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  • Interview with Rusty Steele - 2025 KYSHRM Conference

    Interview with Rusty Steele - 2025 KYSHRM Conference
    2025/10/27

    The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth.

    At the 2025 KYSHRM Conference, Rusty Steele, HR Director for Oxmoor Auto Group, joins Jason Heflin of CrowdSouth to discuss how effective communication and employee engagement drive long-term success in a fast-paced industry. Rusty explains how Oxmoor focuses on creating a positive culture across multiple dealerships, by focusing on transparency, teamwork, and genuine care for employees. He shares how leadership's commitment to listening and adapting has helped them attract and retain top talent in a competitive market. Jason and Rusty discuss how consistency, recognition, and accountability shape Oxmoor's workplace values. This is an example of how a large organization can stay people-focused, while continuing to grow.

    As the conversation concludes, Brian provides a question for the next guest at the conference: "Why do you wake up in the morning? Why are you doing this?". He explains that while everyone works for money, life is "too short to do something that you hate". Brian comments that if work is not someone's passion, they should find their passion, because it would be much better to get paid for doing something you love.

    To learn more, visit:

    · Website: www.oxmoorautogroup.com

    Rusty Steele, thanks for stopping by to speak with us!

    That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you.

    Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

    We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

    · Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

    · Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

    · Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

    We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!
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    7 分
  • Interview with Brian Ingle - 2025 KYSHRM

    Interview with Brian Ingle - 2025 KYSHRM
    2025/10/20
    The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth. In this segment, Jason interviews Brian Ingle. He's the Executive Director of Planning and Management for the State Auditor's Office. Brian adds that his passion lies in leadership, training new leaders, and helping supervisors transition from being button pushers to being true leaders of people. Brian discusses how the transition from a specialized role to a supervisory position is a big shift. To help new supervisors succeed and prevent them from failing during this transition, he created an acronym designed for the first 90 days in the role: RELAX. The RELAX Acronym for New Supervisors: 1. R (Role): New supervisors must understand that their role is going to change. It is no longer about pushing buttons; instead, leaders must add value to people and help them to push the buttons better. 2. E (Engagement): This component emphasizes relationship building, as leadership is relationship. Engagement means getting to know employees on an individual level, including personal details such as the names of their spouse, how many children they have, and their important days. Brian notes that if leaders invest in their people, the people will invest in them. 3. L (Link up): In the first 90 days, leaders need to conduct many meetings, not because people love meetings, but to foster the relationship piece. During these meetings, expectations must be clearly articulated: the leader's expectations of themselves, their expectations of the employee, and the employee's expectations of the leader and of themselves. Brian points out that people often have expectations—even if they claim not to—which surface when they go home and say, "it's not what I expected". Therefore, the link up process requires putting those expectations into words. 4. A (A): Ingle was unable to recall the "A" component during the recording, though the host suggested they might discuss it if Brian were to return as a full episode guest. 5. X (X factor): The "X factor" is the unique quality the individual brings to the role, the reason they were hired. Brian stresses that new leaders should avoid trying to fill the shoes of their predecessor or trying to be like everyone else. He encourages tapping into this unique factor because the organization may have hired the person specifically because they are different. He quotes Andy Stanley: "Your marginally improved weaknesses will never be as great as your fully exploited strengths." Leaders should play to their strengths and not be afraid to be unique, as they might be in that position precisely to say that thing, to think that thought, to have that idea. Jason agreed that the X factor is essential because everybody brings something different to the table and can improve things in their own way. Question for the Next Guest: As the conversation concludes, Brian provides a question for the next guest at the conference: "Why do you wake up in the morning? Why are you doing this?". He explains that while everyone works for money, life is "too short to do something that you hate". Brian suggests that if work is not someone's passion, they should find their passion, noting that it would be much better to get paid for doing what you love. To learn more, visit: · Website: www.auditor.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx Brian Ingle, thanks for stopping by to speak with us! That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you. Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals? We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions: · Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com · Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com · Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!
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    6 分
  • Interview with Kevin Finley - 2025 KYSHRM

    Interview with Kevin Finley - 2025 KYSHRM
    2025/10/13

    The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth.

    In this segment, Jamie and Jason interview Kevin Finley. He's an HR Generalist, with Denham-Blythe Company, a design-build general contractor specializing in industrial and heavy commercial construction. Kevin talks about how Denham-Blythe is adapting to future leadership challenges by implementing a successful beta test for a flexible work model for their office staff. This model was later implemented throughout the company. He also explains the company's leadership model, where ownership is transferred internally, ensuring minimal culture shift.

    To learn more, visit:

    · Denham-Blythe Company: www.denhamblythe.com

    Kevin Finley, thanks for stopping by to speak with us!

