Episode 1 : Joseph Kenner: On Giving Jobs to Those Who Want Them—No Questions Asked
September 29, 2021 | [wpv-post-taxonomy-iterator taxonomy="season" field="views|shortcode|single|wpv-taxonomy-title"][wpv-taxonomy-title][/wpv-post-taxonomy-iterator] | 46:36
You may not be familiar with Greyston, but you’ve likely eaten their baked goods. (They’re the primary supplier of brownies to Ben & Jerry’s.) This social enterprise, the first certified benefit corporation in the state of New York, is transforming lives through its “open hiring” practice, providing opportunities to those previously considered unemployable. Greyston’s president and CEO Joseph Kenner is on a mission to unlock the power of human potential and believes that inclusive hiring is key to creating both a more level playing field for society and a better bottom line for the company.
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If you have a desire to work but you are homeless, you’re likely out of luck in most job markets. Similarly, if you have a criminal record, are a single mom with no childcare, or lack an education or the soft skills required to excel in a job interview, you also might be on the outside looking in at employment possibilities.
But open hiring—a practice championed by Yonkers, NY-based Greyston—is a policy that gives jobs to those who want jobs, no questions asked. And since there are 10 million jobs available in the United States and millions of people looking for work, it sounds like a win-win solution, right?
Joseph, who had a “circuitous” path to becoming Greyston’s president and CEO, believes it is. He calls open and inclusive hiring the next evolution of human resources. Under his leadership, Greyston is spearheading a movement to remove barriers to employment for the “unemployable” and offer those workers support in tackling life’s problems outside the workplace—helping them advance their careers at, and even beyond, Greyston.
While it is changing lives and the Yonkers community for the better, this radically different approach to workforce enrollment is not just a feel-good exercise. It has also helped the company’s output. Not only are 70 of Greyston’s 100 current employees open hires, it’s also enjoying record levels of production (up 17,000 pounds of brownies per day, from 33,000 pounds to 50,000).
“We want to be the noted champion of stakeholder capitalism and creating an inclusive economy,” Kenner tells us. “We want to [lead] a mind shift in terms of how we even look at employment—how we look at hiring.”
MORE RESOURCES
Conscious Capitalism, On Restoring Dignity to Work (VIDEO)
CNBC “Squawk Box” How the “Open Hiring” Business Model Could Help Develop Diverse Talent (VIDEO)
Wide Open Dreams Documentary about Greyston (VIDEO TRAILERS)
GUESTS
Joseph Kenner, CEO, Greyston, which includes Greyston Foundation and Greyston Bakery
Episode 1: Joseph Kenner: On Giving Jobs to Those Who Want Them—No Questions Asked
September 29, 2021 | Season 1 | 46:36
You may not be familiar with Greyston, but you’ve likely eaten their baked goods. (They’re the primary supplier of brownies to Ben & Jerry’s.) This social enterprise, the first certified benefit corporation in the state of New York, is transforming lives through its “open hiring” practice, providing opportunities to those previously considered unemployable. Greyston’s president and CEO Joseph Kenner is on a mission to unlock the power of human potential and believes that inclusive hiring is key to creating both a more level playing field for society and a better bottom line for the company.
Read More
If you have a desire to work but you are homeless, you’re likely out of luck in most job markets. Similarly, if you have a criminal record, are a single mom with no childcare, or lack an education or the soft skills required to excel in a job interview, you also might be on the outside looking in at employment possibilities.
But open hiring—a practice championed by Yonkers, NY-based Greyston—is a policy that gives jobs to those who want jobs, no questions asked. And since there are 10 million jobs available in the United States and millions of people looking for work, it sounds like a win-win solution, right?
Joseph, who had a “circuitous” path to becoming Greyston’s president and CEO, believes it is. He calls open and inclusive hiring the next evolution of human resources. Under his leadership, Greyston is spearheading a movement to remove barriers to employment for the “unemployable” and offer those workers support in tackling life’s problems outside the workplace—helping them advance their careers at, and even beyond, Greyston.
While it is changing lives and the Yonkers community for the better, this radically different approach to workforce enrollment is not just a feel-good exercise. It has also helped the company’s output. Not only are 70 of Greyston’s 100 current employees open hires, it’s also enjoying record levels of production (up 17,000 pounds of brownies per day, from 33,000 pounds to 50,000).
“We want to be the noted champion of stakeholder capitalism and creating an inclusive economy,” Kenner tells us. “We want to [lead] a mind shift in terms of how we even look at employment—how we look at hiring.”
MORE RESOURCES
Conscious Capitalism, On Restoring Dignity to Work (VIDEO)
CNBC “Squawk Box” How the “Open Hiring” Business Model Could Help Develop Diverse Talent (VIDEO)
Wide Open Dreams Documentary about Greyston (VIDEO TRAILERS)
GUESTS
Joseph Kenner, CEO, Greyston, which includes Greyston Foundation and Greyston Bakery