ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Healthcare has a workforce crisis, but what if the real problem isn't staffing?
In Episode 192 of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Tess Michaels, Founder and CEO of Clasp, to explore a bold new approach to solving one of healthcare's biggest challenges: attracting and retaining clinicians before they ever enter the workforce.
With more than 3 million clinical positions sitting unfilled across the United States and student loan debt surpassing $1.7 trillion, health systems continue to rely on sign-on bonuses and short-term incentives that often fail to improve long-term retention. Tess believes there's a better way.
Drawing inspiration from the ROTC model, Clasp pioneered "Loan Linking Hiring," an innovative approach that connects healthcare employers with future clinicians while they're still in school. Instead of paying large bonuses upfront, employers invest in student loan repayment over time, creating stronger loyalty, improving retention, and helping clinicians begin their careers with greater financial confidence.
Throughout the conversation, Tess shares:
• Why the healthcare workforce shortage is really a retention problem
• How student loan debt influences where clinicians choose to work and how long they stay
• Why traditional sign-on bonuses often create more turnover than loyalty
• How Clasp partners with leading health systems including Northwestern Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Novant Health, and OhioHealth
• The psychology behind long-term employee retention
• Lessons learned from building a venture-backed healthcare company over the past eight years
• The hardest moments of entrepreneurship that rarely make the headlines
• How immigrant parents, education, and purpose shaped her leadership journey
• Why investing in people earlier changes the future of healthcare
This episode is about far more than recruiting. It's a conversation about leadership, innovation, trust, financial wellness, workforce strategy, and designing systems that create better outcomes for both clinicians and patients.
If you're a healthcare executive, hospital leader, HR executive, workforce strategist, investor, entrepreneur, clinician, or simply passionate about the future of healthcare, this is an episode you won't want to miss.
Learn more about Clasp: https://www.clasp.com/
Connect with Tess Michaels: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmichaels/
⏱️ Timestamps
01:15 The healthcare workforce crisis: 3 million open clinical roles
03:05 Meet Tess Michaels and the origin of Clasp
04:25 Growing up in a family of physicians
06:00 Leaving Goldman Sachs and private equity to become a founder
08:00 The insight that led to Clasp
10:40 Why healthcare's staffing problem is really a retention problem
14:25 How Loan Linking Hiring works
15:40 Why sign-on bonuses fail
18:55 Real stories of clinicians whose lives changed
21:10 How health systems justify the investment
24:00 Winning the first healthcare customer
25:30 Building Clasp over eight years
26:15 The hardest part of being a founder
28:50 How Tess's immigrant family shaped her leadership
31:15 A message to the next generation of clinicians
33:30 Where to learn more about Clasp
34:10 Final thoughts
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About the Show
The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.
The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light.
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SHOW NOTES 🔗
TRANSCRIPT 🔗
Kind: captions
Language: en
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Hello and welcome back to the Advancing
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Healthcare Innovation Show. I am your
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host, Michael Stamatinos, and if you're
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new to us, welcome. We are so excited to
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have you here because we are having just
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some really incredible conversations
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with amazing leaders that are
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painstakingly reshaping the future of
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healthcare. And we're pretty passionate
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about a few different areas. We're
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passionate about access. We're
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passionate about leadership and
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innovation and innovation adoption. And
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if you haven't had the opportunity to
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kind of tune in, if this is your first
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time tuning in, let me just sort of take
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a very quick step back and give you a a
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little bit more on what we're trying to
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get done here. So, the ethos of the show
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is talking to real leaders, bringing
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real stories of innovation and
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leadership to life, not stuff that
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you're just sort of reading headlines,
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but real people that are in the trenches
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getting great work done and sharing
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little wins as well as sharing some of
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those learnings. because as you know
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when you're innovating you're not always
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winning all the time. So we want to
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learn from those things and ultimately
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share those with our community and those
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will inevitably uh be shared throughout
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the rest of the world. So if you haven't
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had an opportunity to check out any of
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the historical interviews wherever you
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are, however you're consuming this, if
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you're watching this, if you're
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listening to this, please do me a solid.
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wherever you are, just hit the subscribe
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button now so that any of the new
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interviews come directly to you. So, I'm
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actually super excited about this next
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guest because they were referred uh
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directly got pulled over. Funny story, I
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was at a Becker's conference and got
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pulled over by David. He's like, "You
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have you have to meet someone." So, um
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I'm super excited about this. But before
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I dig into that, I want to I want to
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share a number with you for just a
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moment. Uh and the number is 3 million.
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That's how many clinical roles um are
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actually sitting empty right now in this
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country. And then I want to share with
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you another number. 1.7 trillion.
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Not billion. Trillion. A trillion is a
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billion
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is a billion billion is a trillion. That
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is the student loan debt carried by the
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people who actually want to fill those
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roles. So two numbers, two crises. And
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the thing that I think that makes it so
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hard, you know, for me to solve is that
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I mean they're they're like feeding each
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other. And the truth is is that this
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debt, it shapes where clinicians choose
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to go to work. It shapes how long they
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stay. And health systems obviously are
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desperate to fill these seats and
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they're just throwing money at the
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problem. sign on bonuses, you know, big
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checks that are being laid out and and
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the same people end up leaving and then
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the same roles open back up and it's
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just this perpetual vicious cycle and
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healthcare has been paying people to
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join and then they act surprised when
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when they leave. So today's guest, you
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know, grew up in a family of physicians
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and she watched staffing gaps, you know,
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basically wear down care teams. um she's
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attended Harvard Business School and
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this is where she started sort of asking
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a different question. What if what if
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you committed to a clinician before they
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actually ever graduated like the way the
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military does with the ROC? And she
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explained this to me when we met and
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she'll dig into it more. But what if
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that financial support was tied to
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staying instead of just showing up?
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That's that question is what became the
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company clasp which is led by Tess
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Michaels the founder and CEO. So her
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model is called loan linking hiring.
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It's beautiful. She's going to go into
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it but it basically employers commit to
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clinicians before graduation and then
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student loan repayment happens over
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time. You know that's tied to tenure. So
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they have uh incredible roster of
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customers. uh her CV is just ridiculous.
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You know, Forbes, 30 under 30, you name
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it, it's there. And it is absolutely
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delightful to have her come on to the
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show to share her story. So, Tess, great
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to see you. Welcome to the show.
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>> Thank you so much, Michael. And it is
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great to see you again.
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>> Yeah, of course. Of course. So, I want
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to start somewhere different. You know,
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you grew up in a family of physicians.
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Um, take me back to what that felt like
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as a kiddo. U, not necessarily from a
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career lesson standpoint, but really
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what was it like at the dinner table,
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you know, uh, parents having to feel
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phone calls in the middle of the night?
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Like what did you uh absorb from that
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without knowing you were absorbing it?
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>> Yeah. So, um, yeah, I've been, uh, you
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know, in and around healthcare my entire
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life. And it is, it's fun, it's special,
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it's different. Um, having so many, uh,
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clinicians in the family. I mean, family
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gatherings means if anyone gets injured,
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you're good to go. As a kid growing up,
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what it means is I had no excuse to try
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and skip school um because I was feeling
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under the weather. And so, um, look, but
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it it really um, taught me a lot. I I
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will say as a side note, I mean, my mom
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had me when she was in residency and she
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joked that back in the day, 24-hour
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shifts are a very real thing. Um, and
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so, you know, I definitely feel like
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from the womb onward got to experience
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just how hard um, healthcare clinicians
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work in America and just how important
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the role is. And um I myself thought one
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day I would practice and was weeks away
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from um taking my MCAT to go into the
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field and you know took a a right turn
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and instead ended up exactly where I am
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today. So
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>> pretty fascinating because I know you
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did a few cool tours of duty. You're in
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finance, you know, in the private equity
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space. Um that obviously was essentially
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your trajectory and then and you walked
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away from that to to start a company. I
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guess uh who who in your life thought
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that you were out of your mind?
