February 2026 News You Can Use
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February is the month of love here at HR Annie, and we’re dedicating this newsletter to you—our incredible clients and partners. This edition is all about celebrating your successes by featuring stories that highlight the impact of our amazing community.
Want to explore all of our upcoming events?
Check out our
event calendar!
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February’s Featured Training Topic:
How to Provide Your Team With More Personalized Growth Opportunities
Today’s employees want learning that feels relevant, practical, and built for them.
When training is personalized and ongoing, it leads to:
- Higher productivity
- Stronger engagement & loyalty
- Increased career stability & advancement
- Not to mention fewer mistakes, more innovation, & more collaboration
And we can help with this! HR Annie Training offers custom learning that takes your policies, industry, and values into account.
Our trainings are available in person, online, or as a recording. Every session is built to leave employees with tools, awareness, and empowerment.
Good skills are better than good intentions every day of the week! Click the button below to explore the various learnings we can bring to your team.
Explore Trainings
Reminder: New clients get $500 off a live, facilitated training when you book in the first six months!
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ON THE ONLINE COURSE LIBRARY
Employee Motivations: Maintaining Loyalty & Engagement
Most organizations put a lot of energy into welcoming and inspiring new hires.
But what happens after the orientation period?
That’s where an understanding of employee motivations really matters!
Our Employee Motivations: Maintaining Loyalty & Engagement course helps leaders and managers understand what truly drives their employees and how to keep people engaged long after day one. When motivation is understood and supported, loyalty follows.
After completing this course, you’ll walk away with…
A deeper understanding of workplace behaviors & culture
Insight into extrinsic & intrinsic motivators at work
Clear guidance on the manager’s role in helping employees do their best work
BONUS: This course also includes a helpful self-assessment tool to help build stronger motivation skills and awareness.
Ready to strengthen engagement and retention? Click the button below to get started!
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HR Annie Training Client Success Story
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HR Annie Training was in the Chehalem Mountains at the beautiful Adelsheim Vineyard to inspire their team with an all-staff learning on Communication Foundations. Adelsheim has been making award-winning wine for more than 50 years and has worked tirelessly on behalf of the Oregon wine industry. Their intentional investment in their people and learning & development is obvious; they kickstarted their year with strong reminders about communication best practices and awareness in a room with wood crackling in the fireplace and a commitment to togetherness and a people-first culture.
HR Annie Recruitment Highlight
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Is Your Pre-Boarding Process Overdue for Some Updates?
Pre-boarding starts the moment someone says “yes.” This means the time between offer acceptance and day one is critical, but often overlooked.
Without intentional engagement, even your strongest candidates can lose momentum or start to disengage before they begin.
A thoughtful pre-boarding experience makes all the difference!
Clear communication, structured touchpoints, and team alignment help new hires show up confident and ready to contribute.
We help small-to-mid-sized businesses design pre-boarding strategies that actually work, are practical, human, and tailored to how your team operates. From communication templates to process alignment, we make it easier to turn acceptance into commitment!
Contact us today to see how we can support your recruitment strategy.
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Hiring? Check Out this All-Star Candidate!
Experienced writer, editor, and communications consultant specializing in transforming complex ideas into clear, impactful content across diverse sectors that include consumer goods, technology, education, and healthcare.
Adept at conducting deep discovery conversations, research, and competitive analysis to craft tailored strategic messaging. Proven track record of managing editorial teams, coordinating stakeholders, and delivering high-quality communications that inspire action and reflect an organization’s brand, core values, and goals.
Core Skills:
Brand Strategy & Positioning
Marketing Strategy & Campaigns
Editorial & Storytelling in Nonprofit/Environmental/Tech Industries
Previous Roles:
Head of Writing
Communications Strategist
Writer
Editor
PR/Marketing Specialist
Account Director
Interested in getting in touch with this candidate? Reach out to us to schedule an introduction!
