Insights from a people-first leader: Dajana Berisavljević Đakonović from Toggl

Tell us a little more about your role. How do you and your team apply people-first principles in your work?

I am the Head of People at Toggl—the creators behind Toggl Track, Plan, Hire and Work. We're a team of 130+ people across 40+ countries and have been fully remote since 2014. In my role, I oversee Toggl's People Operations, which includes talent acquisition, events, legal, and people engagement. Our job as a People Ops team is to create the best possible work environment where Togglers can do their best work and live fulfilling professional lives. This means that everything we do, we do with our people in mind.

What brought you to where you are today? How did you grow to become a people-first leader?

I was lucky enough to start my HR career at Toggl, so it really is where I've learned everything I know. The founders have built the company and culture following people-first principles from the very beginning. So Toggl and I have been growing together for the past eight years, and in many ways, we have shaped each other. 

What does “people-first” mean to you?

Many teams say they have a people-first environment, but for me, this means something very specific. It's more than just creating an outstanding work environment for your employees. It's the specifics that go into that, like instilling trust, freedom, and flexibility in your workplace. On top of that, it's about treating people like adults and empowering them to do their job and last but not least—giving every employee fair compensation and good benefits.

What is the biggest misconception about running a people-first company?

The biggest misconception is that people-first companies put the business or its profits second. I don't see it like that, and Toggl doesn't either. Many HR teams see themselves as peace-making forces between the conflicting demands of people and the business. I know because I often hear fellow HR colleagues worrying about protecting people's interests from business or vice versa. 

Today, I firmly believe that people and business are two sides of the same coin. Without an engaged and motivated team, a strong business is impossible. And your team won't be motivated without a successful business with a healthy culture and top talent. It's a delicate and crucial balance that extraordinary HR professionals know how to nurture—but it's not easy.

How have employee expectations for what’s considered an outstanding workplace changed over the years? What does that mean for your team’s work? 

Before COVID-19, remote work was a huge benefit for employees, and employers used it as a differentiator to attract talent. With so many companies going remote, people began demanding more flexibility. Now, it's not enough to offer flexibility around where people work. We also need to offer them maximum freedom over when they work.

We saw this trend emerging a couple of years ago and decided to experiment with different ways of flexible working environments. After trying a couple of different approaches, like a four-day work week, we built our own progressive model and moved away from hours-based work. It's called Results and Accountability First (RAFT) and focuses purely on results. Essentially, we don’t care where or when our people work—just as long as they get their work done and drive meaningful results for the business. 

What main guiding principle do you follow as a people-first leader?

I have always loved Jocko Wilink's principle of extreme ownership. It hammers home that you are responsible for every output of your team, particularly their performance and wellbeing. I resonate with this as taking extreme ownership and treating people like adults capable of doing what you hired them to do is a win-win combination for me. 

What do you find most challenging in your role as a leader?

Setting boundaries is still a work in progress for me. It is challenging to balance giving people space to express themselves and vent while keeping discussions constructive with business interests in mind. 

Who are your leadership role models?

My grandma is a single mother of five daughters. I learned so many things from her parenting style, especially about leadership, that I use in various fields of my life and in my day-to-day work at Toggl.

What’s your number one advice to founders or other leaders who want to build a people-first business and workplace?

Be brutally honest with yourself (and the world) if the work is really something you want to do. Please don’t embark on a project just because it sounds cool or it’s a fancy trend. Because it’s going to get hard, and you will probably fail if the passion isn’t there from the start. 

If the answer is yes—make hiring the first person on your People team a priority. This person will be the guardian of your culture. The person who you put between applicants and your business. And the person who will build your operations with people-first principles in mind. This person will arguably be the most important hire you make. 

What book/video/podcast/article do you recommend to people building people-first companies?

A couple of my favorites:

• 🧑‍💻 Open Org community
• ☕ The PX Espresso Library 
• 📚 Built for People: Transform Your Employee Experience Using Product Management Principles

What tools should fellow people-first leaders know about?

• Toggl Hire: It would be impossible to have our efficient hiring process at Toggl without it. The custom-built skills tests save us hundreds of hours for every hire we make, and the full-cycle hiring helps us give every candidate a great experience
• Notion: An absolute staple for transparent documentation on operations and culture

Editor's note: If you'd like to hear more from Dajana about building people-frist workplaces and all things People Ops, make sure to follow her on LinkedIn.