The Yes Works

Our clients come to us to engineer their cultures for four things:

PROFIT     |     GROWTH     |     INNOVATION     |     FUN

Because your culture is your future.

I'm synthesizing a life of learning and a diverse career of communications, customer service, training, and leadership development to help improve the work-lives of the people I serve. There is no work/life balance. There is only a balanced and fulfilling life. Work is part of life. Let's make it good.

Happily, fulfilling work and good productive work go hand in hand as a part of a balanced life.

I work with business teams to help build habits of work, communication, and collaboration to enliven work and make it good. It's good for business, it's good for people. That's the bottom line.

Co-Founder & CEO

Giant Leap

Lead two regional groups of Chief Executives and Business owners through a peer-mentoring experience...

We're whole humans leading companies, and it can be lonely at the top. Members of these groups find peers who have no agenda with them, have no fear of them, and will therefor put their best interests frontmost and share their honest, insightful thoughts and questions.

We're helping leaders live the entrepreneurial lives of their dreams.

CEO/Owner Peer Group Leader

Vistage Worldwide, Inc.

Get the most your team has to offer today, and grow their capacity tomorrow. Leading humans humanely and effectively for high performance and high fulfillment levels. Communication and collaboration culture. Innovation and problem solving.

Speaker

First 5 FUNdamentals

Founded in 2008, First 5 FUNdamentals (F5F) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to mobilize and inspire communities to achieve their collective goals for children and families. F5F currently supports three initiatives - Project Child Success, Help Me Grow Pierce County, and the Washington Communities for Children.

Vice President Board Of Directors

Mighty Good Work Podcast

Producer & Host

Stadium High School

I teach classes in theater to High School students in every grade level, and direct the school productions in our state of the art theater.

Teach juniors and seniors a course in Business Communication -- Public Speaking and Presentation, Customer Service, Copy Writing, Marketing, Surveys and other topics.

Theatre Arts & Business Communication Teacher

Gold From Straw Theatre Company

Managing Executive Director

Infinite Encore Coaching

Guiding leaders where they are to where they want to be.

Dream it.  Do it.  Live it.

Leadership Coach

Keller Williams Realty

Real Estate Consultant

Oakland School for the Arts

Tech Director and Theatre Teacher

People-first leaders come to us to help make their good teams LEGENDARY:

➡️ Do you have a nagging sense… We could be even BETTER? 

➡️ Do you have a strong culture that's still hampered by CONFLICT & miscommunication?

➡️ Have ACCOUNTABILITY gaps cost you sales, profit, clients, employee retention?

➡️ Is MISTRUST slowing you down?

➡️ Has a KEY PERSON quit out of the blue, citing more money & growth opportunity... And you can't allow a REPEAT with anyone else?

➡️ Is your headcount GROWING -- organically or through acquisition -- faster than team CHEMISTRY?

➡️ Is it hard to see how today's team can accomplish your AUDACIOUS GOALS for tomorrow?

It's time to REFUSE to accept a status quo where:

❌ MEETINGS are a dull time-suck // when they could be fun and productive.
❌ Gaps in communication and/or accountability create CHAOS.
❌ TRUST between team members is weak, so productivity suffers.
❌ Problems are suppressed until they become CRISES // instead of being brought to light.
❌ People resist CHANGE // instead of embracing reality and driving continual improvement
❌ Fixable PROBLEMS persist // when everything they need to find the solution is right there.

We can help. 

Think you can't have SWIFT & LASTING transformation with the team you have?

YOU CAN!

Because we use a unique science-backed approach to training and consulting. And we follow the advice of Albert Einstein:

"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."

Check out these client results:

🎯 “There’s nothing else like The Yes Works.” Joe Mc Swiney, CEO, SOG Knives. Six months after we worked with his leadership team, Joe said that they’d seen a:
50% increase in mutual appreciation. 
30% increase in mutual understanding. Conflicts were easier to navigate.
80% increase in their ability to communicate positively and constructively under pressure.

🎯 “Your work got us through COVID. We embody the principles you trained us in every day.” Joe LeRoy, CEO, HopeSparks

🎯 “What you did with us is a part of the fabric of this company.” Philip Goward, CEO, TextExpander (Then Philip and partners were able to sell TextExpander ahead of schedule.)

