Shows
Bringing the Human back to Human Resources252. From At-Will to Employee-First: Navigating Canadian Hiring Successfully feat. Laura TolhoekThis week, Traci welcomes Laura Tolhoek, founder and principal consultant at Essential HR, where she leads a team delivering clear, results-focused solutions to businesses facing HR challenges across Canada. With her CHRL designation and over 20 years of experience, Laura specializes in helping companies navigate the complex world of Canadian employment law.Laura has built her career guiding managers through high-volume decision-making in fast-paced restaurant, food service, and retail environments. Her expertise becomes critical when US-based companies attempt to expand north of the border using American HR practices—a mistake th...
2025-11-1136 min
The Road to SevenFlexibility and Time Freedom: The Rewards of Scaling with Laura TolhoekScaling is messy, but the rewards are worth it—time freedom, flexibility, and the ability to dream big. - Laura TolhoekIn this inspiring episode of The Road to Seven, host Shelagh Cummins sits down with Laura Tolhoek, founder of Essential HR, to explore the journey of scaling a business. Laura reveals how she built a team of passionate and skilled professionals, emphasizing the importance of letting go of tasks that don’t spark joy to focus on her strengths. She shares how scaling has brought her not only exponential growth but also flexibility and time freedom to p...
2024-11-2529 min
Law Firm Growth PodcastAccessing Top Quality Talent in Canada with Laura TolhoekAccessing Top Quality Talent in Canada with Laura Tolhoek>> Get the newest LFG episodes delivered to your inbox when you Sign Up for our Newsletter.>> Get the new book beyondintakebook.comResource Links:Fast track your marketing efforts while avoiding common marketing mistakes in our new trainingEstate planning attorney? Stop guessing how to get results from online ads and grow your firm with our client-generating Seminar 3.0 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
2024-09-1731 min
Resilient by Design with Rebecca Hay190. The Dos and Don'ts of Hiring in your interior design firm with Laura TolhoekThis episode is filled to the brim with "aha!" moments about all things Human Resources and the role it plays in a small business, so get ready to take some notes. I chatted with Laura Tolhoek, founder and principal consultant of Essential HR Canada, to get answers to all my burning HR questions and learn why it is so worth it for small businesses to hire an outside expert. She shares the differences between subcontractors and employees, the nitty gritty behind contracts (including the one most important part), and even a few HR horror stories that her services can...
2024-02-0855 min
The Fitness Business Podcast438 Using KPIs to Smash Growth Targets with Laura TolhoekWhether you love KPIs or despise them, you have to admit they are a vital measuring tool to your business. Approached with the right attitude, they can explain how to get the success out of your business that you are looking for. Join us today to listen to HR expert Laura Tolhoek's advice on how to introduce KPIs to your team and how to use them to smash growth targets.
2022-06-1431 min
Fitness Business Podcast: Leadership, Innovation, and Profit438 Using KPIs to Smash Growth Targets with Laura TolhoekWhether you love KPIs or despise them, you have to admit they are a vital measuring tool to your business. Approached with the right attitude, they can explain how to get the success out of your business that you are looking for. Join us today to listen to HR expert Laura Tolhoek's advice on how to introduce KPIs to your team and how to use them to smash growth targets.
2022-06-1431 min
How She Did ThatHow She Curates an Incredible Performance and Development CultureCreating your own company means creating your own company culture. And if you’re anything like all the solopreneurs that are joining the online workspace because of the Great Resignation, you want to create a WAYYY more nurturing company culture. But how can you create it if you’ve never seen it? You can start by making your teammates feel appreciated. It’s as simple as that! We dive deeper into curating this kind of company culture with this week’s guest. Meet Laura Tolhoek, she’s the owner of Essential HR. Laura helps a wide range of peo...
2022-02-1726 min
THRIVE: Your Agency ResourceEp 110: Why Your Employer Brand Matters, with Laura TolhoekOn this episode of THRIVE — sponsored by Workamajig — Kelly and Laura Tolhoek discuss the importance of your employer brand and how it impacts hiring, recruitment, and more.Laura and I cover these points and more:The meaning behind employer brand and why it’s important;Story intersection between the agency brand and the employer brand;Things that would negatively affect an employer brand;HR policies and practices that are necessary for creating that brand.Be sure to tune in to all the episodes of THRIVE to get practical tips on becoming a conscious leader, growing your a...
