HR Mixtape

HR Mixtape is a weekly human resources and business leadership podcast for HR professionals, people leaders, and executives navigating the real work of managing people. Episodes cover human resources strategy, HR compliance, workplace culture, leadership development, employee experience, payroll and HR technology, and the future of work. Whether you work in HR, talent management, people operations, or business leadership, HR Mixtape offers practical insights, expert conversations, and real-world perspectives to help you lead with confidence in today’s evolving workplace.

HR Mixtape is a business podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 202 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts HR Mixtape, a business show with 202 episodes published.

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  Episode #202

  Speaking CFO: Winning the Budget Conversation with Finance

  Sep 29, 202626 min

  HR asks for a new system, more headcount, a bigger training budget. Finance says no. The instinct is to assume the idea wasn't good enough. John Sansoucie, Founder and CEO at CogNet, spent years as a CFO inside HR service companies and PEOs before he built his own business process outsourcing company, so he has sat on both sides of that budget table. In this episode, he covers: Why HR requests get denied even when they're worth funding, and what a CFO is actually listening for before approving a budget line How to turn a list of 28,000 possible metrics into the three numbers a CFO will remember What cost to serve measures and how to calculate it for any HR function Timestamps [00:01:05] John's path from CFO inside an HR outsourcing company to founding CogNet with his own former team [00:02:20] Why finance treats HR as a cost center, and the shift in language that changes that perception [00:03:18] What cost to serve actually measures and how to calculate cost per unit for HR work [00:04:04] Why John sent his newly promoted CPO 28,000 metrics, and how they got that down to three [00:05:14] The five-year cost of ownership question that ends most new software pitches [00:08:23] How John used to pitch the true cost of turnover to justify outsourcing deals [00:12:06] Why John cares more about losing star performers than his overall turnover rate [00:16:23] How to find a bestie in finance, and why that person is often junior [00:17:47] Why payroll gets scrutinized while performance management and open enrollment go unmeasured [00:22:41] Why HR doesn't have to choose between process discipline and automation Guest Bio: John Sansoucie is the Founder & CEO of CogNet, a global business process management company that helps HR service firms, staffing companies, and payroll providers scale their operations through specialized offshore teams and process automation. With more than 30 years of experience across payroll, HR technology, PEOs, and operational leadership, John brings a practical operator's perspective to conversations around HR operations, AI, and the future of work. Brought to You by Paylocity: Paylocity is the fastest growing unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Paylocity brings your people, processes, and data together in one place so HR leaders can spend less time managing systems and more time doing the work that actually moves their organizations forward. Learn more at paylocity.com Keywords: cost to serve, HR metrics, CFO relationship, finance and HR, business process outsourcing, HR outsourcing, turnover cost, cost per hire, regrettable turnover, HR budget, AI in HR, HR technology, process automation, Six Sigma, ISO 9001, offshore teams, PEO, payroll, workforce metrics, HR leadership

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  Episode #201

  Leave Doesn't Wait: Managing Absence When Volume Rises and Headcount Doesn't

  Sep 22, 20268 min

  Leave of absence looks like paperwork until you're the one holding it. A request lands, and you're reading federal, state, local, and company policy against each other while an employee waits on an answer during the worst week of their year. Rachel Wyngaard, Senior Product Manager at Mitratech, worked in HR, talent acquisition, and recruiting before moving into product. She now leads the build and launch of Mitratech Leave, an AI-powered leave of absence intelligence platform. In this episode, she breaks down: Why leave requests keep climbing while HR headcount stays flat, and what that gap does to case quality How the tactical thing HR asks a vendor for differs from the root need sitting underneath it What changes when you design HR software for the worst day of the quarter instead of the ideal one Timestamps [00:00:16] Rachel's path from recruiting and talent acquisition into product leadership at Mitratech [00:01:01] The three problems running at once inside every leave case, and why only one of them is paperwork [00:01:41] The employee at the center of a leave case is living through surgery or a family emergency, not filing a request [00:02:14] Leave volume climbed for more than half of employers last year and staffing never followed [00:02:35] New and updated laws add qualifying reasons, stacking questions, and complexity to every single case [00:03:40] The gap between what HR asks a product team to build and what HR needs it to solve [00:04:11] What goes wrong when teams hand leave to an outside administrator, and why the liability stays home [00:05:29] Rachel's product rule: design for the most stressful version of the interaction [00:06:42] The one change small teams can make this quarter without buying anything [00:07:00] Headcount thresholds, new states, and a remote workforce that moves all change your leave obligations Guest Bio Rachel Wyngaard is a Senior Product Manager at Mitratech with a focus on building HR technology to solve real workforce problems. With deep roots in HR and talent acquisition, she brings both practitioner perspective and product expertise to the Leave of Absence space, and is currently leading the build and launch of Mitratech Leave, an AI-powered leave of absence intelligence platform. Brought to You by Paylocity Paylocity is the fastest growing unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Paylocity brings your people, processes, and data together in one place so HR leaders can spend less time managing systems and more time doing the work that actually moves their organizations forward. Learn more at paylocity.com Keywords: leave of absence, leave management, HR compliance, FMLA, state leave laws, absence management, leave administration, employee experience, HR technology, product management, talent acquisition, case management, compliance risk, small HR teams, remote workforce, multi-state employers, HR operations, AI in HR

