2014 ALFA Senior Living Executive Forum

Executive Summary Sponsor
2014
ALFA SENIOR LIVING
EXECUTIVE FORUM
NOVEMBER 12-13, 2014 | LOEWS NEW ORLEANS HOTEL
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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MESSAGE FROM ALFA
Dear Senior Living Executive,
The ALFA Senior Living Executive Forum is a benefit your company extends to you as part of its Silver and
Gold Membership in ALFA. This exclusive event facilitates a rewarding experience for owner/operators and
industry partners to come together to discuss issues shaping the future of senior living. The outcome is a
rewarding and collaborative experience that benefits you, your company and the seniors in our care.
The following Executive Summary, brought to you by sponsor McKesson, is a glimpse of the interactive
discussions between these C-level senior living leaders.
Thank you to all who attended. We look forward to seeing you at the 2015 ALFA Senior Living Executive
Forum October 21-22, 2015 in Rancho Mirage, CA!
Sincerely,
Maribeth Bersani
Interim CEO & SVP of Public Policy
Save the Date
MAY
2015 Senior Living
Executive Conference
4-7, 2015 | Tampa, FL
OCT
2015 ALFA Senior Living
Executive Forum
21-22, 2015 | Rancho Mirage, CA
DEC
2015 Chief Executive Summit
(Gold Members-Only)
1-3, 2015 | Scottsdale, AZ
3
EXECUTIVE FORUM OVERVIEW
ALFA Forum Participants Embrace
Change, Building on a Solid Foundation
The Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA) hosted
200 executives committed to advancing excellence in
senior living at the 2014 ALFA Senior Living Executive
Forum, November 12-13 in New Orleans. For two
days, members of ALFA’s Executive Roundtables and
President’s Council sought solutions to the biggest
challenges they face in the fast-growing senior living
business. They forged new relationships and left with
solutions to implement today.
improve their businesses and in turn, the seniors and the
families they serve,” said Maribeth Bersani, ALFA senior
vice president of public policy.
One attendee summed up recurring themes at the
forum in written post-conference comments: “Change is
constant, but right now seems to be accelerating. From
expectations of the customer to higher acuities, assisted
living is going through a time of great transition.”
“Change is constant, but right now seems to
be accelerating. From expectations of the
customer to higher acuities, assisted living is
going through a time of great transition.”
“The ALFA Forum is a robust and collaborative learning
experience that helps guide and educate senior living
professionals as they strategize about innovative ways to
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Leadership and crisis management
expert Lt. General Russel Honoré
in a keynote speech explored
leadership challenges, building
business relationships by finding
a common purpose, and making
smart choices in the face of a
crisis. “You grow up learning the
definition of leadership is getting others to perform a
task or function. The new normal is leadership means
the ability to get others to willingly follow you to
perform a task or mission,” said Honoré, who led the
federal government’s efforts to combat the effects of
hurricanes Katrina and Rita. “The opportunities are on
the other side of the impossible.”
Mix and Mingle
Attendees joined colleagues and peers at the Mix and Mingle
Reception, sponsored by LTC and SeniorHousingNet, to kick
off the Executive Forum with some fun!
George Mason University housing professor and senior
living expert Andrew Carle shared insights on what a
worldwide aging population means for the industry and
the need for new models of housing. Carle’s research
shows that senior living needs to improve its first
point of contact with consumers, said one conference
attendee. Additionally, participants heard about how
data show that smaller senior living communities are
caring for more higher acuity residents.
Discussions between ALFA’s Executive Roundtable
members and ALFA’s President’s Council Members
focused on key industry trends including ethics and
aging, technological innovations, leadership, sales staff
strategies, and building strong relationships with the
media.
Aging expert and academic Dr. Harry Moody
discussed the changing meaning of aging in a keynote
presentation. “It doesn’t matter what you say. It matters
what people hear,” he said, adding that the senior
living industry could do a better job communicating its
benefits to the general public, lawmakers and to older
adults and their families. “You have a great story to tell,
but you’re not doing a good job telling it,” he said. He
also focused on the need for senior living as a whole
to build an industry brand while different companies
concurrently seek to build their own unique brands.
Following Moody’s presentation, members met with
peer groups to discuss and dissect the opportunities
and challenges facing them today.
Attendees expressed pride in the work being done to
provide quality care to seniors, and want to increase
public awareness. “This is a great industry to be in, and
we have a lot of work to do, collectively.”
