The Small Business HR Podcast
Ep. 11
11. Helping HR Become Deliberate Leaders in Healthy Organizations w/ Joe Nabrotzky
Joe Nabrotzky
Managing Director
Whether you’re a small business or a global organization, all HR teams should focus on three core things:
- People
- Organizational health
- Leadership
But for one reason or another, that doesn’t always happen. We sat down with Joe Nabrotzky, Managing Director at Global Leader Group, to pull back the curtain on how world-class HR teams operate—and what they do differently that sets them apart.
We also talked about:
- What caused him to pivot from a role in leadership to a career in HR
- How to help the “accidental HR person” go from tactical to strategic
- What companies can do to help employees return back to the office with engagement and energy while also reducing stress and burn out
- The concepts of mind management and emotional intelligence—and why they matter
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When it comes to leadership, knowing and doing are very different. I went from being responsible for the results I solely produced to being responsible for the people that were responsible for results. And I realized I needed to know HR in order to be a better leader.”
The biggest things that keep me up at night are all people-related: How do I attract great talent? How do I keep them engaged? And how are those people leading, both themselves and others?”
From the boardroom to the family room, the impact a great leader can have changes everything.”
If you do the people thing right, the rest of the organization will benefit.”
Find the people with experience who can help you go through the learning curve faster.”
In small businesses, a lot of times we look around and say ‘Okay, who likes people?’ And the person who raises their hand gets assigned the duties of HR. But unless that person has a framework and an understanding, HR becomes very tactical and they won’t have time for strategy.”
The bad rap HR gets is from going into a meeting and only wearing your HR hat. When you’re sitting down with a business leader, you need to find out what his or her biggest problems are—what keeps them up at night—and a majority of the time, they will be HR-related. Instead of saying ‘here’s my HR agenda,’ say ‘here’s your number one problem and here’s how we can solve it together.’”
When it comes to supporting employee mental health, bring awareness to unconscious anxiety—that unknown anxiety employees might have about coming back to the office, for example. And then bring the tools to address it, like training and constant communication.”
Start with your values. From hiring to culture, your values will give you clarity for what to prioritize at your organization.”
