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I break down payroll industry news and trends every Wednesday. 1000+ subscribers and growing → payrollinpodcast.com

Most payroll bureaus are losing deals to better-resourced competitors while drowning in day-to-day operations.

I've been in the payroll industry for 20+ years. I've closed over $40M in B2B sales. And I've spent two decades learning what separates the payroll companies that scale from the ones that plateau.

The difference? 

They leverage three strategies:

1. Offshore talent to scale without breaking the bank (outsourcedscale.com)

Your competitors are hiring VAs for 70% less than onshore talent. Sales reps, marketing coordinators, customer service—all AI-trained and covering every timezone.

2. Founder-led marketing that actually generates leads (underdogdigital.co)

National firms spend millions on marketing. You don't need to. You need a system that positions you as the local expert and fills your pipeline consistently.

3. Strategic partnerships that add recurring revenue 

Every payroll client is a potential PEO client. Partner with us and earn a handsome revenue share on every PEO deal—without the compliance risk or infrastructure investment.

I break down these strategies every week on the Payrollin' podcast and newsletter.

If you're a payroll bureau owner who wants to compete smarter (not just work harder), subscribe to the newsletter. Every Wednesday, I share one actionable insight you can implement immediately.

👉 Subscribe here: payrollinpodcast.com

My track record:

- 4x Founder (2 seven-figure+)
- Bestselling Author (Ping-Pong is Not a Strategy)
- $40M+ in B2B sales
- 20+ years in payroll

This industry is consolidating fast. Independent bureaus that survive will be the ones who adapt.

☞ Matt Vaadi

Human Resources Executive & Culture Architect / People Capital Champion / Organizational Development & Talent Engagement Expert / Leader & Steward Linking People to Strategy / CHIEF Member

Culture PAYS. It’s a profit center.

Because how people FEEL translates into how they PERFORM. 

I create deep, lasting change across teams and organizations by combining elements of human evolution, neuroscience, and psychology to positively impact people and performance.

I’ll help you elevate your culture by building the very foundational elements that hold it up.

My years of HR experience allow me to partner with business leaders to craft strategic talent strategies that are aligned with mission and goals. 

And of course we’ll collaborate to create holistic culture roadmaps that have transformative effect…

But I also tackle the 3rd rail that keeps most companies stuck in mediocrity… the people piece of the puzzle, the deeper human issues that make or break a culture:

The insecure leaders, the hidden agendas, the jealousy and gossip, the conflicts and broken trust, the corrosive worries about scarcity, the issues around self-worth, the unresolved old baggage, and oh-so-much more.

By addressing the root cause issues, I turn your organizational culture into an ideal environment for employees to thrive and profits to grow.

You don’t have to choose between terminations or allowing toxicity. You don’t have to spend your resources on fire fighting when you can invest in fire prevention instead. 

Choose a better option. Work with me!

When we help people see the roadblocks that hold them back they can’t unsee it. This means meaningful change with multiplicative positive impact for them, their colleagues, and for the business overall.

Win, win, WIN!

❓How much profit could you save by rehabilitating the less than desirable behaviors of your key talent? 

❓What could rockstar managers do to improve retention and reduce your recruiting and hiring costs?

❓How much productivity and innovation could be captured if you could turn your culture killers into your culture ambassadors? 

❓How many dollars would a 10-15% increase in employee engagement yield?

❓What would you gain if your people were more open to change, more willing to collaborate and share knowledge?

❓How many issues could you avoid by shifting your employees into a positive mindset?

❓What would improving the satisfaction and well-being of your workforce add to the bottom line? 

Great corporate culture isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s an essential competitive advantage. It’s your unique ecosystem that can’t be easily duplicated. And it all begins and ends with your human capital.

Ready to turn your culture into a profit center? 

Let’s connect.
charity@hrrealistidealist.com

Charity Hughes, SHRM-SCP

Still thinkin’ about that hot crush
and wondering what could’ve been?  

Naaaaahhhhh. Happy Valentine’s Day! 💝

🔐Fractional Chief People & Culture Officer 🔐Human Locksmith: People Development 🔐Organizational Culture Architect 🔐Champion Tea Drinker 🔐I unlock people to transform culture.

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This right here is interned-one-summer-at-my-Dad’s-friend’s-company “Award Winning LinkedIn Career Coach” level confidence.

Dear Managers,

Compliments and positivity aren’t a strategy, and they don’t magically turn poor performance into good. 

This behavior signals either:

-An over reliance on hope.
-Or a lack of seeing reality.

Both will damage your standing with your team, and you run the risk of alienating your true stars.

Respect must continually be earned.

Part of my own story is in this book, 𝐔𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 but you won’t know it. I’m hiding in plain sight (IYKYK).

It’s ironic given the title, and the fact that staying in the background became the fertile ground for a painful chapter in my career. Deciding NOT to hide is what led me to LinkedIn, to sharing ideas, to becoming a business owner.

I decided to get comfortable being uncomfortable.

And as I’ve been devouring this transformative work by my friend Amy Clark, it’s reminded me: pain pushes us. 

It’s a ruthlessly effective disruptor.

But Amy points out that self awareness, intentional decisions, and purposeful actions give us a shot at avoiding hurtful career adversity.

Read this book and challenge your own beliefs about leadership before you get a gut punch you didn’t choose.

It’s IWD, but who needs calendar validation?

The most important thing an HR professional can do when they partner with any company:

Start building relationships at all levels ASAP.

It’s how you gain trust, get real info, and access cooperative buy-in… and it doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process, with success measured in months and years.

You cannot be effective without these elements, and you definitely won’t get them by sitting in your office looking at dashboards.

Do Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski
moonlight in the world of HR? ⛸️

As commentators they show such warmth, caring, respect, and genuine enthusiasm toward all of the figure skating athletes, while also giving no-nonsense factual data about their performances and the scores they receive. 

Beautiful balance? ⚖️
I’m absolutely here for it!

Strategic change doesn’t happen without getting the underlying tactical ops on point.

A reminder for me and anyone else who’s frustrated because they’re not checking off their 2026 list fast enough… just BREATHE.

↳ This angle arrow thingy is a big tell that someone is part of a paid pod.
Be cautiously careful with your valuable time, attention, and engagement.

This can feel like the key to success in job search, especially in a competitive market.

But if it’s done wrong? No bueno.

I’ve watched candidates try to be so individually impressive that they forget a dealbreaker element… you need to be seen as a positive fit for the existing team too.

The most attractive candidates remember that when it comes to culture we’re all individual contributors.

Which is your absolute top work priority?

The author can see how you vote. Learn more

When human behavior isn’t a key part of the planning process, change initiatives often fail to deliver best results.

Change architecture for HR professionals:

~Outline the objectives.
~Define the non-negotiables.
~Create the change framework.
~Build choice into the framework. 
~Specify progress measurements.
~Play out the behavioral predictives.
~Adjust the framework in response to them.
~Make an implementation plan with timelines.
~Press GO and stay steady, but pay close attention to relevant feedback and adapt accordingly.

Success happens when we are clear on the change non-negotiables while also allowing some choices within the framework. 

How people feel about the new dictates if they’ll react with acceptance or rejection.

We have longer memories than goldfish.

taplio

The Battle

☞ Matt Vaadi

Charity Hughes, SHRM-SCP

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taplio

The Battle

☞ Matt Vaadi

Charity Hughes, SHRM-SCP

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Charity Hughes, SHRM-SCP's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreCharity Hughes, SHRM-SCP's LinkedIn Performance