Revolutionizing Hybrid Work at Getty Images by Focusing on Culture

The Next Practices Weekly call series has become a well-attended and wide-ranging discussion for HR leaders each Thursday at 11am ET / 8am PT. On this week's call, i4cp Senior Research Analysts Katheryn Brekken and Tom Stone facilitated a conversation with special guests Nicole Underwood, VP, of Human Resources Business Partners & Operations, and Marie Potter, Senior Director, Culture & Development, at Getty Images. Here are some highlights from the call:

• Getty Images has three brands: Getty Images, iStock, and Unsplash. They have around 1,700 employees.
• Their global human resources organization is comprised of 60 HR professionals, supporting 17 functions across 33 countries. The team is structured into five areas: HR Business Partners, HR Operations, Total Rewards, Culture and Development, and Talent Acquisition.
• Getty Images' culture favors principles over rules, with two dozen principles identified and grouped into three categories:
  • Leadership Principles: the shared values to guide how we come together to do our work.
  • Flexible Work Principles: the parameters that balance our personal needs with the needs of the company.
  • Operating Principles: the preferences that guide our decision making, staffing, and resource allocation.
• Getty Images has a program called VisualGPS, which is built upon expertise from research and reporting on consumer-driven insights that help their customers navigate the crowded visual landscape and have impact. VisualGPS shows what consumers care about, why they care about it, and how to tap into it. This is available on the Getty Images website – an interactive tool to help you search trend data.
• Potter described three key future of work trends determined by VisualGPS:
  • Work is still important, but the focus on quality of life has grown.
  • Companies need to show they care with flexible work arrangements and new norms for engagement.
  • Creating a sense of belonging is key as mental health has grown in importance; companies have a part to play.

• Hybrid work at Getty Images at present has resulted in the following categories of employees:
  • 25% - remote
  • 56% - hybrid, <50% of the time in the office
  • 15% - hybrid, >50% of the time in the office
  • 3% - all the time on site
• Getty Images is committed to a culture of connectivity, meaning a basis and network to access the right person, at the right time, to share and give knowledge, build understanding, further inclusion, and solve problems to improve business outcomes and the employee experience. Getty Images is committed to a culture of connectivity independent of employees' physical working election and location. Potter shared twelve components that support this:
  • Global new hire onboarding
  • Building connections resource page
  • Employee resource groups
  • Facilitate new connections via Donut app
  • Mentorship programs and resources
  • High potential program
  • Well-being programs
  • Slack channel interest groups
  • Learning for all programs and upskilling
  • DEI training and insights from a global advisory committee
  • Global morale and teambuilding
  • All hands, open forums, and transparent communication

Links to resources shared on the call:

• Upcoming i4cp virtual events
• 2023 i4cp Next Practices Now Conference - March 27-30, 2023, in Scottsdale, Arizona (and virtual).
• i4cp’s Next Practice Award Finalists (Ten Organizations)
• i4cp's Culture Fitness report - a new resources exclusively for i4cp members
• Recording of the i4cp NPW event that focused on the Culture Fitness study
• The Future of Work - a trends report from Getty Images
• "Hey CEOs: You Aren't Qualified to Decide Who Should Return to the Office" - an article by i4cp CEO Kevin Oakes