IDFA President and CEO Michael Dykes, D.V.M., sat down with new IDFA Chief People Officer Mia Mulrennan, Psy.D., to talk about her experience and expertise as an organizational psychologist and human resource executive, her fresh eyes and insights on the dairy industry, and her vision for the future of our industry.
Watch that short conversation in the video above, and find select excerpts from the conversation below.
Q: What attracted you to IDFA?
Mulrennan: Well, there are many things, but one of the key components that I know IDFA does so well is supporting its members. I'm especially excited about helping to guide and shepherd our many programs and events.
We're gonna help our members with the issues that are on their minds regarding people, talent, and HR. I have worked as a consultant with Korn Ferry for many years as an IO psychologist with Fortune 500 companies.
This is also my 12th year in in executive people role. Lucky number 13 is next year! I was Chief Talent Officer for Sun Country Airlines, and I was Chief HR Officer for Starr Restaurant Group.
One of the reasons I was really interested in this role is I spent over 30 years in the Twin Cities and worked with many of our members, and have a passion for the industry. Our industry is experiencing a period of transition and leadership, challenges in our workforce, and an unprecedented pace of change.
Q: What is Mia Mulrennan's big picture vision for how our industry should tackle these challenges?
Mulrennan: Well, my role is all about supporting and meeting the needs of what is on the minds of our members when it comes to their people and workforce issues. And for me, one of the main components is workforce stability.
It's not only about sourcing for talent, but making sure that once you have someone hired and give them a ticket into the ball game, that they stay. So this is really key.
Another component that's happening right now is a lot of people retiring or who have been in the industry for decades and now are looking at cutting back or even retiring completely. And that really brings in the component of succession.
Succession, I believe, has a key component that benefits the person who is retiring and the next generation of leaders so that they can be groomed and career tracked to replace those who are leaving. It benefits the organization, of course, and it certainly benefits the industry as a whole.
So when you're following a succession plan or learning how to follow a succession plan, when you have outgoing talent, it really is a win, win, win, win on so many levels.
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