Synopsis
The Human Resources for Small Business podcast is the ultimate resource for HR professionals and small business owners. Join Xeniums Brandon Laws as he chats with guests from all sides of the industrydigging up tips, tools and insights you can apply to your own small business. Well dig into a different HR-focused topic each episoderanging from business strategy and leadership to HR policy, legal updates and more.
Episodes
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Owning Your Health to Thrive in Your Career with Mark Mohammadpour
17/12/2019 Duration: 40minA lot of us white-collar workers are poor when it comes to managing our health. Due to the nature of our job, which is sitting 9 to 5 staring at a computer screen, it’s no wonder a lot of us gain pounds and increase the digits on our waistlines. And so not only are you stressed due to work, but you’re also overwhelmed by the fact that you’re gaining weight and becoming more unhealthy. How do we prioritize our mental and physical health so that we can grow and thrive more in our chosen career? In this episode of the Transform Your Workplace podcast, we are joined by Mark Mohammadpour, an accredited Senior Communications Executive, Certified health coach, and personal trainer and the owner of Chasing the Sun. He will talk about how he transformed his life from being a busy, stressed PR person into someone who’s coaching and helping people incorporate fitness, health, and wellness into their lives so they can reduce their stress and thrive. Get inspired and start taking action on how to be more fit, healthy, a
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What happens when employees start crowd-sourcing wage data?
12/12/2019 Duration: 12minIn this special bonus Thursday episode, Brandon speaks with Lacey Partipilo and Tyler Meuwissen of Xenium HR about crowd-sourced wage data, why employers should be aware of it, and what they can do about it. -- What did you think of this short bonus episode? Give us a 5-star rating and write a review on Apple Podcasts, or take our survey. Contact Brandon: Email Brandon.Laws@xeniumhr.com or connect on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram Learn more about Xenium HR at xeniumhr.com Follow Xenium on Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn.
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The Laws of Trust with Joel Peterson, Chairman of JetBlue Airways
10/12/2019 Duration: 24minTrust in the workplace is just as important as it is in our relationships. It’s the basis of all relationships and the one that holds an organization together. Building a culture of trust is essential in empowering, engaging, and retaining top talent within your organization. But how do we build trust back once it’s already broken? In this episode, Joel Peterson, author of The 10 Laws of Trust, joins us to talk about how we can establish a culture of trust, respect, and integrity within our organizations to ultimately achieve success. Joel is the Chairman of JetBlue Airways and the Founding Partner of Peterson Partners, a Salt Lake City-based investment management firm. He shares what leaders and managers should do when there’s a low trust culture with your team. We’re also going to discuss the cause of betrayal, the importance of feedback, and explore the other laws of trust and create stronger bonds. If you lead others with trust and would like to create a culture of trust within your workplace, then be sur
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The Future of Recruiting with Amy Schultz of LinkedIn
03/12/2019 Duration: 28minTechnology is changing the world as we know it. And that includes how we hire talent for our organizations. To stay at the top of the competition, we need to adapt to technological advancements. Recruiting is on the rise, and it’s changing fast. In this episode, we are joined by Amy Schultz, the Talent Director of Talent Acquisition at LinkedIn, about the future of recruiting and how a recruiter’s role changes. To equip yourself on the trends that can happen in the future, Amy is here to help you be future-ready. She shares how recruiting will change based on LinkedIn data points and interviews from global talent leaders. She also talks about the most significant challenges a recruiter faces today and the vital skills you’ll be needing as a recruiter over the next five years! If you’re a recruiter or have a recruiter background as part of your role, then you’d surely want to listen to this episode! In this episode, you will learn about: The future of recruiting How the roles of a recruiter can change How Li
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Everyone Deserves a Great Manager with Scott Miller
26/11/2019 Duration: 34minIt’s no secret that the key to a good and happy team is a great manager. But what makes a great manager? How would you know if you or your people are ready for the role of leading a team? In a study published by Harvard Business Review, it showcased that the average age for first-time managers is 30 years old. While the average age when they get their first leadership training is 42. This means that managers aren’t equipped to lead their team. In this episode, Scott Jeffrey Miller from FranklinCovey joins us to talk about his new book, “Everyone Deserves a Great Manager: The 6 Critical Practices for Leading a Team”. He is the Executive Vice President and CMO at Franklin Covey, a company that inspires change and implements proven principles so that people and organizations achieve the results that matter most to them. Scott talks about why everyone deserves great managers. He highlights the essential skills and practices needed to become a manager so that your organization can thrive! We also explore the limi
