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When was the last time you pulled out your company policy and procedures manual? When was the last time you actually looked at or read your company policies?  We always hope that operations are carrying on smoothly enough that we don’t NEED to refer to them. But, it is a good idea to review company policies on a regular and frequent basis.

Your company policy and procedure manual should be considered a living document that grows, develops, and changes as dictated by the operating environment as well as relevant laws, evolving regulations and corporate missions.  Have you provided your employees a written copy of your policies with appropriate training and explanation?  Have you provided and explained your policies and procedures to your residents?

Along with periodic reviews and revisions by company executives and management, it is a good idea to also cover these policies with new as well as existing employees on a regular basis. While you can have the best collection of company policies written, if employees are unaware of their existence or not sure how to interpret them, the policies will be useless.  Policy clarification is essential as interpretation can vary from employee to employee. Consider doing this review, revision (if necessary) and training on a yearly basis.

It is also a good idea to solicit feedback to real world situations employees may encounter during normal and abnormal operating conditions. Role playing and “what if” scenarios can serve as effective, interactive training. The more your policies are discussed with employees, the greater understanding they will have or at least have the chance to ask clarifying questions.  Even the best written policies will be open to interpretation by employees both in normal operation and crises situations, and policies that are interpreted to liberally or too narrowly can be detrimental to the company, your employees, and your residents.

MDS can help with your policy and procedure development and review.  We can conduct an executive retreat to address outdated policies, help you develop employee training and provide you resources for use during training.

Your lips are moving but I can’t hear what you are saying, or maybe I am not listening.  After a couple of sloppy customer service incidents this week it made me ask the question, when people speak are we just hearing them or actually listening to them? Hearing, but not truly listening happens in our business life, as a boss, as an employee, as a co-worker and even as the client. But it also happens as a spouse, father, brother, son, as well as any other relationship that engages in conversation.

You might ask, “What is the difference?” In general, hearing is the acknowledgment of sound without regards to understanding, whereas listening is making an effort to process and understand what is being said.

I would imagine that we are guilty of not being a great listener at some time or another, myself included, but why? Are we so eager to speak that we can’t even finish listening to the other person before we are already forming our thoughts and ideas, that we miss the rest of what the other person is saying? Maybe even overlooking very important details? Are we so eager to show them what we know that we hear what we want to hear, not what they actually said or asked for? Sometimes even if we listen closely, we can even think we know what’s best for the other person despite what they might want or really need.

The implications of not proactively listening can range from hurt feelings to a missed sale to missed diagnosis. It can also result in repeating tasks over again because we did not listen to instructions, losing a customer because we did not give them what they truly asked for, putting ourselves in harm’s way, and many other undesirable situations depending upon the roles of the communicators. The cost associated with not listening is very hard to quantify but they are extremely high.

Listening is a learned skill and takes active participation. Here are some keys to really listening:

• Being a good listener is a deliberate action. It takes patience and practice. If we are already poor listeners, we may have some bad habits to break. But we can develop into good listeners.
• Look directly at the speaker to avoid environmental distraction.
• Look for non-verbal clues, body language, facial expressions, tone/pitch of voice
• Avoid “preparing” your rebuttal or response in your mind WHILE the speaker is still speaking.
• Do not interrupt the speaker! We can’t listen while talking and we can’t have an appropriate response if we don’t have the speaker’s full thoughts. That is why God gave us two ears and only one mouth, we should be listening twice as much as we talk!

So the next time you’re in a conversation, no matter who it’s with, make sure you take the time to really listen to what they have to say. It might change the entire outcome of the conversation.

MDS prides itself on listening to our clients’ wants and needs so we can serve them accurately and efficiently. Are you really listening to YOUR clients, your residents?  MDS can help you set up a survey to see if you are really hearing your residents/prospective resident’s needs with a satisfaction survey and/or a lost prospect survey.

 

 

 

Jim Moore, along with Joe Roche of The Roche Associates, Inc., is scheduled to speak at the California Assisted Living Association (CALA) Spring Conference in June. This conference is scheduled for June 3-5, 2013 at the Hyatt Regency in Santa Clara, California.

The topic to be addressed in this 90 minute session is Maximizing Efficiencies and Revenues in Today’s Competitive Environment.  Important information you do not want to miss!

 

For more information or to register, please visit: www.caassitedliving.org.

 

 

We talked briefly about setting goals for the new year.  Remember, goals are a valuable tool which help you focus.  But for them to be effective, they must be:

 

Specific – Clearly define your goal.  Do not be vague or general.  Give your goal a what, a why and a how.

Measurable – How will you know you have reached your goal? Give it a number; a total, a percentage, an amount.

Achievable -Goals you set which are too far out of your reach, you probably won’t commit to doing.

Realistic – This is not a synonym for easy. Realistic, in this case, means do-able. Too difficult and you set the stage for failure, but too low sends the message that you aren’t very capable.

