People On Purpose®

We’re continuing our month-long deep dive into hiring and interviewing by breaking down the basics of interviewing into a 4-part process.  This week, we’re digging into the first two steps:Screening candidatesDigging deeper / assessing culture fitKira underscores how crucial it is to prioritize candidate comfort throughout the entire interview process, which not only helps communicate your company culture from the get-go but also lays the foundation for a successful hire. She shares valuable tips on creating a positive interview experience for everyone involved, and shows how these small gestures can make a big impact on your business's image.She also explains the benefits of maintaining a clear focus on what you're looking for in a candidate while remaining open to various "who" possibilities, which not only reduces bias but also optimizes your return on investment in the hiring process. (Spoiler: the term ‘culture fit’ is often used as a smokescreen for bias - and we’re not about that around here!)Whether you're an entrepreneur interviewing candidates for your own business, or representing one as a hiring manager, this episode is a must-listen!Listen now! And tune in next week when Kira covers steps 3 and 4 of the hiring process: ValidateEvaluate LINKS MENTIONED:Paradigm Consulting Interview Bundle - use code UAU1023 for 50% off!Bundle includes: Hiring Process Email TemplatesInterview No No'sInterview Questions Part I - Habits and MindsetInterview Questions Part II - Leadership and ManagementInterview Script (3 Part Process)

This week we’re kicking off a month-long deep dive into interviews, starting with a mashup of online business supervillains: HR and Legal! That’s right, Kira is joined by IP Lawyer badass, Chandler of Lethal Legal (with a biz name like that how can you NOT be a badass?!) to chat *some* things Intellectual Property, but mostly all about how being super intentional throughout the hiring process is a long game well worth the effort.Chandler J. Esq is an experienced intellectual property attorney and educator. Serving clients worldwide, she helps entrepreneurs and creators implement a strong legal foundation for their business so they can scale, stress-free. Through providing attorney-drafted contracts and brand ownership, she protects your brand so you can stay in CEO mode, confident and worry-free.Kira and Chandler cover:The most important things you, as a business owner, can do to protect your IPHow to find a trustworthy attorney (what to look for and how to look for it)What Chandler did to find the PERFECT full-time employee for her businessThe importance of sticking to your proverbial guns about your hiring non-negotiablesImportant characteristics to look for in your very first hire, no matter what skills you requireChandler is living proof that hiring a FTE is NOT as scary as it sounds, and the payoff IS as good as it sounds. Tune in now!Learn more about Chandler and Lethal Legal: https://yourlethallegal.com/Lethal Legal's Contract Template Shop: https://shoplethallegal.com/Follow Chandler on IG: @lawyerchandlerj

In today's episode, we're rolling up our sleeves and diving headfirst into the wild world of small business finances. Our guest, Keila from Little Fish Accounting, brings some seriously valuable insight and a unique perspective to small business finances, emphasizing empathy, care, and consideration. As founder and owner of Little Fish Accounting, Keila has created a safe space for business owners to face their fears head on, helping countless clients save money on taxes, avoid financial pitfalls, and achieve their financial goals. With over two decades of experience in taxes and accounting, Keila’s portfolio of clients includes coaches, consultants, makers and service providers across all industries. Join us as we explore the crucial role of good bookkeeping, the relationship between finance and HR, and how data-driven decisions can transform your business's financial future.We talk about:💰Keila’s #1 piece of advice for staying out of highly problematic, risky situations for small business owners (hint: it rhymes with wood cook-beeping)💰Bookkeeping practices that make a significant impact on Keila’s small business clients' finances.💰 The role of AI in bookkeeping 💰 The importance of properly categorizing payroll from a compliance AND a financial planning standpoint (spoiler: bonuses, vacation days, commissions, reimbursements, etc all need to be categorized differently)💰 Whether or not Beyonce tickets and massages are deductible business expenses (and other questionable expenses)Keila also shares her unique perspective on offering employee benefits to her team as a small business owner - and the mindset shifts she made in order to do so.If you’re a small business, and your business makes money - you don’t want to miss this episode! Find Little Fish Accounting online:https://www.littlefishaccounting.com https://www.instagram.com/littlefishaccounting https://www.linkedin.com/in/keilahilltrawick/ 

