HR, Helicopters & Tribunals: The Stuff That Can Wreck Your Business (and How to Avoid It)

If you think HR is just contracts and common sense, this episode might save you a small fortune.

In this episode, I’m joined by Paul Fitzsimmons – an HR and employment law specialist who’s spent 15+ years helping business owners avoid expensive, stressful, tribunal-shaped disasters.

Paul doesn’t do fluffy HR. He’s run his own business. He understands commercial reality. And he’s seen everything – from cocaine-fuelled Christmas parties to dismissals that looked obvious… until they cost £60,000.

We talk about:

•  Why you can’t just sack someone on the spot(even when they really deserve it)
•  The simple HR mistakes that land good businesses in serious trouble
•  What the new employment law changesactually mean – without the scaremongering
•  Why performance management should be constant, not reactive
•  Christmas parties, social media, drugs, discipline… and why alcohol plus staff is a legal minefield
•  The uncomfortable truth about average staff, tough decisions, and avoiding six months of misery
•  How bad HR drains profit, energy, and leadership time
•  Why outsourcing HR is often cheaper, safer, and saner than winging it

We also get into Paul’s refreshingly honest take on conveyancing, margins, service quality, and why racing to the bottom on fees breaks businesses on both sides of the transaction.

Paul brings humour, clarity, and zero nonsense. You’ll laugh. You’ll wince. And you’ll almost certainly rethink how exposed your business really is.

If you employ people – or are thinking about it – this episode is required listening.

How to contact Paul

You can find Paul Fitzsimmons on LinkedIn. Drop him a message with your biggest HR headache and he’ll translate it into plain English before it becomes expensive.