Coming together to form MatterOfCulture

The moment Lois and I were paired to lead the HR and Administration functions of MTV Networks Latin America, we became great partners. Little did we know we would also become life-long friends.

Under the stewardship of a legendary leader, Lois and I designed and managed every aspect of the employee experience for the Latin American divisions of MTV and Nickelodeon. In these formative professional years supporting these iconic brands, we experienced firsthand the value of cultivating intentional culture to attract and engage the right talent.

We quickly learned that creating a safe and respectful work environment -- physical as well as emotional -- is indispensable to harness the immense creativity that is unleashed when people from different backgrounds and styles come together for a common purpose. We also learned that caring for our people through the experiences we designed and the policies we implemented always resulted in higher employee engagement.

After parting ways, Lois went on to build and lead all aspects of HR and Talent Management for various organizations in the profit and nonprofit sectors.

My journey led me to build culture through employee development and engagement efforts with world-class brands, sometimes as an employee, and other times as a consultant.

In 2020, as the world went into lockdown, Lois and I decided to partner again to create MatterOfCulture, a collective of professional culture builders that design people-centric experiences that inspire engagement across the entire employee life cycle.

We look forward to helping every organization we work with become an exceptional place to work.

~Juan

Founders

LOIS SCHLAM is a seasoned HR professional and trusted leader who has had proven success as a multi-specialist with a focus on process and implementation. She firmly believes that respect is the cornerstone to creating an environment of maximum employee engagement and performance. Prior to partnering with Juan to launch MatterofCulture, Lois led HR and Organizational Development functions for 25+ years, supporting staff in industries including music and entertainment, duty free, and the non-profit sector. Lois is a graduate of SUNY Albany. She holds certifications from the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) and the Institute of Organizational Development. Lois is also a Gallup-certified Strengths coach. In 2016, she was the recipient of the South Florida Business and Wealth Magazine's Excellence in Human Resource Award.

JUAN CORTÉS has dedicated his career to helping organizations across the globe build cultures that drive employee development and engagement. With EQ as the linchpin of all development efforts, Juan delivers inclusive learning experiences designed to grow the skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary to succeed as a distributed workforce. Prior to partnering with Lois to found MatterOfCulture, Juan led L&D, OD and DEI efforts for many organizations in industries including advertising, digital marketing, hospitality, media, entertainment, retail and publishing. Juan holds professional certifications in training, facilitation and executive coaching. He is also a qualified coach on Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).