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Mentoring Redefined with Reshama Shaikh
19/11/2019 Duration: 21minIf you’re thinking of advancing your career or your people, you’ve probably heard the phrase, “You need a mentor to guide you; You need a mentor to help you achieve this and that...”. True enough, one needs a mentor to help them with decision making in their business and career endeavors and to foster their skills. The demand for mentors is high, but the supply is low. In a survey conducted by our guest, Reshama Shaikh, she found out that 90% are looking to have a mentor for their business. But where can you find the right mentor to guide you or your people? In this episode, we’re talking about mentoring with Reshama Shaikh. Reshama is an independent data scientist and statistician. She consults in the areas of data science, statistics, diversity, mentoring, and community building. Reshama will explain some of the dos and don’ts of mentoring. She also shares the mentoring survey that she did and what mentoring means to different people, where to find the best mentors, and how you can start walking down the p
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How Managers Should Spend Their Time
12/11/2019 Duration: 14minAre you spending more time with your low performers or high performers? How much time do you spend with each? As managers and employers, you need to spend your time wisely. In this episode, Paige Tamlyn joins us to talk about how managers spend their time and who should they be spending it on. Should you focus more on the low performers to improve their skills, and overcome their weaknesses? Or should you focus on your top ones to unleash more of their strengths? If you’ve never thought about it, then be sure to listen to this episode and learn where you should invest your time and energy more to create more value for your company, customers, and employees! In this episode, you will learn about: Whom should you focus your time on? How engaged are your top performers? Why you should focus more on your top performers than your low ones Micromanaging your employees Positive reinforcement 9-Box Grid Strategy What did you think of this episode? Give us a 5-star rating and write a review on Apple Podcasts, or ta
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Adapting to Collaboration Technologies with Chris Creel
05/11/2019 Duration: 35minWe can’t deny that technology has helped us work smarter. Organizations are now using bots to free up their people from administrative tasks to focus on more important humanly tasks. Normally a task that takes us hours to finish, can be done in just a couple of minutes with the help of bots and advanced technologies. In this episode, we’re going to talk about technology and how it elevates our work with Christopher Creel! Chris is the author of the book Adaptive: Scaling Empathy and Trust to Create Workplace Nirvana, a book that’ll help you attract, retain, and utilize your talent to the fullest. He shares how collaborative technologies and smart chatbots are revolutionizing the workplace and culture of a company. He also talks about how technology empowers organizations to become not only efficient in doing work tasks but it also helps people in it become better humans. Moreover, we also touch the issue of a key person’s role, changing company culture and many more! Chris simplifies it all for us - how bots
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STOP & SHIFT Your Mindset to Improve Your Mental Health and Live a Better Life
29/10/2019 Duration: 41minMental health awareness has grown more than ever today. But managers, employers, and leaders still have a long way to go in helping their employees get the support they need to deal with mental illness especially in the workplace. How do we help our people feel better and live better? How do we shift their thoughts to make positive choices at work and in life? Join me today as I talk to Karen Millsap on how you can strengthen your mind, change your thoughts, make positive choices and walk a purposeful path so that you can help your employees do the same. Karen is the The Grief Consultant and CEO of Egency, a firm that helps organizations create a human-centric culture with compassion and empathy. She was a former guest on the podcast where she shared how she turned her pain into a purpose to help others. In this episode, Karen is back to share her wisdom on how we can train our brain to stay focused, aware and calm so we can live a better life. She also talks about the STOP & SHIFT models, what is it, and
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Why we should connect more at work
22/10/2019 Duration: 37minAs social beings, we are wired to connect. It’s part of our DNA. And communication has never been easier than now with the introduction of the internet and social media that allows us to be more interconnected. Despite all of that, many still feel isolated and disconnected, especially in the workplace. How do we take action and create more engagement at work and connectedness with others? Take the first step in connecting and approaching others in a friendly way as Dr. Melanie Katzman reveals how through her new book “Connect First: 52 Simple Ways to Ignite Success, Meaning, and Joy at Work ”. Dr. Melanie Katzman is a business psychologist, advisor, consultant to the world’s top public and private companies, government agencies, and nonprofits. She is also the founder of Katzman consulting and the founding partner of the social enterprise Leader’s Quest. In this episode, Dr. Katzman shares 52 actions you can do to forge deeper bonds with your colleagues. These steps are the same techniques she used with lea