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>> Uh how much time do we have? No, just
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just
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um look, I mean I I really had the bug
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to build early on. And so um I actually
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built my um first business when I was
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19. I was in college and I uh took a
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leap of faith and said, "Hey, I really
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believe that uh companies can invest in
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their talent differently through all
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sorts of ways, especially investing
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through corporate social
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responsibility." Now, frankly, I learned
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a lot of what to do and what not to do
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during the first set of sharp learning
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curves, but the most important lesson
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was, God, I got to spend every single
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waking moment getting as close as I
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possibly can to understanding how our
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end user moves and shakes, what makes
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them tick, and um you know, so with my
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first goound, I spent so long just
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focused on product in a vacuum and not
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enough um really in the trenches. Yeah.
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>> And you know um as you mentioned started
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my career in finance as a healthcare
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banker at Goldman and then worked in
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private equity. And I got to say like
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you know there are few careers you can
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start your life in that I think are
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better almost like training grounds.
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It's like a total boot camp experience.
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>> It's a total tour duty.
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>> Yeah. Not only do you learn every
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shortcut that possibly exists on Excel,
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but you also, you know, um, really get
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to just like have massive pattern
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recognition. You're like, what makes for
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a good business? Like, what are the
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signals that, you know, just even
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number-wise, metrics wise, give you an
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inkling? Um, but
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>> I think all of that really carried me uh
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into clasp and um helped make this
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business take off a lot a lot more
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quickly. So
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>> that's uh that's super interesting when
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you talk about pattern recognition. Are
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there certain patterns that you were
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able to recognize especially with this
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particular problem? Like how did how did
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this problem surface for you? Um was
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this obviously being a number of
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clinicians in your family was this
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something that was talked about? Like
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did you guys talk about money and like
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student loans and debt? Like what was
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that like?
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>> Oh totally. I mean, look, I founded
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Clasp as I was headed for grad school
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and I was looking at the sticker price
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going like, is it worth it to go back to
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school? And what I realized in that
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moment is there are some industries like
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business where you can you can consider
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is it worth it or not worth it? But in
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healthcare, it's not a choice. It's do
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you want the job or not? Because in
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order to do the job, you have to get
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through this training. you have to get
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licensed and then um after those prerexs
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you can you can gain entry, right? And
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um I hear about these stories all the
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time. I mean my husband um is a
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physician and he took out a significant
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amount of student debt. He grew up in a
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very small town um and didn't have a lot
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of financial support. And he tells me
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all the time, he's like,
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>> "Look, um you know, the reality is you
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have to take a huge leap of faith as a
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student. A bet on yourself to say, I'm
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going to put in the time to enroll in
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school and get through school. I'm going
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to take out hundreds of thousands of
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dollars of student loan support, and
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then I'm going to hope and pray that a
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great job is waiting for me on the other
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end. and then I'm going to spend another
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decade or more of my life working to pay
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down all of those costs that I'd taken
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on. And so the the order of operations
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is just completely out of whack, right?
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We have to
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>> like this like bottom bell curve and
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it's like wait, we got to break that
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plane. But once we break that, we'll do
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all right. But it's like pretty deep.
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>> We got to flip that entire equation
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around and say, wait a second,
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>> why do we have millions of people that
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we are short in healthcare? It's because
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it is so challenging to put the full
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onus on the individual and be like,
00:10:03.760 --> 00:10:06.230
"Hey, of course you should take this,
00:10:06.240 --> 00:10:08.949
you know, bet on yourself." And so
00:10:08.959 --> 00:10:10.949
instead, if we can bring employers into
00:10:10.959 --> 00:10:13.430
the equation earlier, give individuals
00:10:13.440 --> 00:10:15.190
that commitment of not only a job, but
00:10:15.200 --> 00:10:16.550
hey, there's going to be an employer who
00:10:16.560 --> 00:10:18.069
sees you, who cares about you, who's
00:10:18.079 --> 00:10:19.829
going to help repay those loans.
00:10:19.839 --> 00:10:21.430
Suddenly, you've knocked out the two
00:10:21.440 --> 00:10:23.590
biggest uncertainties of someone's life
00:10:23.600 --> 00:10:25.990
at the very point that it matters most.
00:10:26.000 --> 00:10:29.030
and then the system can actually work,
00:10:29.040 --> 00:10:30.870
right? So,
00:10:30.880 --> 00:10:32.470
>> most people they see like they see a
00:10:32.480 --> 00:10:33.910
staffing problem, you know, the
00:10:33.920 --> 00:10:36.310
workforce crisis is a staffing problem,
00:10:36.320 --> 00:10:39.110
but like I'm just amazed that you you
00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:41.430
saw you saw something different,
00:10:41.440 --> 00:10:43.509
>> you know, did it did it bother you that
00:10:43.519 --> 00:10:46.230
you saw something that other people
00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:48.230
couldn't see in your life? I see it
00:10:48.240 --> 00:10:49.829
clear as day. Like, what what don't you
00:10:49.839 --> 00:10:50.949
guys see here?
00:10:50.959 --> 00:10:53.190
>> Yeah. So, look, I think, you know, the
00:10:53.200 --> 00:10:56.470
reality is like the parties are just
00:10:56.480 --> 00:10:58.389
siloed, right? Like employers aren't
00:10:58.399 --> 00:10:59.910
always getting to talk to students as
00:10:59.920 --> 00:11:01.030
they're thinking about enrolling in
00:11:01.040 --> 00:11:02.550
school or when they're in school about
00:11:02.560 --> 00:11:04.230
what's stressing them out the most,
00:11:04.240 --> 00:11:05.430
right? They're thinking about what
00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:07.030
happens once they're employed and how do
00:11:07.040 --> 00:11:08.710
you keep them engaged and retained at
00:11:08.720 --> 00:11:10.790
that point. And from a school's
00:11:10.800 --> 00:11:12.150
perspective, they're doing as much as
00:11:12.160 --> 00:11:13.910
they can to help you with access to
00:11:13.920 --> 00:11:16.310
education and getting into the job, but
00:11:16.320 --> 00:11:18.630
not necessarily how do I make sure that
00:11:18.640 --> 00:11:20.630
people who graduated from here are
00:11:20.640 --> 00:11:21.910
staying in the job.
00:11:21.920 --> 00:11:24.630
>> And so I think the view we had is
00:11:24.640 --> 00:11:27.030
there's three big parts of this
00:11:27.040 --> 00:11:28.310
equation, right? Yeah.
00:11:28.320 --> 00:11:32.389
>> Part one is how do you think about the
00:11:32.399 --> 00:11:35.670
broad barriers to entry which include
00:11:35.680 --> 00:11:37.590
the financial challenges that someone
00:11:37.600 --> 00:11:41.030
has to deal with. Second is the fact
00:11:41.040 --> 00:11:43.990
that there are real talent shortages and
00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:46.069
so you got to help employers better
00:11:46.079 --> 00:11:48.630
recruit and sometimes your local markets
00:11:48.640 --> 00:11:52.870
may not have enough density of talent
00:11:52.880 --> 00:11:54.870
and so like you just you got to get
00:11:54.880 --> 00:11:56.949
creative with the how which you know we
00:11:56.959 --> 00:11:59.110
we have all sorts of ways we do that.
