Hiring great talent is only half the battle. Keeping them — especially in today's workplace — is where the real work begins.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia breaks down the retention strategies that actually work for 2025. No fluff, no outdated HR clichés, and definitely no "pizza party solutions."

Katie explores what today's workforce truly wants, the real reasons high performers leave, and why fixing your middle managers is the single most powerful retention move any organization can make. She also dives into actionable tactics HR teams can implement immediately — from stay interviews to career pathing to workload redesign — and explains why these strategies uniquely support veteran and military spouse retention as well.

This episode gives HR pros, people leaders, and executives the blueprint for building workplaces where people stay because they want to — not because they don't have another option.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Why outdated retention tactics fail in 2025 ✅ What employees really want from leadership and culture ✅ How middle managers directly make or break retention ✅ Practical retention strategies you can use tomorrow (This is the good stuff — stay interviews, mobility programs, flexible work done right, leadership coaching, real recognition, and workload fixes)

Key Takeaways:

• Retention is a leadership strategy, not a perks program • People stay where there is clarity, purpose, and psychological safety • Development > perks • Skill-based hiring + modern retention = unstoppable workforce • Fix the manager → fix the turnove

🎧 Listen Now: www.hrbaddies.com

The hiring landscape is shifting — fast. Degrees are no longer the golden ticket. Perfect résumés aren't the benchmark. And "5 years of identical experience" is quietly dying out.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia breaks down what hiring looks like in 2025 and why the companies getting ahead are the ones embracing skill-based hiring — a model that opens the door wide for veterans, military spouses, and nontraditional candidates who bring real capability, adaptability, and leadership to the table.

"Skill-based hiring is the great equalizer. It doesn't ask where you sat — it asks what you can do."

Katie dives into the practical, tactical side of skills-first recruiting. Not the theory — the application. From rewriting job descriptions to retraining hiring managers, she shows how to build a talent pipeline that's stronger, more diverse, and more aligned to business needs than anything a degree requirement could ever deliver.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Why skill-based hiring is skyrocketing across major industries ✅ How to rewrite job postings to focus on capabilities over credentials ✅ How structured interviews and scorecards reduce bias ✅ Why military experience translates into powerhouse corporate roles ✅ How military spouses bring unmatched adaptability and cross-functional skill ✅ Where to find skill-based talent (HOH, MSEP, SkillBridge, RecruitMilitary, Vets2PM, O2O & more) ✅ How skills-first hiring improves retention, strengthens leadership pipelines, and broadens diversity organically

Key Takeaways:

• When you focus on skills, your talent pool expands — fast. • Veterans and military spouses excel when evaluation focuses on capability, not linear career paths. • Skills-first hiring reduces bias and levels the playing field. • Hiring becomes faster, fairer, and far more successful. • The future of talent isn't pedigree-based — it's potential-based.

Why You Should Listen:

If you're ready to modernize your hiring process — and finally tap into the powerhouse talent you've been missing — this episode gives you the blueprint. Whether you hire five people a year or five hundred, skill-based hiring will make your recruiting process stronger, fairer, and more competitive.

This is how great teams are built in 2025. This is how we unlock veteran & military spouse talent. This is how HR leads the future of work.

🎙️ Listen Now: www.hrbaddies.com

📘 Related Resource: Empowering Military Talent → https://a.co/d/efmRboC

Influence isn't about titles — it's about impact.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia breaks down one of the biggest challenges HR professionals face: how to drive decisions, shape culture, and move the business forward even when you're not sitting in the C-suite.

Because the truth is, HR teams are often expected to lead transformation, manage crises, and fix culture — yet still fight to be taken seriously in strategic conversations. This episode gives you the blueprint for shifting that dynamic once and for all.

Katie dives into the real reasons HR struggles for influence, and more importantly, the four levers every HR pro can use to build credibility fast: data-driven storytelling, stakeholder mapping, piloting solutions, and becoming the calmest, most prepared voice in the room.

