The Moss HR Minute

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She helps hundreds of business owners get their people operations right — then had to sit down and do the same for her own company.

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, the script gets flipped. Michele Spiezia — Process Architect, People Person, and General Manager of Ellysium Racing — takes over the host chair and puts Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, in the hot seat for a raw, honest, and genuinely entertaining conversation about what it actually takes to build and scale an HR business from the inside out.

Nicole shares the origin story of Moss Consulting, the moment she realized her systems couldn't keep up with her growth, and what it looked like to implement the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) inside an HR company that was already helping everyone else solve their people problems.

Key topics discussed in this episode:

How Moss Consulting started — the conversation that launched everything and what problem Nicole was really trying to solve
Why genuine relationship and trust-building has been the core scaling strategy behind Moss Consulting's growth to 55+ clients
The breaking point moment when a cell phone and an email inbox stopped being enough — and how HubSpot saved the operation
What the "rizz" in HR actually is and why Nicole refuses to call it a soft skill
How Moss Consulting interviews and what the three-yes rule means for building a team with the right intangibles
What EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) is and why Nicole recommends it without hesitation to any founder still figuring it out as they go
What happened when Nicole's own leadership team gave her a performance review — and what it revealed
Why the books Traction and Good to Great belong on every founder's shelf before they ever talk to an EOS implementer
What the perfect Moss Consulting client actually looks like — and why it's simpler than most founders think

This episode is essential listening for any founder or operator who has been running on instinct, momentum, and sheer will — and is starting to wonder if there's a better way to build. Nicole delivers the kind of honesty about her own company that most business owners are too guarded to share publicly. It is a conversation about courage, clarity, and what it actually means to build something real.

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:
https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:
https://www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:
@TheMossHRMinute

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"Don't blame the lettuce." If your team is struggling, the problem probably started long before you noticed — and the fix is more systemic than you think.

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with Michele Spiezia — Process Architect, People Person, and General Manager of Ellysium Racing — for one of the most wide-ranging and thought-provoking conversations the show has had yet.

Michele has spent her career turning chaos into systems across industries ranging from restaurants and film to tech startups, Montessori education, and professional motorsport. She breaks down what process architecture really means, how to build teams that don't fall apart under pressure, and why most businesses get the people side wrong long before they realize it.

Key topics discussed in this episode:

• What process architecture actually is — and why every growing business needs it before they think they do
• Human-first leadership in an increasingly automated world and why it matters more than ever
• The VUCA framework (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) and how to build a team and mindset that functions inside that reality
• Hyper-personalization and its real impact on the modern workforce and team collaboration
• What Gen Z's resistance to AI is actually signaling — and what leaders should do about it
• Why critical thinking has become the scarcest and most valuable skill in today's workplace
• The story behind Ellysium EDU — using motorsport as a context to teach the foundational skills that classrooms are no longer building
• Can we versus should we: the question every leader needs to ask before deploying new technology or processes

This episode is essential listening for founders, operators, and people leaders who are tired of systems that collapse the moment things accelerate — and who want a sharper framework for building teams, processes, and cultures that hold up under real pressure. Michele brings the kind of hard-won, cross-industry clarity that you rarely hear in one conversation.

Connect with Michele Spiezia:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelespiezia/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewholestory/
Website: https://www.ellysium.co

Contact Moss Consulting

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

@TheMossHRMinute

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What does a modern corporate internship look like when you completely dismantle the legacy coffee-run stigma and hand young professionals the keys to live human resources pipelines? 

In this special edition of The Moss HR Minute, Moss Consulting HR Services hands the microphones over to their Summer 2026 Intern Team. Hosted by Evie Fisher (Strategic Communication & Marketing) alongside Avery Walters (Management & HR) and Cayman Hasseberg (HR & Business Management), this episode pulls back the curtain on the next generation of workforce talent. 

The trio shares an inside look at navigating high-growth organizational scaling from the ground floor. From processing live small business payroll to observing real-time employee relations and joining co-founders on-site with clients on day one, the interns unpack how bridging the gap between classroom theory and chaotic corporate curveballs reshapes their career trajectory. 

