The Entrepreneuring Show: Attract the Best Talent with Julie Alleyn

Live Show Guest Posts (Presentation) (1)

Jill: Welcome to the Entrepreneuring show, where we strive to provide insights and stories for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs, where innovation meets inspiration, led by veteran entrepreneur and tech founder. Here’s your host, Jill Button. 

Jill: All right, we are live Today’s episode is brought to you by Pegasus evolution Pegasus evolution offers expert fractional HR services helping businesses enhance employee recruitment engagement and retention Founded by my guest, Julie Alleyn, a bilingual HR consultant, Pegasus Evolution provides comprehensive solutions, including individual and group coaching, leadership development, workshops, and outsourced HR services. 

Jill: Their PulseCheck, HR PulseCheck helps businesses identify and implement effective HR strategies to foster a thriving work culture and boost growth. To learn more about Pegasus Evolutions services, or to join this thriving community of entrepreneurs, check out www.procurehub.ca link in our description. 

Jill: As I said, my guest today is Julie Alleyn from Pegasus Evolution. She’s a fractional human resources services and leadership coach, helping professional leaders grow, get promoted, and become more effective. Effective, faster, accredited coach, ACC, and leadership success focused. Julie has helped hundreds of leaders get promoted, reach their goals and become better managers faster. Julie is also bilingual, speaking French and able to service her clients and both official languages. Welcome to the show, Julie.  Thank you so much, Jill. I’m so excited to be here today. Thank you for having me. Thank you. I’m so excited to get to know you a little bit better and for our listeners to get to know you a little bit better. 

Jill: Let’s start off by talking a little bit about your entrepreneurial journey. How did you become an entrepreneur? We want to hear your story.  

Julie: So I’ve always had. The need in in my mind 

Julie: to become eventually an entrepreneur and after over 20 years in corporate HR, right before the pandemic, I decided to jump into this adventure. 

Julie: Uh, I didn’t plan the timing perfectly, but it is what it is, you know, um, I, I didn’t have a network in Ontario as I come from Montreal, so I had to start building relationships and started participating in all kinds of networks and, uh, just expanded, uh, in Ontario and, you know, here I am today.  

Jill: Awesome. 

Jill: It’s like fate always steps in at the right moment, similar to my story. I took that leap of faith as well. 11 years ago, and I’ve been doing it for a while now. It’s really tough. I’d love to hear a little bit more about your journey. Like what’s been the most challenging thing for you, especially with the pandemic. 

Julie: Um, it’s really about getting out of your comfort zone. And once, if you’re in a corporate employee, being an expert in your field, it’s very, very different than being an entrepreneur and running your business. So you have to re create yourself, reinvent yourself and you, you become, you have to, you know, have a bit of knowledge in, in accounting, graphics, um, marketing. 

Julie: sales. So you really have to push  yourself out of your comfort zone and be ready to learn. And, um, it’s, it’s, it’s a great adventure. Uh, and it’s, it’s never, you know, the same thing, uh, every day changes and I, I love it. So I wouldn’t go back.   

Jill: Amazing. Amazing. That’s, that’s a very common story that I hear is a lot of entrepreneurs have a specific domain knowledge, whether they’re HR experts or in my particular case, a procurement expert, and when you actually confront the realities of what it is to be an entrepreneur and realize that you’re going to have to learn bookkeeping and accounting, and for me, sales was my nemesis, I think that a lot of people, they just think they have this sort of, Uh, rosy colored, um, picture of what entrepreneur life will be. 

Jill: But the reality is quite different.  

Julie: A hundred percent. Uh, it’s, you know, you always have to push yourself in, in the areas that you’re maybe less comfortable with. And, um, you know, ask for help and contact experts to get that, uh, extra knowledge and, uh, you know, we figure it out eventually.   

Jill: For sure. I just want to remind our listeners, if you have questions for Julie, you can go ahead and pop them into the chat and we will be asking Julie some questions, viewer questions throughout the show. 

Jill: If you’re on LinkedIn and joining us, welcome to the show and YouTube, go ahead and pop your questions into the comment section and we will get to those throughout the show. Uh, for now, Julie, I’d love to hear a little bit more about, you know, so far, what has been the most rewarding thing for you about being an entrepreneur? 

