Peace Is About To Cease, and All Hell’s Gonna Break Loose

Peace Is About to Cease and All Hell’s Gonna Break Loose isn’t a traditional business book—and it’s not a straight-line memoir either. It’s the story of growing up in rural Mississippi, stumbling into the hospitality industry, and learning—often the hard way—how to navigate change, chaos, and the curveballs life throws when you least expect them.

From small-town roots to boardroom battles in the nation’s capital, Joel Carver recounts a journey marked by humor, humility, and lessons earned through trial and error. Readers encounter the colorful characters who shaped his path, the missteps that nearly took him under, and the unlikely wins that kept him moving forward.

At its core, this is a book about resilience—not the polished, theoretical kind, but the kind forged by surviving the storm, rebuilding when everything falls apart, and learning to laugh at yourself along the way. It’s a reminder that leadership isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about asking better questions, treating people with dignity, and holding onto faith—even “while the trees are still in blossom.”

If you’ve ever faced a moment when peace felt out of reach and everything seemed to be unraveling—whether in business, family, or within yourself—this book is for you. Honest, raw, and laced with wit, it offers both a mirror and a map: proof that no matter where you start, you can find your way forward—and maybe even inspire others to do the same.

A great guest experience doesn’t happen by accident—it’s built by the people who deliver it. You can have a newly renovated hotel in a prime location with top-tier amenities, but if the team is disengaged or underperforming, none of that matters. Guests won’t return, and profitability will suffer. Conversely, a dated property that is clean and staffed by exceptional employees consistently earns loyalty, referrals, and long-term financial success. The difference isn’t the building. It’s the people.

That premise is at the heart of The People Effect, the new book by hospitality leaders Joel Carver and Mary Weber. Drawing on decades of experience in hotel operations, sales, and strategic human resources, the authors explore why employee experience is the single most powerful driver of guest satisfaction, retention, and profitability—and how leaders can intentionally design it.

Carver and Weber first worked together in 2008 while serving in senior leadership roles for a hospitality management and real estate company. As the Great Recession unfolded, they and their leadership team were tasked with keeping hotels staffed and profitable during unprecedented economic pressure. As conditions improved, they shifted focus—designing and implementing people-centered strategies that resulted in one of the strongest associate cultures in the industry.

Since then, Weber has continued her 30-year career in strategic HR leadership, talent management, executive coaching, and higher education. Carver took the entrepreneurial path, founding The Carver Companies, now the largest hospitality-facing human capital organization in North America. Despite different trajectories, the two have continued collaborating to address the evolving challenges of hospitality workforce management.

The People Effect was born from a refrain they heard repeatedly from clients and colleagues: “You really need to write a book.” Over the past decade, Carver and Weber witnessed a fundamental shift in both employer behavior and employee expectations. While profitability has always mattered, an excessive focus on the P&L has pushed people to the margins. Guests and employees have increasingly become secondary to short-term financial metrics—and the results have been costly.

That approach no longer works. With unemployment at historic lows and competition for talent fierce, employees are no longer commodities. They are scarce, valuable assets. Organizations that fail to recognize this reality will struggle to staff their hotels, much less deliver memorable guest experiences.

“Employees are the foundation of success in any business—especially hospitality,” Weber notes. “When we treat our people well, they treat our guests well, and that ultimately takes care of the P&L. When we don’t, both the guest experience and profitability collapse.”

Structured to mirror the employee lifecycle, The People Effect covers everything from organizational culture and recruiting to performance management, career development, and retention. Each chapter begins with a real-world narrative featuring a hotel General Manager and HR Director, illustrating the complexities and pressures leaders face. The second section provides practical, immediately actionable strategies leaders can implement to strengthen the employee experience. The book concludes with tools, templates, and resources to help readers put ideas into practice.

While written primarily for hoteliers, the principles apply across industries.

“Our goal is to encourage owners and operators to invest in their people with the same intention and care they’ve historically devoted to buildings and balance sheets,” Carver says. “If you believe people drive performance, this book is for you.”