Punk Rock HR

The world is changing, and us with it. We are living our lives 50% in the real world, and the other half in the virtual world. With the internet connecting the two, it’s harder than ever to imagine one without the other. While it seems like we’re more connected than ever, in truth, our communication has become LESS personal. We’re joined today by Dr. Nick Morgan, who discusses the pros and cons of...

Are you living your dream or someone else's? What does it really take to land a promising writing career in 2018? Joining Laurie today is accomplished Sports Journalist and New York Times best-selling author, Jeff Pearlman. They talk about Jeff's amazing journey from screw up to best-selling author, the gig economy and the decline in the journalism industry, and the connection between politics and...

Isn’t it about time we had a corporate mindset shift? Because come on! There's more to work than giving the company your heart and soul. Jon Fortt, co-anchor of CNBC’s “Squawk Alley,” joins Laurie to talk about what's going right, what went wrong, and what's broken in the world of work. They talk about the reshaping of the traditional corporate mindset, #MeToo, wages, and the future of work. Jon F...

How do you future-proof your business or career? Are robots taking over all our jobs? On the show today is Alexandra Levit, an author, speaker, influencer, and futurist. Alexandra helps us understand how leaders and employees can prepare to become more successful in 5-15 years time. Will you be in on the next big trend? Alexandra believes the future will be project-based business. Who is Alexandra...

Employees aren’t that complicated. If they’re happy, they stay. If they’re unhappy, they leave. When women and minorities are leaving Corporate America in droves, the problem is obvious: these underrepresented groups aren’t happy. What’s causing the mass exodus and what, if anything, are we doing about it? Jose Pinero, the CEO of Latino Leadership Performance, talks about the importance of underst...

“Let’s empower men!” said no one ever. It’s 2018 and we’re still struggling with equality and other social stigmas that come from centuries of brainwashing. But if men are so great, why are they vulnerable to depression and anxiety? Why are we glorifying aggression as something innate to males, and why aren’t we doing anything to change it? Today's guest is Jake Stika, a ‘Next Generation Man’ who...

Would it surprise you if we said that a large number of female leaders in America were Girl Scouts? Sylvia is a Rocket Scientist, STEM Leader, and Tech Founder, and she’s also the Girl Scouts of America's CEO. Join Laurie and Sylvia as they unravel the GSUSA vital role in the development of next-gen leaders and how they sustain their programs. Dynamic leadership programs, time-tested methods, and...

Did you know that a business has many of the same dynamics as a marriage? Everything that happens in a marriage (the good and the bad) is no different from what you can expect when running a business. Now, if you think keeping your business/marriage afloat is tough, just wait until you come face to face with toxic masculinity in the workplace. There’s never a dull moment in today’s podcast as Laur...

Sometimes we get so bogged down hyper-analyzing the simplest questions, that we miss the obvious answers. “Do you love your job?” Your answer determines whether or not you’ve found the right place to cultivate your ever-evolving career, and it’s time to talk about it. Join our host/resident HR nerd and her guest, the former head of talent at Netflix (back when it was a mail-order DVD company — yea...

When kindred spirits come together in a community, ideas and dreams blossom, passion gets amplified, accountability and empowerment surges, and the problems? Well, they become less daunting. In this episode, Laurie has a great conversation with a dear friend, a cult legend in the online-community building world, Ryan Paugh. Laurie and Ryan share how they met, what Ryan’s role is as a community bui...

We get it. You aren’t a tube of toothpaste. But you still need a personal brand. In fact, you already have one whether you realize it or not. The question is, are you going to take charge of it? Today, Laurie talks with personal brand expert, Jennifer McClure, about what a personal brand is, why you need to develop yours, and how it can help you excel in your professional career. Jennifer will be...

Robin Schooling is ‘America’s HR Lady’ and has been Laurie’s dear friend for quite some time. Despite that, Laurie has been putting off the HR episode because, frankly, HR has a bad reputation for fixing work. It took someone like Robin, who is breaking stereotypes around the globe, to make this episode possible. In today’s episode, Laurie and Robin talk about a slew of HR-related issues, from dis...

Don MacPherson is an entrepreneur who built a company called Modern Survey, which he successfully sold without laying people off or taking on debt. That's the American Dream. But Don’s not resting on his laurels. Growing up in a mining community, Don learned the value of work early and isn’t interested in status symbols like cars and clothes. He’s soon launching a new venture called 12 Geniuses fo...

According to JT O’Donnell, we’re pretty bad at job searching. After all, we aren’t in the business of finding jobs; our skills sets are DOING them. So, if and when you need to change employers, outside advice is invaluable. Today, Laurie and JT talk about why the old way of job searching is obsolete and how you can compete with other job seekers in a very crowded environment. Have you seen the Geo...

Cy Wakeman is an international keynote speaker, business consultant, New York Times best-selling author, and psychologist. She helps people around the world ditch the drama and turn excuses into results. Naturally, Laurie is a total fangirl. Today, Cy and Laurie talk about how to get the best out of people, whether or not you really NEED leaders, and what the future of work looks like for all of u...

You’ve heard the saying, opinions are like… armpits, right? So is advice. Everyone has them and most of them stink, especially when it comes to careers. But Alison Green has some advice about advice for you; you’ve got to separate the good from the bad, and you have to pick your battles. Today, she and Laurie talk about crappy advice, what it takes to be a great leader, and what she wishes all man...

Shawn Madden is made of fun. No, really. His company, Fun Corp, runs ‘friend building’ parties for small to medium sized teams and companies to help create real social connections and friendships that directly affect culture. Because his business is mostly fun and games, Shawn has a unique perspective on the workforce because he takes employees OUT of their normal habitat. You might be surprised a...

Elisa Camahort Page co-founded BlogHer, later became the CCO at SheKnows Media after they acquired BlogHer, and is now a writer and consultant. Entrepreneur, speaker, conference leader, and blogger, Elisa has the type of bird’s-eye view of work the rest of us can only dream of. Laurie and Elisa talk about the disconnected workforce, the gig economy, and the rise of those brave souls who are daring...

Robert Sutton is a Professor of Management Science and Engineering and a Professor of Organizational Behavior (by courtesy) at Stanford University. He co-founded the Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP) and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (which everyone calls “the d.school”). He’s also a Ph. D., but he doesn’t like to be called Doctor, or even Robert. His latest book is called The A...

Sam Weston is attempting the impossible: trying to educate our lawmakers about technology and its effect on the workforce. Okay, maybe it’s not impossible, but so far, it’s been an uphill battle as automation and artificial intelligence have continued to take jobs from people who need them. There’s no support for those people, and Sam’s mission is not just to raise awareness; he aims to help those...

Laurie gets emails all the time with the same question: ‘Should I quit my job?’ She admits right off she might not be the best person to ask; she’s not exactly driven to work. Despite that, she’s been in the HR world for the past 25 years and she’s seen it all. Laurie begins with the first answer she generally gives: Yes. Quit your job. Here’s why. Let’s get one thing straight. You don’t write in...

Has your company tried to implement leadership training that ended up doing absolutely nothing for the leaders or the employees? If so, you’re not alone, and it’s because they’re missing a key component in what makes a great leader: accountability. Today’s guest, Vince Molinaro is an expert on the subject. In fact, he wrote the book on it, The Leadership Contract. He and Laurie talk about the 5 be...

Chances are you’ve already seen the Gender Equity Iceberg, and today, Laurie talks with Adrienne Murphy, Ph. D., of Dimitry|Murphy & Associates. Adrienne is a wicked smart psychologist, business leader, and consultant who works with professional women to align their jobs with their values. But what’s more is that Adrienne helps these women find their voice, develop their careers, and break through...

Katrina has a unique way of fixing work. She’s blazed a trail into nearly uncharted territory with an audacious goal: to take high volume, low retention jobs and make them not suck. She’s not afraid of a challenge; one of her clients hires people for split-shifts to work with small children. We love kids, don’t get us wrong. But it’s not always easy to work with a group of someone else’s kids. So,...

So far no one has challenged Laurie on her premise that work is broken. Until today. Eric Barker is the author of the bestselling book, Barking Up The Wrong Tree, and he believes that issues with managing people and organizing them to accomplish things is a perennial challenge. In fact, he doesn’t believe work is broken because it was never fixed in the first place. Dive in with Laurie and Eric in...