Parenting-Powered Leadership: Dawn Foods’ CPO on Listening, Neurodiversity, and Frontline Flexibility

Show Notes

Summary

What does people-first leadership look like when most of your workforce can’t work from a laptop? Jason N. Lioy, Chief People Officer at Dawn Foods and member of the Forbes Human Resources Council, leads 3,500 team members across plants, distribution centers, and offices worldwide. He shares how parenting—especially raising a son with special needs—shapes his “lead with heart and ears” philosophy and turns belonging into daily practice. Jason blends empathy with data discipline, from setting personal non-negotiables (like school drop-off) to building role-based flexibility for frontline teams. He details how Dawn achieves 80%+ participation in engagement surveys globally by making them accessible to non-desk workers and acting publicly on the results. He also unpacks how leaders can normalize vulnerability, apply the “oxygen mask” rule, and use listening—not policies—as the foundation for trust. Expect stories, playbooks, and practical steps any people leader can use to better support working parents and build a culture where everyone belongs.

Timestamps

[00:40] – Guest intro: Jason’s path to CPO at Dawn Foods and Parenting at Work’s mission

[02:55] – Non-negotiable: leading with heart so people know you care

[04:45] – A mentor’s legacy: why one CHRO changed Jason’s leadership forever

[07:35] – Parenting’s imprint: special needs, empathy, and adaptable leadership

[12:10] – Belonging in practice: schedule non-negotiables, neurodiversity, and modeling openness

[20:40] – Making vulnerability normal: the “oxygen mask” rule and post-COVID connection

[27:45] – Frontline flexibility: equitable policies, listening first, and positive team member relations

[32:40] – From heart to head: biannual surveys, pulses, 80% participation, and acting on data

Takeaways

- Model vulnerability: share appropriate personal context and open meetings with quick personal check-ins.

- Define role-based flexibility: set clear non-negotiables and find practical give-and-take for frontline schedules.

- Train leaders to “lead with heart and ears”: treat listening and empathy as core operating skills.

- Measure what matters: run biannual engagement surveys with targeted pulses; ensure access for non-desk workers and compensate for time.

- Act on feedback: use comments, skip-levels, and local action plans to close the loop and build trust.

- Live neuroinclusive values: support and hire neurodiverse talent, pair high expectations with the right accommodations.

Parenting at Work is brought to you by Juno — the modern financial safety net for working families. 

Juno helps employers offer affordable, impactful long-term financial coverage for children diagnosed with a severe illness or disability, giving parents peace of mind and flexibility when it matters most. 

You can learn more about how Juno is helping companies build family-first benefits that truly make a difference at junokids.com.

What is Parenting at Work?

Work and family aren’t two separate lives—they’re one reality. Welcome to Parenting at Work, the podcast exploring the human side of business. Join us for a warm conversation with leaders redefining employee support. Each episode offers stories and strategies for building workplaces that care. This is serious coverage with serious heart.

This podcast is brought to you by Juno, the modern safety net for working families.

Learn more at junokids.com

Jason Lioy
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Jason Lioy: [00:00:00] Every day impact with my son because I have to adjust my, my approach, my style, my day to day, my schedule to accommodate some things for him. And some days it's frustrating and some days it's wonderful, right? And parents are different breed, you know, in terms of how you have to manage your day to day and what impacts your day to day, and the things that trigger you day to day.

Ashley Spiess: Welcome to Parenting At Work, the podcast exploring the real world intersection of family life and the workplace. I'm your host, Ashley. Speed. We're here to dive into real honest conversations with leaders and innovators who are redefining what it means to support families in the workplace. My hope is that these conversations leave you feeling inspired and equipped to build a more compassionate world at work.

Because let's face it, work and family aren't two separate lives. They're one integrated reality. Parenting at Work is brought to you by Juno, the modern financial safety net for working families. I am honored and so excited today to bring you [00:01:00] Jason Le. Uh, he's a people first executive with 25 plus years experience in hr.

Currently serving as Chief People Officer at Don Foods, a hundred year old family-owned com company that's become a global leader in the baking industry. He's a member of the HR Executive Counsel and is currently serving as a council member at the Forbes Human Resources Council, where he engages with industry leaders to influence the future of work.

So today we're gonna talk through his leadership. How he's built a people first culture inside a global manufacturing business and what it means to lead with trust and how his experience as a parent has shaped his approach to work life and everything in between. So Jason, welcome to Parenting at Work.

I'm so excited to have you here today.

Jason Lioy: Yeah, it's my pleasure. And, uh, thank you to the, the great introduction. I don't, I mean, I couldn't even come close to introducing myself the way you did, so I really appreciate it.

Ashley Spiess: Pleasure is all mine. And I just need to set the stage here because I feel very on brand.