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  Episode #200

  Too Little Too Late: Why HR's Most Important Conversations Can't Wait

  Sep 15, 202617 min

  Retention sits near the top of almost every HR priority list. The main tool most organizations use to understand it is a conversation with someone who has already quit. Jim Link is the Chief Human Resources Officer at SHRM, the largest HR professional association in the world with more than 340,000 members. Before SHRM, he spent three decades in HR at GE, Porsche, and Randstad, where he held full HR accountability for a $5.2 billion business with up to 100,000 employees. In this episode, he covers: • Why the reasons your best performers stay are usually a different list from the reasons other people leave, and what that does to a retention plan built on exit data • How a written performance review becomes a static record that can work against the organization later, especially when the rating feeds a compensation formula • What SHRM's 2026 State of the Workplace report found about employee experience, including a 91% to 44% split in reported job satisfaction Timestamps [00:01:17] Turning the exit interview into a stay interview, and asking the people you want to keep what's keeping them there [00:01:38] Why leaders wrongly assume stay interviews will produce the mirror image of exit interview answers [00:02:22] Knowing one personal fact about every person on your team, and why that single connection changes how you manage [00:03:39] Separating performance ratings from compensation, and what happens when a 2.3 out of 5 turns into a .06% raise [00:05:39] How an overly glowing written review becomes a bad fact if the employee later exits under performance or restructuring [00:07:32] Employees and employers both know today's skills won't carry forward five years, which makes the gap solvable [00:09:10] The risk of cutting headcount before anyone in the organization understands what AI can actually do [00:12:02] What separates organizations moving the needle on manager development from the ones running the same programs every year [00:13:48] SHRM research showing 91% job satisfaction where workplace needs get addressed, against 44% where they don't [00:15:29] Treating stress and burnout as an organizational liability a CHRO is expected to manage Guest Bio Jim Link is the Chief Human Resources Officer for SHRM. With more than 340,000 members around the world, SHRM is the largest HR professional association in the world and the leading voice for matters related to workers and the workplace. Prior to joining SHRM, Link's career included roles of increasing responsibility across a variety of industries and companies including General Electric, the Pillsbury Company, Porsche Cars, and Randstad. While at Randstad North America, he led a global team of 150 HR professionals who were instrumental in transforming the company into an award-winning, inclusive, and sustainable global leader. Link consistently demonstrates dynamic and visionary thought leadership with a variety of presentations focusing on the interconnection between effective human capital management and business results. Brought to You by Paylocity Paylocity is the fastest growing unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Paylocity brings your people, processes, and data together in one place so HR leaders can spend less time managing systems and more time doing the work that actually moves their organizations forward. Learn more at paylocity.com Keywords: stay interviews, exit interviews, employee retention, performance management, continuous feedback, compensation strategy, internal mobility, upskilling, AI in the workplace, critical thinking skills, manager development, middle managers, employee experience, State of the Workplace, burnout, workplace stress, SHRM, CHRO, HR leadership, talent strategy

