With a hint of quirk and a lot of lived experience, Human Resources and Leadership professionals are “Killing HR One Topic at a time”. They discuss practical and relatable situations to help leaders and early career folks alike.
The People Problem That Isn’t: Fix Your Process; Not Your People
Most performance issues aren't people problems. They are process problems in disguise. In this episode of HR Office Hours, host Maddie Hollis sits down with Grant Harris, speaker, consultant, and author, to unpack "Fix Your Process, Not Your People."
Grant shares how organizations routinely mislabel capable employees as disengaged or difficult when the real issue is unclear expectations, broken handoffs, and poor process design; not a lack of talent.
Grant also shares his personal journey as a late-diagnosed autistic professional, and how it shaped his neuroinclusive lens on workplace friction.
Connect with Grant Harris on LinkedIn and subscribe to his newsletter, The Friction Brief.
Grant Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantharris5/
The Friction Brief Newsletter link:
https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-friction-brief-7491623818424238080/
DisruptHR link: https://vimeo.com/1196803973
17 Sept 2026
Bonus Live: Celebrating One Year of HR Office Hours Podcast | Anniversary Special with Past Guests
Join host Maddie Hollis and returning guests David Gaspin Vanna Winland, Meredyth Ring, Cindy Lynch, and Ben Cruz as we celebrate the one-year anniversary of HR Office Hours! In this special live episode, we reflect on memorable moments from the past year, revisit fan-favorite topics, and look ahead to what's coming next.
In this episode:
🔹 How the podcast got started — the origin story with Dave
🔹 Vanna on AI then & now: has the conversation aged like milk or fine wine?
🔹 Meredyth announces her new video series partially inspired by the podcast
🔹 Dave's catchphrase "Suck it up and say the thing" — and why it still resonates
🔹 The compliment sandwich debate: why it doesn't work (and what to do instead)
🔹 Cindy's unforgettable line: "Leadership is one long conversation"
🔹 Ben's legendary chair story
🔹 The knowing-doing gap in leadership development — and how to close it
🔹 What's coming in October 2026 and beyond
1 Sept 2026
The Sales Solution: Persuasion That’s Relational, Not Transactional
In this episode of HR Office Hours, host Maddie Hollis sits down with sales expert Beth McClary-Wolford, founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Superpower Strategies, to reframe what "selling" really means. Beth shares her philosophy that everyone sells, including HR professionals, and that true influence comes from solving problems, not manipulating people.
Whether you're in HR, recruiting, another leadership position or just want to get better at pitching ideas and asking for what you need, this conversation offers practical, human-centered strategies for persuasion that builds relationships instead of burning them.
Connect with Beth-
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelizabethmcclary/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelizabethmcclary/)
Superpower Strategies: https://superpowerstrategies.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/superpower-strategies/
Behind the Business (prior event info): https://superpowerstrategies.zohobackstage.com/BehindtheBusinessTheStoriesStrategyRelationshipsBehindGrowingaCompany#/
Link to Melanie Silva's episode:
https://open.spotify.com/show/7AHYwlcTJa06jCHUp1j4kO (https://open.spotify.com/show/7AHYwlcTJa06jCHUp1j4kO)
Article about the comeback of landlines:
https://www.parents.com/parents-are-bringing-back-landlines-11996760
3 Aug 2026
Quieting the Noise: AI without Anxiety
IBM AI Advocate and Technology Writer, Vanna Winland, joins in to discuss how we can quiet the noise around AI while embracing its proper use with a critical eye.
Links to Vanna and other mentions:
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/vwinland/
A24’s AI Backlash Is an Old Creative Argument in New Clothes
https://hackernoon.com/a24s-ai-backlash-is-an-old-creative-argument-in-new-clothes
All Vanna’s articles on Hackernoon
https://hackernoon.com/u/vanna-w
Github
https://github.com/vwinland vwinland.github.io
IBM Think
https://www.ibm.com/think/author/vanna-winland
New York Times The Daily Episode “What is AI Actually Doing to the Economy?”
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/27/podcasts/the-daily/ai-economy.html
30 Jun 2026
Engage Your Team, Amplify Your Impact
Melanie Silva shares with us about the importance of employee engagement through community involvement, charitable giving and giving circles as one option, and shared purpose through dedicating our time, treasure, and talent in our community.
We can go beyond pizza parties and gold watches in showing our appreciation to employees and we can definitely start by asking!
Connect with Melanie Silva:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-silva-a809056a/
The UNFoundation: https://theunfoundation.org/
Rad Work: https://radwrk.com/
Hinton & Company: https://hintonandco.com/
Krantzsy Boursiquot Episode:
https://open.spotify.com/show/7AHYwlcTJa06jCHUp1j4kO
Resources Mentioned:
The UNFoundation: https://theunfoundation.org/
The Alice Fund : https://www.thealicefund.org/
Grapevine: https://www.grapevine.org/
The Awesome Foundation: https://www.awesomefoundation.org/en
31 May 2026
Holistic Leadership: Clarity & Conversations
Cindy Lynch, Founder & Senior Partner at Six20 Partners (six20partners.com) shares her leadership insights.
We discuss the importance of setting expectations, clarity in conversations, and the sacredness of one on ones.
You can connect with Cindy on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/cindymlynch
24 Mar 2026
Lighting Up the Leadership Journey
Meredyth Ring of Guiding Light Leadership shares insightful facts, tips, and best practices about leadership and talent development.
Connect with Meredyth:
https://www.guidinglightleadership.com/
Book mentioned in podcast:
Resilience That Works: Eight Practices for Leadership and Life
https://shop.ccl.org/usa/resilience-that-works.html
3 Mar 2026
Epic Storybuilding through Creativity + Paychecks
Published author Krantzsy Boursiquot shares perspectives on the traditional 9 to 5 as a means to an end, creativity, specifically poetry, as a way to combat burnout, and making our stories epic.
17 Feb 2026
Rural HR: Creating Connection in Smaller Communities
In this episode, Maddie Hollis and guest Chris Adamson discuss their shared experiences leading Human Resources in rural, smaller communities. They reminisce on the unique challenges and fond times connecting and growing in a small community present.
3 Feb 2026
Build Partnerships; Hold the Drama
In this episode, Keller Williams Market Center Administrator Kassandra Stephens shares valuable insights and lessons about work community done right, the best kind of desserts auctions, and establishing appropriate training and reporting processes.
17 Jan 2026
Workplace Thoughts from a Zoomer
In this episode, earlish career chemical engineer Ben Cruz shares his thoughts on integrating as a new member of a work team, career wins and disappointments, and funny moments so far.
4 Nov 2025
Liked, Disliked, and LinkedIn Drama
In this episode, we discuss whether middle management is dead, if HR is your friend, a ridiculous (to us) employee relations investigations, and give props to managers who mentored us.
Articles we read for reference:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracylawrence/2025/04/08/burnout-by-design-how-cutting-middle-management-affects-company-culture/ https://www.fastcompany.com/91377552/middle-management-is-dead
https://firstup.io/press-release/shrinking-middle-management-layer-puts-pressure-on-workplace-communication-and-engagement/
1 Oct 2025
Hugging it out with AI
From job hugging to AI aiding in performance management, we tackle the changing landscape of workplace issues. There’s a lot packed in this episode, but never in an ish sandwich!
21 Sept 2025
Saying the Things- Episode One
In this episode, we discuss the impact of outside behavior in the workplace, the dreaded “ish sandwich “, and almost getting kicked out of the Friday Bagel Club.
Contact HR Office Hours
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of HR Office Hours?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