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OPENING GENEREAL SESSION SUMMARY
The Price of Leadership
Facilitator: Lt. General Russel L. Honoré (Ret.)
Lt. General Russel L. Honoré, USA (Ret.) is a nononsense leader whose command of Joint Task ForceKatrina, leading the government’s response to hurricanes
Katrina and Rita in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana,
was just one of his many bold tasks.
“You grow up learning that the definition of leadership
is getting others to perform a task or function,” Honoré
told a packed room of senior living executives. “The
new normal is the ability to get others to willingly follow
you to perform a task or mission. …You understand the
importance of people doing the right thing when no one
is watching.”
Honoré outlined for listeners tips on leadership and
advised them to make sure they always know the top five
priorities of their company. Take a tip from founding father
George Washington, who was very good at practicing the
routine and doing it well. Honoré said even a boss should
make sure routine tasks like payroll are occurring as they
should. “What gets you in trouble at your business? The
routine stuff,” Honoré said.
many with no idea of the medications they required. “We
spend more money than anyone else on medicine, and
we ain’t fixed that yet,” he said. “If you’re going to make
a difference in this industry, figure out something that
everyone can buy into, even the people who don’t like
you.” He also noted that it’s common practice to have
identity chips in dogs but “not even a bracelet to help
identify people.”
Honoré said think big. Teach a computer how to taste and
smell or maybe one day a plane could detect if someone
in seat 22F has a fever, he said, referencing the recent
spread of the Ebola virus.
“Leadership requires sacrificing,” said Honoré, who also
oversaw military response to the Space Shuttle Columbia
tragedy and the Washington, DC sniper shootings. “If
you’re not sacrificing you’re probably not leading. You
might be managing, but you’re not leading.” Managers
must rethink how they approach their jobs as jobs
change. “The more responsibility you have, the more you
have to refine that skills set. What works well that got you
where you are probably won’t work
well with your peers.”
Leadership requires sacrificing. If you’re
not sacrificing you’re probably not leading
Also, like General Washington, “don’t be afraid to take on
the impossible,” he said. “The British army used to laugh
at Washington when he showed up on the battlefield, but
“opportunities are on the other side of the impossible.”
In the senior living arena, he said leaders should
encourage development of the “impossible.” He said
more work must be done to improve and expand the
reach of electronic health records, recalling the hundreds
of older Americans lying on stretchers, filling the
walkways of Louisiana’s airports after Hurricane Katrina
struck. Paper records were destroyed and patients were
sent to various hospitals with no medical records and
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He spoke of the importance of
celebrating people in an organization
and not just procedure. “Too often in times of good
business, [managers] start focusing on process and
procedure rather than the people. …You can worship
the process, but make a commitment to worship your
people.”
Sponsored by:
Honoré has written several
books, including the most
recent “Leadership In the
New Normal.” His PowerPoint
presentation to the ALFA
Executive Forum can be
found on ALFA’s website at
www.alfa.org/honoreppt.
Leadership and Preparedeness in the 21st Century
Honoré also hosted an emotionally charged breakout
session “Leadership and Preparedness in the 21st
Century,” sharing images and stories about the aftermath
of Hurricane Katrina’s devastation of New Orleans.
He discussed the need for senior living providers to
assess the most probable and possible disasters that
could impact their buildings, and make an emergency
plan to support their residents before the disaster strikes.
your communities? Do you have water and food reserves
stored above the first floor of your building?
Honoré cautioned that generators become obsolete
once submerged. Building site design should station
generators on the second floor, not in the basement.
Leadership is however the most important and crucial
priority in handling trying situations. “In time of disaster,
you have to figure out what rules you need
to break,” he advised. “In the middle of
a disaster, rules don’t work. You have to
empower your staff to save people’s lives.
The priority is to save people’s lives. It’s
not about profit.”
“In the middle of a disaster, rules don’t
work. You have to empower your staff
to save people’s lives. The priority is to
save people’s lives. It’s not about profit.”
Honoré, who led the government’s response efforts to
the disaster, stressed that it is important to be prepared
but also willing to adapt in any situation. “To us in the
military, the real challenge is not what you do when
everything is working right, it’s what you do when things
aren’t going right. How do you deal with chaos?”
