HR in War “The world will recognize our resilience”
HR in War
“The world will recognize our resilience”
Hailo Technologies has had an outpour of international support from customers, partners, investors, and even competitors
“I am extremely proud to work for Hailo as I must express my immense pride in our employees, their unwavering support for one another, our remarkable reserve duty participation, and the significant number of employees who volunteer,” said Moran Kogan Dori, VP HR at Hailo. “Especially in this horrible time, we witness the remarkable qualities of Israelis, and Hailo employees truly mirror the values of our society.”
HR in War is a new series exploring how companies in Israel are adapting in unusual times. At CTech we believe the world should know about the atrocities committed on 7/10 while at the same time highlighting the continued resolve and resistance of the Israeli tech ecosystem.
Company name: Hailo Technologies Ltd.
Your name and title: Moran Kogan Dori, VP HR
Names of founders and upper management: Orr Danon, Avi Baum
Field of activity: AI, Semiconductors
Number of employees: ~240
Office location: Tel Aviv, Israel (and US, Japan, Germany, Taiwan, Korea, and China)
On a scale of 1-10, how much did the war disrupt operations at the company?
While the ongoing war had an impact on our company's operations, I would rate it as a three. Mostly because many of our employees have been called up for reserve duty, which has an impact on our workforce and our capacity to execute. We are proud of our employees who are taking part in defending the country and are proud and happy to support them and the state of Israel. However, their absence from the workplace has created some operational challenges.
What consequences have you experienced from these disruptions?
Due to our reduced workforce, we've encountered unexpected loads. Our employees who are not in service are working around the clock to cover for the absence of their teammates, and we are proactively prioritizing essential tasks and readjusting our project planning to accommodate the current constraints.
While the current situation represents one of the most challenging periods for our country and its people, our unwavering commitment to our partners, customers, and employees stands firm. We are dedicated to supporting our employees and their families with every resource at our disposal. Equally, our dedication to our customers remains steadfast, ensuring the continued delivery of high-quality products.
This isn't a mere platitude; it's a promise. Even those who have not been formally recruited into our team have a crucial mission – to ensure that our commitment endures. Together, we demonstrate our strength as a company and as a nation, making sure the world recognizes our resilience.
What are the two major challenges you are coping with these days?
The emotional toll on all of us has been significant. The continuous reports of loss, and the state of Israel have left us feeling broken and sad. We are not OK. These emotions have naturally had an effect on our team's overall morale and productivity. While we remain committed to our work, it's undeniable that this has been a challenging period for all of us.
Another issue that we've faced is the unique position of Hailo as a startup. We are a young company with a relatively small headcount, especially when compared to the number of customers we serve. The fact that we have team members called up for reserve duty further exacerbates the challenges. Our already limited resources are stretched even thinner. We're aware of the expectations our customers have, and we understand that our reliability and responsiveness are critical factors in our success, we are doing everything we can to make sure critical projects will meet the timeline we set.
What support do you provide to employees?
1. Check-in: On Saturday, October 7th, we took the initiative to reach out to every single one of our employees and asked them to confirm their safety and the safety of their families. We also have a WhatsApp group for people to share stories and initiatives which allows us to keep an immediate communication channel open for updates and important information.
2. Remote Work: Recognizing the importance of flexibility during these disruptions, we've allowed all our employees to work from home.
3. Support for Employees in Reserve Duty: Our employees serving in reserve duty have received special attention: We doubled our employee assistance budget for lunches, ensuring that they are well-fed or to support the families. We've reached out to each of them personally to understand their needs. Furthermore, our team has come together to support them in various ways. This includes employees volunteering to handle shopping, packing, and shipping items to those on reserve duty.
4. Care Packages: We've sent care packages filled with sweets and tones of appreciation to the families of employees serving in reserve duty or to employees whose spouse or child is in reserve duty. These gestures are meant to show our support and solidarity with the families who also bear the burdens of service.
5. Volunteer Opportunities: Understanding that some of our team members may want to contribute directly to the war efforts, we've granted employees the opportunity to choose where they would like to volunteer, and we've covered their time spent volunteering as part of our commitment to support the war efforts. We hope our support for our employees goes beyond the workplace. We are deeply invested in their well-being, safety, and morale during this challenging time. We believe that by providing comprehensive support and opportunities to contribute, we can navigate these disruptions together, emerging stronger as a company and as humans.
Do you have employees with foreign citizenship who asked to work from another country? If so, has movement been requested/approved?
Yes, we had a few cases, and we approved until things calm down.
How do you communicate the situation to customers? Do you see hostility or support?
Many of our customers, partners, investors, and even competitors have reached out to express their care and support and check on our well-being. It is heartwarming to see how our work connects people throughout the world. We also initiated conversations with customers and sent letters signed by our CEO, updating them that our team is safe and they can rely on us to deliver as promised.
In the event employees feel they encounter hostility, how do you guide them to respond to the situation?
Fortunately, we haven't encountered situations of hostility among our employees thus far, and we hope to maintain a positive and respectful work environment. However, we understand the importance of being prepared to address any such situations should they arise.
In the event that any of our employees feel they have encountered hostility or any form of workplace misconduct, we have a clear and established protocol in place. We encourage all employees to report such incidents immediately to their manager and to us in HR. Once reported, we take such matters very seriously.
We take pride in our team's diverse representation, with employees from various societal backgrounds in Israel. This diversity fosters a strong sense of unity and collaboration within our team.
Startups only: How do you communicate the situation to investors, and how are they reacting?
Our Israeli investors are of course understanding and very supportive. We were also very thankful to see the support from our international investors, who immediately reached out to check on our well-being and offer their support.