She also breaks down what NOT to do — the habits and communication styles that unintentionally undermine HR's authority — and replaces them with practical, modern strategies to elevate your voice and your function.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Why HR is often looped in too late — and how to change that ✅ How to shift from being seen as "support" to being seen as "strategic" ✅ The four influence levers HR can pull — even without a fancy title ✅ How to communicate in business language that executives respect ✅ Why pilots create faster credibility than presentations ✅ What behaviors quietly hurt HR's influence (and how to avoid them)

Key Takeaways:

• Influence is built on consistency, not job titles

• Data turns HR ideas into business decisions

• The strongest HR leaders lead through clarity, not volume

• Trust grows when you deliver — and keep delivering

• You don't need permission to lead; leadership is a behavior, not a role.

Why You Should Listen:

If you've ever felt overlooked in a meeting, dismissed when raising concerns, or frustrated that HR isn't treated as a strategic partner, this episode is the mindset — and method — shift you need.

Katie gives you the exact frameworks, language, and confidence to make your ideas land — and to make leadership listen.

This isn't about waiting for the promotion. It's about showing up like the leader you already are.

🎙️ Listen Now: www.hrbaddies.com

HR doesn't need a new mission — it needs a makeover.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia gets unapologetically real about why HR can't keep running on outdated systems, reactive processes, and "we've always done it this way" energy. The world of work has changed — and it's time HR caught up.

From burnout to bandwidth to business alignment, Katie breaks down exactly how to reimagine HR as a modern, scalable, data-driven function that drives results — not just compliance. Whether you're a team of one or leading a full people operations department, this episode gives you a practical blueprint for turning HR into a true business accelerator.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Why traditional HR structures no longer fit modern organizations ✅ How to redefine HR's purpose around business outcomes ✅ How to build a clear "service catalog" that shows what HR owns and delivers ✅ What an HR structure built for scalability looks like (hint: fewer firefighters, more strategists) ✅ How to modernize your tech, metrics, and communication to gain credibility at the table

Key Takeaways:

• HR's role isn't just to support — it's to scale the business through people systems.

• The modern HR structure is lean, tech-enabled, and outcome-focused.

• Data isn't paperwork — it's your credibility.

• Stop asking for a seat at the table. Build it. Then send the calendar invite.

Why You Should Listen:

If your HR department feels more like a help desk than a strategy hub, this episode is your wake-up call. Katie walks through how to modernize your function — from redefining purpose to choosing the right tools and metrics — all with her signature mix of expertise, candor, and humor.

This isn't a "feel good" HR talk. It's a playbook for transformation.

Some managers inspire loyalty. Others… inspire exit interviews.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP tackles one of the toughest challenges in any workplace: how to coach the culture blockers. You know the ones, the well-meaning managers who have great technical skills but leave emotional wreckage in their wake. They're not bad people. They're just leaders who never got the right playbook.

Following last week's episode on Rebuilding Trust After Workplace Change, Katie digs deeper into the messy middle of organizations — where culture either thrives or dies. Because while executive teams set the tone, it's the managers who carry the message (or mangle it).

With her signature mix of smart strategy and sassy truth, Katie unpacks why middle managers often become culture blockers, how to recognize the warning signs early, and the exact coaching framework HR pros can use to transform resistance into growth.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Who culture blockers really are — and how to tell the difference between someone who's unwilling and someone who's just untrained. ✅ Why performance-based promotions often lead to leadership disasters. ✅ How to coach difficult managers using empathy, accountability, and evidence — not HR lectures. ✅ The real cost of protecting bad leaders (and how one uncoachable manager can tank an entire department). ✅ What HR can do right now to make leadership development an ongoing system, not a one-time fix.

💡 Key Takeaways:

• You can't fix culture if your managers are unchecked.

• Great coaching doesn't avoid discomfort — it leans into it with clarity and care.

• Culture isn't owned by HR — it's led, lived, and modeled by every single manager.

• Accountability isn't punishment — it's growth in disguise.

Why You Should Listen:

If you've ever dealt with a brilliant-but-broken manager — or found yourself asking, "Why won't they just get it?" — this episode gives you the tools (and the scripts) to turn that frustration into progress.

Katie breaks down the emotional, structural, and behavioral roots of culture-blocking leaders — and helps HR pros reframe coaching from "damage control" to "leadership rehab." Because the truth is, you can't fire your way to better culture — but you can coach your way there.

