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BE PREPARED FOR STRATEGIC CHANGE

BE PREPARED FOR STRATEGIC CHANGE

Posted on by MDSadmin

 

Our Industry Is Entering Into The “Second Generation”

When we think of “generations” we typically consider population in general and our peers, children and grandchildren.  We know unique generations commonly think differently in terms of lifestyle, finances, how they spend their money and their perception of value . . . in other words their “psychographics” are different.  The term psychographics is broadly defined as the use of demographics to determine the attitudes, perceptions and behavior of a particular segment of our population.

Let’s sharpen the definition of population psychographics and apply it specifically to our senior living industry in terms of two important consumer generations; 1) The Silent Generation, ages 70 to 90 – age, income and asset qualified seniors as potential residents for our communities and 2) The Baby Boom and Baby Busters ages 55 to 64 – the decision influencers for senior living.  Let’s also consider the professionals that design and operate our communities.  These designs and operating strategies are changing.

There are dramatic differences we need to address as we make the critical transition into the second generation of our industry.  They involve two primary consumer generations:

1. The Silent Generation – 1925 to 1945. This generation has two major components:

  • The Depression Era (1929 to 1939). When I talk to seniors and conduct senior focus groups, I always ask, “Does having lived through the Depression in any way affect your financial decision-making today?”  The answer is always a resounding “”
  • World War II (1940-1945). GIs came home from the war, married, bought homes and had children in record numbers (the Boomers).  These veterans were motivated to make up for lost time.  After getting educated under the GI Bill, they built businesses, careers and built personal savings.  They are generally fiscally conservative.

2. The Baby Boomers – 1946 to 1964. The Boomers and the Baby Busters (1965 to 1980) have a current age spectrum of 35 to 69.  Their psychographics are:

  • The “Gray Flannel Suit” Era (1946 – 1980). During this period, many men and women entered the corporate world prepared to spend their careers with one employer.  They were generally “team players” – conforming, spending their time responding to the requirements of their employers as they worked through their careers.
  • Vietnam Era & the Rebellions of 1960s & 1970s. This troublesome period (1960 – 1974) created large groups of disillusioned veterans and many “maverick consumers”. A large portion of the population did not accept these nonconformists, which only triggered further rebellion against “the establishment”.

The younger element of the Silent Generation and the Boomers are the foundation of the emerging second generation of our industry.  Their attitudes and opinions have also been shaped by the boom/bust cycles of the past 20 years and the very low savings rates experienced by fixed income seniors.

The typical life cycle of the Silent and the Boomer generations has been defined as approximately 18 to 20 years old respectively.  The modern day senior living industry “first generation” life cycle is defined as approximately 30 years (1985 to 2015).  Just like consumer psychographics and trends, some dramatic strategic changes are taking place in our industry

Tomorrow’s senior living marketing prospects are no longer “the usual prospects.” They are raising the bar of expectations and will be much more articulate in expressing their wants, needs and perceptions of value.  It’s time to redouble your efforts at understanding today’s age 75-plus consumers while becoming more savvy about how you market to them.  Actually, quite a lot is known about the current mindset of the senior consumer; the challenge is translating this knowledge into practical communication and marketing strategies.  Take, for example, pricing.  Most of us know we should sell tangible value before price.  But, in our zeal to tell our story, we forget that the process involves three very important steps:

1) Truly understand the senior consumer mindset

2) Identify and correct common senior misconceptions

3) Deploy consumer-focused, market-driven positioning

Finally, realize that we are evolving to another generation of prospects and we are dealing with senior consumers who have experienced a number of life-changing events.  The financial implications are enormous.

A word of caution: Don’t get misled by the opinions expressed by your existing residents.  These opinions may no longer necessarily reflect the changing mindset of your future residents.

Jim Moore is president of Moore Diversified Services, Inc., a national Senior housing and health care consulting firm based in Fort Worth, Texas.  He has written several books about assisted living and Senior housing, including Independent Living and CCRCs. Jim is also a regular contributor to industry publications such as McKnights Long Term Care News and various industry association publications.  Contact MDS at 817-731-4266 to discuss your consulting needs.

Do You Take Advantage of PR or Public Relations Opportunities?

Do You Take Advantage of PR or Public Relations Opportunities?

Posted on by MDSadmin

PR or Public relations should be in everyone’s marketing communications tool kit.

