Colin Haupt is the Chief People Officer at Moran Corporation, a 160-year-old Ship Assist and Transportation Company. He was recruited in July of 2024, by Moran as the first in this role; to leverage his leadership and consulting experience around forging a more aligned people culture and change management approach. Moran has recently acquired a large Environmental Remediation company. One of Colin’s primary goals will be to merge the people functions, processes, and technology across the new enterprise. Prior to joining Moran, Colin was a Principal and the Founder of Human Capital Advisors LLC, a Human Capital Advisory and Consulting firm.
We are delighted to announce that Colin will be speaking in New York this March as part of our Wellbeing at Work Summit US. We caught up with him to find out how he’s feeling in the run up to the summit.
Hi Colin, we are thrilled you will be speaking at our Wellbeing at Work Summit US in March. Our first and most important question is, how are you doing today?
Doing great. Feeling great. Excited to participate on the panel.
As a leader based in the region, what are the main challenges you are facing when it comes to employee wellbeing and mental health?
Employee wellbeing encapsulates several areas. And for each individual, wellbeing may have a different meaning. I think first and foremost, employers and leaders need to be transparent and honest with their teams about the importance of feeling comfortable bringing your entire person to work each day. The good the bad and the ugly. Employers who truly embrace wellbeing will respect this and lean in to support whatever it is the employee is experiencing.
What strategies have you seen developing over the past 6 months, both internally and externally, that are moving the dial on wellbeing in the workplace?
I think mental health support groups or access to counselling have been very instrumental to Moran. We have partnered with Spring Health a vendor that provides group as well a personalized mental health coaching and counselling. They also provide 1:1 physical health coaching to employees to map out nutritional, diet and exercise programs. Having in person and on-line seminars have also been helpful.
Why is employee wellbeing so important to you personally?
We all have something going on in our personal lives that effect the way we interact and work. I’ve personally had several traumatic events arise in my life and without the ability to practice things like mindfulness and meditation, and a routine physical fitness routine I’m not so sure I would be where I am today.
What impact is AI having in your organization and how are you managing that?
We haven’t seen the enormous impact that some other industries have experienced. The transportation industry is a bit more traditional in that manner. However I have encouraged my teams to use AI for things like roles and responsibilities assessments, performance management and talent acquisition.
Other than AI, are there any challenges that you are seeing for the first time and how are you addressing them?
Lots of challenges. We’re going through a very complex merger with a company currently which requires patience, open communications and transparency. Hard to come by when people are feeling vulnerable and protective of their domains.
What areas do you think employers should be focused on over the next 12 months?
Workforce management and leadership. We don’t have enough great leaders in our organizations.
Do you feel that investment in employee wellbeing in the region is increasing or decreasing and is that a direct reflection on HR leaders’ increasing ability to demonstrate effective returns of their strategies to leadership?
I think it’s flat from a year ago. Some companies are embracing it wholeheartedly and some are status quo. It needs to be baked into your corporate and leadership goals.
How has your organization been leading the way?
Spring Health is a very progressive offering in our industry. We need to do more to adopt this and share the success stores we’ve experienced.
Colin will be speaking in New York at the Wellbeing at Work Summit US which takes place in New York, Austin Texas and virtually. Further details on the Summit can be found here.
