The HR Life Podcast

Tony Benjamin
  • 5.0 (12)
  • Management
  • Updated Weekly

The HR Life Podcast is a show about the work-life experience of those of us in Human Resources and business leadership. This long-form podcast is a conversation, casual, and not always the corporate line. Hosts and guests touch on everything from serious or even controversial topics to the absurdity of modern American business practices. Your hosts are Tony Benjamin, owner and founder of The Grange Strategic HR Consulting, and Steven J. Smith, Author of The Hiring Tree: Laws of Applicant Attraction and all-around important guy. Guests include the best minds in the HR world. Join the show weekly.

  1. 5d ago

    EP 66 Level-Funded and Self-Funded Benefit Plans, and Tony's Craw With Scott Fielding

    Scott Fielding has spent 33 years selling health insurance, survived a tree that reportedly reached out and personally assaulted him on a mountain bike trail, and somehow still has the patience to explain what a captive is to people who nod along and Google it later. He joins Tony and Steve to walk through the difference between fully insured, level-funded, self-funded, and captive health plans, which sounds like the kind of thing that could put you to sleep until you realize one wrong choice here is probably costing your company six figures a year.  Somewhere in the middle of all this, Tony gets something stuck in his craw (ask him what that even means, we dare you), the guys talk about why HR departments keep getting quietly shrunk and then quietly rehired at a discount. If your renewal has gone up every year and nobody has ever told you why, or if you've ever wondered what happens to the money between your deductible and the six-figure claim you hope never happens, this is the episode. What is your broker actually doing for that commission, and would you even know if the answer was "not much"? You can contact Scott Fielding at: scott.fielding@usi.com or (801) 455-9886 Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  2. Sep 8

    EP 65 The Case for Treating Employees Well, WorkLife, and Heads on a Stick With Sarah and Elena

    Sarah Olin and Elena Arecco Bridgmon join the guys to talk about the real impact of good leadership and the business case for treating employees well.  Steve tells us that he's worn the Chicago Bulls Championship rings, and Sarah marches a picture of Elena's head across the screen getting Tony to laugh out loud.  The discussion includes the importance of the integration of Work and Life into "WorkLife", finding self-actualization at work, and what's required so employees can bring their whole selves to work.  (And yes, that's the sound of a coin dropping.) Learn more about Lumo at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lumoleadership/posts/?feedView=allSign up for Lumo's Newsletter at: https://lumoleadership.com/get-started/ Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  3. Sep 2 ·  Bonus

    EP 64.5 Special Episode: September Announcements

    Join us for some breaking news.  This episode contains information about the following Events1. Podcast Adventure on the Via Ferrata.  Email the podcast or contact Dyno Outfitters and tell them you're with our group at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/ Date: Sept 11th at 8:30am in Vernal.  2. The Utah SHRM Excellence Awards, get tickets at: https://utahshrm.org/utah-shrm-excellence-awards/ We'll be there.  Date: September 15th at 6:00pm at Hales Theater in Sandy.   3. We're presenting at the Work Elevated Conference on September 22nd at 9:30am.  Our session is a two hour session and has limited seats.  You can find more information at: https://www.utahworkelevated.com/agenda and get tickets to the conference at: https://whova.com/portal/registration/BGfw6xK2Ykzbkt1WRnhN/(Bird sounds in the background provided by Nat and Pippa.  No birds were injured in the recording of this episode.)  Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  4. Sep 1

    EP 64 Keep Your Edge: Olympic Speed Skating, Blood Clots, and The Principle's Office With Rebekah Bradford

