Whew, time to lighten the mood around here! 

We’ve spent the last few weeks digging into some heavy stuff, what with the DOL’s Final Ruling and all its implications on your business, and I know we could all use a little reprieve.

So today we’re taking a sharp left turn and gossiping in the other language I speak fluently: BRAVO DRAMA!!

I’m joined by attorney and fellow Bravohead, Kelli Jones, to pour some of the juiciest legal tea on Bravo stars' legal battles and the big takeaways we can all learn as business owners, managers, and leaders.

Kelli is a lawyer, passive income strategist, and digital entrepreneur with equal parts dreamer and doer. She ditched her 9-7 for her own law firm in 2020 and never looked back. Kelli traded working all the time for a job she hated in a toxic environment to build a brand of her own to help entrepreneurs stop dreading the legal and start taking it seriously.

1:59 Kelly’s Villain Origin Story

16:20 The Consequences of Workplace Issues in Reality TV

17:55 A Breakdown of Caroline Manzo’s Lawsuit Against Bravo

27:10 What Policies Other Reality Show Networks Have Put In Place To Prevent/Mitigate Legal Drama 

34:00 Leah McSweeney’s Lawsuit Against Bravo and Andy Cohen

36:55 Involvement Of Andy Cohen As An Employee Of The Bravo Network

42:37 Legal Analysis of Rachel’s (formerly known as Raquel) Lawsuit

1:01:32 Hope for Cleanup Within Bravo’s Work Environment

Find and follow Kelli online! 

Website https://www.lawyerkelli.com/ 

IG: @lawyerkelli_ 

TikTok: @lawyerkelli 

Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we?

The past few weeks we've been painting with broad strokes about the DOL's Final Ruling on the whole contractor vs. employee saga. If you’ve been following along, you’ve def heard us say that there are now 6 factors to consider for classifying your workers.  But we haven't really rolled up our sleeves and gotten into the weeds of what those factors actually mean…until now! 

Hit play for a deep dive into factors 1-3, and stay tuned for next week's episode where we'll tackle factors 4-6. If you have a team, or are thinking about hiring in the future, you’ll wanna be all ears for this!

6:00: Factor #1 - Opportunity for profit or loss depending on managerial skill

9:28: Factor #2 - Investments by the worker and the potential employer

15:35: Factor #3 -  The degree of permanence in the work relationship

18:24: Tips for Freelancers who need to talk to their client about being misclassified

The DOL’s Small Entity Compliance Guide 

Full link here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/government-contracts/small-entity-compliance-guide#overview 

Let's talk! Schedule a free consultation and we can assess your risk and help you come up with a plan moving forward.

Full link here: https://the-paradigm.com/contact

POV: You’re totally overwhelmed by the DOL’s Final Ruling on independent contractors.

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of info on this game-changing update from the DOL, and lots of businesses are scrambling to find their footing in this new terrain. So we’re taking a few steps back to come at this whole convo from a different angle.

I'm hitting pause on the "next steps" chat to dive into the who, what, when, where, and why of the DOL's shiny new rules on independent contractor classification. Getting a grip on the origins and true intentions of these laws is key to understanding their impact on your biz.

Trust me, once you know WHY these rules are in place, compliance will feel like a total no-brainer.

I don’t get to say this a lot, but the DOL’s Compliance Guide is actually pretty user friendly and easy to read! Check it out here: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/government-contracts/small-entity-compliance-guide 

The Paradigm Solution: Laying the groundwork for hiring employees is definitely a bigger undertaking than working with contractors, but our signature done-for-you HR service takes the weight off your shoulders and sets you up for long-term success. Learn more here: https://the-paradigm.com/the-paradigm-solution

Clock’s ticking!! The DOL’s new ruling on independent contractor misclassification goes into effect in less!than!a!week!

What does this mean for you??

