Becky Reel, the founder and CEO of Reel Home Care Consulting, shares the story of how she made a major hiring mistake by bringing her nanny into the office during COVID-19.

She overlooked red flags, creating a toxic work environment. She reflects on how she learned from that mistake, along with advice for home care business owners on hiring, culture-building, and managing caregivers.

From improving business practices to creating strong team dynamics, Becky’s insights offer valuable lessons for anyone in the home care industry.

Lesson Takeaways:

1. Always dig deeper when hiring, even for trusted individuals. Check references thoroughly and pay attention to red flags.
2. Foster a culture where people come first, and the results will follow.
3. Don’t just check in with your team—truly check on them and understand how they’re feeling about the work environment.
4. Engaging with both positive and negative reviews can humanize your business and showcase your commitment to improvement.
5. If you want to sell your business in the future, start planning years or even decades in advance.

Timestamps:

[00:00:01] Becky on the heaviness of home care and making it lighter.

[00:01:05] Introduction of Becky Reel and her home care journey.

[00:03:02] Becky’s current obsession: her emotional connection with live music.

[00:06:00] Becky’s big mistake: Hiring her nanny and overlooking red flags.

[00:09:48] Decisions that Becky would do differently if she started over.

[00:12:51] The importance of one-on-ones and creating a positive work culture.

[00:17:00] Underrated industry practice: Responding to reviews.

[00:21:00] David and Becky discuss responding to negative feedback and reviews.

[00:26:17] Win of the week: Becky’s success in getting a long-term client out of their comfort zone.

[00:29:00] Plug for Reel Home Care Consulting and Home Care Hot Take

Quotes

• Becky Reel: "I ignored so many red flags because I trusted her. But hiring someone you know personally isn’t always the right move for your business."
• Becky Reel: "It's important to humanize what we’re doing. Caregivers are people, and they need to feel supported beyond just their schedules."
• David Knack: "At the end of the day, home care is a people business. If you’re not connecting with your team, it’s going to hurt in the long run."

Resources:

1. Connect with Becky Reel on LinkedIn
2. Learn more about Reel Home Care Consulting
3. Ava
4. Ava on LinkedIn
5. Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn
6. Subscribe to Ava on YouTube

In this episode of Home Care Hindsight, host David Knack sits down with Sarah Barker, owner of Senior Care Sales Solutions, to discuss the balance between growing a home care business and managing personal priorities. Sarah shares insights from her journey, including her big mistake of attending too many networking events at the expense of family time and how she's learned to optimize her efforts.

Their conversation touches on overcoming childhood trauma, the importance of strategic time management, and the role of quality over quantity in marketing relationships. Listeners will gain valuable insights into managing home care agencies, improving sales tactics, and leading a balanced professional and personal life.

Lesson Takeaways:

• Evaluate where your time goes and make sure it's propelling your business forward without sacrificing personal relationships.
• Focusing on fewer but deeper relationships with referral sources is key to success.
• Proper training for marketers on CRMs and tools is vital for successful adoption.
• Balance healthcare sources with legal and financial advisors to ensure long-term stability.
• Understand how early experiences can shape your professional approach, and work to overcome them.

Timestamps:

[00:00:00] Introduction to Sarah Barker and time management in home care.

[00:01:15] Sarah’s mission to redefine how senior care professionals approach relationships.

[00:05:04] The impact of childhood trauma on professional behavior and sales efforts.

[00:12:44] Sarah’s biggest mistake: overcommitting to networking events.

[00:17:48] The realization of time’s fleeting nature and prioritizing what matters.

[00:23:23] Overrated industry tools: CRMs and how to implement them properly.

[00:27:00] What to look for in marketers: work ethic, curiosity, and communication competency.

[00:31:00] Focusing on fewer, deeper referral relationships for long-term success.

[00:35:00] Diversifying your referral portfolio: why you need both healthcare and legal/financial sources.

[00:40:00] Win of the week: launching a virtual academy to make education more accessible.

Quotes

• Sarah Barker: "You cannot get time back. The only thing you can do is decide how you're going to use your time."
• Sarah Barker: "Not everybody has to be your cup of tea. The quicker you learn that, the less demoralized you'll be in your efforts."
• David Knack: "We don’t need to work with people who don’t respect us—it’s easy to not work with assholes."
• Sarah Barker: "Your referral portfolio should have both healthcare and financial advisors. It’s about building depth in relationships, not just volume."

Resources:

• Connect with Sarah Barker on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Senior Care Sales Solutions
• Connect Our Elders
• Ava
• Ava on LinkedIn
• Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to Ava on YouTube

In this episode of Home Care Hindsight, host David Knack sits down with Matt Ericksen, Senior Director of Sales and Operations at Griswold Home Care, to discuss his extensive experience and unique insights in the home care industry. Matt talks about overcoming personal challenges like dyslexia and ADHD to rise through the ranks and shares how his upbringing shaped his relentless drive to succeed.

The conversation covers critical topics such as the importance of P&L management, strategies for reducing labor costs, and actionable steps to improve business metrics. Matt also highlights the benefits of proactive management and key performance indicators that agency owners should focus on. This episode is packed with valuable advice for home care professionals looking to elevate their operations and achieve sustained growth.

Lesson Takeaways:

• Own Your P&L: See it as a story, not just numbers, and learn to manage labor and overhead for profitability.
• Proactive vs. Reactive: Shift your mindset from reacting to problems to anticipating and preventing them.
• Focus on First Billable Shift: The most crucial metric for staffing success is getting new hires to their first billable shift quickly.
• Overtime Costs: Controlling overtime and reducing unnecessary labor costs can have a massive impact on profitability.

Timestamps:

[00:00:00] Introduction to Matt Ericksen, his journey, and early life challenges with dyslexia and ADHD
[00:06:00] Building the ultimate playroom for his kids and the importance of creative outlets
[00:09:00] Matt's biggest mistake: not owning his P&L early in his career
[00:13:00] The importance of viewing a P&L as a story and focusing on labor costs
[00:17:00] Pricing services based on internal labor costs and avoiding margin compression
[00:23:00] Key metric: Hours per employee and retention strategies
[00:31:00] Matt’s win of the week: Contributing to the Home Care Pulse 15th Anniversary Benchmark Report
[00:35:00] Matt’s advice for agency owners: Focusing on first billable shift and key staff hiring practices

Quotes

• Matt Ericksen: "Your P&L is your truth teller at the end of the day. It’s not just about numbers—it tells the story of your business."
• Matt Ericksen: "Focus on the things that drive real change—managing labor costs and being proactive, not reactive."
• Matt Ericksen: "Make sure your new hires are working within 48 hours of hire, or you risk losing them to turnover."
• David Knack: "When you shift from reacting to problems to anticipating them, that's when real growth happens."

Resources:

• Connect with Matt Ericksen on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Griswold Home Care
• Home Care Pulse 15th Anniversary Benchmark Study
• Ava
• Ava on LinkedIn
• Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn
• Subscribe to Ava on YouTube