Entrepreneurs who are almost ready to hire their first full-time employee often get stopped up by one question.“If someone works for my business full-time, don’t I have to provide them health insurance and retirement benefits?”The short answer is: No…but there are caveats (this is an HR podcast afterall!)On this week’s episode of On The Up & Up, Kira shares some common misconceptions about providing “traditional” benefits. She covers:📝 Scenarios in which you do and do not have to provide traditional benefits📝 Alternative approaches to health and retirement benefits for small businesses📝 The role of technology and automation in benefits administration📝 Whether you have to provide the same benefits to all employees📝 The first steps you should take before including these benefits in your overall compensation packageIf you're an entrepreneur navigating the world of hiring your first full-time employee, this episode is a must-listen!Links mentioned:Dr. Noor Health Care Advisor (https://drnoorhealth.com/) Employee Cost Calculator (https://settoscale.com/products/employee-cost-calculator)

We’re continuing our September deep dive into the world of Employee Benefits! On this week's episode of On The Up & Up, Kira is tackling one of the most intricate aspects of team building: Compensation.The decision of what to pay someone involves a bunch of complex factors, and Kira is breaking them all down. In this episode, she explores the four crucial considerations when determining someone’s compensation:💰 Classification: Are they a contractor or an employee? If they're an employee, are they full-time or part-time, exempt or non-exempt, hourly or salaried?💰 Time and Nature of Work: Analyzing when and what they're doing while working.💰 Big-Picture Strategy: This is all about labor profit margins, scalability, and the cost of benefits.💰 Location Compliance: Ensuring compliance with regional regulations.There’s a lot that goes into each of these four considerations, but this episode is meant to demystify the complex world of compensation planning so you can confidently hire and retain top talent while creating an ROI for your company.Tune in now!LINKS MENTIONED:Blog: Employee Classification (https://the-paradigm.com/employee-classification/) Resource: Employee cost and calculator (https://settoscale.com/products/employee-cost-calculator)Resource: Worker classification cheatsheet by state (https://notavglaw.com/cheatsheet)

Are you a small business owner dreading the maze (and expense) of employee benefits? Navigating this world can seem overwhelming, especially if you're approaching it the same way large corporations do.But as small business owners, we have the freedom to do things differently – and it's not a daunting task. We have the privilege of crafting personalized benefit packages that resonate with our employees and impact them in meaningful ways.In this week's episode of On The Up & Up, we delve into how alternative benefits can elevate your total compensation packages, adding real value and motivation for your employees. And here's a hint: it's not all about traditional health insurance!Join Kira this week as we kick off our month-long journey into the world of employee benefits on this exciting episode of On The Up & Up.Links Mentioned:https://the-paradigm.com/alternativeperks/

This week Kira is joined by world traveler and brand strategist, Allison Conway. Allison candidly shares her unique experience as a successful entrepreneur with diagnosed learning and processing differences.  Through her company, Sealevel Agency, Allison helps businesses in traditionally "vanilla" industries create a brand and marketing strategy that's fun, bold, and exciting for the business owners and their customers. Allison has been to over 40 countries, and uses all of her experiences of travel, late dyslexia and ADHD diagnoses, and commitment to being a little bit weird to show her clients how to have fun, make a lot of money, and make a big impact.Tune in to Kira and Allison’s enlightening conversation as they delve into Allison’s entrepreneurial journey fueled by unique learning differences and defying traditional norms. They cover:✨ How Allison built her business around the life she wanted to live, not the other way around; ✨ The gift of hindsight and entrepreneurial wisdom through the lens of experience;✨ The emotional journey of entrepreneurship;✨ How undiagnosed dyslexia and ADHD diagnosis led to a lifetime of self doubt (and how a diagnosis changed everything);✨ How the patriarchy does a disservice to women with learning differences;✨ Setting up your company culture for people who process and work differently.This episode is as relatable as it is raw - don’t miss it!Links mentioned:SeaLevel Agency’s website: https://sealevelagency.com/ Follow Allison Conway on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisoneconway/

