The job posting said Atlanta. The offer letter said Atlanta. The onboarding paperwork said Atlanta. The welcome email even included a parking map for the Atlanta office.

On her first day, she showed up in Charlotte.

She had assumed the job was remote. It wasn't.

In Episode 51 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Nathan, and Emma break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories involving first-hour critics, rearranged offices, references who never agreed to be references, a four-day resignation letter with headers, and a Slack channel no new hire should have ever seen.

You'll hear:

• Employees submit ideas for a $1,000 bonus, and the company uses them to eliminate their jobs

• A new analyst tells his trainer the process is how his old job did it, but worse, in his first hour

• Forty minutes into her first day, a new hire disappears to rearrange the office

• A candidate lists references who didn't know they were her references

• A new hire emails senior leadership a formatted critique after four days

• A new hire is accidentally added to the executives' private Slack channel

• A new hire shows up to her first day in the wrong city

• Mackenzie, CEO of Sacramento Splash, on hiring a close friend who went a year over budget

• A new hire rewrites his NDA before signing his day one paperwork

Key Takeaways:

• Sometimes a bad hire is really a bad manager.

• Fresh ideas land better after you've learned how things work.

• Always tell your references before you list them.

• If you end up somewhere you're not supposed to be, get out.

• Put it in writing, and then make sure they actually read it.

💸 Think you've heard worse? Submit your Bad Hire story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

She worked a nine-hour first day for $28. Not $28 an hour. $28 for the whole day.

She stayed until 6:30, a half hour past quitting time, and went home.

At 7:30 that night, one of the partners called and told her to come back to the office. No emergency. No crisis. When she said she couldn’t make it back, he fired her over the phone.

In Episode 50 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Morgan, and first-time co-host Trey break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories involving disastrous first days, bold demands, no-shows, leaked secrets, and a few new hires the hosts actually defend.

You’ll hear:

• An intern get fired on day one for going home on time

• A fired employee demand $50,000 on his way out the door

• A networking hire keep disappearing from networking events

• A security guard insist he couldn’t be fired because he never technically started

• A new hire insult the owner’s wife and brother in his first two hours

• A development director spend three months on coffee and bring in zero new donors

• A new hire present a five-year promotion plan on day two

• A new hire time his start date around a medical procedure

• A product manager leak the company roadmap on LinkedIn before her first day

Key Takeaways:

• First impressions start before day one.

• A good answer about a résumé gap still needs to be verified.

• Ambition is great. Timing and delivery matter.

• If you share something confidential in an interview, say it’s confidential.

• Low pay doesn’t make the experience worthless.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your Bad Hire story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

⸻
Connect with Us:
🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com
📧 Email: [email protected]
📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod
🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod
💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire
—
Sponsored by BChex:
Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.
www.bchex.io
—
🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

She interviewed well, got the job, showed up for her first day… and then asked one very important question:

Where are all the men?

Turns out, she had taken the job expecting a large company to be the perfect place to meet someone. There was just one problem: her department was almost entirely women.

So she left.

In Episode 49 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Emma, and Kyrie break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories involving bizarre motivations, expensive mistakes, open mic disasters, employee theft, fake credentials, and some truly unforgettable first days.

You’ll hear:

• A receptionist go on an office supply spending spree

• A woman take a job because she wanted to meet men

• An employee trash the boss without realizing everyone could hear

• A booking agent redirect a client deposit into his own bank account

• A forklift driver somehow get worse every single hour

• A new hire completely fabricate his college education

• An employee accidentally reveal a restraining order HR didn’t know existed

• A call center employee take the job to sell products to coworkers

• A technician insult a client while standing inside her bathroom

Key Takeaways:

• People don’t always take jobs for the reasons you think they do.

• A great interview doesn’t guarantee a great employee.

• Skipping normal hiring procedures can become expensive fast.

• Résumés and credentials still need to be verified.

• When someone starts showing red flags, pay attention to the pattern.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your Bad Hire story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What do you do when an employee tells everyone she adopted a child, lost everything in a house fire, and then tragically lost the child — only for HR to discover that none of it ever happened?

In Episode 48 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Nathan, and Kylie break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories — from a new employee lighting a cigarette next to 10,000 liters of acetone to a worker who leads police on a high-speed chase and decides the best place to hide is his own office.

But one story takes things to another level. A well-liked warehouse employee convinces her coworkers to donate money after a supposed house fire. Weeks later, she tells them her adopted child has died, and they rally around her again. Then HR uncovers the truth: there was no adoption, no fire, and no child.

