Podcast
I Hate It Here
If HR is one of the most soul-crushing industries to work in, how come we’re not talking about it more?
I Hate it Here is the unflinching podcast where People professionals to talk honestly and openly about HR, sharing best-in-class resources to make the hardest job in the world that little bit easier.
Hosted by Hebba Youssef, Chief People Officer at Workweek and creator of the I Hate it Here podcast and newsletter, this show is for HR People who want to get things done right - even if they do feel a bit empty inside from time to time.
You’ll hear from industry insiders, not just the same old voices, sharing all the things you’re secretly thinking but never said out loud, digging into real-life examples, and delivering practical solutions and strategies for your people team.
- Management chart
- #61
- Episodes
- 157
- Releases
- Weekly
- Typical length
- 51 min
- On air since
- 2023
- Latest episode
- 1 day ago
Episodes
157 episodes, newest first
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36 min
S14, E4: HR Horror Stories, Vol. 4: I Know What You Did at the Company After-Party
Show notes
You know I love a good HR horror story…there are PLENTY of them!
I would just prefer fewer of them to involve me personally.
I’m back with more workplace terrors, including the employee who made me rethink my Instagram follow requests and the company after-after-party that becomes HR’s Monday morning investigation.
Consider this another installment of somebody did something, and their org needing a new policy as a result.
I’m getting into social media, off-duty conduct, and AI policies that can help spare you a few future horrors. Buckle up and let’s get spooky!
---
Your talent data is only as valuable as the decisions it improves.
Quantum Workplace connects signals across engagement, performance, development, and recognition, giving HR and people leaders a clear view of what’s happening across their workforce. With more context, clarity, and confidence, leaders can focus on what matters, make stronger people decisions, and build thriving teams.
Visit quantumworkplace.com to learn more.
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
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1 hr 5 min
S14, E3: Just a Girl Standing in Front of Corporate America Begging It to Train Its Managers (with Ashley Herd)
Show notes
Your manager has avoided giving feedback for six months, and now they want someone fired by Friday. Guess whose problem that becomes???
This week, I’m joined by Ashley Herd, founder of Manager Method (https://www.managermethod.com/), to talk about the managers keeping HR busy and questioning everything!
We get into performance improvement plans, the beloved HR made me do it excuse, and what SHRM’s courtroom drama can teach the rest of us.
I also confess to some questionable moments from my own management era, because unfortunately…self-awareness means remembering.
Come find out why your leadership style might be compared to a pair of deeply uncomfortable pants!
---
Your talent data is only as valuable as the decisions it improves.
Quantum Workplace connects signals across engagement, performance, development, and recognition, giving HR and people leaders a clear view of what’s happening across their workforce. With more context, clarity, and confidence, leaders can focus on what matters, make stronger people decisions, and build thriving teams.
Visit quantumworkplace.com to learn more.
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Ashley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleyherd/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
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53 min
S14, E2: Somewhere Between Michael Scott and a Cult…There’s an Important Lesson for HR (with Josiah Hernández and RyanMae McAvoy Pepin)
Show notes
I invited RyanMae McAvoy Pepin and Josiah Hernández back to talk HR, and somehow we ended up recruiting for a hypothetical cult and debating whether Michael Scott deserves a little credit.
I also made them play a quote guessing game, because we’re determined to have a little fun around here!
But between the questionable impressions and pop culture detours, we get into invasive interview questions and why having a life outside work shouldn’t require proof of children.
---
Your talent data is only as valuable as the decisions it improves.
Quantum Workplace connects signals across engagement, performance, development, and recognition, giving HR and people leaders a clear view of what’s happening across their workforce. With more context, clarity, and confidence, leaders can focus on what matters, make stronger people decisions, and build thriving teams.
Visit quantumworkplace.com to learn more.
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow RyanMae on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rm80920/
Follow Josiah onLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiah23/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
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48 min
S14, E1: A Very Professional Review of This Year’s Absolute Bullsh*t (with Jessica Winder)
Show notes
We’re back in action, and I gave this season one rule: anything but AI.
