👉 Job Seeking in 2025, Part 2: Inside the Hiring Room: What Recruiters & Leaders Want You to Know

In today’s episode of The HumanUp Imperative, host Rex Wallace flips the lens to the people connecting candidates to opportunities. He’s joined by Jamie Masters (Senior Director of Recruiting, Executive Staffing Solutions), Timshel Tarbet (former Chief Healthcare Experience & Equity Officer), and Jeff Grant (President & Founder, Schedule F Healthcare Strategies) to share what truly stands out and what quietly sinks you in this market.
These leaders bring deep experience across healthcare quality, equity, HR/recruiting, and Medicare/Medicaid programs, and they get candid about how hiring really works in 2025.

We cover:
The new normal in hiring: return-to-office/hybrid expectations, tighter comp ranges, and longer interview cycles.
What makes candidates pop: referrals, results-driven resumes, org-specific prep, strong follow-through, and a clean, professional virtual presence.
Bias-aware applications: why to skip headshots, be smart about dates, and highlight outcomes over duties.
Networking that actually moves the needle: relationship-first habits on and off LinkedIn, and how to ask for help without feeling awkward.
How to support job seekers: don’t ghost, check in on the human behind the resume, offer introductions, and create psychologically safe spaces.
Mindset for the long haul: why rejection ≈ redirection, how making progress builds hope, and why kindness matters on both sides of the screen.

📌 Chapters:
0:00 – Introduction
1:20 – Meet the panel: Jamie, Timshel, and Jeff
6:00 – The 2025 job market: hybrid, comp ranges, and slower hiring cycles
12:00 – What candidates often get wrong (and how to stand out)
18:30 – Networking, referrals, and the courage to ask for help
25:00 – Resumes: outcomes vs. job descriptions
32:00 – Virtual presence, interviews, and avoiding hidden bias
39:30 – How to support job seekers: what helps vs. what hurts
46:00 – Mindset shifts: rejection, resilience, and hope
50:00 – Rapid-fire: book recommendations & final advice
Whether you’re searching, supporting someone who is, or hiring in healthcare, this conversation delivers practical tactics and honest truths to navigate a tough market with clarity and heart.

 Job Seeking in 2025: Real Stories, Real Struggles, and How to Help

In today’s episode of The HumanUp Imperative*, host **Rex Wallace* sits down with *Deb Dorsch* and *Burn Orton* to explore what it’s really like to job hunt in today’s tough employment market.

Both guests bring decades of experience in **healthcare quality, compliance, learning and development, and Medicare/Medicaid programs**—and both are navigating career transitions after major organizational downsizing.

We cover:

• The reality of today’s **job search process**: applications, ghosting, and burnout.
• How to cope with rejection, uncertainty, and financial stress.
• The role of *networking, mentorship, and psychologically safe spaces* in finding new roles.
• How friends, colleagues, and employers can actually help during this season.
• The emotional rollercoaster of unemployment—and why resilience and hope matter.
  
  

Whether you’re currently seeking employment, supporting someone who is, or working in HR/recruiting, this conversation offers *practical insights and emotional truths* about navigating career disruption in 2025.

Welcome to Episode 4 of The HumanUp Imperative, a podcast about re-centering human connection in a healthcare industry that too often sidelines it.
In this episode, host Rex Wallace speaks with Amber Maraccini, healthcare practice lead at Medallia and a passionate advocate for making healthcare more human. Drawing from professional expertise and personal experience, Amber shares how trust is the “connective tissue” of authentic human connection in healthcare, and why it is essential for both patients and organizations.
In this episode, we explore:
• What trust really means in healthcare and why it is foundational to safety, belonging, and self-actualization
• How trust operates on a spectrum and can be built or eroded through everyday interactions
• The measurable link between trust, loyalty, and better health outcomes
• The hidden ways trust is lost, including delays, unanswered questions, and missed opportunities for connection
• How to identify “silent signals” of eroding trust through unstructured data, contact center insights, and patient interactions
• The role of AI in improving efficiency and freeing humans to focus on high-impact connection points
• The connection between employee experience and customer experience, and why culture and empowerment drive trust at every level
• Practical steps health plans can take today to build trust, including leadership listening, closing feedback loops, and empowering frontline staff
Whether you are a healthcare leader, a provider, or someone interested in strengthening relationships in a high-stakes environment, this episode offers clear insights on how trust drives better engagement, stronger outcomes, and more human care.