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Recruitment Client Success Stories
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Western Power Pool is a non-profit organization that facilitates coordination and resource sharing among utilities and other entities in the Western Interconnection. They came to us in April 2023 with a deck of 12+ hires, all slated for the following 12-18 months! We started by hiring their first-ever HR Manager, with whom we now partner closely on recruitment and hiring. Since then, we have filled a total of 13 key roles for them and are in the final stages of wrapping up one more. We partner with them from the very beginning, often participating in brainstorming sessions with the hiring managers, developing job descriptions, and taking it through the finish line.
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We’ve had the privilege of supporting Wallace in its mission to provide accessible healthcare to underserved communities. They recently hired a Dental Hygienist who was relocating to Portland but wouldn’t start for another 5 weeks, creating a risk of disengagement during this time. To keep the new hire connected and excited, we created a weekly check-in email series featuring fun things happening around Portland and light touch points to support her transition. By her start date, she remained highly engaged and arrived feeling welcomed, informed, and excited to get started. Through our collaboration, we’ve helped them build a strong and dedicated team that continues to make a lasting impact on the Portland community.
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When Employees Feel Heard, They Stay
Employee recognition programs, engagement surveys, stay interviews, and regular check-ins may look like separate initiatives.
But they all share a common purpose: helping employees feel heard, valued, and appreciated.
When employees know their feedback matters and their contributions are recognized…
Engagement increases
Commitment strengthens
Retention improves
Organizations that listen consistently and acknowledge good work build trust and a stronger culture. Those that don’t often end up stuck in a cycle of disengagement and turnover.
If this feels like a lot, start small!
You don’t need to do everything at once. Choose one or two practices you can realistically sustain, such as:
Scheduling regular check-ins
Sharing engagement survey results transparently
Acting on employee feedback in a timely way (this goes a long way!)
When employees see that their voices lead to meaningful action, trust grows, and engagement improves.
And you don’t have to do this alone!
We offer confidential engagement surveys with actionable report-outs, and our consultants can help you build your internal engagement programs that ensure employees feel heard.
We can help you turn employee feedback into action. Reach out today to get started!
Reach Out
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Consulting Client Success Story
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Pacific Biocontrol Corporation (PBC) specializes in effective, sustainable pest management that helps reduce reliance on conventional pesticides. PBC has partnered with us to elevate their people practices and build a stronger foundation for growth. Working together, we refreshed their entire employee handbook, including state‑specific supplements, giving them a compliant, modern, and user-friendly tool. We also delivered a strategic compensation study aligned with Oregon pay equity laws, helping them strengthen fairness, transparency, and competitiveness. Additional projects included a review and seamless transition to a new retirement plan administrator, unlocking better access and an improved experience for their employees. With each project, Pacific Biocontrol has appreciated having a trusted HR partner that empowers its team to stay focused on building its business with confidence.
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THANK YOU to everyone who joined us for our Open House & the first session of our Engagement Series!
We were so grateful for a full house, such thoughtful dialogue, and SO many great connections. The energy in the room was everything we had hoped for.
A huge thank you to Laura Amans for the awesome discussion points and delicious bites from Sesame Collective and to Straightaway Cocktails for the fantastic cocktails.
Explore Our Pre-Employment Screening Services
Did you know HR Annie offers pre-employment screening services?
That’s right!
Whether you need a criminal history check, drug screening, or professional reference check, we’ve got you covered!
We specialize in providing fast, thorough, and reliable pre-employment screening services to help you make informed hiring decisions.
Know you’re ready to improve your pre-employment screening processes?
Click the button below to get started today.
Apply for an HR & Manager Crash Course Scholarship!
We believe everyone deserves the opportunity to learn, grow, and advance. That’s why we’re proud to offer 1–2 scholarships for our upcoming HR & Manager Crash Course sessions.
These scholarships are designed to support underserved and underrepresented learners, as well as college students studying related fields, who are ready to grow their skills but may not always have access to professional development like this.
Why apply?
- Build practical, real-world HR and management skills
- Network with & learn alongside experienced professionals and peers
- Invest in your career, at no cost
Don’t just take it from us! Hear from past scholarship attendees below:
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If this sounds like something that could make a difference for you (or someone you know), we’d love for you to apply.
Click the button below to apply!
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Thank you so much for being a part of everything we do.
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