S12 E2: Courage Over Compliance: A Conversation We Should’ve Had Already with Keisha Toussaint

Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef
April 20, 2026

If you’ve been in HR long enough, you know this feeling.

You see something wrong, you know it’s wrong, and then you look around and realize the system you work inside of wasn’t actually built to let you fix it.

Today I’m talking to Keisha Toussaint, founder of BCC’d HR and someone who did what most of us only think about doing: she removed the corporate muzzle entirely.

We’re getting into the moment that changed how she saw this job forever, what happens when you advocate for the right thing and leadership responds with escalation instead of accountability, and why courage isn’t optional in HR, even when the org makes it feel that way. 

Another day of tough convos, but important convos nonetheless!

00:00:00 – Intro

00:02:20 – Something Keisha Believed About Work Early On and Had to Unlearn

00:06:10 – A Difficult Conversation Keisha Had at Work

00:11:17 – How Keisha Thought HR Operated Vs How it Actually Does

00:18:43 – When the Energy in the Room Shifts

00:22:19 – Understanding What HR Roles Actually Require From You

00:28:29 – Moments That Require Courage

00:37:44 – How Orgs Respond to Outspoken Employees, Especially Employees of Color

00:44:57 – Advice For Folks Dealing with Difficult Convos at Work

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Learn more: ⁠trypi.com/ihateithere⁠

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Follow Keisha

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keishatoussaint/

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ihateit-here/videos

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Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef