REL Talk

By Maria Rodriguez, Michelle Elder and Keith LeonardBusiness Education Self-Improvement Careers Management

REL Talk episodes

December 23, 2021The Great Resignation: A Headhunter’s Perspective
AJ, a headhunter and founder of Future Force, is back on the show in today’s episode to discuss the great resignation with Maria. Drawing upon his vast amount of experience and insight, AJ reveals how the great resignation has affected recruiting for staffing agencies, managers, and businesses as a whole.

He starts the conversation by explaining what the great resignation is and how candidates have been ghosting interviews and not showing up. AJ also talks about Future Force and also what they are experiencing as even small businesses are finding it difficult to fill open positions. He then discusses factors that help with customer retention apart from benefits and compensation. Finishing up, AJ addresses the key question of whether or not this great resignation phenomenon will continue in 2022, by sharing his opinion that there will be a turnaround and it will become an employer’s market as opposed to what we see now.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
The great resignation from AJ’s viewpoint
Why are people ‘ghosting’?
AJ discusses Future Force and the trend of open jobs not getting filled
Factors important for customer retention
The impact of lack of leadership
Why you shouldn’t hire hastily
Will the great resignation persist in 2022?
Quotes:

“We're getting ghosted nonstop. People are setting up interviews and never showing.”

“Is the Tinder culture of ghosting transferring to the professional culture?”

“A lot of these leaders, nowadays, are completely overworked.”

“Leaders are starting to lead organizations rather than lead people.”

“Just because you have an open position that needs to be filled, do not sacrifice what values you're looking for in the person or in the candidate to fill that”.

“Don't just grab somebody because you're in a pinch.”

“One bad apple can poison an entire team”

“Companies are understanding what needs to be done for retention and attraction.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn

AJ’s Instagram

Future Force Website

[email protected]
30 min
December 16, 2021The Great Resignation: Experiencing the Great Reshuffle
In this week’s instalment of the REL Talk ‘The Great Resignation’ series, Dan joins Maria today to share his views on this phenomenon which we have been experiencing over the past few years. Together, our experts delve into what Dan calls the ‘great reshuffle’ where many people are leaving their fields of expertise to learn new skills and move into other fields.

Dan starts off by explaining the great reshuffle and recounting some stories he has experienced in this area. He also addresses why open positions are not getting filled amidst the great resignation and why some employees tend to come back after resigning. Dan finishes off with offering valuable advice to employees who are experiencing a heavier workload and suffering burnouts by reviewing the need to take time to self-manage and care for themselves. The great resignation and great reshuffle deserve great analysis, insights, and advice, and that is precisely what you get in today’s great new episode.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
The great resignation from Dan’s standpoint
The great reshuffle the world is experiencing
Why open positions are not getting fille
Boomerang employees and why they come back
What you can do if your workload is being doubled
Dan’s self-care and wellness journey
Advice to managers and companies experiencing the great resignation
Quotes:

“The great resignation is now shifted to a great reshuffle because people are pivoting to other skills and other areas that they want to learn.”

“Now, it's the game of just mentoring and fostering the talent that you do have.”

“Burnout is a real thing.”

“You have to put more time into self-managing yourself and actually put time for self-care.”

“We, as humans, work better in a resonant space. We operate better, make better decisions, thrive better in a resonant space.”

“We’ve got to stop listening to our saboteurs and listen to our, you know, leader within, start working at it from a place of resonance and start valuing who we are and how we want to show up.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
21 min
November 25, 2021Toxic Work Environment: How to Move On From Toxicity
Maria and Michelle finish up their series on toxicity in the workplace this week by talking about how to move on from a toxic environment. A lot of advice says there are only two options in this situation: deal with it or leave. Our hosts, however, know that there are more options, and in today’s episode, they discuss what those options are and how to know which approach is right for you.