00:11:59.120 --> 00:12:02.069
And then the last piece is okay you got
00:12:02.079 --> 00:12:04.550
someone through school you hired them
00:12:04.560 --> 00:12:07.509
but in healthcare turnover is just
00:12:07.519 --> 00:12:11.509
brutal. I mean they show that for new
00:12:11.519 --> 00:12:13.670
grad nurses
00:12:13.680 --> 00:12:17.030
50% of them leave their first job in the
00:12:17.040 --> 00:12:19.670
first two years of employment. I mean
00:12:19.680 --> 00:12:23.269
that cycle is so painful and that's
00:12:23.279 --> 00:12:24.470
exactly what we want. It's
00:12:24.480 --> 00:12:26.230
>> like a revolving door.
00:12:26.240 --> 00:12:27.750
>> Spend all this time and energy training
00:12:27.760 --> 00:12:29.030
people up and then it's like all right
00:12:29.040 --> 00:12:30.870
goodbye see you later and you got to do
00:12:30.880 --> 00:12:31.990
it all over again.
00:12:32.000 --> 00:12:32.389
>> Exactly.
00:12:32.399 --> 00:12:35.590
>> It's terrible terrible thing to do.
00:12:35.600 --> 00:12:37.670
So you so you see this you see these
00:12:37.680 --> 00:12:40.870
dynamics you recognize these patterns
00:12:40.880 --> 00:12:42.870
you're considering B school you're like
00:12:42.880 --> 00:12:44.870
I'm going into B school and I'm starting
00:12:44.880 --> 00:12:48.710
this company like take take me through
00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:50.230
that did you have people that were
00:12:50.240 --> 00:12:51.829
trying to talk you out of it people
00:12:51.839 --> 00:12:54.629
talking you into it what was the the
00:12:54.639 --> 00:12:56.629
dynamic around you at the time
00:12:56.639 --> 00:12:58.870
>> so first of all I did a lot of not just
00:12:58.880 --> 00:13:00.790
soulsearching but actually talking to
00:13:00.800 --> 00:13:02.949
all sorts of people uh from every walk
00:13:02.959 --> 00:13:04.629
of life to figure out is this painoint
00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:07.430
point as real as I think it is. And so I
00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:09.430
was, you know, um, spending time talking
00:13:09.440 --> 00:13:11.430
to students on campuses. I was talking
00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:12.949
to Uber drivers. I was talking to
00:13:12.959 --> 00:13:14.150
friends at bars. I was trying to figure
00:13:14.160 --> 00:13:16.870
out like, hey, what's what's the real
00:13:16.880 --> 00:13:19.590
driver here? And honestly, for better or
00:13:19.600 --> 00:13:21.670
worse, this is a pretty universal pain
00:13:21.680 --> 00:13:23.430
point. I mean, for a lot of the clinical
00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:26.230
roles we support, like nurse anesthesia
00:13:26.240 --> 00:13:30.150
or physical therapists, upward of 90% of
00:13:30.160 --> 00:13:32.629
individuals have student loans for these
00:13:32.639 --> 00:13:35.509
roles, right? So um so the so the
00:13:35.519 --> 00:13:37.990
reality was like I was like okay
00:13:38.000 --> 00:13:40.870
>> this is a felt pain like students know
00:13:40.880 --> 00:13:42.870
it exists. Now on the employer side,
00:13:42.880 --> 00:13:45.030
what I have to know is do they need to
00:13:45.040 --> 00:13:47.350
hire this talent critically urgently? Is
00:13:47.360 --> 00:13:49.430
it really important which of course yes
00:13:49.440 --> 00:13:51.990
that proved out and second is are the
00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:55.190
retention challenges as bad as what we
00:13:55.200 --> 00:13:57.509
sometimes hear and is that universal
00:13:57.519 --> 00:14:00.470
right and that definitely played out and
00:14:00.480 --> 00:14:04.790
so this really brought us to um building
00:14:04.800 --> 00:14:05.990
you know what you mentioned in the
00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:08.949
beginning the ROC model for healthcare.
00:14:08.959 --> 00:14:11.350
>> Yeah. And it's just been super
00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:13.910
fascinating seeing how it's completely
00:14:13.920 --> 00:14:18.069
changed how wide the clinical cal you
00:14:18.079 --> 00:14:19.829
know candidate pools are for healthare
00:14:19.839 --> 00:14:22.150
systems which I can talk through and how
00:14:22.160 --> 00:14:24.629
low turnover can really go. So
00:14:24.639 --> 00:14:26.389
>> let's let's let's let's dig in. I mean
00:14:26.399 --> 00:14:28.470
this your episode do take it where you
00:14:28.480 --> 00:14:29.350
want to dig in.
00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:31.990
>> Yeah. So um yes. So giving you a little
00:14:32.000 --> 00:14:33.750
bit of a flavor for how this works. So
00:14:33.760 --> 00:14:34.949
as you mentioned we work with health
00:14:34.959 --> 00:14:36.710
care systems all over the country. Our
00:14:36.720 --> 00:14:38.790
partners include groups like Boston
00:14:38.800 --> 00:14:40.790
Children's and Novant, Northwestern
00:14:40.800 --> 00:14:43.590
Medicine, Ohio Health, and we
00:14:43.600 --> 00:14:45.910
essentially help them meet hard to hire
00:14:45.920 --> 00:14:48.310
clinical talent like respiratory
00:14:48.320 --> 00:14:51.269
therapists, nurse anesthetists, um, rad
00:14:51.279 --> 00:14:55.509
techs, nurses, etc. through some very
00:14:55.519 --> 00:14:57.269
creative channels. So, we're plugged
00:14:57.279 --> 00:14:59.269
into universities all across the nation.
00:14:59.279 --> 00:15:00.949
So they're not just limited to their
00:15:00.959 --> 00:15:03.590
local markets, but we also have I mean
00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:06.310
curated networks of Tik Tok influencers,
00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:08.310
which I know sounds funny, but these are
00:15:08.320 --> 00:15:11.509
clinicians who have, you know, 100,000
00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:12.949
plus followers and
00:15:12.959 --> 00:15:13.670
>> yeah,
00:15:13.680 --> 00:15:16.629
>> and this generation loves it, right? So
00:15:16.639 --> 00:15:18.790
we build these national movements. We
00:15:18.800 --> 00:15:21.990
let these employers get exposure outside
00:15:22.000 --> 00:15:24.949
of just their their traditional channels
00:15:24.959 --> 00:15:27.269
and suddenly we have applicants from all
00:15:27.279 --> 00:15:29.269
over the country. So to date, Clasp has
00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:31.509
had applicants from 48 states in the
00:15:31.519 --> 00:15:35.030
country and our average employer has had
00:15:35.040 --> 00:15:37.750
applicants from 10 plus states per
00:15:37.760 --> 00:15:41.350
location. So a lot of uh widening there.
00:15:41.360 --> 00:15:42.150
So that's part
00:15:42.160 --> 00:15:44.790
>> Yeah, that's super. You know what's
00:15:44.800 --> 00:15:46.870
amazing to me? First of all, those stats
00:15:46.880 --> 00:15:50.069
are tremendous and obviously the logos
00:15:50.079 --> 00:15:51.670
are, you know, sort of first first
00:15:51.680 --> 00:15:55.350
movers. Um I just feel like historically
00:15:55.360 --> 00:15:58.550
healthcare has been very
00:15:58.560 --> 00:16:01.430
uh focused on well let's just let's just
00:16:01.440 --> 00:16:03.829
give a sign on bonus and I see this a
00:16:03.839 --> 00:16:05.910
lot. It's like hey 10 to 20k sign on
00:16:05.920 --> 00:16:07.749
bonus for like a therapist and look
00:16:07.759 --> 00:16:10.790
smart people design them and they they
00:16:10.800 --> 00:16:13.110
keep funding them
00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:15.030
but here's the thing like why do smart
00:16:15.040 --> 00:16:16.629
people keep betting on something that
00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:18.790
like clearly is not working.
