Christine Allen and Caleb Larkin recap the SHRM crowd frenzy and isolved booth madness

Live from the isolved booth at SHRM Annual in San Diego, Christine Allen and Caleb Larkin join William Tincup and Ryan Leary to wrap the event with laughs, insight, and a little chaos. This wasn’t just another tradeshow—it was a full-on activation. Caleb breaks down how isolved’s infamous text-based bingo game drew over 400 participants—and why designer purses turned the booth into a mob scene. Christine dishes on crowd control, social energy, and what surprised her most about the experience. William and Ryan reflect on what worked this year—including the flow between podcast guests and sales—and share their favorite unscripted podcast moments from the show floor. It’s equal parts hype, hilarity, and hard-earned takeaways. Timestamps 00:00 — End-of-day chaos as the team wraps the final show 00:27 — Why isolved’s SHRM booth drew record-breaking traffic 01:06 — Caleb breaks down the isolved bingo game strategy 02:10 — The text message game that teaches software features on the fly 02:34 — Crowd frenzy over designer purse giveaways hits a boiling point 04:46 — Managing crowd control and accidental fire hazards 06:07 — Lessons from running a high-traffic booth 06:50 — Podcasting meets sales: integration finally clicks 07:57 — “Do y’all have Jesus in your heart?”—Tincup’s Sunday kickoff 08:19 — The surprising impact of live podcast pairings 09:20 — First-time guests bond over astrology, end up collaborating 10:13 — Two random coaches walk up—then deliver gold on the mic 11:10 — How the booth’s layout encouraged authenticity and connection 11:45 — Encouraging nervous guests: “It’s just like Starbucks” 12:26 — Cold pitches, warm leads, and hilarious rejections 13:10 — What Christine and Caleb would tweak for next year 13:51 — Running out of swag for the first time ever 14:45 — 500 water bottles, infused flavors, and fan-favorite ginger water 15:22 — Final reflections on energy, team effort, and booth success 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/