills that are DISPOSABLE or skills that are DURABLE? If we are only training for the "now," we are constantly playing catch-up. Durable learning isn’t just about consuming content; it’s about how that knowledge survives the "forgetting curve" and actually changes behavior on a Tuesday morning. In our research at Lighthouse, we see that the most successful companies don’t just "train"—they create environments where learning is reinforced through social connection and real-world application. Practical tip for my HR friends: Instead of asking "How many people finished the course?", start asking "What’s one thing you’ve done differently since the session?" Are you building skills that last, or just filling seats in a classroom? Hat tip to Adaluz Julia Veloz (Julie Veloz) 🇩🇴 for this excellent piece that inspired me today. The Shift to Durable Learning https://lnkd.in/gYPPFxRi

What does it take to get to 80? Last week I had the pleasure and privilege of joining the Milo's Tea Company, Inc. HR team led by Ryan Faught. I made some great new friends and shared the latest AI trends with their team. The company just celebrated its 80th year in business, and the movie theme allow them to showcase some of their leaders and key contributors. Such a fun theme! (look close at the movie posters for their good ideas!) The HR team and I had so much fun in an interactive AI workshop, exploring the boundaries of what's possible when you care about people and want to use technology to help scale your reach and impact. Based on what I saw the team is set up for an exciting time of growth and success. So impressive! Thanks to Ryan for making it possible. Grateful to know you and call you a friend!

Greg Hawks book Act Like an Owner has so many good tidbits in it. This concept of owners versus renters in the corporate context speaks to many of the deep seated issues that exist in so many companies. Territory. Trust. Respect. Instead of focusing just on what matters to your team, your department, or your function, focus on what matters to the organization. In Greg-speak: Don't just focus on your room, focus on the house. Some things are good for your team but bad for the business. Some things help your work group but diminish others. Find the options that build up everyone. That's where you win. That's where WE win.

Next week our team will be at UNLEASH America in Vegas, and we will be streaming live on Wednesday 18th from the show floor with our friends from CandorIQ ! George Rogers and I are excited to talk about total rewards, humanity at work, culture, leadership, and other critical topics. So pumped!

Nick is a solid guy (and not too shabby as a runner either!) He's hiring.

People do not connect to policies. They connect to stories. Storytelling is the human layer of work. It is how employees feel informed, engaged, and inspired, especially at scale. When internal communications are treated like a newsroom, stories travel. Across teams. Across roles. Across thousands of employees who may never meet but still learn from one another. This is how culture spreads. Not through announcements, but through real people and real stories. Hat tip to Micki Sievwright

Sandra Loughlin, PhD is one of the best people to follow if you are thinking about skills and how to make them tangible, practical, and valuable for your business. Love this breakdown.

AI was supposed to make hiring easier. So why does it feel harder than ever? If candidates need a PhD to finish an application, the system is broken. Yes, AI can drive efficiency. Yes, it can help teams be more strategic. But too often, HR fills the time AI saves with more work instead of better work. The real challenge is balance. Human-centered experiences. Simpler processes. And using AI to create space for strategy, not more noise. Efficiency only matters if it actually changes how we work. Hat tip to Brent Morrell

This chance to speak with Leslie Vickrey and Lesly Cardec on their excellent new podcast was a blast. We covered ground I don't normally get to touch on in a podcast format, and it was a pleasure to share some perspectives on leading with flexibility and respect. Thanks for the opportunity ladies! ♥️

Interesting piece of research from The Wharton School. What worries me most is that when I bring up the whole cognitive offloading/cognitive laziness aspect of AI in front of a group, I almost always get a few responses from people that indicate addiction language. "I can quit if I wanted to." "You're overreacting." "Everyone else does it." That's truly scary. I'm reading so often about how entire sections of our population feel like they can't survive without AI because they have become so reliant on it for every decision every day.

The latest productivity booster? Tech companies are now handing out nicotine. I'm sure this will have no long-lasting effects on workers. After all, endless productivity has no downside, right? Pushing people with nicotine and other chemicals only leads to better outcomes, not burnout or a dozen other health risks. This is such great news... 🙄 For that one person out there that misreads this and thinks I'm advocating for it for real... A quick search on Google Scholar shows 1.2+ million articles, case studies, journal pieces, etc. on the harmful effects of nicotine. Not good. How is this even a thing?

One of my favorite topics these days is white space. If you or your team or your organization use AI for some purpose, the value isn't in the automation. That's minimal value. Because someone else was already paid to do it and now we're paying for AI to do it, too. If you put your feet up on the desk and relax then AI's net benefit is not there. The value is in what it unlocks. What can you do with that new time? What new problems can you solve? What innovation can be created? What people can you serve? That is net new value. Cliff built an incredible calculator that looks at both options. Trying to figure out the ROI of AI adoption? This is a great starting point!

Newsflash: AI doesn't always do what we expect (or what makes any logical, business, or other sense) example #754 and counting

This is what real employee experience looks like. A schedule check at the kitchen table. No manager. No guessing. No waiting. One app. One moment. Instant clarity. If employees cannot see and manage their schedule on demand, HR and operations are not integrated into real life. They are just systems in the background. Modern frontline work demands the same ease, visibility, and control people expect everywhere else in their lives. This is not a nice-to-have. It is table stakes. Hat tip to Conrad Riddle