Career Growth With a Roadmap | Working at Anaplan

In this episode of Culture Uncovered, Jena Dunay sits down with Carey Pellock, Chief People Officer at Anaplan, to explore how the global AI-driven planning platform has transformed its culture while scaling across 22 countries and more than 2,200 employees.

Carey shares Anaplan's unique journey from a startup founded in a barn in York, England, to a global technology company helping organizations make smarter business decisions through real-time planning and scenario analysis. She also discusses the company's "Winning Culture," why authentic leadership matters, and how Anaplan is investing heavily in employee wellbeing, career growth, and AI innovation.

They also discuss how Anaplan balances flexibility with collaboration, the importance of building culture intentionally during periods of transformation, and why the company is looking for builders, innovators, and lifelong learners to help drive its next phase of growth.

What you'll learn:

• How Anaplan evolved from a startup founded in England to a global AI-driven planning platform
• Why Anaplan created its "Winning Culture" and the employee-led process behind its core values
• How the company balances remote work flexibility with in-person collaboration and innovation
• Why career growth, employee wellbeing, and leadership development are major investment areas
• What types of employees thrive in Anaplan's fast-moving, AI-focused environment

Guest Highlights:

• Headquarters: Miami, Florida
• Team Size: ~2,200 employees
• Global Presence: 22 countries
• Office Footprint: 20 offices worldwide
• Workforce Style: Hybrid and remote-first (approximately 50% fully remote)
• Industry: AI-driven planning and business performance software
• Culture: High-performance, collaborative, innovative, and growth-oriented
• Core Values (IACTREAL): Innovative, Accountable, Collaborative, Transparent, Resilient, Empathetic, Authentic, Lifelong Learners

Unique Perks & Programs:

• Anaplan Well — Award-winning wellbeing program focused on financial wellness, mental health, physical health, and community connection
• Anaplan Grow — Company-wide learning and development platform designed to support continuous career growth
• Own Your Own Career — Employee-driven career development program that empowers individuals to actively shape their future
• Structured Leadership Academies for frontline managers, directors, and vice presidents
• Six-Month VP Development Program featuring real business challenges and executive-level growth experiences
• Extended Leadership Team — A unique network of influential employees who help shape culture and guide organizational change
• Flexible Hybrid Work Model that encourages collaboration without tying promotions or advancement to office attendance
• Multiple Career Pathways Framework designed to support both people leaders and individual contributors, recognizing that career growth doesn't require becoming a manager

To learn more about Anaplan:

Careers Page (They're hiring!)
LinkedIn Page
Carey's LinkedIn

Transcript

Jena Dunay: Hello friends and welcome back to another episode of Culture Uncovered, where we go behind the scenes of cool companies to work for at different stages, ages, and industries—you name it. Today we are talking to the Chief People Officer of Anaplan, Carey Pellock. Carey, thank you so much for joining us today.

Carey Pellock: Thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to be here.

Jena Dunay: Awesome. Let's start with the absolute basics. I had never really heard of Anaplan, and I'd love for those who may not have heard of it before either to understand: what does Anaplan actually do?

Carey Pellock: That's such a great question. We are an AI-driven scenario planning and analysis platform that helps our customers make the right decisions at the right time by solving real problems for their specific businesses.

Jena Dunay: Okay. Who are some of the customers you work with that we might have heard of?

Carey Pellock: LVMH is one of our clients and partners.

Jena Dunay: I've heard of them. I have my bag right here.

Carey Pellock: They are an amazing client and partner. They use us to understand the supply of their merchandise across their stores so they can stay ahead of demand. You never want to walk into a Louis Vuitton store and not find the purse, sunglasses, or whatever it is you're looking for.

Jena Dunay: That's right. Interesting. So it's AI enablement. Tell me a little bit about the company itself. How big is it? How old is the organization?

Carey Pellock: We have approximately 2,200 employees across 22 countries, and we're continuing to grow. We also have about 20 physical offices globally.

Jena Dunay: Wow, I did not know that.

Jena Dunay: Where is your headquarters? Do you have a headquarters, or are you distributed?

Carey Pellock: We are headquartered in Miami, Florida. I'm here today. It's beautiful, but it's also very hot and sticky.

Jena Dunay: Very hot and sticky. That's a great way to put it. My best friend lives there, and I've visited clients there. Hot and sticky is accurate. How old is the organization?

Carey Pellock: It's about 20 years old, so we've experienced a lot of growth over that time.

Jena Dunay: Tell me a little about the origin story and why the company was founded.

Carey Pellock: It's actually a fascinating story. Anaplan was founded in York, England.

Jena Dunay: Okay, so it started abroad. Interesting.

Carey Pellock: Very unique story. As I understand it, the founder worked in a barn on his mother's property. That's really where Anaplan's origins began.