00:16:18.800 --> 00:16:20.389
>> Yes
00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:22.470
working. I couldn't agree more. I mean,
00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:25.189
if anything, the sign on bonus has
00:16:25.199 --> 00:16:27.269
completely killed the incentive for
00:16:27.279 --> 00:16:29.269
retention in healthcare, right? People
00:16:29.279 --> 00:16:32.230
shift from health care system to health
00:16:32.240 --> 00:16:33.749
care system.
00:16:33.759 --> 00:16:36.389
>> And I recently did a talk all about the
00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:38.389
concept of like we got to stop paying
00:16:38.399 --> 00:16:41.030
nurses to leave because the reality is
00:16:41.040 --> 00:16:43.910
this is exactly what it's doing is it's
00:16:43.920 --> 00:16:46.710
>> it's not enforcing people wanting to
00:16:46.720 --> 00:16:49.509
drive teamwork. It's forcing frankly
00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:50.870
turnover because it's saying, "Hey, I'm
00:16:50.880 --> 00:16:53.110
going to chase the next shiny dollar."
00:16:53.120 --> 00:16:56.069
And by the way, starting this year, a
00:16:56.079 --> 00:16:57.509
number of states have started to
00:16:57.519 --> 00:17:00.550
eliminate the ability to do Clubbacks.
00:17:00.560 --> 00:17:02.870
So, the one retention hook that
00:17:02.880 --> 00:17:05.510
hospitals had for doing a sign on bonus
00:17:05.520 --> 00:17:07.829
is now getting taken away from it as
00:17:07.839 --> 00:17:11.110
well. Um, and so, yeah, so we got to
00:17:11.120 --> 00:17:12.630
find an alternative. And that's where we
00:17:12.640 --> 00:17:14.870
come in. and we say, "Okay, let's
00:17:14.880 --> 00:17:16.470
reallocate the dollars you're using to
00:17:16.480 --> 00:17:19.270
sign on bonuses and let's reallocate the
00:17:19.280 --> 00:17:21.350
dollars you're using for all of that
00:17:21.360 --> 00:17:24.230
unnecessary attrition
00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:27.429
via contract labor toward student loan
00:17:27.439 --> 00:17:29.350
repayment." And if we do that, then
00:17:29.360 --> 00:17:32.230
every single penny of yours is tied to
00:17:32.240 --> 00:17:34.549
retention. It's paid on a monthly basis
00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:37.909
only once someone starts employment. And
00:17:37.919 --> 00:17:40.150
not only have you now found more
00:17:40.160 --> 00:17:42.950
clinicians, but we can gify it. Like we
00:17:42.960 --> 00:17:45.110
can literally make them feel more loyal
00:17:45.120 --> 00:17:47.590
to you. And if we do that,
00:17:47.600 --> 00:17:51.190
>> Yes. So, yeah. I mean, look, half of the
00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:53.590
battle is psychology with life.
00:17:53.600 --> 00:17:55.750
>> Um, I always joke with my team. I'm
00:17:55.760 --> 00:17:58.150
like, people have short-term memories.
00:17:58.160 --> 00:18:00.710
So, odds are that if you paid them a
00:18:00.720 --> 00:18:02.630
sign on bonus, they forgot about it real
00:18:02.640 --> 00:18:05.750
fast after. In our model,
00:18:05.760 --> 00:18:08.789
>> we, you know, are helping employers
00:18:08.799 --> 00:18:10.310
design their student loan repayment
00:18:10.320 --> 00:18:12.230
programs. It doesn't have to be 100% of
00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:14.230
the loan someone's taken out. So, we
00:18:14.240 --> 00:18:16.630
first design it based on their needs.
00:18:16.640 --> 00:18:19.110
>> Uh figuring out what units or shifts or
00:18:19.120 --> 00:18:21.909
locations or roles should we offer it to
00:18:21.919 --> 00:18:25.350
>> and then once someone is employed every
00:18:25.360 --> 00:18:26.950
single month, we're sending them a bill
00:18:26.960 --> 00:18:27.990
and we're saying, "This is what you
00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:29.510
would have owed your employer not had
00:18:29.520 --> 00:18:30.390
your back.
00:18:30.400 --> 00:18:31.750
>> It would have taken you 10 years to pay
00:18:31.760 --> 00:18:33.029
this down. Now, it's taking you three
00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:35.669
years." We gify that with thermometers.
00:18:35.679 --> 00:18:37.430
We give them financial wellness tools
00:18:37.440 --> 00:18:39.510
like budget tools that say, "Hint hint,
00:18:39.520 --> 00:18:41.350
you got more in your budget now."
00:18:41.360 --> 00:18:43.990
>> We collect video testimonials. So over
00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:45.669
and over again, you're almost like
00:18:45.679 --> 00:18:47.669
psychologically nudging people toward
00:18:47.679 --> 00:18:50.789
that loyalty.
00:18:50.799 --> 00:18:52.630
>> Do you have any stories of folks that
00:18:52.640 --> 00:18:54.630
have, you know, come in with a certain
00:18:54.640 --> 00:18:57.750
number of certain amount of debt and
00:18:57.760 --> 00:18:59.350
have gone debtree? ones that you're able
00:18:59.360 --> 00:19:01.750
to like publicly share just like
00:19:01.760 --> 00:19:02.630
>> make it
00:19:02.640 --> 00:19:04.950
>> make it concrete for me so that
00:19:04.960 --> 00:19:06.870
>> if it's a nurse or a doctor I just would
00:19:06.880 --> 00:19:07.590
love to
00:19:07.600 --> 00:19:09.029
>> I'd love to hear one
00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:11.350
>> so um yeah many of these stories I
00:19:11.360 --> 00:19:12.870
always tell our team it doesn't matter
00:19:12.880 --> 00:19:16.310
how many individuals we support um you
00:19:16.320 --> 00:19:17.990
know even if there's thousands of
00:19:18.000 --> 00:19:20.630
individuals it's always they're they're
00:19:20.640 --> 00:19:22.950
never a number it's always a person um
00:19:22.960 --> 00:19:24.630
and we collect a lot of these stories so
00:19:24.640 --> 00:19:27.270
I have a a couple that I could share so
00:19:27.280 --> 00:19:28.630
first
00:19:28.640 --> 00:19:30.870
You know there's this individual Matthew
00:19:30.880 --> 00:19:33.510
who was one of the first students that
00:19:33.520 --> 00:19:36.950
we supported and I remember from the
00:19:36.960 --> 00:19:39.510
early days there I had heard stories
00:19:39.520 --> 00:19:42.630
about how he kept delaying school. Um he
00:19:42.640 --> 00:19:45.430
was a optician so uh wanted to become an
00:19:45.440 --> 00:19:46.470
optometrist
00:19:46.480 --> 00:19:49.830
>> but he just could not take the the bet
00:19:49.840 --> 00:19:52.630
there. He was like, "Look, it costs a
00:19:52.640 --> 00:19:55.029
lot. Um, I don't know if I can just jump
00:19:55.039 --> 00:19:58.310
ship, right? Um, and leave a paying job
00:19:58.320 --> 00:20:00.310
to go to school full-time and not earn
00:20:00.320 --> 00:20:01.590
when I have all of these things I need
00:20:01.600 --> 00:20:02.950
to do for my life."