This week we’re mixing things up a bit and chatting with the brains behind one of our favorite product-based businesses! Joining Kira on this week’s episode of On The Up & Up is Marrin Costello, an American businesswoman, designer, and brand-architect of her eponymous jewelry brand.Marrin’s entrepreneurial journey began at age 10 after falling in love with the art of jewelry making. Just two decades later, Costello has built a luxury lifestyle brand that has been featured in Vogue, Huffington Post, and Who What Wear, amongst many others — and whose collection can be found in over 100 retailers nationwide. The byproduct to creating a successful company and internationally recognized business? Having the experience, knowledge, and foundation to support other companies, brands, and entrepreneurs alike in finding their own respective success.Tune in to this week’s episode to hear Kira and Marrin delve into:💎 Marrin's journey in self-development and how it correlates to her craft as a jewelry designer and business owner;💎 How Marrin reverse engineered building a business around her established brand;💎 The value of building community around a brand;💎 Listening to the market to inspire and inform business decisions;💎 Harmonizing masculine and the feminine energies in business;💎 How Marrin curated her own life in order to cultivate her brand;💎 Delegation as the the true measure of a leader (and Marrin’s lessons from early delegation dynamics)This episode is packed with gems that can be directly applied to any business. Tune in now!Links mentioned:Catch up on Kira’s guest appearance on Marrin’s podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/marrin-costello-radio/episodes/76--Kira-La-Forgia-Paradigm-Consulting-e20dqcv Visit the Marrin Costello website: https://marrincostello.com/Follow Marrin Costello on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marrincostellojewelry/

This week Kira hosts Alisha Kumar of The Social Project, a social media agency specialized in building lifestyle brands, on The Up & Up.  With over 13 years in the marketing industry, Alisha has experience working with some of the world’s most innovative and forward thinking brands, developing out of the box and momentous marketing campaigns that never fail to make a statement. She is passionate about helping businesses take advantage of marketing efforts to create a unique footprint and has a knack of thinking big picture, while getting down to every detail needed. You can find her with multiple drinks and quoting one too many Kardashians.Kira and Alisha dive into:Mistakes people make when hiring social media managersThe difference between a Social Media Manager and a Social Media MarketerQuestions to ask in an interview to find someone who really knows what they're doing (and didn't just watch some tutorials online)What has and hasn’t changed for women of color in the workplace in the online business/remote world Showing up "authentically" online vs. conducting business in person  The pipeline of leads and #1 skill every business owner should haveHere's where you can find Alisha online:Website: https://thesocialproject.ca/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesocialprojectinc/

In this week's episode, Kira welcomes SEO duo Andrea Barnhill and Tyler Cooper to the podcast. Andrea and Tyler are the Co-Founders of Socratrik, an SEO Agency that helps small and large businesses get found on Google. With 15+ years of SEO and digital marketing experience, their team helps businesses get ahead of the industry-unique SEO challenges, and helps them stay there.A bit about Andrea: Prior to starting Socratik 5+ years ago, Andrea spent the first few years of her career in SEO at tourism and ecommerce brands. But at Socratik, she’s transitioned to running the operational side of the business, overseeing team development and growth, hiring, fostering a culture, among other things. A bit about Tyler: Tyler is an SEO expert who has helped many brands experience radical SEO transformation. Tyler has been in SEO for 14+ years, seeking out an entrepreneurial path since the beginning of his career, and has consulted companies across several different industries. As Socratik’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Tyler helps businesses create a framework for exponential growth, and oversees the Socratik team to deliver and execute against it.Andrea, Tyler, & Kira cover:-What it takes to run a business as a partnership;-Building a team when your business has a lot of moving parts;-Why working in an echo chamber isn’t helpful for your business;-How and when to be intentionally transparent with your team;-What small steps you can take right now to start improving your SEO;--How you know your business might be ready to invest in an SEO strategy;-SEO scams that can actually put your website in jeopardy;Join us this week for their expert insights into business partnerships and optimizing google search results for your business.Looking for Socratik online? Here's where you can find them:Website: https://socratik.agency/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/socratikagency/?hl=enLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/socratik-agency/Twitter: https://twitter.com/SocratikSEO