You’ll hear:

– A new hire who lights a cigarette next to 10,000 liters of acetone

– An employee who publicly trashes his new company on his first day

– Jason Bivins on a high-performing recruiter who becomes toxic to everyone around her

– A Subway manager who catches two employees stealing in two completely different ways

– A new hire who ignores safety policy and sends a semi-trailer sliding off the dock

– An employee who fabricates an adoption, house fire, and child’s death to collect money from coworkers

– A drunk new hire who shows up 12 hours early for his first shift

– An employee who leads police on a high-speed chase straight back to work

– A workplace situation where red flag after red flag eventually leads to an uninvited cross-country trip

Key Takeaways:

• Safety training only works when employees actually follow it.

• A high performer can still be destructive to the culture around them.

• Early red flags can become much bigger problems when they form a pattern.

• Trust and compassion can unfortunately be exploited.

• Past experience doesn’t give someone permission to ignore company policy.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your Bad Hire story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What do you do when an employee calls in claiming she was just carjacked and needs the entire week off… only for her boss to call her actual phone 30 seconds later and hear, “Hey, I’m driving. Who’s this?”

In Episode 47 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Morgan, and Nathan break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories — from an employee who intentionally shot himself with a nail gun because of a wasp to a senior developer caught downloading five years of company source code onto his personal USB drive. The Bad Hire - Episode 47 - Video .txt

This episode has fake emergencies, terrible judgment, security disasters, and hiring lessons that prove sometimes the truth is stranger than anything you could make up.

You’ll hear:

– A production worker who shot himself in the hand with a nail gun trying to kill a wasp

– A client referral who conveniently left out a serious felony conviction

– An employee who faked an entire carjacking to get a week off

– Alexandra’s perspective on why broken hiring processes create bad hires

– A Sonic employee who handed a customer’s used drink directly to a health inspector

– An IT employee who dropped a monitor, then cursed out his manager before the manager could even react

– Judith’s reminder of why you should never skip that final reference check

– A senior developer caught copying five years of proprietary source code onto a personal USB drive

– Why background checks can uncover information an interview never will

From ridiculous split-second decisions to potential threats to an entire company’s intellectual property, Episode 47 is a reminder that hiring is about much more than finding someone who interviews well.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

• A great interview can’t reveal everything about a candidate.

• Reference checks are worth finishing — even when the first two are perfect.

• Security policies only work when employees actually follow them.

• How someone reacts to a mistake can reveal more than the mistake itself.

• Strong hiring processes require both HR expertise and department-level knowledge.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What do you do when a brand-new employee gets a company credit card on his first day… disappears at lunch… and comes back with $4,000 worth of suits, ties, and shoes?

In Episode 46 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Emma, and Kylie break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories — from an employee with an impossible streak of family emergencies to a seven-figure executive who simply never showed up for his first day.

This episode proves bad hires can happen at every level.

You’ll hear:

– A new manager hit with one unbelievable excuse after another

– A recruiter’s experience inside an incredibly toxic staffing company

– An employee who accidentally exposed confidential company work on social media

– A new hire who spent $4,000 on clothes using his company card

– A seven-figure executive who ghosted his own welcome event

– An employee who went to lunch, went home, and casually returned days later

– A publishing employee who stole more than 1,000 unpublished manuscripts

– Two retail employees accused of stealing nearly $44,000 in merchandise

– And an employee who paid to run a background check on his own manager

From ridiculous first-day decisions to sophisticated schemes that lasted years, these stories show just how unpredictable hiring can get.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

• A great interview doesn’t guarantee a great employee.

• Clear policies mean nothing if employees choose to ignore them.

• Bad hires can create security risks far beyond poor performance.

• Senior-level hires can flame out just as spectacularly as entry-level ones.

• Sometimes the biggest red flags appear immediately.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What do you do when an employee going through an incredibly difficult time starts crossing the line with her much-younger manager?

In Episode 45 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Morgan, and Corey break down another round of unbelievable workplace stories — including a $1.7 million fraud scheme, an employee with increasingly ridiculous excuses for being hours late, and a new hire who takes her relationship with her manager way too far.

The stories range from funny and bizarre to genuinely difficult situations where compassion and accountability collide.

You’ll hear:

A new hire who misrepresented whether she could physically handle the job

Candidates claiming degrees they hadn’t actually earned yet

A state employee who helped funnel $1.7 million through fraudulent claims

Why one recruiter always calls the third reference

An employee who blamed her GPS for being hours late every day

An employee claiming her catalytic converter was stolen — while working for an EV manufacturer

A CEO whose compassion for a struggling employee eventually came back to hurt him

A grieving employee who crossed a major boundary with her younger manager

A teacher who completely ghosted before his first day — then filed for unemployment

These aren’t just crazy stories. They’re lessons about verification, boundaries, accountability, compassion, and what happens when organizations ignore warning signs.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

Compassion and professional boundaries have to coexist.

