Deborah Saneman of Würk: Five HR Strategies On How Companies Can Turn A Crisis Into An Opportunity or Advantage

An Interview With Rachel Kline

Adapt and Monitor: Be flexible and adapt as necessary; don’t be rigid in your planning. Frequently meet to review progress and address potential issues early. Monitor the situation continuously and be prepared to make quick, thoughtful decisions. Understand that not knowing every detail is acceptable; the focus should be on thoughtful and prompt decision-making.

As any HR leader can tell you, crises are an inevitable part of the job. Tough situations pop up, often at the least convenient times, and these situations need to be handled efficiently yet delicately. Whether it’s dealing with a new employee, wages, or internal conflict, there are ways to come out on top. How can companies learn to take a crisis and turn it into an advantage? In this interview series, we are talking to HR leaders who share their strategies about “How Companies Can Turn A Crisis Into An Opportunity or Advantage.” As part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Deborah Saneman.

Deborah Saneman is the Chief Executive Officer at Würk, where her responsibilities include leading processes across the entire organization, designing and implementing business strategies and maintaining a positive and ethical work environment. Deborah has over 25 years of business operations experience under her belt. A strategic corporate thinker, Deborah is experienced at driving results and enhancing business operations from the ground up.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us the “backstory” about what brought you to this specific career path?

I initially became interested in cannabis during my time at a previous payroll provider with a diverse client base that included a few cannabis businesses. I became concerned when our financial partner informed us that they could no longer support these cannabis clients. This disruption troubled me, especially considering the potential negative impact on the employees of these businesses. It raised questions about the unequal treatment of cannabis clients compared to other companies, prompting me to delve deeper into the issue.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

We are excited to announce several new initiatives, primarily focused on our proprietary data set. In the cannabis industry, compensation data is notoriously scarce. To address this, we have aggregated comprehensive compensation data and are now offering cannabis-specific compensation benchmarking for every region across the country.

One of the biggest challenges our clients face is attracting and retaining quality talent. This hinges on offering competitive compensation tailored to the location, job, and specific requirements of the organization. At Würk, we aggregate and analyze all this data, enabling companies to remain competitive in a highly condensed workforce.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

One of my mentors is Renita Bess, whom I met about 15 years ago. I was immediately drawn to her energy and spirit. Renita started in the HCM business and, through hard work and dedication, rose to become the CEO of a payroll service bureau. When I was entering and becoming more involved in the payroll and HCM community, she gave me invaluable advice: to be involved, to volunteer, to serve on boards, and to make my voice heard. As a younger person entering a mature industry, this advice was crucial.

Renita has not only been a great mentor but also a close personal friend. Throughout my career, she has encouraged me to take risks and be a strong woman in an industry constantly facing change, compliance challenges, and legislative updates. We still connect at least once a month to share both triumphs and challenges.

Fantastic. Thank you for that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview about HR strategies for turning a crisis into an opportunity. Can you share your story of when an organization you’ve worked at entered into a crisis? What happened? What did you do?

I’ll use a recent crisis in the cannabis industry as an example. About a year ago, a major competitor in the HCM space, Paychex, exited the market, giving their clients just 30 days’ notice to find, select, onboard, and process payroll with a new provider. This alone was a significant challenge, compounded by the lack of guidance on finding an alternative provider with stable banking relationships. The exit was due to a failure in Paychex’s banking redundancy, which is a critical issue for cannabis clients who constantly face these risks.

The first thing we did was reach out to familiar clients and prospects, offering to be a trusted advisor. We received numerous inbound opportunities, but our focus was on guiding them through the decision-making process and assuring them of our readiness to help. This approach provided much-needed stability in the market. We quickly demonstrated our value and reassured them about our partnerships with multiple financial institutions, ensuring they wouldn’t face similar issues in the future.

What was your mindset during such a challenging time? Where did you get the drive to keep going when things were so hard?

Reflecting on my 25+ year career, the moments I felt most energized and fulfilled were actually during times of crisis. These periods of personal and professional growth arose from thinking creatively, acting quickly, and executing effectively. These challenges inspire and drive me. Looking back, my career growth didn’t come from routine work, but from crisis situations where my leadership, thoughtfulness, and process improvements were crucial.

