Leaders often complain about new employees or feel overwhelmed by constant change and employee feedback. But what if the key to retention and engagement is simply changing how we view our team's lives outside of work?
In this episode of Boss Better Now, Joe Mull sits down with Sandra Davis, Chief Human Resources Officer for North Mississippi Health Services (NMHS). Sandra shares her incredible insights on sustaining high employee engagement and why she reads thousands of employee survey comments to stay connected to the frontline of the largest non-metropolitan rural hospital system in the U.S..
Sandra shares her journey from working in an assisted living facility as a teenager to leading HR at the highest levels. She breaks down why leaders need to banish generational stereotypes, how to keep your team grounded in their purpose, and practical routines for staying connected with the people doing the work.
In this episode, you'll learn:
🔹 Why you should ban the phrase "this younger generation" from your workplace vocabulary.
🔹 How reading up to 6,000 employee survey comments keeps leadership grounded.
🔹 Why work is just a small intersection in an employee's life—and why employers should be grateful they choose to be there.
🔹 Practical habits to stay connected with frontline teams, including 90-day virtual check-ins with new hires.
To subscribe to Joe Mull’s BossBetter Email newsletter, visit https://BossBetterNow.com
For more info on working with Joe Mull, visit https://joemull.com
For more info on Boss Hero School, visit https://bossheroschool.com
To email the podcast, use [email protected]
#leadership #management #toxicworkculture #teambuilding #workplaceculture #conflictmanagement #employeeengagement #motivation
Joe Mull is on a mission to help leaders and business owners create the conditions where commitment takes root—and the entire workplace thrives.
A dynamic and deeply relatable speaker, Joe combines compelling research, magnetic storytelling, and practical strategies to show exactly how to cultivate loyalty, ignite effort, and build people-first workplaces where both performance and morale flourish. His message is clear: when commitment is activated, engagement rises, teams gel, retention improves, and business outcomes soar.
Joe is the founder of Boss Hero School™ and the creator of the acclaimed Employalty™ framework, a roadmap for creating thriving workplaces in a new era of work. He’s the author of three books, including Employalty, named a top business book of the year by Publisher’s Weekly, and his popular podcast, Boss Better Now, ranks in the top 1% of management shows globally.
A former head of learning and development at one of the largest healthcare systems in the U.S., Joe has spent nearly two decades equipping leaders—from Fortune 500 companies like State Farm, Siemens, and Choice Hotels to hospitals, agencies, and small firms—with the tools to lead better, inspire commitment, and build more humane workplace cultures. His insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and more.
In 2025, Joe was inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame (CPAE). This is the speaking profession’s highest honor, a distinction granted to less than 1% of professional speakers worldwide. It’s awarded to speakers who demonstrate exceptional talent, integrity, and influence in the speaking profession
For more information visit joemull.com.
Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
1:20 - Finding Meaning in a First Job at an Assisted Living Facility
3:12 - Building Trust and Connection with the Older Generation
5:18 - The Lasting Impact of Early Career Service Roles
6:16 - From Frontline Care to the Executive HR Suite
7:55 - The Secret to Sustaining Award-Winning Employee Engagement
10:00 - Optimizing an Already Great Culture
13:02 - Bridging the Gap Between Executives and the Frontline
15:54 - Reading Employee Survey Comments to Understand "Hassle Factors"
18:43 - Best vs. Worst Bosses
21:31 - The Devastating Impact of a Leader Without Integrity
24:22 - The Best Career Advice Sandra Ever Received
24:50 - The One Workplace Phrase Leaders Need to Ban Forever
29:30 - Why We Need to Stop Complaining About "This Younger Generation"
30:00 - Remembering Your Purpose When Work Gets Hard
32:11 - The Biweekly Ritual That Reconnects Executives to Their "Why"
35:00 - Unpacking the Virtual 90-Day New Hire Check-In
40:00 - Becoming a Change-Adaptive Leader
44:20 - Embracing Ambiguity and the "Next Normal"
45:06 - Closing Thoughts