Julie: Being able to help small, medium sized businesses has been  very Um, fulfilling for me, uh, helping them, you know, meet them where they’re at and help them see strategies, develop strategies that they can implement and really help them increase their productivity, their profitability. And, uh, growing the number of employees, helping them manage the future and see that it’s not that complicated. 

Julie: Yes, there’s a lot of elements and moving parts, but being able to help them optimize their business with the HR side is very fulfilling for me.  

Jill: Fantastic. And what do you find is the the service that is most often requested from your customers? What are people? What is the highest thing? The highest demand thing that people really need help with? 

Julie: Well, at the beginning, when we’re building that relationship often, it is Recruitment. That’s often where it starts. And small, medium sized businesses don’t always have the time or the knowledge of the best practices and how to, um, get their ideal talent and, uh, keep them happy. So often it starts with that, but it’s also, you know, employment contracts, uh, onboarding the new employees. 

Julie: Managing performance. These are elements that are definitely very, uh, in demand.  

Jill: Great. And what are some of the other services that are, other than recruiting, small and medium sized businesses are looking for your support or human resources support on?  

Julie: Well, um, managing performance, um, Terminations, unfortunately, that’s also part of understanding how to do it, how to do it properly and being compliant with the laws, um, doing it, uh, respectfully and professionally. 

Julie: Uh, these are things that are quite, uh, essential, but also leadership development. That’s another element where there’s a lot of subsidies that are offered by the government and, um, It, you know, often smaller medium sized businesses don’t have a huge budget to reinvest in their people. But by using grants, it could be very affordable to invest in leadership in your, um, management and bring everybody to that level. 

Julie: So those are things that, um, Quite interesting for business owners.  

Jill: And would you say that there is, is there any one thing that is either a myth or that entrepreneurs don’t realize that they need to do or can do or should do, uh, as an entrepreneur, as it relates to their team or maybe even compliance? 

Julie: Well, a lot of business owners. Uh, see HR maybe as an expense, but if they think they can do it all themselves, they can try until something really bad happens and then they realize, oh, maybe I should have consulted with an expert to avoid, uh, Very high cost in litigation or, you know, people just going to court with, um, complaints. 

Julie: So doing things right from the start is an investment and it really will help you, uh, prevent any future, uh, compliance or litigation issues. So I strongly recommend working with an expert like you. Pegasus Evolution to, uh, support your business and start on the right foundation.  

Jill: And would you say, what would be the right time that an entrepreneur should start thinking about bringing in an HR expert such as yourself to help them with their business?  

Julie: From day one, if they plan on having employees, uh, just having the right employment contracts, doing things properly, having a process in place and not reinventing the wheel and winging it. And then, um, you know, a lot of businesses, uh, find, uh, it difficult to recruit and they invest a lot of time. And we’ll talk about that maybe later. 

Julie: On, um, you know, it, it takes a lot of time to do it right, and then they forget the other part is onboarding people properly. So that’s another very important element to consider because you, we work so hard to get them in the door. So how do we keep them happy after that?  

Jill: Right, right. What has been the most surprising  thing for you as an entrepreneur and in your journey so far? 

Jill: What is it maybe that yourself, you had this vision of how entrepreneur life was going to play out, but what for you has been the most surprising? 

Julie: Well, it becomes your baby. Like, we, we put so much of ourselves in our business that, um, sometimes it, you know, it, it gets very time consuming. You, we work evenings, we work weekends, uh, it impacts your family life, it, it, it, we really have to sometimes take a step back and look at the bigger picture and say, okay, It’s not at any cost. 

Julie: We do need to take vacation. We do need to structure our business that we can go on holidays and we don’t have to be there, you know, 12 months a year, 52 weeks a year. So, um, finding ways to, uh, get some backup and find trusting people that we can work with.  

Jill: Excellent. Would you have any advice or, you know, from your own experience, do you have any things that for you are principles that you follow to make sure that you have that correct sort of balance of work and life? 

Jill: Or do you believe in work life balance? Like, what are your thoughts on that?  

Julie: I yeah, I don’t think it’s work life balance. I think there are moments where you do have to work more and invest more and and give more time to your business. But as long as you also find the other balance of finding time to go on holidays and enjoying time with your family, um, it’s just you have to. 

Julie: You know, it, it can’t be just one or the other. It has to be  both, but it might, there are weeks where it’s more the business and there are weeks where it’s holidays.  

