The Latest from Kristy-Lee

Hello and welcome to Episode 329 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Have you ever felt like you're drowning in information but still not sure what action to take when it comes to managing your team? Maybe you've downloaded templates, Googled answers, asked AI for help and still found yourself second-guessing whether you're doing the right thing. If that sounds familiar, you're not alone. The reality is that managing people in business has become more complex, not less, and many business owners are feeling overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information available.

In this episode, I'm taking you behind the scenes of my own business and sharing a significant change that's happening inside People Powered HR. As I celebrate 20 years in business, I've been reflecting on one thing that has remained true throughout every stage of growth and change: when the game changes, we need to change with it. I've seen this happen before, from launching my recruitment business in 2006, to moving in...

Hello and welcome to episode 328 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Are you hearing about Payday Super everywhere right now and wondering what it actually means for your business?

If managing payroll already feels like one more thing on a never-ending list of jobs, the thought of another compliance change might have you feeling like you're putting out fires before they've even started.

I keep seeing business owners feeling overwhelmed by this change because, while we've known it was coming for some time, many people still aren't sure what practical steps they need to take. That's exactly why I invited accountant and business coach Laura Elkaslassy onto the podcast. There is a lot of noise around Payday Super, but what small business owners really need is clear, practical information about what's changing, what they need to do now, and how to avoid getting caught out.

Laura Elkaslassy is a Director at Think Big Financial Group. She is also a Profit First Professional, Cash Flow...

Hello and welcome to Episode 327 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Have you opened the latest wage review announcement and immediately wondered what it means for your payroll, your cash flow and your compliance obligations? If you're already feeling the squeeze of rising business costs, the latest Fair Work Commission decision may have you doing some quick calculations and asking what happens next. Based on the Fair Work Commission's annual wage review decision, significant increases are coming into effect from 1 July 2026, and every employer needs to be prepared.

I wanted to jump on the podcast this week with a timely compliance update because this is one of those changes that impacts a huge number of Australian businesses. Every year, the Fair Work Commission reviews the National Minimum Wage and award minimum rates of pay, taking into account economic conditions, inflation and submissions from unions and employer groups. This year's decision reflects ongoing cost of living p...

Hello and welcome to Episode 326 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Do you assume your HR paperwork has you covered… until something goes wrong? Maybe you’ve grabbed a few templates online, updated an old contract once upon a time, or downloaded a handbook and called it done.

The problem is, when staff issues pop up, those documents are often the first thing business owners realise aren’t actually protecting them at all. And by then, the stress, cost and frustration have already kicked in.

I’m talking about this topic because I keep seeing small business owners caught out by HR documentation that simply isn’t doing the job they thought it was. In just one week alone, I had six business owners reach out after discovering gaps in their paperwork that left them exposed to employee disputes, underpayment risks or performance management headaches.

The reality is, HR documentation isn’t just admin. It’s one of the most important ways to protect your business, your team and your peac...

Hello and welcome to Episode 325 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Are you stuck doing everything yourself because handing work over feels harder than just getting it done? Maybe you’ve thought about hiring a virtual assistant before, but the whole process feels confusing, risky, or like one more thing to manage when you’re already flat out putting out fires in your business.

This week I’m sharing a conversation from The Australian Small Business Show, where I joined Kristy Smith from Virtual Elves to talk about what business owners really need to know about working with offshore virtual assistants. I wanted to bring this conversation to you because I keep seeing small business owners hit capacity, but assume their only option is hiring locally into a permanent role. The reality is there are far more flexible ways to get support in your business, if you approach it strategically.

We unpack how the role of a “VA” has changed over the years and why businesses now have access to ...

Hello and welcome to Episode 323 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Have you reached the point where you know a role in your business no longer makes sense, but the thought of making someone redundant feels overwhelming? Maybe business has changed, technology has improved how work gets done, or you simply can’t justify carrying a salary for a role that’s no longer needed.

The problem is, one wrong step in a redundancy process can land you in serious trouble with Fair Work, and that’s a risk no small business owner wants to take.

I wanted to talk about this because I’m seeing so many businesses going through change right now. Some are restructuring because of economic pressure, some are evolving because of growth, and others are adapting to the impact AI is having on teams and workloads.

Redundancy is often treated like a scary or taboo topic, but the reality is that restructuring your team can sometimes be the most practical and responsible thing you can do as a business owner...

Hello and welcome to Episode 322 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Are you using AI to help you manage your team… but secretly wondering if you’re getting it wrong? Maybe you’ve asked it how to handle a tricky staff issue, calculate pay, or even draft a warning, and just hoped the answer was right. The reality is, AI can feel like a lifesaver when you’re already flat out, but it can also lead you straight into a mess if you don’t know where the line is.

I keep seeing more and more business owners leaning on AI for HR support, and I get it. I use it too. But recently I found myself arguing with it over legislation it got completely wrong. It sounded confident. It looked credible. And if I didn’t know better, I might have believed it. That’s exactly why I wanted to talk about this. AI isn’t the problem, but knowing when not to trust it is critical, especially when you’re making decisions that affect your people and your business.

In this episode, I break down where AI is genuine...

Hello and welcome to Episode 321 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

Are you stuck doing everything in your business because it just feels quicker and easier than explaining it to someone else? Like you’re constantly putting out fires, jumping back into tasks, and wondering why your team isn’t stepping up? You’re not alone and this is exactly where so many business owners get stuck.

I keep seeing this pattern with growing businesses. You start out because you’re great at what you do, but as your team grows, your role has to shift. The problem is, no one teaches you how to make that shift. It’s uncomfortable, it’s unfamiliar, and it can feel easier to just stay in the doing. But staying there holds your business back and, more importantly, it holds your team back too.

In this episode, I unpack what it really takes to step out of the day-to-day and into leadership. I talk about why letting go feels so hard, how your expectations might be setting your team up to fail, and the subtl...

Hello and welcome to Episode 320 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

You've hired someone. Finally. After the job ads, the interviews, the back and forth, they said yes and they're starting Monday. The hard part is over, right?

Wrong. Almost half of every person you hire won't make it through their first twelve months. Not because they were the wrong person. Because nobody set them up to succeed.

I can't quite believe I've barely touched this topic in 320 episodes, because the first 90 days is the most important period of time in determining whether a hire works out, and most small business owners have no plan for it beyond "here's your login and good luck."

We treat onboarding like a box to tick when it's actually the foundation of the entire working relationship.

In this episode I'm pulling back the curtain on what actually happens in most small businesses during those first 90 days, why it quietly sets new hires up to fail, and what a proper 90-day plan looks like when you'...

Hello and welcome to Episode 319 of the People Powered Business Podcast.

Got someone on your team who just is not cutting it, but every time you think about dealing with it, you put it off for another day? Maybe you are hoping they will sort themselves out, maybe you are gathering more “evidence”, or maybe you are trying not to rock the boat. Either way, the issue rarely fixes itself, and the longer it drags on, the messier it gets.

I keep seeing this with small business owners, and I get why. Managing underperformance is one of the hardest parts of leading a team, especially when your team is small, the person plays a big role, or there is a personal relationship involved. It is easy to avoid the conversation, overthink it, or soften things so much that nothing actually changes. But when we handle employee underperformance badly, we usually make it worse for everyone involved, including the rest of the team.

In this episode, I unpack why so many business owners struggle to manage a...