{"id":556140,"date":"2023-12-04T17:01:50","date_gmt":"2023-12-04T17:01:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shrm.org\/hr-today\/news\/hr-magazine\/winter-2023\/pages\/career-lessons-from-kathryn-j-coleman-3m.aspx"},"modified":"2023-12-04T17:01:50","modified_gmt":"2023-12-04T17:01:50","slug":"career-lessons-from-3ms-kathryn-j-coleman-be-open-to-new-opportunities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/2023\/12\/04\/career-lessons-from-3ms-kathryn-j-coleman-be-open-to-new-opportunities\/","title":{"rendered":"Career Lessons from 3M\u2019s Kathryn J. Coleman: Be Open to New Opportunities"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u200bIf Kathryn J. Coleman\u2019s HR career of 25-plus years has been defined by one thing, it\u2019s the constancy of change. As senior vice president, chief talent and diversity officer at 3M<\/a>, which makes Post-its and more than 60,000 other products, Coleman sees opportunity in the new, and embraces it.<\/p>\n

Above: Coleman (center), with 3M colleagues (from left) Michael Stroik, Jacqueline Berry, Jeannee Hoppe and Heather Cavallaro, says that truth, candor and kindness are central to her leadership approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what Coleman did in August, when she agreed to expand her position as senior vice president of talent, learning and insights, where she oversaw talent management globally, by taking on the added responsibilities of overseeing diversity for 3M and its 90,000+ employees worldwide. <\/p>\n

In her expanded role, she\u2019s helping 3M adapt to its changing talent needs. In the past, about four-fifths of the company\u2019s new hires were recent college and university graduates, and the remainder were experienced professionals\u2014but now, that ratio has reversed. Coleman will focus more heavily on partnerships with minority-serving professional associations and similar groups that can help 3M meet its talent needs and build a more diverse workforce.<\/p>\n

Moving forward, Coleman wants to ensure that the company supports both diversity and inclusion. \u201cWe have made commitments to increasing representation, but we can\u2019t do that well if we don\u2019t also make sure we have an inclusive environment,\u201d she says. \u201cOtherwise, you just cycle people in and out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Utilizing AI: Meet Max and Harriet<\/p>\n

In her previous position at 3M, Coleman welcomed another new challenge when she recognized the need to adopt AI and automation, which she considers one of the HR field\u2019s biggest near-term tests. \u201cThe challenge will be to figure out how we leverage AI, because AI is here to stay,\u201d she says. \u201cBut it also can help us.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of 3M\u2019s first efforts with AI was to implement an interactive bot technology called Max to assist with talent acquisition. Prior to Max, job applicants sometimes complained that their applications never received a response or that their questions took a long time to be answered.<\/p>\n

Now, Max quickly answers applicants\u2019 questions and schedules their interviews. Before Max, it took about 45 minutes to schedule an applicant interview; today, it takes just 19 seconds, Coleman says. A similar bot called Harriet supports existing employees\u2014for example, by answering questions about benefits.<\/p>\n

At 3M, AI technology for HR has been so successful that prospective and current employees often don\u2019t know they\u2019re interacting with a bot. \u201cWe get notes from candidates and from internal people all the time thanking \u2018Max\u2019 because they don\u2019t know Max is AI,\u201d Coleman says.<\/p>\n

By using AI to answer important yet routine questions from candidates and employees, Coleman has enabled her HR team to focus on more value-added activities. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt frees up time for us to work on deeper challenges that require more time, so we can think and operate more strategically,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

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Shifting to Hybrid Work<\/p>\n

Coleman helped 3M adjust to another profound change during the COVID-19 pandemic: the move to hybrid work. As the company\u2019s employees demonstrated that they could work remotely, they also expressed different preferences for working remotely, in person or a combination of the two.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe trust our people,\u201d Coleman says. But she knew 3M couldn\u2019t just talk about trust\u2014it also had to walk the talk. So in 2021, Coleman helped create and implement a policy that allows employees to determine how, when and where they work. And for employees whose roles in manufacturing or research and development require more in-person work, 3M provided greater flexibility through shift work and job sharing. \"postit<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been hugely successful and really significant from an engagement standpoint,\u201d Coleman says of the global policy.<\/p>\n

However, Coleman realized that 3M had to do more than simply announce such a transformative shift. \u201cWe had to spend a lot of time with the change,\u201d she says. \u201cWe had to be clear with employees that there wasn\u2019t a change in the expectation of delivering a job\u2014they\u2019re just delivering it elsewhere.\u201d <\/p>\n

3M also had to ensure its culture remained strong, even among a distributed workforce. To do that, Coleman helped create a policy that promotes \u201cmoments that matter\u201d\u2014times when teams convene in person. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not about everyone coming in so the manager can look at them work,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s about having intentional time for teams and team members to come together and feel connected to one another.\u201d<\/p>\n

Embracing Change<\/p>\n

Coleman is no stranger to leading transformation at 3M. Several years ago, she successfully executed what she calls \u201cthe herculean task\u201d of implementing a new platform that delivers customized learning experiences. The platform launched after just one month of development that took place around the clock and around the world. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not something you can do by yourself\u2014you can only do that with a team aligned in the same way,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m not successful if the only person progressing is me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Throughout her life, Coleman has learned repeatedly the importance of saying yes to change. In college, she planned on studying neuroscience. But as she took pre-med classes, she decided that while she could do the work, she didn\u2019t really want to. Her mother wasn\u2019t too pleased. <\/p>\n

