Rebel HR Podcast: Life and Work on Your Terms
Welcome to Rebel HR, Life and Work on Your Terms, the podcast where conformity isn't an option and the only rule is to make your own. Each episode, we'll dive deep into the art of living and working authentically.
Here's what's in store for you:
The essence of living life and approaching work on your own terms
Strategies for crafting your unique path in life and career
Defying Conventions: We discuss how to break free from societal and corporate expectations to carve out a fulfilling life and career.
Psychological Principles of Success: Learn how to apply cutting-edge psychological tactics to revolutionize your approach to success.
Cultural Disruption: Discover actionable steps to drive cultural improvement in the workplace and at home, fostering environments where creativity and authenticity thrive.
System Change: We tackle the big picture, exploring how to initiate systemic change that paves the way for more individual freedom and innovation.
"Rebel. Life and Work on Your Terms" isn't just a podcast – it's your soundtrack to a life less ordinary. Tune in, get inspired, and start living and working like the rebel you are.
Attention HR professionals and leaders! Are you looking for an engaging and informative podcast that covers a range of topics related to human resources and leadership? Look no further than the Rebel HR Podcast! Hosted by Kyle Roed and various industry experts, this podcast features insightful discussions on subjects like diversity and inclusion, employee engagement, and leadership development. Each episode is packed with practical tips and advice that you can apply to your organization right away.
Don't miss out on this valuable resource! Check out the Rebel Podcast today: www.rebelhumanresources.com
Rebel HR Podcast: Life and Work on Your Terms
From Accounting Major to HR Innovator: Megan's Story
Ever wondered how a passion for legal and management courses can unexpectedly lead to a thriving career in human resources? Megan Gunderson, an accomplished HR consultant from HR Connect, joins us to share her captivating journey from accounting major to HR aficionado. Megan opens up about her eye-opening experiences with UNI's SHRM student chapter and offers a candid look at the reality that many professionals are navigating their careers on the go. Hear her recount the diverse challenges she faces, from handling drug-related incidents in manufacturing to the surprising dynamics of team management. Her enthusiasm for the evolving field of HR and her commitment to continuous learning are truly infectious.
We also dive into the crucial topic of inclusivity in recruitment, especially for introverted candidates who are often unfairly overlooked. Megan emphasizes the importance of recognizing teachability and avoiding negative preconceptions, particularly when it comes to Gen Z entering HR roles. With a touch of humor and a sprinkle of generational slang, we discuss the need to be "Sigma" rather than "mid" to create meaningful connections across age groups. Whether you're just starting out in HR or a seasoned pro, Megan's valuable insights and light-hearted banter offer something for everyone. Join us for an episode packed with practical advice, thoughtful reflections, and a few laughs along the way!
Rebel HR is a podcast for HR professionals and leaders of people who are ready to make some disruption in the world of work. Please connect to continue the conversation!
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This is the Rebel HR podcast, the podcast about all things innovation in the people's space. I'm Kyle Rode. Let's start the show.
Speaker 1:Welcome back Rebel HR community With us. We have a local all-star HR professional. We have Megan Gunderson. She is a HR consultant with HR Connect, just down the street from where I work, so really excited to get her on the podcast. We're going to be talking about her HR journey and some of the things that she has observed in her HR career. Megan, welcome to the podcast. We are so excited to have you. I want to start off with a question around your HR career. What motivated you to pursue human resources?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so I actually went to college and started as an accounting major, and that did not go well for me. So I like taking business core classes which you have to take to be an accounting major. Some classes I really liked were like a legal and social business course and some of the management courses. So that kind of drew me to HR and in school I always really liked like the employment law aspect.
Speaker 4:What were some of the things through you went to UNI, correct? So, UNI Sher Sherm. They have a great HR Sherm student chapter. What are some things? Throughout that chapter you learned that kept light bulbs going off, that this is the career I want.
Speaker 3:I would say I liked that group like the UNI Sherm and I liked kind of talking through issues and kind of figuring out HR as a group with those people. We're also kind of very early HR professionals at the time.
Speaker 4:So what has surprised you the most being in the working world now?
Speaker 3:Probably that nobody is that serious Like this. Sounds kind of bad but when you're in college you think all these professionals are very serious and they always know what to do.
Speaker 1:We are very serious, especially here at this podcast.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I would say that's a big light bulb for me. Is that? Nobody's actually that serious and everybody's just figuring it out.
Speaker 4:We have to have a little bit of fun in HR, or?
Speaker 1:as I was telling somebody earlier, you have to have a twisted sense of humor to be in HR, at least for more than a few years. Well, good for you and congratulations on landing a job with an awesome organization. So I know your group, HR Connect, allows you to be an HR consultant for a lot of different organizations, so I'm curious to understand a little bit about you know that job and what are some of the aspects of that job that you really enjoy.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So I would say, being an HR consultant, you see a lot of different things, like I think I have had so much exposure to different like employer-related issues that I probably never would have working in an internal role, and you just hear all kinds of things from all different industries of employers, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so we're probably running out of time, but I'd like to like what's your craziest story.
Speaker 3:I'm sure you've got all these confidentiality agreements.
Speaker 1:So I'll ask you the question in a different way, Without naming an employer or sharing any sort of proprietary confidential information. What is one of the more wild situations that you did not expect you would have to deal with as an HR consultant when you were graduating?