He encouraged the audience to “create a culture
of preparedness” and look at their operations and
identify weaknesses when problems are exasperated
with power outages or flooding. Will technology
function appropriately? Will alerts and announcements
be received? Will residents have access to their
medications? Will other health providers have access
to resident’s medical records if they are displaced from
Session Stats/Facts:
n
42% of the U.S. population lives within 20
miles of ocean coastline, the Mississippi
River and the Great Lakes
n
For every dollar you spend on preparing
you save $12 on response
n
40% of businesses fail after a disaster
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SESSION SUMMARY
Is Your Sales Staff Asking the Right Questions: Data Shows They Are Not
Facilitator: Andrew Carle, Executive in Residence, Senior Housing Administration, George Mason University
George Mason University Professor and senior housing
expert Andrew Carle presented an eye-opening
presentation on the need for senior living companies
to assess whether their sales teams are trained and
prepared to ask the right questions when prospective
resident famil y members call looking for a community for
their loved one.
The research assessed first impressions, needs
assessment, information gathering, ability to meet needs,
and follow-up. Results indicated that assisted living
communities are no better at handling first-time phone
queries today than 10 years ago, according to Carle,
who is an executive-in-residence with the program in
Senior Housing Administration at the Fairfax, Va.-based
university. “Mystery shops” of assisted living and other
senior living communities by students in the university’s
senior housing program found that community
representatives neglected to ask a family member for key
information about prospective residents.
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Only 40% of those who fielded calls asked for the name
of the prospective resident, 42% discussed how the
community could meet specific resident needs, 2% asked
about ability to pay, and 26% inquired about a move-in
timeline. These percentages were similar to previous
years, researchers found.
“Answering your phone is your first, ‘moment of truth,’”
Carle said. “And the cost of truth in senior housing is
equivalent to a $102,125 sale every time a phone rings.”
Carle referenced an analogy on multiple occasions
comparing the $100,000-plus sale of a senior living
apartment and services to that of a $100,000-plus sale of
a Mercedes.
If you’re shopping for a car and call a Mercedes
dealership, the sales team there will always offer a
prospective buyer the opportunity to come in and
test drive. In senior living, research indicates that 24%
SESSION SUMMARY
of senior living sales professionals offered the
brochure before the tour, and another 41% offered
the tour either zero times or an aggressive four or
more times.
Call Inquiry Best Practices
Carle expressed his disappointment: “For
$100,000, we’ve learned to answer the phone, ask
why they are calling, provide a canned response,
offer a tour or brochure and not necessarily in that
order.”
2. Identify your community and self
He added: When you hear a resident say, ‘I wish
I had moved in six months earlier’ – that’s a
failure. We’re not sellers. We’re taking orders and
achieving 90% occupancy on ‘pain-based’ moveins.”
6. Ask the reason for call (physical/cognitive/social)
Carle believes that the senior living profession
needs a sales attitude with highly trained sales
professionals who receive higher salaries and
higher bonuses for lower acuity move-ins, and they
need to be held accountable.
10. Provide overview of community
1. Promptly answer the phone and do not place
caller on hold for more than 30 seconds
3. Ask caller’s name and the name of the prospective
resident
4. Ask the age of prospective resident
5. Ask how caller heard of community
7. Ask resident’s current living situation
8. Ask timeline for move
9. Share information on your community’s ability to
meet the prospective resident’s needs
11. Ask if they would like to tour the community, but
if they decline, then ask if you can send them a
brochure
12.Listen!
Listen to your customers. Ultimately, it’s not about
selling. It’s about helping, according to Carle.
Innovations, Technology and the Future of Senior Housing
Andrew Carle also discussed senior living innovations,
technology and the future of senior housing, in a session
sponsored by Sodexo. He delved into the need for new
models of housing to best serve the large baby boomer
population and touched on the group’s unique demographic and psychographic needs. Baby boomers largely
embrace technology and a new suite of technologies is
available and in development that dramatically improves
quality of life for seniors, he said. Carle in 2004 coined
the term “nana technology,” referring to technologies
that older adults can embrace such as the Nintendo Wii
enabling them to participate in low impact, range-of-motion activities in a simple and active way. Or Carle saw
the potential in a shoe equipped with a global positioning
system (GPS) - initially designed to help parents keep
track of their kids - to be used by dementia patients who
have the propensity to wander.
Sponsored by:
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SESSION SUMMARY
Senior Living Staffing: Opportunities And Challenges for 2015
Facilitators: Matt Bromen, Human Resources Director, Era Living; Robb Montejano,
Director of Information Technology, Era Living; Mark Woodka, CEO, OnShift
Senior living businesses are facing competition,
recruitment, engagement, and retention issues when it
comes to staffing.