Naturally, Jessica Winder and I immediately tested that boundary, but trust me, we have plenty to say about how this year has turned out so far!
My fellow Cackle Queen is back to revisit our HR ins and outs, unpack why “job hugging” sounds suspiciously cute for being terrified to quit, and discuss the managers getting promoted with absolutely no training.
There’s also a few work stats that you have to hear to believe!
---
Your talent data is only as valuable as the decisions it improves.
Quantum Workplace connects signals across engagement, performance, development, and recognition, giving HR and people leaders a clear view of what’s happening across their workforce. With more context, clarity, and confidence, leaders can focus on what matters, make stronger people decisions, and build thriving teams.
Visit quantumworkplace.com to learn more.
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
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31 min
S13 E10: My HR Trauma Has Officially Reached the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Metaphor Stage
Show notes
I started this solo episode planning to talk about the evolution of HR, and ended up using one of my fav shows, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, to explain why this job can be emotionally unhinged, and suspiciously dependent on one exhausted woman saving everybody.
We’re getting into the mental-health toll of HR, the workplace chaos currently entering the group chat, and why being the chosen one is actually a pretty terrible operating model if you think about it.
Come for the interesting HR data, and stay for the Buffy lore… filled with spoilers, FYI!
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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49 min
S13 E9: HR Is Done Cleaning Up These Terrible-Ass AI Rollouts (with Shirley Baumer)
Show notes
HR keeps getting handed the mop after someone else’s AI strategy floods the building, and frankly, I’m pretty sure you’re already over it!
I sat down with the wonderful Shirley Baumer, co-founder and CPO at Shapes (https://shapes.co/), to talk about why people leaders should be the ones driving AI transformation, how to develop a builder mindset, and why you don’t need to know how to code to solve the problems making you scream into the mirror every day.
We’re taking the wheel, babes!
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Shirley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shirleyjb/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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55 min
S13 E8: When Your Company Has an AI Tool, but Absolutely No Plan (with Val Jensen)
Show notes
AI is already crashing the workplace party, but apparently, the humans were left off the guest list!
Today, I’m joined by attorney and human-centered leadership strategist Val Jensen to talk about biased tools, performative people-first promises, and why letting AI make decisions about employees is a legal and ethical dumpster fire waiting to happen.
We’re also getting into who’s actually responsible when AI causes harm, and why most companies are wildly unprepared, while leadership is sprinting toward the robots.
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Val on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-jensen-jd-she-her-hers/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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50 min
S13 E7: Your Uncoordinated Org Restructure Is Giving Everyone Trust Issues (with Kaity Jacobsen)
Show notes
Change is inevitable, but apparently at some orgs, explaining it to people is optional!
In this episode, I’m joined by Kaity Jacobsen (Director, Talent Engagement at Xactly) to talk about why leaders keep obsessing over all these sexy strategies while treating change management like HR’s annoying little side quest.
We get into AI agents, broken trust, typical corporate chaos, and why no robot is ever going to save you from having an actual convo with your employees about any of this stuff. Tragic, I know!
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Kaity on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaityjacobsen/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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59 min
S13 E6: The AI Confidence Gap Nobody in HR Wants to Admit (with Theresa Fesinstine)
Show notes
AI conversations are everywhere right now, but confidence and competence aren't actually moving together, and that gap should worry you more than it does.
I'm joined by Theresa Fesinstine, founder of PeoplePower.ai and creator of the AI Fluency Compass, an assessment that over 850 HR leaders have now taken. Turns out about 40% of people who take it present way more confidently than they actually perform. Not great!
We get into why HR keeps telling itself it's "not technical enough," the real difference between confidence that's earned and confidence that just performs well in a meeting, and why checking your AI tool settings might be the single most underrated move you can make right now. We also cover agentic AI risk, the pressure to keep up so you don't get left behind, and what it actually looks like to lead your org through this instead of just reacting to it.