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  Episode #199

  Work Slop: What SHRM's Research Says About AI Guardrails and the Skills Gap

  Sep 8, 202613 min

  A little less than half of workers now use AI regularly on the job. Of that group, 44% admit the output looks finished on the surface and holds nothing underneath. SHRM has a name for it: work slop. Dr. James Atkinson is VP of Thought Leadership at SHRM, where he leads the research teams behind that finding. He spent nine years at Gartner, finishing as Managing Vice President of Data Products for its HR research practice, and ran data products at Payscale before joining SHRM. James walks through SHRM's Skills Revolution research in this conversation. Read the full report here: https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/research/skills-revolution-preparing-employees-tomorrows-jobs In this episode, he covers: • Why CFOs approve people investments framed as productivity gained and cost avoided, and why SHRM's navigating the C-suite research found finance leaders want that case backed by workforce data • How 44% of AI users admit to producing work slop, and where HR can step in to define what good output looks like • What SHRM's Skills Revolution research says about learning and development systems that can't track how fast skills are changing Timestamps [00:01:01] Why the labor market is uneven rather than hot or cold, and why the last two months shouldn't set your expectations [00:01:51] Healthcare keeps adding jobs as the population ages while federal employment declines and local government picks back up [00:03:13] Framing a people investment as a business opportunity with a productivity number and a cost number attached [00:04:49] SHRM's navigating the C-suite research: CFOs want the ROI spelled out and backed by workforce data [00:05:34] Turnover as the metric finance already understands, because a role sitting empty is a day of lost productivity [00:06:11] Ask your executives how they want to be presented to before you build the deck [00:06:48] Just under half of workers use AI regularly, and 44% of them admit to producing work slop [00:07:28] Why AI needs guardrails and how managers become the people who say what good looks like [00:09:12] The Skills Revolution research: skills are changing faster than learning and development systems can follow [00:11:10] Why skills inventories still haven't replaced job descriptions, and what might finally move that Guest Bio James Atkinson is the VP, Thought Leadership at SHRM, where he leads research teams uncovering key insights on the challenges and trends affecting HR and the workplace. James joined SHRM with more than 15 years of research, data, and product experience, having spent a decade in various leadership roles within the HR industry. Prior to SHRM, James was the Vice President of Data Products at Payscale, where he was responsible for the overall strategy, development, and delivery of data products for compensation professionals. He also spent 9 years at Gartner, finishing his tenure there as the Managing Vice President of Data Products for the HR research and advisory practice. Across his career, his teams have created award-winning research and data products for HR executives and their teams on topics including learning and development, total rewards, recruiting, talent management, HR strategy, HR technology, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. This work has been featured in top business journals and media outlets such as Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, and Forbes. James holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Ohio State University. Brought to You by Paylocity Paylocity is the fastest growing unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Paylocity brings your people, processes, and data together in one place so HR leaders can spend less time managing systems and more time doing the work that actually moves their organizations forward. Learn more at paylocity.com Keywords: SHRM research, labor market outlook, work slop, AI guardrails, HR ROI, CFO conversations, workforce data, skills revolution, learning and development, career development, employee attrition, talent retention, healthcare hiring, HR strategy, skills inventory, job descriptions, people analytics, workforce planning, HR Mixtape

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  Episode #198

  Vibe Teaming: How HR Turns AI Experiments into Real Adoption

  Sep 1, 202618 min

  Most HR teams have already run their AI experiments. A pilot here, a policy draft there. Turning that scattered activity into something people actually use on a Tuesday is a completely different problem. In this episode: Why the biggest available gains from AI now come from teams working with it together, not individuals getting better at prompting How to pick a first project by finding the rock in your shoe instead of announcing a sweeping overhaul nobody asked forWhat the three Cs (crisis, commitment, and conflict) tell you about where AI should never touch an employee interaction Timestamps [00:01:52] What an AI catalyst actually does inside an HR function, and why the job changed from building fluency to driving adoption [00:02:49] Why HR teams that feel behind on AI are not, and what the range across SHRM's membership really looks like [00:03:53] Finding the rock in your shoe, and why the most annoying problem beats the most sophisticated one as a starting point [00:07:29] Nichol's dictation method for getting a model to write her prompts, including asking for a McKinsey-style or Fast Company-style prompt [00:08:15] How vibe teaming works, including the AI wrangler role, the facilitator role, and the transcript loop that feeds the group's corrections back in [00:10:08] The loneliness problem created by heavy individual AI use, and the 70-page proposal exchange that illustrates it [00:11:22] Over 44% of people use AI daily and nearly as many run into work slop daily, and what a biweekly team session does about it [00:12:44] Eight executive assistants who used vibe teaming remotely to redesign how their C-suite works together [00:15:09] The three Cs guardrail: crisis, commitment, and conflict are the moments to keep AI out of entirely [00:17:19] Why people can always tell whether a real human was on the other side, even when they can't identify AI-generated text Guest Bio Nichol Bradford is a futurist, investor, and executive with more than 20 years across technology and human potential. Her mission is to strengthen humanity's mental, emotional, and social health (MESH) as the foundation for innovation and progress. She reaches over 100,000 people annually through thought leadership and public speaking, including TEDx. As SHRM's AI + HI Executive-in-Residence, Bradford shapes global strategies that reach 362 million workers and their families through 340,000 HR professionals in 180 countries. In June 2025 she founded and launched Human Tech Week, which drew 250 speakers and more than 1,200 attendees in its first year. That event grew out of TransformativeTech.org, the global community she co-founded and built to members in 72 countries. She also co-founded Niremia Collective, a venture fund backing the future of human potential. Bradford works at the seam between advanced technology and deep human need, with a focus on human-centered AI adoption. Before this, she operated World of Warcraft in China. Today she runs the largest network for human potential technology. Brought to You by Paylocity Paylocity is the fastest growing unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Paylocity brings your people, processes, and data together in one place so HR leaders can spend less time managing systems and more time doing the work that actually moves their organizations forward. Learn more at paylocity.com Keywords: AI adoption in HR, responsible AI, vibe teaming, collective intelligence, work slop, AI guardrails, human potential, SHRM, AI catalyst, HR technology, team productivity, prompting, talent acquisition AI, performance management, employee experience, change management, workforce wellbeing, human-centered AI, Nichol Bradford, HR Mixtape

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