Recruiting should be a continual process, not episodic,
agreed “Senior Living Staffing in 2015” speakers Human
Resources Director Matt Bromen and Information
Technology Director Robb Montejano, both of Era Living,
and Mark Woodka, CEO of session sponsor OnShift.
“Your best recruits are probably already employed by
you,” said Woodka.
Bromen and Montejano said it’s important to break
the typical pattern of managers “hiring in their own
image.” Bromen added: “When hiring is simply based
on interview interactions, there is a much higher success
rate, rather than hiring from people they like.”
Younger workers and those in the “Millennial” generation
often move from job to job, but it’s not that they aren’t
loyal, they just want their work to be more fulfilling,
Woodka said, adding that a company can work to make
a job more fulfilling and that work/life balance and
flexibility are very important to these workers. “If they
don’t get something challenging every year to work on,
they will move on.”
Merrill Gardens President Tana Gall, speaking from
the audience, said her company has a partnership
with Washington University teaching upper-level
undergraduates a senior housing course. She
recommended that operators get involved in college
It’s important to design career tracks for each
position within a company to show an employee
that there are opportunities for advancement.
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SESSION SUMMARY
programs as much as possible. “It provides
exposure for the industry as well as training the next
generation” of senior living professionals.
Bromen said it’s important to design career tracks for
each position within a company to show an employee
that there are opportunities for advancement. “If you
find the right person, you can get them the right job,”
he said.
Montejano and other panelists agreed that workforce
challenges for 2015 will be leadership and training
development, talent retention and turnover, and labor
costs.
Successful Engagement Strategies
Top Reasons Employees Leave Organizations
n
Mentoring and Coaching
n
Not Enough Pay
n
Employee-Centric Policies
n
Don’t Like Manager
n
Scheduling to Employee Preferences
n
Inconvenient Schedule
n
Employee Rewards and Perks
n
Lack of Advancement
n
Profit Sharing
n
Don’t Like Job
n
Offering Defined Career Tracks
n
Not Properly Trained
Achieving Optimum
Performance With State Partners
ALFA hosted a two-part training program designed to
equip participants with facts about their legal and fiduciary
responsibilities as well as best practices in association
governance and industry public policy goals to make them
more effective members of ALFA’s state partners.
Training for Board Service on ALFA Affiliates and
Chapters. Facilitator: Jim Anderson, Principal, Howe
Anderson & Smith PC)
ALFA is committed to ensuring senior living is strong in
the states and encourages members to engage with our
partners in our common goals of developing and enhancing
our industry. ALFA works closely with state associations to
provide the support, resources and guidance they need to
achieve optimum performance and quality service.
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ANNUAL MEETING OF THE PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL
President’s Council and Providers Discuss
Pressing Issues Impacting Senior living
Facilitators: Joe Jasmon, COO, The LaSalle Group; Matt Peponis, CEO, Greenfield
Senior Living; Don Thompson, President & CEO, Senior Living Communities
ALFA’s President’s Council, comprised of industry
partners providing innovative products and services
improving resident quality of life and industry best
practices, met during the Executive Forum for education
and discussion.
Council members heard from a distinguished panel of
senior living operators -- The LaSalle Group COO Joe
Jasmon, Greenfield Senior Living CEO Matt Peponis,
and Senior Living Communities President & CEO Don
Thompson -- who answered audience questions about
future trends in the senior living industry.
Marti Bowman from OnShift, a maker of senior care shift
scheduling software, asked them about their biggest
concerns for 2015. Peponis specifically highlighted
workforce issues and the growing population of seniors.
The executives all agreed that finding and creating
opportunities for the next generation of leaders,
engaging a younger workforce, embracing technology,
and ensuring the highest level of care and services for
residents and families were top of mind.
Thompson answered a question from Model55 Account
Executive Danielle Lavallee, who asked about strategies
for keeping communities in operation for five or more
years in competition with newer communities springing
up. He replied that his firm invests significant capital
in the upkeep of all of its communities and finds that
many prospective residents and families are attracted to
established providers with a well-run community than a
community that’s just getting started.
Audience members discussed with panelists how they
could provide the best products and services to them
to ensure the best possible outcomes for residents and
their families. Jasmon and the other panelists expressed
interest in a variety of technologies enabling them to
streamline their businesses in areas such as clinical,
dining and procurement. Panelists said they favor doing
business with active members of ALFA, saying it’s
important to them to work with strong supporters of the
industry.