They kick things off by discussing the four possible approaches to a toxic work culture: Avoid, Survive, Thrive, or Get the Eff Out. Michelle points out that while getting out may be the best option in some scenarios, in others it’s possible to work around toxicity, whether by avoiding it in the first place, managing the situation to survive without damaging your mental health, or even working with the toxic element to end up thriving. She and Maria talk about the levels of toxicity and how staying in a highly toxic environment can have a long-lasting impact on your well-being, potentially requiring weeks or even months of recovery time. They also discuss the importance of asking for help, whether through career coaching or self-help books, advising those dealing with toxic work environments to look at advice for those suffering domestic abuse as the situations can be strikingly similar. Finally, they wrap up the series by reiterating two main pieces of advice: ask for help, and be part of the solution, not part of the problem.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
Determining the best option for you
Asking more questions in interviews
Thriving in a lower-toxicity workplace
The negative consequences of continuing to work in an extremely toxic environment
The four possible strategies: Avoid, Survive, Thrive, or Get the Eff Out
Self-help books related to domestic emotional and physical abuse
Asking for help from a career coach who has some understanding of toxic work environments and how to escape them
Being part of the solution, not part of the problem
Quotes:

“If you are in a truly toxic environment, our goal can’t be ‘how do we make you the queen of the castle or the king of the castle’? It has to be ‘how do we keep this from having long-term implications on your well-being?’”

“If you are trying to manipulate someone who has zero empathy or compassion, and you’re trying to beat them, if you will, the only way you’re going to do that is to do it from a place of zero compassion or empathy.”

“I’m gonna be honest with you, your happy face is not going to help anything that’s happening inside your head. The stories inside your head are not going to change because you bring your happy face to work.”

“Am I really that person who’s like, ‘My boss was mean to me’? Yes, you need to be that person. You need to get out. And you need to seek someone to talk to. And you need to go through some truth chats so that you realize the shit you’re hearing was not actually true.”

“Feedback from a work environment is just too glib because corporate America, in particular, was built on the concept of ‘emotions don’t belong at work.’”

“Ask for help. There are lots of career coaches in the world - we’re not the only ones. I would tell you to look for someone who is focused on helping you through a difficult situation and not just trying to help you find your dream job.”

“The mental abuse that results from a toxic work environment is all of our problem. It is every single person’s problem.”

“If you see it and don’t say something, I need you to go home and put a little check in the mirror saying that you made it acceptable for someone to behave that way. If you walk away, if you spread your own lies because you’re trying to protect yourself, all of those things that you are doing to avoid being the target of a toxic person, it makes you part of the problem. And so that means we’re all part of the solution.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn

First 90 Days
19 min
November 19, 2021Toxic Work Environment: The Impact of Toxicity in the Workplace
This week’s episode continues the discussion of toxicity in the workplace with a look at how toxic elements can negatively affect an entire company. Not everybody realizes the impact that toxicity can have on an organization, and while businesses are doing better at dealing with problematic elements, it’s still too easy to label it an emotional problem and push it to one side. Today, Maria and Michelle show why ignoring the impact of toxicity could have a disastrous effect company-wide, and how to avoid falling into that trap.

Michelle starts things off with a look at how toxic leaders can manipulate those around them to disguise the damage they do in the workplace and how difficult it can be to deal with them as a result. She advises that a high turnover can be a sign of a toxic manager and is one of the areas to keep an eye on when toxicity is suspected. Next, she and Maria discuss the perception of manipulation as a leadership tactic and how to push back against the idea that this approach is a necessary part of doing business. Michelle points out that while immoral business practices can be effective, their cost on a moral and practical level is too high, potentially resulting in sick and demotivated employees and big problems for the company. Finally, they wrap up with some advice to work with HR to identify and deal with the toxic element in your company.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
How big an impact can a toxic environment have on an organization?
Toxic leaders use emotional manipulation to gain power and protect themselves against criticism
High turnover can be a sign of toxic leadership
Toxic business practices can be effective, but they come at a moral and practical cost
Toxic environments are bad for employees, who may become unwell and demotivated in such environments, and therefore bad for companies
HR departments are important in the fight against toxicity, as they have the inside track on where problematic elements can be found
Quotes:

“It’s easy to take anything that is ‘people-y’ or ‘feeling-y’ and just push it aside and say that it doesn’t matter, or it’s not important.”

“So what I found in some of my research is the senior leaders, or the owners of the company have literally promoted someone because it appears that they’re doing a great job and they get results. They show numbers or justification, and they just don’t realize how toxic that leader is because the leader doesn’t demonstrate toxicity around them.”

“I’m not a fan of leaders who come in and clean out immediately. I think that leaders who come in and clean out immediately aren’t leaders, they’re actually jerks who don’t know how to lead people. Because if they did, they’d come in, and they’d learn who was there and how to influence the people that were there.”

“If you are going to go out in public around other people, you have basically signed yourself a non-written social contract to behave in a way that is acceptable in a civilized society. And if you can’t do it, go live on an island by yourself.”

“It used to be that you walked to the cafeteria to get a coffee and took a ten-minute stroll. And now you’re taking five ten-minute strolls a day. You used to take an hour-ish for lunch, and now lunch is three hours and includes a cocktail or two, just putting it out there, guys. And this is that person who’s not willing to not show up because they don’t want to lose the job or they don’t want to risk being called out for something, but it’s worse than them staying home.”

“I promise you, they know exactly who the assholes are because they’ve been looking at your numbers dwindle in those departments, they’ve seen increased interpersonal problems, they probably interacted with the manager as well. So my advice to you would be to seek counsel from your HR team. Just be prepared for what they might tell you.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
23 min
November 12, 2021Toxic Work Environment: Sorting Through What's Toxic
Maria and Michelle continue their examination of toxic work environments this week by looking at just what constitutes toxicity. It’s simply a fact of life that every workplace will experience some situations where employees won’t agree with their leaders or each other, but at what point does that situation reach the level of toxicity? In today’s episode, our experts not only offer a common definition of toxic work environments, but also delineate the steps you can follow to help you determine whether or not yours meets the criteria.

They begin by clearly defining the word ‘toxic’ as it applies to workplaces, and then walk through some enlightening steps that you can take, including self-reflection and trying to understand your boss’ situation, in order to determine the level of toxicity where you are employed. They go on to stress the importance of communication, review a resource that helps tremendously in this regard, offer some questions to ask yourself, and finish up with some valuable tips for all listeners. The use of the term ‘toxic workplace’ can easily be overused these days and, as a result, lose its true meaning along the way. Tune in today to learn from the REL Talent professionals precisely what it entails and how to analyze your own situation to see if it has truly reached this level.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
Having a common definition of ‘toxic’
Engaging in self-reflection
Trying to understand where your boss is coming from
The importance of communicating
Michael Watkins’ ‘Five Conversations’
Some questions to ask yourself
Michelle’s tips for listeners
Quotes:

“There are some bigger problems that stem from the overuse of a phrase like ‘toxic’.”

“Your boss turning down your vacation doesn't necessarily make a situation toxic.”

“Micromanaging a high performer is always going to result in bad things for you and for the high performer.”

“Today, when I look back at that, I really think that I contributed to the frustration in that relationship as much as my boss did.”

“I would say step one is to start with some internalization and some reflection.”

“If I paused, I might have changed my behavior then.”

“A lot of those conversations…in the beginning, would be so much easier because you're setting the expectations up front.”

“To what extent do they negatively impact your ability to do your job effectively?”

“If you ignore the conversation completely, you give the two of you no chance to align so that you become more effective.”

“I think that's critical for individuals to stop and assess, because I think the emotions get in the way of trying to sort through what's transpiring.”

“The closer you get to them having a negative impact on your emotional well being, it's time to seriously consider walking away. You want to do that smartly. We can help you do that in a smart way. But if you want to maintain your emotional stability, it might be time to get away.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn

First 90 Days
23 min
November 05, 2021The Great Resignation: Toxic Work Environments
"The Great Resignation" persists and, on the show today, Maria and Michelle address the issue of toxicity in the work environment as a driving force behind it. If people find being unemployed more appealing than working in an organization, then there is something wrong. Our hosts today dissect what toxicity in the work environment looks like and how to deal with that toxic leader.