This morning. I'm sitting in my home office. There is a firetruck underneath my feet. My [00:02:00] five-year-old is down the hall in my living room watching Bluey 'cause he's homesick today with 102 fever. And I feel like you can relate.

Jason Lioy: I can't, I can't. I mean, Brad, my, my kids are quite a bit older, uh, 20 and 17, but.

There are times where they feel like it feels like they're 12 and beat again.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah.

Jason Lioy: It, it, it varies. That's the, that's the beauty of being a parent. Yeah. You never know what you're gonna get. And that's, and that's corporate life too. So you never know what you're gonna get every day.

Ashley Spiess: That's very true.

That's very true. And it's funny 'cause it's, again, relating to why we're here today. This podcast was born out of the realization that we need more honest conversations about what it really looks like to parent while working and how employers can build environments where people can show up as their whole selves.

Being a working parent myself and navigating a very complex medical journey with one of my kids. You know, I've been through all the ebbs and flows, um, of a working parent in today's day and age. So again, I'm very excited to have this conversation today. Um, so let's dive in. Um, you know, I think we can both agree that people, [00:03:00] leaders often operate from a core principle, whether that be personal experience, moral compass, or just really the drive to trail to trailblaze change.

So I'd love to know what is the one non-negotiable value that underpins every initiative you create, uh, and every decision that you make as a people leader.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. I mean, it's hard, it's hard to pinpoint just one now. I'll kind of pinpoint perhaps one, maybe two in the 'cause they, 'cause they blend together and you do not a little bit in your open narrative around leading with a heart.

And being passionate about what we do, right? So I believe that no matter what we design or what we do at work, you know, whether it's a program, whether it's like initiative or responding to a crisis, you gotta lead with your heart and the passion for what you do first, right? And, um, because I think that that's gonna come out no matter what you do with the people that you lead.

Uh, 'cause the people that you lead need to believe in you. You know, they don't really [00:04:00] care about what you know, they care about, that you care about what they do. Uh, from my perspectives, everything that we've been doing, um, I've gone, and every everywhere else I've worked, that's where I, I've tried to lead and also impart that on my team and also have the leaders that I support drive with their heart.

You know, 'cause you can't jump with your heart, then no's gonna follow you.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah. And I think, and I, I agree. It's funny, I have a very similar leadership philosophy 'cause I, I've been in leadership roles for 15 years and I always say. You want people to want to come to work every day, but you also want people to want to come work for you.

And part of that is, is how you show up for them. Where do you think that philosophy I, and I love the philosophy leading with heart. Um, and where do you think that philosophy came from? Was it shaped by your own personal experience, your family, um, mentors that you've worked with? Um, again, 'cause I think it is so unique and, and special that that is how, how you, you look towards the impact you could make in your role.

So where did, where did that stem from?

Jason Lioy: I think it's a combination of what you said. I mean, I think combination of family, it's a [00:05:00] combination of mentors that I've had over, I've been blessed with seeing five best mentors and bosses, um, over, over the course of my 20 plus year career. It's hard to say 20 plus years now.

Geez. I mean, it's a whole separate topic for a whole separate, separate podcast. But, uh, you know, from my perspective, it's shifted by all those people. Um, and if I have to pinpoint. Heart notion, right? I think I hadn't thought about this, um, in quite a long time, but one of the first seniors that I worked for, you know, I was multiple levels down the organization and I was, I was, I was frustrated with my career at that point in time.

I was sitting in a job, I didn't want to do what I wanted to move to something else. And I eventually got the opportunity to move to that role. And, um, Doug Bowles was his name and he was the CHRO, uh, for Armstrong World Industries. I was walking to lunch and Doug, you know, was walking in to the lunchroom, [00:06:00] right.

You know, right outside. I was walking in and he said, Hey, listen, I heard that you got that, got that new role and I, I know you were frustrated. I mean, to have the CHR talk to me, you know, being seven levels down in the organization, to have 'em talk to me and talk about my frustrations and what I was interested in and, and say, Hey, we finally got you that job.

I was like, amazed. But then. That wasn't really the, the thing that really hit me. Um, what hit me next was the very next day, the very next day, he died of an aneurysm like that.

Ashley Spiess: Oh gosh.

Jason Lioy: And it was completely unexpected, very tragic. And to see hi the, to see his funeral and to see the people talking about him.

He was a young guy too. He was in his mid forties, mid-way forties. Young family. His kids were up there talking about him and his job and what he did and how much it meant to him. It really impacted me, right, and impacted me on multiple levels. One, the fact that a senior leader took the time [00:07:00] to really understand what I was interested in, and two, to see his impact on people and to see the mass of people that were impacted by his passing and to hear them talk about him made me want to be a leader like that.

And I haven't thought about that in a very long time until you just asked that question and that it really hit me hard.

Ashley Spiess: Well, what an, what an amazing story. It's funny, you know, for parents, you know, many people talk about how their kids shape who they are, and then they have mentors that also help shape their career.

And it's just, it's, it's fascinating how we can take such, to your point, such human genuine connections and personal experiences and how they can shape just such impactful work, you know, on top of an, an impressive run in hr. You're, you're also a dad.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. I am, they have two wonderful boys. You know, I've been married over 20 years and, uh, you know, my two boys, you know, to see them grow into men as they are right now has been, I been short and amazing, you know, to see my older son who's in college and watching, being an [00:08:00] intern and watching, you know, go into profession, you know, and into ultimately corporate life is, and having him talk about things is really kind of amazing.

You know, it's beyond baseball growing up. Sports and then seeing my son kind figure his way out. And, and that's one thing that I would say is that both my boys have impacted me significantly. My family's impacted me significantly, but my younger son who's got special needs, impacts me on a great, in a great way.

'cause it, it has transformed my heart and transformed my ability to be empathetic to parents that. Trouble just day-to-day stuff, not just special needs stuff. Right. And

Ashley Spiess: yeah.

Jason Lioy: You know, but so like, I was thinking about questions that, you know, people, people asking me about, like, okay, what impacted you from a parent perspective?

Every day impacts, um, with my son, um, because I have to adjust my, my approach, my style, um, my day-to-day, my schedule to accommodate some things for him, you know, and, and [00:09:00] some days it's frustrating and some days it's wonderful. Right. And that's the, that's the, um. That's a struggle that parents have. 'cause they gotta balance everything, especially working parents.

I mean, parents are different breed, you know, in terms of how you have to manage your day to day and what impacts your day to day and the things that trigger you day to day. But when you're a working parent and you've got circumstances, 'cause life inevitably happens, right? And the lack of sleep, you know, when you're younger.

When the kids are younger, I mean, actually. The lack of sleep forever. Once you have, once you're a parent, you're, you, you don't sleep ever again 'cause you're worried. Pop up in the middle of the night, you worry before you go to bed. You worry when you wake up and you pop up in the middle of the night and you're done through your lists of stuff.

Guess for my wife going through her lists, but not me. But, um, you know, from my perspective, you who every day is impacted by, by my kids.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah. I, I couldn't agree more. Like, as I mentioned, I, I went through a personal experience with my own daughter and spent, you [00:10:00] know, my maternity leave in a cardiac intensive care unit.

Balancing trying to, to show up for work and to, to care for her medical costs. And I know exactly what you mean by that, that experience. And it's a lifelong nap new road that you navigate. It is, it's just not, you know, a, a certain season of life. Parents who are caregiving, you know, can spend, depending on their child's condition, can spend up to an extra 41 hours a week caring for their child on top of just the normalcy of being a parent.

You know? So one of the things that, you know, I, I love about, as we're continuing to, you know, to. Progressively changed. Like the, the workplace in the industry is having to have more of these conversations and making it feel okay for, for parents to, to talk about what's going on at work and what's going on at home and, you know, not feeling like they have to sacrifice, uh, one or the other.

It's funny you mention you have, uh, two boys. So I have a five-year-old son right now. This kid, oh my god, he eats every snack imaginable and I, I don't even know where he puts it 'cause he's this tiny little string bean of a kid. It's, and it's always an [00:11:00] interesting challenge working at home with boys.

Again, you probably are having flashbacks. 'cause right now my son's curiosity and interest with figuring out how things work and how to replace batteries and everything that takes batteries. Oh yeah. Makes quite the blood pressure tests when I'm, when I'm home working and he's home. So

Jason Lioy: pressure, you're looking for those batteries for those that had set Yes.

That you use every day and then all of a sudden the batteries are gone or the Yes. Or your mouse or your keyboard, whatever.

Ashley Spiess: He is my inventory. He tells me exactly when the aas have run out and when we need more aaas. Um, so he's, it's become quite a helpful, helpful task, but yet also I'm, I'm unsure of if batteries have really run out in my household or if we're just infatuated with changing the amount.

Um, so, but so you kind of talked a little bit about, you know, your son's journey and how, and how it's impacted you. Um, how has, and you kind of touched on this a little bit, but how has that experience shaped. How you show up to work and how you're a chief people officer, you know? And is it something that you've made, you know, known at your, in [00:12:00] your own, like at your own workplace about the fact that you are a balancing parent with a child who needs, you know, for you to be versatile and, and have extra tension.

I just love to know how that that shaped Yeah. And your professional light.

Jason Lioy: Yeah, I'd say yes. Yes, yes. And yes, it's impacted and it, it changes the way I shape show up and it does. I, I do talk about it very openly. Right. And because it's, it's one thing, one of the things that we've really tried to try to focus on at dawn is this notion of belonging.

