In this powerful and candid conversation, hosts Bo Brabo and Luke Carignan sit down with Billy Parsons, Chief Human Resources Officer at EyeCare Partners and a U.S. Navy veteran, to explore the real work of leading people—and the defining career moments that shape HR excellence.

From Submarines to C-Suite: Billy’s Unconventional Journey
Billy’s career path defies convention. From life in the Navy's tight quarters to HR leadership roles across healthcare, tech, and retail, he’s earned his stripes the hard way. In this episode, he opens up about the lessons he learned as an HR department of one, the power of mentorship, and why starting from the ground up gave him a PhD in leadership—without ever stepping foot in a classroom.

💡 Leadership Gold You’ll Hear:

• “Professional maturity” and why the ability to receive feedback without ego is critical to career growth.
• How to develop honest, feedback-rich cultures where both leaders and employees actually grow.
• A raw story about being “ripped to shreds” by a state inspector—and how it became Billy’s most pivotal career moment.
• Why empathy, courage, and transparency are non-negotiable in healthcare HR.
• The true value of building policy with flexibility and heart—especially when human lives are involved.

🔥 Favorite Quote:

“Sometimes really getting your rear kicked can do a lot for your career.” – Billy Parsons

Why This Episode Matters for You:
Whether you’re a one-person HR team, a tenured leader, or navigating the politics of a complex health system, Billy’s journey will hit home. His grounded, no-fluff advice reminds us that great HR isn’t about perfection—it’s about resilience, humility, and choosing growth every single time.

Thank you for listening!

Bo & Luke

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🎙️ New Episode: Leading from Your Best Self with Kapri Ames

In this powerful episode of The ASHHRA Podcast, hosts Luke Carignan and Bo Brabo sit down with Kapri Ames, Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer at Indiana University Health, to explore what it truly means to lead with self-awareness, energy, and intention.

With over two decades in healthcare—and 17 years in leadership—Kapri brings more than experience to the table. She brings heart, humility, and a bold message: you can’t lead others well until you know how to lead yourself.

🔑 Episode Highlights:

💡 Know Your Magic
Kapri challenges leaders to discover their “magic”—the unique strengths that allow them to lead with passion and clarity. From Enneagram to DISC to StrengthsFinder, she shares how self-awareness creates more effective, empathetic, and aligned leadership.

💡 Modeling Work-Life Integration
Forget work-life balance. Kapri models integration—giving her team permission to take meetings outside in the sun, adjust their schedules, and care for themselves so they can care for others. Because if leaders aren’t well, their teams won’t be either.

💡 Build Strength-Aligned Teams
Kapri is unapologetic about not managing to weaknesses. Instead, she’s built a high-performing team based on complementary strengths, open collaboration, and radical psychological safety—where people don’t compete, they multiply one another’s impact.

💡 Culture That Wins Awards
This isn’t just theory. Kapri’s leadership has helped IU Health earn its third Magnet Designation with Distinction—an elite recognition for nursing excellence, collaboration, and patient outcomes.

💡 Live for Today. Lead for Tomorrow.
Kapri leads in the moment but plans with intention. She surrounds herself with visionaries who see the road ahead—while she ensures the team is delivering excellence today. As she says: “Don’t borrow trouble from tomorrow. Sufficient is the day.”

🧭 Leadership Lessons You’ll Take Away:

• Why real leadership starts with self-care and personal wellness
• How to create psychological safety by owning your strengths (and weaknesses)
• What happens when leaders give permission to unplug, recharge, and re-engage
• How to build teams that want to stay—and love coming to work

📣 Kapri’s Call to Action:
“Reflect on your own journey. Be your best self. And then look around—who can you lift up the way someone once did for you?”

🎧 Listen now to unlock a blueprint for values-driven, people-first leadership that fuels culture, performance, and joy.

The ASHHRA Podcast Team

This episode is sponsored by RxBenefits... Unlock Pharmacy Plan Potential!

Your employees expect top-tier medical benefits, like comprehensive care access. But how can you balance these expectations against rising costs, across your full benefits portfolio? Did you know that hospital employees fill 25% more prescriptions each year than other industries? How can you tell if all those prescriptions were needed, or if you could have had significant cost savings by filling at your own hospital pharmacies?

Contact RxBenefits today to learn more: https://rxbene.fit/3ZaurZN

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🎙️ New Episode: Building Talent Teams That Last with Anthony Scarpino
In this episode of The ASHHRA Podcast, hosts Luke Carignan and Bo Brabo sit down with Anthony Scarpino, Vice President of Talent Acquisition at National Health Care Associates, for a real-world look at the challenges—and opportunities—facing today’s healthcare recruiters.

🔄 From Dietitian to TA Executive: A Fresh Lens on Hiring

Anthony’s path started in clinical care and took him through leadership roles at Sodexo and Marriott. His diverse background shapes how he builds recruiting teams today—emphasizing adaptability, cross-industry learning, and the power of genuine relationship-building.

💡 “A great recruiter can recruit anywhere—as long as they’re willing to learn and connect.”

🧠 Recruiting Across the Healthcare Spectrum

In long-term care, hiring goes beyond clinical roles. Anthony and the hosts explore the challenge of sourcing for everything from CNAs to facilities managers to executives—and why mental flexibility is key in a complex, high-volume hiring environment.

🛠️ Rebuilding the TA Function from the Ground Up

When Anthony joined National, TA operations were largely manual and decentralized. He shares the ongoing journey of implementing an applicant tracking system, introducing consistency across 40+ facilities, and aligning systems with real-world workflows.

🧭 “We train toward the happy path—then guide people back to it when needed.”

💬 People Over Process: Keeping Recruiters Engaged

With change underway, how do you keep your team energized? Anthony walks through his approach:

• Restructuring the team to align closer to field operations
• Investing in team strengths and development
• Launching an incentive plan (even modest rewards matter)

💡 “What you do is valuable—and we’re going to share in the success of that outcome.”

✝️ Wisdom to Lead By

To close the episode, Anthony shares a quote that’s helped him through big transitions:
“Let go and let God.”
Sometimes leadership means trusting the process and moving forward with intention—even through uncertainty.

🎧 Tune in for:
✔️ Actionable insights on structuring TA teams
✔️ Lessons on adopting tech in legacy systems
✔️ Strategies for balancing flexibility with consistency
✔️ Real talk about recruiting burnout, pipelines, and persistence

Listen now on all major podcast platforms—and share with a fellow TA or HR leader who needs a fresh dose of inspiration.

With appreciation,
The ASHHRA Podcast Team

This episode is sponsored by RxBenefits... Unlock Pharmacy Plan Potential!

Your employees expect top-tier medical benefits, like comprehensive care access. But how can you balance these expectations against rising costs, across your full benefits portfolio? Did you know that hospital employees fill 25% more prescriptions each year than other industries? How can you tell if all those prescriptions were needed, or if you could have had significant cost savings by filling at your own hospital pharmacies?

Contact RxBenefits today to learn more: https://rxbene.fit/3ZaurZN

Support the show