I'm the person you call when it's about to go wrong.
I've spent more than 20 years in the rooms where the hard people decisions get made. Terminations. Investigations. Union tables. The complaint that lands on a Friday afternoon. The employee who's crying in your office and the owner who's terrified of saying the wrong thing.
I've been the calm person in that room for companies with 10,000 employees. Now I do it for small businesses that don't have an HR department, and frankly, shouldn't have to.
I'm Meghan Davey, SPHR. 20+ years in HR leadership, including Head of HR for 10,000+ employees.
20+ years in HR leadership10,000+ employees led as Head of HR139 senior living communitiesSPHR
Here's what 20 years taught me.
Most lawsuits start with a bad conversation, not a missing policy.
People remember how you let them go long after they forget how you hired them.
A handshake hire is just a lawsuit on a delay.
Owners don't need HR theory. They need to know what to do on Monday morning.
AI can draft the letter. It can't sit across the table from the person reading it.
I've sat on both sides of the desk.
I've led HR at the top of big companies, across retail, hospitality, entertainment, healthcare and senior living, at places like Federated and Luxottica. I ran the people side of a company with 139 senior living communities, where one bad staffing decision meant a resident didn't get care. I've negotiated across the table from unions.
I've also signed the front of the paycheck. I co-own a healthcare staffing and training company, so I make the same hiring, payroll and compliance calls you do, with my own money on the line. When I tell you something is worth fixing, it's because I'd fix it in my own business.
Problems disappear. People don't.
What I won't do.
I won't hand you a 40-page report when what you need is a phone call.
I won't tell you what you want to hear if it's going to cost you later.
I won't make you speak HR. Plain English, every time.
I won't treat your employees like the enemy. Even when someone has to go, they leave with their dignity, and you leave protected.
Don't take my word for it.
"Meghan is a rare combination of operator and people strategist. She sees the business issue, the people issue, and the risk, often before others do."
"She balanced understanding the needs of the company with compassion for the employees."
"Meghan is extremely approachable, making any Open Door Policy truly work."
If you're reading this late at night with a people problem you can't talk about with anyone at work, call me. I'll listen first. Then I'll tell you honestly whether you need a template, an hour of my time or a full investigation, even if the answer is the cheapest one.