2021-11-1721 min
Professional Services Growth and MarketingHow to create your employer brandDo you have an employer brand? You should. Laura Tolhoek created Essential HR, a female-led team of HR professionals who are driven to work with small businesses by helping sort through the details and providing solutions. They wanted to provide support to small businesses that didn't necessarily need a full-time HR person on the payroll but still needed an experienced person to help navigate those situations that could cause risk and stress within their operations. In this episode, I ask... What is an 'Employer Brand' and why is it important for small businesses? How does your...
2021-10-2726 min
Drop The Mic with Jason Hunt088 | Amplifying your "Employer" Brand - with Laura TolhoekWhen it comes to hiring employees, it can be tough to know how to make your company attractive to potential candidates. In today’s episode, Jay and Laura Tolhoek discuss how business owners and entrepreneurs can work to amplify their employer brand. As the founder of Essential HR, Laura and her team have helped businesses navigate complex HR situations, guide decisions, and instill confidence with actionable steps.
Mentioned in This Episode
The 5 Love Languages
The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace
5 Steps to Identify and Amplify Your Employer Brand - a download from Laura
What yo...
2021-08-2428 min
The OMG I'm Launching PodcastEp.084 - HR Systems To Help You Look After Your Business While Growing a Team with Laura Tolhoek“Whether a subcontractor or employee. If things go south what does separating look like and is that legally defensible to protect my business?”Laura Tolhoek provides HR relief to scaling solopreneurs and established small businesses who are taking the hiring leap. As a Certified Human Resource Leader and the proprietor of Essential HR, Laura knows that when a business faces HR problems, there is only room for positive results. In this episode, Laura shares her 15 years of HR experience to help your business is well looked after as you hire and grow your team...
2021-06-2141 min
Smart Agency Masterclass with Jason Swenk: Podcast for Digital Marketing AgenciesWhat's the Best Way to Hire and Fire Digital Agency Employees?Laura Tolhoek is the owner of Essential HR, the business she started three years ago in order to provide HR relief to small businesses. Her company provides an ultra-flexible way of managing HR so businesses can focus on their core operation and growing their business. Laura shares the best practices and tips on how to hire and fire digital agency employees. She covers everything from creating your employer brand to the details of the offer letter and how to protect yourself when letting someone go. 3 Golden Nuggets Building an employer brand is as important as your agency brand...
2021-04-2515 min
Business Owners Radio187 CULTURE | How to create an employer brand to attract the best talent. w/Laura Tolhoek.Learn how to implement HR strategies that attract and retain the best talent and improve business performance.
2021-04-1921 min
Business Owners Radio187 CULTURE | How to create an employer brand to attract the best talent. w/Laura Tolhoek.Laura Tolhoek, certified human resource leader, and President of Essential HR, shares how to build your employer brand. Learn how to implement HR strategies that attract and retain the best talent and improve business performance. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and Stitcher. Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn About Business Owners Ra...
2021-04-1921 min
Small Nonprofit: Fundraising Tips, Leadership Strategies, and Community-Centric Solutionscreating your employer brand with Laura TolhoekSend a textWe often think about branding for our organizations as something that speaks to communities we serve and stakeholders we answer to. We forget to count our staff and prospective staff in that list. How is your organization speaking to current and future employees? On today’s podcast, Laura Tolhoek, President of Essential HR, shares with us how to build your employer brand and recruit and keep the talents your team needs. Laura’s tips on building your employer brandUnderstand and clarify your...
2021-04-0533 min
The Home Service Expert PodcastHow To Fine-Tune Your Recruitment Process to Find the Best TalentLaura Tolhoek is a Certified Human Resource Leader (CHRL) through the Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA), with over 15 years of experience in using sound HR practices with a pragmatic approach to improve business performance. As the proprietor of Essential HR Canada, she and her team work with clients, including major players in the restaurant, foodservice and retail world, in sorting through details and providing solutions. In this episode, we talked about recruitment, employee development, employee retention...
2021-01-291h 08
Law Firm Growth PodcastRunning Human Resources Like Big Law, Even if You’re Small with Laura TolhoekResource Links:CaseFuel Website (http://casefuel.com/)Get your copy of “Legal Marketing Fastlane” (https://www.amazon.com/Legal-Marketing-Fastlane-Roadmap-Generating-ebook/dp/B06X9B76QX)We’ve heard the word brand so many times. You’ve gotta have a brand for your business. You gotta have A, B, C.When we think of big companies like Southwest Airlines, Target and Starbucks, we know about their consumer brand - but what about their employee brand?These companies are examples of organizations that have done a great job of cultivating a strong employee brand, aka a brand th...
