Episode 18: Setting Guardrails for Increased Productivity
With Kelly Robinson
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Key Takeaways
In this week’s invigorating episode of the Leading Real Change podcast, Kelly Robinson, CEO of Panna Knows Recruiting, describes her journey to becoming a more supportive and compassionate leader. Instead of constantly trying to prove her worth, she now values her time and contributions and helps her staff do the same. She focuses on her staff so they can focus on their clients. It’s a win win.
Key takeaways include:
Transition from Employee to Entrepreneur: Kelly's journey from being a managing partner to starting her own business highlighted the shift in priorities from pleasing others to focusing on personal fulfillment and work-life balance.
Prioritization and Focus: Adopting a system of prioritizing tasks and focusing on the three most important things for the day helped Kelly manage her workload more efficiently.
3. Setting Boundaries: Kelly learned the importance of setting boundaries, particularly regarding work hours and personal time, to avoid burnout and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Leading by Example:By demonstrating a balanced approach to work and personal life, Kelly sets the tone for her team, encouraging them to prioritize their well-being and personal commitments.
Empathy and Support: Recognizing signs of stress or burnout in team members and offering support, whether it's granting breaks or providing resources for personal development, fosters a supportive work environment.
Transparent Communication: Kelly emphasizes transparent communication with clients regarding the company's operating hours and encourages open dialogue within the team to address concerns or frustrations effectively.
Individualized Motivation: Understanding each team member's unique motivations and preferences allows Kelly to tailor rewards and opportunities, fostering a culture of appreciation and personal growth.
Leadership vs. Management: Kelly distinguishes between leadership and management, highlighting the importance of motivating and empowering employees alongside task delegation and oversight.
Self-Care and Reflection: Prioritizing self-care activities, such as therapy and personal time, enables Kelly to maintain self-awareness and empathy in her leadership role, leading to more effective communication and decision-making.
Continuous Improvement: Kelly emphasizes the value of accountability and continuous improvement, encouraging her team to learn from mistakes and strive for incremental progress each day. She advocates for small, consistent actions to improve oneself gradually.
Guest Bio
Kelly has been building and implementing professional recruitment services since 1998 in a broad range of settings and industries.
Before starting PKR (Panna Knows) in 2019, Kelly served as the Managing Partner for a $5 million dollar firm for 13 years growing it 1000% over her time there. As formerly quoted by the CEO, “We would not be where we are without Kelly, not only in her current role, but in her contributions throughout the years. She has been the most impactful hire.”
With Kelly’s leadership along with a best in class, collaborative and highly impactful team, PKR has already maintained 100% year over year growth since their inception 5 years ago.
Kelly takes immense pride in the integrity of PKR’s service and the ability and dedication of her team members. PKR was recently acknowledged with a Stellar Business Award for Outstanding Recruitment Services. Kelly has received multiple executive awards as well for her leadership and ability to drive a people-first culture.
After 20-some-odd years of touching every aspect of recruiting and hiring, she’s packaged her process into her Next Level Recruiting™ system and approach to recruitment. “I feel strongly that recruitment needs to be intentional. Our focus needs to be making the best possible matches to help our partners achieve their objectives with their hires, which always includes retention.”
The NLR™ framework details Kelly’s 9 Stages of the Talent Acquisition Life Cycle. Kelly has developed her PKR Reach program that offers NLR™ training to recruiters at all levels and her myPACT program which is a coaching program for select recruitment professionals.
Kelly’s hope is to share her experiences with recruiters globally in a simplified step-by-step framework. She’s made mistakes, so you don't have to.
Kelly is often heard saying, “Everyone has something to teach, and everyone has something to learn.” She believes that the best recruiters do two things: 1) Listen and 2) Ask the hard questions.
Kelly resides in Philadelphia and is a single mother to the love of her life, her 14-year-old son and her two Cavapoo puppies. She loves working out, eating healthy, and making memories with those she loves.
