Podcast appearances and mentions of rebecca jacobs

Welcome to the second of our three-part series on Communicating Climate Change. Three live sessions aimed at getting to the heart of how the way we talk about climate has shifted and how stakeholders across the media, business, and nonprofit world are adapting to meet communities where they are.Hosted in partnership with the Impact Communications Institute as part of the US Climate Action Summit. In this episode, Adam speaks to Climate and Health consultant Rebecca Jacobs, as well as Sergio Velasquez-Rose, Global Head of Strategy, Insight, and Analytics at Potential Energy Coalition.

Donor advised funds - what are they? How are they being used? And what innovations are these peculiar giving vehicles introducing to the field of philanthropy? In this episode of Tech in the Arts, Lead Research Ian Hawthorne sits down with Rebecca Jacobs, head of community funds at CharityVest, a young, digitally native DAF sponsor.   See more at amt-lab.org

Description: Join us in this thought-provoking episode as we delve into the world of HR and explore the transformative journey from an operational HR role to a strategic HR function. Discover the pivotal shift from transactional tasks to forward-thinking initiatives that drive organizational success. Our expert guests share their valuable insights on building strategic HR capabilities, fostering leadership buy-in, leveraging data analytics for informed decision-making, and cultivating a culture of continuous improvement. Whether you're an HR professional or a business leader seeking to unlock the full potential of your HR team, this episode offers practical guidance for navigating this critical transformation. Resources: Strategic Workforce Planning Guide   MRA Membership  About MRA  Let's Connect: Guest Bio - Rebecca Jacobs  Guest LinkedIn Profile - Rebecca Jacobs  Guest LinkedIn Profile - Katie Coulson  Host Bio - Sophie Boler  Host LinkedIn Profile - Sophie Boler  Transcript: Transcripts are computer generated -- not 100% accurate word-for-word. 00:00:00:00 - 00:00:21:03 Unknown Hello everybody and welcome to 30 minute Thrive, your go to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA, the Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I'm your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you're here. 00:00:21:04 - 00:00:51:03 Unknown Now it's time to thrive. Well, hello, everybody, and welcome to this episode of 30 minute Thrive. Kind of got a special episode today because we're joined with two awesome HR Professionals from our Ohio division. Katie Coulson is our HR director at MRA company. Kwest group has been there for a little over seven years, but she has over 17 years of overall HR experience and is really passionate about the work she does and is coming with a lot of great advice and knowledge today. 00:00:51:05 - 00:01:23:18 Unknown In our second guest is Rebecca Jacobs. She's general counsel and director at MRA, Ohio. And with 25 plus years of employment law experience, she really ensures that our members are well supported in their HR and talent development needs. So I'm really excited to talk about the shift from operational to strategic HR With you both today. But before we get into that, rebecca, i don't know if you want to talk a little bit about why we brought katie onto the podcast today and maybe a little bit about how you two have worked together in the past. 00:01:23:20 - 00:01:48:02 Unknown Sure, sure. In Columbus, I am also the facilitator for our in-person Columbus roundtable, and Katie has been a very active member of our roundtables for quite some time. And I realized as we meeting every month and people are getting to know each other and talking through issues and questions, just the wealth of knowledge and experience that she has. 00:01:48:04 - 00:02:15:15 Unknown And then just getting a chance to talk to her and see what what she has offered with all of our roundtable attendees. Absolutely. Well, thank you again for joining us. Well, let's dive right into the first question, and that's really talk about what is the benefit of transitioning from operational HR to strategic. And Katie, you can kind of start us off with this one. 00:02:15:17 - 00:02:44:09 Unknown Yeah. So I really think that this happened for me during COVID with Kwest Group, and it really was taking the organization and leading them in a time of uncertainty through that time. And making sure that they were successful throughout it. So that would be like the number one benefit for me. And I think that for all organizations, this is a huge benefit because it really puts HR at the forefront and it doesn't leave people questioning, well, what do we have an HR department for? 00:02:44:11 - 00:03:14:02 Unknown Absolutely. Rebecca, do you have anything? Oh, absolutely. The probably the best benefit is the fact that the senior leaders do see HR as being that strategic business partner. The the thing that we would like to avoid in HR is for the business leaders to be off making strategy, thinking that payroll is just there. I'm sorry. That is there just to run payroll and make sure people get their their health insurance and land company parties once in a while. 00:03:14:02 - 00:03:37:08 Unknown But to actually have HR involved in there so that they're not making decisions that then are difficult for HR to provision and support. Absolutely. Well, kind of moving on to some of the key challenges, what are some of the key challenges that HR departments face when trying to shift from operational to strategic roles? And how do you overcome that? 00:03:37:10 - 00:04:00:05 Unknown I think one of the biggest things, honestly, is getting stuck in the day to day. You're sorting through all of these weeds and you're just down at that level where you're so embedded into what is going on day to day, just so that the business is operating, rather than focusing on that long term planning and that climate for the, you know, on the business for the strategies to be successful. 