The 3AM People Leader: Donald Knight of Warner Brothers Discovery

From pioneering parental leave strategies to 3 AM workout sessions, Warner Bros Discovery's SVP of People Donald Knight reveals how vulnerability, authenticity, and physical discipline shape exceptional leadership. Donald joins Kelli and Nolan in a candid conversation about evolving HR, squandered DEI opportunities, and building lasting relationships in hyper-growth environments.*Email us your questions or topics for Kelli & Nolan: [email protected] coaching and advising inquire at https://kellidragovich.com/HR Heretics is a podcast from Turpentine.—📰 Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccessSupport HR Heretics Sponsor:Metaview is the AI assistant for interviewing. Metaview completely removes the need for recruiters and hiring managers to take notes during interviews—because their AI is designed to take world-class interview notes for you. Team builders at companies like Brex, Hellofresh, and Quora say Metaview has changed the game—see the magic for yourself: https://www.metaview.ai/hereticsRECOMMENDED PODCAST:🎙️ Unpack Pricing - Dive into the dark arts of SaaS pricing with Metronome CEO Scott Woody and tech leaders. Learn how strategic pricing drives explosive revenue growth in today's biggest companies like Snowflake, Cockroach Labs, Dropbox and more._KEEP UP WITH DIDIER, NOLAN, + KELLI ON LINKEDINDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donaldfknight/Nolan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nolan-church/Kelli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellidragovich/—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00) Intro (00:39) Donald's initial reluctance to join HR and his perspective shift (02:32) Evolution of the HR profession (04:06) Pushback against employee-centric HR practices (07:22) The "war for talent" and its aftermath (10:53) The focus on immutable traits in diversity initiatives (14:05) Sponsor: Metaview (15:17) Importance of company stances and differentiation (19:15) Donald's paternity leave plan and its impact (25:35) The recruiting process and its unexpected outcomes (32:45) Donald's experience working with founders (39:50) Donald's favorite interview questions and their rationale (44:30) Donald's fitness journey and its importance (49:20) Wrap This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hrheretics.substack.com