As the company grew, headquarters moved from the UK to San Francisco. At its core, Anaplan was designed to connect data from various platforms so organizations could make real-time decisions and solve important business problems. To do that, we needed more technical talent, which made San Francisco a natural fit.

Most of the current executive leadership team joined after the Thoma Bravo acquisition in 2022. The goal was to evolve Anaplan from a "grow at all costs" organization into one focused on profitable growth.

Jena Dunay: That's a story a lot of companies can relate to these days. You hear about organizations growing at all costs, and then eventually the question becomes, "How do we make this sustainable and profitable?" England roots, San Francisco, global growth—I love that story. It really helps people understand where a company came from and where it's headed.

Tell me about where people work. Are employees in-office, hybrid, remote, or a mix of all three?

Carey Pellock: We really have people all over. About half of our employees are fully remote. I myself work remotely from Virginia.

If you're within 50 miles of an established Anaplan office, we ask that you come in two days a week. I think we're somewhat unique compared to many tech companies. Some organizations have tied promotions to being physically present in the office. That's not our philosophy.

We lead with flexibility. If your dishwasher is being installed and you need to stay home, that's okay. At the same time, we fundamentally believe we're better when we collaborate in person. That face-to-face interaction has helped accelerate innovation and has been a key driver of the transformation we've achieved over the last three and a half years.

So it's really a blend. We're not rigid about requiring people to live near an office, because great tech talent exists everywhere. But connection and collaboration matter.

Jena Dunay: You've been with the organization for about three and a half years. How did you find Anaplan, and what made you want to join?

Carey Pellock: Through my professional network.

Jena Dunay: I love hearing those stories. Cultivate your professional network, folks.

Carey Pellock: Absolutely. Networking matters. I know it can be difficult for some people, but it really does make a difference.

The current CEO of Anaplan had previously been the CEO at my former company, Neustar. We did amazing things there together. Before joining Anaplan, he called me and said, "This company is something special. Do you want to do it again?"

I said absolutely.

There was a tremendous opportunity to help transform the company, particularly the culture. But I didn't join solely because of him. He's an incredible leader and I've learned a lot from him over the years, but I was also excited by the platform itself and the real problems we solve for customers.

The opportunity to help shape and transform the culture, combined with the strength of the product, made it an easy decision.

Jena Dunay: There are a couple of things in your story that I think are really transferable.

First, leadership matters. Company culture matters, but who you work for matters even more.

Second, nurture your professional network.

And third, ambitious professionals want to solve meaningful problems. It sounds like you saw an opportunity to build something and take on a significant challenge.

Carey Pellock: Absolutely.

One thing we've been very intentional about is encouraging our executives and hiring managers to have authentic LinkedIn profiles. Authenticity matters. If you're spending your day pretending to be someone you're not, you're expending energy on the wrong things.

Candidates are looking at leaders. They're asking, "Who are these people? Why would I want to work for them?"

I tell our hiring managers not to simply post, "We're hiring." Talk about who you are. Talk about the culture. Tell candidates why they should want to join your team. People have a lot of options, and leadership is a differentiator.

Jena Dunay: I love that. It's actually not something we've talked much about on this podcast, but having leaders active on LinkedIn can absolutely help attract talent.

Let's talk about culture. How would you describe the culture at Anaplan?

Carey Pellock: We call it our Winning Culture. After all, who doesn't like to win?

Winning creates pride, purpose, confidence, and energy. That's why we use that phrase.

Over the last three and a half years, we've focused on transforming—not replacing—our culture. The business evolved, and the culture needed to evolve alongside it.

When our leadership team joined, we spent time visiting offices and talking with employees. We reached about 900 people through town halls, focus groups, and one-on-one conversations.

In every session we asked about our values. For some employees, even though the values were printed on their badge or lanyard, they couldn't recite them. That was a big realization. The values had become words on paper rather than something people lived.

So we created what we call our Extended Leadership Team—people who shape culture regardless of title. These are the employees others turn to when change happens and ask, "Is this good or bad?"

Together, we co-created our values, which became the acronym IACTREAL:

Innovative. Accountable. Collaborative. Transparent. Resilient. Empathetic. Authentic. Lifelong Learners.

I told people I never wanted those values to become another poster on a wall. Values only matter if you talk about them and live them every day.

Jena Dunay: That's fascinating. For the people leaders listening, how did you identify those individuals and how many were involved?

Carey Pellock: About 100 people initially.

Because so much of the executive team was new, we partnered with leaders who had longer tenure to help identify who truly influenced culture. Over time, we've evolved the program because there's real responsibility involved. This isn't just a badge of honor.

Some members are people leaders and some aren't, but they all have significant influence.