The President’s Council also heard remarks from Direct
Supply Senior Vice President of Marketing
Development Brad Klitsch, an association
progress update from ALFA Senior Vice
President of Public Policy Maribeth Bersani,
and a presentation by Professor Andrew
Carle from George Mason University on data
defining a typical senior living resident.
Panelists favor doing business with
active members of ALFA, saying it’s
important to them to work with strong
supporters of the industry.
ALFA PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL MEMBERS
Thank you to the industry partner members who invest in the
collective efforts of the senior living business at a substantial level.
A Place for Mom
Health Care REIT
PointClickCare
ABM On Site Industries
Heffernan Insurance Brokers
RealPage Senior Living
Advance Catastrophe Technologies
Holsag Canada
Red Capital Group
Almost Family
HPSI Purchasing Services
RehabCare
Angel’s Consulting Group/Patriot
Angels.
Intel-GE Care Innovations
Relias Learning
Kwalu
ROC Seniors Housing Fund
Care and Compliance Group
The LaSalle Group
SeniorHomes.com
Care Patrol Franchise Systems, LLC
LG CNS
SeniorHousingNet
Caring.com
LTC Properties, Inc.
Silversphere
Cornell Communications, Inc.
MatrixCare
Sodexo Senior Living
Direct Supply Inc.
McKesson Med-Surg
SouThWood Corp.
Ecolab Inc.
Model55
Stanley Healthcare
Eldermark Software
Moseley Architects
Surface Logic LLC
ESCO Technologies
National Health Investors (NHI)
SYSCO Corporation
FOX Rehabilitation
National Research Corporation
VCPI
G5
Omnicare Inc
Ventas
Genesis Rehabilitation Services
OnShift
Willis
Hanson Bridgett
PalatiumCare LLC
Yardi Systems Inc.
HCP
PANASONIC
Zenith Capital
HD Supply Facilities Maintenance
Philips
VIP Reception at the Chicory
Attendees connected with old and new friends
at the VIP Networking Reception at The Chicory,
sponsored by Health Care REIT.
SESSION SUMMARY
Achieving Operational Strategies With KPIs
Facilitators: Steven Vick, CEO, Signature Senior Living; Scott Ranson, Chief Information Officer, Brookdale.
Achieving
operational
strategies by
investing in
technology will
save you money
in the long-term
and enable you
to provide better
care for residents,
agreed panelists
during a session “Achieving Operational Strategies with
KPIs,” or key performance indicators.
Knowing how much every item and service in your
business is great, but the “number one priority is keeping
residents happy,” said Signature Senior Living CEO
Steven Vick.
He said companies should aim for a balanced mix of
key performance indicator targets for both margin and
mission. Additionally, customizable KPIs on a mobile
application allow a business to track daily reporting
metrics, better highlighting resident occupancy, accounts
receivable, leads and move-ins. KPIs are also helpful in
staff management.
Metrics for quality management are also important for
tracking incident patterns. “To be a learning company,
you have to be honest with yourself,” Vick said during the
session sponsored by MatrixCare. “If you’re not learning,
you’re not improving upon your care.”
Brookdale Chief Information Officer Scott Ranson
discussed the importance of data security, stressing that
data breaches can happen to any company even if they
are following the rules. “It’s not a matter of if it happens,
it’s a matter of when and how deep it goes,” he said, citing
recent data security breaches at Home Depot and Target.
“You already protect your residents’ physical and mental
wellbeing,” Ranson said. “Put as much time, money, and
effort into protecting their digital wellbeing.”
Optimizing Health Through Technology
Facilitators: Panasonic Senior Healthcare Advisor Jerry Kolosky, Panasonic Vice President Jean-Claude Junqua
“We can have a
profound, positive
impact on global
healthcare systems
by integrating
technology,
clinical services,
data analytics
and emerging
reimbursement
modes,” said
Panasonic Senior
Healthcare Advisor
14
Jerry Kolosky, during “Building Tomorrow’s Healthcare
Ecosystem…Today.”
Panasonic Vice President Jean-Claude Junqua said
there’s a real need for flexibility in dealing with the current
care continuum transformation. They both agreed that
technology can improve long-term care by offering a
holistic view of health; coordination of the care team;
greater efficiency in behavior modifications; better personcentered care and expandability within an ecosystem. The
company recently began offering a tablet-based telehealth
service for long-term care and assisted living communities
that can be viewed at http://tiny.cc/panasonic.
save the date
May 4-7, 2015
Please visit www.alfa.org/callforspeakers to submit your
sPeaker and session reCommendations.
