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IDD Leader
For IDD Providers: Tired of the revolving door of staff? Join host Nate Beers as he and other industry leaders share loads of actionable advice on how you can retain and grow your DSP workforce. Just because there's a nationwide DSP workforce crisis doesn't mean that your organization has to churn through staff. Listen to innovative solutions to increase your staff retention and give your organization a competitive advantage so that at the end of the day you provide the best quality care for those you serve.
More effective supervisors. Stronger workforce. Lower turnover.
Episodes
75 episodes
Ep. 77 - You Hired 100 DSPs… Where Did They Go? (w/ DSP Magnet)
You hired 100 DSPs… so why are you still short-staffed?In this episode, Nate sits down with Scott De Fasselle and Craig De Fasselle from DSP Magnet to unpack one of the most frustrating realities in IDD services:👉 You’re hiring…...
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34:45
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Ep. 76 - Why Staff Retention Feels Impossible (and What Great Leaders Do Differently)
Staff retention can feel incredibly frustrating.You try retention bonuses. Recognition programs. Hiring harder. Posting more jobs. Improving onboarding. And yet… the vacancies keep coming.For many leaders in human services, impr...
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31:34
Ep. 75 - Why Team Parties Won’t Fix Your Retention Problem w/ Holli Beth Clauser
If your team is struggling with retention, the answer probably isn’t another pizza party.In Part 2 of this conversation, Nate sits down again with workforce strategist Holli Beth Clauser, founder of ABA C.A.R.E.S. Staffing and host of <...
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33:42
Ep. 74 - Stop Hiring Fast. Start Hiring Right. w/ Holli Beth Clauser
When you're short-staffed, under pressure, and drowning in overtime… speed feels like the only thing that matters.But what if hiring fast is actually making your turnover worse?In this episode, Nate sits down with Holli Beth Cla...
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33:43
Ep. 73 - How to Measure Staff Wellbeing (Before They Quit) w/ Paige Raetz
In this episode, Paige Raetz from Proof Positive explains why turnover is a lagging indicator — and what leaders should measure before staff ever think about leaving.You’ll learn how organizations are tracking wellbeing, spotting early ...
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31:31
Ep. 72 - How Wellbeing Reduces Turnover w/ Paige Raetz
Turnover is often blamed on wages — but what if that’s not the first lever leaders should pull?In Part 1 of this conversation, Paige Raetz from Proof Positive explains why staff wellbeing isn’t just a morale issue — it directly impacts ...
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35:38
Ep. 71 - Disability Provider Advocacy Shouldn’t Be This Easy w/ Libby Vinson
Advocacy often feels intimidating for provider leaders — time-consuming, political, or like something only professional lobbyists can do.In this episode, Nate continues his conversation with Libby Vinson, CEO of the New Jersey Associati...
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32:01
Ep. 70 - DSP Workforce Stability Starts With Leadership, Not Fixes w/ Libby Vinson
Workforce instability in disability services isn’t a mystery — but it is often misunderstood.In this episode, Nate sits down with Libby Vinson, CEO of the New Jersey Association of Community Providers (NJACP), to ...
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40:00
Ep. 69 - What Culture Really Feels Like to Your DSPs w/ John Dickerson
What does your culture actually feel like to the people doing the work?In this follow-up conversation with John Dickerson of Quillo, we dig into the uncomfortable truth most lead...
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40:07
Ep. 68 - Rebuilding Culture Beyond Compliance w/ John Dickerson
Most IDD leaders don’t intend for their culture to drift into compliance mode… but it happens. High turnover, stretched-thin supervisors, endless documentation, and increasing regulation all push agencies toward control instead ...
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48:04
Ep. 67 - Only 11% Turnover: How Melmark Onboards Staff
How does Melmark achieve only 11% annual turnover in a field where many providers face 40–60%?In this episode, host Nate Beers continues his conversation with Helena Maguire, digging into Melmark’s extended, behaviorally grounded onboar...
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44:18
Ep. 66 - How Melmark Builds Supervisors Who Retain Staff
Turnover doesn’t start with direct support professionals—it starts with supervision.In this episode, host Nate Beers sits down with Helena McGuire from Melmark to unpack why supervisor...