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The High Achiever’s Guide - Getting out of the rut when you’re stuck
15/10/2019 Duration: 31minAre you successful but strangely feeling empty? Why is it that high-achieving and successful people - despite making great amounts of money and have the respect of their colleagues - still feel unfulfilled? You may be at a certain point in your life where you feel like you’re stuck and you need to get out but for some unknown reason, you don’t know how. In this episode we will dive into how you can reclaim your life back as Maki Moussavi, a transformational coach, speaker, and writer talks about how you can begin your quest to fulfillment, get out of the rut, and bring back the zest that you had when you were just starting and reaching out for your dreams. Maki is the author of the book “The High Achiever’s Guide: Transform Your Success Mindset and Begin the Quest to Fulfilment”. We talk about what it’s like to feel stuck in a rut in spite of being successful. As a former corporate career professional, she knows what it feels like to feel stuck, un-restless, and unfulfilled. She shares through her book the to
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Making your company flat, fluid, and fast in this talent mobility revolution
08/10/2019 Duration: 39minAccording to a report done by Accenture’s Reworking The Revolution, 46% of the executives surveyed said that traditional job descriptions are obsolete as machines take on routine tasks and as people move to project-based work. While 29% of leaders report that they’ve extensively redesigned jobs. The way we’re doing business and work now has totally changed. We can surely say that we are entering a new era of work where people aren’t staying in the same company for a long period of time, many have side hustles, and employers are opting to hire freelancers and contractors. How do we survive all this change and create an adaptable organization for long-term success? How should we take this talent mobility revolution and turn it to an opportunity? In this episode of Transform of Your Workplace, Brynne Kennedy joins us to talk about strategies and tactics to seize the coming talent mobility revolution through her new book, Flat, Fluid, and Fast: Harness the Talent Mobility Revolution to Drive Employee Engagement,
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The Surprising Science of Meetings
01/10/2019 Duration: 27minAdmit it. Most business meetings suck - It sucks your time and productivity, especially when run poorly. But it shouldn’t be that way. Meetings are supposed to be opportunities for leaders to shine and lead the team to achieve their targets and improve performance. According to Steven Rogelberg’s research, only 20% of leaders receive training on how to run meetings properly. And so it’s no wonder ineffective meetings are being conducted every time in the workplace. How can we conduct better meetings and utilize time more efficiently? Join me as I speak with Steven Rogelberg, the author of the book “The Surprising Science of Meetings: How You Can Lead Your Team to Peak Performance." In this episode, you'll learn how to run better meetings for your team. Grab a copy of Steven’s book now and start conducting meetings effectively! Click here to know more. In this episode, you will learn about: The reasons behind poorly conducted meetings How to make sure meetings are effective Having intentional leaders and stew
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Redefining Feedback
24/09/2019 Duration: 36minWe are not built the same when it comes to receiving feedback in the workplace. What might seem as open and direct to one person can seem completely harsh and really sharp to another. Feedback can sometimes break or make someone. How you deliver it matters greatly. When done in the right way it can be the most effective means of communication and performance for you and your organization. Join me today as we redefine what feedback is with M. Tamra Chandler and Laura Dowling Grealish, the authors of the book Feedback and Other Dirty Words - Why We Fear It, How to Fix It. In this episode, Tamra and Laura explain how feedback got such a negative connotation. They share how we can minimize the bad emotional and physical reactions that destroy trust and halts communication. They also offered helpful solutions, suggestions, as well as new definitions to create a better framework for feedback. We can’t totally get rid of no feedback but we can always redefine it! In this episode, you will learn about: Why feedback
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Q&A with Paige Tamlyn on Recruiting and Other HR Questions Asked in the Workplace
17/09/2019 Duration: 31minAs an employer, you might have a lot of questions about what potential employees look for in a company before they apply. And you may also wonder where to find the best possible candidates. In this episode, HR Generalist Paige Tamlyn returns to the podcast to answer questions people have about recruiting employees and the common questions asked in the workplace. Finding potential candidates for a job and hiring them can be quite a feat, but knowing what potential employees are looking for in a job can make this task easier and reduce the number of people that aren’t qualified for the position. In this episode, you will learn about: What “Ghosting” is all about Things employees look out for in a Job How to create a company handbook The best place to find candidates Whether or not to put a range of pay on your job ad How to deal with Millennials and loneliness at work About Paige Tamlyn: Paige Tamlyn is an HR Generalist and a project manager on the side. She is a freelance stylist in her free time. Her int
