Alain Hunkins and Tim Sackett explain how rituals fix culture and expose bad leadership

This episode was recorded live at SHRM from the isolved booth in San Diego. William Tincup and Ryan Leary spoke with Alain Hunkins and Tim Sackett about what culture actually looks like inside real companies. Alain explained why simple rituals can completely shift team energy without using policies or budgets. Tim pushed back on whether leaders even know how to build culture in the first place. They both argued that most teams never see culture modeled in action. They said that leaders usually confuse tasks for people. They described how rituals during interviews can help candidates understand whether they belong. They also explained why bad leaders often stay in power. They perform well. They bring in money. They meet goals. But they never learn how to lead. Timestamps 00:00 — The SHRM booth goes live with William and Ryan 00:52 — Alain sings Happy Birthday to show how rituals shift energy 02:17 — Leaders build culture through ritual. Bad managers don’t 03:21 — Alain explains how people-first leadership changes performance 03:44 — Tim questions whether leaders know how to build culture at all 04:07 — Alain shares a check-in ritual that changes team meetings 05:20 — Most people never learn culture because they never see it 05:39 — Tim asks why interviews don’t include real culture cues 06:54 — People should walk away from interviews if it’s not a fit 07:35 — Tim explains how performance rankings reveal real expectations 08:48 — Feedback should feel intense in the first 90 days 09:14 — Alain warns that buzzwords won’t fix culture 10:05 — Ryan asks whether bad culture is just bad fit 10:50 — Culture is your boss. Not the brand 11:30 — Alain explains why bad leaders get protected 13:08 — Tim defines a people hero as someone who balances business and care 14:56 — Alain says people heroes speak truth to power and lead with kindness This episode was recorded live with isolved at the SHRM Annual Conference in San Diego. The Heroes of HR podcast is a limited series sponsored by isolved. isolved is an HCM platform that modernizes HR, benefits, and payroll across Healthcare, Hospitality, Manufacturing, and more. Learn more about isolved: ⁠https://www.isolvedhcm.com/⁠ Connect with Us: William Tincup LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/tincup/⁠ Ryan Leary LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanleary/⁠ Connect with us on social: Site: ⁠http://www.wrkdefined.com⁠ TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@wrkdefined⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/wrkdefined⁠ Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/WRKdefined/⁠ Twitter (X): ⁠https://twitter.com/WRKdefined⁠ Substack: ⁠https://wrkdefined.substack.com/⁠