Dive Brief:

• Christina Hall, LinkedIn's chief people officer and senior vice president, resigned earlier this week, company spokesperson Nicole Leverich confirmed to HR Dive in an emailed statement.
• According to a Bloomberg report, which cited sources familiar with the matter, Hall resigned after breaking internal "compliance" rules. Hall has worked at LinkedIn since 2013, having previously held roles dealing with compensation. Before LinkedIn, she worked in similar roles at both Facebook and Intuit, according to her LinkedIn profile.
• LinkedIn did not confirm the reason for Hall's resignation. "We are grateful for Christina's contributions over her six years with LinkedIn. Nina McQueen will lead our Global Talent Organization on an interim basis while we conduct an internal and external search for a replacement," Leverich said.

Dive Insight:

Executive turnover has occurred at a high rate in 2019. According to the most recent CEO turnover report from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, 1,332 CEOs left their jobs through October, a figure 13% higher than the total recorded at the same point in 2018. CEO shifts have hit organizations in a number of industries this year, from technology and pharmaceutical companies to those in food service, according to Challenger.

Such changes can be a signal to investors as well as employees about the seriousness with which the organization treats its cultural values. McDonald's reportedly fired its former CEO Steve Easterbrook for violating company policy by engaging in a relationship with an employee. The incident also shortly preceded the departure of the company's chief people officer, David Fairhurst.

Moreover, HR teams also need to pay attention to those who wield more direct power over employees, Duane Morris LLP partner Jonathan Segal previously told HR Dive. If employees don't see leaders living out cultural values, or if they simply aren't trained on what those values are, that can create a wide array of cultural problems including but not limited to harassment.

HR officials also have a legal obligation to speak up when they witness inappropriate behavior in the workplace, R. Scott Oswald, managing partner at The Employment Law Group, previously told HR Dive, especially if this behavior amounts to criminal conduct. Failure to do so could result in HR officials being held accountable for violations, Oswald added.