Geosyntec Consultants

Foundations of People Leadership

Leadership lessons often emerge from the most unexpected moments in a career. I started my career in recruiting and staffing, eventually running a staffing branch in my mid-20s during the Great Recession. Looking back, that period probably shaped my leadership approach more than anything else. I often joke that HR chose me; I didn’t choose HR.

Because hiring slowed dramatically, I had to rethink how I spent my time. Instead of focusing only on business development, I started hosting free LinkedIn training sessions, helping people with their resumes and networking, and spending more time supporting local businesses and job seekers, however I could. Oddly enough, when the market recovered, business came from everywhere, sometimes from those direct relationships, but often from completely unexpected places.

That experience taught me that relationships, trust, and reputation compound over time. You can’t always predict the return, but people remember how you made them feel and whether you consistently showed up. In simple terms, you get what you give.

Running an agency also gave me a perspective that’s fairly unique in HR. After interviewing thousands of people and negotiating offers across industries, I gained an unusually transparent view into both organizations and employees. Candidates often shared what was most important in their search and what was really happening inside companies: leadership challenges, burnout, compensation concerns, and culture issues. All while employers were equally candid about business pressures and operational realities. Sitting between those two perspectives taught me a tremendous amount about people, leadership, and organizational behavior.

I also had full operational responsibility for the business, including P&L management, payroll, taxes, legal risk, expenses, sales, and team leadership. That experience fundamentally shaped how I partner with executives today because I understand that people decisions are deeply connected to business realities.

Navigating Modern Workplace Challenges

One of the biggest misconceptions in business is that employee well-being and performance exist in tension. I don’t think they’re competing priorities, although organizations sometimes unintentionally treat them that way.

In my experience, employee well-being is often driven by fairly practical things: clarity, trust, communication, manageable priorities, and consistent, integrity-driven leadership. When organizations move too fast or try to do too much at once, people feel it quickly.

A lot of my work has focused on helping leaders simplify and seeing around corners. What actually matters right now? Where are we unintentionally creating friction? What can wait? Sometimes the most strategic thing HR can do is help organizations slow down enough to think clearly again.

I also think humor and perspective matter more than people realize. The best teams I’ve worked with take their work seriously, but not themselves. That balance creates resilience. Maintaining that balance becomes more complex as organizations navigate a rapidly changing workplace.

“Sometimes the most strategic thing HR can do is help organizations slow down enough to think clearly again.”

Manager capability is one of the biggest. Managers today are expected to coach employees, lead through uncertainty, navigate conflict, support engagement, communicate effectively, and still deliver business results; often without enough support themselves.

I also think organizations are still adjusting to a much higher expectation for transparency. Employees increasingly want to understand compensation, growth opportunities, decision-making, and organizational direction. Companies that communicate clearly and honestly tend to build stronger trust over time.

And of course, AI and technology are changing work rapidly. I think those tools will absolutely improve efficiency, but they also make human skills more important. Judgment, communication, critical thinking, and relationship-building are becoming even more valuable, not less.

Developing Lasting Impact

As workforce expectations continue to evolve, leadership must evolve alongside them. I have become more collaborative and more intentional over time.

Earlier in my career, I tended to take on too much on my own. Experience taught me that bringing people in earlier usually creates better outcomes and stronger alignment.

I’ve also become more aware of the importance of protecting time for strategic thinking. In fast-moving environments, it’s easy to spend all your energy reacting. Some of the most valuable HR work happens when you step back, identify patterns, and think longer term.

At the same time, I try to stay practical and approachable. HR can become overly complicated very quickly. I admire leaders who simplify complexity and communicate clearly, and that’s something I continue working on myself. Many of those lessons have also shaped the advce I share with emerging HR professionals.

Learn the business, not just HR. Understanding operational and financial realities changes the quality of your partnership with leaders. The strongest HR professionals can connect people strategy directly to business outcomes.

I’d also encourage people to stay curious, build relationships genuinely, and focus on consistency. Careers are built over time through trust, follow-through, and how you handle difficult moments, not just big wins.

And finally, keep learning. The more experience I gain, the more I realize there’s always more to understand. That’s a big part of what makes this work interesting.