00:04:00:05 - 00:04:25:19 Unknown So that's I think that's a key challenge on my end. Another challenge that i've heard from talking to multiple HR Professionals, especially in the ohio region is is getting their senior leadership to accept that they need to be involved in strategic decisions and moving them past that mindset of oh is in this box and this these are the things they're going to take care of. 00:04:25:19 - 00:04:56:00 Unknown So that is another huge challenge is the mindset of the other leaders. Yeah, absolutely. Everybody's got to be on board. I'm part. So how can the HR professionals and the HR leaders align their goals and objectives with the overall strategic direction of the organization? Either one of you can jump in on this one. I think Rebecca was saying it really well earlier, you know, making sure HR has that seat at the table for those strategic initiatives, because it's not about the party planning. 00:04:56:00 - 00:05:17:06 Unknown It's not just about the payroll. It's not just about sorting through those weeds and being able to have that seat at the table to make sure that the goals that they are focused on, again, not just the day to day, but those long team, long term aligned with the mission and the values and the overall company vision going forward. 00:05:17:08 - 00:05:36:14 Unknown And a key aspect of this, too, is just making sure that you're taking the time. And I know Katie is a great example of this, too, just taking the time to talk to all of the business leaders and one on one talking to them. What are your challenges? What are your opportunities? Where do you want to go? What are some things that you're thinking about doing in the future? 00:05:36:16 - 00:06:03:22 Unknown And really not only demonstrating that you're that good business partner, but also getting to know them well enough so that you can see, okay, I see that they have this strategy where they want to enter in this particular geographic region. Let's talk about how HR can help them with recruiting in that area of thinking about who can who is here, who can work remote in that area, and really coming alongside them and understanding what they need. 00:06:04:00 - 00:06:29:12 Unknown And, Katie, you've had firsthand experience with this, but what are some of the best practices that you would recommend for HR professionals to develop and implement strategic initiatives that really drive that organizational success? Yeah. So I've found that throughout the years in the different organizations I've worked for, that there's like a six step process for me that really works well. 00:06:29:14 - 00:06:53:06 Unknown So the first thing obviously is going through that planning phase, determining who is going to own what in that organization's success in those strategic initiatives. And then obviously setting and writing down that long term clear strategy or strategies. Obviously, if we don't write it down, it's not it's not going to be enforced. And then delegating some of that work, remember, you've got to get out of the weeds. 00:06:53:06 - 00:07:19:23 Unknown So who is And if you're on each our department of one, get a buddy in some other functional area to help you out, to delegate some of that work. And then obviously executing the strategies, monitoring the progress and performance scorecards are amazing, which we can talk about in a few minutes. But I absolutely love scorecards and then make changes to those plans where necessary and then obviously rinse and repeat. 00:07:20:01 - 00:07:46:10 Unknown Best practices can list or do anything to add, and I cannot add anything to the list of numbered lists. Love it. Well, awesome. Katie, I know you said you can talk a little bit more about this, but how can the HR professionals effectively leverage that data and analytics to make informed decisions and contribute strategically to the organization? Yes. 00:07:46:10 - 00:08:17:14 Unknown So I briefly talked about scorecards, and I like to joke with my team personally. And they, you know, we have good fun with this, but I am a people person, not a numbers person. So data and analytics is not my favorite thing, but having a scorecard and, you know, an HR Scorecard can be something as simple as, you know, if you're training, trying to build up your workforce and train them, you know, having that metric to say, okay, this is the percentage of workforce that is going to be trained in 2023 and then we want to see an improvement to that in 2024. 00:08:17:14 - 00:08:42:19 Unknown Again, getting with the strategic other functional areas is what's going to help drive that scorecard and what you put on it. But training is definitely at the forefront for us now. So that's why I mentioned that one. And then another one is obviously understanding that the people within your functional area and then obviously the other functional area leaders that those people match with the values and the vision of the organization. 00:08:42:19 - 00:09:14:14 Unknown So having that data into a scorecard is what I call it, is extremely helpful and helps make the decisions so that the the organization continues to strategically move forward. Rebecca, any other advice on this one? No, but can I ask you a question, follow up question on that? Oh, absolutely. Okay. So can you talk a little bit about how you're able to influence those hiring decisions to make sure that you're bringing in those people who are going to be supporting the mission and values of the organization? 00:09:14:16 - 00:09:46:03 Unknown So I have an amazing HR generalist. She actually started as an intern. She's been with our company for three years now, and I kind of trained her on the processes that I used and she tweaked them a little bit. But the entire time we have focused on a pre interview process. So this is where someone in HR makes that connection with the resumé, looks it over and says, okay, this looks good, or maybe they're a referral from someone which we require like a statement from the person referring them saying why they would be a good fit at the organization. 00:09:46:05 - 00:10:11:05 Unknown But in the Prescreen interview, if they're not a referral, that's one of the questions we focus on. Like why do you feel you would be a good fit for our company? Because that's that's the most important question that we can ask and then we can get into the skills. Again, skills can be taught. There are there are some personal values that aren't able to be taught as easily as a skill could be taught. 