2021-01-2641 min
The Construction Leading Edge Podcast194. Recruiting and Hiring Mistakes You Want to Avoid with Laura TolhoekHere's what you'll get out of this construction podcast episode: - What is the #1 mistake small business owners make when recruiting for a new employee? - Questions you can ask to determine culture fit. - What is the #1 mistake small business owners make during the first week? - Why is the first week for an employee so critical? - What's the 80/20 on onboarding? - When and how do you introduce objectives and performance metrics to new hires? - How to keep your good employees.
2021-01-201h 14The Construction Leading Edge Podcast194. Recruiting and Hiring Mistakes You Want to Avoid with Laura TolhoekHere's what you'll get out of this construction podcast episode: - What is the #1 mistake small business owners make when recruiting for a new employee? - Questions you can ask to determine culture fit. - What is the #1 mistake small business owners make during the first week? - Why is the first week for an employee so critical? - What's the 80/20 on onboarding? - When and how do you introduce objectives and performance metrics to new hires? - How to keep your good employees.
2021-01-201h 14
The Successful Bookkeeper PodcastEP227: Laura Tolhoek - What You Need To Know About Human Resources In 2021The well-being of your staff has always been an important consideration. It's even more so during this unique time in human history. With COVID-19 affecting the world, our guest, Laura Tolhoek had to develop new and innovate Human Resources strategies to help her clients. She is the President of Essential HR and has worked with some of the biggest players in the restaurant, food service and retail industries as an integral member of their HR teams. During this interview, you'll learn about... The different rules of staff morale and the infectious disease 4...
2021-01-1232 min
The Road to SevenThe Most Important Thing You’ll Do As A Leader“The human side of your team and business can sometimes be the hardest to manage.”— Shelagh CumminsLaura Tolhoek grew up in a family that owned a small business, so from an early age she was familiar with the tenacity, resilience, and hard work that go into growing a livelihood. After going to school for HR, she worked for large companies in hospitality and food service.She desired a healthier work-life balance and requested that her role be made part-time — a request that her then-employer balked at.She looked at different part-time...
2021-01-1225 min
Thriving Stylist PodcastHuman Resources Essentials In The Salon with Laura TolhoekToday I have a very special interview with my new friend Laura Tolhoek of Essential HR! This conversation was such a reframe for me, and it showed me that human resources is so much more than just policies, procedures and handbooks. Whether you are a salon owner, a stylist looking to hire your first assistant or even a stylist planning to open up your own salon, Laura is here to share how you don't have to be afraid of these topics! As a certified HR leader and the proprietor of Essential HR, Laura has blended sound HR...
2020-11-3022 min
Explosive Small Business GrowthThe Importance of an Employer Brand with Laura Tolhoek Episode 31Employer branding is just as important as organizational branding. Unfortunately, most small business owners don’t pay much attention to this… Read more The Importance of an Employer Brand with Laura Tolhoek Episode 31
The post The Importance of an Employer Brand with Laura Tolhoek Episode 31 appeared first on Vezina Consulting, L.L.C..
2020-11-2829 min
Startup Women PodcastMastering Your Employer Brand with Laura Tolhoek – November 26, 2020From posting the job to onboarding, hiring can be a challenge in the startup space. Laura Tolhoek, Proprietor of Essential HR, believes the key to attracting top talent is mastering your employer brand.
As a Certified Human Resource Leader (CHRL) and the proprietor of Essential HR, Laura Tolhoek knows that when a business faces HR problems, there is no room for ambiguity, only positive results. For the last 15 years, she has blended sound HR practices with her pragmatic approach to improve business performance. Now, Laura leads a team of HR professionals as they navigate complex HR situations wi...
2020-11-2628 min
The Gutsy Podcast | Mindset, Personal Development & Entrepreneurship for Women77: Hiring and Managing Your Team with Laura TolhoekYou have a growing business and it's time to add people. But how in the hell do you do that? Where do you even begin? Should you hire an employee? Should you bring in a sub-contractor? Like seriously, what are the first steps? Hiring and managing a team requires diligent steps and brand alignment. So, today, we're going to talk about how to find and manage your employees, subcontractors, and service providers and to do that I have Laura Tolhoek from Essential HR.In this episode, you’ll learn:Hiring employees versus subc...
2020-11-101h 06
The How of Business - How to start, run, grow and exit a small business.Employee Development with Laura TolhoekCoaching and developing your small business employees (starting at 18:52) with HR specialist Laura Tolhoek. She also shares her entrepreneur journey. Laura is an experienced Human Resources professional and the owner of Essential HR –they work with small businesses to help them implement HR strategies that attract and retain the best talent. Henry Lopez is a serial entrepreneur, small business coach, and the host of this episode of The How of business show – dedicated to helping you start, run and grow your small business. (TheHowOfBusiness.com)
2020-09-1452 min