If you've ever nodded along in a meeting about AI while quietly having no idea what anyone's talking about, this one's for you
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Theresa on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/theresafesinstine/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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40 min
The Leadership Divide (Episode 4): Trust, Belonging, and the Cost of Getting It Wrong
Show notes
Featured Guest: Allison Howell (CEO, Hogan Assessments)
This is The Leadership Divide, a special series with Hogan Assessments in partnership with I Hate It Here!
---
We spent this entire series proving that leadership fails because orgs KEEP choosing leaders using criteria held together by bias and outdated tactics!
In this finale, I’m bringing back Hogan Assessments CEO Allison Howell to talk about everything that breaks when bad leadership takes over, why women were never the problem (shocking absolutely no one), and how small acts of workplace rebellion can help us build something better.
Dare I say, it’s one of those convos that might even give you a little hope for the future!
---
Hogan Assessments is the international leader in personality insights.
With the world’s largest database of personality research and decades’ worth of experience in psychometrics, Hogan produces valid, reliable personality assessments that measure everyday strengths, potential shortcomings, and values and motivators.
Hogan’s solutions empower organizations to hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover, promote diversity and inclusion, identify high-potential talent, develop leaders, and inspire employees to do their best.
To learn more, check them out at http://hogan.to/ihateithere
---
And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Allison on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonhowell2/
Follow Hebba:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
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54 min
S13 E5: The Group Hosts an Award Series and Starts a Cult with RyanMae McAvoy Pepin & Josiah Hernández
Show notes
Welcome to the first-ever HR Glow Up Awards! The trophies are fake, but the workplace trauma is real.
I’m joined by RyanMae McAvoy Pepin and Josiah Hernández to celebrate HR’s biggest improvements, drag the practices that refuse to die, reaffirm my love for Mariah Carey, and debate everything from four-day workweeks to AI-powered layoffs.
Today’s episode is a little different, but naturally, you can expect the same amount of unhinged energy!
Is it chaotic? Well, I’ll leave that up to you to decide!
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow RyanMae on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rm80920/
Follow Josiah onLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiah23/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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58 min
The Leadership Divide (Episode 3): Performance vs. Potential
Show notes
Featured Guest: Jackie Sahm (Vice President of Integrated Solutions, Hogan Assessments)
---
We've built a world where the people who get promoted aren't always the people who should be leading, and we have enough data to stop this madness and do something about it!
In this latest episode of The Leadership Divide, Hogan Assessment's Jackie Sahm and I get into why orgs keep confusing performance with potential, why confidence gets mistaken for competence, and how we accidentally engineer the exact leadership problems we're all complaining about.
This situation is far more common than it should be, but the good news is that it doesn’t have to be!
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:56 - What’s The Difference Between Performance And Potential?
00:04:20 - What Are Orgs Actually Measuring?
00:07:01 - Why Leaders Mistake Similarity For Potential
00:11:11 - Should Intuition Ever Drive Promotions?
00:13:37 - What Does The Leadership Effectiveness Gap Look Like?
00:19:50 - Why Doesn’t The System Get Fixed?
00:27:05 - What Does A Better Talent Process Look Like?
00:33:21 - Where HR Should Start
00:42:02 - Should We Audit Promotion Decisions?
00:46:11 - What Do Orgs Keep Getting Wrong About Leadership?
---
Hogan Assessments is the international leader in personality insights.
With the world’s largest database of personality research and decades’ worth of experience in psychometrics, Hogan produces valid, reliable personality assessments that measure everyday strengths, potential shortcomings, and values and motivators.
Hogan’s solutions empower organizations to hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover, promote diversity and inclusion, identify high-potential talent, develop leaders, and inspire employees to do their best.