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• Busting the Intern Myth: Shifting from baseline administrative errands to executing hands-on project workflows across client communications, content development, and payroll management. 
• The Frontera Connection: How strong professional networks and trusted partnerships with Frontera Search Partners sparked the bridge to Moss Consulting. 
• Classroom Theory vs. Corporate Curveballs: Why managing unexpected operational shifts and joining executive leadership on-site outpaces textbook case studies. 
• Dismantling the Cold Corporate Stigma: Redefining human resources from a rigid, "robotic" compliance checklist into an empathetic, relationship-driven culture. 
• Navigating the Remote Communication Field: Mastering virtual time management, project deadlines, and proactive accountability within an interconnected hybrid environment. 
• Looking Ahead to the Summer Summit: The excitement surrounding multi-state team alignment, executive sourcing with the head of recruiting, and face-to-face team connection. 

The 2026 intern team details how building cross-functional trust and peer-to-peer collaboration forms their foundational professional standard, proving that future-proofing your human capital begins by investing deeply in early-career minds.

Contact Moss Consulting

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

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What happens to your business continuity when you mistake an administrative logistics problem for a core human resources strategy? 

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with Frank Koen, RPh, President of CloudRx.com. Frank is a premier healthcare and pharmacy operations executive who has scaled multi-site networks across the country, transitioning his deep enterprise execution wisdom from major brands like Albertsons and Walgreens directly to the small business sector.

The conversation targets the sharp operational friction points that erupt when scaling companies prematurely promote high-performing operators into management roles without a stabilized training support structure. Frank highlights the tactical value of structured data visibility, breaking down his proprietary framework to help small business owners automate repetitive, non-value-add tasks so their specialized talent can practice at the absolute top of their license.

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Operator Promotion Trap: Why pushing your fastest baseline executor into a leadership vacancy without structural resources costs you both positions.
• The 40-20-40 Strategic Rule: Balancing your organizational timeline by committing 40% to deliberate planning, 20% to execution, and 40% to deep performance review cycles.
• Providing True North Accountability: Eliminating structural ambiguity so that your frontline staff clearly understand the core metric driving your company's survival.
• The Change Curve and Uncertainty Fear: Recognizing that an exodus of talent isn't caused by a fear of operational change, but rather by leadership's lack of transparency.
• Automating Repetitive Administrative Tasks: Deploying artificial intelligence and robotic process automation (RPA) to handle non-value-add processes, allowing specialized workers to spend more time engaging customers.
• The Core Division of HR and Recruiting: Unpacking the unique, separate skill sets required to navigate high-volume candidate sourcing without overwhelming your baseline human resource compliance teams.

Frank reveals how treating service delivery as a dynamic, plan-driven science can radically accelerate multi-state market expansion, proving that operational clarity is an essential prerequisite to long-term profitability and team trust.

Guest Information Frank Koen, RPh, President of CloudRx.com 

Email: [email protected] 

Phone: (630) 329-9448 

Website: cloudrx.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankkoen/

Contact Moss Consulting 

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs: https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services: www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show: @TheMossHRMinute

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In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with John Alvarez, a Retirement Plan Advisor with IMA Retirement. This conversation tackles a critical topic that many small and mid-sized business owners view as a heavy administrative burden or overhead expense: employer-sponsored retirement plans. 

John shifts the perspective entirely, breaking down how a well-designed retirement program functions as a strategic total rewards tool, an aggressive talent acquisition engine, and a major tax-advantage savings vehicle for the owners themselves . He walks through the threshold of when a growing business should look beyond simple individual options and explore the massive flexibility of a true 401(k) framework . 