As a Senior Living Consultant working with many Senior Living clients over the years, this is one form of community promotion that tends to be over looked the most. So what exactly is PR? PR or public relations, the noun, as defined by Meriam-Webster.com is as follows:

the activity or job of providing information about a particular person or organization to the public so that people will regard that person or organization in a favorable way

OR

the relationship between an organization and the public

What is PR?
PR iDo You Take Advantage of PR or Public Relations Opportunities?s different from advertising in the fact that in advertising you pay for the privilege of controlling the timing, placement, and message associated with it. While with PR, since it is generally free, the control lies in the hands of the writer and media outlet providing you the coverage. I once heard that “Advertising is what you pay for, PR is what you pray for.”

There are many forms of PR. Most of the time the words PR conjure up images of events at opposite ends of the spectrum. Either a publicity stunt where someone is doing something that is outrageous and crazy to call attention to themselves, their company or their mission, or a company spokesperson trying to put a positive spin on a potentially bad situation that has arisen for the company.

Examples
An example of an outrageous PR stunt would be similar to the flash mob dancing troupe a few years ago that held an impromptu performance at Grand Central Station, it ended up netting them 28 million YouTube hits and a lot of media exposure. An example of positive spin on a bad situation would be the aftermath of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. There have been subsequent news conferences and advertising campaigns trying to convince the public, that the gulf coast is now better than ever.

The kind of PR I am talking about is somewhere in the middle of these two extremes. The press release, media tours, special events, sponsorships, public service/public interest stories are all form of PR that your company/community can use to build brand awareness. These types of PR also show that your brand is part of the greater community and can generate loyalty in a larger audience.

Put PR To Work For You
One of the great things about PR is that it is happening all around us and while we get the intended message, we don’t realize the company or brand is promoting itself to us. Instead of thumping our chest telling everyone how great our company and/or products are through advertising, PR is a subtle way of getting a company name out by providing useful information and activities to others.

PR is also a way to have others validate you as an expert. The general thinking of readers or viewers is that they surely wouldn’t be quoting you or doing a piece on you or your company/community unless you were an authority, the best and most knowledgeable in your field.

November Public Relations Webinar
As part of MDS’ “Plug-In and Prosper” Webinar Series, the November 18, 2015 webinar will be “Generating Public Relations for Your Community”. The webinar will focus on the meaning and use of public relations and why it’s important. I will discuss PR as part of a well-rounded marketing communication plan, the benefits of PR, and how it can enhance your relationship between your company and the public.

So mark your calendar and join me on Wednesday, November 18 at 1:00 pm (CDT) for this important webinar.

I look forward to having you join me for this complimentary monthly webinar! You can also check out our past webinars on the Moore Diversified Services YouTube channel!

Registration Link

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in Senior Living operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

We Decide Our Own Path

We Decide Our Own Path

Posted on by MDSadmin

We Decide Our Own Path

As we get further into 2015, most of us are still planning for both business and personal success this year. Some of us may be realizing our plans are not working out as we had originally intended. This realization doesn’t mean we that we have to throw up our hands and pack it in for 2015. Rather we, at any time, can effect and create the change we desire in our lives! I listened to an inspiring interview the other day and I wanted to share the concept with you.

Neil Patrick Harris has been making the rounds plugging his book entitled “Choose Your Own Autobiography”.  While I have not read this book yet, the title really struck me.  It’s very simplistic and yet very powerful at the same time.  Choose your own autobiography should be the model we live by every day!  It’s not always simple, and there are a lot of outside influences in our personal and professional lives that affect our decisions and life direction.  However, if we keep the idea that we are in control of our own fate in the forefront of our thoughts, it will have a huge impact on our thinking and decision making throughout the day.  Living with this in mind will then impact the course of our lives. We don’t have to be stuck in the spot we are in today forever. We have control of our destiny and can make our future whatever we choose. We can take a poor situation and make it work for us.

Where are you today?

So many times we can easily find ourselves in a rut both personally and professionally.  Maybe it’s a situation that seemingly has no answer, and as a result you feel helpless and hopeless.  Sometimes we lead ourselves into these places and sometimes we’re forced there.  The good news is that we can still have an impact on the direction and action we take based on where we want to end up.  It’s not always easy to effect change and it doesn’t come without some hard work, and of course it won’t happen overnight, but it can happen.

