These episodes of #thePOZcast, live from Transform 2026 in Las Vegas, are proudly brought to you by our friends at Overalls What if your employees had one central hub to handle real life? Meet Overalls. A smarter way to support your team, combining expert human LifeConcierges™ with AI to solve everyday challenges across healthcare, caregiving, benefits, insurance, finances, life admin, and more. From start to finish, Overalls handles the details — using existing benefits where they fit, and filling in the gaps where they don’t. So employees save time, reduce stress, and stay focused at work, while employers boost engagement and get more value from their benefits. Overalls is redefining how work supports life, helping employee teams from Reddit, Patreon, BeatBox, and more cross pesky to-dos off their lists every day. Learn more at https://getoveralls.com/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=pozcast Thanks for listening, and please follow us on Insta @NHPTalent and www.youtube.com/thePOZcast For all episodes, please check out www.thePOZcast.com Katya Laviolette, Chief People Officer at 1Password Katya Laviolette is the Chief People Officer at 1Password, where she’s grown a fully remote team to 1,400+ across five countries and achieved a 93% offer-to-acceptance rate. A strategic, globally-minded HR leader, Katya drives business innovation through talent and organizational development. Previously, Katya held executive roles at SSENSE, TC Transcontinental, CBC/Radio-Canada, Rio Tinto, Bombardier Aerospace, and Canadian National Railway. Katya is a Board Director at Sanimax and Solotech, and a founding member of Transform Montreal. She’s also an ORHRI member, certified Integral Coaching Canada coach, and actively involved in Pour 3 Points, Governance au Féminin, and Monday Girl. 00:00 – Introduction Adam Poser welcomes Katya Laviolette live from Transform 2026 and sets the stage for the conversation. 01:15 – Meet 1Password & Katya Katya introduces herself and 1Password — an identity security company, fully remote for 20 years, now protecting both humans and AI agents. 03:30 – Evaluating Total Comp as a Candidate Breaking down what candidates should actually consider beyond base salary: bonus, equity, and especially benefits — including what employers contribute to healthcare. 06:45 – Table Stakes vs. Standout Benefits What every company must offer vs. what sets 1Password apart: pet telemedicine, 25 days PTO, 4 company-wide wellness days, and robust family planning benefits. 10:30 – Wellness Days Explained Katya unpacks what a "wellness day" actually looks like at 1Password — full company shutdowns so employees can recharge without guilt. 12:00 – Benefits ROI & Utilization How 1Password justifies the cost of premium benefits through utilization data, focus groups, and productivity metrics — and why cutting benefits should be the last resort. 15:00 – The Onboarding Edge: Starting on Wednesday 1Password's unconventional onboarding approach: all new hires start on Wednesdays so managers are ready, systems are prepped, and new employees get 3 days of company-led onboarding before meeting their team. 18:30 – Staying Connected in a Remote Company How 1Password keeps culture alive across 6 countries: city-by-city executive meetups, all-hands sessions, employee resource groups, and intentional cross-functional collaboration. 22:00 – Being Honest in the Interview Process Katya's approach to radical transparency — telling candidates "1Password might not be the place for you" — and why managing expectations is a competitive advantage. 25:30 – Remote Work Isn't for Everyone A candid conversation about the real challenges of remote work, what it takes to thrive in it, and how 1Password supports employees who may be struggling. 28:00 – AI, Fraud & the Future of Recruiting How 1Password is navigating AI-generated applications, over-embellished resumes, and fraudulent candidates — including mandatory in-person finalist interviews for senior roles. 31:00 – What's Exciting Katya Right Now Katya shares what energizes her most: the curiosity of 1Password's workforce and the chance to be part of a genuinely game-changing mission in AI and identity security. Key Takeaways 1. Benefits Are a Recruiting and Retention Weapon Katya emphasizes that benefits extend far beyond table stakes like dental and disability. Standout offerings — family planning, pet telemedicine, wellness days, and generous PTO — are central to 1Password's employer brand and a real differentiator in a competitive talent market. 2. Employer Healthcare Contributions Matter More Than Most Candidates Realize The portion a company pays toward employee healthcare can represent thousands of dollars in annual value. Katya urges candidates to factor this into their true compensation comparison — not just base salary. 3. Benefits Only Work If Employees Know About Them and Use Them 1Password achieves high utilization through proactive education, easy administration, annual focus groups by country, and renewal-time communications that show employees the dollar value of their benefits package. 4. Start New Hires on a Wednesday — Not a Monday By onboarding all new employees on Wednesdays, 1Password ensures managers are focused and ready, systems are set up, and new hires get 3 days of company-led orientation before their team ramps up. It's a simple change with an outsized impact on first impressions. 5. Radical Transparency Reduces Mis-Hires Rather than selling every candidate on the company, Katya actively explains the challenges of remote work and the intensity of 1Password's mission. The company even includes language in offer materials saying "1Password might not be the place for you." This honest framing reduces early attrition. 6. Remote Culture Requires Intentional Design Staying connected across time zones doesn't happen by accident. 1Password invests in city-by- city in-person gatherings, structured all-hands, manager training on relationship-building over Zoom, and employee resource groups to keep culture alive. 7. AI Is Reshaping Recruiting — And Security-First Companies Are Ahead of the Curve 1Password has implemented fraud detection tools at the top of the application funnel, trained interviewers to identify AI-generated content, and instituted multi-stage interview loops with mandatory in-person finalists for senior hires. 8. Don't Cut Benefits When Things Get Tight Benefits are foundational to culture and trust. Katya argues that benefits should be among the last things cut in a cost-reduction scenario — the ROI from retention, productivity, and employer brand far outweighs the savings. 9. Time Is Currency for Employees Whether it's concierge benefits that handle personal logistics, flexible scheduling for a remote lifestyle, or wellness days that give genuine mental recharge time — giving employees their time back is one of the highest-ROI investments a company can make.
