Welcome to The Heidrick & Struggles Leadership Podcast. Heidrick is the premier global provider of diversified solutions across senior-level executive search, leadership, assessment and development, team and organizational effectiveness, and culture shaping. Every day, we speak with leaders around the world about how they're meeting rising expectations and managing through volatile times, thinking about individual leaders, teams, organizations, and society. Thank you for joining the conversation.

Adam Howe: Hi, and welcome to The Heidrick & Struggles Leadership Podcast. I'm Adam Howe, a partner in Heidrick's New York City office, and a member of Heidrick Consulting. Today we're joined by Dr. Kaleen Love, chief people and culture officer at Philip Morris International US. Kaleen is the kind of human you turn to when the world shifts faster than the system's meant to hold up.

A global Fortune 100 executive, former McKinsey associate partner, and Oxford-trained social scientist, Kaleen has spent her career solving never before seen problems, bringing order to white space, clarity to complexity, and energy to the work that truly matters. Kaleen, thank you so much for joining us.

Dr. Kaleen Love: Absolutely. So as mentioned, I started a bit as an academic and a social scientist, really studying humans, what makes humans tick and how does change happen.

So that's where I got my doctorate. And then I got to the end of my twenties and I realized I didn't just want to study change, I wanted to figure out how to make it happen, and that's where I looked around and said, well, where can I go to actually figure out how to make change happen, so I joined McKinsey and that's where I was able to lead a wide range of organizational transformations. So, I went from studying change at the system level, at the country level, to try to make it happen at the company level. From there, I went to Capital One Financial Services and my jobs and my roles at Capital One were largely about transforming just a part of the company. 

So, as you can see, I went from “Change a whole country,” to “Change a whole company,” to “Just change this part of it,” and turns out change is hard and people are people. And I've learned a lot about how we mobilize energy toward a new direction. And so, I joined Philip Morris International in our Switzerland offices about four and a half years ago. We are growing quickly, and we are looking to really build a future-proofed workforce. 

Adam Howe: Awesome. Well, perhaps before we get into some of that, a little bit of context around the smoke-free vision that Philip Morris has set out, because I think that will help frame the conversation in terms of how you're thinking about culture and talent and leadership.

Dr. Kaleen Love: Absolutely. So, Philip Morris International traces its roots back to London in 1857, which is a storied history. But we began in earnest, our transformation, in about 2014, where, as a company, we've invested billions of dollars towards smoke-free alternatives for legal age smokers who would otherwise continue to smoke.

PMI US has never sold combustible cigarettes, and in fact, our portfolio is all focused on alternatives to people who would otherwise smoke. We have a range of products in the market. 

Adam Howe: As you start to think about that, I'm really curious about what that means, this mission that the organization has about the talent you can attract. What does that reframe mean in terms of the talent that will come and work at Philip Morris? 

Dr. Kaleen Love: Well, it has meant a very great deal.

We went from what you might call a closed-talent system back in the day where it was more of a tobacco company to a very open-talent system, attracting a much wider variety of people to our mission who really embrace our vision, our values, and are saying, I want to be part of something that is changing the industry, changing the nature of the game. It may be a little bit hard; I'm not going to pretend that what we're doing is easy because it's never been done before, and that's what's exciting. So, I think we're attracting people drawn to our purpose, drawn to our mission, drawn to a challenge, and really committed.

Adam Howe: You said it's not easy. I'm curious as to what some of the kind of biggest challenges you're seeing are.

Dr. Kaleen Love: Well, again, if you imagine our very storied history, as I talked about, we have to change the conversation as well, right? We have to show up in a way that's authentic, that is science-backed. We need to share how we are making investments in science, in responsibility, and really aiming, as I said before, to help the 30 million legal age smokers in the United States have better alternatives, scientifically-substantiated alternatives.

That means changing the narrative. That means engaging communities. And that means investing in communities.

Adam Howe: As you know, Heidrick's in the leadership business. So, I'm really curious around kind of leadership capabilities and how you think about current leaders you have, future leaders you'll need. What are some of the kinds of priority capabilities that you are kind of really thinking about at the moment?

