🍻 In Good Company Austin Chapter Happy Hour

Join us on July 17 for the inaugural gathering of the In Good Company Austin Chapter at Culinary Dropout.

This casual networking happy hour is an opportunity for HR and People leaders across Austin to step away from the day-to-day, connect with peers, exchange ideas, and build meaningful relationships with others navigating the evolving world of work.

Whether you're looking to grow your local network, discuss the challenges facing people leaders today, or simply meet great people over a drink, we'd love to have you join us.

No presentations. No panels. Just good conversation, new connections, and a chance to spend time with fellow HR professionals in your community.

📍 Culinary Dropout at the Domain | Austin, TX
🗓️ July 17
⏰ 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM

Space is limited, so we encourage you to RSVP early.

We look forward to welcoming you and kicking off the Austin chapter together! 🌍

Altitude = safety.

The higher up you are, the more time you have to problem-solve, and the more landing-site options you have available if something goes wrong.

Planes are built to glide. So when you're at 30,000 feet, you have options. A jetliner can glide about 100 miles if its engines fail at that altitude.

You don't have nearly as many when you're flying low.

I think about this in the context of the HR execs I coach.

It's not uncommon for them to get yanked from high altitude to low altitude in a single morning.

A call about a surprising employee issue comes in four minutes before the leadership meeting starts.

And now you're supposed to walk in and talk strategy.
Long-term horizon.
Big picture.

Here's the small ritual I give them: before you walk into the room, take one breath and say one word to yourself.

"Altitude."

That's it.

No 5-step framework. Just a quiet reminder of the perspective you're choosing to bring in.

Because at high altitude, you have options.

At low altitude, you can only react.

What's your version of "altitude?" How do you maintain a 30,000-foot view even in the midst of solving ground-level problems?

Something that will hold back your credibility as a Head of People: using bad compensation data. Let me show you how to get it right.

 When your data is fragile, every offer turns into a debate:

• Is your sample size big enough?

• Are you comparing apples to apples on location and company stage?

• Can you show your work when someone asks for the source?

Getting the right benchmark dataset isn’t glamorous.

It’s about defining your non-negotiables — roles, regions, company size — and mapping vendors against them.

It’s scoring coverage, integration features, and price.

And yes, it means creating an audit trail you can defend.

I’ve boiled that process down into a step-by-step cheat sheet.

Follow it to shortlist vendors, validate their data overlap with your needs, and walk into every negotiation with confidence.

Have you ever been caught off guard by bad comp data? Tell me what happened.

And here's a (free) playbook I made with my friends at Pave to help you work through the right way to buy: https://explore.pave.com/Comp-Data-Upgrade.html?utm_source=FNDN&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=data-guide&utm_term=partner

Join Keren Kozar and I for NYC's first In Good Company chapter event!

Let's be honest: everyone is talking about AI, but many of us are still figuring out where to start.

This isn't a panel. It's not a presentation. And it's definitely not a room full of people pretending they have all the answers.

Our vision is simple:
A group of HR and People leaders gathered around a table. Laptops open. Testing, building, experimenting, and learning together.

No ego. No fear. No "stupid" questions.

Whether you're already using AI every day or still trying to understand what tools are worth your time, this session is designed to create space for practical exploration and honest conversation.

Together, we'll:

• Share how we're currently using AI in our work

• Explore tools, prompts, and workflows together

• Discuss real-world HR use cases

• Learn from one another's successes, mistakes, and experiments

• Leave with ideas you can immediately put into practice

If LinkedIn AI influencers have ever made you feel behind, don't worry — you're not. The goal isn't to be an expert. It's to be curious.

Bring your laptop, your questions, and a willingness to experiment.

We'll build together

Hello Everyone,

I’m Kirsten. It is nice to meet you all 😊

I'm a Total Rewards & People Operations guru based in Raleigh, NC, with over 15 years of experience in Human Resources. I currently serve as Sr. Manager of Total Rewards at Merz Therapeutics, where my core focus is designing and implementing total rewards programs, strategies, and policies that align with our business objectives and culture.

Beyond total rewards, my HR journey has taken me through talent acquisition, performance management, employee relations, HRIS, training, and organizational development. I love connecting the dots across the full people landscape.

On the credentials side, I hold my SHRM-SCP from SHRM, my PHR from HRCI, and my Certified Benefits Professional (CBP) and Certified Compensation Professional (CCP) from WorldatWork. I'm proud to have recently earned my Global Remuneration Professional (GRP) certification as well!

At the heart of everything I do is a passion for helping employees succeed and grow, and for building positive, motivating cultures. My mission is to be a true strategic partner to business leaders, and my ultimate goal is to grow into a VP of HR or CHRO role.

I joined this community to share ideas, learn from fellow HR professionals, and continue growing on that journey. Looking forward to connecting with all of you! 🙌

There's this thing that keeps happening at work for a lot of people I talk to.

The same awkward conversation keeps coming up. Or there's a meeting that feels compeltely pointless each week. Or one person that does their head in and they just can't figure out how to work with.

Most people notice it and then just...move on (or quietly let it fester).
They tell themselves it's part of the job, it'll sort itself out eventually.
Or they're just not good at that sort of thing.

Nothing explodes and nothing improves either. So, the same friction shows up again next week.

The people who actually get better? They treat those moments as problems you can solve, and not as personality verdicts or status quo.

Instead of: "I just need to be more confident", it becomes "That conversation didn't work. What could I try differently next time?".

Or instead of: "I'm too stretched to take on L&D", it becomes "What can we stop doing to make room for this?".

They reflect and then they adjust.
One small change, learning one tiny skill - and trying it out the next time it comes up.

Over time, that compounds into what looks like confidence or natural talent. It moves attitude from low agency to high agency.

This week, it's worth looking at what keeps showing up in your work (or for your team) that feels harder than it should be.

Pick one thing, try something different - and see what happens.
Reframe learning as problem-solving. Get your team to focus on just one thing (this is so underrated) - that's how improvement will really happen.