We also have site champions at our physical offices. These are people employees see as local influencers and problem-solvers. Each site champion partners with an executive sponsor.

For example, I'm aligned with our Minneapolis office. The site champion and I meet quarterly to discuss culture, challenges, and opportunities. They drive initiatives locally because what resonates in Minneapolis may not resonate in Singapore.

Jena Dunay: That makes perfect sense.

Let's talk about what makes Anaplan unique. Why do people love working there, and why do they stay?

Carey Pellock: There are two frameworks I'm particularly proud of.

The first is Anaplan Well, our employee well-being framework. It focuses on four pillars:

• Financial literacy
• Mental health
• Physical health
• Connection and community

Together, those pillars support employees in showing up as their best selves. We've actually won awards for this program, which I'm incredibly proud of.

The second is Anaplan Grow.

When I joined, there wasn't a lot of structured professional development. Today, we offer a wide variety of development opportunities, including a program called Own Your Own Career.

We want employees driving their own growth. If someone else defines your career path for you, it may not be what you actually want.

We've built training programs for frontline managers, directors, and now vice presidents. Our VP program runs six months and includes real business projects.

Learning and growth matter, and being lifelong learners is one of our core values.

I'm also very proud of our employee resource groups and our inclusion efforts. Our ERG leaders come together annually to align on strategy and programming.

What's unique is that participation isn't limited to people who identify with a specific group. We encourage employees to learn, become allies, and support one another.

Jena Dunay: I love the company branding—Anaplan Well and Anaplan Grow.

One thing I hear often when talking with organizations is that learning and development tends to be an area where companies haven't invested enough. Having structured, programmatic development opportunities is a huge green flag for candidates.

Of course, no company is perfect. What are some areas where you've had opportunities to improve?

Carey Pellock: One major area has been career architecture.

When I joined, there were foundational systems that weren't as mature as I expected. Recruiting was one example. We've completely overhauled how we attract talent.

But career progression was another. It was messy and not built for scale.

Over the last year, we've worked with consultants and internal stakeholders to build a framework that helps employees envision not just a job, but a career at Anaplan.

We want people to understand how they can grow over time and what opportunities exist for them.

Not everyone wants to become a people manager. In fact, I think organizations often make the mistake of promoting great subject matter experts into management roles they don't actually want.

Our goal is to provide multiple paths for growth.

Last year's engagement survey made it clear that employees wanted more clarity around promotions and career progression. We listened, and we're rolling out solutions directly tied to that feedback.

I'm really excited about it.

Jena Dunay: You can tell. And I think that's something candidates care deeply about. They want to know where they're headed and how they can build a long-term future.

What types of people thrive at Anaplan, and who might not?

Carey Pellock: We move very quickly.

AI is evolving rapidly, and we operate in that environment. If you're looking for a nine-to-five maintenance-mode role, we're probably not the right fit.

We're constantly innovating and moving forward. We're focused on profitable growth and category leadership.

People who enjoy building, solving problems, and creating something meaningful tend to thrive here.

If you prefer the status quo, you probably won't enjoy it.

Jena Dunay: So builders will fit right in.

What types of roles are you hiring for over the next 12 to 18 months?

Carey Pellock: Right now we're hiring AI engineers, so we'd love to meet those candidates.

We're also hiring account executives and field sales professionals. Great salespeople are always in demand.

We're looking for innovators—people who want to come in and build.

One of the things I love is that we use our own product internally. We call it Anaplan on Anaplan, or AOA.

Employees who become certified in the platform are called model builders. We use Anaplan for everything from recruiting metrics to compensation planning.

It's a great example of how deeply embedded the product is in our culture.

Jena Dunay: That's awesome. Where can people learn more about Anaplan, find open jobs, and make sure their resumes get seen?

Carey Pellock: Visit anaplan.com and check out our careers page.

You can also learn more through LinkedIn, our Life at Anaplan content, and Glassdoor. We have country-specific resources as well so candidates can get a sense of local culture.

We've also brought back career fairs. Last year we hosted them in Tokyo and Minneapolis.

Culture is something you have to experience, and career fairs give candidates the opportunity to meet our people and feel what it's like to work here.

Jena Dunay: I love that career fairs are making a comeback.

Carey Pellock: They were incredibly successful, especially in Tokyo, where talent is very difficult to attract. It was an amazing experience.

Jena Dunay: Well, we'll have all of those links in the show notes. Carey, thank you so much for spending time with us and sharing more about Anaplan and the work you're doing there.

If you're interested in learning more about the organization, be sure to check out the links below and apply away, my friends.

Thank you, Carey. I appreciate it.

Carey Pellock: Absolutely. Thank you. This was an absolute blast. I really appreciate it.

We’ll include all the links and information in the show notes, and we’ll see you next week on another episode of Culture Uncovered.

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