That everyone belongs here. It doesn't matter where you, where you sit, what you do, who you are, right? You can show up as your true self to work. And I try to model that as a leader. And from, you know, and from my perspective, you know, the grant, I am a very strong. Partner in my wife's that, you know, manages a ton of the stuff that goes on outside of here and would not be able to survive, you know, as a single parent related to that, my son.

Uh, [00:13:00] but at the same time, you know, the day-to-day does impact me as well. 'cause I feel, I feel guilt of sometimes that all the stuff that she does and that I, I can't handle most a lot of that. Um, 'cause I have to do the job that I have to do, but. What it does do is it, it has set some non-negotiables for me.

You know, my schedule. Uh, for example, I, when I am in town and I don't have like a board meeting or some significant, um, meeting that day, I will make every attempt to drive my son to school, you know, uh, because it means something to him. It means something to me. It's our time to connect. Um, and it's our time to like, you know, set the.

Set the tone for the day, right?

Ashley Spiess: Yeah.

Jason Lioy: Um, and he needs that, you know, I mean, he's got some, you know, some awareness and some other issues that he needs help with. And I try to set the tone for the day with him. Um, listens to music. You know, we try to, you know, we got, we some mart taste to music, so we groups, grooves that [00:14:00] group together and, and talk together that morning and then boom, he's done.

So. Everybody at work knows that I, my schedule is my schedule and, you know, I, I will take calls, but I'm not gonna be in person for a meeting unless it's something like significant, like the board meeting or some significant leadership team meeting that I cannot get out of. Plus, it's just, you know, from a parenting perspective, doing my wife's that break, right?

So she's gotta have that break, um, to not, you know, uh, drive and, and get, you know, she's gotta do her own thing too. So, but when I talk about it at work, you know, I. I talked about, you know, the struggles that, that my son has and how it shapes me as a leader in very public settings, whether it's a town hall or whether it's a, uh, a podcast or something like that.

We did a whole thing on near neurodiversity last year, and I, along with another leader at Don, talked about the challenges, uh, that our kids have, you know, being neuro divergent and the things that we're wanting for them. [00:15:00] As they grow and they get jobs and they go out to the world. And what that does is translates to what we, how to, how we wanna shape dawn in the world.

Right? Yeah. So we want, we want Dawn to be accepting of the people that we're raising, you know? So we're expecting that not only Dawn, but the rest of the world shapes up, you know, showed up that way, right? So that's what we're looking for, not only from, from the world to accept our kids. But also Dawn to accept people that come into dawn that are like our kids.

Does that make sense? So

Ashley Spiess: yeah.

Jason Lioy: So it shapes everything that we think about in terms of how we accept people or how we are being accommodating for people. And, and it's what we expect to have our leaders. We expect our leaders to be, you know, can be with the heart first, and you can't help lead with your heart when you have a child with special needs, you know, there is a certain thing.

That people that work with that population in the world, they're different. They're [00:16:00] different people. They have a different level of patience. I mean, I don't even have that level of patience. I mean, I'm not saying that I'm this like super patient individual, I'm not. I mean, I mean I've, I've learned to tone it down a little bit, but at the same, I, um, the people that work with this population, um, are the most special individuals in the face of the earth, right?

Special education. Special education teachers and folks that are in that profession. But if we can take a little bit of that, a little bit of that patience, a little bit of that passion they have for that population and put it into our workplace. I mean, imagine those leaders, right? Those leaders that are empathetic, that're passionate, that are, that can be sensitive, but also drives, right?

Doesn't making a, making a mistake. I mean, even though by some special needs, the teachers are very accommodating. They expect them to. Conform, right? Yeah. To consent expectations, to, to still go and, you know, deliver on tests to, [00:17:00] you know, to to, to get the grades and to go and go to college, go get a job, right?

That's the expectation. That's the, that, that's the, the ultimate true north for that. Right. And I would say that that group gets held to a higher standard sometimes than normal. That I, I hate to say normal, but folks that don't have challenges because. We're expecting them to lead a life that they're challenged by.

Maybe some folks that don't have challenges sometimes get that flexibility sometimes, but no, make no mistake, we hold, we hold our, we wanna hold that population to a certain 'cause. They don't wanna be accommodated, they don't wanna be thought of as different, they wanna be thought of as everybody else, and that's the power in that population.

Ashley Spiess: Oh my gosh. My, my daughter, you know, again, right now she's eight and she already wants to be a, a cardiac surgeon and fix other kids' special hearts. That's what she calls, yeah. Calls her heart. And, and she's an ambassador now for the [00:18:00] American Heart Association, and she does all of this advocacy work. But what, what's inspired me most about when you talk about like a population of kids who are just facing a different journey than, than most, like the resiliency and the drive within that.

Yeah,

Jason Lioy: that's, yeah.