Jill: Yeah. So it’s a give and take situation. Yes, but balanced, like perfectly balanced. Yeah, I think, um, I think that’s a pretty common myth and also surprising as well. 

Jill: When I started my own business, I wasn’t expecting to be working as many hours as I did, but we do have certain principles in our culture, values that we respect around family and family first has always been our motto. So the entire team knows that if they need to. You know, focus on a sick child or a parent and they need to take time off to, you know, go to the doctor or, you know, during the day, if they need to volunteer at their kid’s school, that’s, that’s number one. 

Jill: We, we believe in wholeheartedly that our team members,  family comes first job. This is a job. It’s an important job and we have a lot of fun and we believe that we’re doing important work, but family should always come first. So. That’s it. That’s like a first principle for us. Do you have any of those first principles for you, for yourself, for your team, or that maybe you recommend to clients? 

Julie: Um, I don’t necessarily have a principle like that for me. I do personally value community and reinvesting into something that is like I volunteer. I’m president of a board of a nonprofit that welcomes new immigrants to Canada HMC Connections. Um, I help, um, Up With Women, which is a, a, a non profit that helps women, uh, in, on the poverty line to get out of that, um,  uh, minimum, not wage, but like, out of that poverty situation and helps women. 

Julie: them thrive in their own professional life. So, um, I do a lot of things to give back. And I do think that, um, with networking, with running a business, having a family, um, it’s, it’s very fulfilling, but at the same time demanding, but that’s all good.  

Jill: Amazing. And can you maybe give us some information about if anyone is interested in learning more about your charity, how they could go about, is there a website or information you could share on that? 

Julie: Yeah, it’s not my charity, but I, I work with them for many years now. So. It’s important, yeah. Yeah, the first one is called HMC Connections, and it’s based in Halton. Um, and so, uh, they, they will work with new immigrants and help them, uh, register their children, uh, at school, um, find work, um, learn the language and learn to integrate, uh, in the Canadian, uh, life and be productive citizens. 

Julie: So, uh, that’s a great, um, You know, support for them to, to, to, uh, Come here. And, um, the other one is called up with women. So I, I support the women. Well, we, we have like, it’s like a mentoring coaching program, and we support women that have been identified by the, um, association. And so we’re paired with one person, which we mentor. 

Julie: into helping them, uh, move to the next level in their life and help them, you know, strive to get out of that poverty, uh, level.  

Jill: Amazing. Yeah, that’s amazing. Uh, that is. It sounds like an incredible organization and so rewarding. It kind of, um, it sort of triggered something for me in terms of the, the difference between, you know, being a woman entrepreneur, is there, you know, any special challenges that women entrepreneurs face, um, that are different from males that, um, maybe you could provide some guidance on like, how do you, do you see a difference in, in female versus male entrepreneurs? 

Julie: I think it’s not just in business, but in general, I think women are expected to, um, be the nurturer of the family, to take care of the children, the household, the food, the, uh, Everything plus the bit like it’s a choice that you decide to become a business owner, um, entrepreneur. So you, you have to also give a lot to your business. 

Julie: So I, I do feel that it’s, it’s, um, it’s demanding. It’s, it’s, uh, it’s not always fair. It is what it is. And some, um, maybe. Uh, unions are different than mine, but, uh, it’s still, uh, demanding that, uh, I, I’m expected to do these things, uh, in addition to my business. And my husband is also a business owner, so it’s like, yeah, it’s, it’s a lot. 

Jill: I, that really does resonate with me. My husband, he’s not a business owner, but he does work outside the home. Um, as a, as an entrepreneur, I, you know, I’m meeting with clients. I’m working from home. Um, we’re looking at, you know, Uh, space, uh, to meet with the team and there’s sort of this perception if I’m at home that I’m not working and that I’m available and that’s sort of an ongoing  debate that my husband and I have around, you know, his availability and I, I find it challenging. 

Jill: And so I, I hear myself saying things like trying to run a corporation here.  

Julie: I feel you. I know. I know. So, you know, it, it, it, it’s all about finding a way to, um, find moments that you can replenish yourself as well. And, uh, doing some me time activities, even though it’s just taking a hot bath alone. It’s, it’s, it’s really nice. 

Jill: So what are some of the things that you recommend or what are some of the things that you do for me time? Like what’s your favorite thing to do to recharge your batteries or to focus on self care?  

