Michael Wong - "Culture First: Using HR as a Strategic Growth Engine"
Michael Wong, Chief Executive Officer at Genea, recounts transforming a near-insolvent firm into a smart-building innovator. He explains why selecting the right market, recruiting high-performance teams, and elevating HR to strategy level fuel sustainable growth. Wong details culture surveys, prescriptive onboarding, and remote-first hiring as keys to scale.
EPISODE: Michael Wong Chief Executive Officer @ Genea Culture First: Using HR as a Strategic Growth Engine A Conversation with Michael Wong 37
Michael Wong, Chief Executive Officer at Genea, recounts transforming a near-insolvent firm into a smart-building innovator. He explains why selecting the right market, recruiting high-performance teams, and elevating HR to strategy level fuel sustainable growth. Michael details culture surveys, prescriptive onboarding, and remote-first hiring as keys to scale. Episode Description
Introduction to Michael Wong (02:33) Full Podcast Episode (22:52) Episode Highlights (02:15) Growth Hinges on Product Fit and People Power (02:06) Private Equity Playbooks vs. Hands-Off Management (06:16) Why Culture Rates a Ten for Top Talent (01:44) Driving Onboarding Success Fuels Productivity (03:35) Elevating Culture, Accountability, Growth Through HR (03:05) Why People Drive the Mission, Not Just the Plan (01:46) Short - Growth Hinges on Product Fit and People Power (00:58) Short - Why Culture Rates a Ten for Top Talent (00:55) Table of Contents
(02:33) Introduction to Michael Wong “I took that pivotal fork in the road and made that bet—and it’s been an amazing journey.”
Full Episode “You can fix technology with good team members, but poor team members will make a company mediocre, even with great technology.”
(02:15) Episode Highlights
(02:06) Growth Hinges on Product Fit and People Power “You can have the best solution in the best industry, but without the right people you’re sunk.”
(06:16) Private Equity Playbooks vs. Hands-Off Management “Just because a PE firm has money doesn’t mean they all operate the same way.”
(01:44) Why Culture Rates a Ten for Top Talent “A less talented team with great chemistry beats a stack of individual all-stars.”
(03:35) Driving Onboarding Success Fuels Productivity “A sixty- to ninety-day onboarding process should be very prescriptive.”
(03:05) Elevating Culture, Accountability, Growth Through HR ““The main focus on the people side is how we nurture our team and improve culture.”
(01:46) Why People Drive the Mission, Not Just the Plan “My job as CEO is to lay out a clear mission and vision, then bring on outstanding people who align with that mission.”
YOUTUBE SHORT: “You can have the best solution in the best industry, but without the right people you’re sunk.” - Michael Wong

YOUTUBE SHORT: “A less talented team with great chemistry beats a stack of individual all-stars.” - Michael Wong

Michael Wong Michael Wong, Chief Executive Officer at Genea, recounts transforming a near-insolvent firm into a smart-building innovator. He explains why selecting the right market, recruiting high-performance teams, and elevating HR to strategy level fuel sustainable growth. Michael details culture surveys, prescriptive onboarding, and remote-first hiring as keys to scale.
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