00:20:02.960 --> 00:20:05.190
>> And so, what we ended up doing is
00:20:05.200 --> 00:20:06.870
showing him employers that were willing
00:20:06.880 --> 00:20:10.870
to help repay two years of his education
00:20:10.880 --> 00:20:12.630
over the first few years of him his
00:20:12.640 --> 00:20:15.430
employment. And he, first of all,
00:20:15.440 --> 00:20:16.870
powered through school, highly
00:20:16.880 --> 00:20:18.870
motivated. uh yeah
00:20:18.880 --> 00:20:20.870
>> ended up being able to join private
00:20:20.880 --> 00:20:22.789
practice which was not a career path he
00:20:22.799 --> 00:20:25.590
thought was possible before this
00:20:25.600 --> 00:20:27.190
usually need to be in a better financial
00:20:27.200 --> 00:20:30.230
position to take that um change
00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:32.310
>> he started his career there he was able
00:20:32.320 --> 00:20:34.390
to then grow his family and I remember
00:20:34.400 --> 00:20:36.549
during his video testimonial he had just
00:20:36.559 --> 00:20:40.470
had a young baby girl who um he you know
00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:42.789
kind of shared like I got to start my
00:20:42.799 --> 00:20:45.029
life earlier I got to join my dream
00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:47.110
career and I now have all of this
00:20:47.120 --> 00:20:49.990
financial support. Um, and look, I mean,
00:20:50.000 --> 00:20:51.510
we've got employers all over the
00:20:51.520 --> 00:20:53.430
country, but we have some employers, for
00:20:53.440 --> 00:20:55.029
example, for nurse anesthesia that are
00:20:55.039 --> 00:20:57.510
supporting $180,000
00:20:57.520 --> 00:21:00.230
of student loan support per person. I
00:21:00.240 --> 00:21:01.990
mean, that's totally life-changing,
00:21:02.000 --> 00:21:03.110
right? And so,
00:21:03.120 --> 00:21:04.149
>> yeah. Yeah.
00:21:04.159 --> 00:21:04.870
>> Yeah.
00:21:04.880 --> 00:21:06.870
>> I mean, I think I read a stat somewhere
00:21:06.880 --> 00:21:09.029
was like $130 million in employer
00:21:09.039 --> 00:21:09.909
commitments.
00:21:09.919 --> 00:21:12.149
>> Yes. Yes. How do you how do you how do
00:21:12.159 --> 00:21:15.590
you get a CFO
00:21:15.600 --> 00:21:18.870
u at a major health system to write a
00:21:18.880 --> 00:21:22.310
check before a clinician has even
00:21:22.320 --> 00:21:23.430
graduated like
00:21:23.440 --> 00:21:24.789
>> Yeah. So let me
00:21:24.799 --> 00:21:26.390
>> what's that sales conversation?
00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:28.230
>> Yeah. So let me be very very clear. They
00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:30.310
are not writing the check before the
00:21:30.320 --> 00:21:32.549
individual has graduated. What we're
00:21:32.559 --> 00:21:35.350
doing is we're saying, "Hey, you are
00:21:35.360 --> 00:21:37.350
going to get to get an early commitment
00:21:37.360 --> 00:21:38.950
around hiring this individual while
00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:40.630
they're in school. We're going to help
00:21:40.640 --> 00:21:42.390
them get access to federal student
00:21:42.400 --> 00:21:44.549
loans, private student loans like Sally
00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:47.110
Mayor, Sofi, or by the way, they can't
00:21:47.120 --> 00:21:49.669
get funding for school. We at Clasp have
00:21:49.679 --> 00:21:53.510
raised $75 million of impact capital and
00:21:53.520 --> 00:21:55.350
we can help fund the patient. So, we're
00:21:55.360 --> 00:21:56.870
going to make sure that person graduates
00:21:56.880 --> 00:21:59.590
school and gets through the program, but
00:21:59.600 --> 00:22:00.870
that individual is going to have a
00:22:00.880 --> 00:22:02.710
signed commitment that says once you
00:22:02.720 --> 00:22:04.630
graduate, pass your lensure exams, and
00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:07.029
start employment over the first, call it
00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:09.669
three years of your career, the employer
00:22:09.679 --> 00:22:11.590
is going to pay down portion of your
00:22:11.600 --> 00:22:14.070
student loans. So, from a CFO's
00:22:14.080 --> 00:22:16.470
perspective, they think, wait a second,
00:22:16.480 --> 00:22:19.350
>> I just eliminated my signon bonuses. I
00:22:19.360 --> 00:22:21.830
reduced my locom or traveler or contract
00:22:21.840 --> 00:22:24.710
labor spend. I reduced my overall
00:22:24.720 --> 00:22:27.510
turnover and I'm now paying towards
00:22:27.520 --> 00:22:29.830
student loan repayment, but a portion of
00:22:29.840 --> 00:22:32.549
those dollars are tax advantaged. So,
00:22:32.559 --> 00:22:35.350
you've checked all the boxes of I'm not
00:22:35.360 --> 00:22:37.350
actually spending more dollars. I'm
00:22:37.360 --> 00:22:40.149
saving or repurposing dollars,
00:22:40.159 --> 00:22:42.070
>> but the individual
00:22:42.080 --> 00:22:44.789
>> is getting a lot more than they were
00:22:44.799 --> 00:22:47.510
receiving before. So, it's finally
00:22:47.520 --> 00:22:48.470
funneled
00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:50.390
>> to the individual that matters the most
00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:52.230
for the workforce, which is that stable
00:22:52.240 --> 00:22:53.830
full-time employee.
00:22:53.840 --> 00:22:55.590
>> Well, well, I mean, the hospital is
00:22:55.600 --> 00:22:57.430
actually earning, especially if it's a
00:22:57.440 --> 00:22:59.510
if it's a physician or, you know, a
00:22:59.520 --> 00:23:02.230
mid-level because they're if they're
00:23:02.240 --> 00:23:04.310
billing with RVUs, whatnot. I mean,
00:23:04.320 --> 00:23:06.549
they're so they are they are generating
00:23:06.559 --> 00:23:08.310
>> 100%. I mean, I'll I'll give you an
00:23:08.320 --> 00:23:11.350
example. So, uh, as I mentioned, my, uh,
00:23:11.360 --> 00:23:13.430
my husband's a surgeon, and he recently
00:23:13.440 --> 00:23:15.830
lost, um, you know, a nurse and
00:23:15.840 --> 00:23:18.230
aesthetist that worked with them. And,
00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:19.750
you know, he he told me, he's like,
00:23:19.760 --> 00:23:21.990
"Look, surprise losses are scary because
00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:24.390
if they don't have backup plans in
00:23:24.400 --> 00:23:27.029
place, what happens, right? Surgeries
00:23:27.039 --> 00:23:29.909
get cancelled, patients get delayed, and
00:23:29.919 --> 00:23:32.149
physicians obviously get impacted from a
00:23:32.159 --> 00:23:33.750
productivity perspective. But the most
00:23:33.760 --> 00:23:35.990
important again is the the patient side.
00:23:36.000 --> 00:23:37.270
And that is
00:23:37.280 --> 00:23:39.029
>> just a tough pill to swallow for the
00:23:39.039 --> 00:23:40.710
whole system. And that's exactly how we
00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:42.710
think about it. Like health care is not
00:23:42.720 --> 00:23:44.950
just about nurses or just about doctors.