00:10:11:05 - 00:10:37:07 Unknown So we we really like to focus on that pre interview to make sure that we're bringing the right talent in the organization and then putting them in front of the hiring manager. Great, great follow up question. Rebecca, thank you. Do either of you have any innovative approaches or tools that HR Departments can really adopt to transform that operational strategic functions? 00:10:37:09 - 00:11:01:00 Unknown Well, something that comes up a lot in our roundtable is talking about relying on the different features of your system to be able to automate as much as you can and kind of pull some things out of the out of the pull yourself out of the weeds a little bit. Like how much of your documentation completion and storage and retention can you do on your areas? 00:11:01:02 - 00:11:22:14 Unknown Can you leverage the performance management program that you have in there as well? So we talk a lot about the, you know, what we can do with our systems to to get ourselves kind of out of the weeds. I don't know how innovative that is to to rely heavily on interest because it seems like it's something that people have been doing for a really, really long time. 00:11:22:14 - 00:11:40:03 Unknown But I think that a lot of times we end up with these systems where we've only scratched the surface of the functionality that we have there. And every so often it's good to take a step back and say, Well, what are we missing? What what additional functionality that can save time for us. Are we not digging into them? 00:11:40:05 - 00:12:06:07 Unknown I would agree with Rebecca on that, and I think that technology can be innovative. So I think that that's a good point. I know this is a slippery slope, but kind of talking about like AI and chat, there are certain things that you can use, for example, job descriptions like getting help in writing your job descriptions, and then obviously having them reviewed by legal counsel to make sure that there's nothing funny in there. 00:12:06:09 - 00:12:30:21 Unknown I think Rebecca would agree with you on that one. And then the other thing which I I'm part of another round table because we're an employee owned company, actually, thanks to Rebecca. I help co champion this other one. But one of the things that came up was four benefits. Like people spend a lot of time, like just filling out papers, entering stuff into systems. 00:12:30:23 - 00:12:55:10 Unknown So again, going back to that technology piece, we have a a great broker that has a great system that automates about 80% of the work for us. So being able to have that even offloaded, that can help you go from operational to strategic. You're not spending as much time again in the weeds filling out the paperwork and you can focus on other important areas of the business. 00:12:55:12 - 00:13:16:19 Unknown And you've also just talked about kind of the skills and the transformation is skills you need from operational to succeed. So how can the HR Professionals really enhance their business acumen and understanding of the industry to provide that strategic insight and value to the company? Well, i'm going to say this first and foremost, getting involved in those HR groups. 00:13:16:19 - 00:13:45:19 Unknown Mra. Any human resources group that you can find and there's a lot of them out there, you just got to find the ones that fit. You. Obviously very involved with this group and some others that are industry relative for us. Another big thing is attending employment law updates. Whoever your legal counsel is, they often provide free webinars, free in-person seminars so that you can get those law updates that you need to again push you forward and getting that strategic insight. 00:13:45:19 - 00:14:15:23 Unknown So maybe there's something that's pending legally on the federal level or state level. You can be prepared for that before it even actually goes into effect. And then the last one that I absolutely love is making those colleague friends on LinkedIn to expand your knowledge network. None of us know everything but having more resources and people in your network helps expand that knowledge within the group and you can reach out and ask people, Hey, has anyone experienced this again? 00:14:16:01 - 00:14:44:21 Unknown Saving time and helping provide some insights as to how well it went or what they might have done differently and just helping again, push more into the strategic rather than the operational have screwed advice for anything that on their own. Yeah. Yeah. I would also suggest looking through the catalog of the MRA training opportunities and seeing what's out there in terms of business acumen, financial training for HR 00:14:44:21 - 00:15:10:07 Unknown Professionals. Yeah. When I was when i was was where I'm looking for kind of drafting and dreaming up like a strategic track for it for in our class. That was a big piece of it was the financial understanding, the business acumen, and in addition to other things like how how do you select your third party vendors and things like that. 00:15:10:07 - 00:15:36:21 Unknown So definitely take advantage of the training that's out there. Yeah, I'm glad you brought up training. So I was going to ask how HR Professionals could develop the necessary skills to not only that acumen. So good advice. So what are the potential risks and pitfalls that HR Departments should be aware of when they're undergoing the transformation to operational two strategic roles. 00:15:36:23 - 00:16:00:13 Unknown I think one of the things is making sure that we're analyzing the right data. You know, what really is impacting our organization long term and having that seat at the table is going to help them be aware of that. You know what the strategic focus is and not, you know, analyzing the wrong data. And then again, the other big thing that we've talked a lot about is, you know, not delegating and getting stuck in that day to day. 00:16:00:13 - 00:16:22:19 Unknown There are is sometimes that's one of the biggest struggles that we face when we move from operational to strategic, is saying, okay, well, I don't know if this person is doing this right or I don't know or I want to still have my hand in this. And, you know, I it's it's those types of things. And not being able to delegate in your right back in the weeds and back in the operational. 