    That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you.

    Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

    We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

    · Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

    · Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

    · Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

    We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!
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    9 分
  • Interview with Nelson Caudill - 2025 KYSHRM

    Interview with Nelson Caudill - 2025 KYSHRM
    2025/10/06

    The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth.

    In this segment, Molley interviews Nelson Caudill. He's an Employee Benefits Advisor, with USI Insurance Services. Nelson joins the podcast to talk about how USI Insurance Services partners with companies to simplify complex insurance challenges. He describes how their hands-on, analytical process helps clients make smarter decisions about managing risk and employee benefits. Nelson shares examples of how USI's insights have made a tangible difference for businesses of all sizes. It's an easy-to-follow conversation that gives leaders a real sense of what it's like to work with USI.

    To learn more, visit:

    · USI Insurance Services: www.usi.com

    Nelson Caudill, thanks for stopping by to speak with us!

    That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you.

    Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

    We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

    · Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

    · Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

    · Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

    We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!
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    11 分
  • Interview with Brad Shuck, PhD – 2025 KYSHRM

    Interview with Brad Shuck, PhD – 2025 KYSHRM
    2025/09/22

    The Workforce Therapy Files team attended the 2025 Kentucky SHRM Conference, in Louisville. We took the opportunity to interview over 20 professionals who stopped by our booth.

    In this segment, we interview keynote speaker, Dr. Brad Shuck. He gave a talk titled, Built by Us: How HR Is Leading the Future of Work. From the website: "The future of work isn't something we're waiting on – it's something we're building Today. The choices we make. How we show up. How we connect. How we see others. In real time. Human Resources isn't reacting to change anymore. We're leading it."

    You may remember Brad from File 16, during which he discussed The 5 Currencies of Work .

    To learn more, visit:

    Website: www.orgvitals.com

    Dr. Brad Shuck, thanks for stopping by to speak with us!

    That's where we'll leave the conversation for today. Before we close the file, we invite you to reach out to us with questions, suggestions or other comments. We'd love to hear from you.

    Need Help Supporting Your Company's Recruiting and Staffing Goals?

    We're here to help. You can contact us via our individual websites, depending on your specific needs or questions:

    · Jamie Swaim, SPHR – www.ParcelKnows.com

    · Molley Ricketts – www.IncipioWorks.com

    · Jason Heflin – www.CrowdSouth.com

    We hope you found this file insightful and helpful. Thank you for listening!
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    15 分
  • How Curious Is Your Organization? - An Interview with Deb Clary

    How Curious Is Your Organization? - An Interview with Deb Clary
    2025/07/16
    File 30: In today's file, the team interviews Dr. Debra Clary her pursuit of the power of curiosity. Deb has had a fascinating career path. She's worked in executive roles at Frito-Lay, Coca-Cola, Papa John's, Brown-Forman and Humana. Now, she's helping organizations to better understand how curiosity impacts its performance, all because of an intriguing question. Meet Deb Clary Deb was the first person in her family to graduate from college. She completed her bachelor's degree at Michigan State University and earned her doctorate in leadership and organizational development, from George Washington University. Her starting role at Frito-Lay was different from what she'd imagined it'd be, but it yielded extremely valuable insights for her career. She spent roughly a decade there, progressing through the ranks. She joined Coca-Cola in various sales, marketing and global roles. Her global client was Papa John's. They eventually invited her to join their organization, as the VP of Marketing and that brought her to Louisville. Deb shares she was actually fired from Papa John's, a year into the role. She admits having come from traditional, corporate environments, the Papa John's culture was much less-structured and entrepreneurial. Deb assumed a VP of Strategy role in Brown-Forman's wine division, where she stayed for the next 3 years. Learning that there are significant differences in culture and how those differences manifest, especially in terms of human behavior, was a key milestone. It provided insights into how organizations could create leaders that could have greater impact and contribution, in a way that was warm and welcoming. As Deb was completing her dissertation for her doctorate, she encountered someone from Humana. It lead to a role in a leadership institute Humana was developing. She eventually took on the challenge of leading the institute, which cultivated Humana's top 1,000 leaders. Deb remained with Human for 18 years. Deb recounts she was sitting next to her CEO, who asked her, "Do you think curiosity can be learned, or is it innate?" It was an intriguing question. After doing a deep dive into the research around that topic, she mentioned to the CEO that curiosity could indeed be learned. This question ignited a spark in Debra. Surprisingly, there wasn't a lot of data as it related to the question in a corporate environment. So, she commissioned a team of researchers to do primary research on the topic. The data proved it has immense power to transform. Debra recognized a calling. She subsequently left Humana and is pushing this new revelation out into the world. A Spark Leads to a Spotlight A group of accountability partners surprised Deb by arranging an opportunity for all of them to meet in Louisville. It turns out the group had taken a one-woman show concept and actually pitched it to a producer. The producer agreed to take her on, in New York. It was time for Deb to start writing. She had one year to right the play, but absolutely no experience in having done it before. About six months after the start of her writing, someone connected her with a New York playwright who would be willing to provide feedback. In his words, "This sucks." Deb had written a keynote, not a play suitable for New York. With this realization, Deb found someone to adapt it to stage (a phrase she'd never heard before). She, later, found a director, Jessica De La Rosa. She agreed to work on the first act, to see if the two of them could work together. They turned out to be a great match. Deb's play is called, "A Curious Woman." It's about being a woman in corporate America, during the 80s and 90s. It's written as a comedy. Interestingly, as a young girl, Deb's dream was to be a standup comic. She did standup comedy on the weekends, in Detroit, during the Frito-Lay days. The Curiosity Assessment This is a tool Deb developed to help companies benefit from the power of curiosity. The research discussed earlier in the conversation highlighted a few important findings: Curiosity can be learned.Curiosity is contagious.Curiosity can be measured. They developed a validated assessment to measure curiosity, which lasts 6-8 minutes. It focuses on four important factors related to one's curiosity curve, including exploration, openness to new ideas, focused engagement, and inspirational creativity. The research data indicates that when you have a culture of curiosity, which is most-often driven by the leader, three significant things will occur: You drive retention.It promotes job satisfaction.It fosters engagement. Deb will assess each member of the organization. It will yield an organizational score for each of the four factors, a total score, a team score, and an individual score. It helps individuals to see how they fit into their team and the organization, at large. The findings can highlight drivers of friction, ...
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    28 分
  • Emily Sayers on KCTCS Programs for Employers

    Emily Sayers on KCTCS Programs for Employers
    2025/07/02
    File 29: In today's file, the team discusses talent pipelines, workforce development and the real drivers behind economic growth in Kentucky. We welcome Emily Sayers, Kentucky's Executive Director of Workforce Solutions at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. Meet Emily Sayers Emily serves as the Executive Director in the Cabinet for Workforce and Economic Development, at KCTCS. She may have the longest title for anyone we've interviewed on the podcast. There are 16 workforce solutions divisions across Kentucky. This aligns with the 16 colleges within KCTCS. The focus is on business engagement, as well as the upskilling and reskilling of Kentucky's workforce. Emily originally worked at the Gateway Community and Technical College in northern Kentucky. She viewed her role there as being a community resource for employers, beyond workforce. She often connected employers with any number of others who could play a part in helping them to address specific issues they were facing. Emily and here team could design and deliver customized training to assist employers. It could range from typical skills, such as MIG welding, to more adapted solutions including the welding, but in combination with a range of other company-specific needs, including managerial training. The training could be delivered onsite or at a campus and during times that worked best for the employer, including 3rd shift time slots. It would be a completely customized experienced. The goal for KCTCS is to move at the speed of business. They want to be the incubator for new programming, technologies and more. Timeline for New Orientation Programs and Other Programs Jamie asks Emily about the timeline involved in delivering programs for businesses. Orientation upskilling is a common type of program KCTCS develops for employers, including manufacturing sites, ranging from highly technical processes to basic information regarding two-step verification. If the curriculum already exists, KCTCS could deliver the new program in a week, assuming a subject matter expert can be identified and engaged. This comes back to the focus on moving at the speed of business. Other types of programs that are purely conceptual, at the outset, would require more time. It usually comes down to how prepared the employer is and what their timeline requirements are. Emily mentions there's no real standard. This manifests in KCTCS working in the gray, as the development of a new program evolves. Customized Programs for the Community Jason comments how KCTCS can customize programs based on needs of a community. For instance, training heavy equipment operators. Once a successful program is developed, it may be possible for KCTCS to leverage parts or all of the training for other situations/locations. Are KCTCS Resources Available to Companies outside of Kentucky? Jason asks Emily if employers in other states can leverage the capabilities of KCTCS? While other states may offer similar services, actually, KCTCS does a lot of work in Tennessee, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia and other border states. Those non-Kentucky states may not have access to state incentives, but there are still opportunities for agile training and program development. KCTCS may be able to partner with other non-profits to assist in opportunities with those employers. How Does KCTCS Approach the Sustainability of the Programs It Develops? It depends on the situation. Some programs may move to the academic-side of Kentucky Community and Technical College System. They would be supported through that area. However, on the workforce development-side of the System, if there is an ongoing need by the employer, KCTCS can arrange to maintain that program. If the needs have moved beyond the initial program, the original program may sunset as resources are focused on developing more up-to-date programs. Jason notes how the community college system can be much more flexible and adaptive, when compared to traditional 4-year universities. Partnerships Across Kentucky Emily describes some of the partnerships they maintain across the state. One is the with the Strategic Workforce and Talent Team (SWATT). It's comprised of many different entities. This include (but are not limited to) KCTCS, Department for Education and Labor, Cabinet for Economic Development, the Kentucky Chamber, and others. The goal of the partnership is ease of use for the employer. It brings all of Kentucky's incentives and resources for employers in a clear format. It helps to streamline the conversation between employers and the available providers, while reducing confusion and redundancy. SWATT is still in its early days. There's an identified effort to educate employers on how to access these program resources. How Do Employers Pay for KCTCS Services? Emily highlights KCTCS-TRAINS funding. This is an allocation of funds specifically for the 16 colleges in ...
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    29 分
  • STAT Training for Active Aggressor or Active Shooter Situations