Well, if you’re a business owner who nods your head “yes” after reading reading these two statements:

You understands you’re not in compliance with how you’ve classified your team and are ready to switch from contractors to employees; and,You want to keep the same folks in the same roles, just with a new classification to get your business on the right side of the law.

Then the time is NOW to sit down and talk to your team about proposed changes to their classification and to make sure everyone’s on the same page.

But now you’re probably wondering how the heck to bring up this conversation with them, right? What do they need to know about the switch? How will this *actually* impact your relationship with them? What if a contractor refuses to make the switch?

Let’s get into it!

Tune in for talking points and additional context you need in order to have confident and productive conversations about this time-sensitive topic. You don’t need to be scared of this conversation, but you do need to be prepared!

Links mentioned:Our Set To Scale Template Shop features employment offer letter templates to help you craft a well-thought out offer that brings clarity and structure to the switch from contractor to employee. Type “Offer Letter” into the search bar to find templates for several different employment scenarios, depending on your unique situation.

Not sure if you need to make the switch from contractor to employee? Listen to our past episode “Does My Business Need An Employee Or Contractor” to learn more about the difference and things to consider!

Here’s 1 of the 398,402 things nobody teaches you when building a brand and becoming a leader:

Your external brand ≠ your internal company culture. Just because the world sees your brand in a certain light doesn’t mean your team has to march to that beat behind the scenes.

Few people know this better than Kailtyn Parker of Copy Uncorked. Her business’s brand is strategically drenched in wine culture, but don’t let that fool her – their internal culture isn’t exactly what you’d expect.

Tune in to hear Kaitlyn’s approach to leading a team that's as intentional and well-thought-out as her iconic brand. Bring your favorite glass because she’s pouring up insights on:

🍷The critical role of culture-driven hiring, especially when your brand and your culture aren’t one in the same 

🍷The role of personality tests, method acting, and mirroring in effective leadership

🍷How “remaining in choice” steadies the wild ride of entrepreneurship

🍷Lessons in leadership from her days at Lululemon

🍷Putting a premium on Subject Matter Experts when hiring a lean team

We always knew Kaitlyn is a wordsmith, but dang – the wisdom she drops in this episode is *CHEF’S KISS* for anyone trying to step up their leadership game. 

ABOUT KAITLYN AND COPY UNCORKED:

Kaitlyn Parker is the founder/CEO, brand strategist, and wine enthusiast behind Copy Uncorked - a full-service copywriting & creative agency pouring up personality-fueled sales copy to help brands grow. Based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Kaitlyn holds a Master’s in Strategic Communications and has worked with 200+ clients worldwide in her 8+ years of industry experience. She's also developed Copy Uncorked's suite of educational products for non-copywriters—collectively known as CU Edu. Each program is designed to help emerging entrepreneurs develop their brand messaging, write their own website copy, and every piece of copy after that.

LINKS MENTIONED:

Connect with Kaitlyn on Instagram @copyuncorked or visit copyuncorked.com.

Psst…I don’t know who needs to hear this, but:

It’s time we move past the old-school belief that real work only happens when we’re all parked in office chairs. That mindset is as outdated as the office cubicles tech giants are trying to herd their talent back into (oops! Guess I do know who needs to hear this!) 

Do remote work relationships crash and burn sometimes? For sure. But it’s not always about the distance. More often than not, it’s about the people and the policies, or lack thereof, that are supposed to have their backs. 

As leaders in this “new normal” way of working, it’s crucial we adapt. So let’s talk about the 3 things to focus on in your remote work policy to empower those who thrive in the virtual workspace.

Timestamps:

00:38 The Fallacy of Remote Work

02:49 Misconceptions about Remote Work

03:55 Failures in Remote Work Relationships

05:54 Creating Company Policies For Remote Work

07:29 Guidelines For Remote Work Behaviors

08:10 Setting Expectations for Remote Work

15:33 Using Metrics To Create Tangible Goals

21:24 Learning Opportunities For Leaders and Managers in Remote Work

LINKS MENTIONED:

Prior To The Hire Guide - we’ll help you think through all the things you didn’t know you needed to think through before making your next hire!

