If someone from PURE Group decides to leave the high-net-worth insurer to pursue a career as a race car driver or an avalanche rescuer, the carrier’s leaders wouldn’t be devastated.
Executive Summary
When a college senior tells his or her parents, "I've got interviews set up with IBM and PURE Insurance," the carrier name isn't one that moms and dads will recognize, CHRO Katherine Richardson told CM. But PURE continues to attract young people nonetheless with a purpose-driven culture, benefits like passion courses, and hiring and training practices that support its continued commitment to core principles.“We might have a moment of sadness when people leave, but if they’re going off to pursue their passions, then that’s a win,” said Katherine Richardson, chief human resources officer of the White Plains, N.Y.-based insurance group. “That would make us happy, honestly,” she said, when asked about the prospect of employees exiting after using a tuition reimbursement benefit for “passion courses”—courses unrelated to their careers at PURE but instead helping them pursue personal passions.
The benefit, which has allowed employees to become yacht captains, poets, comedians and certified yoga instructors, doesn’t typically prompt them to leave the company. “The only requirement from us is that it leads to some sort of designation,” said Richardson, noting that one woman who used the funds to become a certified self-defense instructor now teaches fellow employees.
