Episode #21: Shawna Lake, Deep End Talent Strategies

When work throws you into the deep end, what happens next? In this episode of the Behind the Brand Podcast, Adam Hayes and Bob Paden sit down with Shawna Lake, Founder & Principal Consultant of Deep End Talent Strategies, to explore how one defining career moment led her to build a people-first HR consultancy that helps leaders navigate their biggest talent challenges.​ Shawna shares the powerful story behind the "deep end" name, from a suffocating corporate relocation ultimatum to a 20‑minute car ride that changed her life and launched her business. She unpacks what it really looks like to support organizations through growth, tough decisions, and everything in between, from workforce planning and recruiting to learning and development and complex employee relations issues.​ You'll hear Shawna's candid take on today's HR landscape: flooded job markets, shifting salary expectations, rising benefits costs, and why understanding how a business makes money is non‑negotiable for modern HR leaders. She also dives into exempt vs. non‑exempt confusion, outdated job descriptions, remote vs. onsite tensions, and the mindset shift from "butts in seats" to true productivity.​ Beyond the business, Shawna opens up about family, travel, and her goal to reach all 50 states and nearly 20 countries, and how seeing the world shapes the way she leads and serves clients. If you're a business owner or leader trying to build a healthy, compliant, and human workplace in a changing world, this conversation is for you.