🎯 “Here’s how important you are to me. You give me hope that my company’s culture will be preserved through scaling. 50 years from now, I’ll want you training our leaders to keep us who we are.” Hugh Stewart, CEO - Platform Transition 


Ready to see your team's full potential in ACTION?

Then ask for a call:

📞 https://calendly.com/aaronyes/15min

🌐 https://www.theyesworks.com/

Aaron Schmookler, Culture Engineer

Sonoma State University School of Extended and International Education

I serve as a subject matter expert on the topic of Human Resources for the Sonoma State Nonprofit Management Certification course. This is a great opportunity for me to bring my high energy and enthusiasm for training to present a class on HR in the nonprofit world. I share current trends, data, real-life examples, and insights to help participants see how valuable HR is to the success of their organizations. 

Program details and registration links can be found here: https://seie.sonoma.edu/programs/nonprofit-management-certificate

Speaker, Human Resources Nonprofit Management

Second Harvest of Silicon Valley

After doubling in size during the pandemic, I was hired to help this semi-unionized company transition out of crisis mode. I managed daily operations, established processes, created training materials, updated company resources on the intranet, and provided outstanding customer service to over 300 employees at four locations. 

•	Primary administrator of Paycom HRIS, owned vendor relationship, module functionality, troubleshooting, and ensured accurate employee data. I utilized problem-solving to address the root causes of issues and formulated solutions to improve user experience, documentation, and data accuracy. 
•	Owned benefits, broker relationships, external portals, bill reconciliation, and open enrollment. Saved time and money after discovering and fixing billing discrepancies and incorrect set up in the HRIS benefits module.
•	Managed leaves, accommodations, workers’ compensation, and offboarding. I created workflows and forms to address gaps, trained staff, and coached managers. In one year, I managed over 135 cases, ensured compliance, reduced risk, and improved customer service and support.
•	After receiving a WC complaint, I discovered a lack of defensible documentation. I updated our legal postings and added the Time of Hire pamphlet to HRIS onboarding with an electronic signature to document receipt.

Human Resources Generalist

Menlo Church

I was hired to oversee compliance, employee relations, recruitment, benefits, and HR administration at a matrix organization with over 100 employees after dramatic leadership changes, layoffs, and unknowns from the pandemic. 

•	Managed the day-to-day operations and served as the main point of contact for employees.
•	Ensured legal compliance with federal, state, and local COVID-19 changes. I wrote the Work from Home policy and advised on the Mandated Vaccination Policy.  
•	Owned the recruiting and hiring process. I updated the online application in ADP to comply with CA laws, collaborated with hiring managers to write job descriptions, posted openings on external job boards, managed the interview process, and presented offers. I set up an onboarding workflow in PCO, facilitated orientation, and supported managers with onboarding. During my tenure, I hired 43 employees.
•	Advised Leadership on complex employee issues including performance issues, complaints, investigations, and terminations.
•	Handled administrative and employee-facing aspects of layoffs. Prepared separation agreements, notified employees, collected assets, issued final pay, and notified Finance of varying severance payout dates based on WARN Act requirements.
•	Managed leaves of absence, benefits, and open enrollment.
•	Collaborated with Finance on compensation reviews and advised on minimum wage increases, FLSA-exempt salary thresholds, and other salary-related issues.
•	Proactively conducted an I-9 audit and found errors for 86% of active employees. My initiative and subsequent corrections protected the company against potential fines from a USCIS audit. 
•	Improved documentation across matrix organization by utilizing Formstack, PCO, and fillable PDFs.

Human Resources Manager

CityTeam

During leadership and organizational changes, I was the one constant in the HR Department. I provided HR services to 150 employees and interns in five geographical areas across three states.

