For Work Expert and 4Front Ambassador Joe Thurman, it’s all about the human element
As founder and CEO of People-First Management Consulting firm Jobber Group, Joe Thurman is literally a people person.
He has more than 10 years’ experience in the human resources sector, with the past six years focused on talent strategy, scale-up, HR tech and building inclusive cultures. Working with hundreds of technology firms, he has helped tech companies identify and hire effective leadership and align their workforces to drive business success. He also sits on the board of the Colorado Technology Association.
Thurman will bring that experience to bear as 4Front’s Work Ambassador. So we caught up with Joe to talk about this role, and how the human element drives technology innovation.
What made you interested in becoming an ambassador for 4Front?
When I think about the future of work, it’s the space that I live in — it’s what I eat, sleep and breathe. The future of work is something I’m extremely passionate about and that crosses into building inclusive cultures, understanding how people can be aligned with work that really matters to them. When people are aligned from a mission and vision and a passion perspective, that’s when people will do their greatest work. For a lot of things that we’re talking at 4Front, that’s really important.
How do you think an event like 4Front could create a positive future?
4Front is different because we are bringing together different industries, different verticals, different people from different stages in their careers. Once we put those all in the same room we can really begin to come up with new ideas and create what I like to call a collective impact to solve real-world challenges. When we see competing organizations come together with diverse mindsets and thinking styles innovation can truly take shape, I think that’s what 4Front is bringing to the table.
What unique perspective do you hope to bring to 4Front?
The human element. When we talk about work, sometimes we get into the function or the tactical thought of human capital. I think when we talk about work in particular, it’s really important to understand that human element from every side, culture, impact, mindset. Innovation is needed, technology is everywhere and changing the world through the next latest and greatest truly is amazing. But it’s not amazing if we leave people behind in the workplace. And that is a big part of what I want to bring to the 4Front conference, is the human-centric people-first view of that.
Can you tell us a little bit more about yourself than what’s on the current site? What are your passions? What makes you tick?
I believe everyone should have the opportunity to go after something they care about. We spend a lot of time at work. It’s a majority of our time, and I think life’s too short to just have a job. Everyone has the ability to have an impact on something bigger. At Jobber Group we focus our work on using technology to augment and amplify human impact, not removing the human element. Amplifying our ability to make better decisions when it comes to people is my person passion. In that space we are dealing with unconscious bias training one day, leadership strategies another, and interview amplification technology all in the same conversation. I’m very passionate about people having purpose in life, and that’s not above anybody’s pay-grade. Everyone can have purpose. That’s what keeps me up; that’s what I’m passionate about, what makes me tick.