00:16:22:21 - 00:16:41:16 Unknown And I would add to that that communication is absolutely key. We never want to be in a situation where we're in scope creep with our strategy or someone's making an assumption that this is why we're going after this, this goal and they're moving in that direction. But we're not continually talking with each other to make sure we're on the same page. 00:16:41:16 - 00:17:05:11 Unknown And then also from the aspect of who's handling the operational tasks, just making sure that you're communicating with those individuals who have been delegating that to make sure that they feel supported and that they're able to accomplish the things they need to for sure. Okay. When we were kind of chatting before, you mentioned, you know, was kind of build up your HR from the ground up and within your department of one. 00:17:05:11 - 00:17:32:12 Unknown So that kind of poses the question for those who also operate as an HR department of one, what can that single person do to think and act more strategically, not just operationally? No. That might be kind of difficult to balance. Both. Yeah. So we're all HR Superheroes, right? And starting in a role. The company i'm with now, they had 86 employees when i started, so it wasn't HR 00:17:32:12 - 00:17:59:07 Unknown Department of one, but it was also building up the HR Department and the function and what HR Really look like. So it was kind of really neat to start out in a role like that, helping develop a really nice handbook. Policies, procedures, trainings and kind of moving from there. So laying that foundation like rebecca had asked about earlier, you know, getting people in the door, hiring the right people. 00:17:59:09 - 00:18:26:08 Unknown It was putting a foundation of the right interviewing process. And that whole onboarding experience in place to make sure as we were growing the company that we were doing the right things from the start to build it up with a firm foundation. So as an HR Professional one, when I was doing that, I won't lie. I mean, I felt like some days I was I was working a lot more hours than other days, but I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. 00:18:26:08 - 00:18:49:10 Unknown Like as we were growing, I knew the expectation. I knew what the strategic development and growth, what was expected and what they wanted to see happen. So I knew when I put these foundations in place where I was going to be a few years from now with that growth in mind. So making sure that whatever those tools were that were developed in the foundation that was developed could be passed on to the HR 00:18:49:10 - 00:19:15:11 Unknown Generalist, the Workplace Wellness Coordinator. But in the meantime, when I didn't have those really leveraging like our brokers and the payroll team, the other functional areas of the business to make sure that there was still that balance where I could handle some of the day to day, but also have the time to focus on strategic and then finding time in between there to pop out webinars, to learn a few things. 00:19:15:13 - 00:19:38:05 Unknown Yeah, I'm glad you gave advice on balancing both operational and strategic, because even though we're talking about the transformation to strategic, it doesn't mean those operational tasks ever go away. So, Rebecca, anything to add on this one before we're down here? All right. Well, as we kind of wrap up here and run out of time, how can the HR 00:19:38:05 - 00:20:03:03 Unknown Professionals collaborate with other departments in the organization and cross-functional teams to align those HR Strategies with the broader organizational objectives. So for me, i think one of the things that I thought about with this was, you know, having that strategic seat at the table and understanding, know, revenue goals, you know, the things that make the business successful and the role that HR 00:20:03:03 - 00:20:26:00 Unknown Plays in helping achieve those those big goals. And it can't be just HR Working in a silo. You have to work with the other functional departments to make sure that you're able to meet that that big goal. So, i mean, for me personally, it's working with our operations team to ensure that we have the right people in the right seats. 00:20:26:05 - 00:20:51:20 Unknown It's working with our accounting team to make sure that we're staying on budget and focusing on the right numbers, analyzing the right data. It's working with the president and the CEO to to ensure that we're still on track for these big goals. And if we're not where we need to be having the conversations to to shift that focus back. 00:20:51:20 - 00:21:12:02 Unknown I need Mike drop moments here. No, I just I just think that, you know, Katie is a wealth of knowledge and heard her story and not only how she got there, but also the things she's been able to achieve in that strategic role. I mean, you have a whole nother podcast is talking about the amazing initiatives that she has spearheaded. 00:21:12:02 - 00:21:36:23 Unknown And every time we get together for roundtable, we're like, Well, tell us more. What's new? Absolutely. Well, I want to thank you both for being on 30 Minute Thrive podcast today and sharing your expertise on transforming HR from operational to strategic and to our listeners. If you like the track today, comment your favorite tip you learn from today and make sure to share the episode. 00:21:37:01 - 00:21:58:15 Unknown And don't forget, consider joining MRA if you are not a member already. We have all the resources you need in the show Notes below, including Katie and Rebecca's bio and LinkedIn profile. If you'd like to get in touch with them and expand your network. Otherwise, thank you for tuning in today and thank you both again for the great info and we'll see you next week. 00:21:58:17 - 00:22:19:19 Unknown And that wraps up our content for this episode. Be sure to reference the show notes where you can sign up to connect for more podcast updates. Check out other MRA episodes on your favorite podcast platform. And as always, make sure to follow MRA's 30 minutes Thrive so you don't miss out. Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you next Wednesday to carry on the HR conversation.  