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Growth Inflection Point: Why hitting 8 to 12 full-time employees is the ideal starting window to upgrade your corporate retirement strategy. 
• 401(k) vs. SEP vs. Simple IRA: Unpacking the administrative trade-offs, contribution limits, and structural flexibility of each plan type . 
• High-Risk Compliance Pitfalls: The severe operational and financial penalties associated with late payroll deposits, administrative notices, and failed discrimination testing . 
• The "Co-Pilot" Advisory Model: What business owners should demand from an active advisory firm, including rigorous vendor benchmarking and transparent plan governance . 
• Beating the Odds in the Talent War: Leveraging Safe Harbor provisions and Roth options to secure top-tier talent without draining company margins . 
• Massive New Tax Incentives: Navigating up to $5,000 in annual startup credits and specialized matching contributions under the modern tax code . 

John highlights that while group medical sits at number one, a strong retirement plan is consistently rated by employees as the second most vital piece of an organization's total rewards package. John delivers this masterclass on future-proofing your human capital—all explained within one Moss Minute. 

Guest Information

John Alvarez, IMA Retirement

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdalvarez/

Website: imaretirement.com 

Phone: Direct (469)916-3211 | Mobile (214)632-0555

Contact Moss Consulting

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

@TheMossHRMinute

IMAAS is not part of the Moss Consulting Group and does not share views or opinions. This communication is not a solicitation or offer to sell securities or investment services. All content and communication are for general informational purposes only and does not guarantee future performance or success. No cash or non-cash compensation, directly or indirectly, was provided. Investment advisory services provided by IMA Advisory Services, Inc. (IMAAS), doing business as IMA Retirement. 

IMAAS is an investment adviser registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (CRD #112091). Registration as an investment adviser does not imply any level of skill or training. IMAAS is also a registered insurance agency. The oral and written communications of an adviser provide you with information about which you determine to hire or retain an adviser. For more information please visit: https://adviserinfo.sec.gov and search for our firm name. 

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What invisible compliance gaps are left exposed in your backend systems while your business moves at a breakneck operational pace? 

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, is joined by Tori Guevara, an HR Manager at the firm. Filmed on-site in Denver, Colorado, this conversation breaks down the rapid scaling process after Moss Consulting experienced its own massive headcount explosion—growing from 9 to 25 employees in just 90 days.

The conversation focuses on how rapid growth creates intense organizational friction, exposing businesses to steep penalties if operations outpace infrastructure. Nicole details the mechanics of the firm’s proprietary "Integrity Check" framework, outlining how to transform a chaotic, unmapped human resources setup into a disciplined, data-driven one-year operational plan that directly safeguards small business payroll and corporate compliance.

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Vulnerability of a Rapidly Scaling Team: Navigating the severe cultural and operational stressors that occur when a business expands past single-digit headcount milestones.
• The HRIS and Payroll Integrity Check: De-risking your entire back-end framework by executing an extensive audit of historical files, documentation gaps, and structural liabilities.
• The High Cost of Wrong I-9 Tracking: Understanding the massive financial exposure hidden in unstandardized I-9 record-keeping, where simple errors can result in government audit fines reaching up to $2,250 per non-compliant form.
• Granular Department Turnover Audits: Isolating specific team metrics to determine if sudden spikes in turnover are caused by localized structural work environments or middle managers who need leadership training.
• Building a 30-60-90 Day Compliance Roadmap: Moving beyond standard "good enough for now" fixes to systematically prioritize must-fix financial liabilities ahead of cultural enhancements.
• Predictable Hourly Visibility Over PEPM Fees: Eliminating open-ended retainer checks by deploying automated, weekly hour-tracking reports to give founders complete transparency over their labor spend.

Nicole and Tori outline the emotional and tactical steps required to manage high-speed growth, proving that establishing clean standard operating procedures (SOPs) gives operators the peace of mind they need to build sustainable teams and long-term trust.

Guest Information 

Tori Guevara, HR Manager 

Website: www.mossconsulting.com 

Consultation Link: https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Contact Moss Consulting 

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs: https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services: www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

@TheMossHRMinute

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How can small to mid-sized organizations confidently provide corporate healthcare programs that genuinely protect their margins while competing for high-tier talent? 