Speaker 3:A lot of drugs.
Speaker 4:Drugs, yeah A lot of drugs. Some exposure instances Okay, I don't know, okay, people get a little too frisky at work.
Speaker 3:People get too frisky at work for the feel, I don't know.
Speaker 4:One thing I learned in my years in manufacturing I'm going to assume it's that yeah it was in manufacturing. That's where you get all the good stories.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I've got a lot of good stories. In fact, I've got a lot of good ones from retail too. There's some good stories from retail sectors. So with that we're going to set the stage, turn the lights down low, just kind of fill in the blanks with your mind all UHR listeners and you can understand those situations. Yeah, they don't really teach you that in college. Hey, here's what you do when someone's out of their mind on methamphetamines. Right, you know like, oh yeah, you have to do this, this and this.
Speaker 4:What are you enjoying the most about your whole career?
Speaker 3:I like that. It's different every day and I would say I constantly learn new things and I think that's also because I'm early in my career. But being an. Hr consultant and listening to all of these issues, I have to figure out the answer and the solution. Oh so I have learned so much just since being in this role yeah, absolutely so you use.
Speaker 1:You've got a cool job because you get to see a lot of different stuff right and people call you when they need, when they need helps with general things. I'm curious, if you had like a magic wand and you can wave it fix a problem for human resources, what would it be? What would that wand wait?
Speaker 3:if I had a magic wand. Something that I personally think in like a recruiting standpoint is that the recruiting process at most companies is not super welcoming to like introverts, and I think there are a lot of really good introverted employees that get overlooked. And I think obviously there are some roles like sales or something like that where you want someone to be extroverted and very outgoing, but there are a lot of positions, I think, that do not necessarily need someone extremely extroverted and like an introverted candidate.
Speaker 3:Sometimes they get overlooked, but they're maybe more qualified.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, absolutely. You know I think that's a really great call out and you know I've said this for years. You know, an interview you have to know what you're measuring, right, like, like an interview is a conversation. You're just you're and you're really kind of measuring somebody's ability to tell a story and to be an extrovert, right. But but many jobs don't require that right. If your job requires high diligence and the ability to work independently for long stretches of time, that person's probably not going to be a great interviewer, right? So it is. You know, setting up your interview process to be appropriate in that manner is really great.
Speaker 4:I think we have to remember as well interviews can be scary, right, and as employers, we don't think that way, we're going to see if they're a fit for us, that's it. But we're not remembering this. Could be a very scary situation for this candidate and they'll walk out the door and we'll say, yeah, they weren't a good fit, they didn't interview well, well, they're probably just having an anxiety attack in the car right now, because they were sitting in front of three people.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 4:So as employers we got to remember the empathetic to that Right. Do you have opportunities to teach employers that?
Speaker 3:Not really. We actually don't do a ton with recruiting. It's something that I think is important.
Speaker 1:Where do you think HR professionals need to rebel to drive innovation?
Speaker 3:I think this is kind of hard. I don't know.
Speaker 1:I think in an HR role.
Speaker 3:It's important to be, like a human first and although we do follow a lot of like, there are a lot of compliance and legal aspects. Um, there's a way to like maybe deliver that that I would say. Hr professionals don't always do a good job of delivering.
Speaker 1:It's just understanding that we're all just people yeah, I love that though I mean, but you know, and I think your experience in that regard is really, really critical, because you know, you're, you're, you know earlier in your career, but you haven't been this is gonna sound horrible, but you haven't been like tainted by the like hr quote hr best practice.
Speaker 1:Because, um, you know, the reality is, like many of us in this career, we get desensitized to that, you know, because you're dealing with challenges and issues and people problems and what eventually happens is the humanity can go away because you're just dealing with situations and you forget about the people related to that, right, so you know, a really great reminder. You know human is one half of our title, right, it's human resources. It's not just you know resources. So, really, really great call out and a good reminder for us. So we don't have a ton of time because I know you got to go. You know run your booth and drive. You know, drive innovation for your customers. What is one takeaway that you want us to take away from this conversation?
Speaker 3:Does it have to be related to what we've talked?
Speaker 2:about? No, not at all.
Speaker 3:Don't hate your Gen Z work. I love that there's. That's what we talked about. No, not at all.
Speaker 1:Don't hate your Gen Z workforce. I love that there's a real-life Gen Z-er on the other end of the microphone here. Guys, listen up, don't hate on them.
Speaker 3:They are teachable, they are trying.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no cap, no cap, Don't be mid. I love that Towards Gen.
Speaker 3:Z Don't be mid.
Speaker 1:Yeah, sheila, I got a laugh out of that. Be Sigma, not mid. My son hates it when I use those words.
Speaker 4:So I just love using it. That's a good ending note.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there you go On that note. Megan, thank you so much for joining us, telling us a little bit about your career path. Some really great reminders for all HR professionals out there.
Speaker 2:All right, that does it for the Rebel HR Podcast. Big thank you to our guests. All right, that does it for the Rebel HR podcast. Big thank you to our guests. Follow us on Facebook at Rebel HR Podcast, Twitter at Rebel HR Guy, or see our website at rebelhumanresourcescom no-transcript.