I am definitely a proponent of getting ourselves squared away in our work lives in order to have a more productive and fulfilling personal life and vice versa.  It’s all about finding that elusive balance in life.  While there is a lot of ground that can be covered on the personal side, I want to remain focused on the business side.

I have been blessed with the good fortune of analytically-based careers.  Analytical careers have allowed me to look at procedures and processes from a fact-based perspective and not be as emotionally charged in decision making. This analytical mind-set can prove to be very helpful when making tough decisions.  However, even with this skillset, the hardest part of any decision is usually getting started. It’s much easier to stay where we are today, whether it’s good or bad, than change something. It’s a scary thought to step out there and do something different.

Taking the First Step

Making the decision that we do not like where our business is currently or realizing that we could do better is the first step. But coming to this realization doesn’t fix it. We need to take the corrective step to effect change. Finding what needs correcting or if you know what needs correcting, what do you do differently? (This can be the challenge!)

Analyzing the issues are an important part of developing the fix. Sometimes a Band-Aid fix doesn’t correct the underlying problem. Sometimes a quick fix is the easiest and least painful. However, if we don’t fix the underlying problems in our lives, they will just continue to resurface. And more than likely without a permanent solution they will continue to worsen.

Without getting into the nuts and the bolts of the change process in this forum, I mainly wanted to convey the message that we can effect change.  Even though sometimes things look like they can’t be changed, you don’t know how to proceed in making changes, you’re hesitant for some reason to take that first step, or you feel like you just don’t have the energy to figure all of this out, it can be done.  Promise!

Write Your Own Success Story

You don’t have to live with mediocrity or disappointment in your current situation. Just make the decision that you know it’s time for a change and MDS can help you take it from there. MDS has worked with clients from all types of Senior Living and Healthcare companies with a multitude of issues, problems, or concerns.

Call me and put the experts at MDS to work for you. We specialize in finding the best building location, repositioning a current community, or improving income statement issues, such as increasing revenue and decreasing expenses. Moore Diversified Services also provides market feasibility through market studies, competitive analysis, and pro-formas.

We help to optimize income statements by increasing revenue and making sure your monthly service fees and tier charges are correct for the market.  Once pricing is optimal, we can then take a look at expense control.  We don’t want to cut back to a point the service is diluted, but make sure expenses are within acceptable limits.  Next on to marketing. We check to see if your marketing efforts are well-rounded, from traditional print and other collaterals, to ensuring that you are taking full advantage of the digital footprint available to you. It is also imperative to assess your employee retention efforts. Consider your employee turnover rate.  What about your company culture? And other important points to attract and retain top talent in the industry.

The good news is that you don’t have to continue to survive in a less than optimal situation.  You can thrive!  It’s up to you to write your own Autobiography, let’s get started today!

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

What is Your Digital Media Strategy for 2015?

What is Your Digital Media Strategy for 2015?

Posted on by MDSadmin

 

Are you about to move right past this post because you don’t believe you need one? THINK AGAIN!

Digital Media is now an integral part of any comprehensive marketing strategy/plan. While some products and services may use digital media more than others, every business needs to utilize digital media in some form to build and enhance client and customer relationships.

Product Marketing vs. Relationship Marketing

There was a time when you strictly marketed your product or service to your target audience. While that is still a part of an effective marketing plan, relationship marketing is extremely effective in our industry. As a provider in the senior living and housing industry you actually have two target audiences. The first target audience is the senior themselves. The second is the family members of the senior who may be the primary decision maker or at minimum highly influential in the decision making process. You must be building relationships with current and potential customers as well as their family members.

In the case of a senior living and housing community, if an individual is not a resident or has a family member as a resident, you still want to be the first community they think of if the need arises or if someone asks for a recommendation. This means getting your community name out there and engaging with the public, resident or not. This process does not have to be complicated. Start with a simple plan and build from there.

Website

First, no matter your marketing strategy, your size, your mission or your occupancy rate, you must have a presence on the web. One of the first places, a potential resident or family member will go is the web. Whether it is to just get contact information, an address to pay you a visit or to get an idea of what your community looks like, a large percentage of people immediately will look up your website opposed to the previous process of looking you up in the phone book.

“Up to 84 percent of all Americans now expect the Internet’s World Wide Web to provide them needed information on government, news, healthcare, and commerce, according to a new survey compiled by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.”

