Host Tal Clark interviews Laura McLand, VP of HR at Sun Holdings, a franchise operator with 1,250+ locations across 32 states, 13 brands, and 30,000+ employees. Laura describes moving into HR through payroll, then joining Sun Holdings to unify previously fragmented HR, payroll, and benefits teams and improve speed and consistency of employee support. She explains how payroll is organized by brand type with shared resources for similar brands. Tal and Laura discuss Sun Holdings’ use of Instant Financial since 2021 for digital tips and earned wage access, and emphasize immediacy and mobile, 24/7 access as key to employee financial wellness. This episode is a great conversation around how one of the country’s largest restaurant groups prioritizes financial access.

00:00 Introducing Today’s Guest, Laura McLand

01:38 Laura’s Career Path: From First Payroll Role to HR Leadership

03:35 Joining Sun Holdings: Fixing a Fragmented HR/Payroll/Benefits Org

05:02 Managing 13 Brands at Scale

06:40 What Makes Sun Holdings Special

07:59 Supporting 30,000 Employees

10:00 Modern Pay in Action: Digital Tips + Earned Wage Access

12:25 Meeting Employees on with 24/7 Tools

14:49 What’s Next and Wrap-Up

Instant Financial: instant.co

Sun Holdings: sunholdings.net

Connect with Tal Clark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-clark-a60776b/

Connect with Laura McLand: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-mcland/