They begin by addressing what essential workers tend to face in recent times - customer frustration – and then Michelle goes on to describe past experiences she has faced in toxic workplaces and different levels of toxicity ranging from mildly annoying to mentally destructive. Our hosts also shed light on how gaslighting shows up in work environments and how to deal with the different levels of toxicity. This impactful episode concludes with a practical solution to self-blaming and handling shame that comes from being on the receiving end of workplace toxicity. These are undeniably challenging times, and, as is their mission, today our REL Talk experts shine the spotlight on another prominent issue, offering effective and practical advice to help listeners deal with it along the way.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
Addressing customer frustration faced by essential workers
Michelle’s past experiences in toxic work environments
Gaslighting in work environments
Dealing with the different levels of toxicity
Handling the shame
Quotes:

“We've got to take a hard look at ourselves.”

“If you are lucky enough to be someone’s employer, then you have a moral obligation to make sure people do look forward to coming to work in the morning.”

“When people are dropping like flies, when people are leaving you left and right, you need to ask yourself some questions.”

“It would be unrealistic for anyone to believe that they're not going to work for a toxic leader at some point during their career.”

“So these people literally said, ‘I would rather be broke and live on ramen noodles than come to work for you.’”

“Emotions layer on top of each other.”

“Sometimes you can speak out, and you can conduct a number of different initiatives as a customer, but what the business decides to do with that information is completely up to them.”

“There are levels of toxicity.”

“The damage is, you walk away, and you still hear the words.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
45 min
October 28, 2021Future of Work: Building and Accessing the Working From Home Toolbox
Joe is back this week to run through his toolbox of tips and tricks for working from home with Maria and Michelle. So many initiatives are taking place in companies these days, and this is definitely one that is front and center. Today our experts weigh in on how to best handle this evolving work arrangement, and to also explore just where it may be heading in the future.

Joe starts things off by sharing how he got into Learning and Development and working from home. The rest of the episode is made up of his advice for those working from home including how to incorporate the ‘watercooler chat’, the future of work and hybrid work, virtual fatigue, and his advice for leaders. With the vast amount of experience that members of our panel have in this area, you can be assured that everything shared here today will prove immediately valuable and effective for all those navigating any and all versions of working from home.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
Joe’s road to Learning and Development and working from home
His tips for working from home
Incorporating the ‘watercooler chat’ in a virtual environment
The future of work
Hybrid work
Virtual fatigue
Advice for leaders
Quotes:

“What's interesting that comes up is that people who have been working from home the last 18 months, some may think they're successful - their people leaders don't. And then some may actually truly be successful at it.”

“If you don't take the tools out of the toolbox, you can't fix or build anything.”

“Setting clear expectations, having fun with it, and kind of having something in the toolbox of tricks to pull from is really, really important.”

“It's totally okay to not always be sitting in front of a webcam, right? That's a part of a work-life balance.”

“I still believe in paper and pen, and that having a strong list at your desk is so mission critical, especially when working from home… if it ain't on the list, it doesn't exist.”

“I think the hybrid thing is pretty cool. I would love to be around people again, but I also love the idea of being home in shorts and flip flops in my nice dress shirt, and doing what I do best from my home environment where I can manage my work life balance.”

“As an organization, you need to start with that center group, and you need to say, ‘What's right for my customers?’”

“It's not about what your employee wants. It's about what's going to make your customers willing to spend the money. And hopefully, that fits within a model that your employees can appreciate.”

“You may have to get started by giving your leaders some over the top tools like weekly updates, or a shared Trello calendar, something where you can see that progress every single day, until the leaders get comfortable not having line of sight.”

“So leaders, please consider changing your swing on the golf club to something different than what you're doing today. Because we all know that what worked 18 months ago does not work now, including have a conference call or meeting for every single thing.”

