Getting to know the Folklore team – Meet Laura

Our team Q&As give you an inside look at the people behind Folklore.‍

As our first-ever Head of People & Culture, Laura makes Folklore a great place to work so that our team reach its full potential and we can meet our ambition of investing in legendary companies across Australia and New Zealand.

What brought you to Folklore? 

The people and the motivation and drive they evidently portrayed in everything they do. Folklore is at an exceptionally exciting time with everyone having a large scope but working with collective goals and mindsets to achieve for one another, the firm, our founders and their teams, and our investors. I was excited for the potential of Folklore and to work alongside such an awesome group of people, so I am very grateful to be part of the team. 

Prior to Folklore, my journey started in agency recruitment as an administrator. Within 5 years I was managing a team of 22, which inspired a passion for management and leading HR and recruitment operations. I then moved to Google doing exactly that. At Google, I continued learning from extremely talented professionals and leading APAC and global programs across hiring, onboarding, operational strategy, policy development and process optimisation.

What does your day-to-day look like as Head of People & Culture?

That saying “no two days are the same” could not be more accurate. My day-to-day ranges from recruiting great people, building out our team's professional development tracks as well as our cultural and DEI initiatives, and managing our people-related policies, processes and operations. Ultimately, my aim is to ensure that Folklore is a great place to work.

In a word, how would you describe Folklore’s team? 

Ambitious.

What is critical to great culture? 

A leader who has this top of their priority list! The culture of an organisation is owned by every individual but, it is down to leaders and People and Culture to ensure the emphasis on and development of the culture is not lost at any point of a company’s journey but is instead enhanced to ensure a sense of belonging for every individual is created. Additionally, diversity, equity and inclusion of employees and thought is key to any business and has a direct impact on a company’s product and success. We believe diversity makes us better and we ensure this is at the forefront of how we work.

What’s one piece of advice for early-stage startups when it comes to people & culture? 

The sooner the better! Whether you are a team of 5, 20 or 100, People and Culture related work can be a full-time job with risks associated with not getting it right. Therefore my advice is to hire a P&C person or an ops person knowledgeable in P&C who can take this work on from the earliest possible chance.

Where can we find you outside of work? 

With my dog, Sunny.