Ashley Spiess: It's so incredibly powerful and all they wanna do out is do is go out and change the world and make it better. And they have such empathy. My daughter is the most empathetic person I've ever met and it's because she thinks about, you know, her own journey. But the first thing that she thinks about is other kids are going through this and how can I be of help?

And, you know, and to then translate that into how you show up as a leader. I think it's ex extremely profound to. Have, you know that, that focus, and again, we've, I've in very similar shoes as you and how I lead and because what I've found is that I've, I've led significantly more successful organizations by showing up with empathy and leading with heart than just leading with just tactical, you know, logistical mentality.

Because it makes people want to come to work every day when they feel like that you [00:19:00] support their whole selves and that fundamentally changes organizations. And you think about the landscape today where, you know. People can work for any, any company. There's no, you know, a post COVID, there's no, you know, geographical borders that say like, you can't work for this organization.

And so thinking about how you show up for the people that you support and the way that you drive inclusiveness is so incredibly valuable in, in many ways to an organization. Yeah. Health and Absolutely sustainability. And longevity. Um, you know, and one of the kind of. On this topic a little bit. 'cause I, I'd love your advice for other leaders, so, so many parents, and I'm sure, again, you've probably even felt this and I, I love that you are, you know, that you are so open and, and sharing your own story because there are a lot of parents, especially in very demanding or traditional work environments that carry this quiet fear.

Like that if they're too open, um, about what's happening at home, it might make them seem distracted or less ambitious or, or too much. So how do you think leaders can start to change that narrative? That so that being transparent about family life [00:20:00] isn't seen as a weakness, but it's part of being human and therefore like that even is just, I think, step one of trying to create an environment where parents feel more supported at work.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. I think honestly the, the first leaders, it's incumbent upon all of us as leaders to to, to model what we want organizations to do. Have this philosophy and, you know, it's, again, it's another, it's another topic another day. Uh, the oxygen, oxygen mask mentality. Um, if you're ever on a flight and well, you, you've flown before.

You know, the first thing they talk about is like, Hey, the oxygen mask, then by yourself first before you give it to somebody else. 'cause you gotta take care of yourself first. So for us to expect. Our organizations to follow us. We have got to show ourselves that we are one empathetic and we two, [00:21:00] that we are going through and can identify with what people go through.

Now, granted, not everyone knows what everyone else is going through, right?

Ashley Spiess: Mm-hmm.

Jason Lioy: Because you, you don't have that lived experience as that other person. You have empathy. You can empathize because you have your own thing. So identify that thing, identify that vulnerability, identify that thing that you're struggling with.

They talk about, right? I mean, there's this, you could just go into a meeting one day. I mean, some meetings that I've, I've been part of some leadership teams, leadership team meetings that I've been part of. You start off with talking about, okay, so what happened over the last months in your personal life?

Just talk about you's going on in your personal life. Right? And some people struggle with that, but like, I don't wanna talk about what I do in my personal life. It's like. Okay, well, let's break it down. I'm not talking about like, don't go, don't, don't go through your dating wife if you're single. I mean, you don't want, you know, you share what you can be comfortable with.

Right. Start with one thing you can share and then, and, and that [00:22:00] shows that you're vulnerable. Never head. I have a very open book. My team knows when I'm having a, a good day or not, right? And they'll come in and, you know, hey, you know, okay, I need a little rough this morning, you know? Or you're listening to a little bit louder music than normal Right.

In your office. Right. And, you know, we talk about it and we, we share, you know, and we talk about the struggles and, but that connects people. Right. And when you, when you start sharing, you start opening up about what you're going through connects people to you if you're in an organization where that's not welcomed or if that's not expected.

Yeah. That's, it's sad, you know, because quite frankly. One thing I love about, one thing I love about COVID, it busted everybody down. You know? It did everyone, everyone became equal, right? Everyone had the same level of fear. Everyone, well, I guess some people were a little bit more than others. They were hypochondriac or not, [00:23:00] but you know, everyone was fearful in some way.

Ashley Spiess: Mm-hmm.

Jason Lioy: So it busted everybody down to, to equal. Now you have to all built back up together. So, um. That's the thing I loved about going through that. If there's one thing that you can love about going through a pandemic, I love the fact that it connected our population at dawn to each other. We sought out ways to connect.

We sought out ways to look out for each other. We sought out ways to provide mental health resources to each other. If not just for calling up people and just saying, how you doing? I mean, just, just asking that one question can open up a can of worms, which is great. Because then you can identify with somebody and that's like, man, you know, do you need a hug?

And uh, and that's, and that to me is incumbent upon leaders to create that environment that people can feel like they can just share who they are. Because I think what, what you'll see is if you can create that atmosphere where [00:24:00] people can just feel comfortable showing up to work about just who they are, you'll be amazed about the results that you'll give out of them.