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35:14
Ep. 65 - Why Some Providers Finally Win the Turnover Battle
Turnover in human services can feel endless—but it doesn’t have to be.In this episode, Nate Beers shares what he learned in 2025 from conversations with providers across the country who are actually winning the turnover battle. Th...
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21:30
Ep. 64 - The Gift – An Unexpected Leadership Surprise for IDD Leaders
In this short holiday episode, host Nate Beers shares an unexpected moment at home that turned into a leadership wake-up call — the kind that sneaks up on you, disarms you, and ultimately makes you better.What begins as a normal, chaoti...
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19:48
Ep. 63 - The Long Game Behind Sustainable Services w/ RCPA
What does it really take to build services that last—not just through the next budget cycle, but for the next decade?In this conversation, host Nate Beers sits down with Tim Sohosky from RCPA to talk about the long game in disability se...
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39:46
Ep. 62 - The Connection Every IDD Leader Needs w/ RCPA
In today’s episode, podcast host, Nate Beers, sits down with Tim Sohosky, IDD Director at RCPA (Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association), to uncover one of the most overlooked advantages available to leaders in the IDD ...
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37:39
Ep. 61 - The 7 quiet danger signs your supervisors are burning out their teams
Supervisors rarely intend to burn out their teams—but the early warning signs are easy to miss until turnover, drama, and exhaustion take over. In today’s episode, Nate breaks down The 7 Quiet Danger Signs Your Supervisors Are Burning Ou...
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29:25
Ep. 60 - Why DSP Turnover Isn’t “The Cost of Doing Business” w/ NADSP
If you’ve ever felt trapped in the cycle of high vacancy and high turnover, this episode will feel like oxygen.In Part 2 of my interview with Joe Macbeth and Dan Hermreck of NADSP, we dig into the data, the myths, and the practical step...
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33:41
Ep. 59 - From the Oval Office to the Pope: How NADSP Is Transforming DSP Work
“Born” in the Oval Office? Yes—NADSP’s origin story is wilder than you think.In this episode, Joe Macbeth and Dan Hermrick from the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals join Nate to unpack the surprising beginnings of NADSP, t...
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33:43
Ep. 58 - The New Rules Shaping DSP Pay and Policy w/ NASDDDS and HSRI
Wages up. Turnover down. Still not enough.In Part 1, we looked at the progress: DSP wages are rising, and turnover is finally trending down. But in this episode, we explore what’s driving the next wave of change—and the new rules that c...
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36:31
Ep. 57 - The State of the DSP Workforce (And Why It Matters) w/ NASDDDS and HSRI
Are DSP wages finally improving—or are we still far from solving the workforce crisis? In this episode, Laura Vegas (NASDDDS) and Dorothy Hiersteiner (HSRI) unpack what the National Core Indicators State ...
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36:53
Ep. 56 - What Really Keeps Staff in Disability Services w/ CHI Friendship
What really keeps people in disability services? In this episode, the leadership team from CHI Friendship shares how they’ve reimagined staff retention—not through higher pay or perks, but through purpose, inclusion, and genu...
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31:28
Ep. 55 - One Simple Question Doubled Staff Retention w/ CHI Friendship
What if one simple question could change your entire organization? In this episode, leaders from CHI Friendship in North Dakota share how they saw dramatic improvements in staff retention—simply by asking one que...
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39:08
Ep. 54 - How “Professional Neighbors” Are Transforming IDD Care w/ Dr. Mike Strouse
What if your agency could deliver care as a neighborhood instead of one home at a time? In this episode, Dr. Mike Strouse of GoodLife Innovations shares how “Professional Neighbors” and shared living models<...
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23:12
Ep. 53 - The Retention Strategy No One Talks About w/ Dr. Michael Strouse
Most providers think high turnover and staff vacancies are just part of the job. But what if there’s a proven way to predictably build a stable workforce?In this episode, Dr. Mike Strouse (CEO of GoodLife Innovations and founder of Good...
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49:55