Having a website is 24/7 marketing. Websites market to those around the country. It can market to those you don’t even realize need your services; think out-of-town family members doing preliminary research on a community for their senior. It would be difficult to direct-market by mail to that particular audience.

Blog

If you have a website, the next easiest step would be to add a blog to your site. While blogs can be intimidating, they don’t have to be! Use it to simply give updates about your community, upcoming events and most importantly provide your audience some general tips, hints and information. This can include:

  • What is happening in your immediate area, not just your community
  • Helpful tips from your current residents about downsizing and moving
  • Advice on what to look for in a senior living community
  • Great recipes from your residents or their families
  • Profile some of your residents (with their permission of course)

A blog can be as simple or as sophisticated as you make it. Just be sure to keep it current so that anyone who makes it to your website will know the information is up to date.

Facebook

The next logical step would be to create a Facebook page for your community. You can basically use the same content as your blog on your Facebook page. Family members who are already on Facebook will enjoy seeing updates about where their parents, grandparents, aunts, or uncles are living. So many communities already have a presence on Facebook and have found great success with this strategy.

Resources

There are more resources available than we could list, so here are a few of our suggestions to get you started:

These can all be purchased from Westridge Publishing or most book retailers.

Stuck and don’t know the first step or maybe you need some reassurance about the path you’re taking? Let me help! I can perform an audit of your company and/or community’s digital footprint, provide guidance, and a sound plan of action for you.

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies

Kim Jimenez has been a regular contributor to the MDS website and MDS blog for the past 15 years.  Kim holds a supervisory position in a Fortune 100 company and has extensive experience with a multitude of employee, training and leadership issues.  She is currently obtaining her degree in Human Resource Management at Southern New Hampshire University.

Can your office survive without you? If it can’t you are doing it all wrong!

Can your office survive without you? If it can’t you are doing it all wrong!

Posted on by MDSadmin

The sign of a true leader is one who is constantly creating new leaders.  These type of leaders inspire, motivate, educate, support and mentor others into positions of leadership.  They cultivate the skills of others and strengthen their weaknesses.

In Boy Scouts, one of the main premises of the Eagle Scout project, and something you will be grilled on in you Eagle Board of Review, is the question: could your project have happened without you? In order to have a truly successful project, it must be so well planned out AND you must have designated, informed, trained other participants that a) you as the project leader do not actually work on project day and b) if you cannot show up for any reason, the project proceeds as planned.

This so goes against our nature of needing to be needed.  We tend to feel if our business or department can survive without us, we have no value.  We MUST adjust this way of thinking! If business as usual can proceed without you, then to your credit you have hired some very capable employees and you have trained them so well they know how to do their job. This then frees you up to focus on the big picture, more time for strategic planning and business growth.

Do you think you must be involved in every little aspect of your department? Do you require frequent updates and details on every project? Now we get into micromanaging, stay tuned…

 

Kim Jimenez has been a regular contributor to the MDS website and MDS blog for the past 15 years.  Kim holds a supervisory position in a Fortune 100 company and has extensive experience with a multitude of employee, training and leadership issues.  She is currently obtaining her degree in Human Resource Management at Southern New Hampshire University.

Strategic Planning Series Webinar Recordings

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I want to thank everyone who joined us for our Strategic Planning Webinar Series.  If you missed the opportunity to participate live, here is your chance to view these recordings.  These webinars contain important and helpful information to remember as you finalize your Strategic Planning journey for 2015.

We are busy putting together some new webinars that you will not want to miss.  These can help you take your organization to the next level.  I am currently planning for late January or early February.  Watch our blogs and newsletter for more information. To sign up just enter your email in the box on the left hand margin.  Also, please send me an email with any suggestions you might have for both blog and webinar topics. Let us know what your specific challenges are and I will try to accommodate as many requests as possible.

Below you will find links to MDS’ recent Webinar Series on Strategic Planning, both Parts I & II.  The images are linked to the MDS YouTube page, so just click on the image of the webinar that you want to view and it will open up the presentation video in a new window for you.

Part I Part II

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

Gold Is So Yesterday ... Go Platinum!

Gold Is So Yesterday … Go Platinum!

Posted on by MDSadmin

A guest on an NPR show I was listening to the other day mentioned the “Platinum Rule” in the context of how we treat others. I had no idea what they were talking about. Now, after a little research, I can see that I’m very late to the party. This is a concept that has been around for some time. For those of you who may be living under a rock, like myself, the Platinum Rule now trumps the Golden Rule. 