Julie: So I like to do meditation. Um, I also have a dog and even though it is taking care of my dog, going for walks is very, um, uh, getting back to nature. 

Julie: And I have a. a strategy that I don’t bring my phone when I walk my dog, so there’s no interruptions, except if I meet somebody from the community and say hi. Um, so it’s really about disconnecting myself more and more from electronics and just finding time to be in nature.  

Jill: Do you have any other, um, tips? 

Julie: Actually, before we go there, what kind of dog do you have? I have, I have a dog as well, and I love dogs, and a cat. I have a cat. I have a golden doodle, uh, and he’s, uh, party colors, so he’s black and white with spots. So, uh, he, he’s the golden doodle without the golden, so it’s just funny. The golden doodle without the do, without the golden.  

Jill: I have an Australian shepherd. Uh, he is 14 years old. He’s the third, no, sorry. Second Australian that I owned and we almost lost him last year. So I, I really can relate to, you know, dogs are. our best friends and giving you an opportunity to, um, you know, focus on an animal. That’s just, you know, unconditional love. 

Julie: Um, it’s so special. I, I like to walk with my dog as well. Um, I would outside, I do take my cell phone though. So maybe I should not do that. Um, yes. What other tips do you have for people to do like self care, even just quick things that they can do to recharge their battery?  

Jill: Find things that help them relieve their stress. 

Jill: So some people have time saving strategies, like every evening they’re going to look at their to do list and they’re gonna set priorities for the next day, and that helps to calm them down.  

Julie: Um, putting times between your meetings to have a breather, to have time to eat, to have time to use, uh, the washroom, and just, you know, like, finding time to Not just go, go, go, go, go. 

Julie: And then at the end of the day, you’re completely burnt out and haven’t had one minute to yourself. So I really think it’s, you have to plan your day to give yourself some breather as well.  

Jill: That’s great advice. Do you time block your calendar to take those breaks? Yeah. So my calendar is color coded and I, I like everything is in blocks and everything is like quite structured, but that’s how  I set it up for myself and I’m good. 

Julie: You know, I don’t necessarily miss meetings or, uh, you know, like I’m, I’m just quite structured. So, uh, it helps me to stay on top of things.  

Jill: Good. Awesome. Do you have any other tips for entrepreneurs, whether it’s HR related or just as an entrepreneur, anything else or advice that you have for entrepreneurs that things that work for you? 

Julie: Well, networking and learning from others is a big one. Um, I’m a very avid networker and I do like to have one to ones with other business owners. Not to sell my services, but just to build relationships and learn from what other people do and how they optimize, you know, their business and their expertise. 

Julie: And I love to ask questions. You know, often I learn things about how to run my business and how I can improve. So it’s all about absorbing other people’s insights and trying to use it to your business as well.  

Jill: So we talked a little bit before the show about networking and you’re an avid networker. Um, as an entrepreneur, how important is networking to, to growing your business? 

Julie: It has been my life saviour in terms of being a business owner. Without networking, I don’t think I would still be in business. Uh, it has been a slow process, but a steady process. And, um, I get maybe 50 percent of my business through, uh, networking. You know, being in HR, there’s a lot of very confidential, sensitive information we deal with. 

Julie: We’re not gonna, you know,  um, trust necessarily a person just because you went into Google to find one. If you’re introduced by somebody who knows, likes, and trusts you, um, the power is much more, um, intense in terms of having some, um, buy in. And having a trust level, uh, like going through ProcureHub, those, your members have been vetted. 

Julie: They’re not just anybody that you pick, you know, that want to apply. No, you, you vet them. So, Being introduced through a referral is being pre vetted, we could say.  

Jill: Excellent. So, so some would say, and perhaps I’m one of those people that networking is really time consuming and you want to make sure because we have such a finite amount of time. 

Jill: Uh, every day. How do you, how do you really choose? Like, what are some  of the things that we should be considering when we are looking at networking and and what should, what events we should go to versus what we shouldn’t?  

Julie: I think it’s, uh, you have to try different ones. You have to see, like, there’s some free networking events. 

Julie: But there’s also, um, like VNI networking events where you become a member and you build a stronger relationship. So there’s so many ways to network. You do have to pick and choose and measure, like you can measure how much time you’re investing and how many, um, leads or how many contacts or introductions you’ve received. 

