How do you scale culture in a fully remote, mission-driven organisation? In this episode of Culture in Action, Luke Fisher is joined by Dan Kessler, President of Energage, and KK Byland, Chief Human Resources Officer at American College of Education (ACE). Together, they explore how ACE built its HR function from scratch, created a values-led employee experience and sustained strong engagement while growing rapidly across 40 states in the US.
KK shares her journey from being a one-person HR team to leading a culture powerhouse, revealing how ACE integrates mission, values and recognition into everyday life. This episode offers practical lessons for any HR or business leader navigating growth, remote transformation or purpose-led change.
Guest Information
KK Byland is the Chief Human Resources Officer at American College of Education, a fully online, accredited institution offering affordable and high-quality higher education programmes across the US. Over more than a decade at ACE, KK has scaled the HR team from a single person to a department that drives culture, employee experience and leadership development across 40+ states.
Dan Kessler is the President of Energage, the research and consulting company behind the Top Workplaces awards in the United States. With nearly 20 years at the company, Dan has helped thousands of organisations improve culture by listening to employee feedback, benchmarking engagement and taking action on the moments that matter.
Episode Outline
1. Starting from Scratch
KK describes how she built ACE’s HR department from the ground up, moving from outsourced admin to a culture-focused function.
2. Scaling Through Inflection Points
Discover how ACE responded to major changes such as rapid growth and becoming a fully remote workforce spread across 40 states.
3. Designing Remote Connection
From new hire mixers to mentoring programmes, KK shares how ACE keeps people connected, recognised and seen in a remote-first culture.
4. Values and Mission in Action ACE lives its B Corp mission by making higher education affordable, accessible and debt-free, with 86 percent of students graduating without loans.