To learn more, check them out at http://hogan.to/ihateithere
---
And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Jackie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jackie-vanbroekhoven-sahm-8263686/
Follow Hebba:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
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53 min
S13 E4: Why HR Owns More Of Company Culture Than People Like To Admit (with Dani Herrera)
Show notes
I swear every company says culture matters... right up until someone has to make an actual decision.
The reason decisions don’t get made quickly enough is because of the whole "culture is everyone's job" mentality, and I think it’s time for a little more nuance!
Dani Herrera and I get into why culture isn't your values page or your CEO's favorite buzzword, but instead, the behaviors your policies reward every single day.
We also unpack why HR has way more influence than we give ourselves credit for, why "best practices" is a cringey concept, and why AI is about to amplify every good (and bad) decision we've already made.
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out: https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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54 min
The Leadership Divide (Episode 2): The Dark Side of Leadership
Show notes
Featured Guest: Jocelyn Hays (Director of Hogan Applications, Hogan Assessments)
---
You know that coworker who was perfectly lovely until they got promoted and suddenly became a completely different person?
Yeahhhh….I think we’ve all been there. There’s a reason for that, though!
I’m joined by Jocelyn Hays to unpack the dark side of leadership, the 11 derailers hiding inside basically all of us, why so many orgs get this wrong, and how the exact traits that help you succeed can become the ones ruining everyone’s day when you stop managing them.
00:00:00 — Intro
00:01:27 — What Does the “Dark Side” of Personality Actually Mean?
00:03:51 — The 11 Patterns That Can Derail a Leader
00:06:48 — How Do You React When You’re Under Pressure?
00:15:52 — Why Do Derailers Stay Hidden During Hiring?
00:22:05 — When Does a Strength Become a Derailer?
00:25:51 — Why Does Stress Bring Out Our Worst Leadership Behaviors?
00:34:08 — How Can HR Spot Derailers Before They Wreck the Culture?
00:44:14 — How Do You Tell a Leader They’re Ruining the Vibes?
00:49:22 — What Are Orgs Getting Wrong About Choosing Leaders?
---
Hogan Assessments is the international leader in personality insights.
With the world’s largest database of personality research and decades’ worth of experience in psychometrics, Hogan produces valid, reliable personality assessments that measure everyday strengths, potential shortcomings, and values and motivators.
Hogan’s solutions empower organizations to hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover, promote diversity and inclusion, identify high-potential talent, develop leaders, and inspire employees to do their best.
To learn more, check them out at http://hogan.to/ihateithere
---
And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Jocelyn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jocelynhays/
Follow Hebba:
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
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55 min
S13 E3: Proof That The AI Productivity Obsession Is Making Everyone Worse (with Aubrey Blanche)
Show notes
I feel like every AI conversation somehow ends up in one of two places: either "AI is taking all our jobs!" or "Just use ChatGPT for everything!"
Honestly... I hate both of those convos.
So instead, I wanted to ask some much more interesting questions! Who's actually making the decisions about how AI gets used at work? Who decided AI should be ranking candidates, or helping determine headcount?
And more importantly... should it be?
I invited Aubrey Blanche to help me unpack all of it!
We talked AI ethics, human-centered design, why productivity might be the worst goal for AI adoption, and somehow ended up on Harry Potter fanfiction and Google Maps conspiracy theories.
It all connects, I promise!!
00:00:00 — Intro
00:04:08 — What's Changed Most About How You Work?
00:06:00 — Why Go Back to School for AI Ethics?
00:17:48 — Why Has Productivity Become AI's Main Goal?
00:23:29 — What Should HR Ask Before Chasing AI Efficiency?
00:25:17 — How Do You Actually Influence Executives?
00:29:01 — Is "Human in the Loop" Enough?
00:34:14 — Should AI Be Ranking Job Candidates?
00:37:54 — What's the AI Ethics Skill HR Is Missing?
00:43:41 — How Can HR Start Thinking Like an Ethicist?
00:47:14 — What's the First AI Change HR Leaders Should Make Tomorrow?
---
With Shapes, people management looks completely different.