Julie: And by measuring there, you’ll see after some time to see. You’ll see where does it, where is it worth it to spend your time, and where is it not? Um, you have to be selective, and yes, I agree, it’s very time consuming, but at the same time, um, it’s, it’s an important element of, you know, growing your business, especially when you’re just starting a new business. 

Jill: Absolutely. And, and the learning aspect you talked about is really important as well, because, you know, we’re sort of all in this journey. Uh, maybe it’s a different journey or different, um, domain that we have expertise in, but the, you know, the common experiences of the entrepreneur, the loneliness I find is, um, a common thing that I hear a lot. 

Julie: Yeah, it’s lonely at the top, they say. And it’s true. Um, you need the sounding board and being part of a group that you, you become friends with and that, you know, you can throw out some struggles or questions or ideas. And you’ll get some great advice from other people who are going through the same thing as you. 

Julie: So it’s a great way to bounce some ideas and find solutions  to, you know, we don’t know everything. We need other people to help us, of course.  

Jill: Exactly. I agree. And I, I just love, um, like yourself, I love talking to other entrepreneurs and hearing about their journey and you know, what was the catalyst for them to start? 

Jill: And you know, how are they, how are they tackling common challenges and to be able to learn from their experiences? I find really gratifying. I see we’ve got a question here from one of our audience. It says in terms of DEI, How can a company ensure DEI initiatives are integrated into the overall business strategy? 

Jill: I know you’ve got some DEI expertise. We’d love to hear your thoughts on that one.  

Julie: For sure. So it’s, you know, a lot of larger businesses create like a, you know, a list of things they want to do and it’s check the box, check the box, check the box. But I think it’s much more than that. I think it’s more important to have. 

Julie: less initiatives, but then truly, truly integrated in the foundation of how you do business. So in terms of like recruitment, um, a lot of recruitment strategies now integrate, um, systems that, um, would remove like the name of the candidate. So you really, truly only look at the. Uh, competencies in the experience, and you’re not basing your judgment on, you know, what race or, uh, where do they come from, or all of these other things that can create, you know, barriers. 

Julie: So these are things that can help just try to be as barrier free as possible. That’s just an example. So throughout your processes of, you know, how you do things, making sure that you implement things that  You know, really, truly support the best candidate for the job and not just, um, you know, the, the, the person that you think would be better, right? 

Jill: So I love that idea in terms of removing the name. Which then gives you the opportunity, as you’ve said, to really focus on the skills and experience versus their nationality, their culture, their gender. Um, and that’s, that’s such a great idea because this bias or unconscious bias that I think a lot of people have, um, it gives, it really focuses on the best candidate for the role. 

Julie: So this was just an example, but yeah, it’s, uh, looking at how you do things and just make sure that you’re, um, removing those potential barriers as much as you can. And, you know, small to medium sized businesses maybe have simpler processes and. That’s fine. Um, it’s, it’s not always about, you know, filling up the role as quickly as possible. 

Julie: It’s also finding the right person with the right experience and the person that will fit with your business. And, uh, Will able be able to thrive and stay long, uh, within your, your company.  

Jill: Awesome. That’s a good question to segue into. I’d love to hear a little bit more about the recruiting process in particular. 

Jill: Um, let’s talk about how small and medium sized businesses can track that top talent to help them run and grow their business.  

Julie: So yeah, recruiting the best talent is really a critical function, uh, for any business to thrive and be competitive. So there’s key strategies that we can follow to ensure the best talent. 

Julie: talent acquisition. Um, number one would be to clearly define your job descriptions. So set up, set on paper what you want this person to, to do, to be responsible for the accountabilities, um, The expectations for the role also emphasize the growth opportunities because a lot of people are looking to go to a company where they can learn and grow. 

Julie: And, you know, we have this expression, people, uh, go and stay where they can grow. It’s really true. Uh, it’s not always about the salary. It’s, of course you have to offer something that’s acceptable, but if you have growth opportunities, a lot of people will stay. Stay longer, uh, and, uh, learn from the environment. 

Julie: So those are important things to consider. The next one would be to use, uh, multiple recruitment challenges. So job portals, websites, social media, recruitment, and, uh, referrals. Uh, never forget your actual employees. are a great referral source. So having, um, some, um, um, ways to compensate employees who bring in qualified candidates and when they’re hired to give them, like, uh, uh, a money amount can really help To attract even better, um, quality candidates. 

