HRPA’s February 24th webinar featured Board Chair Tim Richmond talking with Ann Addison, retiring CHRO from Northrop Grumman, about preparing for workplace disruption.
Why it matters: The administration’s approach to how government interacts with employers combined with technology innovations like AI and data analytics, require CHROs to prepare their companies and Boards in a quickly shifting environment.
Heading into a March retirement, long-serving CHRO for Northrop Grumman, Ann Addison, shared her advice on meeting today’s challenges:
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Comprehensive review: As both a global company and major federal contractor, Northrop Grumman recognized the need for comprehensive review. They created a cross-departmental task force to evaluate the impacts of DEI, tariffs, supply chain challenges, return to office, and other issues.
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Leading discussions with the executive team: To prepare the company to react under various fact patterns, the executive leadership team engaged in robust scenario planning.
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Board analysis: The Board was provided with a thorough analysis of the administration’s new policies including new executive orders. Ranking them according to relevance and impact helped focus the Board on those orders with the highest impact on company operations.
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DEI inventory: Regarding DEI, Ms. Addison described creating a comprehensive inventory of company practices and programs, including a review of internal and external websites, public filings and reports, and related information. Once that information was collected, the team organized their programs and reports into buckets—those to keep or refine, initiatives to pause, and those to sunset.
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To facilitate their risk analysis, the Board was briefed on the company’s process for evaluating the potential impact of new government policies. “The Board appreciated that they were presented with criteria and metrics” to facilitate their evaluation, Addison reported.
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With things “changing quickly, it’s important to stay true to your values and your process,” Addison emphasized.
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Technology and AI preparation: As a former IT professional, Ms. Addison highlighted the importance of becoming educated on AI, dreaming about how to use it, then determining where its use provides maximum value.
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Addison observed that even companies without a large technology budget are able to invest in AI that augments existing applications.
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“Don’t be afraid of technology,” advised Addison, “you want to control your destiny.”
The bottom line: Transformative CHROs are always looking around the corner to prepare for what’s ahead. In times of disruption, “a clear value of HRPA membership is knowing you have your community of CHROs behind you,” Addison said.