Today, we have our special guest stars from our season 2 premiere of One Tree Hill Next Gen cast from Tiktok. Rebecca Jacobs (Arin Grey), Monica Tubolino (Jenny Jagelski), and Clarissa (Haley Scott). As we count down to the premiere of our season 2, we gathered some of the cast members as we talk about upcoming season as well answer your burning questions. Follow them on their socials: Insta: @becapoo101 @monica_tubolino17 @clarissadelefairchaild_official Tiktok: @sweetheart_2020_ @monicatubolino2020 @rachelbarbaberry

In this episode, Rebecca discusses her decision to reject the corporate route after business school and fly to Tanzania instead. She talks about losing her father at the age of 9 and her mother's cancer diagnosis, both of which influence her to question, “What would I do if I only had one year to live?” Rebecca tells us about her journey into the world of international development and discovering the darker side of “good” work. We further discuss entrepreneurship, the loneliness of betting on yourself, and how "feeling alive" feels to each of us.About Rebecca:After graduating from Babson College with an entrepreneurship degree, Rebecca moved to Tanzania to work in international development. She quickly became disillusioned with the industry and began searching for solutions in 2017. With no clear path forward, she realized that if she wanted things to change, she would have to step up and be part of the change. With that, Anika Works Inc. was born in 2019.