Welcome to Episode 3 of The HumanUp Imperative, a podcast about re-centering human connection in a healthcare industry that too often sidelines it.

In this episode, host Rex Wallace sits down with Sean Lancaster, a triathlete, Ironman competitor, and founder of Lancaster Advanced Nutrition. After spending decades in healthcare facility management, Sean made a dramatic midlife pivot, leaving a successful career to align his professional life with his personal passion for endurance training, fitness, and wellness.

🎧 In this episode, we explore:
Why physical fitness is often the entry point to mental, emotional, and even spiritual transformation
How strength training builds confidence while endurance training brings clarity and emotional resilience
The myth of work-life separation and why holistic wellness matters for high performance
How to integrate fitness and movement into busy professional lives (yes, even during back-to-back Zooms)
The underestimated link between fitness and leadership presence, energy, and connection with others
What it really takes to “just get started” when you're feeling stuck
Why nearly every Fortune 500 CEO prioritizes daily workouts and what that tells us about leading well

💡 Whether you're an executive navigating burnout, a healthcare leader looking to re-energize your team, or someone trying to reconnect with yourself, this episode is a powerful reminder that movement is medicine.

Welcome to Episode 2 of The HumanUp Imperative, a podcast about re-centering human connection in a healthcare industry that too often sidelines it.

In this episode, host Rex Wallace sits down with Todd Deatherage, co-founder of the Telos Group, a nonprofit organization that builds communities of peacemakers and helps people navigate seemingly intractable conflict, across the globe and in their own communities.

Todd's work has taken him from Capitol Hill to conflict zones in the Middle East, South Africa, and the American South. But at the heart of it all is one simple belief: Reconciliation is possible and necessary.

🎧 In this episode, we explore:

• Why conflict isn’t inherently bad and how to engage it constructively
• What it means to listen to understand (not just to respond)
• How to hold multiple truths in tension and seek a shared path forward
• What healthcare can learn from peacemaking and global conflict resolution
• How to center the voices of the marginalized while advocating with integrity
• The six core principles and six daily practices of effective peacemaking
• Why silence, self-reflection, and internal work are essential leadership tools

💡 Whether you work in Stars, quality improvement, provider engagement, or just want to build stronger, more empathetic teams, this episode will challenge and encourage you to lead with curiosity, courage, and compassion.

Welcome to the very first episode of The HumanUp Imperative, a show about re-centering human connection in an industry that often forgets it—healthcare.

In this premiere episode, host Rex Wallace sits down with Todd Ray, a standout executive leader in government healthcare programs, to explore what it really means to lead with purpose, humility, and impact.

Todd oversees some of the most complex programs in healthcare, including Medicare Star Ratings. But what makes him exceptional isn’t just the outcomes—it’s how he shows up. He’s a leader who asks hard questions, empowers his team, and elevates others through trust, humor, and curiosity.

🎧 In this episode, we explore:

Why human engagement is the missing ingredient in organizational success

The fine line between confidence and arrogance—and how to stay on the right side of it

How to lead without micromanaging, especially in matrixed environments

The power of curiosity, asking questions, and building a culture of trust

Personal leadership philosophies like “Don’t panic” and “Make a difference”

How to stay calm under pressure—and help others do the same

💡 Whether you're an executive, a team leader, or just someone who believes we can bring more humanity to healthcare and business, this episode will leave you inspired and equipped.

https://youtu.be/ckFVTVdNw8E?si=A9T8-IBtjP67un2K