References are only useful if you actually call them.

Employees with financial authority still need oversight.

Repeated excuses eventually become a pattern.

A great résumé doesn’t guarantee a great hire.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What happens when a software developer spends years secretly building a “kill switch” designed to cripple the company the moment he’s fired?

In Episode 44 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Nathan, and Morgan react to some of the most unbelievable hiring stories yet—from a programmer who sabotaged his employer with malicious code, to fake nurses who fooled healthcare systems, and a CEO who finally fired the most entitled employee he’d ever managed.

These stories prove that hiring the wrong person can cost far more than just a paycheck.

You’ll hear:

• A developer who planted malicious code that activated after he was terminated
• A CEO’s most satisfying firing after years of entitlement
• A fake nurse who worked at more than 40 healthcare facilities using stolen credentials
• Another healthcare worker who used someone else’s license number to get hired
• Why proper background checks and credential verification matter more than ever

These aren’t just crazy stories—they’re reminders that trust, verification, and accountability protect organizations from catastrophic mistakes.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

• Insider threats can be more dangerous than outside attacks.
• Great technical skills don’t replace integrity.
• Credential verification saves companies from massive liability.
• Hiring shortcuts can have life-changing consequences.
• Every organization needs strong hiring and background check processes.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

What do you do when your top employee disappears without a trace… only to discover weeks later that he was secretly in witness protection?

In Episode 43 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Nathan, and Morgan react to some of the wildest workplace stories yet — from a trusted employee who quietly stole hundreds of thousands from a newspaper, to a disappearing salesman whose real identity shocked everyone, to multiple real business owners sharing the worst hires they’ve ever experienced.

This episode is packed with fraud, unbelievable disappearances, hiring lessons, and behind-the-scenes stories from business leaders who’ve lived through it.

You’ll hear:

– A business manager who embezzled money for nearly a decade

– A salesman who suddenly disappeared… because he was in witness protection

– A law firm owner on learning to become a better manager

– An employee secretly skimming affiliate commissions

– A bookkeeper who stole $2.1 million using a church member’s identity

– A communications executive caught stealing coworkers’ credit cards

– A first-day employee who spent an hour on speakerphone during training

These aren’t just unbelievable stories—they’re reminders that trust must be earned, oversight matters, and sometimes the craziest hires aren’t who you expect.

💸 Think you’ve heard worse? Submit your story at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

• Trust should always be paired with accountability.

• Internal controls can prevent devastating fraud.

• Great résumés don’t guarantee great employees.

• Leadership requires self-awareness and constant growth.

• Sometimes the strangest stories are completely true.

⸻

Connect with Us:

🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com

📧 Email: [email protected]

📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod

📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod

🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire

—

Sponsored by BChex:

Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.

www.bchex.io

—

🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com

How does someone use 20 aliases, seven Social Security numbers, and fake credentials to get hired over and over again?

In Episode 42 of The Bad Hire, Ken, Morgan, and Emma react to some of the most unbelievable hiring failures yet—including a fake nurse who treated thousands of patients, a hospital employee who stole millions in medical supplies, and a school district that knowingly hired a teacher awaiting trial on multiple felony charges.

From shocking fraud to failures in background screening, these stories reveal what can happen when hiring safeguards break down.

You’ll hear:

• A fake nurse who used stolen identities to work across multiple states
• A hospital employee who stole millions in medical supplies
• A police department evidence manager stealing time from taxpayers
• A school district hiring someone awaiting felony charges
• A security company sabotaged from the inside by its own scheduler
• Why verification matters more than ever in today’s hiring environment

💸 Have your own unbelievable hiring story? Submit it at TheBadHire.com for a chance to win $10,000.

Key Takeaways:

• Verify credentials—not just license numbers.
• Never skip your hiring process because you’re under pressure.
• Internal sabotage can be just as damaging as external fraud.
• Small hiring shortcuts can lead to massive consequences.
• Strong background screening protects employees, customers, and organizations.

⸻
Connect with Us:
🌐 Website: TheBadHire.com
📧 Email: [email protected]
📱 Instagram: @thebadhirepod
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/thebadhirepod
🎵 TikTok: @thebadhirepod
💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/thebadhire
—
Sponsored by BChex:
Need better background checks? BChex makes hiring safer, faster, and simpler. From visitor management to employee monitoring—BChex has you covered.
www.bchex.io
—
🎙️ Submit your own bad hire story for a chance to win $10,000 at TheBadHire.com