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PODCAST

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker and Marie Rolston is your go-to resource for all things HR in the small business world. This podcast is designed especially for those wearing multiple hats—whether you’re the only HR person at your company, a business owner figuring out HR as you go, or someone who just got handed the HR file and a wish for good luck. Typically designed for those managing HR in a 1-500 headcount firm, although we often talk about navigating life in the less than 100 space

business careers

All Episodes

31:15

Hiring Without a Recruiting Team

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/04/22

Recruiting in a small business rarely lives in a neat, dedicated function. More often, it gets layered on top of an already full HR workload. In this episode, Sabrina and Marie break down what that actually looks like in practice—and how to make it manageable.The conversation focuses on how to approach recruiting when time, resources, and structure are limited. Instead of trying to build a perfect process, this episode walks through how to prioritize what matters, simplify where possible, and

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30:06

The Handbook Nobody Reads — And How to Fix That

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/04/15

Most employee handbooks fail for three reasons: wrong tone, no real training on how to use them, and outdated information employees already learned not to trust.A handbook that sounds like legal boilerplate will be ignored regardless of how complete it is. A handbook is infrastructure for consistency. When it works, managers stop improvising, employees stop getting conflicting answers, and HR stops fielding the same questions repeatedly. Acacia's handbook review template and table of contents can

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30:34

The HR Audit Framework Small Business Practitioners...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/04/08

If your most popular episode told you what intentional HR looks like, this one tells you how to actually build it. Sabrina and Marie get tactical with the HR audit process Acacia uses with every new client, no matter what the client thinks they have in place.In this episode, they walk through the three-pillar audit framework (compliance, infrastructure, and strategy), explain why the order of those pillars isn't arbitrary, and share the exact three questions that drive every audit they run. They

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31:07

HR Support Options Most Small Businesses Don't Know...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/04/01

What does under-resourced HR actually cost? Sabrina and Marie break down the math and walk through every support option available to small business HR.

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25:31

The HR Tech Guide Nobody Made (So We Did)

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/03/25

Finding reliable HR tech reviews for small businesses is nearly impossible — most resources are built for enterprise, and the comparison sites are either outdated or pay-to-play. In this episode, Acacia's Payroll and Operations Manager Penelope walks us through the HR Tech Guide she's been building specifically for small employers: what she's testing, how she's scoring it, and what she's already finding that might surprise you.

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27:36

When the World Is on Fire, HR Still Has to Show Up

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/03/18

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28:21

HR Department of One? This Cohort Was Built for You

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/03/11

Eight years in the making. In this episode, Sabrina and Marie pull back the curtain on the HR Department of One Cohort which is a 10-week live program built specifically for HR professionals running solo inside small and growing companies.They talk through why they built it, what the survey data told them, and what makes this different from every webinar or self-paced course you've already forgotten to finish. You'll hear the full curriculum breakdown, why they're capping it at 15 to 20 people, and

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24:57

Employee Documentation: The Simple HR Habit That Can...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/03/04

Documentation is one of the most overlooked habits in small business HR, but it’s also one of the most important. In this episode, Sabrina and Marie break down what HR documentation actually means, why it protects both employees and employers, and the four situations that must always be documented. They also share practical tips for building a documentation habit without creating unnecessary bureaucracy. Templates and resources mentioned in this episode are available on our website.

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35:03

DIY HR vs Intentional HR: Where Small Employers Go Wrong

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/02/25

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34:23

Episode 3: If HR Feels Broken, Start Here

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/02/18

If you’ve ever stepped into an HR role and felt like everything was a mess, you’re not alone. In this episode, Marie and Sabrina share how to recognize when HR is truly “broken” and what to do next.They walk through the exact framework they use with overwhelmed clients to move from chaos to stability: Stabilize → Streamline → Build. You’ll learn why you can’t fix everything at once, where to begin, and how small, focused actions can create real progress. If you’re stuck in reactive mode, this

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32:32

When HR Becomes the Messenger Everyone Blames

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/02/11

Why does HR always end up being the “bad guy”?In this episode of The HR Connection, Sabrina and Marie dig into a reality almost every HR professional in a small organization knows too well: being asked to deliver bad news you didn’t decide, enforce unpopular policies you didn’t create, and step into tough conversations leaders avoid. From benefit changes and return-to-office mandates to performance conversations and terminations, HR often becomes the default messenger—and the one who takes the

