Focus HR, Inc.

10/16/2026

"Job hugging” is still common in 2026.

Monster found 48% of workers are staying put for security, stability, or comfort. Pay and benefits are the biggest reason, followed closely by job security.

But staying is not always the same as being engaged.

Nearly one-third say job hugging makes them feel stuck.

Monster's report on job hugging statistics shows 87% of workers have job hugged at least once. Learn why workers stay, career trade offs, & 2026 trends.

10/13/2026

AI is making information easier to access. That means the skills that set employees apart are changing.

The real differentiators are increasingly human:

- Analytical thinking
- Judgment
- Communication
- Emotional intelligence
- Creativity
- Learning agility
- Initiative

The World Economic Forum identifies analytical thinking as the most sought-after core skill among employers, while resilience, flexibility, leadership, and curiosity are also rising in importance.

For small businesses, this has practical implications for hiring and development.

Instead of only asking, “Can this person do the job today?” employers also need to ask: "Can they learn, adapt, evaluate information, make sound decisions, and grow as the role changes?"

That is where the real value will be.

AI is changing what employers value. Discover the human skills small businesses need to hire for, develop, and retain in 2026 — with a practical 10-step action plan.

10/09/2026

Stephen Covey’s Circle of Concern and Circle of Influence is a useful way to think about business planning for 2027.

You cannot control the economy, the labor market, regulatory changes, or what your competitors do.

You can influence things like retention, manager effectiveness, employee development, and the strength of your people systems.

And you directly control something even closer to home: where your leadership team spends its time.

That is where HR administration comes in.

Payroll questions, benefits issues, policy updates, compliance tracking, documentation, and routine employee processes are all important. But if they are constantly pulling owners and senior leaders away from strategy, customers, and people leadership, they are consuming capacity that could be used elsewhere.

Covey’s framework gives businesses a practical filter:

👉 Concern: stay informed, but do not let uncertainty consume your attention
👉 Influence: invest in the people and systems that improve outcomes
👉 Control: decide what work your leaders should own, what should be standardized, and what can be delegated or supported externally

That last category is often where businesses have the biggest opportunity.

You may not be able to control what 2027 brings. But you can control whether routine administration gets your best hours.

🔗 https://focushr.net/the-one-2027-goal-business-owners-actually-need-getting-time-back/

10/07/2026

Health insurance is doing more than influencing where people work. For millions of Americans, it is influencing whether they feel able to leave at all.

New research found that nearly 40% of Americans have stayed in a job longer than they wanted to because they or a family member needed health insurance.

That is a significant retention signal for employers.

Benefits can absolutely help keep good people, but there is an important difference between employees staying because they value their workplace and staying because they are afraid of losing coverage.

Nearly 40% of Americans have stayed in a job longer than they wanted to because they or a family member needed health insurance.

10/01/2026

Selling a business is about proving that the company can operate, retain its people, and withstand intense scrutiny when the owner steps away.

If you are a business owner considering a transition within the next one to five years, or a CPA, broker, or attorney supporting clients through succession, join us tomorrow at 10:00am PST.

Focus HR’s Clint Parry and Phocus Law’s Mick McGirr will provide a practical checklist covering:
👉 Employment documentation and worker classification
👉 Key-person risk and owner dependency
👉 Strategies for retaining critical employees through transition

Secure your last-minute registration: https://onedigital.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_crPsQNoHSsKN151GEb__7w #/registration

09/30/2026

Open enrollment is often treated like an annual shopping exercise. Add a new benefit, introduce another program, and hope employees value it.

But there is another question employers should be asking first:
👉 What are we already paying for that employees are not using?

This is called “benefits debt,” the buildup of underused programs, overlapping vendors, and legacy offerings that remain in the plan year after year without a clear review of whether they are still delivering value.

Before open enrollment, take a hard look at what is working, what is being used, what employees actually understand, and what may no longer belong.

Sometimes improving your benefits strategy is not about adding more. It is about getting more value from what you already have.

If you need help reviewing your benefits strategy, reach out: https://focushr.net/contact/

Employers are adding more to benefits plans and employees aren't using it. That's money leaking out of the plan.

09/28/2026

Small business owners have a new #1 worry, and it's not hiring.

A new NAPEO survey found:
– 76% say economic uncertainty is one of the most challenging parts of running a business today — the first time it's topped the list
– 68% point to healthcare costs as a major concern
– Businesses using a PEO grew faster in 2025 (80% vs. 67% for non-PEO users) and expect stronger growth in 2026 (83% vs. 75%)

When the economy outside your business feels unpredictable, tightening what happens inside it — payroll accuracy, compliance, benefits cost control — is one of the few levers still fully in your hands.

That's a big part of why more owners are taking a second look at outsourced HR this year.

👉 https://napeo.org/press-releases/new-napeo-survey-2026/

09/25/2026

Nearly 60% of Gen Z workers say they would rather remain individual contributors than move into middle management. Another study found 40% would only take a promotion if it did not involve managing a team.

Why? Younger employees are watching managers deal with bigger workloads, constant organizational change, and burnout — often without enough training or support.

For employers, that creates a succession problem.

Recent research finds that individual contributors increasingly want to avoid moving into management. How can HR turn the trend around?

09/24/2026

Will your most critical employees stay through an acquisition? Turnover is a massive red flag during due diligence. Historically, acquired firms lose about 40% of their managers in the first two years, which is three times the normal rate.

Research shows that 72% of companies that successfully retained staff identified who to keep and started their retention efforts during due diligence, long before the deal actually closed.

On Friday, October 2, Clint Parry and Mick McGirr will break down how to structure transition agreements, stay bonuses, and phantom equity to protect your company's value.

Join the conversation: https://onedigital.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_crPsQNoHSsKN151GEb__7w #/registration

09/23/2026

Arizona doesn't have a pay transparency law. That doesn't mean your job postings are automatically in the clear.

16 states and Washington, D.C. now require salary ranges in job postings, pay information on request, or both. If you've ever posted a remote role, or hired someone who works from California, Colorado, New York, or a handful of other states, those laws can apply to you — regardless of where your business is headquartered.

Requirements vary by state:
– Salary ranges required in job postings (internal and external)
– Salary history questions prohibited
– Retaliation protections for employees who discuss pay

For a small business without a dedicated compliance team, tracking which of your job posts trigger which state's rules is exactly the kind of thing that's easy to miss — until it isn't.