    STAT Training for Active Aggressor or Active Shooter Situations
    2025/06/18
    File 28: In today's file, the team addresses a serious topic. Active aggressor or active shooter situations are becoming more common that we'd like to admit. There are steps you can take to prepare yourself and your organization for this type emergency. We welcome the Eric Culver and Dale Massey, founders of STAT, a company focused on providing active aggressor training. They'll share advice and insights on preparing for this dangerous situation. Editor's Note: This file may not be suitable for all audiences, given the subject matter that will be discussed. Meet Eric and Dale Eric started with the Jefferson County Police in 2001. His father is a retired police officer. After 7 years, he joined the FBI. Eric later returned to the police department, as a member of the SWAT team. The mission of the SWAT team is to save lives. He remained part of SWAT for 16 years and eventually retired after serving 21 years with the police force. Dale joined the police department in 2000. Dale eventually joined SWAT as the Assistant Commander. He eventually retired from the SWAT, as the Team Commander in 2021. He credits Eric's effort in getting the Louisville's SWAT team established as one of about 50 full-time teams in the US. Eric came up with a concept to train people, once he and Dale retired. That was the genesis of their company, STAT, based out of Louisville, Kentucky. What Inspired Eric and Dale to Create a Program for Active Aggressor Training? Eric seriously enjoyed being part of SWAT, a small-unit team that worked to hone the skill sets of individual members to function as an effective team. When bad things happened, he wanted to be the one who got the call. Eric recalls joining the police department 1 week before 9/11. SWAT spent most of its time working around active-shooter situations. Over time, the term evolved into active aggressor or armed assailant. They developed a response to the city, modeled off of what they learned from a program called, Rescue Task Force. It's a collaboration between police, fire and EMS developed to help them more effectively respond to scenes. There have been notable situations in our country's past, during which this type of integration and execution were not thoroughly planned and the results were tragic. Think back to Columbine, Standard Gravure, and others. Dale and Eric were called to the 2018 J-Town Kroger, active-shooter incident. Eric was one of the first officers to enter the building. Eric comments that while he and Dale have 20+ years of training for these types of situations, the regular individual who may be caught in a situation does not. They decided to build a program to provide these services to individuals and organizations. Their approach is to empower and educate people in a positive way. Why Do People Tend to Avoid the Topic? Dale explains that people often don't want to think about what could happen. "That'll never happen to me" is an approach people want to believe. However, just in Louisville, we've experienced the Standard Gravure, J-Town Kroger and the Old National Bank shootings. These events are actually under-reported. It takes effort to prepare, plan and train for these potential situations. Most people simple prefer to take the easy approach, which is to ignore the possibility. STAT focuses on empowering people; not scaring them. In the event something does happen, you'll have options, because you've taken steps to prepare yourself and your organization. It's Similar to an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) Many people take time to prepare for a fire or tornado. Preparing for an active aggressor situation is a similar methodology. STAT Offers Services to Businesses STAT provides a range of services to businesses and organizations. A comprehensive, threat assessment is the first step. STAT will do an onsite assessment of your business environment, security procedures, camera surveillance, etc. It will be simple, but impactful and most importantly, actionable. STAT works closely with Homeland Security. They also do a lot of work with non-profit organizations. Many are able to get grant money to offset some or all of the cost. In addition to site assessments, they offer classroom training, active aggressor training, de-escalation training, medical-based training, live scenarios, custom-content for specific needs, and much more. Jaime has experienced training sessions provided by STAT. There were are few ah-ha moments. One fact she realized is that your typical office first-aid kit is not prepared for this type of emergency. Jamie has been first-aid certified and has completed OSHA-30 training, in addition to other workplace safety training sessions. None of them prepared her for how to pack a wound or apply a tourniquet. STAT taught her that valuable skill. Jamie also appreciates the tips and advice STAT offered regarding the supplies and ...
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    51 分