•	Managed daily operations and improved customer service to internal and external stakeholders.
•	Oversaw compliance and required reporting for federal, multi-state, and local ordinances. 
•	Advised leadership on policies, past practices, and implications to minimize risk and liability. I wrote, interpreted, and consistently enforced policies and procedures.
•	Worked closely with Finance to manage benefits administration and compensation implementation.
•	Coached managers on employee relations and best practices regarding employment law.
•	Managed full employee life cycle, including recruitment, orientation and onboarding, employee relations and engagement, performance management, corrective actions, terminations, and offboarding.
•	Updated the Employee Handbook to comply with federal and state laws.
•	Created electronic and hard copy files and improved employee access to resources on the intranet. 
•	Addressed concerns before they became issues for the organization.

My ability and desire to take on more responsibilities led to a promotion and enabled me to transform our candidate and new hire experience. I did everything I could to ensure candidates left the process advocating for our organization, which could translate into positive exposure, engagement, volunteerism, and donations. 

•	Coordinated all new hire details with cross-functional teams, facilitated new hire orientation, and advised hiring managers on best practices for onboarding employees.
•	Researched various Human Resources Information Systems, led the implementation process, trained staff, and managed CA Payroll HRIS.
•	I created and led trainings on Conflict Resolution and Team Dynamics. I also developed and facilitated training on our Core Values of Accountability and Teamwork, Interviewing and the Hiring Process, Safety and Incident Reporting, and led a lunch and learn on Time Management.

Human Resources Project Manager & Recruiter

I changed careers and used my transferrable strengths in problem-solving, project management, planning, and training to begin my career in Human Resources. 

•	Reduced HR headcount by 50% while improving competency, professionalism, and trust in the department. 
•	Created modernized systems and processes for documentation, filing, and record-keeping compliance.
•	Led event planning for the annual Greater Bay Area staff picnic and Christmas parties, cutting spending in half.
•	Managed Paycor Human Resources Information System (HRIS).

Human Resources Project Assistant

EVERGREEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT

Classroom Teacher
•	Experienced working with diverse cultural, linguistic, socioeconomic, and ability groups.
•	Evaluated data, formulated action plans, and assessed progress.
•	Translated complex ideas into simple, easy to understand content for users.

Professional Leadership
•	Organized multiple calendars, scheduled meetings, created and distributed agendas, facilitated planning sessions, prioritized and followed up on action items, delegated responsibilities, assured clear communication between management and team, and optimized teambuilding relationships.
•	Supervised new teachers. Observed lessons and shared feedback. Diagnosed problem areas and provided support.  
•	Mentored student teachers. Acted as instructor and model to facilitate their development. 

Curriculum Development
•	Took initiative and created needed resource combining spelling, penmanship, and vocabulary to support 5,000 students. 
•	Developed curriculum map for district of 13,000 students. Collaborated with cross-functional teams and worked to consensus. Clarified processes and persuaded buy-in of all stakeholder groups.
•	Wrote district math benchmark assessments. Created benchmarks, wrote problems and designed physical layout for assessments, answer sheets, and directions. Instructed and assisted teachers with execution, grading, and reporting of data. Processed suggestions and feedback to ensure constant improvement of the user experience.
•	Authored district writing prompts for 1,500 students. Launched implementation and revised product based on stakeholder feedback.
•	Developed district math assessments for 15 schools. Worked cooperatively with vertical grade level teams to align standards and protocol.
•	Wrote district language arts standards of achievement and reading and writing rubrics.  Collaborated with other Subject Matter Experts, articulated expectations and protocol, analyzed feedback, and made revisions.

Professional Educator & Trainer

SPHR-certified Human Resources professional looking to join a people-first organization where all employees can bring their authentic selves and be seen, empowered, and appreciated. My decade of experience includes managing daily operations while improving aspects of the employee lifecycle from recruiting to offboarding. Best known for my meticulous attention to detail, talent for improving processes and customer service, and putting the human back in Human Resources (plus the extra-added bonus of sharing home-baked treats with my co-workers).

I believe hiring, training, and retaining the right people are key to organizational success. My background in education allows me to integrate learning and development into HR initiatives seamlessly. I am looking for an opportunity to utilize my HR expertise, operational experience, and passion for employee engagement and development to protect my organization and support my employees. I lead with execution, influence, relationship building, and strategic thinking.

taplio

The Battle

Aaron Schmookler, Culture Engineer

Lorianne Lee, SPHR

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