The $10-an-Hour Hire That Saved My Business (And Why I Waited Too Long) — Lisa Fausey

Lisa Fausey, owner of 3 Home Helpers Home Care franchises, joins host David Knack to discuss her employee-centric approach to building a thriving home care business. Lisa shares how she shifted her focus from simply driving revenue to creating a culture where caregivers feel valued, heard, and supported. She opens up about her biggest early mistake, waiting over a year to hire her first office employee, and how overcoming that fear transformed her business and personal sanity.

Lisa dives into the underrated power of "liberal leave" over traditional PTO, the importance of voluntary benefits for part-time caregivers, and why tracking the right KPIs like starts of care and overtime is essential for sustainable growth. She also explains how tools like Zingage help strengthen caregiver engagement and connection in a distributed workforce.

The conversation highlights the tangible results of investing in people: stronger retention, a vibrant company culture, and a business that runs smoothly even when the owner steps away.

Lesson Takeaways:

1. Hire Before You're Drowning: Don't let fear of spending stop you from hiring help. Delegating administrative tasks early frees you to focus on growth and prevents burnout.

2. Culture Is a Competitive Advantage: An employee-centric approach, listening, supporting, and investing in your team, differentiates you in a tight labor market and drives retention.

3. Liberal Leave Builds Trust: Offering flexible, responsibly managed time off can be more valued by staff than traditional PTO and reduces administrative complexity.

4. Track the Right KPIs, Not All of Them: Focus on actionable metrics like billable hours, starts of care, and overtime. These reflect real business health and growth more than vanity numbers.

5. Benefits Matter, Even for Part-Timers: Voluntary benefits like 401(k) matching, dental, and vision show caregivers they're valued and help build long-term financial security.

Timestamps:
00:00 – Introduction to Lisa Fausey and Home Helpers Home Care

01:15 – Lisa's "why": Building a business to empower employees

02:30 – How an employee-centric culture sets her apart

04:00 – Using Zingage to engage and connect with caregivers

05:05 – How to successfully roll out an engagement platform

06:10 – Lisa's biggest mistake: Waiting too long to hire help

09:10 – The breaking point: "I was ready to give the franchise back"

10:20 – Hiring her first employee and scaling past 150–200 hours/week

11:40 – What made her first hire successful: Training and trust

13:00 – Learning from a bad hire: The importance of cultural fit

15:00 – Underrated industry practices: Liberal leave & voluntary benefits

17:45 – Most valuable benefit: Company-matched 401(k)

18:50 – A benefit that failed: Virtual health plans

20:05 – Caregiver dress code and professionalism standards

21:00 – The small mistake owners make: Not tracking KPIs

22:15 – Which KPIs matter most: Hours, starts of care, overtime

24:50 – A recent win: Revitalized company culture and holiday party success

28:10 – Closing thoughts

Quotes:
Lisa Fausey: "The main reason I opened this business was the ability to employ people and help change their lives."

Lisa Fausey: "Don't wait. Hire as soon as you can. I was so afraid to spend money that wasn't generating money, and it almost cost me the business."

Lisa Fausey: "If you don't track your numbers, you're just flying by the seat of your pants."

David Knack: "Starts of care is a metric you can't hide from. It tells you if you're really growing or just deepening care with existing clients."

Resources:

1. Connect with Lisa Fausey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisafausey/

2. Learn more about Home Helpers Home Care: https://www.homehelpershomecare.com/

3. Connect with David Knack on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-knack/

4. Powered by Zingage: https://zingage.com

5. Watch this episode on Zingage's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Zingage