Testimonials

Kevin Blayne

Owner, CEO
Highridge Insurance Group

Competency, character and charisma are three adjectives not often associated with Human Resources. However, these perfectly describe what The Guia Group brings to your organization. I have been fortunate enough to leverage The Guia Group to help grow my employee benefits brokerage; as well as, refer them as a resource and tool for my clients to partner with to solve their own HR related needs. The Guia Group is able to design custom HR solutions and then seamlessly implement the programs as if they are part of your own organization. A strength of The Guia Group is their ability to scale the solution from a single inquiry or issue to a full-blown Fortune 500 HR resource. The Guia Group is the only HR resource that we ever need to partner with; they have it covered.

Shivani Kraus

Account Specialist
Abacus Payroll Services

As an account specialist at Abacus Payroll, I have had the pleasure of working with Guia extensively over the last several years. Guia is extremely knowledgeable about employment and HR laws, and she understands and appreciates the role of technology in the workplace. As such, Guia is very well-versed in the various systems available today, and more importantly, she is always eager to learn how a new platform or feature can be used to streamline the administration of HR, benefits, reporting, and payroll. At the same time, Guia understands that HR is more about people than technology, and she brings an ethos and level of compassion to her work that make her an asset to any organization. Guia has been incredible to work with because she is so kind and understanding and really makes you feel heard. She has a knack for getting to the heart of a problem and finding a solution, all with empathy for the individuals involved.

Keith Campbell

President
Teak Tree Consulting LLC

I worked with many first-class Human Resources Executives in my career and can say that Guia Antonio is one of the very best. Guia is a universally respected business partner and collaborator. Guia is an accomplished leader with a proven track record of delivering superior results that have underpinned the consistent achievement of both qualitative and quantitative corporate objectives and goals.

She is a unifier and consensus builder with a quietly tenacious determination to achieve what is needed to be accomplished. Guia is a great asset and adds value to any business.

Clay Medley

President
Apparel Production Services Global LLC

As a client of The Guia Group for 10 years, the outstanding service and attention to detail that Guia provided to APS Global LLC has been exemplary. The advice that we received was thorough, up to date and delivered with the highest professionalism. Our company was able to utilize into the total expertise of what The Guia Group offers, yet use it on an “a la carte basis”, and have the full benefit of her knowledge, without the full time expense. It has been cost effective, entrepreneurial and allowed us to continue to grow and utilize the multitude of resources, with the assurance that we are in full compliance with all HR needs and requirements. We have also used Guia to assist with mergers and acquisitions of other apparel companies. She was instrumental in the transition process of merging the newly acquired employees into the Company along with the people skills needed to navigate the difficult process of consolidating and blending the staff. Her ability to be proactive and interact with our employees and effectively communicate that with top management was essential to us not having any unexpected HR issues.

Oliver Koechli

Senior Vice President of Operations
Outcast.Net

Challenges we were having prior to working with TheGuiaGroup. Outcast was using a consultant on a short term basis to serve as a liaison between the organization and ADP with who we had contracted for comprehensive HR and Benefits services. I believe we had over purchased services from ADP which we could have more easily and cost effectively handled in house through a consultant.

The decision making process in hiring an HR consultant. Cost is always a concern but more important is the cost to quality decision. We needed to find a way to reduce the costs for ADP services while ensuring those services could be picked up in house. Ultimately, we needed to feel confident that Guia would be able to support an organization of our size in multiple areas of Human Resources; serving as the main point of contact for our employees.

Scope of work. Guia has provided services in multiple areas of Human Resources from employee relations, workers compensation management, healthcare benefits and COBRA administration, recruiting, onboarding, payroll support and RIF planning and execution.

Tangible benefits and results. Guia has provided much needed guidance regarding the HR discipline to an organization with limited experience in this area. Our primary goal of having a competent HR professional serving as a main point of contact for the organization was well served through Guia’s experience. Most directly, Guia help us navigate effectively through a RIF shortly after her arrival and later played an important role in managing various HR considerations during an acquisition in early 2014.

Personal qualities she brings to her work. First and foremost, Guia is extremely personable which allows her to assimilate well in any company. She maintains a pleasant demeanor at all times and treats all employees with empathy.

