Christy Lake

Chief People Officer at Twilio


“The swirl and policy reversals with remote, hybrid and RTO can cause real anxiety among employees,” says Christy Lake, CPO at Twilio in an interview with HR Grapevine...

Christy Lake

Chief People Officer at Twilio


“The swirl and policy reversals with remote, hybrid and RTO can cause real anxiety among employees,” says Christy Lake, CPO at Twilio in an interview with HR Grapevine...

Software-as-a-service giant Twilio has embraced the benefits of remote-first work since 2020. In 2022, the company made it official policy. But where other major US tech employers including Dell and Salesforce have U-turned on commitments to remote work, calling staff back into the office full time, Twilio is doubling down on the benefits of work-from-home for employees and the business alike.

Christy Lake, Chief People Officer at Twilio, says the company’s remote policy is here to stay, not least because it’s the “top reason” why candidates choose to join the team. Moreover, with 93% of its employees reporting effective team collaboration and a 90% favorability on its Connection & Trust index, Twilio is successfully navigating the inherent challenges of remote work, including navigating employee interaction across multiple timezones.

Lake speaks to HR Grapevine about the importance of clarity and consistency, the company’s ‘Open Work’ program, and how it is ensuring effective remote collaboration.

Why is Twilio doubling down on a remote-first mode of work?

We’ve seen that being a remote-first company is mutually beneficial. It works best for our employees and helps us reach our goals as a business.

Being remote-first allows us to attract and retain top talent around the world. It also pushes us to continuously find ways to maintain connection and relationships across a distributed workforce, and provide the flexibility that employees want.

That’s why we implemented what we call Open Work. This blend of programs, policies, and resources are designed to support our remote-first employees globally.

Employees facing strict RTO mandates have complained about feeling unheard. How do you encourage a two-way dialogue?

It’s especially important for distributed companies to continuously listen to employees and use their insights to inform strategy. A big part of Open Work is collecting and responding to feedback from our employees. We continue to listen, learn, and implement new programs as employees’ needs change.

It’s important to be upfront that our remote-first policy is not changing. The swirl and policy reversals with remote, hybrid and RTO can cause real anxiety among employees

Christy Lake | CPO at Twilio

We also think it’s important to be upfront that our remote-first policy is not changing. The swirl and policy reversals with remote, hybrid and RTO can cause real anxiety among employees, so whatever your policy is, be clear about it. External data shows most employees prefer to work remotely, and our data tells us 93% of our employees reported effective remote team collaboration, and remote work is the top motivator for candidates to accept a role with us.

The productivity of remote workers often gets critiqued – what does your employee data tell you?

We're a results-oriented company that prioritizes ownership and accountability. To measure our health in our remote-first environment, we measure our success by external reporting through our quarterly earnings, internal metrics such as OKRs, and regular internal surveys of employees.

To maximize productivity on the right things, we make sure everyone in the company is aligned on our business objectives and strategic priorities by clearly communicating our company vision and goals.

Additionally, we promote the importance of asynchronous and deep-focus work through practices like "Focus Fridays," a day dedicated to meaningful work without scheduled meetings.

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