Human Resources For Small Business

Why is the human resources department often seen as overhead by the leaders of organizations? Lacey Halpern joins the podcast to discuss why the perception of the HR department has actually shifted from overhead and the department of "no" to a function that can significantly impact the growth of an organization. Lacey and Brandon discuss the many ways that HR professionals have become more strategic over the years and how business leaders have begun making investments in their human resources to growth their people.

During a panel discussion at the Leadership and Economic Summit on November 4, 2015 in Portland, Oregon, three business leaders discuss some of the unique ways they are attracting and retaining talent for their business, given the tight labor market for talent. The panelists discuss the topics of recruiting and finding talent, hiring for culture fit, and offering unique benefits tailored to each individual. The panelists also discuss employer-sponsored group health benefits and whether or not they see this way of delivering health insurance to employees changing in the future. The panel was moderated by Rick Thomas of Pilot Wealth Management. The panelists included Angela Dowling, President of Regence Blue Cross BlueShield of Oregon, Mark Hellweg, Founder of Clive Coffee and Bill Huseby, Founder of SigmaDesign. 

Scott Beebe of the Business on Purpose podcast joins Brandon Laws to discuss why business leaders and HR professionals should be operating business with very clear vision, mission and values statements and how to best integrate those into their business and people practices. Scott and Brandon also discuss why lack of employee training is one of the biggest gaps in business. Lastly, Scott shares his experience in mastermind groups and also discusses a few recent books that have been insightful.

Tyler Meuwissen of Xenium HR joins Brandon Laws for a discussion of the book The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea by Bob Burg and John David Mann. During the discussion, they discuss the five laws taught in the book and summarize what they thought of the message.  Looking for additional HR & Leadership content? Subscribe to Xenium's It's About People podcast for a round table discussion on hot HR & leadership articles in the news.

Lacey Halpern of Xenium HR joins Brandon Laws on the Human Resources for Small Business podcast to discuss employee assistance programs (EAPs). Lacey shares how employers can leverage an EAP program to retain talent and do right by employees by offering this unique benefit. Lacey also shares common ways employees use the EAP in certain life circumstances.

Katherine Thomas of Xenium HR joins Brandon Laws for a discussion on emotional intelligence (EQ) in relation to IQ and why people, including employers, should start putting more emphasis on EQ in the workplace. During the episode, Katherine and Brandon discuss what makes up emotional intelligence, how to determine if someone has a high EQ, how people can develop their EQ, and how businesses can benefit from having employees with high EQ.

Wendy Gilbert and Brandon Laws of Xenium HR discuss people with criminal records re-entering into the job market and what it means for employers and society, in general. They also discuss the new Ban-the-Box law in Oregon effective 1/1/16 and what employers should do in response.  New development specific to Portland, Oregon as of 11/25/15: Stricter rules effective 7/1/16 won't allow employers to ask about criminal background until after job has been offered. Read more here.

Jon Spencer, CFO, COO & Principal at Solutions YES and Brandon Laws discuss the growth of Solutions YES, meeting the demands of the market, their hiring and recruiting strategy, and why they continue to grow the business with purpose in mind. Click to learn about Solutions YES

Lacey Halpern of Xenium HR discusses the back-to-school challenges that working parents face. Inevitably, kids get sick, they have after-school programs they need to get to, and parent-teacher conferences come up. Lacey touches on each of these scenarios and shares what she believes employees and employers can do about it. 

Brandon Laws and Tyler Meuwissen discuss the book Joy, Inc: How We Built a Workplace People Love by Richard Sheridan. In the episode, Brandon and Tyler discuss some of the most unique human resource practices Menlo Innovations is putting into practice in their business, such as hiring, recruiting, office set up, how people work together, purpose, and much more.

Fallon Niedrist, an Associate Attorney with JJH Law in Portland, Oregon, joins the Human Resources for Small Business podcast to discuss the new Oregon Paid Sick Leave Law, effective in 2016.  During the conversation, Fallon shares all the details around the new Oregon Sick Leave Law, what employers may consider changing in their policies, how to track time, common traps employers will likely fall into as this law takes effect, and much more. Learn more about Fallon Niedrist and JJH Law at www.jjh-law.com/ or contact Fallon at fallon@jjh-law.com

Are you an HR professional who is curious about what it is like to be an in-house HR professional or an HR consultant?  In the 45th episode of the Human Resources for Small Business podcast, Brandon Laws interviews Jenny Scull and Annie Oxenfeld of Xenium HR about their past experience as in-house HR professionals and how different their current roles are as HR consultants. Annie and Jenny share their experiences in each type of role by sharing what a typical day is like, the pros and cons to each type of role, what professional development is like, how they manage their work load, their teams and who they work with regularly, and much more.   

Dan Grinfas, a labor and employment attorney at Buchanan Angeli Altschul & Sullivan LLP, joins the Human Resources for Small Business podcast to discuss the new proposed changes by the Department of Labor (DOL) to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that would raise the minimum salary for exempt workers.  In the episode, Dan reviews when the proposed changes take effect, what is actually changing, duties testing and what the practical action items for employers are right now. Dan Grinfas BioEmail Dan

Lacey Halpern joins Brandon Laws as co-host in this episode as they discuss an article on LinkedIn Pulse titled "Millennials Don't Want Work Life Balance." During the conversation, Lacey and Brandon draw upon their own workplace needs as millennials and discuss the points in the article about flexibility, outcomes and collaboration.

Returning guest, Jan Foster, of Performance Resources, Inc, joins the Human Resources for Small Business podcast to discuss recruiting and hiring the perfect sales person for an organization. During the episode, Jan and Brandon discuss common challenges with hiring sales reps, behaviors to look for in the perfect hire, interview questions to ask, whether you should hire for culture or skill, and much more.  You can contact Jan Foster at jan@prol.ws   Notes Common variances between sales roles (as referenced in discussion): Company size Startup, emerging, established organization Collaborative vs. confrontational culture Self-directed vs. micro-management Supportive (resources) or self-reliant environment Formal training vs. on-the-job Hunter/farmer/both Type of buyer – CEO/VP (decision maker), purchasing, maintenance, etc. Target client industry - industrial vs. professional organization Software vs. hardware Services vs. products Value sale vs. commodity Concrete vs. conceptual sales Size of sale – million

Lacey Halpern joins the HR for Small Business podcast to talk about strategic interviewing. In this episode, Lacey gives tips, techniques and best practices for how to become a great interviewer. You will hear such things as what questions to ask, how many interviewers should be in the room, how to conduct remote interviews, how many rounds of interviews should take place, and whether or not anything should be done differently with key hires. Resources: Intelligent Hiring workshop Strategic Interviewing workshop Interview Etiquette for employers   Tell us what you think: Take the Survey  

Megan Leatherman, a human resources consultant in Portland, Oregon, joins the HR for Small Business podcast to discuss conflict management in the workplace. In the episode, Megan gives examples for how conflicts start and how to identify it, and she also shares tips on how best to manage conflict.  Tell us what you think: Take the Survey Resources mentioned during the podcast: Megan Leatherman's email: megan.leatherman@gmail.com http://mediate.com/ http://www.omediate.org/ Concious Communication by Miles Sherts Staying with Conflict by Bernard Mayer

Lacey Halpern joins Brandon Laws on the HR for Small Business podcast to discuss workforce planning. During the episode, Lacey discusses the process of workforce planning such as doing a gap analysis and implementing a talent acquisition strategy in an organization.    Are you a regular listener? Take our survey and tell us what you want to hear:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XeniumPodcast   

Wendy Maynard, Strategic Director & Founding Partner of Kinesis, joins the HR for Small Business podcast to discuss how the collaboration of marketing and HR can produce a successful employer brand that impacts talent attraction. She also shares about attracting, retaining, and understanding the Millennial generation. Tell us what you would like to hear: Take the Survey

Anne Donovan, President of Xenium HR, joins the HR for Small Business podcast to discuss her career in human resources and the role it played in business leading up to present day. The discussion later turns to the role HR currently has in business and people practices and where the focus of HR is going in the future. Take our quick survey about the HR for Small Business podcast: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XeniumPodcast Learn about Anne Donovan at http://www.xeniumhr.com/about-xenium/meet-the-team/anne-donovan/