What happens after the change memo goes out? After the reorg. After the AI rollout. After the town hall.

Most organizations put enormous energy into that one moment. But what they truly miss is everything that comes after.

In this episode of Elevate, host Joy Fajardo sits down with Jessica Smith, Chief People Officer at Reframing HR, to explore what leaders consistently get wrong about change communication and what it actually takes to help employees recover, reconnect, and perform again.

Jess brings a rare combination of perspectives to this conversation. She's led transformation at scale inside companies like Amazon and Meta, experienced a layoff herself, and now dedicates her work to what happens after the disruption. That lived experience shapes everything she shares here.

Together, Joy and Jess explore the signs that change hasn't landed yet, the ANCHOR framework Jess uses to help organizations re-stabilize after big transitions, why middle managers are the most underused communication channel in any change plan, and why the leaders people will remember most from the AI era aren't the ones with the best strategy decks.

If you're rolling out a new tool, navigating a reorg, or just trying to keep your team grounded when everything feels uncertain, this episode will leave you with something real to take back to work tomorrow.