Julie: So that’s an important one too. Um, and develop a strong employer brand. So, um, you know, I know small, medium sized businesses don’t have a marketing budget to promote their, um, their. Uh, career sites and things like that, but  it’s, it’s important to, um, you know, show your vision, your mission and your values and, um, yeah, just try to, uh, differentiate yourself from your competitors and show what’s the advantage of coming, uh, and working for. 

Julie: for your business.  

Jill: There’s a question actually on branding. What are some of the effective employer branding strategies that you can recommend for 2024?  

Julie: Well, I think it’s very similar to marketing your business. It’s just who is your target audience. And in that case, it’s potential employees. So, uh, showing You know, what’s your culture? 

Julie: What it is to work at your business? Um, why? Why are you different than your neighbor competitor? How? You know, what are the things that you value? Like you mentioned  family first. That’s one of your values. Well, what is your your as a business? What is your value? And how, um, you know, what is how could you define, um, What it is to work at your business and, and, uh, differentiate yourself like that. 

Julie: So of course there’s the visuals as well, the, the whole marketing, um, branding, uh, aspect of things, but yeah, promoting. You know, the, the, the experience of working for you, you know, it’s, it’s being truthful as well. So sometimes recruiting, you’ll you’re being sold the, you know, beautiful job and you arrive and then it’s not like that. 

Julie: And then you, you resign within the first 90 days. So it’s really about being truthful, but also authentic in, in what it is to work for your business.  

Jill: Awesome. Any other tips for, um, maybe even, uh, retaining or anything else that you’d like to share? 

Julie: Necessarily finished with, um, uh, my steps to, uh, key strategies. So it’s okay. We went through different, um, so using an applicant tracking system can help if, uh, you know, you’re big enough to, um, make it worthwhile, conduct thorough interviews. Engage in proactive talent sourcing, so talent pools, college recruiting, these are great ways of collecting talent. 

Julie: Um, offer competitive compensation, benefits, work life balance, okay, it’s, I, balance, never balance, but work life, um, Uh, flexibility, I think that’s better, uh, and maybe in terms of words, uh, to promote diversity and inclusion and provide opportunities for career development and, um, Track your results and optimize the way that you do things to see what works, what doesn’t work for your industry and, um, work with professionals when, when you can and get the expertise to bring in the best talent. 

Julie: So, um. Um, higher, slow and fire fast, I would say that’s a great way to see things. So take your time to find the best talent, but if it’s not working out, fire fast.  

Jill: What does fire fast mean? Like get, help me understand what that means in terms of timing. Are we taught, like, what does that mean? Give us a little bit more guidance on  that. 

Julie: So, within the law, within the first three months, it’s the probation period, right? So, we have three months to test a person. Sometimes it’s not enough. So, we can extend that probation period. Um, but within the first year, If you feel that they’re not the right person within the first year, don’t, don’t wait to see, you know, it’s, it will work out, it will work out, work itself out, it’s going to be better, and well, probably won’t. 

Julie: And the first thing also for entrepreneurs is that you need to tell the employee. If they’re doing something wrong, if you don’t tell them, how can you expect them to correct their behavior or performance if they’re not aware of it? So it’s kind of the basics of you have to communicate and give feedback. 

Julie: And, you know, if they’re doing something well, tell them, but if they’re doing something  bad, tell them as well. And don’t hope that things will resolve themselves on by their own. It won’t. So you, you know, The faster you get rid of a, a difficult situation where you know it’s not going to work out, the better it is and nipping the issue in the bud, then waiting till it’s a full fledged, uh, very difficult situation. 

Jill: Um, I understand I’ve had the pleasure, uh, and maybe challenge of, of hiring people and being a, being, um, a leader for pretty much since in my early twenties. And it was a really difficult thing for me, I think, to get over that emotional, um. You know, trauma, because it’s, it’s not easy. You’re affecting people’s lives. 

Jill: And for me, I think the thing that really helped me become a little bit more comfortable was understanding that if the individual is not performing at the level that they need to, they likely are probably not happy either. It’s probably the wrong fit. It’s not really tapping in and leveraging their skill set. 

Jill: Yeah. And for me, knowing that, and I’ve seen it, that, you know, letting them go to find that right fit is kinder than keeping them in a job that they may not actually be flourishing in.  

