#49 Every home care business will go through a transition at some point in time via buy, sell, or exit. Cory Mertz, Managing Partner at Mertz Taggart shares why owners often overestimate “the multiple” and underestimate risk, and how factors like reimbursement exposure, transition planning, and management depth quietly drive value. We talk about common blind spots in profitable agencies, why highly unique businesses aren’t always the most attractive acquisition targets, and how buyers are thinking differently today than they were a few years ago. Cory also opens up about the emotional side of selling, the life events that change an owner’s timeline, and what transition risk really looks like before, during, and after a sale.

• Cory Mertz on LinkedIn
• cory@mertztaggart.com
• Mertz Taggart
• Value Acceleration Program

Sponsors:

• PocketRN
• Phoebe

#48 You’ve probably heard about the Medicare GUIDE program—but you may still be wondering: Is my agency a fit? And how do we actually participate? PocketRN Co-Founder and CEO Jenna Morgenstern-Gaines delivers one of the clearest breakdowns I’ve heard on how GUIDE really works. We unpack the program model, the difference between participants and partner organizations, patient eligibility and enrollment, what services are actually included, and how home care agencies can use GUIDE to strengthen and differentiate their dementia care. If dementia is part of your caseload, this is an episode you can’t afford to miss. GUIDE isn’t just another program—it’s an early signal of where dementia care, reimbursement, and home care integration are heading.

• PocketRN
• PocketRN + Medicare Guide Program
• Jenna Morgenstern-Gaines
• sales@pocketrn.com

Sponsors:

• Helper Heroes - high-quality virtual assistants that know home care
• Mertz Taggart - the leading home care M&A firm advising sellers at every stage

#47 If you’re building a strong culture, social media is easy. If you’re not, social media feels impossible—and most leaders opt out. Nick Bonitatibus breaks down how home care leaders should actually be using social platforms: not as a sales channel, but as a weekly business tool. We talk about what content really performs right now, why raw posts build more trust than polished ones, how to attract referrals and talent, and what real relationship-building looks (and it’s not cold DMs). We talk about how to translate visibility and credibility into real business outcomes—tune in.

• Nick Bonitatibus on LinkedIn
• Digital Champs
• Video Sales Accelerator

Sponsors:

• Acrisure

#46 There’s more to private pay rates than most people think. Jesse Walters, CEO of Hillendale Home Care, shares what it’s like to operate as both a low-cost provider and a premium provider—and the challenges that come with each. Jesse walks through acquiring Hillendale, scaling the business by 600% in just three years, and how pricing decisions impacted competition, staffing, and continuity of care along the way. He also discusses opening multiple de novo offices in his California market—by the way, de novo means starting from the beginning—and what that taught him about rates as a long-term strategy, not just a short-term revenue lever.

• Jesse Walters on LinkedIn
• jesse@hillendale.net
• https://hillendalehomecare.com/

About Hillendale
Hillendale Home Care provides trusted, relationship-based in-home care for older adults throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, serving Contra Costa, Alameda, Sonoma, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties. The agency offers personalized support designed to help seniors live safely and comfortably at home, including companionship, personal care, dementia care, and assistance with daily living. Hillendale is known for its thoughtful caregiver matching, high standards of care, and deep commitment to the local communities it serves.

Sponsors:

• Phoebe.work
• MertzTaggart.com

#45 In the past 6-12 months, AI has gone from interesting and useful to reliable and effective. Dave Dworschak from Phoebe explains what that actually means for operators. It’s not a replacement for people, but a teammate that takes repetitive work off administrator’s plates. Dave breaks down three real scheduling workflows where AI is already being used today: last-minute call-out outreach, proactive shift confirmation, and missed clock-in and clock-out cleanup. Tasks that used to take schedulers 1.5 to 2 hours are now being handled in under 15 minutes. We focus on how agencies can integrate AI into their existing systems, workflows, and culture to reduce constraints, protect revenue, and give teams their time back without adding headcount.

• Dave Dworschak on LinkedIn
• Dave@phoebe.work
• Phoebe
• How Phoebe cut down missed shifts by 75%

If you're interested in learning more about Lab Partners—email me at miriam@homecarestrategylab.com.

#44 Nick Provost started in home care as a teenager at his family’s business and has now spent his entire adult life working his way up in home care, eventually stepping into his current leadership role at Gratitude Homecare in New Jersey. The core of his care philosophy is: every family should look back and say working with us was “the best money we ever spent.” We dig into the reality of private-pay business development in home care and the two hats every great BD leader must wear: building referral relationships and converting those referrals into clients. Nick had no formal sales training, but he explains how active listening, being a true resource, and deep industry knowledge have helped him thrive in a highly competitive market. He breaks down what’s working with his top referral accounts, how he asks for and earns business, and the feedback loops that keep referrals coming back consistently.

• Nick Provost on LinkedIn
• Nick@gratitudehomecarenj.com
• Gratitude Homecare

Sponsors:

• Mertz Taggart
• Helper Heroes

#43 - He’s scaled Sunny Days In-Home Care to more than 37,000 hours of care each week across five offices through a mix of organic growth and acquisitions. In this episode, CEO John Bennett breaks down exactly how he’s centralized his back office, structured his org chart, and defined a clear set of North Star KPIs. He shares why hours—not revenue—drive alignment across the organization, how shift coverage acts as a real-time pulse check on culture, and how RACI thinking brings clarity as teams grow. John also walks through the challenge of getting buy-in during periods of change, especially when roles evolve and specialization increases. And he shares the teams' simple but powerful focus: maximizing the “hours of good” they delivers to individuals and families who need care most.

• John Bennett on LinkedIn
• john@dlemholdings.com
• Sunny Days In-home Care

Sponsors:

• Mert Taggart
• Phoebe—10% off, mention the Lab

#42 He grew the business impressively for five years, exited daily operations, and then things didn’t go as planned. Justin Currie, CEO of Thema Home Care opens up about what happened after he stepped away, the people and process issues he discovered, and how he ultimately tuned the business around. He gets detailed and prescriptive on people in the wrong seats, processes not being followed, hard decisions and conversations he had to have, and the results of re-engaging in daily operations. He also shares an exciting update about partnering with the American Health at Home fund to expand his business and open new doors for accelerated growth.

• Justin Currie on LinkedIn
• jcurrie@themahomecare.com
• Thema Home Care
• American Health at Home

Sponsors:

• Helper Heroes—virtual assistants trained for home care operations
• Phoebe—AI scheduling assistant for call-out coverage, shift confirmation, clock in/out reminders, and more