00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:46.390
It's like you got to have your surge
00:23:46.400 --> 00:23:47.990
techs and your rad techs and your nurse
00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:50.149
anesthetists all in place to make the
00:23:50.159 --> 00:23:52.149
machine run, right?
00:23:52.159 --> 00:23:54.870
>> Yeah. That's brilliant. Who was who was
00:23:54.880 --> 00:23:57.510
the first health system that trusted you
00:23:57.520 --> 00:23:59.990
enough to kind of run through this and
00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:01.669
like what did what did that conversation
00:24:01.679 --> 00:24:05.669
look like? Yeah. So, interestingly, our
00:24:05.679 --> 00:24:08.950
very first partner um even before we
00:24:08.960 --> 00:24:10.470
brought healthcare systems in place was
00:24:10.480 --> 00:24:13.269
Warby Parker and they said, "Hey,
00:24:13.279 --> 00:24:16.310
>> interesting. Got students and you've got
00:24:16.320 --> 00:24:18.470
dollars and we've got jobs and we've got
00:24:18.480 --> 00:24:20.470
a way to repay those dollars. What do
00:24:20.480 --> 00:24:22.390
you think?" So, I met with their seuite
00:24:22.400 --> 00:24:26.149
um and it was so special. This was years
00:24:26.159 --> 00:24:28.789
ago. We ended up seeing the program go
00:24:28.799 --> 00:24:31.110
gang busters. They had 3x the number of
00:24:31.120 --> 00:24:32.870
optometrists apply. Wow.
00:24:32.880 --> 00:24:36.789
>> versus seats they had available. And um
00:24:36.799 --> 00:24:40.310
on top of that we ended up seeing like
00:24:40.320 --> 00:24:42.230
you know many of their large peers
00:24:42.240 --> 00:24:45.350
immediately um you know followed suit
00:24:45.360 --> 00:24:48.149
and we had you know again not only just
00:24:48.159 --> 00:24:49.669
3x the number of optometrists but we
00:24:49.679 --> 00:24:51.430
placed them in 10 different states and
00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:53.269
the program continued to grow year after
00:24:53.279 --> 00:24:55.510
year and we thought in that moment wow
00:24:55.520 --> 00:24:59.029
hold on um this is so interesting in the
00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:02.149
subsector but let's look at the broader
00:25:02.159 --> 00:25:03.990
landscape of healthcare and then we
00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:06.070
started partnering ing with large health
00:25:06.080 --> 00:25:07.830
care systems like the ones I mentioned,
00:25:07.840 --> 00:25:10.070
Boston Children's and Novant and
00:25:10.080 --> 00:25:12.230
Northwestern. And in that moment, we
00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:16.149
realized that this model is such a great
00:25:16.159 --> 00:25:20.310
fit for healthcare generally. Um, and so
00:25:20.320 --> 00:25:22.630
last year, we 4xed the number of
00:25:22.640 --> 00:25:25.190
healthcare employers that we supported
00:25:25.200 --> 00:25:27.350
and then this year we just raised
00:25:27.360 --> 00:25:30.470
funding to step on the gas for that. So
00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:32.149
>> that's
00:25:32.159 --> 00:25:33.669
because you've been at this for a while.
00:25:33.679 --> 00:25:35.029
I think when we spoke you were like
00:25:35.039 --> 00:25:36.789
you've been at it for like eight years.
00:25:36.799 --> 00:25:38.070
>> Yes. Yes.
00:25:38.080 --> 00:25:41.190
>> It's quite a it's quite a run.
00:25:41.200 --> 00:25:43.590
>> Yeah. I mean it is just like one of
00:25:43.600 --> 00:25:47.269
those things where you realize that the
00:25:47.279 --> 00:25:49.430
the fact is most good things in life are
00:25:49.440 --> 00:25:51.750
the long game. This is definitely the
00:25:51.760 --> 00:25:54.230
long game. And I joke that startup years
00:25:54.240 --> 00:25:56.149
are like dog years. Every year feels
00:25:56.159 --> 00:25:59.269
like seven years. But um but I got to
00:25:59.279 --> 00:26:02.390
say this has like been the most special
00:26:02.400 --> 00:26:05.830
uh work to be doing and so I'm you know
00:26:05.840 --> 00:26:08.070
pretty pretty about it.
00:26:08.080 --> 00:26:08.710
>> Yeah.
00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:10.870
>> I I'm tempted. I want to I want to ask
00:26:10.880 --> 00:26:12.230
you something. Maybe you've never been
00:26:12.240 --> 00:26:14.870
asked it before in an interview. Um
00:26:14.880 --> 00:26:17.110
>> surprise me.
00:26:17.120 --> 00:26:19.350
I don't know what like when was the
00:26:19.360 --> 00:26:21.669
hardest week you had building this
00:26:21.679 --> 00:26:23.110
company
00:26:23.120 --> 00:26:26.070
>> because you've been outwardly I mean it
00:26:26.080 --> 00:26:29.750
just seems like one can read headlines
00:26:29.760 --> 00:26:31.350
and press releases like dude every
00:26:31.360 --> 00:26:33.029
everything's great everything's great
00:26:33.039 --> 00:26:35.990
but deep down I mean been around enough
00:26:36.000 --> 00:26:37.669
founders to know that it's not always
00:26:37.679 --> 00:26:40.310
great. I'm just curious what was
00:26:40.320 --> 00:26:43.990
>> what was the hardest week you've had uh
00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:48.390
building this company? Yeah. Um, first
00:26:48.400 --> 00:26:52.149
of all, it's it is a roller coaster
00:26:52.159 --> 00:26:53.669
period full stop, right? So, I think
00:26:53.679 --> 00:26:56.870
there's there's a number of uh moments
00:26:56.880 --> 00:27:00.070
where you look back and you're like,
00:27:00.080 --> 00:27:02.630
wow, we got through that, right? Which
00:27:02.640 --> 00:27:05.590
at the time felt nutty and wild. And I
00:27:05.600 --> 00:27:06.950
always tell my team, I'm like, part of
00:27:06.960 --> 00:27:09.029
the fun of being in a startup is there's
00:27:09.039 --> 00:27:12.470
a lot of ambiguity. Um, and part of the
00:27:12.480 --> 00:27:14.149
challenge of being in a startup, right,
00:27:14.159 --> 00:27:16.549
is that there's a lot of ambiguity. Um,
00:27:16.559 --> 00:27:18.470
but I would say, you know, the reality
00:27:18.480 --> 00:27:20.310
is on the customer side of the house,
00:27:20.320 --> 00:27:23.029
we've been very fortunate, right? We
00:27:23.039 --> 00:27:26.310
have not had partners um, churn. We have
00:27:26.320 --> 00:27:28.149
had a lot of partners, as I mentioned,
00:27:28.159 --> 00:27:29.510
as recently as this week, who have
00:27:29.520 --> 00:27:31.909
expanded their partnerships with us, and
00:27:31.919 --> 00:27:34.230
that gives me a lot of um, you know,
00:27:34.240 --> 00:27:36.630
joy. But I'd say the areas that have
00:27:36.640 --> 00:27:39.190
been most challenging are one just the
00:27:39.200 --> 00:27:43.510
people's side, right? Like you grow so
00:27:43.520 --> 00:27:46.789
close and uh with every single team
00:27:46.799 --> 00:27:48.549
member and I'm very fortunate that our
00:27:48.559 --> 00:27:49.830