Julie: I 100 percent agree with you. It, sometimes it’s a very difficult one moment situation, but in the end, it’s. Giving them opportunities to go and find the right fit for themselves. 

Julie: And so keeping them and keeping them on your team when they’re not the right fit is just festering and making things more difficult. So, um, yes, it’s difficult to address these things, but in the end, they will find something that’s more appropriate for them. And you will find something  that’s more appropriate for your business as well. 

Julie: So it’s a win win situation in the long run. But in the moment of the termination, it’s very difficult.  

Jill: I agree. I agree.  

Jill: Wonderful. Any other advice that you’d like to share?  

Julie: Um, I think it’s, it’s time to see that investing in your people is not a cost. It’s an investment and, and looking at, uh, in this way, It when you truly want to support your employees growth and keep them engaged and keep them productive, it’s going to return to you. 

Julie: Multiple folds. It creates great work environments where your people want to come to work and they’re happy to give more of themselves because they’re getting so much more out of it in terms of. job satisfaction and great workplace. And so, um, seeing this as an investment is, is how I would wish each entrepreneur can see it. 

Jill: Absolutely. As an entrepreneur, I think finding that individual who is so Passionate about the business, dedicated to the business and who looks at the business as their own and sort of acts accordingly. That is so incredibly difficult to find. I’ve, I’m incredibly blessed that I have a high performing team that are all very passionate about, um, what they do. 

Jill: Um, are there any other. You know, advice on how do you, like, how do you, how do you find that person who is going to be that incredible steward of your business, anything to add in terms of tips?  

Julie: Apart from the basics of competencies, I think the attitude, the motivation that  they bring is essential. So you could have a person that has less experience, but is more motivated, and they will turn out to be a much better fit Then somebody who has all the expertise in the world, but they’re not bringing their enthusiasm and their motivation to it. 

Julie: So, um, it, it, it’s not just what’s on paper, it’s also, you know, who they are and what they bring to the table in terms of their, uh, energy and, and passion and enthusiasm.  

 Jill: Agree. Agree. In my, in my experience, I always hire, hire for will. Uh, versus skill because will is something you really, it’s a difficult thing to teach somebody who has, you know, um, great communication, entrepreneurial skills, um, wanting to build relationships, um, taking initiative, you know, opening open, being open and embracing new learning  opportunities. 

Jill: Is far more difficult to, to, to teach then, you know, skills like learning how to, you know, in my particular case, run an RFP, although that is a challenging skill to be sure, um, you know, that willingness has always been, uh, for me, a priority will over skill.  

Julie: Mm hmm. I agree. So, I mean, some, some business owners, uh, may see it differently. 

Julie: Try different ways and you’ll see what results you’ll get.  

Jill: For sure. Awesome. Very good. Well, if you can believe it, three quarters of an hour is gone by. It’s been a great conversation with you, Julie. I want to give you an opportunity if there’s anything else that you wanted to share with our audience or anything that you feel In terms of advice for other entrepreneurs or others who are maybe thinking about taking that leap to becoming an entrepreneur, if you’d like to share,  

Julie: Um, just be ready to get out of your comfort zone. 

Julie: Um, open your mind, you know, learn, talk to other business owners, get their insights, their inputs. And, uh, network, network a lot. These are great ways of, uh, planting seeds of a community and, um, you know, learning from your environment and, um, yeah, trying your best. To, uh, increase your exposure and, uh, build relationships that are long term, like, definitely what I’m trying to do. 

Jill: Fantastic. Good advice. Get outside your comfort zone. I, I tend to stay in my comfort zone a little bit. But I totally, uh, subscribe to that, you know, get outside your comfort zone and build those relationships. Thank you so much, Julie, for joining me here today. It’s been a pleasure to get to know you a little bit better and to hear some amazing insights about your world, human resources and recruiting. 

Julie: Thank you so much, Jill, for having me. It’s been a pleasure. Thank you. All right. So if you would like to check out Pegasus Evolution Services and, or sign up to become a member of our growing entrepreneurial community, visit us at www. procurehub.ca. That’s www.procurehub.ca. If you’d like more information on The Entrepreneur Show or have an idea for the show, or wanna be a guest, visit us at www.theentrepreneuringshow.com. 

Julie: Or you can send us an email to info@procurepro.ca. Untel next time entrepreneurs Just keep swimming. 

For more information about ProcurePro Consulting visit www.ProcurePro.ca