Heroes of HR is your backstage pass to the unsung champions of every workplace—the People Heroes. This limited-series podcast, brought to you by isolved, cuts through the fluff to highlight the real leaders, innovators, and change-makers redefining HR, payroll, and talent management.
Each short, bingeable episode hits the big questions head-on: What’s keeping you up at night? What’s got you fired up about 2025? How do you explain isolved to someone who’s never heard of HR tech? And how do you recharge when the grind gets real?
We’re talking bold insights, no BS, and stories that’ll stick with you. If you’re in the trenches of HR or just curious about the people shaping the future of work, this series delivers the goods.
Ready to meet the People Heroes redefining what’s possible? Hit play.
All content for Heroes of HR is the property of WRKdefined Podcast Network and is served directly from their servers
with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
Heroes of HR is your backstage pass to the unsung champions of every workplace—the People Heroes. This limited-series podcast, brought to you by isolved, cuts through the fluff to highlight the real leaders, innovators, and change-makers redefining HR, payroll, and talent management.
Each short, bingeable episode hits the big questions head-on: What’s keeping you up at night? What’s got you fired up about 2025? How do you explain isolved to someone who’s never heard of HR tech? And how do you recharge when the grind gets real?
We’re talking bold insights, no BS, and stories that’ll stick with you. If you’re in the trenches of HR or just curious about the people shaping the future of work, this series delivers the goods.
Ready to meet the People Heroes redefining what’s possible? Hit play.
Leaders who show up: Angela Carranza and Vilma Brager on real HR courage and empathy
Heroes of HR
14 minutes
3 months ago
Leaders who show up: Angela Carranza and Vilma Brager on real HR courage and empathy
Live from the isolved booth at SHRM 2025 in San Diego, William Tincup and Ryan Leary sit down with two sharp, grounded HR pros who lead with both heart and action. Angela Carranza, Controller at NEOpal, and Vilma Brager, Co-founder and CEO of Insight HR Consulting, bring real stories of trust, empathy, and courageous leadership into the spotlight.
Angela talks through how auditing a forgotten PTO error helped an employee feel truly seen—and what that small act says about leading with care. Vilma shares how showing up for an employee during a personal crisis became a defining moment in her career. They both weigh in on what it means to be a “people hero”—and why performative leadership doesn’t cut it anymore. This one’s honest, unscripted, and packed with human-first insight.
Timestamps
00:00 — Live at the isolved booth in San Diego
00:44 — Meet Angela Carranza and Vilma Brager
01:15 — What’s your HR superpower?
02:01 — Vilma on the power of difficult conversations
03:08 — Angela shares why empathy guides her leadership
04:00 — Sympathy vs empathy: how leaders get it wrong
05:21 — Defining “people heroes” in the HR world
06:04 — What it looks like when leaders roll up their sleeves
07:18 — Performative leadership vs authentic action
08:29 — Ryan shares a powerful CEO story from Kenexa
09:40 — Angela’s story: fixing a long-missed vacation accrual
10:58 — “I feel seen”: when small actions make a big impact
11:18 — Vilma on holding space for mental health before it was common
12:46 — Helping employees access resources with compassion
13:29 — Pre-COVID mental health stigma and how far we’ve come
13:56 — Final laughs and a mission to find the Aflac duck
This episode was recorded live with isolved at the SHRM Annual Conference in San Diego.
The Heroes of HR podcast is a limited series sponsored by isolved. isolved is an HCM platform that modernizes HR, benefits, and payroll across Healthcare, Hospitality, Manufacturing, and more.
Learn more about isolved: https://www.isolvedhcm.com/
Connect with Us:
William Tincup LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/
Ryan Leary LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/
Connect with us on social:
Site: http://www.wrkdefined.com
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/
Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/WRKdefined
Substack: https://wrkdefined.substack.com/
Heroes of HR
Heroes of HR is your backstage pass to the unsung champions of every workplace—the People Heroes. This limited-series podcast, brought to you by isolved, cuts through the fluff to highlight the real leaders, innovators, and change-makers redefining HR, payroll, and talent management.
Each short, bingeable episode hits the big questions head-on: What’s keeping you up at night? What’s got you fired up about 2025? How do you explain isolved to someone who’s never heard of HR tech? And how do you recharge when the grind gets real?
We’re talking bold insights, no BS, and stories that’ll stick with you. If you’re in the trenches of HR or just curious about the people shaping the future of work, this series delivers the goods.
Ready to meet the People Heroes redefining what’s possible? Hit play.