executive team
00:27:49.840 --> 00:27:51.510
>> a lot of them have been with me for many
00:27:51.520 --> 00:27:53.190
years, right? My COO has been with me
00:27:53.200 --> 00:27:56.070
for six years, my CTO's been with me for
00:27:56.080 --> 00:27:58.950
um five years, my uh you know our
00:27:58.960 --> 00:28:02.310
operations lead for five years, etc. Um
00:28:02.320 --> 00:28:04.389
but there are chapters in a startup,
00:28:04.399 --> 00:28:06.870
right? Folks who were amazing from 1 to
00:28:06.880 --> 00:28:08.789
10, folks who were great from 10 to 50
00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:12.950
to from 50 to 100. And um there are hard
00:28:12.960 --> 00:28:15.029
weeks. I'm not going to say it's just
00:28:15.039 --> 00:28:18.310
one week. Hard moments where that is
00:28:18.320 --> 00:28:21.110
probably the area where you know that
00:28:21.120 --> 00:28:22.549
you have a lot to do and a lot to build
00:28:22.559 --> 00:28:24.230
toward, but like
00:28:24.240 --> 00:28:25.909
>> there's still just the heartbeat that
00:28:25.919 --> 00:28:27.990
comes with, you know, like who helps you
00:28:28.000 --> 00:28:28.950
get there
00:28:28.960 --> 00:28:31.190
>> versus who you need going forward. And
00:28:31.200 --> 00:28:33.269
those have been some of the toughest
00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:36.230
calls but the most necessary um
00:28:36.240 --> 00:28:40.470
>> parts of the equation hands down. Um for
00:28:40.480 --> 00:28:41.990
sure
00:28:42.000 --> 00:28:45.110
and uh outside of that I would say like
00:28:45.120 --> 00:28:47.590
the rest of it just feels like it is it
00:28:47.600 --> 00:28:49.510
is normal ter you know it's just it is
00:28:49.520 --> 00:28:51.830
like part of part of the motion right
00:28:51.840 --> 00:28:53.990
you roll with the punches you keep going
00:28:54.000 --> 00:28:54.549
but
00:28:54.559 --> 00:28:57.190
>> yeah yeah and what I remember is when we
00:28:57.200 --> 00:28:59.909
first uh connected uh I think we had
00:28:59.919 --> 00:29:01.430
both realized that both of our parents
00:29:01.440 --> 00:29:03.190
are are immigrants
00:29:03.200 --> 00:29:05.990
>> and I would suspect that you know
00:29:06.000 --> 00:29:09.110
education is a is a big part of the
00:29:09.120 --> 00:29:10.389
reason why you're able to kind of build
00:29:10.399 --> 00:29:11.990
they were able to build a life here and
00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:13.350
you I know you've said that kind of
00:29:13.360 --> 00:29:14.789
publicly.
00:29:14.799 --> 00:29:17.669
>> Um but I guess what does it feel like to
00:29:17.679 --> 00:29:18.950
build a company
00:29:18.960 --> 00:29:21.430
>> that's about educational funding while
00:29:21.440 --> 00:29:23.350
also kind of carrying that story? Does
00:29:23.360 --> 00:29:26.549
it feel personal for you every day or
00:29:26.559 --> 00:29:29.350
>> as it has become something else?
00:29:29.360 --> 00:29:33.430
>> Yeah. Um look I you know um from two
00:29:33.440 --> 00:29:36.470
vantage points I'd say like with my uh
00:29:36.480 --> 00:29:38.230
you know broader family with my parents
00:29:38.240 --> 00:29:40.549
etc. It's special because it's always
00:29:40.559 --> 00:29:41.830
been told to me there was nothing more
00:29:41.840 --> 00:29:43.590
important than education. It was the one
00:29:43.600 --> 00:29:46.149
area that my parents um always invested
00:29:46.159 --> 00:29:48.870
in the most with us growing up and you
00:29:48.880 --> 00:29:51.510
know like every car ride was like going
00:29:51.520 --> 00:29:53.669
through Brainiac flashcards and you know
00:29:53.679 --> 00:29:56.070
like asking me random math
00:29:56.080 --> 00:29:57.830
multiplications on the spot and you know
00:29:57.840 --> 00:29:59.590
like I had totally nerdy parents. I'm a
00:29:59.600 --> 00:30:01.909
nerd, too. It is what it is. But, you
00:30:01.919 --> 00:30:02.549
know,
00:30:02.559 --> 00:30:03.990
>> all good.
00:30:04.000 --> 00:30:06.549
>> But, I think, you know, that um was
00:30:06.559 --> 00:30:09.510
always being to me. And I got to see my
00:30:09.520 --> 00:30:11.430
parents who, you know, when they
00:30:11.440 --> 00:30:13.909
immigrated here, both continued to go
00:30:13.919 --> 00:30:15.510
for more advanced degrees while they
00:30:15.520 --> 00:30:19.029
were in the states. And that takes a lot
00:30:19.039 --> 00:30:21.510
because you can't get access to federal
00:30:21.520 --> 00:30:24.789
loans, you know, easily as as a um
00:30:24.799 --> 00:30:26.789
immigrant in the US, right? And so I
00:30:26.799 --> 00:30:30.070
think um you know I I had already heard
00:30:30.080 --> 00:30:31.590
about what they had to give up to get
00:30:31.600 --> 00:30:35.029
there and then coming into a household
00:30:35.039 --> 00:30:37.669
where I have a spouse who every day I
00:30:37.679 --> 00:30:39.830
mean our you know you think about
00:30:39.840 --> 00:30:41.510
largest bills in life and for most
00:30:41.520 --> 00:30:43.110
Americans you know including our
00:30:43.120 --> 00:30:44.470
household those rent and your student
00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:47.029
loan payments right
00:30:47.039 --> 00:30:49.269
>> four figures every single month makes
00:30:49.279 --> 00:30:52.310
you really think about it and um
00:30:52.320 --> 00:30:55.750
>> and so I think that you know uh lens has
00:30:55.760 --> 00:30:58.710
really helped me craft my why every day
00:30:58.720 --> 00:31:01.269
where I'm like, God, there's no sector
00:31:01.279 --> 00:31:05.190
that I think, you know, uh, not only
00:31:05.200 --> 00:31:07.110
needs this more, but that like gives me
00:31:07.120 --> 00:31:09.430
more joy to be a part of and there's no
00:31:09.440 --> 00:31:11.669
problem within the sector that I'm like
00:31:11.679 --> 00:31:13.510
like if not us, then who? I tell my team
00:31:13.520 --> 00:31:15.110
that all the time and I really believe
00:31:15.120 --> 00:31:16.710
it. Right. So,
00:31:16.720 --> 00:31:18.549
>> yeah.
00:31:18.559 --> 00:31:21.029
>> What what I just sort of realized is I
00:31:21.039 --> 00:31:22.230
don't even I don't even want to call it
00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:24.149
infrastructure. It's not. It's more like
00:31:24.159 --> 00:31:26.070
this is an ecosystem. It's a living
00:31:26.080 --> 00:31:28.149
breathing thing that you're building for
00:31:28.159 --> 00:31:31.350
a generation of clinicians. So, and my
00:31:31.360 --> 00:31:32.950
hope is that many of them will will hear
00:31:32.960 --> 00:31:35.590
this conversation. What do you what do
00:31:35.600 --> 00:31:37.990
you want to say to them directly? Um,
00:31:38.000 --> 00:31:39.909
you know, to the to the 23-year-old
00:31:39.919 --> 00:31:41.750
nurse who's, you know, sitting in his or
00:31:41.760 --> 00:31:43.269
her apartment
00:31:43.279 --> 00:31:45.590
>> with, you know, 90 90 grand.