Think AI agents handling the routine, a secure HR core, and the ability to build any people tool your org needs, just by describing it in plain english in their built in Shapes Vibe studio.
If your systems feel stuck in 2015, go check out Shapes at https://shapes.co/
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Aubrey
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adblanche/
Read: Ethical By Design: Good Technology Principles for AI
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out:https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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31 min
The Leadership Divide (Episode 1): Leadership at an Inflection Point
Show notes
Featured Guest: Allison Howell, CEO of Hogan Assessments
---
This is The Leadership Divide, a special series with Hogan Assessments in partnership with I Hate It Here!
Across four episodes, we're saying the thing out loud: leadership often fails because companies pick and develop leaders based solely on vibes and tenure, then act SHOCKED when everyone's miserable.
Today, I Hate It Here's Hebba Youssef is joined by Allison Howell, CEO of Hogan Assessments, and they are not holding back!
Hebba and Allison get into why trust in leadership is in the gutter, why your favorite "visionary" CEO might actually just be loud, why wanting a manager with basic communication skills is somehow considered a big ask, and more.
00:00:00 — Intro
00:04:56 – What's Shifted in Leadership Since 5 Years Ago?
00:07:27 – How the Erosion of Trust in Institutions Shows Up on a Regular Day at Work
00:11:39 – What Employees Are Asking for From a Leader, and Whether It's Reasonable
00:14:26 – Why People End Up in Management Because They Were Good at a Job, Not Because They're Good at Managing
00:18:21 – The "Dark Side": What It Costs to Misread This Leadership Moment
00:21:54 – How AI Is Reshaping Trust, Judgment, and Decision-Making at Work
00:24:08 – The Less Catastrophic (but Still Bad) Version of Getting This Moment Wrong
00:28:33 – What Orgs Consistently Get Wrong About Selecting and Developing Leaders
00:30:20 – What It Would Look Like to Get Leadership Selection Right
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Hogan Assessments is the international leader in personality insights.
With the world’s largest database of personality research and decades’ worth of experience in psychometrics, Hogan produces valid, reliable personality assessments that measure everyday strengths, potential shortcomings, and values and motivators.
Hogan’s solutions empower organizations to hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover, promote diversity and inclusion, identify high-potential talent, develop leaders, and inspire employees to do their best.
To learn more, check them out at http://hogan.to/ihateithere
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And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.
https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
Follow Allison:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonhowell2/
Follow Hebba:
YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
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51 min
S13 E2: What If HR Stopped Playing Therapist and Started Designing Better Workplaces Instead? (with Stephanie Lemek)
Show notes
Apparently, we can’t simply leave our trauma at the door and transform into perfectly functioning corporate robots every morning.
Who would’ve thought?!
Stephanie Lemek joins me to unpack what a trauma-informed workplace actually looks like, why HR needs some damn boundaries, and how something as simple as giving people more choice can completely change the way we work.
Here’s what we got into:
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:21 - What Would've Surprised Stephanie About How She Works Now, Five Years Ago?
00:08:26 — Trauma-Aware vs. Trauma-Informed
00:13:30 — The 3 Types Of Safety Every Workplace Needs
00:19:36 — Which HR Processes Are Accidentally Re-Traumatizing People?
00:26:50 — "Don't Trust HR" and Unpacking Where That Distrust Actually Comes From
00:33:07 — Hebba's Story: Grief, Anniversaries, And "The Body Do Be Keeping Score"
00:40:18 — Secondary Trauma And Compassion Fatigue In HR
00:46:16 — The One Thing To Do Differently Starting Tomorrow
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If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
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Follow Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanielemek/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out:https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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48 min
S13 E1: The Return of the Cackle Queens (with Jess Winder)
Show notes
Guess what? The Cackle Queens are back!
My unofficial co-host and forever hype woman Jess Winder joined me to kick off this season, and we did something new.
We hit record and just let the convo happen with no notes, because who needs prep when you’ve been doing this job for way too long?
