Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect with Us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ Take the Key Owner Stage Assessment: www.keyhire.solutions/assessment How do you give honest, critical feedback without losing your best people? That’s the question we tackle in this week’s episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, as host Corey Harlock sits down with Cortney Watson, leadership coach and former COO who helped scale a D.C.-based consul...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect with Us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ Take the Key Owner Stage Assessment: www.keyhire.solutions/assessment The economy is sending mixed signals. Reports say it is strong, but the markets and hiring data tell a different story. Many small business owners are facing what I call “The Great Hiring Freeze.” In this episode, I explore what is really happening behind the scenes. Business owner...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect with Us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ Take the Key Owner Stage Assessment: www.keyhire.solutions/assessment If you’ve ever stared at your social media feed wondering why it isn’t bringing in business, this episode will change the way you think about Instagram. Host Corey Harlock sits down with Tara Wagner, an accredited small business consultant and creator of the Breakthrough Boss Method, to...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect with Us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ Take the Key Owner Stage Assessment: www.keyhire.solutions/assessment Training doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. In this episode, Corey Harlock talks with Chris Dundy, CEO of Flagship LMS, about how small business owners can create simple, effective, and trackable training programs using tools they already have. Most small business owners t...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect with Us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ Take the Key Owner Stage Assessment: www.keyhire.solutions/assessment In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock sits down with Aaron Christy, founder of Indy Roof and Restoration, to explore how small business owners can use AI to create repeatable, scalable processes that save time, improve accuracy, and reduce overhead. Aaron isn’t a...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coreyharlock/ This week, The KeyHire Small Business Podcast breaks new ground with our first-ever Expert Roundtable—and it’s one you don’t want to miss. Host Corey Harlock brings together three powerhouse guests, each known for driving real results inside growing companies: Kurt Uhlir, CMO of Easy Home Search and champion of servant leadership; Young Han, fractional CFO and founder of ...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Follow Corey on LinkedIn @Corey Harlock Bryan, whose company has been called “the Uber for lawn care” by Entrepreneur Magazine, shares how AI helped him transform GreenPal’s operations from reactive problem-solving to proactive customer experience design. His insights reveal how even small businesses can use AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini to listen to customer feedback, identify hidden operational problems, and continuously...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Being a business owner can feel like you’re out there on your own, grinding away with no one to bounce ideas off of and no community to lean on. In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock is joined by LaGina Harris, Founder and CXO of The Us Space, to explore why community is one of the most powerful resources an entrepreneur can build. LaGina has firsthand experience creating spaces that help entrepre...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock sits down with Brian Samson, CEO & Chairman of Plugg Technologies, to explore the power of nearshoring as a strategy for growth-minded business owners. For years, small business leaders have wrestled with the complexities of outsourcing and offshoring—drawn to the promise of cost savings but often burned by the hidden expenses of time zone challenges, comm...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Sales is the engine that drives every small business, but in uncertain economic times, the pressure to “just sell more” can leave owners spinning their wheels. On this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock sits down with Melinda Emerson, widely known as “The Small Biz Lady” and recognized as America’s #1 Small Business Expert, to uncover what truly makes a sales process work. With more than 25 years of ex...

Text us your comments or topic ideas for future shows. Welcome to the fourth and final installment of our Key Owner Stages series on The KeyHire Podcast. So far, we’ve walked through the stages of the Overwhelmed, Unsure, and Curious business owner. In this episode, we turn our attention to the Growing Business Owner—an exciting but challenging stage where your business starts gaining momentum, but cracks begin to show. As your sales increase and market presence expands, you may notice ...

What does culture really mean for small businesses? And why does it matter so much for growth and sustainability? In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, I sit down with Janneh Wright, the founder and CEO of PRIMUS Business Management. For more than two decades, Janneh and his team have helped small businesses and non-profits “turn their brilliance into sustainable infrastructure.” His framework for success—the Three C’s of Compliance, Culture, and Consistency—offers lea...

Welcome back to The KeyHire Small Business Podcast! This week we continue our Key Owner Stages series with Stage Three: The Curious Business Owner. If you’ve been following this series, you know that we’ve already covered the Overwhelmed Owner (the car with no wheels) and the Unsure Owner (the car with wobbly wheels). In this episode, we move to the next stage: the Curious Owner—someone who’s running a good business, has capable people in place, but is starting to hear the “squeaky whee...

On this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, we sit down with Justin Abrams, CEO of ARYO Consulting Group, to unpack a growth strategy that many business owners hear about—but few truly understand: growth through acquisition. With over 350 clients under his belt and a refreshingly straightforward approach to strategy, Justin helps demystify the world of M&A for small business owners. He breaks down what “acquisition” really means (hint: it’s not just for the big guys), when it m...

AI doesn’t have to be overwhelming—and it definitely doesn’t have to be expensive. In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, I’m joined by Paul Malott, CEO and Founder of Automations24, to talk about one of the most practical—and accessible—ways small businesses can start using AI: no-code automations. We know that AI is everywhere right now, but most small business owners feel unsure about where to start. Paul helps cut through the noise by breaking down how no-code ...

In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock sits down with Charles Fry, Founder and CEO of Codexitos, to tackle one of the most challenging transitions for small business owners: moving from founder-driven sales to building a professional sales organization. Charles has been in technology since before the internet took shape, founding and growing multiple companies over the decades. With deep experience in scaling businesses, he shares the real-world lesson...

If you’ve ever looked at your business and thought, “I know something’s wrong here, but I can’t figure out what it is… or how to fix it,” this episode is for you. I call this stage The Unsure Business Owner—the second stop in our Key Owner Stages Series. Last time, we covered the Overwhelmed Owner, where the wheels fall off. The Unsure stage is different—you’re still moving, but the wheels are wobbly. You feel the problems, but you’re not sure what’s causing them, how to fix them, or what wil...

As a small business owner, there’s a moment when you realize that being in control of everything is no longer helping your business—it’s holding it back. You’re wearing too many hats, every process runs through you, and your team can’t make a move without your approval. Sound familiar? In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, host Corey Harlock sits down with Kristina Tyler, Coach & Business Partner at Flow Fiero, to talk about how to break free from the daily grind and step...

Feeling like your business has stalled out—and no matter how hard you push, you just can’t get ahead? In the first episode of our special Key Owner Stages series, Corey Harlock breaks down the Overwhelmed Stage—the point where growth slows to a crawl, fires never stop, and the people who helped you build your company may no longer have the skills or capacity to help you scale it. Corey opens with the hard truth: overwhelmed owners aren’t just “busy”—they’re stuck. You’ll recognize the s...

Send us a text In this episode of The KeyHire Small Business Podcast, Corey Harlock sits down with Sean Boyle, Managing Partner at Momentum 360, to talk about a growing risk that many small businesses overlook—landing in Google Jail. Sean breaks down exactly what this means, why it happens, and how it can tank your online visibility overnight. Whether you’re outsourcing SEO or managing it in-house, this episode will arm you with practical insights to avoid costly mistakes and stay compliant w...