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, is joined by Alyssa Chavez, the firm's first-ever employee who has scaled from an HR generalist into a full-blown HR manager. Recorded on-site in Denver, Colorado, this conversation turns conventional healthcare routing upside down by analyzing the strategic partnerships required to audit, design, and implement high-performance plans.

The discussion targets the severe operational blind spots that occur when a growing company defaults to the same insurance renewal year after year. Nicole outlines how business operators can safely utilize creative benefits alternatives, leverage multi-state broker networks, and implement staff education models to transform a traditional cost center into an aggressive recruitment and retention asset.

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Annual Benefits Audit Imperative: Why remaining with a single legacy broker without an annual or bi-annual market evaluation hiddenly leaks capital from your business.
• The Employee Healthcare Education Gap: Recognizing that perceived plan weaknesses are often just a lack of communication regarding built-in EAP systems or half-deductible HRA programs.
• Strategic Risk Splitting for Demographics: A real-world Texas case study involving a creative company split to isolate older demographics on traditional carrier paths while moving younger hires to alternative community pools.
• Leveraging Large-Scale Negotiation Networks: Utilizing the systemic power of major brokerages like Higginbotham to push back against aggressive 48% premium increases from national carriers.
• De-Risking the Pharmaceutical and High-Claims Landscape: Aligning with specialized healthcare actuaries and innovators like Jamie Lagarde at Masonry Health to isolate and restructure systemic operational waste.
• Automating the Heavy Census Lift: How embedding a dedicated human resources firm takes the tedious burden of tracking dependent data fields and birthdays off the operator.

Nicole and Alyssa break down the structural mechanics of values-based plan design, proving that flexible, compliant benefits strategy is an essential cornerstone for long-term organizational health and employee trust.

Contact Moss Consulting 

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs: https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services: www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

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What happens when your human resources strategy relies entirely on reactive panic rather than proactive planning? 

In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with Nyah Pittman, an MBA-credentialed Human Resources Generalist at the firm. Nyah specializes in multi-state operational environments, non-profits, and healthcare structures, bringing enterprise-level expertise directly to small business owners.

The conversation targets the invisible liabilities that drain profitability and talent from growing organizations, ranging from unstructured employee relations to mishandled staff reductions. Nyah shares how to shift from transactional fixing to strategic, data-driven workforce optimization, offering a clear roadmap for founders who want to secure higher retention rates and scale with confidence.

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Cost of Unstructured Employee Relations: Why handling interpersonal friction without a formal framework transforms minor miscommunications into costly lawsuits or sudden resignations.
• The First 90 Days Retention Secrets: Breaking down the onboarding journey to explicitly show new hires "what right looks like" across company culture, expectations, and role definition.
• Managing a Professional Reduction in Force: Navigating the complex administrative groundwork required across benefits, payroll coordination, and final paychecks before making an announcement.
• The Remaining Staff Ripple Effect: Why surviving employees watch departures closely and how your exit process directly dictates ongoing company morale and leadership trust.
• Bankable Metrics Over Manager Fixes: Utilizing stay interviews and engagement dashboards to uncover the tools and operational support your front-line staff actually need to succeed.
• The Lowest-Level Contributor Challenge: Why founders must occasionally bypass middle management to gather raw, unfiltered operational data straight from the source.

Nyah details how to establish proper structural integrity within your team, proving that disciplined human resources design is a critical profitability lever for any modern operator—all explained within one Moss Minute.

Guest Information 

Nyah Pittman, MBA, HR Generalist 

[email protected]

Website: www.mossconsulting.com 

Contact Moss Consulting 

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

@TheMossHRMinute

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In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with Jaxson Hodges, a commercial insurance agent specializing in safety and risk at LeBaron & Carroll Insurance. Joined by Preslie Deusenbery, Phoenix Area HR Manager, this conversation tackles the common pitfalls business owners encounter when navigating commercial coverage, audits, and hidden liabilities. 

Jaxson emphasizes a proactive partnership approach, noting that most business owners unfortunately do not discover their coverage is wrong until a crisis strikes. He breaks down how commercial premiums are directly linked to earnings and sales volumes, warning that scaling businesses can easily face steep audit penalties if they fail to update their insurance carriers after a big year. The conversation also shifts focus toward shifting insurance from a baseline administrative expense into an attractive asset for underwriters. 