The Golden Rule is, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The Platinum Rule, however, is, “Do unto others as they would like done unto them!” What a novel concept. While the Golden Rule sounds good on the surface, it is really kind of self-centered. This would mean that we think we know what is best for everyone else because that’s what we like or we want. While this could be very true, it could also be the furthest thing from the truth.

With people we have just met or known for a short time, we may not know exactly what they want. This is the beauty of the Platinum Rule. It causes us to shift focus from us to them. It forces us to try and determine what the other person really want or likes. It forces us to be an active listener and maybe even ask some questions. This also meshes well with one of my favorite Covey teachings, “We must first seek to understand.”

Different Personality Types

Dr. Tony Alessandra has written a book entitled The Platinum Rule. I just discovered this book and have not had time to read it. But, some information that I gathered from the website is that the book goes into detail defining personality types. According to the author, there are four basic personality types followed by tendencies of how these particular types of people behave and react. This is the first part of satisfying someone else, understand what makes them tick and what they might respond to. Then we can set about how to better relate to others and the different personality types, in trying to give them what they want.

I will not get too in-depth here, but did want to make a few observations about the concept. This concept should apply to all aspects of our lives from personal to business. Imagine the changes in our current relationships when we let all of our assumptions go and give careful thought to what others want and need.

The Platinum Rule in Business

The Platinum Rule can easily address two major components of a successful senior living operation – company culture and resident-centered care/lifestyle. Company culture is so important that Peter Drucker once said, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” Companies in other industries, such as the Container Store live by the principals of satisfied workers and satisfied customers. They usually rank in the top one of two best places to work and their customer service is off the charts.

I recently made my first visit to one of their stores and was very impressed. The employees were all very happy and they worked together to help me with my needs. The other important aspect is all the employees were sales people. While they didn’t work on commission, they did ask if I had this or needed that and were quick to recommend other services and products. This was not done in a hard-sell manner, but more in a helpful, we want you to have the best experience possible sort of manner … which I did!

Paradigm Shift

Can you imagine for just a minute how the residents of your community will feel when you make that culture shift? Really seeking to understand what they want or need and not just giving them what you think is good because it’s what you want based on your own values and beliefs.

Think of the possibilities if each and every one of your staff members had this attitude. You will have the happiest residents in town. Now think about what putting the same effort into understanding what your staff members want. Again, really taking the time to seek to understand what it is that they want. What do they need? Not only will you see an increase in customer satisfaction, but you will also see marked decreased turnover. While both of these will also improve your bottom line, think of the referral pipeline you will create. Not only for those wanting to live at your community, but the best workers wanting to work at your community.

If you ever have any doubt about what your staff or residents want or need, just ask! Yes, it’s that simple and both groups, in the right environment, will be more than willing to share their thoughts. Just ask and really listen to what the response is. Seek first to understand and then implement programs that the staff and residents want … not what you think they might want!

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

Employee Training and Retention: The Debate between Expense and Investment – Part II

Employee Training and Retention: The Debate between Expense and Investment – Part II

Posted on by MDSadmin

Once an effective training and development program is established and utilized by the organization it can begin seeing increases and benefits in the following areas: productivity, motivation, quality, job satisfaction, commitment (employee retention), and reduced absenteeism.

In order to provide the training and development that reaps these many benefits, it costs money, time and other resources. Paid human resources are used to plan, organize and teach training sessions, mentors take time from their own duties to mentor newer employees, training materials must be printed and/or compiled in electronic format, and fees must be paid for seminars, classes or workshops. Organizations recognize there is a cost for training and development.

In today’s competitive business world, most organizations are looking at ways to reduce expenses in order to increase profits. Unfortunately, when training is only looked at as an expense, it can be the first category to go to the chopping block. It is suggested that businesses need to accurately analyze what these training programs are worth. While most organizations compile data and trends on advertising campaigns, sales department activities, and other activities that they can directly tie to increased revenue, it can be difficult to determine a Return on Investment (ROI) on employee training and development.