Can you please tell us how you were able to overcome such adversity and how the company ultimately turned the crisis into an opportunity or advantage? What did the next chapter look like?

I believe the next chapter involves navigating increasing regulatory changes and rescheduling in the cannabis industry. We aim to continue establishing ourselves as thought leaders while strengthening and expanding our relationships with financial institutions and other partners. Our goal is to help mitigate risk and uncertainty, collaborating with organizations that share our mission.

Here is the main question of our interview: Based on your experience, can you share five actionable pieces of advice for HR leaders about How Companies Can Turn A Crisis Into An Opportunity or Advantage? (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Quick High-Level Assessment

• Conduct a swift, high-level assessment of the situation.
• Gather essential facts without getting bogged down in details.
• Determine if the opportunity or challenge is feasible and identify the key reasons.
• Avoid getting overwhelmed by minutiae; focus on the big picture.

2. Assemble a Dream Team

• Form a project team with diverse skill sets.
• Include a project leader, an effective communicator, a technical expert, and a service-oriented member.
• Ensure the team members complement each other’s strengths.
• Provide opportunities for team members to showcase and develop additional skills.

3. Establish Communication Channels

• Set up clear communication channels and establish a regular meeting schedule.
• During the Paychex situation, we met twice a week to ensure alignment and accountability.
• Clearly define objectives for each meeting and assign responsibilities.
• Maintain consistent communication to keep the team productive and focused on the overall goal.

4. Create a High-Level Plan

• Develop a streamlined plan focusing on critical steps.
• Consolidate a detailed plan into essential actions to expedite processes.
• For example, our 12-week implementation plan was condensed to 30 days by identifying and focusing on key steps.
• This approach not only addressed the immediate challenge but also improved long-term efficiency, reducing our implementation times by four weeks.

5. Adapt and Monitor

• Be flexible and adapt as necessary; don’t be rigid in your planning.
• Frequently meet to review progress and address potential issues early.
• Monitor the situation continuously and be prepared to make quick, thoughtful decisions.
• Understand that not knowing every detail is acceptable; the focus should be on thoughtful and prompt decision-making.

What are a few of the most common mistakes you see leaders make when their company hits a crisis? What should be done to avoid them?

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that facing issues head-on with direct interactions is the most productive approach. Avoiding or skirting around problems doesn’t solve them; addressing them directly usually reveals they aren’t as bad as they initially seem.

Take the Paychex situation, for example. We were initially overwhelmed by the numbers — hundreds of companies and thousands of employees affected. However, our team saw it as an opportunity to rally and support each other, which ended up being a significant bonding experience. Everyone, from those directly involved in the project to those who backfilled day-to-day roles, contributed to our success.

Another piece of advice is not to limit crisis management to just the project team. We ensured the entire organization was aware of the situation, as it impacted everyone. This transparency allowed people to step up and support each other, ensuring our other clients didn’t experience any disruption in service. The grace and cooperation within the team were truly remarkable.

What advice would you give to HR leaders and organizations who have yet to hit their first real crisis?

One effective practice I’ve found in my career is conducting tabletop exercises. Tabletop exercises involve gathering a small group of individuals in a room and presenting them with various challenges or crises. This allows you to observe their problem-solving skills, how they react under pressure, and whether they contribute positively to finding solutions or exacerbating problems. It’s a dynamic way to test readiness without a rule book or script, making it both an educational and a team-building opportunity.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

In the last 60 days, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with everyone individually on their work anniversary, which is crucial for connecting in our fully remote organization. Instead of focusing on job performance, I aim to build personal connections. Recently, three individuals shared deeply personal stories about their experiences in previous workplaces, where they felt judged based on stereotypes. Providing a safe space where they can freely express themselves without fear of judgment — whether it’s about their appearance, hobbies, or interests — has been incredibly impactful. It’s touching to see how creating such an environment allows people to discuss what truly matters to them, often beyond work-related challenges or client issues.

How can our readers continue to follow your work online?

Be sure to follow us on our socials to see all the great things we’re working on!

Linkedin & Instagram

Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational.