HR Jacob Darr

In today’s webinar episode, we’re going to hear about leadership and development. It’s critical in human resources and business, but even more so in your personal life. Jacob begins the topic by revealing how many thoughts we have in a single day and explains how these are linked to our behavior. You can’t perform the same old actions each day and expect your life to change; you have to become aware of your unconscious thoughts that are hardwiring your brain to be the exact same every day. Then, you must change them. Human resource professionals are the backbone of any company, but only if they show and prove their value. To do this, we must be a coach to our employees, managers, and leaders. Jacob speaks to the importance of building a foundation in order to become a coach and talks about some mistakes that are often made in employer branding. The way to properly set up leadership and development is through your senior leadership team, and Jacob gives his recommendation on how to best utilize them. He discusses how you can build a coaching team by selecting the future leaders of your company. If you have a leader, manager, or department that is dysfunctional, you probably know that they need help but might not want to approach them about it. Jacob tells us a way to overcome this obstacle and get these dysfunctional people the help they need. Ending this webinar episode, Jacob answers questions posed by other HR professionals about creating relationships and the coaching that he provides.

This webinar episode focuses on employee terminations and risk in North Carolina. A lot of the time, HR professionals think that this is a horrible topic, and Jacob agrees that terminations are not happy moments. However, these are often positive actions for the company which improve employee understanding of how their jobs help the company. The termination process is one that, just like the hiring process, should build your brand. Jacob tells us about how to go about a “red carpet termination” that allows the former employee to see your company in a positive light as they leave. Joining Jacob is this episode is Charlot Wood. She is with a law firm in Winston-Salem and specifically practices HR law. Charlot says that there are some things which must be done right during a termination in order to make it as positive as possible, but there are three common hiccups among employers. She goes through these mistakes, how companies try to rationalize them, and how they can be resolved correctly. Charlot takes some questions from listeners, beginning with one about getting remote employees to return company equipment. Other questions deal with paying employees after termination. If you have a difficult owner or senior management and your current HR council is not persuasive, know that Charlot is the real deal. Jacob believes she is the best HR attorney in the state of North Carolina, and she will set the ownership and executives straight. Jacob leaves us with an HR exercise he encourages us to undertake today that will help us climb the career ladder.

Quite often in the news, we see stories about employee violence. Human resource professionals have to learn to train employees in a way that prevents these things from happening. It’s all about being kind to employees. To discuss this topic, Jacob is joined by Anthony Troeger. He is the President of Aardwolf International, a private investigation firm that specializes in workplace issues. Anthony is a formal federal agent and his company is based in North Carolina but operates throughout the United States. Aardwolf International assists in situations such as employee terminations where reactive violence is seen as a possibility. Anthony shares a story about one CEO who brought a gun into work and how his company worked to protect the other employees after his firing. There are some signs that can be used by HR professionals to anticipate employee violence, and Jacob asks Anthony what some of those are. We learn that one of the most obvious is making a threat, though some employees do not take these as seriously as they should. Anthony then goes into what his company does when they are called to deal with an employee threat. Anthony says that his company operates discreetly such that the number of employees who need to know why they are on the scene is limited. When Aardwolf International is present while severance packages are being handed out and the terminated employee asks who they are, Anthony often states that they are simply HR consultants. He tells us about secondary activities that security performs in situations like that while Jacob encourages everyone to be proactive and watch for violence indicators. Aardwolf International: https://www.aardwolfinternational.com/

Jacob Darr Associates does not represent candidates unless they have a work motivation and a personal motivation. Simply wanting a higher salary isn’t enough. Today, Jacob is talking about retraining your mind to set yourself up for more success. This translates into so many different areas in life. He tells us how humans are wired to avoid doing things they find scary, but knowing exactly what you want in life can be effective in overcoming this blockage.Big changes require big efforts, but Jacob shares a saying that can make these big changes more manageable. Based on books he has read lately, Jacob believes that it is not the smartest people who achieve the greatest success; the people who make the fewest excuses do. Indecision is the thief of opportunity, leading Jacob to explain the five-second window that humans have to make a decision before falling back into their comfort zone. What makes you comfortable can ruin you, and what makes you uncomfortable is the only way to grow. What you are and what you become depends on how you use your time. Jacob illustrates that the billionaire and the beggar both have twenty-four hours to work with each day. When Jacob realized that he had the power to move from being on autopilot to making decisions, everything changed. If you set yourself up to succeed, you will realize the number of excuses you were putting in the way of your hopes, dreams, confidence, potential, and courage. Take ownership of everything in your world and your problems will be solved. Start doing little things today.

Jim Abernethy is our guest on today’s episode. He is an award-winning author, photographer, publisher, cinematographer, and wildlife conservationist. Jim is the Founder of three non-profits as well as two for-profits and has been in the scuba diving business for over four decades. He has a business degree, but says that business seems to come naturally to him.  Jim has quite a unique recruiting process in his businesses. He constantly has people contacting his office looking for work, and he takes us through the steps they must complete before a hiring decision is made. We hear what Jim tells candidates who have gotten far in the hiring process, during which he reveals that about 90% of candidates who get as far as speaking with Jim get hired. Regarding the positive company culture that he has built, Jim says he believes everything starts at the top. He recalls one employee who adjusted a fault overnight to fit the culture and create a better experience for customers. Jim believes that you must walk the walk.  The main focus in everything that Jim does in conservation. He says that our planet is headed in the wrong direction but that this presents an opportunity for us to come up with solutions. Jim and Jacob exchange their thoughts on how if you are in-shape as an entrepreneur, it will directly translate into your business’ success. A repeated point that Jim brings up is happiness, which also aligns with this philosophy. We finish the episode by hearing about Jim’s books and adventure offerings.   Jim Abernethy’s Scuba Adventures: https://scuba-adventures.com/ Ocean Education Publishing: http://www.oceaneducationpublishing.com/ Jim on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jim_abernethy/

Recruiting is harder than it’s ever been, and it’s only going to get harder as AI becomes more prominent. If you are a recruiter, you need to first think about if you are in the right job. Are you happy when you come to work? Jacob says that you should be excited about what the day will bring. Recruiters are underestimated in a lot of companies, yet he felt so rewarded during his time as a recruiter. If you don’t have that same outlook, it might be time for you to reconsider your position.  Jacob reveals that typically, the best candidates never come from a job board. Because of this, a good recruiter must know how to hunt. We hear about why Jacob Darr Associates finds more success than internal recruiters before advice is given about changing your recruiting approach. As an internal recruiter, your biggest job is being a salesperson; it’s your job to convince the best people, all of whom are already in well-paying positions, to leave their comfort zone. You have to be involved and motivated.  If you have a management role in HR, stop being a robot and change the system. It’s extremely advantageous to get executives involved and to set a high bar for talent. It’s common to keep lowering the bar if you don’t find the perfect person, and this leads to hiring average people. You should never compromise on talent. This all goes back to the DNA of what a recruiter should be.