What’s your most unpopular opinion as a manager or people leader?

I’m sharing mine this week, and it’s going to ruffle some feathers. It’s about one of my rules for internal communication with my remote team, and it’s one that I think a lot more leaders should adopt. This one small boundary has helped me establish a company culture steeped in respect for my team's space and energy, while aligning the way we work with the my values as a business owner.

Come for the hot take, stay for the essentials of effective communication for your own remote team!

Think leading a remote team is just a game of juggling Zoom calls and Slack messages in an effort to herd your team in a march towards deadlines? Think again. 

It's actually a trust-building marathon, and many leaders are dropping the baton by not establishing trust early or consistently enough with their team, leading to some major backfires.

Building trust and accountability with a remote team isn't a 'do it once and dust your hands’ kind of task. It's an ongoing journey and a continuous leveling up of your leadership skills. This isn't just a process; it's an evolution that mirrors your growth as a boss (how badass is that??)

This week, let's dive into the world of the unseen – the intangible elements of building trust at work. We'll explore some concrete strategies to plant the seeds of trust and accountability within your team, nurturing them to grow in ways that resonate with your unique leadership style. 

Listen now!

LINKS MENTIONED:

People Leader Archetype Quiz: Discovering your leadership archetype will reveal where your strengths are in communication and leadership, and can help you identify how to build trust with your team. Take the quick quiz now and empower yourself to become a better leader!

Ever wondered how people successfully go from solopreneur to CEO with a team?

The secret isn't about nailing one specific management style or mastering a recruiting trick. It's really about how your team comes together around your business’s growth goals, starting with an intentional hiring process that paves the way for everyone's success.

So why isn’t everyone who hires a team thriving and massively scaling their business?

This week we’re delving into one major hiring pitfall many fall into on their journey to team building. This one mistake is so major, it often makes people regret hiring in the first place. Plus, we’ll talk through 4 steps you can take to transform your next hire from a gamble into a guaranteed investment in your business’s success. 

If hiring is on your mind, don’t miss this episode! 

Timestamps:

5:24 - The biggest hiring mistake revealed

14:30 - The 4 steps to avoiding this mistake

18:38 - Real-life examples of these 4 steps in action

Links Mentioned:

Getting ready to hire? Download our free Prior To The Hire Guide for a more in depth look at the 4 steps outlined in this episode, including a framework and worksheet you can use to build out the role your business needs to ROI.

Full link: https://the-paradigm.com/prior-to-the-hire  

As business owners, people managers, and CEOs, we often overlook the significant impact company culture has on our leadership experience. It's important to realize that culture is not just about creating a fun workplace (though we’re all about making work fun if that’s your vibe!); it's crucial in fostering productivity and ensuring the collective success of your team, which directly influences the success of your business.

So, how do you ensure that every new addition to your team not only understands but also integrates well into your company's culture, especially when you’re not in a face-to-face environment?

Let’s talk about it! In this week’s episode, we’re honing in on culture-driven onboarding processes, discussing strategies to ensure new team members seamlessly integrate into your team's dynamics and culture. This process starts wayyy before their first day of work, and it’s about soooo much more than paperwork. 

We’re talking through cultural touchpoints to consider during four stages of a culture-driven onboarding process: the pre-hire or candidacy process, orientation, acclimation to your team, company, and systems, as well as training and development.

We’ll also dive into:

• The impact of your onboarding process on the overall culture of your company.
• Understanding when onboarding starts and ends.
• Strategies to prepare your company and team for a new employee, optimizing their success through a culture-driven onboarding process.
• Debunking common myths about what is permissible to ask during an interview.
• A universal cultural element we recommend for every organization, regardless of the rest of your culture.

Tune in now!