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Building a Culture of Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace
10/09/2019 Duration: 29minDiversity is the future. When an organization has a diversified workforce, this meant better productivity, creativity, and stronger company reputation. It puts the company in a competitive edge that can lead to greater reach in the future. This is why many are seeking to employ people from different backgrounds. Regardless of a company's good intentions, diversity efforts still falter if the ones with privilege won't allow others equal access to power. How can we break this norm and shift others into building a sustainable culture of inclusion? How can we establish a commitment and match our intents with our impact? In today’s episode, La’Wana Harris, the author of Diversity Beyond Lip-Service joins us to talk about her book and the topic of diversity and inclusions. We also talk about how organizations can make it safe to have conversations around diversity and inclusions and be aware where we are at and where we want to go. Grab your copy now and learn how you can build a sustainable culture of diversity an
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Celebrating the 200th Episode and Brandon's Birthday
29/08/2019 Duration: 30minToday, August 29th marks the 200th episode of the Transform Your Workplace podcast and it also happens to be Brandon's 34th birthday. In this episode, Angela Perkins, VP of Sales & Marketing at Xenium HR, join Brandon while he's wrapping up his month-long sabbatical to talk about how the sabbatical is going, learnings from the sabbatical, and how employers might think about using this unique benefit in their workplace. What did you think of this episode? Give us a 5-star rating and write a review on Apple Podcasts, or take our survey. Contact Brandon: Email Brandon.Laws@xeniumhr.com or connect on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram Learn more about Xenium HR at xeniumhr.com Follow Xenium on Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn.
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Basecamp CTO and co-founder on Why it’s so crazy at work
20/08/2019 Duration: 39minYou’re super busy at work — your phone's blowing up from the overflowing inbox of notifications, reminders, and chats. There’s so much interruption that you’ve got no time to think. And when you do, you have to stay stuck at the office, working more than 40-hours a week or force yourself to pull an all-nighter to meet unrealistic deadlines. You don’t even have time to sleep because of your packed schedules and endless meeting. When weekends come, instead of spending your precious me-time relaxing and having fun, you have those Sunday-afternoon emails to worry about, waiting to be read and dealt with. It’s just crazy!!! But hey, work doesn’t have to be crazy. It’s true. We can still deliver a fantastic job without making ourselves miserable and insanely working like crazy to meet those so-called “goals.” We can have a productive work environment that lets people do their work in the best way possible. Basecamp is setting a great example of what it’s like to have a calm and productive workplace! How can we a
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Promoting Work-Life Balance in the Workplace
13/08/2019 Duration: 25minJuggling workplace stress with the daily pressures of family, friends, hobbies, self, and life in general, is a tough feat for employees to achieve. We’re getting busier than ever and it causes heavy damage to both work and personal lives. Today, Anna Mieners from Cascade Centers, a company that provides counseling services and organizational consultations, joins us again to talk about work-life balance, employee’s wellbeing and preventive programs that benefit both the employer, employee, and the business. Last time we talked about the book - Dying For A Paycheck and how we not die from a paycheck, now we’ll be digging deeper into the work that she does to transform workplaces into an environment where people are happier and healthier. Help your company by helping your employees achieve control and balance in their work and life. In this episode, you will learn about: The nature of Anna’s work and how EAPs provide health and crisis services to organizations Helping people have good work-life balance Trainin
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Kevin Eikenberry on Long-Distance Leadership
06/08/2019 Duration: 28minThere are people working at different locations and at different times. With the advancement in technology, communication tools also have greatly upgraded. Unlike before, we’re constrained to finding talent locally, but now we can look for them all across the globe. With this, more and more organizations are adopting the “remote workplace”. This meant working from a place where you’re focused and comfortable. But wait, wouldn’t that result in a decrease in productivity? Well, you’ll be surprised to know that the answer is quite the opposite according to Kevin Eikenberry the co-author of the book “Long-Distance Leader”. Whether you’re leading a remote team or not, I urge you to listen to this episode as Kevin and I discuss the changes in leadership when you adopt a remote workplace, the challenges, and perks of leading from a distance, how to lead your team remotely, and why working remotely increases productivity and focus! In this episode, you will learn about: How to lead people who are working remotel