“It is a gift that many of us can work from home. Don't waste it by sitting in front of a computer 12 to 15 hours a day. Be sure to spend time with your husband, your wife, your loved ones, your kids, the dog, the cat, and your hobbies, and the people that you love who love you.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
27 min
October 21, 2021 Tough Talk: Growth within Organizations
The tough talk on random topics continues this week as Maria and Michelle return to the topic of growth within organizations and just how important it is. As they have noted before, good people leave organizations if they do not receive that development that challenges them and instills that innovative spirit so critical to the success of any company. Organizations that ignore this crucial component do so at their peril, and today our REL Talk hosts explain precisely why that is, and how you can avoid that fate.

The need to address each level within departments when elevating them, as well as the different sets of skills involved, kick off today’s discussion. Our hosts then look at the value of investing in leadership team development, challenging your organization and team members, and the relationship between strategic thinking and change. The episode finishes up by outlining the danger of ending up in a vicious cycle of mistakes and the key takeaways for listeners. The critical nature of growth and development within an organization cannot be overstated, and, as you listen in today, you will understand the reasons for this and what steps you can take to make it a reality in your workplace.

The Finer Details of This Episode:

· Addressing each level when elevating departments
· The different sets of skills
· Investing in leadership team development
· Challenging your organization and team members
· Strategic thinking and change
· Vicious cycles of mistakes
· Key takeaways

Quotes:

“It's insane how organizations can get passed by because their employees don't have the right development or growth to challenge them and create and instill that innovative spirit within them to stay ahead for the future.”

“As people, we want to be challenged and pushed to the next level.”

“Depending on where you are in that kind of continuum, if you will, it changes the type of growth or development that you need.”

“Thinking strategically, building purposeful relationships, that could be something that needs to be delivered from a corporate level. But to supplement that, each department should have a budget of development that they can use how it is necessary within their team.”

“If Apple didn't have Steve Jobs challenging each and every person to be innovative, where would Apple be today?”

“Growth means constantly challenging your organization, constantly challenging your team members.”

“Thinking about, like, how you get your employees the tools and resources they need to be cross collaborative, which creates that growth, which creates that development, which creates communications and opportunities for them to have resources to present differently to elevate themselves, is going to be a critical component moving forward.”

“A lot of times that change in that innovation that you're trying to get people comfortable with has nothing to do with you being innovative. It's that you didn't think things through strategically in the beginning, and now you're paying the price of trying to backpedal and change things.”

“I find your ability to challenge a leader as the best example of whether or not your company is innovative.”

“One of the things that we try to do here at REL Talent is keep things real for you.”

“As an employee, you've got to learn to own your own development.”

Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
22 min
October 14, 2021Tough Talk: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Michelle and Maria continue their Tough Talk series of random discussions here today by once again addressing the critical topic of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Joining them today is Joe Gast, a professional who trains on DEI initiatives, and who absolutely lives, eats, and breathes this topic each and every day, and whose insights are, as you will hear, incredibly valuable in this area.

They begin by looking at ‘The Great Resignation’ which the workforce is currently experiencing, and then they go on to explore labels and identity, the impact of biases, the importance of being open and accepting, and the evolving nature of gender and sexual orientation nomenclature. How companies use the information they gather on applications, gender based restroom issues, the necessity for starting to have conversations in this space, and how DEI is defined and applied are all discussed as well. This informative and instructive episode comes to a powerful close with Joe offering his highly regarded advice for listeners navigating this all important component within organizations – practical wisdom that all should take to heart.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
‘The Great Resignation’
Labels and identity
The impact of biases
Being open and accepting
Evolving nomenclature
Companies asking about people’s sexual orientation and how they use that information
Gender based restroom issues
Starting to have conversations
Defining DEI and applying it
Joe’s advice for listeners
Quotes:

“Surround yourself by people who are different than you, and build a relationship with them to a point where you can have tough questions, or you can ask tough questions, and not just immediately shut down during that conversation.”

“There is a difference between a label and someone's identity.”

“No one wants to be invisible, no one wants to be unnoticed, no one wants to be ignored, and most people are looking for representation.”

“Nobody wins until we all win, until everyone makes it across the finish line.”

“I think that DEI is important because it starts to redefine what normal is.”