KEYNOTE SUMMARY
Yes, We Are Aging. Embrace It!
Speaker: Dr. Harry Moody, Visiting Professor at Fielding Graduate University
Aging expert Dr. Harry Moody kicked off the second day
of ALFA’s Executive Forum by sharing some news with
the crowd: “Yes, we are aging!”
As a culture, we are in a state of denial and disbelief.
“Inside every old person is a young person wondering
what the hell happened,” he said, smiling.
Moody, who is a well known academic and author in the
field of aging, said the challenge we face as an industry
is changing the meaning of aging and making a powerful
brand to define a complete picture of the aging process
that the general public will accept. Part of that process
is changing the message of aging and shifting current
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paradigms so that people can re-imagine more positively
what it means to age.
As seniors continue to reiterate, ‘I’m not ready yet’, “we
[as senior living professionals] have a problem with how
we are communicating the experience. You have to
tell your story,” he said during his talk, “The Changing
Meaning of Aging.”
“Safety is not the beginning and end of the assisted
living story,” according to Moody. “It’s all about social
interactions. Seniors at home are suffering from isolation,
boredom, and loneliness.” Moody’s parents rejected
senior living for years, only to reinforce the theme we
all know too well, once they moved into a senior living
community, he said they wished they had moved in
sooner.
Moody asked the audience to consider their brand
position by asking two important business questions:
“What is your business? Who is your customer?”
Business leaders must understand that the “brand
positioning is the place in the consumer minds that you
want your brand to own.”
He added that communicating a message is key to
business success. “The most important things that you
want to hear from your customers are things they can’t
tell you. To establish your position you must address
Shifting current paradigms so
that people can re-imagine more
positively what it means to age.
your customers’ fears. It doesn’t matter what you say, it
matters what your customer hears.”
As Moody closed his presentation he encouraged the
audience to figure out how to rebrand “successful aging,”
and then put the wheels in motion. “Every great
idea eventually degenerates into work.”
Moody, who has written more than 100 academic
articles and several books, also led a breakout
session on ethics and aging on the second day
of the forum where he discussed autonomy and
mental capacity, cross-cultural differences, long-term
care placement and other issues.
Small Groups Discuss
Cultural Changes
Moody also presented two breakout sessions, “Ethics and Aging” and “Best Practices for Identifying and Preventing Elder
Abuse.” Participants explored real life
scenarios in small groups and discussed
effective strategies of identifying strategies
of coping with ethical and moral dilemmas.
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EXECUTIVE ROUNDTABLE
New Memory Care Working Group Shares Common Goal
ALFA convened the inaugural meeting of the Memory
Care Working Group at the Executive Forum, addressing
a need for more information sharing on the topic
through this expert group. Senior living communities
are strategizing how best to serve residents with
Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, a growing
population. Every 67 seconds, someone in the United
States develops Alzheimer’s, according to the Alzheimer’s
Association.
to have this focus come from this level of influence and
diversity. It was welcoming to see that all attendees
shared much of the same hurdles and that we are
committed to finding solutions for them. This comity
has the opportunity to be the voice of our industry
coming together for change. Together we can tackle
the challenges that we all face and find solutions and
best practices that will change the way memory care
programming moves forward.”
The invitation-only Working Group plans to discuss
memory care programming in the industry including:
research, partnerships, technology, staff development
and training, innovation in programming and
development, clinical outcomes, behavioral issues,
dining, family education, early memory loss, community
communication, environmental design, medications, and
regulations.
To learn more about the Memory Care Working Group,
please contact Maribeth Bersani at [email protected].
Holly Osters, Director of Memory Care at New
Perspective Senior Living and working group participant,
commented, “It is so valuable as a memory care provider
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EXECUTIVE ROUNDTABLE
Executive Roundtable Meetings
Executives from ALFA’s Executive Roundtables met to solve real world business challenges facing senior living.
These exclusive, by-invitation-only peer groups are comprised of seasoned senior living professionals from a variety
of disciplines and functional areas, who meet in person and through conference calls to discuss their most pressing
business challenges. Disciplines and Functional Areas:
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Chair: Alan Fairbanks, Executive VP, Bickford Senior Living
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
Chair: Tom Croal, CFO, Silverado
CLINICAL QUALITY
Chair: Jennifer Bayard, Senior VP, Clinical Operations, Carlton
Senior Living
DINING SERVICES
Chair: Joska Haju, Senior VP, Dining Services, Brookdale
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS/LEGAL
Chair: Mike Pochowski, Director, Government Affairs & Legal
Operations, Brookdale
HUMAN RESOURCES
Chair: Suzanne Foley, Senior VP of Human Resources, Integral
Senior Living
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Chair: Scott Ranson, CIO, Brookdale
SALES & MARKETING
Co-Chair: Shamim Wu, Executive VP of Sales, Holiday
Retirement. Co-Chair: Michael Levine, VP of Sales & Marketing,
Chelsea Senior Living
To learn how your company can take full advantage of
these peer groups, Contact Mike Lanphier at
[email protected].
