{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdeathetseq.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2F4a8e5fc4-89b724a2","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Episode 3: Dan Isard and the State of the Modern Funeral Industry","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/ca9cee/ca9cee60-854d-4f80-8769-fe86fe6eba85/4682398c-8115-4d2d-bc1b-8340dfb76f7c/1529945196-artwork.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"In the United States today, most funerals are arranged by licensed funeral directors, most bodies are prepared for disposition by licensed embalmers, and many funerals take place in licensed funeral homes. The funeral industry has been handling the dead in America for only a century. This is largely an industry made up of “mom and pop” family owned businesses, passed down from generation to generation, although there are a few large companies and even a few that are publicly traded. \r\nDan Isard has been providing management and financial consulting services to the funeral industry for 25 years. He is a frequent speaker on topics related to the funeral industry and writes a column for The Director magazine. We can’t understand how the world of death care may be changing until we understand how that world functions in the first place. In today’s episode, Dan and I discuss the structure of the funeral industry and some of the challenges that it faces.\r\n\r\n"}