Ripple Effect Leader Spotlight: Andrew Meadows

To me, Andrew is joy, generosity, kindness, passion and integrity. He’s had an incredible growth path and even with all of his success, I find that it’s his humility, vulnerability and openness to learning that give his leadership so much power.

And it’s refreshing to meet someone who is so dedicated to their industry and craft. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone as passionate about retirement as Andrew. He even traveled across the country for weeks producing a documentary about the inequities in America around saving for retirement.

I’m pleased to spotlight Andrew Meadows, SVP HR, Brand + Culture @ Ubiquity Retirement + Savings this month, and to share his wisdom with you all!

What would you like our readers to know about you?

I’m a retirement nerd at heart. I’ve spent over 20 years working in retirement in several areas, including client experience, relationship management, lead generation, marketing + brand, quality assurance, and most recently HR. I’ve had the experience of moving up and around for many years, so I know the space deeply. 

Around six years ago, we had a leadership change in HR. Our CEO asked our employees what leader(s) they would trust to be in the role and my name was mentioned a few times. Our employees wanted a leader they could trust, who had the type of career movement they too wanted. Since then, I’ve fallen in love even more with our company, our employees, and our mission, and knew I could make a real difference in the lives of our employees.

What’s important and meaningful to you about your work?

Financial companies aren’t often synonymous with empathy in the workplace. Keeping compliant with what we’re required to do and how we can continue to innovate is often a delicate balancing act. Advocating for and developing a culture where we focus on understanding our employees and creating processes that result in their feeling heard and understood, which brings about empathy, has meant the most to me. If you’re happy at work, imagine how much more able you are to pass that joy onto your colleagues and clients. For us, the culture of our organization is often as important as what we do each day for our clients. 

What does it mean to “bring your authentic self” to work? How do you practice this?

Authenticity has become a real buzz word in HR. Backing that up with real examples of what authenticity looks like can still be a rare thing. We attempt to measure authenticity in three different ways: cognitive abilities, affective personality traits, and natural problem-solving skills. Everyone brings such differing backgrounds, and we want to emphasize each of these areas prior to a new employee’s start date. 

Currently, we measure cognitive abilities during the interview process by taking a deep dive into their background and how their experience shapes their knowledge. We use Gallup Strengths (formerly StrengthsFinder) to determine what types of work they like to do. Lastly, we use the Kolbe Index to assess their natural abilities when it comes to solving problems at work.

The balance of all three of these assessments help us identify what authentic attributes each employee brings to the job, and we frequently reference them to help everyone become a successful member of our organization. Every employee is different and it’s our goal to highlight those differences in a way that enables us to celebrate their accomplishments individually, on a team level, and within the company at large. 

What is your definition of leadership?

Just like any employee, leaders come in all types. Thought leaders are subject matter experts who have spent their entire careers developing their knowledge and skill sets to set an example for others. People leaders are those who focus on the abilities of the entire organization to achieve the best results through thoughtful conversations, feedback, and recognition. Some of our best people leaders focus on the entire team’s performance and focus on lifting up individuals.

The most successful leaders for Ubiquity are those who have the ability to balance both thought and people leadership to consistently push the envelope of our own expectations. They inspire us with excitement, thoughtfulness, and vision. Leadership to me is all about recognizing that one person cannot do it all and encourages constant collaboration to reach new heights.

How has your coming out journey and/or identity strengthened who you are as a leader?

I’ve been with Ubiquity for 19 years. I started my retirement career in North Carolina and recall how worried I was that my identity would somehow hold me back from opportunities or even any kind of employment. I was so fortunate that I was able to meet other career-minded folks that were able to help me get my start. I recall phoning my new friends asking them if they liked what they do and if they were hiring. That got my foot into the door of a TPA that ignited my love for retirement. Eventually, I wanted more out of the queer community than what I was getting there. 

I moved to San Francisco, sight unseen, while still young enough to take a big risk. I wanted to find a place where being gay wasn’t the biggest part of my identity. A few weeks after moving here, I secured the job that eventually grew into HR leadership. I made a conscious effort to be as authentic as possible with this new start and I brought my entire self to work.

Throughout my career, that authenticity has opened more doors and opportunities than I could’ve imagined.  While I know that isn’t always the case for everyone, I count my blessings that I work for an employer that celebrates a diversity of perspectives and the importance of seeing senior leaders of all kinds. It’s my hope that it inspires others both at Ubiquity and beyond.

What is something you still struggle with as a leader who identifies as LGBTQ+?

The biggest challenge I feel is more external than internal. When I first started in my HR role, I found how non-inclusive parts of HR administration could be. Early on, I had an employee approach me in the most vulnerable of ways by asking if the forms we use for open enrollment could be less binary. Since then, I ask our broker every year if the forms have changed so that they could be more inclusive.

Unfortunately, the great benefits we provide to support our employees are still not recognizing the full spectrum of identities of our employees. One of my goals is to get to a place where our benefits holistically recognize the life experiences of our employees as we consistently expect them to come to work as their whole selves. 

What resources do you tap into for support?

Finding the QueeHR community you’ve put together has been exactly the support I’ve needed. HR leaders come in a seemingly infinite number of varieties. Being relatively new to HR, I’ve sought various groups, organizations, and individuals that match the ideals I’m trying to uphold for our company. The diversity within this community has been so validating. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed hearing what leaders in other companies, many of which are much larger than my own, have done for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Not only have I been inspired to take action in new areas, but I’ve also made what I would consider true friendships that will only help me to do this important work.

Tell us about something you’re especially proud of – work or non-work related.

No matter your background or identity in America, we believe that we are all promised access to a dignified retirement. Unfortunately, not all of us are set up for that same success. In 2012, I began work as a producer for a documentary called “Broken Eggs: The Looming Retirement Crisis in America,” which was released in 2014. Over seven weeks, we drove across the US, interviewed people from all walks of life, and determined that access to saving isn’t available for everyone, especially those working for themselves or small businesses.

I got into retirement to help others who don’t understand the complicated ins and outs of our business. This documentary goes a long way in helping others understand some of the complications and how the industry and government needs to change in order to meet the needs of retirees and those planning for retirement, which is all of us. I always like to encourage folks to watch the documentary with their friends and family to provide thoughtful discussions around how to plan for the eventuality that is retirement. 

What excites you about the future of work/leadership?

Leadership and HR has certainly been a focal point over the past years as it relates to work/life balance, being happy at work, and for employers to recognize the true value of their employees from remote work to compensation. Now, more than ever in my experience, employees are holding leadership accountable. That's why it’s important to have leaders who support employees and being very clear about expectations. My primary goal when stepping into HR is to provide everyone, leaders and employees alike, with all the rules and policies they need to choose their own adventure. The attitude we bring to work each day is a choice and I choose the path that’s exciting and enriching for all. 

What else would you like to share?

Thank you for all the work you and the group have been doing. It is incredibly validating and helpful to have other leaders who are so inspiring to us. With all the different experiences we all have, I’m consistently learning and evolving my understanding of the role HR plays in helping others find a sense of belonging at work, myself included.

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For more information about the QueeHR community we’re building, you can visit my community page and request to join our LinkedIn group.