19
SESSION SUMMARY
Building A Brand For the Senior Living Industry
Facilitators: Steve Bast and Phil Goldberg, Nucleus Marketing Lab; Shannon Fern, Communications Strategy Group.
Businesses have come a long way in brand building since
the term started by “branding” livestock to designate
ownership. Today, it’s important to consider branding as
a way to make one product or service superior or more
desirable than the rest, said branding experts.
Steve Bast advised staff and managers to carefully
consider and review how they communicate their brand.
An organization should feel comfortable and confident
saying, “This is who we are. This is how we want to be
known. This is how we want people to think of us.”
Shannon Fern said it’s important for companies to
repurpose content they’ve created to ensure the widest exposure. “Using content only once leads to missed
opportunities and missed potential,” she said, adding that
companies often make mistakes in branding by taking
a scattershot approach that muddles the message and
confuses the audience.
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Top traits of successful brands:
1. Own a recognizable set of attributes
2. Establish expectations
3. Promise a certain type of experience
4. Evident from multiple points of contact
5. Transcend the tangible elements of the
product itself
6. Differentiate from otherwise similar
competitors
7. Inspire loyalty among a particular group
8. Provide guideposts for constant
communication
9. Convey an attitude and a promise
10. Are not all things to all people
SESSION SUMMARY
Media Relationships, Communication And Response
Facilitators: Sarah Bascom, President of Bascom Communications & Consulting; Lyndsey Cruley, Vice President of
Bascom Communications & Consulting; Sharon Cohen, ALFA Associate Director of Communications
The positive experiences and stories that senior living staff experience every day through interactions with residents
and family members are so commonplace that staff often take them for granted. “The larger community needs
to know what you do and how you’re doing it,” Sharon Cohen, ALFA’s associate director of communications, told
the audience. “It’s a really critical time for assisted living and senior living as a whole to create a positive, public
identification. Because those amazing special moments happen every day in every community, it can be a real
surprise when an article criticizing the industry is published.”
Cohen recommended that each senior living community get to know the area’s local reporter and offered tips for
effective ways to reach out to media.
1. Generate story ideas by writing down positive things happening in your community.
2. “Friend” and “follow” local reporters and public officials on Facebook and Twitter.
3. Create a list of local reporters who cover health, lifestyle and issues of interest to older adults. Many reporters list
their email addresses at the end of articles.
4. Invite reporters to special events.
A Transformative Time For ALFA
Representatives from the ALFA Board of Directors discussed the future of ALFA during a Luncheon & Town Hall
meeting. During this candid discussion, the Board noted a focus on standard setting, credentialing, education and
continued advocacy for quality choices in senior living. In addition, a new brand launch in 2015 will demonstrate the
association’s commitment to evolving to serve the needs of a growing industry.
From left to right, ALFA Chairman Brenda J. Bacon, CEO, Brandywine Senior Living; Tana Gall, President, Merrill Gardens; Loren
Shook, President & CEO, Silverado; Ed Kenny, President & CEO, LCS.
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ALFA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Chairman
BRENDA J. BACON
President & CEO
Brandywine Senior Living
Vice Chairman
LOREN SHOOK
President & CEO
Silverado
Vice Chairman
TIM BUCHANAN
President & CEO
Legend Senior Living
Secretary
CHUCK HERMAN
President, Senior Housing and Post-Acute
HealthCare REIT
Treasurer
BRUCE MACKEY
President & CEO
Five Star Senior Living
Public Policy Committee Chairman
STEPHANIE HANDELSON
President & COO
Benchmark Senior Living
Immediate Past Chairman
MARK OHLENDORF
President & CFO
Brookdale
Chairman, ALFA President’s Council
BRAD KLITSCH ex officio
SVP of Market Development
Direct Supply
State Affiliate Representative
SALLY MICHAEL ex officio
President & CEO
California Assisted Living Association
JON A. DELUCA
President & CEO
Senior Lifestyle Corp.