And, and you will create an environment where. Like you said, people wanna work for you and they wanna follow you, Tim, to the end of time. And even if it's just like, I funny. 'cause I, I, my, my admin, um, she's relatively new to Dawn and she's come from other places that weren't as flexible or weren't as, uh, giving Right.

Suffers from a little bit of PTSD, uh, from other environments that she had. And she'll come in and she'll like, um, I need to pick up my kids from school. Go do what you gotta do. I know you're get, I know you're gonna get your work done. That's the way I I I leave it from the mentality of like, just get your work done.

I don't care how you do it, where you do it, I don't care. I mean, show up for ship team meetings, I mean, to me to work from home. I don't care. We'll, we'll figure it out. And um, but it's funny [00:25:00] 'cause like she's gotten to the point now where she's a little bit more comfortable and she'll just informing, Hey, just shoot me a text.

I'm done. I'm, I'm gonna head home, uh, to get care of some stuff at home. Thank you. I'll be on later, you know? Okay. Just whatever. I was like, I know you don't care, but whatever. You know? So, but it provides that ability. Now it's more of a joking. Yeah. And, but she's committed, you know, and she came in the other day, she goes, I just love working here.

She goes, I, I, I smile. I, I enjoy, and it's because I just can be me, you know? And, and. That's a wonderful thing, you know? And

Ashley Spiess: I couldn't agree more.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. Yeah. It's a wonderful thing. 'cause we're here most of the day. You know, you're here, you're at work eight hours out of the day, if not more. You know, it depends on your job.

I mean, you're consumed by, you know, sometimes your job and, uh, you gotta be able to love where you work or, or at least like the people that you work with. No way you can do that. It [00:26:00] just like connect, you know?

Ashley Spiess: Yeah. It's breaking down that, that you live to work narrative. And you know, to your point, like I had employees that say I'm gonna go, you know, do my kids' classroom, you know, party today, they're having a kindergarten Halloween party.

Go like en enjoy that. Like, have fun. How, tell me how it goes. And yeah, to your point, just celebrating the fact that, you know. People that are working for you are people, they're humans, they're parents, and whether they're a parent or they're, or they're not, like they have a life. And to, to make them feel welcome to, to embrace that and to enjoy it.

And, you know, it just, it transforms how they show up at work.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely.

Ashley Spiess: And so much of the conversation now, you know, around supporting working parents certainly centers on flexibility, like you just said. Like I am, I am very, very lucky to have the flexibility that I have to be a mom of two young kids and also work full time.

Let's talk a little bit about frontline roles as well too. 'cause I know that that's part of, you know, the, the, the community that you serve in your role. [00:27:00] So in the majority of parents in frontline roles. Flexibility could look a little different. You know, they, you know, when you think about benefits or initiatives that support them, they could have substantial meaning.

Meaning because, you know, frontline, you know, roles and responsibilities are, are very different. Um, and so I know you lead a global organization where most employees, there are a lot in plants or distribution centers or manufacturing. So how do you think about shaping benefits or initiatives that, um, as a leader that are focused on, you know.

Being equitable to the entire population that you serve.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. They, the, the first that you said that you, you captured at the equitable part. And, um, they have to be meaningful to everybody, right? Whether it's, you know, we. You got more flexibilities, Larry. Let's just be honest. You got more flexibilities when you're in office versus a plant, right?

Because you have a

Ashley Spiess: mm-hmm.

Jason Lioy: You can't bring a, you can't bring a mixer to your home and you know, I think, uh, you know, create donut mix here, a dog, right? You can't do that [00:28:00] at home, you know? Um, well, maybe some people can, but anyway, but you can't do it, right? So you have to, we have to create the atmosphere where people, where leaders in our plants and distribution centers, you know, yes, we've got.

We've got policies, we've got, you know, parameters, we've got, you know, regulations, but also find the opportunities to bend when you can provide flexibility to provide where you can do that, right? And we ensure that, you know, our, our attendance policies, our benefit plans are all the things that we have are structured in a way that are accessible to our frontline population.

That they know within reason. There's some flexibilities, you know, that they have to communicate. And we make sure that our leaders think with their heart first versus their head, and they have to balance that. And 99 times out of a hundred when it comes to somebody in, in a front line role, all they wanna do is how do you listen to them and [00:29:00] find out the way that you can be flexible, right?

Um, that's half of the half of the challenge. And, and within these provide populations is not. Is not just strictly, you know, going by the black letter of the law is by listening and finding out the way you can do it. Right? So that's the, it's a basic philosophy and positive team member relations. We, you know, we call our employees team member, um, positive team member relations is listening.