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The Danger of Data Blind Spots: Why cyber-type claims are catching modern business owners unprepared, and the critical need for standalone policies or endorsements. 
• The "Credit Score" of Workers' Comp: Understanding your Experience Modification Factor (E-mod) and how historical claim data dictates your baseline operational costs. 
• The Sustainable Safety Culture: How LeBaron & Carroll works from the top down to build proactive internal safety habits that deliberately push E-mod ratings down. 
• The Misclassification Trap: Why misclassifying on-site field staff as office employees to reduce upfront rates guarantees brutal financial corrections during annual audits. 
• General Liability Myths: Demystifying what a general policy actually covers versus professional liability (Errors & Omissions) for licensed operations. 
• The Hidden Auto Gap: Navigating "Hired and Non-Owned Auto Liability" and protecting your brand when employees run work-related errands in their personal vehicles. 

Jaxson serves as a powerful advocate for total operational transparency, urging owners to look at their insurance agent not as an auditor to hide things from, but as a strategic consultant. Jaxson details these complex risk-management pillars within one Moss Minute. 

Guest Information 

Jaxson Hodges, LeBaron & Carroll Insurance 

Email: [email protected]  

Website: www.lebaroncarroll.com 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaxson-hodges-98b02819a/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/safetyandrisk_lebaroncarroll/ 

Contact Moss Consulting

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

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In this episode of The Moss HR Minute, Nicole Moss, Co-Founder of Moss Consulting HR Services, sits down with Eric Banzhaf, a mid-market Human Capital Management (HCM) consultant with Paychex. Operating out of the Denver area, Eric specializes in helping mid-sized and growing companies evaluate their people infrastructure to determine when it’s time to upgrade internal systems before organizational growth creates friction. 

The conversation focuses on the true liabilities of payroll and the crucial infrastructure changes required when a company scales from 25 to 100 employees. Eric addresses a common founder assumption—that basic off-the-box software is "good enough"—and breaks down why crossing the 10-employee threshold transforms payroll from a routine admin task into a major compliance landscape. They dive into the complex world of city and county-specific taxes, multi-state regulations, and the peace of mind that comes from true shared liability models. 

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

• The 10-Employee Inflection Point: Why reaching double-digit team sizes requires a shift toward complex systems and outsourced HR and payroll solutions. 
• Hidden Tax Liabilities: Navigating local anomalies like the Denver Occupational Privilege Tax and Colorado FMLI before getting hit with back-taxes and fines. 
• Shared Liability and Power of Attorney: Understanding how enterprise partners like Paychex legally take on a business's tax liability and file accurately on their behalf. 
• Standalone Software vs. Bundled HR vs. PEOs: How to look beyond commoditized, transactional payroll to find a platform that matches your specific administrative goals. 
• The Employee Interface Differentiator: Combating skilled labor shortages by offering younger generations a centralized mobile application to manage W-2s, pay stubs, and 401(k) deductions all in one location. 
• The Entrepreneurial Foundation: How Eric’s background in studying entrepreneurship at Kansas State allows him to build custom solutions with deep empathy for creators. 

This episode serves as an essential framework for founders and operators who want to transition from a vulnerable, reactive business state to a secure, strategic foundation. Eric delivers these technical, high-stakes insights with accessible clarity—all within one Moss Minute. 

Guest Information

Eric Banzhaf, Mid-Market HCM Consultant at Paychex

Email: [email protected]

Phone (Mobile): (303) 829-8892

Fax: (866) 587-5988

Website: paychex.com

Consultation Link: meetings.groove.clari.com/ebanzhaf

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericbanzhaf/

Contact Moss Consulting

Book time with Nicole to talk about your HR needs:

https://mossconsulting.com/book-a-free-consultation

Learn more about Moss Consulting HR Services:

www.mossconsulting.com

Follow the show:

@TheMossHRMinute