EVRETT W. BENTON
CEO & Co-Founder
Stellar Senior Living
GRANGER COBB ex officio
President & CEO
Emeritus Senior Living
KAI HSIAO
President & CEO
Holiday Retirement
SUE FARROW
Founder & Owner
Integral Senior Living
TANA GALL
President
Merrill Gardens
ED KENNY
President & CEO
LCS
CHRIS HYATT
EVP - Operations Support
Brookdale
DAN HIRSCHFELD
President
Genesis Rehabilitation Services
BLAIR MINTON
President & Founder
RPM Management
PAT MULLOY
Chairman & CEO
Elmcroft Senior Living
TODD NOVACZYK
President & CEO
New Perspective Senior Living
RANDY RICHARDSON
President
Vi
TIFFANY TOMASSO
Founding Partner
Kensington Senior Living
PATRICIA WILL
Co-Founder & President
Belmont Village
JAMES BALDA
President & CEO
(703) 562-1190
[email protected]
JACLYN ALLMON
VP of Marketing & Communications
(703) 562-1192
[email protected]
MARIBETH BERSANI
SVP of Public Policy
(703) 562-1180
[email protected]
SHARON COHEN
Associate Director, Communications
(703) 562-1186
[email protected]
KARI HORESKY
Membership Manager
(703) 562-1179
[email protected]
MIKE LANPHIER
Senior Program Coordinator
(703) 562-1189
[email protected]
GINA MAMONE
Vice President of Finance
(703) 562-1177
[email protected]
KAYLA MCALINDIN
Program Coordinator
(703) 562-1188
[email protected]
NATHAN NICKENS
Senior Director of Professional Affairs
(703) 562-1181
[email protected]
ROBERT OLIVERI
Marketing & Communications Coordinator
(703) 562-1187
[email protected]
PAUL WILLIAMS
Senior Director of Government Relations
(703) 562-1183
[email protected]
JUSTIN WORRELL
Director of Advocacy
(703) 562-1178
[email protected]
CHRIS WINKLE
President & CEO
Sunrise Senior Living
ALFA STAFF
22
COMPANIES IN ATTENDANCE
A Place for Mom
ABM On Site Industries
Allegro Senior Living
Almost Family
Angels Consulting Group/Patriot Angels
Autumn Leaves/ The LaSalle Group
Bascom Communications & Consulting
Belmont Village Senior Living
Benchmark Senior Living
Blue Harbor Senior Living
BMA Management, LTD
Brandywine Senior Living
Brightview Senior Living
Brookdale
Care and Compliance Group
Care Innovations
Caring.com
Carlton Senior Living
Chelsea Senior Living
Commonwealth Assisted Living
Cornell Communications, Inc.
Crandall Corporate Dietitians
Direct Supply
Eldermark
Elmcroft Senior Living
Era Living
ESCO Technologies, LLC.
FOX Rehabilitation
G5
George Mason University
Greenfield Senior Living
Hanson Bridgett
Harbor Retirement Associates
Health Care REIT
Heffernan Insurance Brokers
HHHunt Senior Living
Holiday Retirement
Holsag Canada
HPSI Group Purchasing
Integral Senior Living
Intel-GE’s Care Innovations
Kisco Senior Living
Kwalu
LCS - Life Care Services
Legend Senior Living
LG CNS
LTC Properties, Inc.
MatrixCare
McKesson Med-Surg
Merrill Gardens
Model55
National Research Corporation
New Perspective Senior Living
OnShift
PalatiumCare, LLC
Panasonic
Pathway Senior Living
PointClickCare
Randall Residence
RealPage Senior Living
Red Capital Group
RehabCare
ROC Seniors Housing Fund
Senior Lifestyle Corporation
Senior Living Communities, LLC
SeniorHomes.com
SeniorHousingNet
Silverado
Silversphere
Sodexo
SouthWood Corporation
STANLEY Healthcare
Stellar Senior Living
Sunrise Senior Living
The LaSalle Group
US Memory Care, LLC
VCPI
Ventas, Inc.
Vi
Yardi Systems, Inc.
Zenith Capital
Thank you!
The companies below made a special investment in the 2014 ALFA Senior Living Executive Forum.
ALFA is grateful to them for their support of this gathering and their commitment to advancing excellence in senior
living. Please take a moment to personally thank these companies for their generous contributions.
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ALFA SENIOR LIVING
EXECUTIVE FORUM
WWW.ALFA.ORG/FORUM