    Rebekah Bradford has hand-sharpened knife-thin blades, has fallen across an Olympic qualifying line in a torn skin suit, and still found the composure to ask for a do over.  Rebekah competed in long-track speed skating at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, which is a fancy way of saying she voluntarily strapped 17-inch blades to her feet and went very fast on purpose. Somewhere between Olympic trials, a torn suit, and a twenty-nine minute window to pull herself together for a re-skate, she made the team and picked up a husband along the way, courtesy of a celebrity date auction. These days, she has traded the ice for product marketing, a couple of master's degrees, and a household that includes a toddler daughter, a brand new baby brother, and presumably far fewer skate sharpening jigs lying around the house.  Rebekah walks The guys through a health scare that escalated during an ultimate frisbee game and ended in an ER visit that very likely saved her life.  So what does a blood clot scare have to do with your Tuesday afternoon standup? What is the one thing people always get wrong about Olympians? And does Steve's He-Man HR review hold up against actual gold medal level feedback?  (Steve's name in the transcript is Wolverine... because we know you all read it... just sayin'.)   Learn more about Rebekah Bradford: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebekahbradford/Learn more about the National Blood Clot Alliance at: https://www.stoptheclot.org/Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcastLearn more about The Gods Must Be Crazy, the movie at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080801/ A 2010 U.S. Olympian and two-time U.S. Sprint Champion in speedskating, Rebekah has built a life around competition, resilience, and the willingness to get back on the ice when life knocks you down. Today, she brings that same energy to her role as a product marketing leader at Energy Exemplar, a global energy software company.  But Rebekah’s greatest races haven't always been on the track. She is a survivor of bilateral pulmonary embolisms, a transracial adoptive parent, and a leader who has reinvented herself more than once. Her story is one of high-speed competition, unexpected obstacles, big pivots, and refusing to stay down.  She brings an Olympian’s mindset to everything she does: prepare relentlessly, embrace the pressure, trust the training, and show up—especially when showing up is hard.  Rebekah holds a dual MBA and PMP and lives in Salt Lake City with her family. Help us a pressure The Utah mammoth to get involved in Pucks for Autism: https://www.nhl.com/utah/Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  5. Aug 25

    EP 63 Nobody Asks About Your ENPS When They're Buying Your Company with Thien Nguyen

    Thien Nguyen showed up to the podcast having already peaked, by his own admission, since his only goal in life was apparently to be on a show famous enough that Johnny C. Taylor stalks the host's LinkedIn profile.  He says he spent years building an HR career the normal way, HR director, chief of staff, then a president role overseeing sales and operations, right up through his company going through an acquisition. Somewhere in that climb he stopped being seen as "an HR person," even though he'll tell you flat out he's still HR at heart. Now he's President at ISO Talent, co-founder of the People Club, and he brought Tony and Steve something most HR professionals never get to see up close. Thien sat through his own company's acquisition, the practice presentations, the dinners, the entire dog and pony show, and not one investor or buyer ever asked him for his ENPS score. Not once. So, the guys dive deep. If HR isn't in the room when the money moves, what is HR actually in the room for? Can the average manager survive without HR holding their hand through a hard conversation, or are we all just one awkward confrontation away from chaos? What happens to the rewards a company promises its people once the deal is signed and the new owners show up? And what's the one number thing Thien thinks every HR person should know cold, the one most of us are too scared to ask about? Somewhere in there he also explains why recruiting fees are basically a shakedown, which is a fun thing to hear from a guy who runs a recruiting company. Learn more about Thien Nguyen at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thien-v-nguyen/Learn more about ISO Talent at: https://www.isotalent.com/Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  6. Aug 18

    EP 62 Hot Flashes, Horse Urine, and the $26.6 Billion Menopause Problem HR Ignores with Mare and Raquel

