Inspiring Conversations with Karen Walters of Beyond Culture, LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Walters.

Hi Karen, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I fell in the Human Resources field during college and benefited from wonderful mentors throughout my career. My HR experience has run a wide spectrum from the nuts and bolts of HR compliance to the fun and inspiring work of Culture Building!

My professional journey has included time at world-class organizations such as the Atlanta Falcons, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta United Major League Soccer Team, Mountain Sky Guest Ranch, Unisys Corporation, and the Arthur M. Blank Foundation.

A few years ago, I decided to pursue my dream of starting my own HR consultancy and I’ve never looked back! My corporate HR experience as a practitioner and as a leader prepared me to serve my clients well. It’s my honor to draw from my first-hand experiences to coach and inspire leaders and teams while also creating effective, clear, user-friendly tools, communications and training materials for those I serve.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Early in my HR career, I navigated some tough aspects of my line of work including managing many rounds of layoffs within the IT field.

During my career within the NFL, I learned a lot from similar challenges such as an NFL lockout, the 2008 recession, and (sometimes sudden) changes in coaches and leadership. However, some of my richest lessons learned stemmed from the opportunity Arthur Blank gave us to design, build, open and operate Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta. We faced the need to hire 4000 people and build a powerful culture rooted in Arthur’s core values. Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a world-class facility which delivers Ritz-Carlton level hospitality via their “Welcome Home” service philosophy and that began with the creation of a one-of-a-kind selection and onboarding program.

The lessons I learned in my HR career help me to offer world class support to my clients as the Founder of Beyond Culture, LLC.

As you know, we’re big fans of Beyond Culture, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
I leverage my 30 years of Human Resources wisdom supporting dynamic, progressive organizations. to be a personal trusted advisor on all HR fronts to my customers.

Human Resources is divided into two broad areas: Compliance and Culture.

My compliance journey begins with the Beyond Culture HR audit that helps us pinpoint opportunities to mitigate risk, reduce cost, and save time.

My culture building journey begins with the Beyond Culture Quiz and Visioning Experience which are opportunities to evaluate culture and leadership in a new way through the lens of stories and quality discussion. Creating a great place to work starts with pinpointing organizational core values. I engage my clients’ teams to define their true core values and higher purpose and then weave them into a full suite of HR processes which span the employee journey.

Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
My dad was an entrepreneur and taught me to always do a little more than what’s expected. He also shared a strong spirit of loyalty and entrepreneurship with me. I took a leap of faith a few years ago, leaving my long-term career with the Atlanta Falcons, to pursue my dream to serve the HR needs of smaller businesses. The lessons I learned from my dad’s life helped get me to one of the sweetest seasons of my life. I’m so happy that God gave me the courage to take that leap because I love being a business owner and serving my clients well each day.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.karenwalters.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenkwalters/

Image Credits
Most of these pictures were taken for an internal, informal work event so I see no issue.