We're diving into where HR has been, where it's headed, and why "defund HR" isn't as controversial a take as you'd think if you've worked in old-school HR.
We also get into three totally different futures HR could have, and what to tell yourself when you're so burnt out you can't imagine one more evolution of this job.
It’s a little bit unhinged, but what else would you expect?!
00:00:00 - Intro
00: 05:17 - The Biggest Shift in HR Since 2020
00:08:48 - Old HR Morals vs. New HR Morals
00:24:12 - Would You Outsource HR to a $50/Month "HR in a Box" Service?
00:26:49 - Jess's Wildest HR Era: Touring Actual Crime Scenes
00:30:44 - Hebba's 3 Possible Futures for HR: Performance, Full-Cycle, or Architect
00:40:15 - What to Do When Your Company Just Wants "Yes People"
00:42:53 - Advice for HR Folks Who Are Burnt Out and Ready to Quit
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Jess:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicadwinder/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out:https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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32 min
S12 E10: A Few of My Own First-time F*ckups + Some Jaw-Dropping HR Horror Stories
Show notes
Okay, so as we wrap up this podcast season, we’re gonna make this final episode a little different…featuring Hebba and her thoughts, and apparently zero filter!
This season of I Hate It Here was all about firsts and for the season finale, Hebba makes personal!
Listen as she walks you through three of her own HR firsts, performance reviews, terminations, and picking the right system, followed by what she wishes she'd done, and what she would tell herself if she had a time machine.
And then, because Hebba couldn't let the season end without a little chaos, she rounds this episode out with some HR horror stories that were sent in by members of the IHIH community.
Whether you're deep in your HR career or just getting started, this one's a reminder that none of us really know what we're doing the first time, and that's kinda the whole point. 🫶
00:00 - Intro
02:45 - The First Time Hebba Ever Did Performance Reviews
09:08 - Navigating Your First Termination With Empathy
16:59 - Choosing the Right HR Tech Stack
20:30 - A collection of HR Horror Stories
---The Predictive Index behavioral assessment reveals how people work, think, and thrive—so teams can understand each other better and perform at their best.
Because when you truly understand your people, work just works.
Learn more: trypi.com/ihateithere
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/hebba-youssef
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hebbamyoussef
Come join Hebba at Safe Space Summit 2026 in Huntington Beach, CA! To learn more, check out:https://www.safespacesummit.com/
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56 min
S12 E9: We Watched People Blow Up Their Lives on Summer House, and Our ATS Implementation Lowkey Feels Similar (with Madison Montgomery)
Show notes
Madison Montgomery is back, and in this episode, we did what Paul Downs and Meg Stalter inspired us to do…turned our 1:1 into a podcast episode.
The result is a session of unfiltered chaos covering our first ATS implementation together (which is going exactly as well as you'd imagine when two non-detail-oriented people configure a system while actively recruiting on it), Summer House drama through an HR lens, my newly discovered cowboy era, and why neither of us will ever truly get to enjoy the company retreats we plan.
If you've ever been the person behind the process who never gets to just experience the process, you’ll probably relate to this discussion!
00:00 - Intro
04:55 - Implementing an ATS For the First Time
14:48 - What to Expect in Austin in August
21:23 - Hebba's Favorite Recent Story About Her Mom
28:14 - Other Firsts for Madison This Year
42:04 - Supporting Employees When They're Dealing With Grief
44:35 - Who Would Play Hebba and Madison in a Movie?
---
The Predictive Index behavioral assessment reveals how people work, think, and thrive—so teams can understand each other better and perform at their best.
Because when you truly understand your people, work just works.
Learn more: trypi.com/ihateithere
---
If you love I Hate It Here, sign up to Hebba’s newsletter! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration. https://workweek.com/discover-newsletters/i-hate-it-here-newsletter/
And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here for even more exclusive insider content!
---
Follow Madison
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madison-montgomery14/
Follow Hebba
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos
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