00:31:45.600 --> 00:31:45.990
>> Yeah.
00:31:46.000 --> 00:31:47.909
>> In debt and has got a shift at, you
00:31:47.919 --> 00:31:49.590
know, 6:00 in the morning.
00:31:49.600 --> 00:31:51.909
>> Yeah. Um,
00:31:51.919 --> 00:31:55.110
you know, so much of what Clasp has been
00:31:55.120 --> 00:31:57.669
built around is helping individuals feel
00:31:57.679 --> 00:31:59.750
more seen. I think that healthcare has
00:31:59.760 --> 00:32:01.909
become more transactional
00:32:01.919 --> 00:32:04.549
>> because of the urgency with every hire.
00:32:04.559 --> 00:32:05.990
That's why the main tools are things
00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:08.149
like sign on bonuses. It doesn't show
00:32:08.159 --> 00:32:10.230
>> care or long-term investment. It's, hey,
00:32:10.240 --> 00:32:12.310
I really need talent today.
00:32:12.320 --> 00:32:15.110
>> And when I think about Clasp, it's like
00:32:15.120 --> 00:32:17.350
Clasp is in your corner. And when I say
00:32:17.360 --> 00:32:20.310
that, what it means is it's hard to go
00:32:20.320 --> 00:32:21.990
out to bat for yourself and be like,
00:32:22.000 --> 00:32:24.470
"Hey, I want to get up really early. I
00:32:24.480 --> 00:32:26.389
want to be able to work this long shift.
00:32:26.399 --> 00:32:28.070
I want to serve my patients, right? But
00:32:28.080 --> 00:32:29.669
I don't want to come home stressed and
00:32:29.679 --> 00:32:31.750
have to, you know, count every penny for
00:32:31.760 --> 00:32:33.909
the next big bill that I have to pay."
00:32:33.919 --> 00:32:35.190
And so
00:32:35.200 --> 00:32:38.789
>> if we can use our platform to go and
00:32:38.799 --> 00:32:41.509
look at all the wasted dollars that are
00:32:41.519 --> 00:32:43.350
being thrown into the wrong directions
00:32:43.360 --> 00:32:44.950
in the wrong places and the wrong
00:32:44.960 --> 00:32:46.230
pockets
00:32:46.240 --> 00:32:50.230
>> and reallocate that to the right place
00:32:50.240 --> 00:32:51.110
>> which is
00:32:51.120 --> 00:32:53.669
>> to the actual clinician who is helping
00:32:53.679 --> 00:32:56.630
that patient on a day-to-day basis who
00:32:56.640 --> 00:32:59.830
is our long-term workforce. That's real
00:32:59.840 --> 00:33:00.950
impact
00:33:00.960 --> 00:33:04.549
>> and I just want you know um any
00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:08.389
clinician to know that yeah it's a tough
00:33:08.399 --> 00:33:10.549
it is a really tough job. I have so much
00:33:10.559 --> 00:33:14.789
respect um for it and while you know I'm
00:33:14.799 --> 00:33:16.950
I can't practice the ways that we can
00:33:16.960 --> 00:33:19.110
help her saying what else can we take
00:33:19.120 --> 00:33:21.190
off your plate while you keep your plate
00:33:21.200 --> 00:33:24.070
pretty full right
00:33:24.080 --> 00:33:26.950
>> before I forget where can people go to
00:33:26.960 --> 00:33:29.350
follow your journey your team's journey
00:33:29.360 --> 00:33:31.750
um give us like a commercial so that we
00:33:31.760 --> 00:33:33.830
can you know help this out
00:33:33.840 --> 00:33:37.590
>> yeah absolutely u so please please come
00:33:37.600 --> 00:33:40.950
check out clasp cla asp.com.
00:33:40.960 --> 00:33:43.669
Uh go to our website, take a peek around
00:33:43.679 --> 00:33:45.750
if you're a health care system or
00:33:45.760 --> 00:33:49.029
healthcare employer um or a a student or
00:33:49.039 --> 00:33:51.190
even a a current practicing clinician
00:33:51.200 --> 00:33:53.110
who's like, I need some support with my
00:33:53.120 --> 00:33:55.830
student loans. Um and if you have any
00:33:55.840 --> 00:33:58.389
questions for me directly, you can send
00:33:58.399 --> 00:34:03.430
me an email. It's just test tsclasp.com.
00:34:03.440 --> 00:34:04.870
But I would love to hear from you. Love
00:34:04.880 --> 00:34:06.710
to hear what else we're missing or
00:34:06.720 --> 00:34:09.190
should be thinking about. and um and we
00:34:09.200 --> 00:34:11.430
can go from there.
00:34:11.440 --> 00:34:14.310
>> You've been great, Tess. Um I think that
00:34:14.320 --> 00:34:16.470
uh not I think no, I know you are like
00:34:16.480 --> 00:34:18.310
wise beyond your years. I just feel like
00:34:18.320 --> 00:34:20.470
you're like an old soul. Uh and I say
00:34:20.480 --> 00:34:22.310
that in like the nicest kindest possible
00:34:22.320 --> 00:34:24.790
way. So, just thank you for sharing a
00:34:24.800 --> 00:34:26.629
bit of your journey and obviously you're
00:34:26.639 --> 00:34:28.950
you're in a a newer chapter and there's
00:34:28.960 --> 00:34:31.030
going to be other chapters and my hope
00:34:31.040 --> 00:34:32.790
is that you continue to grow and and
00:34:32.800 --> 00:34:34.550
drive impact and
00:34:34.560 --> 00:34:36.710
>> continue to just sharing your why with
00:34:36.720 --> 00:34:38.310
your team as they continue to grow. So,
00:34:38.320 --> 00:34:39.669
that's that's incredible. And for those
00:34:39.679 --> 00:34:41.669
of you if you've been listening to this
00:34:41.679 --> 00:34:43.829
and you found it to be particularly
00:34:43.839 --> 00:34:46.310
enlightening, entertaining, my
00:34:46.320 --> 00:34:48.310
encouragement to you is is would you
00:34:48.320 --> 00:34:50.389
mind sharing it? would you mind sharing
00:34:50.399 --> 00:34:53.030
it with someone or commenting on it,
00:34:53.040 --> 00:34:54.790
letting us know what resonated with you?
00:34:54.800 --> 00:34:56.470
That's always uh helpful. That gives us
00:34:56.480 --> 00:34:57.829
a little bit of a signal. So, just
00:34:57.839 --> 00:35:00.230
remember this is this is not just a
00:35:00.240 --> 00:35:02.310
content machine. This isn't a community.
00:35:02.320 --> 00:35:04.230
It's a living breathing thing. So, if
00:35:04.240 --> 00:35:05.589
there is a topic that you would like for
00:35:05.599 --> 00:35:07.670
us to explore or maybe there's a leader
00:35:07.680 --> 00:35:09.190
that you want to have come on to the
00:35:09.200 --> 00:35:11.109
show, yeah, drop us a note. We do read
00:35:11.119 --> 00:35:13.510
them. So, thank you for listening, Tess.
00:35:13.520 --> 00:35:15.270
So good to see you again. Keep building
00:35:15.280 --> 00:35:17.270
with purpose and we will see you next
00:35:17.280 --> 00:35:19.510
time on the Advancing Healthcare
00:35:19.520 --> 00:35:22.720
Innovation Show.