Zak Danielson

Controller
Outcast.Net

Guia has been involved with all of our HR service needs from open enrollment to everyday communications with our staff. She has been the go to person for all questions in the area of HR and has been an integral part of our team since her first day. Guia is extremely personable which I find to be the cornerstone of a successful HR employee. When your staff feels comfortable going to HR for help or guidance then you know you have achieved the right fit for your organization!

Deb Anthony

Executive Director
Toberman Neighborhood Center

At TNC we lacked a cohesive HR policy. We needed to udpate all of our records to ensure that we were in compliance with all HR laws as well as becoming a more efficient and employee focused company. Guia was excellent at working with folks from all levels of the organization from Directors to line staff. She made the work painless and improved our overall performance. In hiring Guia it was a choice to bring someone with high level skills on a consulting basis knowing we could not afford, nor did we need a full time HR Director. While there were some early concerns regarding the use of a consultant from Board members the numbers and action spoke for themselves. It was Guia’s skill set that made her invaluable and made it possible for me to convince those with worries that we were making a good decision. Guia managed our employee benefit package and ensured that we aligned ourselves with organizations that could support us in the future with or without her as a consultant. Job site education was lacking and she supported a process that moved as our budget allowed sometimes providing education herself and outsourcing (at great prices) when we needed additional training. Most helpful was her coaching of managers with trouble employees ensuring that we had all the proper back up and documentation to avoid legal issues moving forward. She was also very willing to provide full support to our current legal issues. At TNC Guia helped implement a solid employee supervision program that improved our overall service delivery outcomes. This was perhaps most helpful moving forward on a tight budget. Guia is unique in that she has very high level human resource skills but is comfortable starting with a company where they are. She works well with all level of employees and has a very strong work ethic. Her overall personality makes it easy to bring her onto a team and effect positive change.

Shery Fatemian

Human Resources Manager
Yakult U.S.A. Inc

From the beginning, Guia impressed me with her eagerness to learn and understand Yakult culture. Armed with this foundation, she quickly implemented policies and procedures that worked for our organization. Guia has the perfect blend of creativity and technical savvy that is crucial in today’s market, and she can employ these skills in any organization to help them compete, as she did here at Yakult. She maintained the highest level of professionalism while providing attention that always felt personalized. Not only is she an amazing consultant, but she is a mentor and I hope one day that I am as knowledgeable as she is in the HR field. Guia is an invaluable asset to any organization.

Paul Brynen

HR Manager
Autism Speaks

I was the only HR person (as a Manager), and with a 50% turnover rate I felt that I needed help in recruiting. When I hire an outside person or company, I always question whether they have the depth of knowledge needed for the problem, would understand the issues as I defined them, work to resolve the issues according my priorities, be strong enough to disagree and strong enough to take my direction, and if they fit the company culture. Guia came in with FAR more knowledge and experience then I requested or even thought I needed. Thankfully, she proved me wrong about my problem definitions. She was able to identify needs that I had not seen. She was able to work with me to create a process that addressed my priorities and dealt with issues that that could put the company at risk. Valued employee turnover dropped to zero, while employees that were detrimental to the organization decided to leave on their own volition. We went from barely making target or just missing target to averaging 140% of target. Employee morale soared. The environment went from siloing and “backstabbing” to co-operation. The staff worked longer hours and took less sick time. It became a great place to work. She just had ALL the qualities we needed. It is the combination of qualities that make her unique. NO discernible weaknesses. Moreover, she has this ability to change gears. If there is something that she is not sure of, she knows where to get the answer.

Julie Hainer

Owner
Apparel Production Services

Guia has a very warm, approachable, and kind quality about her. This is particularly important in a small company when people work so closely together. She is able to mitigate tensions and get to the truth without offending or taking sides. She can walk the line between helping and supporting employees, but also protecting the interests of the company she works for. She can cross over from insurance paperwork, 401K’s, payroll issues, employee hiring & firing, employee quarreling or anything else that comes across her desk. Guia has been an incredible help in dealing with a variety of human resource issues and I would highly recommend her in this role.

Mark Torres

Senior Vice President
Rubicon Project

I’ve had the good fortune of working with Guia as an HR colleague for 20 + years. Her no nonsense hands on approach to everyday problems is always done with the bottom line and utmost professionalism in mind. Having a proven track record working with diverse work groups at such notable companies as Paramount, Disney and Universal has prepared her to train supervisors to become better managers and. Guia is a first class recruiter, Employee Relations Manager and Employee Relations problem solver.

TESTIMONIALS