Change doesn't destroy organizations — broken trust does.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP digs into one of the most critical (and often ignored) elements of leadership and culture: how to rebuild trust after disruption. Whether your company's gone through layoffs, leadership turnover, a reorg, or simply too much "change fatigue," this episode is your roadmap to regaining credibility and confidence inside your workplace.

Drawing from her presentation "Moving the Needle on Building Trust" from HR Virginia, Katie explains why trust is always the first casualty of change — and why rebuilding it takes more than good intentions. She offers a real-world look at how leaders can move beyond buzzwords to create consistency, transparency, and psychological safety in environments where employees have stopped believing what they hear.

If your people are disengaged, skeptical, or just tired of "new initiatives," this episode will help you bring them back on board — one honest conversation at a time.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ Why trust breaks down during change — even when the change is positive. ✅ How leadership silence fuels anxiety, rumors, and disengagement. ✅ The 4 steps to rebuilding trust: acknowledge, communicate, involve, and follow through. ✅ How to rebuild credibility with actions, not announcements. ✅ The role HR plays as the translator between leadership and employees during transition.

"Trust doesn't die in a big explosion — it fades one broken promise at a time. The good news? You can rebuild it the same way — one consistent action at a time."

Key Takeaways:

• You can't rebuild trust with a memo — only with behavior.

• Transparency beats perfection. It's better to say "I don't know yet" than to go silent.

• Change without communication creates chaos.

• When employees feel seen and informed, loyalty follows naturally.

Why You Should Listen:

If your organization has been through restructuring, layoffs, leadership changes, or just a tough season, this episode is your guide to repairing trust from the inside out.

Katie gives HR professionals and leaders practical tools to rebuild confidence in leadership, stabilize culture, and help teams heal after disruption. Because rebuilding trust isn't about spinning a better message — it's about showing up consistently until people believe you again.

HR burnout isn't just a buzzword, it's a full-blown crisis.

While everyone talks about employee engagement, leadership development, and culture, the truth is: the people holding it all together — the HR pros — are quietly running on empty. We're the fixers, the mediators, the therapists, the compliance cops, and the culture keepers. We carry everyone's stress while pretending it's "just another busy season." But it's not. It's chronic.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP gets real about the hidden cost of caring too much in a profession that's expected to be endlessly available. She explores how the role of HR has exploded post-pandemic — from navigating layoffs and DEI fatigue to managing hybrid chaos and AI-driven change — all while leaders still expect the same three-person HR team to do it all.

Katie shares practical, honest ways to recognize burnout before it breaks you, set boundaries without guilt, and use technology and delegation to work smarter, not harder. This episode isn't about self-care platitudes or pretending you can meditate your way out of systemic overload. It's about reclaiming control, redefining success, and leading from a place of strength instead of survival.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

✅ The early warning signs of HR burnout — from apathy to empathy fatigue. ✅ Why burnout is worse than ever in 2025 (and how the "do more with less" mindset is making it worse). ✅ How to set healthy boundaries that protect your time and your credibility. ✅ How to automate, delegate, and say "no" strategically — without fear of losing influence. ✅ What it really means to lead HR sustainably in a post-pandemic world.

Why You Should Listen:

If you're an HR professional, people leader, or executive who's been juggling endless priorities, constant change, and the emotional weight of your workforce — this episode is for you. You'll walk away with real tools to help you protect your energy, strengthen your boundaries, and build a version of HR that's sustainable, strategic, and still deeply human.

Because the truth is: you can't pour into others if your own cup's been empty for months.

Employees aren't just quitting their jobs — they're quitting differently. Some are going quiet, doing the bare minimum just to get by, while others are walking out with a microphone in hand, broadcasting their exit to the world. Either way, the message is clear: disengagement is everywhere, and it's not going away on its own.

In this episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP takes a brutally honest look at what's driving the wave of workplace disengagement in 2025 — from quiet quitting and loud quitting to the silent slump that happens when employees stay but stop caring.

Katie breaks down how leadership, culture, and communication all intersect to create either a thriving workforce or a burned-out one. With humor, empathy, and that signature HR Baddies candor, she helps business leaders and HR pros understand what's really going on behind the buzzwords.

