PeopleSolutionsNOW was founded on a belief that small business owners lacked sufficient access to strategic HR support. The firm prides itself on a nimble and customized service model designed to serve business owners. The “NOW” in the name signifies solutions that are relevant to solving modern work place challenges.

PeopleSolutionsNOW is an HR and organizational effectiveness consulting firm that serves the needs of businesses across the U.S. Clients of PeopleSolutionsNOW tout the high degree of expertise and level of service. Clients appreciate their consultant is responsive to their needs and easy to reach via phone, email, or text. Current clients report they have peace of mind and confidence knowing they have a dedicated, strategic business partner on their team.

In an interview with Manage HR, Lila Ressler, CEO of PeopleSolutionsNOW, sheds light on how the company supports their clients.

Please tell our readers about the journey of PeopleSolutionsNOW.

I founded PeopleSolutionsNOW to fill a significant gap in the small business market. In my career in corporate America, I supported large HR departments in fortune 100 companies. During this time, I grew to appreciate the impact this work has on employee engagement and business results. In a prior role, I worked with small business owners and became frustrated that most small businesses and start-ups lacked access to strategic HR support. With my corporate background, I knew the value of what these smaller businesses were missing. Although large professional employer organizations (PEOs) were available, they were limited to

providing compliance-oriented and tactical HR support that was not tied to business results. The desire to launch a company to support this underserved population began to take shape for me in 2016. I started doing research and developed a business plan, with the intent to open a business in 2025. When Covid hit in 2020, it became apparent that if businesses had this need previously, it was at a red alert level now. I decided to leverage my experience to help smaller organizations address their HR needs. It started with serving businesses in my network and quickly grew to supporting multiple industries. PeopleSolutionsNOW is leveling the playing field for small businesses by providing the necessary strategies, resources and support with an approach that honors their unique people challenges and budgets.

Could you walk us through the current challenges in the HR Space?

Hiring and leadership development are areas we are seeing unusually high demand for our services.

The talent shortage is real for businesses of all sizes with job seekers having more options today than ever. Job seekers are demanding flexibility and mobility. Yet, not all businesses are ready to change how they think about the workplace.
This, coupled with the fact many businesses employ talent from all five generations and the characteristics, needs, and perceptions about work and career are unique among these generations, make it challenging for businesses to develop programs that appeal to everyone.

As modern employees seek workplace benefits beyond the paycheck, businesses are in a race to differentiate their people practices to attract and retain talent, making leadership development essential as businesses quickly scale. Some of the highest in demand leadership competencies are coaching for performance, inspirational leadership, and change management.

How does PeopleSolutionsNOW deliver its services?

We work on a project-based model, or on retainer. We fill HR gaps that exist internally, serving as the HR business partner, the talent acquisition team, employee relations department, organizational effectiveness and leadership development functions for our client’s businesses. Our clients don’t always have the budgets to employ these departments in house with the level of expertise necessary; that is where we shine. PeopleSolutionsNOW aims to become an extension of the leadership teams we work with, delivering the expertise necessary to bring fresh ideas and resources to the table to solve internal business challenges,


Could you shed some light on the work culture within PeopleSolutionsNOW?

PeopleSolutionsNOW operates with a fully remote team of students of business and HR, continuously studying the trends and working ahead of the curve. With an established team of consultants across all HR disciplines, we have a deep bench of talent able to serve our clients expertly and efficiently. This contracted and consultant driven approach ensures a high level of expertise and lower cost of services for the client. Each business has a dedicated contact managing the resources supporting their HR project.

What plans does PeopleSolutionsNOW have for the future?

We are adaptable and allow our clients to direct our focus. Businesses were concerned about furloughs and layoffs in 2020. In 2021, they experienced rapid growth and focus switched to talent acquisition and leadership development. We launched a recruiting division to accommodate the demands for talent and built strategic partnerships dedicated to supporting growing leadership development demand. We will continue to have an agile approach to meet our clients where they are NOW.