Dr. Kaleen Love: I would say the number one thing I interview for, and I'm very clear about this when I interview people, I say, “I'm not here to assess your technical capabilities: that's been done, we assume that. I am here to assess your ability as a leader, to navigate through change.” And really, we talk a lot about resilience, right? Resilience with agility. Resilience without agility is pretty brittle: you don't want that. So, we are looking for leaders who are resilient, but in a way that breeds humility and empathy. Right? You've seen hardship, you've learned from it, you've grown from it. And as a result of that stretch, you can imagine other possibilities, you can embrace other ideas, and you can do it with people around you. 

So, I think the number one thing I look for is people who can put their head down, work hard—this is not a boring place to work; I say, if you want a boring job, do not apply here—but more importantly than ever, can work, again, with that resilience, with that agility, and that spirit of openness to learning.

Adam Howe: So, for some of those kind of capabilities you've mentioned—resiliency, humility, empathy—how do you think about continuing to develop your own talent pools inside the organization to some of those things that matter most?

Dr. Kaleen Love: So I will share an example. Over the past year, we've had a lot of messages around growth. We've talked about, growth is in our DNA, and I think we can talk about our PMI DNA a bit later. But this idea of growth, being part of who we are as a company, being integral to our culture, and being integral to leaders, is really key.

So, we have an expectation and a bar, that all of our leaders are investing in continuous improvement and in learning. We then, on the people and culture side, have a systematic approach where we're looking at tools. We do AI coaching now; we've got a series of coaching opportunities but are using AI right to support that. We're making priority investments and key talent, really ensuring they have the opportunities to grow and develop. And as a company, we also put a lot of stock in on-the-job growth. At the end of the day, I can send you to a classroom or I can go take a training, and it's only as useful as I take something away from that and do something with that.

But how do we make sure that our leaders are being put in the right roles with the right scope, with the right responsibilities to really stretch and grow them? So, I would say, in our internal development of leaders, we spend a lot of time and pay a lot of attention to those growth opportunities.

Adam Howe: And that sounds a little bit like talent mobility, so trying to find the right role for the right leader at the right point of that career. I'm curious how you kind of think about that from a process point of view. 

Dr. Kaleen Love: We have a lot of process around it, so talent mobility has very many levels, right? At more junior levels in the organization, we absolutely make sure that we're also looking for internal candidates for roles before we go externally, right? That's just as a principle, and I think most companies would do that.

Our willingness then to move people from different parts of the world in order to get the capabilities we need and the expertise we need is something that we've had as a company for a very long time.

I think in a more systematic way for more senior level roles, we also are assessing talent, assessing roles, looking for fit.

So, I would say it's both informal and formal throughout the organization, but it's a commitment to making sure that our people are given opportunities to grow, and that we're really systematically matching up the expertise we have with the needs we have no matter where it sits in the organization.

Adam Howe: Super interesting. You mentioned the PMI DNA earlier, and we know through our work that aligning culture to accelerate strategy is critical. So, I'm really curious to learn more about the PMI DNA and some of the biggest opportunities and learnings you've had if you thought through the culture required to enable this vision.

Dr. Kaleen Love: What's interesting and what's powerful about the PMI DNA is it was never intended to be some culture program that just said, hey, here's who we want to be, now let's go tell everyone about it.

It was always intended to be more of an authentic codification of who we were on our best days. So, the first set of research really went on; it ran a bunch of focus groups all over the world, and this research really looked to say, who are we on our best today? And it codified from the voices of the people around the world those values and behaviors. So, within the PMI DNA, we have three values, and underneath those values are a set of leader behaviors.

Our values are really straightforward. We care. Empathy, listening, self-awareness, inclusion, and inclusivity as a leader. We're better together, trust, collaboration, celebrating the successes of others, and last, we're game changers. And this is where resilience, determination, a bit of courage, and the willingness to fail, pick yourself up, and move on again is. And so I think it's resonated very deeply with people all over the world. It's become a rallying cry in many ways.

And what's powerful about it, the reasons I think it's been sticky: reason one, as I said, it codifies who we know we can be. It's not made up. It calls us back to the angels of our better selves, right? It's who we want to be and it's who we know we can be. And so, in that way, we're constantly reminded of it. We're looked to role model it.

On the other side of it, the culture that you have is also the culture that you permit. So, we've also been really clear on the back side or the flip side of the PMI DNA, what we call our undesirable behaviors. And I sometimes simplify that to say I have a no jerk rule. Sometimes I use a more colorful word than no jerks. But it's that principle too, right? You can't just talk about, look how lovely our culture is if you don't consistently, transparently, and fairly deal with the antithesis of those behaviors. And so, I think that's what's been really powerful. Thing one, we codified who we were; thing two, we really resonated with it, role modeled it, owned it, speak it to each other; and then thing three, when we don't see it happen, there's action taken.

Adam Howe: How did you activate that culture or how do you continue to activate that culture? I'd love to hear just some of the kind of tools and techniques that you found to be most effective within PMI US.

Dr. Kaleen Love: In terms of activating that culture and reminding ourselves, again, going back to this DNA, it's, number one, present in all of our talent processes, right? So, it's the language that leaders use. It's how we assess talent. We talk about it through those lenses. We actually have 360 surveys that look specifically at the behaviors underneath those values.

So, I think part of the task at hand is continuing to emphasize who we are on our best day, to make sure that those who have been with the company for a longer time feel valued, their expertise is still valued, and they're building a legacy that really matters to them. And then for the new tenured people to kind of go, I get to be part of this, I own this, I'm going to be a game changer, and we get to be part of something, we get to be part of something bigger than ourselves, we get to share these values, we get to show up with caring for each other, and I think that that accountability and the way we infuse it in our talent processes have helped it live.

Adam Howe: Really, it's interesting as you mentioned you've got long-tenured employees, you've got a lot of people that are now able to join the organization given your kind of new mission and the vision that's been set out.

We're always kind of, when we're working with CEOs and CHROs, asking the question, “In your culture, what should endure and what should evolve?” So, it's just interesting kind of hearing you talk about needing to be mindful of those two different populations. So, as you think about where you are in your transformation, you've been with the firm I think four years? Four and a half years. So, what's the biggest thing you've noticed in that time?

Dr. Kaleen Love: I would actually kind of harken back to the first phone call I got from a headhunter, not necessarily my first day, where they said, hey, you know, we’d like to talk to you about a role at Philip Morris International, and I said, no thank you, not interested. And they said, hear us out, hear us out. And I had then a series of conversations with people who worked at the company, and I saw from those people how deep the commitment was to our mission, to our vision of a smoke-free future.

I would say four and a half years later that's the thing that, I wouldn't call it surprise, like didn't have a clue, but continues to impress me: that we still have that commitment and we're making those choices. As a business, as leaders, the choices that we're making are absolutely in pursuit of that, and we often make choices that might not be the most aggressive competitively because we're so committed to doing the right thing through the right channels.

We're going to continue to invest in science, in responsibility, and go through this path, even if it takes a little bit longer because we believe it's the right thing to do.

So, I think it's that commitment, it's that passion from each individual leader and that commitment to sort of doing the right thing and staying the course, that continues to impress and surprise me.

Adam Howe: You've been very public as an organization in these commitments so I guess the accountability is there for all to see.

Maybe just to finish this off, as you think about the next kind of, you know, two to three years at PMI US, what do you think are the biggest things that you're thinking about from a talent leadership and culture perspective?

Dr. Kaleen Love: Here at PMI US, I think for the next few years, it's really about ensuring that what we have built in the US begins to feel like a distinctive winning culture.

Again, we've been growing so quickly. We've more than doubled our headcount in a couple years. If you think about that, you've got various cultures, you've got a culture in the making, so we're very clear on our values, we're very clear on our behavioral expectations, we're very clear on our mission and our purpose, but we also are operating in a dynamic external landscape.

And my passion and my purpose is to really make sure that we feel like we are one coherent winning team. But more importantly, I want all of us to cross that finish line together; I want it to be a winning team, better together, game changers, but better together, who are caring about each other and going after that finish line together.

Adam Howe: I love the values, the simplicity of them is really inspiring. Well, the PMI US story is inspiring, your story's inspiring; thank you so much for coming in and spending some time with us.

Dr. Kaleen Love: Thank you so much. It was a pleasure to be here today and thank you.

Thanks for listening to The Heidrick & Struggles Leadership Podcast. To make sure you don't miss the next conversation, please subscribe to our channel on your preferred podcast app, and if you're listening via LinkedIn or YouTube, why not share this with your connections? Until next time.

About the interviewer

Adam Howe (ahowe@heidrick.com) is a partner in Heidrick Consulting; he is based in the New York City office.