The Shifting People Podcast

Income Advance Loans Reduce Financial Stress, Turnover and Lost Productivity- Rhino Foods Foundation

How Income Advance Loans Reduce Financial Stress, Turnover, and Lost Productivity | Rhino Foods Foundation On the Shifting People Podcast, co-hosts Derek Williamson and Kathleen McDonough interview Christina Blunt (executive director) and Chris Hines (income advance program manager) from Rhino Foods Foundation about the employer-sponsored Income Advance program, created at Rhino Foods in 2007 with North Country Federal Credit Union. The foundation works to expand affordable small-dollar credit so workers can handle unexpected expenses with dignity. They explain how the program partners employers with lenders to offer up to about $2,000 loans repaid via payroll deduction, using employment tenure rather than credit scores for eligibility, with credit reporting and an automatic savings pathway. They contrast this with earned wage access products that can resemble payday lending when used beyond short-term timing needs, discuss employer ROI via reduced turnover and productivity losses from financial stress, share examples including a Maine hospice/home health employer, and note current expansion across New England, New York, Chicago, and Southern California. Rhino Foods Foundation Website: www.rhinofoodsfoundation.com ROI Calculator: https://www.rhinofoodsfoundation.org/income-advance-roi-calculator [https://www.rhinofoodsfoundation.org/income-advance-roi-calculator] Christina Blunt’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinablunt/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinablunt/] Chris Hynes’ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishynes2/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishynes2/] Rhino Foods Foundation LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rhino-foods-foundation/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/rhino-foods-foundation/] 00:00 Podcast Welcome 00:32 Meet Rhino Foods Foundation 01:37 Christina Background 03:02 Chris Background 06:10 How Income Advance Started 09:33 Program Mechanics Today 13:02 Credit Building And Savings 16:42 Earned Wage Access Risks 23:00 Employer ROI And Benefits 28:40 Success Stories In Action 37:18 Where The Program Operates 40:38 Wrap Up And Resources 42:07 Post Episode Debrief 43:45 Shifting Questions Takeaways 49:54 Final Links And Goodbye

Robotics to Frozen Yogurt: Vaishali Patel on Hiring for Character, Community, + Cross-Training Teams

From Robotics to Frozen Yogurt: Vee Patel on Hiring for Character, Community, and Cross-Training Teams On the Shifting People Podcast, co-hosts Derek Williamson and Kathleen McDonough interview Vee Patel, Executive Director at Wize Computing Academy and KGS Foundation and a Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt franchisee. Patel shares her journey from growing up in India and moving to the U.S. in 2007 to building multiple businesses after gaining experience in banking and retail. She explains launching Wize Computing Academy to teach kids robotics and coding (including LEGO robotics, Minecraft Python, Roblox AR/VR, and AI) and preparing students for FIRST LEGO League competitions, then acquiring an existing Menchie’s location and rebuilding trust with staff after absentee ownership. Patel discusses hiring for character and presence over technical skills, using mock classroom scenarios, training and shadowing, creating customer-service culture through intentional language, cross-training employees across both businesses, prioritizing consistent scheduling, and building non-transactional community partnerships that support recruiting, retention, and referrals. Visit Vaishali's LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vaishali-patel-243b98287/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/vaishali-patel-243b98287/] 00:00 Podcast Welcome 00:27 Meet Vee Patel 00:54 From India to US 03:09 Entrepreneur Mindset 04:35 Launching Wize Academy 06:30 Adding Menchies Franchise 07:47 What Wize Teaches 08:37 Hiring Great Instructors 12:40 Taking Over Menchies 13:44 Building Staff Trust 17:29 Culture and Training Reset 20:32 Customer Service Language 24:18 Cross Training Both Teams 29:13 Growing Employees Careers 32:10 Scheduling and Belonging 32:44 Leading With Love 35:27 Community as Operating System 38:35 Authentic Partnerships 41:17 Kindness Over Transactions 42:39 Where to Follow Vee 44:56 Hosts Reflect on Model 47:55 Shifting Question Community 51:36 Shifting Question Curiosity 56:14 Final Wrap and Goodbye

Leadership in Hospitality: Jennifer Thomas on Rooted Connections & the Power of Five

Leadership in Hospitality: Jennifer Thomas on Rooted Connections & the Power of Five On the Shifting People Podcast, co-hosts Derek Williamson and Kathleen McDonough interview Jennifer Thomas, founder of Rooted Connections and VP of Sales at John Anthony Wines, about her hospitality-to-wine-sales journey and why she built an online, self-paced leadership development platform for nontraditional schedules. Jennifer outlines the Rooted Leadership Program’s four modules—identifying your leadership style, charting your course through past resilience, tackling fears by reframing worst- vs. best-case outcomes, and the “Power of Five” framework for building a network of comfort-zone, intimidator, dream-job, outlier, and protege relationships. The conversation covers retention and onboarding in hospitality, leadership as a learnable skill at every level, the importance of community and asking better questions, and reflections on women’s emotional attachment to companies and balancing what organizations ask from employees versus what they give back. Jennifer’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferthomas0624/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferthomas0624/] Rooted Connections LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rooted-connections-consulting/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/rooted-connections-consulting/] Rooted Connections website: https://www.rooted-connections.com/ [https://www.rooted-connections.com/] Substack: https://rootedconnections.substack.com/ [https://rootedconnections.substack.com/] 00:00 Podcast Welcome 00:27 Meet Jennifer Thomas 00:51 Hospitality to Wine Sales 02:19 Why Rooted Connections 03:45 Building the Program 05:46 Charting Your Course 07:59 Tackling Fear Factors 08:57 Power of Five Network 15:03 Pitching It to Leaders 19:39 Community and Midcareer Support 24:03 Success Stories and Wins 27:28 Women Advancing in Hospitality 28:13 Curiosity And Better Questions 29:32 ChatGPT As Networking Aid 30:16 Accountability Over Complaints 32:06 Stop Saving The Company 35:30 Protect Your Energy First 37:03 Finding A 50 50 Culture 38:40 Company Introspection And Balance 40:01 Where To Find Jennifer 42:14 Hosts Debrief And Takeaways 45:00 Shifting Questions Wrap Up 49:56 Final Sign Off

