Jessica Zwaan, COO at Whereby, joined us again on The Modern People Leader for a deep dive into Employee Lifetime Value (ELTV). We explored how HR leaders can adapt marketing-style metrics like LTV to CAC for talent, the different ways to calculate it, and how the process itself can reshape how People teams think about value, cost, and impact.---- Sponsor Links:🔗 Request a demo of ChartHop.🔗 Get your free 30-day Synthesia account.MPL Links:🔗 Buy your ticket for MPL Live New York.🔗 Go sign up for MPL Build.---- (05:45) Wrapping up Jessica’s second book & reflections on avoiding hustle culture(06:31) How to balance multiple big projects without burning out(07:42) Personal habits that help prevent hustle culture(09:16) Stephen on using “extra time” with intention(11:29) Mary Oliver’s “Don’t Hesitate” poem and finding joy in work(13:02) Daniel on keeping play in work despite business growth pressures(14:05) Segue to main topic: Employee Lifetime Value (ELTV)(15:26) Why ELTV sparks debate and common misconceptions(16:25) Treating ELTV conversations like an AMA to address objections(17:05) Behind-the-scenes of Stephen’s LinkedIn post that started the conversation(18:21) Image generation with Midjourney & content process for MPL Build(21:42) Different ways to calculate ELTV depending on company context(24:23) Why People teams resist new metrics compared to Marketing teams(27:56) The value of the calculation process itself for HR teams(29:13) Why ELTV is calculated on an aggregate, not individual, basis(31:55) The halo effect of great employees & intangible impacts on value(32:29) Breaking ELTV down by department, team, or cohorts(36:27) Core cost factors in ELTV: recruiting, onboarding, L&D, benefits, comp(39:12) Why knowing cost per employee matters beyond ELTV(40:50) Tracking ELTV with different financial baselines (revenue vs. EBITDA)(43:32) The “gold standard” three-to-one LTV-to-CAC ratio and when to adjust it(44:58) Similar or alternative metrics for different business models(46:05) Why each company’s key metrics should look different(47:15) Recognizing others who pioneered ELTV concepts(48:22) Final advice: ELTV is a compass, not a map---- 📬 Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get episode recaps💡 Follow The Modern People Leader on LinkedIn😊 Follow Daniel Huerta on LinkedIn😊 Follow Stephen Huerta on LinkedIn

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.