Just listen. Listen and empathize. Listen and empathize. That's what we teach when we onboard leaders. How you lead it, Dawn, we teach 'em all the same types of philosophies, whether you, there're the VP or the frontline supervisors, they all built from the same onboarding. From a, from a leadership perspective, how you lead it dawn, or how you lead it, dawn is with your heart and in your, in your ears.

Um, and then everything goes from there, right? So I think with the frontline population, again, it's harder, [00:30:00] but if you listen. You find the way to be flexible again, you're gonna find people that are way more committed to you than in other places, right? Because when you pull, you know, if, if you're an employer and you're, you're a manufacturing employer and you lead with your heart and your, and your, uh, and your ears versus like the folks down the road that just have like hard line, they wanna come work, see you, you know?

Yeah. Or they're gonna wanna stay with you. Yeah. Pin right. Uh, a hundred percent. But at the same time, we gotta be, you know, we just have to, you know, listen a little bit.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah. And I, and I, and I love that, um, the listening factor. 'cause again, some employers can look at that as being very arbitrary. Some can look at it as like, it's just part of our responsibility.

But it sounds like what you've instilled at Dawn is that that is a core, you know, value in terms of, of how you show up for people across the board in terms of how leadership impacts, you know, the um. The environment at [00:31:00] Dawn. And so, you know, and I know just talking about listening and I know in past conversations, um, you've also talked a lot about, again, this importance of, you know, surveys and engagement.

Um, and just really being sure that you're, you're taking to heart the information that you're receiving, the feedback that you're getting. How have you used surveys and engagement data, um, to shape the way that Don supports its team members? And why do you feel that that exercise is so incredibly important to an organization?

Jason Lioy: And this is where you go. So this is where I built in my heart, to my head, uh, my or heart to the, uh, to from the empathetic leader to more of the GE leader, right? Mm-hmm. Not to explain ge that GE is a very, like, very hardcore organization and they, they still a lot data, data analytic from a mi from a mindset perspective in Maine, what I worked to for, for ge.

Um, and they're a phenomenal, phenomenal employer, but they also are very rigorous when it comes to financials and data. So from an engagement perspective, [00:32:00] what doesn't get measured doesn't get done. So I view engagement data. It's, it's like going to a doctor, um, you know, and you gotta know what your blood pressure is.

You gotta know what your cholesterol levels are. I know all that stuff. To be able to diagnose where the problems may be, it's a leading indicator for you. So if your engagement's down or if you like, and we go all the way down, like, so we've got, we do a by, uh, we do our engage survey every other year. We do pulse surveys throughout the year.

Like once we get that engagement data, if we wanna dive in deeper to topics, we do pulse surveys between those two, those two year period or looking at different, different population. And then we'll just dive in more to more, um, to see what's going on. But they just gives you one leading indicator of where maybe issues might lie or, and we.

We survey our entire population all the way from the front line all the way up to our C-suite, and we have over over [00:33:00] 80% participation in our Wow. Even with the front line population that we have globally, that's just not in DAS. We've got, you know, we're in almost 40 countries, you know, and populations that are in Mexico.

So we survey everyone and you know, it gives us a lot of great data. And it shows us we're doing good or we have opportunities. We look at the comments, we, we get hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of comments. So we filter through that and we give it to every leader to then, okay, work with your, work with your leadership teams, work with your HR partner, um, to then, okay, so let's go listen a little bit more.

You know, let's do some more stick levels. Let's dive into this particular area. You know, this particular area just seems like it's a little bit lower than normal. Okay, let's see what, what's going on there? I hate to say it, but 99 times out of a hundred. But you've got an issue in a plant, or if you got an issue in a particular department, um, whether it's a frontline population or an executive population, 99 times outta a hundred, the [00:34:00] leader of that group is not listening in some capacity.

I mean, and that's the, I see. Irony of it. You know, I've worked with populations all over the world. I've, you know, been to Asia, I've been to Europe, I've been everywhere in terms of the people that I've, I've supported. Everyone just wants to be heard. You know, it doesn't matter whether they're in China or whether they're here, you know, they wanna just be heard.

Well, they're not heard. That manifests itself into some other behaviors that are not gonna be inducive to a smooth operation. So the engagement data, the engage in survey that's done right, can lead you that way, can lead you to where you might have those issues.

Ashley Spiess: And, and 80%, I mean, that is incredibly impressive.

I feel I I, I could bet to be that there are HR leaders and benefit leaders listening to this saying, I, how do I get to 80%? And it sounds like part of that is actually acting upon the feedback that you're receiving to your point. Yeah. Like making sure people know, listening.

Jason Lioy: Yeah. Yes. Acting on the feedback and providing it in a way [00:35:00] that's accessible to them.

Right. I mean, most, a lot of the frontline population doesn't have access as much as you would think they would. Given the technology age we're in, a lot of them don't, I mean, a lot of 'em don't have access to email or computer on a day to day basis. Right. They are. I in, they're driving, you know, they're running a line and then they go home, so they don't wanna be sitting in front of a computer.