Communication, Cohorts, and the Myth of Burnout with Matt Heller | Episode 27

Communication, Cohorts, and the Myth of Burnout with Matt Heller | Shifting People Podcast Derek Williamson and Kathleen McDonough welcome Matt Heller, founder of Performance Optimism Consulting and co-host of Attraction Pros, who shares his nearly 40-year journey from ride operator at Canobie Lake Park to leadership development at Universal Orlando and launching his consulting firm in 2011. Heller explains that most leadership challenges come down to communication and fear, and describes his cohort-based mastermind programs that help leaders build confidence and vulnerability with peers outside their organizations. He outlines philosophies from his books, including aligning recruiting, hiring, training, recognition, and termination around company values, and argues burnout’s “myth” is the assumed cause, emphasizing lost purpose and leadership impact. The discussion covers training as a funnel, spaced “breadcrumb” learning, seasonal staffing mindsets, and how Attraction Pros started in 2017. Matt Heller's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattheller/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattheller/] Matt's Consulting Business, Performance Optimist Consulting: https://www.performanceoptimist.com/ [https://www.performanceoptimist.com/] Attraction Pros Podcast: https://attractionpros.com/ [https://attractionpros.com/] Matt's Books All Clear: A Practical Guide for First Time Leaders and the People who Support Them: https://www.amazon.com/All-Clear-Practical-Leaders-Support/dp/1614935513 [https://www.amazon.com/All-Clear-Practical-Leaders-Support/dp/1614935513] The Myth of Employee Burnout, What it is. Why it happens. What to do about it: https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Employee-Burnout-happens-about-ebook/dp/B00G9GPT8M?ref_=ast_author_mpb [https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Employee-Burnout-happens-about-ebook/dp/B00G9GPT8M?ref_=ast_author_mpb] 00:00 Podcast Welcome 01:03 Matt Heller Journey 03:19 Consulting Focus Areas 06:12 Coaching As Therapy 07:24 Mastermind Cohorts 12:16 Attractions Industry Pull 15:04 People First Leadership 18:23 Employee Lifecycle Wheel 21:49 Recognition And Repetition 24:29 Training Funnel Approach 27:52 Breadcrumbing Hospitality 29:43 Seasonal Training Discipline 31:07 Year Round Seasonal Mindset 32:36 Planning Next Years Leaders 33:50 Getting Staff To Return 36:59 Burnout Purpose And Leadership 41:55 Attraction Pros Podcast Origin 44:53 Best Episodes To Start 47:03 Wrap Up And Takeaways

Building Restaurant Culture That Scales: Jeffrey Boland Sr. on Love, Dignity, Respect & Hiring

Building Restaurant Culture That Scales: Jeffrey Boland Sr. on Love, Dignity, Respect & Hiring for Growth On the Shifting People Podcast, co-hosts Derek Williamson and Kathleen McDonough interview Jeffrey Boland Sr., Area Director of Operations at Postino Wine Cafe (Upward Projects), about his journey into hospitality after being fired from construction work amid substance abuse, and how the industry shaped his life and 17 years of sobriety. Boland describes leading Postino’s North Carolina and Georgia locations amid rapid expansion and shares how he evaluates cultural alignment, spots burnout signs, and advocates respectfully when strategies differ. He outlines leadership principles of love, dignity, and respect, plus non-negotiables of punctuality, proper uniform, and attitude, and discusses culture as intentional standards. The episode covers hiring and development, internal transfers, onboarding trips to Arizona, “real talk” sessions with hourly teams, mental health support ideas, and doing the right thing during opening delays by paying employees. Jeffrey's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-boland-sr-18960a166/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-boland-sr-18960a166/] Postino WineCafe Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/postino-winecafe/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/postino-winecafe/] Email Postino: Postino@postino.com 00:00 Podcast Welcome 00:42 Jeffrey Origin Story 03:41 Postino Role Overview 07:51 Values Fit Red Flags 12:04 Love Dignity Respect 17:10 Culture Fence Framework 21:00 Future Resume Hiring 28:33 Building Employment Waitlists 31:43 Benefits Mental Health Support 34:22 Hourly Team Feedback Loop 34:50 Reframing Benefits Conversations 37:04 Growth Without Losing Culture 39:27 Scaling Culture Through Transfers 41:21 Pre-Opening Communication Habits 43:44 Do The Right Thing Story 47:30 Where To Follow Jeffrey 48:37 Hosts Debrief Key Takeaways 51:59 Shifting Question Culture Evidence 56:57 Shifting Question Compete On Benefits 59:18 Creative Perks And Employee Input 01:01:54 Wrap Up And Next Steps