Timely – Set a time limit for the goal: for next week, in three months, by Jan 2014. Putting an end point on your goal gives you a clear target to work towards.

 

Now that you have set your SMART goals, the fun has just begun.  To reach your goals, you now must have a plan and some follow through.  Be sure to clearly delegate tasks, conduct follow up and evaluate both individual and overall performance.

Start today and take that first step towards reaching our goals and improving your business and your community.

MDS would like to announce that Jim Moore, President Moore Diversified Services, Inc.  will be moderating/speaking at an upcoming Senior Living Business Interactive webcast, Acute Care and Post-Acute Care Integration: What Does It Mean For You?  It takes place on February 7 at 1:00 PM ET, hosted by Irving Levin Associates. 

Effective January 3, 2013, the Affordable Care Act requires doctors, hospitals and other health care providers – including long-term care facilities – to coordinate care provided to Medicare patients through Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). In return, incentives reward ACOs based on lowering the cost of providing health care services and meeting benchmark levels for quality care. Our expert panelists will share their advice on how post-acute care specialists can best integrate with acute-care providers.

This expert panel will be addressing topics such as:

• The opportunity for providers as the nation moves towards a managed-care model.
• The readiness/willingness of hospitals to participate in ACOs.
• The likelihood that these new business relationships will enhance revenue and occupancy.
• The risks or challenges of participation in an ACO.

They will also share their advice on how post-acute care specialists should position themselves to partner with acute-care providers.

More information about this webcast and purchasing options can be found through the following link:

http://www.levinassociates.com/conferences/1302-online-conference

February 7, 2013, 1-2:30 pm ET (12-1:30 CT)

Senior Living Business – Interactive Webcast            

“Acute Care and Post-Acute Care Integration: What Does It Mean For You?”

Moderator:

• Jim Moore, President, Moore Diversified Services

Panelists:

• Rebecca Neff Townsend, Senior Vice President, Ziegler

• Kimber L. Latsha, Managing Partner, Latsha Davis & McKenna

• William R. Pomeranz, Managing Director, Cain Brothers

• Daniel H. Gray, President, Continuum Development Services

For additional information and registration:

http://www.levinassociates.com/conferences/1302-online-conference

Or contact Jane Zarem at 203-226-9188

There is no better time than NOW, the beginning of a New Year, to look back and more importantly, to look FORWARD.  It is time to make a plan for growth and success.  Evaluate where you are, set some new and challenging goals, make a plan and LET”S GO!

It’s time to focus on two frequently heard sound bites:

• “What happened to the good old days?”
• “Senior living is not what it used to be.”

I’ll add a third one to think about:

• “A recession is a terrible opportunity to waste”

Our industry is fundamentally sound, but both the external economic environment and senior living business are getting increasingly complex.  In senior living, we have a multifaceted business model involving:

1. Real Estate
2. Property Management
3. Food and Beverage
4. Lodging/Hospitality
5. Social Services
6. Health Care Delivery
7. Limited Risk Pool Health Insurance Provider (Type ‘A’ life care CCRC.)
8. Risk Management
9. Asset Management
10. Information Technology

Here is an outline of a six point strategic plan to put it all together:

1. Focus on organic growth.

2. Future growth can be a sound strategy.

3. Make market-driven not situation-driven decisions.

4. Constantly ask “what if” questions.

5. Everyone needs an exit strategy.

6. Take a realistic look at the future

Read the current MDS Senior Living and Senior Housing Strategy to get more details on each of these 6 points.

Everyone here at MDS would like to wish you, your families and your coworkers a very Happy and Prosperous New Year.  Welcome 2013!!

All the gifts have been opened and the champagne bottles are empty…now what?  As the American workforce makes their way back to the office, there is no better time to ask “What’s Next?”  The New Year is a perfect time to reevaluate where you, your business or organization stands and most importantly, where you are going.

Take some time to begin this process with some very basic questions:

• What went right in 2012? How can you duplicate that?
• What went wrong in 2012? How can you make changes to avoid those things?
• What changes do YOU want to see in your career as well as your business? How will you accomplish those changes; more training and education, teaming with co-workers to implement new initiatives, taking some risks you have been contemplating?

It may seem like a cliché, but it is so true: The possibilities are endless!!

As you contemplate the above questions, we know you have high hopes and big dreams for your community and your business but you must do some proper goal setting to begin down the path to achieving those hopes and dreams.  Remember the basics about goal setting: they must be measurable with a specific deadline and they must be attainable (realistic) yet challenging.  And no goal is worth setting without a step-by-step plan to achieve said goal.

MDS can help you set goals for your organization through many avenues from operations analysis to identify areas for improvement to conducting Board Retreats and Strategic Planning sessions with your professional staff.  MDS can also help you achieve these goals through program implementation, monitoring, training, and material for you and your staff.

We anticipate great things in the New Year ahead. Most of all we look forward to helping you establish and achieve your goals to make 2013 an even more successful year.