So we try to make the survey as accessible as it possibly can for the, those populations. A lot of surveys are designed in a way that is just, it's for the, the behind the desk. Population. Like I can, I can answer a survey on my computer, but it doesn't, that doesn't help a truck driver that drives, you know, 10 hours a day over the road, probably gonna be on a computer.

It doesn't work. They gotta do it in a way that's, you know, it's gamification or some, or some, some way that they, it's easily done. Whether it's, you know, pre-start or on their breaks [00:36:00] or, you know, when they, when they come off work and a job, but save people. So that, so that's to me, is. You gotta make it accessible to our earlier discussion about making things accessible, benefits and also feedback loops accessible to your people.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah. Um, and I agree. I think it's, it's something so simple, but yet the way in which someone is able to access a survey, and to your point, incentivizing people and making it feel like that you're making it as as easy and, you know, um, and as valuable to them, for them as possible is, is certainly very important.

So my last question for you, Jason, is you, if you could give one mandate or one non-negotiable piece advice to every people leader listening, whether they're trying to build a foundation or they're trying to be a change maker of up at a very archaic practice within their organization, what would your advice be to them?

Jason Lioy: Um, I think it'd be a little bit of, I think it'd be two, two pieces of grip, right. If I could deviate a little bit, and it goes head, and here with what we [00:37:00] just talked about is listen. To your people? Absolutely 100%. Listen to your people, and if you're not listening to your people, you might be fixing something they don't wanna have fixed, right?

I mean, if you're gonna go transform something or fix something or do something, but you haven't listened to people, you're gonna be fix. You might be fixing something that you want fixed, but nobody else wants that. Phone somebody else doesn't want as part of their day to day, and that could backfire it.

But secondly, you kind of goes hand in hand. Start with yourself. Make sure, make sure you're taking care of yourself, making sure you're putting that oxygen mask on before you try to go give it to others. Because if you do that, if you're trying, if you're trying to transform an organization, if you start with yourself and kind of thinking, how about how you wanna operate in this, in this world?

If you don't start with yourself, you can't help anybody else. And if you haven't been vulnerable, if you haven't, you know, fixed your ability to be a leader, or maybe I have to [00:38:00] look at myself in the mirror and say, what am I not doing? Or what can I do better to help connect better to the organization?

Start with yourself with the oxygen mask on yourself, and then you able to help other people.

Ashley Spiess: Yeah, so the moral of the story is to your point. Take the opportunity to drive your kids to work, take the opportunity to make it home for dinner, set the example, and then to your point, you know, you don't have to do anything big or extravagant to start similar to the interactions you have with your mentor.

Say, let's go grab a coffee or just call them and say, how are you doing? Like, let's talk and just open the lines of communication. Um, Jason, this is such the. Powerful and thoughtful advice. Um, and I just wanna thank you so much for joining me today, and thank you for your dedication and your honesty and for being a true pioneer.

You know, my biggest takeaway, you know, from our conversation is that trust isn't built through programs or policies. It's built through listening, like you've said. Um, and when leaders create space for [00:39:00] honest feedback, especially from working parents, you know, on the front lines and across the organization, you're not just collecting data, but you're building this sense of belonging and you're forging really meaningful impact.

So thank you so much. I, I really appreciate it.

Jason Lioy: Thank you very much. I appreciate the opportunity to talk to you a bit.

Ashley Spiess: Oh my gosh, my pleasure's all mine. And for every people leader listening right now, I hope this conversation leaves you with one question. You know, what's one small change you can make today that would make life just a little bit easier for a working parent on your team?

Um, and for every parent listening, um, as again, Jason has given incredible advice. Remember, one voice can bring forth change. Whether you join an ERG, you schedule a meeting with your HR leader or just share what can better support you as a working parent in a company survey, one voice can spark the conversation and one voice can bring the change.

So thanks for listening today. Thanks for joining us on Parenting at Work. If you enjoyed this conversation, please make sure to follow Parenting at Work wherever you get your podcast. And if this story [00:40:00] resonated with you, the single most impactful thing you can do is share it with one other person, a fellow HR leader, a manager, or anyone who believes in building workplaces that care.

Parenting at Work is brought to you by Juno, the modern financial safety net for working families. Juno helps employers offer affordable, impactful, long-term financial coverage for children, diagnosed with a new, severe illness or disability, giving parents peace of mind and flexibility when it matters most.

Because as my 8-year-old daughter can vouch,

Ashley Spiess: because when families are supported, workplaces are stronger.

Ashley Spiess: You can learn more about how Juno is helping companies build family first [e-mail]. I'm Ashley. Thanks for listening. And now let's get back to work.