13,000 company-operated and franchise-operated stores, plus two store support centers, a direct-support team and indirect support: that’s the company Treasa Bowers was recruited to.

Bowers is the executive VP and chief HR officer for 7-Eleven. Her original plan was to work in finance, but as she has learned in her years in HR, things are always evolving. 

“It’s a very complex environment,” she said. Bowers spoke about her experience during a fireside chat at From Day One’s Dallas conference. Will Anderson, editor in chief of the Dallas Business Journal, interviewed her. 

Founded by Joe Thompson over a century ago, 7-Eleven has the philosophy of giving customers what they want, when they want it, where they want it, Bowers says. Store manager Johnny Green realized people wanted milk, eggs, and bread on the weekends, since grocery stores weren’t all open on the weekends. Thus began the company’s path to responding to customer needs.

“We’ve been innovating ever since,” Bowers said. “All of that innovation is ongoing, it has to be and how we continue to galvanize and be relevant to our customers, is what we get to do and in human resources. [We’re] finding that talent that enables that.”

Attracting Talent in a Competitive Market

One of the biggest challenges any HR manager faces is attracting talent. 7-Eleven employs about 80,000 people, so they’re always looking to hire. There is a serious battle for talent, especially post-Covid, she says.

“Whoever gets to the candidate first has the best shot at bringing that candidate onto the team,” Bowers said. “So we had to innovate. Our talent acquisition team has done a great job of leveraging AI to help us get to that workforce very quickly. Now, around 85% of the candidates are able to apply and be scheduled for an interview within an hour. And it takes about three days from the time of the interview to the day they’re able to start working.”

Next comes training in the way they prefer to be trained: whether that’s leader-led, a facilitated conversation, learning on their own, or if they want a menu of options. That aspect of HR is constantly evolving.

“We’ve had to innovate, and we're going to continue to have to,” she said. The key is to try to anticipate what’s coming so you can stay ahead of the curve. But it also means doing the right thing, whether or not it’s in vogue. Bowers is grateful that 7-Eleven has always viewed diversity, equity, and inclusion as essential, not just a trend. 

“It’s been really important and core to our business, because it’s who our customers are, it's who our franchisees are, and therefore, absolutely, who our employees are. It's a business imperative for us.”

A big part of that is building trust within the organization—always doing what you say you’re going to do. Because otherwise, employees leave, Bowers says. “There are too many choices in today’s economy for them not to,” she added.

Always Adapting

One part of diversity at 7-Eleven is what they offer in their stores. Products vary from store to store to store, reflecting what the locals want. 

That’s how we bring it to life in the stores. They know that not every customer wants the same thing at every store,” Bowers said. “It’s different for everyone. And that’s part of the diversity message.”

Understanding the values of different generations, particularly Gen Z, is a priority for 7-Eleven. The company actively listens to its employees to shape its value proposition, acknowledging that they still have work to do in this area. Bowers shared that their talent acquisition campaign, “I am 7-11,” highlights diversity and personal stories from employees, attracting new talent and showcasing career growth opportunities within the organization.

The best piece of advice Bowers has received over her career? In every situation, you have an opportunity to be a student and a teacher. In other words, educate others but also be educated.

It’s about understanding what’s going on in the world, in the company, and with the team members. “Then being able to educate others about what we’ve learned doing that in a way that they can digest it,” she said, “but also doing it in a way that compels action.”

Carrie Snider is a Phoenix-based journalist and marketing copywriter.