From Resentment to Retention: How AlloSource Bridged the Fairness Gap Between Hybrid and On-site Workers

Almost five years after COVID first disrupted the workplace, many companies are still wrestling with how to balance in-office requirements and hybrid work policies. As hybrid schedules stuck for some roles but remained off-limits for others, tensions have only grown. AlloSource was no exception. While non-essential employees eased back into the office with greater flexibility post-COVID, AlloSource’s operations team members—who had never stopped showing up—grew increasingly frustrated with what felt like a double standard.

Leaders kept hearing from the on-site workforce,

“If we have to be here at a set time everyday, why do they get to work from home? Why are they not held to the same attendance policies?"

These concerns weren’t abstract. They were loud, specific, and rooted in lived experience. With fundamentally different roles and vastly different work requirements across AlloSource’s two core employee populations, they had vastly different needs and concerns as well.

When Michelle Zeppelin, SVP of Human Resources at AlloSource, heard growing frustration from the organization's on-site workforce, she listened and leaned in.

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‍Mission First: “We Are Manufacturing with a Mission”

AlloSource is a biotechnology company that transforms human tissue donation into lifesaving and life-enhancing products used in orthopedic, spine, and wound care surgeries.

“We’re not making widgets; we’re making life-changing difference in people's lives.” Michelle said. “We are manufacturing with a mission. We enable and allow patients to heal and do more with their lives through the products we provide. This is something that drives everyone that works for us. All employees are proud of what we do, no matter what department that they work in.”

AlloSource’s commitment to patients extends to their employees. Supporting the whole person—physically, mentally, financially, and emotionally—is woven into AlloSource’s culture. This is driven from a belief that supporting the whole person empowers their team to thrive both at work and in life.

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The Cultural Riddle: “Carpet vs. Tile People”

AlloSource’s workforce is split between two distinct groups: administrative employees with flexibility and operational technicians with structured shifts. This difference is so stark, it has taken on physical language.

“People started calling our admin team who work in an office environment with carpet underfoot the ‘carpet people’ and our technicians who work with tissue in sterile clean rooms are the ‘tile people’,” Michelle shared. “It reflected something deeper—two very different realities inside the same organization.”

Instead of pretending the roles were the same and offering a one-size-fits-all solution, Michelle recognized that these populations were fundamentally different and needed different benefits.

“Equity doesn’t mean everyone gets the same thing,” she said. “It means everyone gets what they need.”

To find the right solution for the on-site employee without flexibility, Michelle believed that she needed to listen first, then act.

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Beyond the Benefit: A Culture of Listening and Inclusion

Michelle began with a series of open conversations: What would feel meaningful to these employees?

“We heard everything from gas cards to gym memberships to branded hoodies,” she said. “That told me there wasn’t one single answer. We needed something flexible—something people could make their own.”

The team landed on a lifestyle spending account—an employer-funded benefit for qualifying roles, with monthly contributions employees could use almost anywhere they liked (minus alcohol and drugs).

“The message was simple,” Michelle said. “We see the extra burden you carry by being onsite without flexibility. This is how we’re acknowledging that.”

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Program Design: Flexible, Fair, and Tenure-Based

The lifestyle spending account offers monthly contributions ranging from $25 to $150, scaled by tenure. The account can be used for nearly anything, outside of alcohol or drugs.

“We wanted people to choose what mattered most to them. That feature alone made a huge difference,” Michelle said. “Employees can take this out on a monthly basis, but many of them will save up and use it around the holidays or for big purchases. It’s taxed as ordinary income and only if an employee uses it.”

Eligibility is straightforward: employees must work fully on-site and have no flexibility in schedule. That second part—no flexibility—is key. This means that anyone with workplace flexibility at any level is not eligible for the flexible spending money.

“Just being onsite wasn’t enough,” Michelle explained. “If your role allowed a sliding start time or the ability to take off for appointments without penalty, you didn’t qualify. That distinction matters and is meaningful to employees receiving the benefit.”

While there was some initial confusion, Michelle and her team communicated the heck out of it and the clarity has helped rebuild trust.

Leadership buy-in helped make the program possible as well. Michelle credits the CEO, Dean Elliott, who’s managed nearly every role in the company, for championing the effort. “He was even the one who suggested rewarding longevity because it really aligned with our values and our business goals. His buy-in and input has made all the difference.” His support models that we're not just going to say we care about employee wellness; we're going to invest in that from the top.

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What Happened Next: “No More Complaints About Fairness”

The feedback was immediate—and powerful. “Our operations leaders told me that since we rolled this out, they haven’t heard any complaints about fairness or flexibility,” Michelle said.

And employees aren’t just more content—they’re staying. “We’ve seen a noticeable improvement in retention,” she added. “For roles where turnover used to be a constant, this incentive has been a game-changer.”  

Retention in these critical roles has helped to encourage people to stay in the essential roles that drive AlloSource’s mission. Michelle shared:

“We had an employee get promoted to a more flexible role, and it meant losing the monthly benefit. That gave him pause to consider the promotion more critically as he didn’t want to lose his lifestyle spending account. This is helping leaders have better conversations with employees about the work they want to be doing rather than just about climbing the ladder.”

AlloSource has continued to tweak and adapt the program to meet the needs. One thing they learned the hard way was to build in a grace period for those transitioning out of eligibility—avoiding the automated, abrupt cutoff their vendor system triggered at first. So now employees have time to spend the money they have built up in their lifestyle spending account before they move to amore flexible role.

“It’s a human benefit,” Michelle said. “It needs a human approach.”

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Why It Works: Values in Action

Michelle doesn’t see this program as an extra. It is essential.

“We’ll never be the highest-paying employer. But we can be the most values-aligned. That’s how we win talent. That’s how we keep them. We don’t do wellness because it looks good on a poster,” Michelle said. “We do it because we’re in the business of healing—and that has to start inside our walls.”

That’s why the lifestyle spending account is one part of a much broader wellness strategy deeply aligned with AlloSource’s mission:

• On-site health clinic with Marathon Health
• Preventive care incentives tied to health plan premiums
• Free on-site fitness center, bootcamps, a Run Club, and a Bike Club
• Financial wellness education through partners like Canvas Credit Union and Transamerica
• Generous PTO with the option to cash out or use days for personal wellbeing
• Company-paid short- and long-term disability coverage

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Advice to People Leaders: “Be Brave”

Michelle’s advice to HR leaders navigating hybrid vs. on-site tensions?

“Acknowledge the difference. Stop pretending the jobs are the same. They’re not—and your employees know it.” And perhaps more importantly, be brave!

“I see too many HR folks waiting for permission. But it’s our job to be the voice of the employee. If you hear something’s broken—fix it. Be brave. Speak up for your people. If you say, ‘We can’t do that,’ you’re right—you won’t,” Michelle said. “But if you say, ‘Yes, we can,’ you’ll find a way. And your people will notice.”

At Acera, we couldn’t agree more. Michelle didn’t just design a program—she modeled what bold, human-centered leadership looks like in today’s workforce.

“As the highest-ranking people leader, it’s my job to speak up—for all employees,” she said. “Fairness is one of my core values, and people know that.”

The bravest leaders are the ones who listen, act with integrity, and design people strategies that acknowledge the real, messy complexity of work. Michelle Zeppelin is one of those inspiring leaders whose story we are lucky to share.

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