From Intangible to Invaluable: Behavioral Science, AI and the Future of Work

Apr 4

HomeEc Bonus Episode

Episode Overview

Target Audience: Investment professionals, business leaders, workplace strategists
Focus Areas: Human capital, employee well-being, workplace culture, investment returns
Key Themes: Organizational psychology, behavioral economics, AI implementation, business performance

Intro

Welcome to this special episode from HomeEc, a podcast where we talk about money, relationships and the space in between. While we've been developing our financial wellness platform, we are sharing this bonus conversation from a CFA Society of Philadelphia webinar moderated by our HomeEc Host Nick.

If you visit personawealth.com today, you can take our free intensive psychological and behavioral assessment that helps identify your money blind spots and determine where to start on your path to financial security and well-being. When we return with our regular episodes, we'll deep dive into user stories of people who've taken this assessment, discuss the results, and tangible steps for improving well-being.

Key Terms

ESG: Environmental, Social, and Governance – a framework used in investing to evaluate companies based on their environmental impact, social practices (employee treatment, community relations), and governance standards (board diversity, business ethics). This episode focuses primarily on the "S" component.
Human Capital Factor: An investment factor identified by Irrational Capital that consistently outperforms benchmarks by 3-6% annually, based on employee sentiment and intrinsic motivation.
Good Job Strategy: A business approach combining strategic investment in people with operational excellence to drive better business outcomes.
Intrinsic Motivators: Non-financial elements that drive employee engagement, such as recognition, alignment with values, and psychological safety.

Meet the Thought Leaders

Nick Ashburn (Host): Founder and CEO of PersonaWealth, where he helps people get curious about what's blocking their financial progress. Through Persona's hyper-personalized technology, he creates safe spaces where people can face their financial fears and avoidance patterns, transforming their relationship with money. Previously served as Managing Director and Head of Responsible Investing at PNC Bank and at the Wharton School researching and teaching sustainable investing. He helps people achieve not just financial security, but deeper connection and authentic well-being.
Sarah Kalloch: Founding Executive Director of the Good Jobs Institute, where she builds partnerships with companies and investors to implement the "good job strategy" - empowering teams to win with customers and fuel performance. An Aspen Job Quality Fellow who guest lectures on sustainable operations at MIT Sloan School of Management. Her background includes international development work with organizations like Physicians for Human Rights and Oxfam America. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard and holds an MBA from MIT Sloan.
Bart Houlahan: Senior Partner at Irrational Capital, an investment research firm focused on the connection between employee treatment and market performance. Co-founded B Lab in 2006, the nonprofit behind the B Corp movement, which now has 10,000 certified B Corporations across 102 countries. Before B Lab, he was President of AND 1, the second-largest basketball footwear and apparel company in the world. A Henry Crown Fellow, recipient of the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship, John P. McNulty Prize, and Henry Block Social Entrepreneur of the Year. He graduated from Stanford University.

Memorable Quotes

"Making the invisible visible is a superpower." - Nick Ashburn

"We have got to make service jobs good jobs in the US. They're not going anywhere, and they're the bedrock of a lot of communities." - Sarah Kalloch

"The human capital factor is literally based upon employee sentiment. How employees feel about their employer." - Bart Houlahan

Key Topics & Takeaways

The Business Case for Good Jobs

Companies with strong employee cultures consistently outperform financially (B Corps showed <5% attrition during COVID vs. 16-33% for typical businesses)
Frontline worker satisfaction directly drives customer experience and loyalty
Good jobs create operational stability and resilience that impacts the bottom line

Human Capital as Investment Factor

Human capital doesn't appear on balance sheets but drives long-term value
Employee sentiment serves as a reliable performance indicator
While pay and benefits are baseline requirements, intrinsic motivators (recognition, fairness, alignment with values) drive exceptional performance

AI and Workplace Transformation

Technology should be implemented with human oversight and center worker experience
Companies with strong cultures will navigate AI disruption more successfully
Consider practical applications like examining turnover, scheduling, and career advancement opportunities