\u201cAfter my mom stopped passing out\u2014because she saw me becoming a neurosurgeon in the future\u2014I got my psychology degree,\u201d Coleman says. \u201cI always knew I had an interest in and affinity for people, and I was able to build rapport quickly.\u201d She earned her bachelor\u2019s degree in psychology from Macalester College in 1994, followed by a master\u2019s degree in psychology from the University of Minnesota in 1997.<\/p>\n

After working in recruiting at what was then the William Mitchell College of Law for a couple of years, Coleman held people-focused roles at the University of Minnesota for almost a decade, most recently as director of diversity for its business school. In 2005, she earned her doctorate in education policy and administration, also from the University of Minnesota.<\/p>\n

Coleman started her career in academia\u2014and could well have ended it there. \u201cI never thought I would leave higher education,\u201d she says. In 2008, when SuperValu, at the time one of the country\u2019s largest grocery retailers, contacted Coleman about an HR role, she thought, \u201cI\u2019m good. I love what I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Coleman decided she wanted to expand her experience and knowledge. So she made the move into the private sector\u2014first as SuperValu\u2019s manager of diversity recruitment and then as its senior manager of talent acquisition.<\/p>\n

History repeated itself a few years later when 3M approached her. Again, Coleman thought, \u201cI\u2019m happy. I have a great team doing amazing things.\u201d But then she considered the opportunity to move from a solely U.S.-focused organization and gain global experience. In 2011, she joined 3M, first in U.S. talent acquisition and, soon afterward, in global talent acquisition.<\/p>\n

Linda Johnson, chief human resources and communications officer at grocery retailer Food Lion, vividly remembers that time. As an HR executive at SuperValu, Johnson had to find Coleman\u2019s replacement amid many changes in the company\u2019s talent acquisition function. But Coleman didn\u2019t simply say, \u201cThank you and goodbye,\u201d Johnson recalls; instead, Coleman helped find her own replacement.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a tough time for us to have to replace her role,\u201d Johnson says, \u201cbut we were able to do that efficiently because of her commitment to making sure we had a great candidate slated for her role. And she did that with care and deliberation.\u201d<\/p>\n

To Coleman, \u201cBe open\u201d is perhaps the central theme of her career. \u201cIf I limited myself to just my knowledge set, I\u2019d still be in a university, because that\u2019s all I thought I\u2019d do, and I was happy to do it,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n

\"14_D6A0316-Enhanced-NR.jpg\" <\/p>\n

Valuing Candor<\/p>\n

Coleman says she successfully leads change\u2014such as helping 3M spin off its health care business into a separate company\u2014in part by delivering communications in different ways for different people at different times. \u201cSometimes folks need you to talk, sometimes they need you to listen,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

Coleman\u2019s attentiveness to people\u2019s needs speaks to her leadership approach, which she describes in this way: \u201cYou have to tell people the truth\u2014but balance candor with kindness.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s a leadership style that has impressed Coleman\u2019s boss, Zoe Dickson, CHRO of Minnesota-based 3M. \u201cKathryn is candid and courageous,\u201d Dickson says. \u201cShe speaks truth to leaders and to her teams. And that\u2019s been really helpful, especially in a Midwest organization where that\u2019s not always the narrative we have.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"postit
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Coleman had seen the value of candor, and of adapting to new demands, when she was working at the University of Minnesota. Coleman recalls a meeting in which the university\u2019s president turned to her mentor at the time, Charles Muscoplat, a now-retired professor, and asked him a question. Muscoplat answered, \u201cI don\u2019t know, but I\u2019ll find out.\u201d His honest response to the school\u2019s top leader took Coleman by surprise and made a lasting impression on her. \u201cIf you don\u2019t know, say you don\u2019t know. And then figure it out,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

But Coleman\u2019s ability to welcome new challenges was shaped long before her HR career began. While she grew up mostly in Florida, her mother\u2014who worked as an English teacher, as well as a consultant in the public and private sectors\u2014made sure that Coleman and her two older siblings regularly enjoyed new experiences, such as various kinds of foods and films. \u201cShe focused on exposing us to things that were unusual and unfamiliar,\u201d Coleman says.<\/p>\n

Coleman also manages any change and challenge by modeling the work\/life balance she wants her team to enjoy. One example: Every evening at 5:30, Coleman has dinner with her husband\u2014no matter what. \u201cSomething could blow up at the company, but I\u2019m sitting at the dinner table with my husband,\u201d she says. \u201cYou have to carve out that sacred time. If I don\u2019t model that for my team, I can\u2019t expect them to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She adds, \u201cI can\u2019t tell my team, \u2018You don\u2019t have to be online at 3 a.m.,\u2019 and then they get an email from me at 2:45 a.m.\u201d If HR leaders exhibit the behaviors they want their people to emulate, Coleman explains, everyone can bring their best selves to their work, to the benefit of the organization and its people.  <\/p>\n

Novid Parsi is a freelance writer based in St. Louis. 
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Photography by Joe Szurszewski <\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u200bIf Kathryn J. Coleman\u2019s HR career of 25-plus years has been defined by one thing, it\u2019s the constancy of change. As senior vice president, chief talent and diversity officer at 3M, which makes Post-its and more than 60,000 other products, Coleman sees opportunity in the new, and embraces it. Above: Coleman (center), with 3M colleagues […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,301],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-556140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-employee-relations","category-leadership-and-navigation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=556140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/556140\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=556140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=556140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/squarehrwired.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=556140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}