🔍 Key Topics Covered

1. What "Quiet Quitting" and "Loud Quitting" Really Mean Forget the hashtags — these are just symptoms of a deeper problem. Quiet quitting looks like disengagement, withdrawal, and emotional detachment. Loud quitting, on the other hand, shows up as public frustration, resentment, or a dramatic "I'm done!" moment. Both stem from the same root cause: people no longer feel connected, valued, or heard.

2. Why Employees Are Checking Out in 2025 Katie dives into the modern workplace challenges that are draining motivation — from burnout and poor management to a lack of career clarity. She calls out the post-pandemic fatigue still lingering in organizations and how inconsistent leadership and hybrid work confusion have eroded trust across teams.

3. The Leadership Wake-Up Call Quiet quitting isn't a performance issue; it's a relationship issue. When employees don't see transparency, recognition, or growth opportunities, they pull back. Katie explains how managers can start listening again — not through surveys, but through real conversations.

4. How to Re-Engage Employees (Without Pizza Parties) Forget surface-level morale boosters. Katie shares actionable tips for rebuilding engagement that actually stick:

• Introduce recognition programs that celebrate small wins.

• Train managers to run "stay interviews" — not just exit ones.

• Revisit your company's purpose and communicate the "why" behind the work.

• Create genuine two-way communication — because no one thrives in silence

💡 Key Takeaways from This Episode

• Disengagement is not disloyalty. It's often a cry for leadership and clarity.

• Recognition is the antidote to burnout. Employees who feel seen perform better.

• Quiet quitting is fixable — if leaders start listening again.

• Communication is culture. You can't build trust in silence.

🎧 Why You Should Listen

If you're an HR professional, people leader, or business owner trying to understand why your once-engaged team suddenly feels disconnected — this episode is for you. It's honest, strategic, and packed with simple, actionable steps to help you re-engage your workforce and rebuild trust where it's been lost.

💬 Baddie Wisdom "Quiet quitting isn't about laziness — it's about leadership. When communication dies, engagement goes with it. But the good news? You can always bring it back."

🔗 Resources Mentioned

🎧 Listen to the full episode → www.hrbaddies.com

📘 Read Katie's book, Empowering Military Talent → https://a.co/d/efmRboC

💼 Follow KDG Support on LinkedIn for daily HR insights and veteran & military spouse hiring tips.

Veterans and military spouses represent one of the most skilled, dedicated, and underutilized talent pools in today's workforce. In this in-depth episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP—and proud Navy spouse—dives into the powerful value these candidates bring to every organization.

Discover how military training translates into exceptional leadership, project management, and problem-solving skills that can strengthen any team. Katie busts common myths about deployments and relocation, explains how to read between the lines of military résumés, and shares real stories of veterans and spouses who have excelled in civilian roles.

You'll walk away with a three-step action plan to make your company veteran-ready: craft job postings that welcome military experience, build partnerships with proven veteran-hiring programs, and create onboarding and mentorship systems that set these employees up for success.

Whether you're an HR professional, a small-business owner, or a hiring manager ready to expand your talent strategy, this episode gives you the tools, resources, and inspiration to start hiring—and retaining—this extraordinary workforce today.

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how companies find and hire talent—but is it the breakthrough recruiters have been waiting for or just the latest buzzword? In this 20-minute episode of HR Baddies, host Katie Garcia, MBA, SHRM-CP, takes you inside the rapidly evolving world of AI-powered recruiting to separate fact from fiction.

Katie breaks down the tools already changing the game—automated résumé screening, chatbots that schedule interviews, and predictive analytics that forecast time-to-hire—and shares real examples of how small and mid-size businesses are using them today. She also digs into the risks: algorithmic bias, privacy concerns, and new regulations in cities and states that require employers to disclose or audit their AI tools.

You'll learn a three-step action plan to implement AI responsibly: auditing your workflow, selecting transparent vendors, and training managers to keep the human touch. Whether you're an HR pro exploring new tech or a business owner trying to save time without sacrificing fairness, this episode delivers the insights you need to use AI wisely—and avoid the hype.