Dive Brief:

• Instacart announced today the addition of Christina Hall as the company's first chief human resources officer also serving as a member of the senior leadership team. "I'm proud to join Instacart during a time when people leaders play a more important role than ever before in scaling a performance-driven culture while supporting the health and wellness of employees and amplifying the voices of underrepresented groups," Hall said in a statement. 

  

• Hall has more than 20 years of experience in talent at tech companies, most recently serving as chief people officer at LinkedIn and previously holding HR roles at Facebook and Intuit, according to Instacart. At Instacart, she will oversee HR functions, including diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Hall will support teams across North America with a focus on building a talent strategy to attract, retain and develop employees, according to the company. 
• Hall has "a people-first leadership mentality that will help us continue to build a world-class organization and performance-driven culture," Instacart Founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta said in a statement. The company's services are available to more than 85% of U.S. households and 70% of Canadian households, according to Instacart. It partners with more than 500 national, regional and local retailers providing delivery and pickup services from almost 40,000 stores across North America, Instacart said.

Dive Insight:

Instacart simultaneously announced the addition of Ariel Bardin as senior vice president of product. The appointments come at a time when Instacart continues to build out its teams to meet the increased consumer demand for services amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the company. 

"Instacart holds deep meaning for me — not only am I an appreciative customer, but also my daughter and nephew are Instacart shoppers," Hall said in a LinkedIn post published today. "I have a personal perspective on the power and purpose of the Instacart platform, which today is helping millions of families across North America."

In the beginning of March, the company launched Instacart Pickup from more than 1,500 new locations. The same month, Instacart announced plans to hire 300,000 new full-service shoppers over three months to pick and deliver e-commerce orders, Grocery Dive reported. And then in April, followed up with plans to hire 250,000 more shoppers. 

Due to COVID-19 quarantines and social distancing, hundreds of thousands of workers in essential industries found themselves on the front lines as e-commerce increased. "Instacart has become an essential service for people to safely get their groceries and household goods," Hall said. But employers are being held accountable by workers and consumers to provide a safe work environment. It's important for companies to show a commitment to their well-being of workers and to also be preemptive in providing protection, Jennifer Miles, assistant professor of management at University of San Diego School of Business, told HR Dive in a previous interview.  

In a protest organized by Gig Workers Collective, an organization that represents the interests of gig economy workers, thousands of Instacart workers walked off the job March 30 demanding more protection measures. In April, Instacart began distributing health and safety kits to its full-service shoppers. Supporting employees' health and wellness is a priority, Hall said in her LinkedIn post. 

"It's my goal to continue developing an environment where people have the tools, resources and support they need to do the best work of their careers," she said. Hall said she plans to create a diverse and inclusive work environment with a performance-driven culture for "career-defining experiences," she said. 

During her virtual interview process, Hall noted how Instacart's leadership team kept its ability to "focus in the face of adversity" and unprecedented challenges — "COVID-19, natural disasters and addressing systemic racism," she said. Although there is more work to be done, Hall said she's proud of the efforts that Instacart has made.