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34:42

Do You Actually Need a SHRM Certification to Run HR...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2026/02/04

Do You Actually Need a SHRM Certification to Run HR Well?If you’ve ever felt pressure to get a SHRM certification just to prove you belong in HR, this episode is for you. Marie and Sabrina get honest about why certifications like SHRM-CP are treated as a requirement and why that logic often breaks down in small employer HR and HR departments of one. Marie shares her own experience earning the SHRM-CP and realizing that, in years of hands-on small business HR work, it rarely made a real difference

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3:55

The Ripple Effect of Showing Up

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/12/29

This episode is about the invisible work of leadership: the days you’re tired, unmotivated, and still decide to show up anyway. Marie reflects on a year of growth and the ripple effect that comes from staying with what matters.

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4:53

The One HR Lesson I’d Take Into Any Year

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/12/22

If you removed every HR process, system, and tool… what’s the one lesson that would still hold everything together?This episode breaks that down through one story, one truth, and one question to carry into any year: People don’t burn out because they’re doing too much; they burn out because they’re doing too much that doesn’t make sense. In small businesses where priorities shift fast, and everyone is juggling multiple roles, clarity becomes the quiet force that shapes performance, engagement,

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11:33

How to Build an HR Strategy Around Real Business Goals

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/12/15

Every small business says they want an HR strategy, but most don’t realize their “strategy” is really just a list of HR tasks.In this episode, Sabrina walks through five diagnostic questions that reveal what’s actually standing between your business goals and your people, your real people dependency. You’ll learn how to identify where your growth is stalling because of capacity, capability, retention, management consistency, or alignment, and how to turn that insight into an actionable HR

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10:40

Do I Even Need HR Yet? 5 Signs You’ve Outgrown DIY...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/12/08

If your idea of HR is a few templates you found on Google and a payroll system that runs itself, you’re not alone. Most small businesses start that way. But at some point, DIY HR stops saving you money and starts costing you growth.In this episode, host Sabrina Baker, CEO of Acacia HR Solutions, breaks down the five signs your “figure-it-out-as-you-go” approach to HR is holding your business back. She explains why HR is often the forgotten function in small businesses, until chaos hits, and how

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16:07

The PEO Price Tag: How to Know When You’re Paying Too...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/12/01

PEOs promise peace of mind, one invoice, one system, one solution for all your HR headaches. But what if that convenience is quietly costing your business tens of thousands of dollars a year and holding you back from growing through your people?In this episode, Sabrina Baker breaks down the real PEO price tag, what you’re paying for, what you’re losing, and how to know when it’s time to move away from a one-size-fits-all HR model toward a tailored approach that supports growth, control, and

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7:15

The People Who Carry the Business

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/11/24

In every small business, there are a few people who quietly hold everything together — the ones who show up even when budgets are tight, systems aren’t perfect, and no one’s watching.In this episode, Sabrina Baker reflects on the unsung heroes of small business — the employees who fix problems before they escalate, steady the team under pressure, and keep culture alive through consistency and care. Sabrina walks leaders through six questions they can ask to identify these individuals and reminds

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6:58

Is It Time to Fire Them? The Real Cost of Avoiding...

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/11/17

Sometimes, the biggest threat to your company’s growth isn’t who you haven’t hired — it’s who you’re afraid to let go.In this episode, Sabrina Baker unpacks how small businesses can make tough people decisions with clarity, legality, and compassion, and why holding on too long often costs more than letting go.

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10:39

Your Growth Problem Isn’t Strategy — It’s Culture

The HR Connection Podcast with Sabrina Baker ·

2025/11/10

If your small business growth has hit a ceiling, it might not be your marketing or sales strategy, it might be your people.In this episode, Sabrina Baker reframes company culture, not as a “nice to have,” but as the foundation of small business growth. She breaks down the three pillars of a thriving employee experience, Connection, Consistency, and Care, and explains how cracks in any of them create ripple effects that hurt performance, productivity, and profit. Whether you’re leading HR or running

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44 results

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