S12 E4: The Emotional Tax of Doing HR Correctly with Stacey Nordwall

Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef
May 4, 2026

HR has this fun little quirk where almost nothing is black and white, and the concept of “right” and “wrong” is rarely as simple as it sounds in a policy doc! 

This season, we’ve talking about firsts, and the moments that fundamentally change how you see this work. 

Today, I sat down with Stacey Norville, VP of People Strategy at Pyn and host of one of my favorite podcasts, Toot or Boot, to talk about the first time she had to step into an HRBP role before that role even existed at her company, then navigate a serious performance situation where doing everything right still didn’t guarantee a good outcome. 

We get into the emotional toll and gray areas you have to deal with to survive this job, and the part no one puts in the job description, which is that sometimes you carry the weight of your decisions home with you! 

00:03:29 – Something Stacey Had to Unlearn About Work

00:05:23 – When Stacey Had to Step into an HRBP Role Before it Even Existed

00:11:21 – Expecting the Unexpected in HR

00:19:09 – The Difficult Nature of Feedback Convos

00:25:39 – The Duality of Regulating Your Emotional Reactions During Procedural Moments

00:34:59 – The Complexity of What’s Right and What’s Wrong in HR

00:38:36 – How Past Experiences Have Shaped Stacey’s Approach to Performance Management

00:49:47 – Getting in Touch With Stacey

The Predictive Index behavioral assessment reveals how people work, think, and thrive—so teams can understand each other better and perform at their best.

Because when you truly understand your people, work just works.

Learn more: ⁠⁠⁠trypi.com/ihateithere⁠⁠⁠

And if you love I Hate It Here, sign up to ⁠⁠Hebba’s newsletter⁠⁠! It’s for jaded, overworked, and emotionally burnt-out HR/People Operations professionals needing a little inspiration.

And if you love the podcast, be sure to check out ⁠⁠I Hate It Here on YouTube⁠⁠ for even more exclusive insider content!

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Hebba Youssef
Hebba Youssef