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Ep. 12 Consultant Vanishes at Bacardi, Preschool Teacher Fakes Heart Attack: HR Cannot Catch a Break
In this episode we talk about two HR disasters that sound like movie plots but were all too real. William Tincup and Ryan Leary sit down with Jackie Clayton from Textio and Allyn Bailey from SmartRecruiters at the FAMA booth during HR Tech to share stories about a consultant who vanished mid-assignment at Bacardi and a teacher who faked a heart attack to avoid getting fired — in front of a playground full of toddlers. You can’t make this stuff up.
Key Takeaways
➡ A consultant placed at Bacardi developed a minibar habit that spiraled into a disappearance
➡ Hazmat was called to clean the hotel bathroom — the consultant was never seen again
➡ He’d done such poor work, the client felt “relieved” when the truth came out
➡ Allyn once managed a preschool employee who knew she was about to be fired
➡ The employee faked a heart attack in front of a group of toddlers and fled via ambulance
➡ HR blocked the termination because she might have developed an ulcer from workplace stress
➡ The experience was Allyn’s brutal intro to people management at age 20-something
➡ Both guests reflect on what could’ve been done differently — better feedback, slower decision-making
➡ Early-career managers often over-correct and make reactive calls without full context
➡ Sometimes the worst HR stories are preventable — with the right structure and communication
Chapters
00:00 Live from Fama’s booth at HR Tech
01:00 Jackie’s Bacardi story: Consultant, minibar, and disappearance
02:30 Hazmat in the hotel and a vanishing act
03:45 Allyn’s early career in preschool HR chaos
05:00 The fake heart attack and three-year-olds watching
06:30 Why HR blocked the termination — workplace stress defense
07:00 Reflections on better screening and early feedback
08:00 Leadership lessons from managing too fast, too young
09:00 Final thoughts and what both guests learned
This limited series is brought to you by FAMA, Modern Candidate Screening. Talent teams use FAMA to improve candidate quality, create safe and inclusive workplaces and place the right leadership for their organizations.
You can subscribe and listen to the #9to5Nightmares podcast here https://fama.io/podcasts or here
Guest Info
Jackie Clayton, VP of Talent Acquisition and DEIP, Textio
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackyeclayton/
Website: https://www.textio.com
Allyn Bailey, Brand Strategy and Communication, SmartRecruiters
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allynbailey/
Website: https://www.smartrecruiters.com
Connect with us
William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup
Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary
Connect with WRKdefined on your favorite social network
Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WRKdefined
Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com
View all episodes
By WRKdefined Podcast NetworkIn this episode we talk about two HR disasters that sound like movie plots but were all too real. William Tincup and Ryan Leary sit down with Jackie Clayton from Textio and Allyn Bailey from SmartRecruiters at the FAMA booth during HR Tech to share stories about a consultant who vanished mid-assignment at Bacardi and a teacher who faked a heart attack to avoid getting fired — in front of a playground full of toddlers. You can’t make this stuff up.
Key Takeaways
➡ A consultant placed at Bacardi developed a minibar habit that spiraled into a disappearance
➡ Hazmat was called to clean the hotel bathroom — the consultant was never seen again
➡ He’d done such poor work, the client felt “relieved” when the truth came out
➡ Allyn once managed a preschool employee who knew she was about to be fired
➡ The employee faked a heart attack in front of a group of toddlers and fled via ambulance
➡ HR blocked the termination because she might have developed an ulcer from workplace stress
➡ The experience was Allyn’s brutal intro to people management at age 20-something
➡ Both guests reflect on what could’ve been done differently — better feedback, slower decision-making
➡ Early-career managers often over-correct and make reactive calls without full context
➡ Sometimes the worst HR stories are preventable — with the right structure and communication
Chapters
00:00 Live from Fama’s booth at HR Tech
01:00 Jackie’s Bacardi story: Consultant, minibar, and disappearance
02:30 Hazmat in the hotel and a vanishing act
03:45 Allyn’s early career in preschool HR chaos
05:00 The fake heart attack and three-year-olds watching
06:30 Why HR blocked the termination — workplace stress defense
07:00 Reflections on better screening and early feedback
08:00 Leadership lessons from managing too fast, too young
09:00 Final thoughts and what both guests learned
This limited series is brought to you by FAMA, Modern Candidate Screening. Talent teams use FAMA to improve candidate quality, create safe and inclusive workplaces and place the right leadership for their organizations.
You can subscribe and listen to the #9to5Nightmares podcast here https://fama.io/podcasts or here
Guest Info
Jackie Clayton, VP of Talent Acquisition and DEIP, Textio
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackyeclayton/
Website: https://www.textio.com
Allyn Bailey, Brand Strategy and Communication, SmartRecruiters
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allynbailey/
Website: https://www.smartrecruiters.com
Connect with us
William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup
Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary
Connect with WRKdefined on your favorite social network
Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WRKdefined
Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com