How Superhuman’s Values Shape Its Culture — and Empower Employees to Do Their Best Work

What It’s Like to Work at Superhuman

A few months after Brady Donaldson started working at AI productivity platform Superhuman (formerly Grammarly), she was feeling nervous about an upcoming presentation and confided in a coworker, who shared something with her that she’ll never forget. 

“My colleague was comforting me and said, ‘Don’t worry, we’re your team, and we will support you. We want you to be successful,’” the head of people experience said. 

What stood out to Donaldson was the fact that her colleague didn’t comment on her skill set and preparedness; he talked about the team as a whole, highlighting its culture of mutual support. 

“We’re highly competitive, but that competition is channeled toward our market opportunity and goals, not toward one another,” she said. 

 

“We’re highly competitive, but that competition is channeled toward our market opportunity and goals, not toward one another.”

 

This experience captures the essence of what it’s like to work at Superhuman. Donaldson joined the organization over seven years ago, before it became the global entity it is today, housing Grammarly’s writing assistance tool; AI-powered workspace solution Coda; AI-native email app Superhuman Mail; and AI assistant Superhuman Go.

 

The Core Values That Guide Superhuman’s Teams

At Superman, values aren’t a cultural slogan; they guide major business decisions, shape day-to-day work habits, and enable every team member to pursue the company’s mission to “unlock the superhuman potential in everyone.”

 

For Donaldson, three values in particular form the heart of Superhuman: “(Super) Human-Centered,” “Grow Ideas from Anywhere” and “Prioritize the Pond.” 

“Together, they reflect how we care for people, how we collaborate with openness and curiosity, and how we operate as one unified team,” she said. 

According to Donaldson, “(Super) Human-Centered” — the belief that AI should amplify human potential — guides how the company designs experiences for people. That’s why her team gathers everyone’s input for every program, experience and space they design, ensuring everything they build supports team members as fully as possible. 

“Grow Ideas from Anywhere” informs how teams collaborate. Ensuring everyone has an equal chance to contribute their knowledge, teams create space for different perspectives, embrace curiosity and listen intently before making decisions. 

“It helps us discover better answers and build stronger solutions,” Donaldson said.

She shared that “Prioritize the Pond” influences how team members operate as owners, dually serving as a core principle of the company’s people team. 

“We ask everyone to look beyond their immediate team and choose paths that strengthen the whole company,” Donaldson said. 

 

Related ReadingGrammarly Leadership: Meet the Leaders Shaping an AI-Driven Future For Their Company

 

 

How Superhuman Uses Values to Navigate Change and Complexity

Superhuman’s “Grow Ideas from Anywhere” value means that decision-makers are always open to the input of others. 

Donaldson said this value shows up in Dory, the company’s ranked Q&A ritual, which enables any team member to bring a question to the table and have their peers vote on the topics they believe matter the most. 

“The Dory helps ideas emerge from anywhere in the room, not just from the usual places,” she said. 

“Grow Ideas from Anywhere” also helped Superhuman successfully integrate the cultures of Grammarly, Coda and Superhuman Mail, which required blending companies with different systems, processes and expectations. By gathering employees’ input and listening to their experiences, Superhuman shaped a strategy that reflected the strengths of all three companies, a choice that led to more alignment and trust. 

The impact of this decision manifested last year when the people team was implementing an equity program, and employees started asking for a different approach. While the program was scheduled to close just a few days later, leaders decided to “Prioritize the Pond,” so they did their research, talked to experts, and performed feasibility tests before collaborating with the leadership team to change the program. 

“Most people teams wouldn’t have done this; it was a lot of effort and rework,” she said. “We ‘Prioritized the Pond,’ treating our team like the owners that they are and looking for the best outcome for them.” 

Recently, Superhuman’s “Win with Grit” value came into play when Donaldson asked the company’s chief people officer, Kenny Mendes, to help her while she was working with a team navigating ambiguity. This value means pursuing bold ideas with perseverance and accountability. In other words: rolling up one’s sleeves to tackle tough problems and deliver results, taking ownership and holding oneself accountable for the results. After asking Mendes what her role should be in helping the team, he said, “Your role is always to do what’s best for Superhuman and our team.” 

“Kenny saying that was a complete reset for me,” Donaldson said. “It reminded me that I should own this problem if I think it’s important.”

 

 

How a Values-Driven Culture Helps Superhuman Employees Grow and Make an Impact

Superhuman’s values-driven workplace is a catalyst for strong collaboration and powerful interpersonal connections; but most importantly, it unlocks the ability to drive change. 

Donaldson said that her work supports the company’s mission every day, the impact of which can be felt both on a professional and personal level. 

“From my own experience, I know that work can have a massive impact on your broader life — what you learn, who you spend time with and how you grow as a person,” she said. “My role is to build the programs, culture, spaces and experiences that enable our team to do the best work of their careers.”

When new hires join Superhuman, they can feel this impact right away. Donaldson said that new team members often share that they can feel the company’s “(Super) Human-Centered” nature throughout the onboarding experience, with their peers making an effort to share context and offer support. 

“It makes it clear from day one that we care about the humans behind the work,” she said.

 

“It makes it clear from day one that we care about the humans behind the work.”

 

Superhuman takes its name seriously, offering a workspace that enables people to become the best versions of themselves while helping others around the world do the same. 

“When our teams thrive, they create products that help our users unlock their potential, too,” Donaldson said.

 

Frequently Asked Questions