“The best way for us to learn about DEI is just watch children.”

“If we could start to look at employees, managers, applicants, candidates, trainees, that person sitting in my office, that person I'm interviewing on Zoom, in that lens that we don't care what they are, what those labels and identity things are, but I care who you are, and I hear what you're bringing to the table, I think we'd be a lot further ahead.”

“I think that for us to be successful in an HR training organization at this point, and even in regards to organizational development evenly, we just have to be open to the conversation, be willing to listen. People want to be listened to.”

“I had to realize that that was just my defense mechanism to stay in a place that is comfortable for me that I'm used to.”

“I want people to know I'm a safe space.”

“It's okay to say, ‘You know what? I don't have all the answers, but you know what? Let's seek the answers together.’”

“If someone is a child molester, they're gonna molest a child no matter what. They don't need to run to a restroom dressed as the opposite sex to do it.”

“If...one of your listeners listens to this conversation, and brings that to the workplace, or brings that to a manager or to a team member or an employee that they've not known how to address or talk to before, well, then we've already been part of the solution, not part of the problem.”

“It is your responsibility as an employer to keep all your employees safe, and that means you're going to have to start having conversations with people. They're going to be super uncomfortable, and you're not going to know how to have them, and I would advise you to seek out someone who is comfortable leading those conversations in uncomfortable places.”

“We need to start to see people and recognize people for not what they are, but who they are. That will be the game changer.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn

Jesus CEO
40 min
October 07, 2021Tough Talk: Budgeting, HR, and L&D
Hot on the heels of their fascinating book series, Michelle and Maria are back today to start their new series where they address the many timely questions that come their way, and today they begin by looking at budgeting and its impact upon HR and L&D within a company. All too often, these departments are the first ones considered when budgets need to be downsized, and in this week’s episode, our experts want to have the tough conversation with you all about just why organizations need these people so badly, particularly in the current employment climate.

They start off by looking at these types of cuts and the impact they have, and then Michelle shares her experience with L&D downsizing. She and Maria then go on to explore the different training modalities and how they can be used the most effectively, how investing in HR can actually save money for the company, the importance of P&L Report training, and costs - controllable and otherwise. Our hosts finish up by looking at just how critical effective leadership training is within an organization. The first in this powerful new series, today’s episode presents yet another glowing example of the sheer amount of knowledge, insight, and advice that the REL Talent team has to offer all who listen to and work with them.
The Finer Details of This Episode:
L&D budget cuts and their impact
Michelle’s experience with L&D downsizing
The different training modalities and their most effective use
How investing in HR can save the company money
P & L Report training
Controllable and less controllable costs
Leadership training
Quotes:

“If you can try to understand both sides of why something happens, it makes it easier to present a solution that's good for both sides.”

“There's that center group of people that is keeping your customer happy. And guess who supports that center group of people and makes sure they're happy? Almost always, it's your HR team.”

“I think as a result of the reality of our climate, you can't afford to lose your employee relations people.”

“I've seen significant injuries that have impacted people's ability to do their job to live their life, and have changed the way their family has to care for them as a result of not getting a required element of their training to do their job effectively. So yeah, it could be easy, it could be a fine, but it could also be a loss of life.”

“I am a big fan of compliance being digital…there's absolutely a time and place for each type of training modality whether it is instructor led or virtual or even self paced.”

“Some of the highest reasons for turnover and organizations right now are lack of growth and development.”

“We're actually going to be able to show you that, as a result of spending here, here's where you're going to save time and money in all of these other avenues.”

“You need somebody that can come in and automatically link the idea of that P&L to concepts they already understand.”

“It's a huge component for leaders to be totally educated and trained and developed to make the right decisions.”

“Focus on what's a critical component, dig deeper into your budgets to invest more into your people in a different way, in which you are able to do no matter what size of your businesses what size your budget is, and really continue developing your leaders to understand how they can take a look at things in a new light.”
Show Links:

REL Talent: HR Consulting

Email REL Talent

REL Talent on LinkedIn
41 min

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