    Mare, Raquel, Steve, and Tony laugh their heads off discussing perimenopause, menopause, and post menopause.  Menopause costs U.S. employers an estimated 26.6 billion dollars a year in absenteeism, presenteeism, disengagement, and unnecessary medical visits. Yet, most HR leaders have never had a single conversation about it, and most doctors received perhaps two chapters on it in medical school. The guys sit down with Mare and Raquel, co-founders of MenoPalz, to talk about what actually happens to women in perimenopause, why so many end up in the ER convinced they are having a heart attack, and why an entire generation of providers still won't prescribe estrogen because of a study that was flawed from the day it was published. This one gets into real workplace territory fast. What do you actually say to an employee who is clearly struggling but you have no idea if it is stress, burnout, or something else entirely? Is a lunch and learn on menopause a thoughtful gesture or a liability waiting to happen? And why does psychological safety matter more here than almost anywhere else in HR? Mare and Raquel don't hand out easy scripts, but they do explain why the conversation is happening, whether HR is ready for it or not, since every woman in your workforce is eventually heading toward this phase of life. Stick around for the tangent about George Washington, mistakes, and what it actually means to let people fail their way into becoming better.  (Caution: Authentic sounds of a dog drinking from a bowl included in this episode.)   Learn more about MenoPalz at: https://www.menopalz.com/?srsltid=AfmBOorteFl56MOEN9Glf-gqUa5O3gXzfk6BY-oC4IZCiCg6KCwxVmjSSubscribe to Take a Pause with MenoPalz Podcast at: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/take-a-pause-with-menopalz/id1825203115Download Information from MenoPalz at: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1C8LcaoHaOA5eZHDXMqRb1CqUMRfp_hZp?usp=sharingLearn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  7. Aug 11

    EP 61 Theresa Hummel-Krallinger or Just Great HR?

    Theresa Hummel-Krallinger joins the guys for a more than an hour of laughs and great insight.  Theresa talks about what makes great HR, and reacts to Johnny C Taylor's recent speech.  She talks about winning two Emmy's, her list of what makes a good culture (including #31 no "A holes") and talks about why her book (Make Waves) is more than a fancy business card.  Strategic HR has never been so fun as it is in this episode.  Oh... and Theresa should move to Utah... Just sayin'.  Watch out Dry Bar, here she comes.  Find Theresa HK's Comedy at: https://www.facebook.com/theresahkcomedy Learn more about Theresa Hummel-Krallinger at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tkrallinger/Find Theresa's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Make-Waves-Career-Pathing-Employable/dp/0991321405/ref=sr_1_1?crid=31QB1TR9XLGD6&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.cVoJ1caj6NInPShlB3C_OA.GP28O19OEX1sjwTsAhZ3GmiT_aUfgeud7xs5MKvvP1M&dib_tag=se&keywords=make+waves+theresa+hummel&qid=1786418089&sprefix=make+waves+theresa+hummel%2Caps%2C211&sr=8-1 Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcastLearn More about the Netflix film Titan at: https://www.netflix.com/title/81712178 Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

  8. Aug 4

    EP 60 Reacting to Johnny C Taylor's State of HR Answer at SHRM '26 in The Empty Red Seat

    Steve and Tony react to Johnny C Taylor's SHRM 2026 speech about the state of HR. Johnny answered the question the guys ask all of their guests, What is the State of HR, and it isn't easy to hear.  What does it really mean? What needs to change? What is Johnny not saying because HR people don't want to hear it?  Are you an expert on people? Are you an expert on work itself?  Who called Tony during the podcast?  Does Steve meet more Beauty Queens than Tony?    Listen to Johnny C Taylor's Full Speech at SHRM 26 here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHoVaS3WKj8&t=33s Please share the podcast and visit our sponsors.  Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/Learn more about Steven "Big Deal" Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/Learn more about the Books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcastLearn More about the Netflix film Titan at: https://www.netflix.com/title/81712178 Learn more about Dyno Outfitters at: https://www.utahviaferrata.com/Learn more about MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/Learn more about Pucks for Autism at: https://www.pucksforautism.com/Learn more about Thrive Life Project at: https://www.thrivelifeproject.org/

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Trailer

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About

The HR Life Podcast is a show about the work-life experience of those of us in Human Resources and business leadership. This long-form podcast is a conversation, casual, and not always the corporate line. Hosts and guests touch on everything from serious or even controversial topics to the absurdity of modern American business practices. Your hosts are Tony Benjamin, owner and founder of The Grange Strategic HR Consulting, and Steven J. Smith, Author of The Hiring Tree: Laws of Applicant Attraction and all-around important guy. Guests include the best minds in the HR world. Join the show weekly.

Information

  • Creator
    Tony Benjamin
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    69
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 The Grange LLC
  • Show Website
    The HR Life Podcast

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