Rebecca Jacobs and Cailey Gibson have never met in person. Yet they are co-founders of Anika Works, a platform that helps nonprofits connect with impact-focused businesses. This unique situation led them to prioritize digital wellness in their company - here's how they do it. Get on the email list at remotelyinclined.substack.com

In this episode of Life In Limbo, I'm chatting with personal style coach Rebecca Jacobs about how she uses her morning routine to stay grounded and set herself up for success throughout the day. See shownotes for this episode at lifeinlimbo.org/staygrounded Follow Steph: Newsletter | Instagram Like the show? Leave a review! Subscribe on iTunes here or see all episodes here.

Have you ever thought about using your style to find out more about who you are as a person? When you think of style, do you think of it as being an expression of who you are on the inside? In today's episode on the Create a Life that is Beautiful Podcast, Leticia is speaking with Style Coach, Rebecca Jacobs about her journey to doing the work she does in the world today with Style in Alignment. Rebecca works with women committed to a thriving life to help them stop settling in their style. Through one-on-one styling, speaking, and online group programs, Rebecca is on a mission to change the way we do style—helping more people step out of the pressure and expectations of how they “should” look, and step into their most alive and expressed self. Rebecca first began her career in graphic design (after applying to 17 other schools in high school), before realisiing that she just didn’t know who she was. She then went on a journey of self discovery, using style as her gateway. In this episode we discuss: • Style and how to move from inauthentic to authentic when it comes to what you wear • Why style is so important to the way we feel and how we show up in the world • the link between what we wear and how we feel • People pleasing and living in performance mode when it comes to style • The quickest way to find yourself. • biggest fear she sees around style is looking like we tried too hard or that doing it wrong • the way she defines confidence • “when you go from being a spectator to a participant” • redefining failure This episode is perfect for anyone who just feels like they are living in performance mode, people pleasing and has no idea who they are. You can find the show notes for this episode over at: www.leticiaringe.com/rebeccajacobs

In today’s episode, I have the pleasure of sitting down with Rebecca Jacobs, a personal style coach,, to talk all about how to be more intentional with your style, plus why you would even want to as a business owner + how doing so can enhance your personal brand in ways you might have not even imagined. This isn’t just a conversation about clothes, it’s about gaining confidence and clarity in who you are!  

In every generation there is a chosen TV show. It alone will stand against reality TV, police procedurals  and unwanted reboots. It is, Buffy The Vampire Slayer. 20 years ago the TV landscape changed forever. Buffy The Vampire Slayer premiered and it’s safe to say the world has never been the same again. Which is why Binge host Laura Brodnik is hosting a Big Buffy Bonus with Mamamia Head of News Gemma Garkut and creator of Buffy Website slayage.com Rebecca Jacobs... Show Notes This episode is hosted by Laura Brodnik with Rebecca Jacobs and Gemma Garkut   This show was produced by Elissa Ratliff for the Mamamia Podcast Network. Tell us what you're watching via email: thebinge@mamamia.com.au or OUR VERY OWN FACEBOOK PAGE. Please leave a rating and review in iTunes at ibooks by going to apple.co/mamamia, subscribe to the show while you're there, and if there's a TV lover in your life, share this show with them!

In every generation there is a chosen TV show. It alone will stand against reality TV, police procedurals  and unwanted reboots. It is, Buffy The Vampire Slayer. 20 years ago the TV landscape changed forever. Buffy The Vampire Slayer premiered and it’s safe to say the world has never been the same again. Which is why Binge host Laura Brodnik is hosting a Big Buffy Bonus with Mamamia Head of News Gemma Garkut and creator of Buffy Website slayage.com Rebecca Jacobs... Show Notes This episode is hosted by Laura Brodnik with Rebecca Jacobs and Gemma Garkut   This show was produced by Elissa Ratliff for the Mamamia Podcast Network. Tell us what you're watching via email: thebinge@mamamia.com.au or OUR VERY OWN FACEBOOK PAGE. Please leave a rating and review in iTunes at ibooks by going to apple.co/mamamia, subscribe to the show while you're there, and if there's a TV lover in your life, share this show with them!