When Trent Mosley joined DataGrail in March, he hadn’t seen his grandmother in four years. Not long after he started, she called to let him know she’d be visiting California, and asked if he was free.
Mosley, who describes himself as anxious around taking time off, told her he’d just started a new job. But he couldn’t say no to his grandma. So, he asked his brand-new boss if he could take a few days at the end of the month.
Mosley remembers his boss saying, “You shouldn’t feel bad. In five years from now, are you going to say, ‘man, I shouldn’t have taken that PTO to hang out with my grandma?’”
“That to me was the most human thing you could do, and it instantly earned my respect, loyalty and trust from the get-go,” Mosley said. He spent the week with his grandma, eating her favorite food — fish and chips — and watching live music.
For Mosley, that’s just one way DataGrail has lived up to its core value of “be human.”
What DataGrail Does
“Be human” encourages employees to be their authentic selves on the job and aims to drive a diverse, inclusive, equitable and respectful culture. The value impacts how Kelly Hamilton, director of customer success, shows up personally and professionally at DataGrail.
For Hamilton, who has ADHD, being human means “recognition for being good at what I do, despite being neurodiverse,” Hamilton said. It also means that, as a parent, she can be direct and honest about balancing work and motherhood.
Professionally, the core value encourages her to be transparent when she’s struggling. Right now, she’s covering for a colleague on maternity leave. They’re halfway through the leave, and that’s when, according to Hamilton, the rubber hits the road. To help her see the light at the end of the tunnel, her boss created a countdown calendar. The countdown reminds her that her increased workload is temporary, and it also serves as an acknowledgment of and appreciation for where she is.
“Sometimes, you have to lean in,” Hamilton said. “I like the humor and the support and backup. Yeah, this is tough, but we’re going to laugh about it.
What Does “Be Human” Mean, Exactly?
On Hamilton’s team, “be human” means something different for each person on any given day. Hamilton tries to meet team members where they’re at and work together from there.
“Whether somebody has a sick parent, and that’s where we need to live during our one-one-one, or we need to live in hardcore, tactical execution mode because that’s going to make the biggest difference in their day, I hope everybody feels empowered to come as their authentic selves,” Hamilton said.
Beyond one-on-ones, Hamilton cultivates a culture of humanity and authenticity by simply speaking the core value out loud. She regularly acknowledges it so her team is comfortable being themselves and taking any time they might need.
DataGrail’s culture of authenticity helps customer success managers build trust, which can ensure the best product adoption. CSMs on DataGrail’s team are comfortable saying no, channeling their expertise and informing customers about best practices.
Why Data Matters
“It’s a much more comfortable conversation because you have that human element and that relationship built already,” Hamilton said.
Humanity helps with scale, too. From an adoption standpoint, when knowledge gaps appear, CSMs can talk to the customer honestly about fixing the issue. Recently, one of Hamilton’s team members did just that, turning a potential risk into one of the best-adopted customers in just weeks.
“He was direct and human about it,” Hamilton said. “He just said, ‘Hey, we weren’t perfect here. We can be better. Let me show you how.’ And then he proved it and created that relationship.”
A Human-Driven Mission
Hamilton admits she was dismissive about data privacy when it first became a trending topic. But then she started to read headlines about how data can be used to manipulate elections or influence advertising, and she became more passionate about protecting herself and the people around her.
She grew up both with and without the internet, but her kids won’t. She worries they won’t be as savvy about what they share because the digital world has always been their reality. That worry fuels her passion for her work.
The more that we can give people the ability to exercise their human right of data privacy, the more I really believe that I’m helping my kids live in a more normal world.”
After all, privacy is a human right. And data privacy is no exception.
“The more that we can give people the ability to exercise their human right of data privacy, the more I really believe that I’m helping my kids live in a more normal world,” she said. “We help protect against bad actors in a way that will shape the future for my family. That’s why DataGrail’s mission is so important.”
WHAT IS DATA PRIVACY?
“Our mission is leading with trust and transparency with our customers,” Mosley said. “It’s ethically and morally doing what’s right. You, as a consumer, should have control of your data. You should be protected.”
The Future Is Bright
The problem DataGrail is trying to solve is a big one and the future of data privacy is uncertain. That puts Mosley, Hamilton and their teams in a unique position to learn as they grow and grow as they learn.
“The enterprise businesses we have begun to work with are going to constantly break things within our own product,” Mosley said. “It’s our job as a partner to figure out how to solve that problem for them.
New regulations will change things, as well. As they crop up, DataGrail adjusts, and Mosley and Hamilton connect with their partners to navigate an evolving landscape together. In the end, that’s what being human is about.
“We start rowing the same boat,” Mosley said. “Your customers are a part of DataGrail, and DataGrail is a part of your customers.”
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