Training Makes Employees Feel Valued

Research has shown, however, that when employers invest time, money and resources in their employees with training and development the employees develop a commitment to the organization. The employee feels the organization/employer values them as a worker, values their skills and values their contribution. Research has also determined that with training and development the employee believes the employer cares about the employability of the employee. (Agrawal)

In contrast, some employees have been known to say they “saw it coming” before they were fired or let go. This can be the perception when an employee is struggling and/or not performing well and the employer distances themselves from the employee; does not offer help (training/development), keeps adding additional workload, tells the employee not to worry they will eventually “get it”, etc. In other words, with ongoing training and development the employee does not feel the employer is leaving them to “sink or swim” on their own or that the employer is not “creating” a reason to fire them.

Which Came First …?

Another comment that represents the crux of this argument: “Positions that have a high turnover rate (such as tech support) are often viewed by management as not worthy of proper training.” (Green) It is “the chicken and the egg” type question. Are these positions not worthy of training due to the high turnover or is a high turnover due to the lack of training? Another point of training is to evaluate if you have the right person for the right job. Sometimes you may have a talented and capable individual but they are just in the wrong position. Continued training and development, including evaluations, can determine strengths and weaknesses and what persons fit best with various positions.

Training and employee development is not just for the employee but is as beneficial to the employer as well. For those employers that view training as an expense, a trade-off for production or just plain wasted time, they may not have an effective training program in place. Also if an employer’s turnover is high, they may need to evaluate how they train new employees, evaluate existing employees and what programs are in place to develop employees to be productive members of their organization. Employers that are successful in reducing employee turnover embrace training and employee development as a necessary tool to further their organizational goals.

We featured this excerpt from a research paper that Kim Jimenez had written on employee training and how it relates to employee engagement/retention.  Employee turnover is a real cash expense that effects your business in many ways.  MDS can help in employee orientation and training in order to help create and retain the best staff possible.

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

References

Agrawal, Archana. “Employee Development and Its Affect on Their Performance.” International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research (2013): 99-108. Web.
Green, Allison. www.askamanger.org. 19 05 2012. Article. 05 09 2014.

Employee Training and Retention: The Debate between Expense and Investment – Part I

Employee Training and Retention: The Debate between Expense and Investment – Part I

Posted on by MDSadmin

Most employers have some form of training implemented for their new employees and some even have programs designed for ongoing employee development. If asked, many employers, if not all, will say that training and employee development is important. But when truly evaluated, many employers do not provide adequate training or employee development to realize the advantages of proper training.

The disconnect lies in the fact that training and employee development comes at a price -financial resources, human resources and time. Employers view training as a cost or expense rather than an investment. They are hesitant, and some even resistant, to spend too many resources on an employee that may take that training elsewhere.

But, in fact, research has shown that proper training and employee development will increase employee productivity, job satisfaction and instill a higher commitment to the job among other things. This commitment to the job by the employee actually reduces employee turnover.

Investment – Not Expense

Therefore, employers need to view training and employee development as an investment in their employees which benefits both employee and employer rather than just an expense to reduce. Employers could also view this investment in training and employee development as an avenue to reduce employee turnover, in addition to, higher employee performance which benefits the organization as a whole.

Training and employee development takes many forms. There is no one training program that will fit every employee or organization. Each organization will need to determine its needs, the needs of its employees and how to address those needs in the most efficient and effective way. Some of the various components of employee training and development can include: new hire orientation, job specific training, mentoring/coaching, in-service training, continuing education, and seminars/conferences.

Orientation Alone is Not Enough

No one component itself will constitute a complete training and development program, but a combination of these components will address the various needs of both the employee and organization. For example, most organizations will have some sort of new hire orientation. And while this is a key component to any training and development program, it has its limitations as a stand-alone program.

A study published in 2008 states that while employee orientation is a necessary first step and that orientations “successfully conveyed the organization’s message on quality management initiatives and employees learned a great deal about quality management practices within the organization. The issue, however, is that transfer of learning did not take place at the desired levels after the employees returned back to their work stations.” (Akdere and Schmidt) The key to an effective program will be ongoing, continuous development using a combination of training and development components.

 

We featured this excerpt from a research paper that Kim Jimenez had written on employee training and how it relates to employee engagement/retention. The second part of this report will be in our next post.  Employee turnover is a real cash expense that effects your business in many ways.  MDS can help in employee orientation and training in order to help create and retain the best staff possible.

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

 

Reference:
Akdere, Mesut and Steven W. Schmidt. “Employee Perceptions of Quality Management: Effects of Employee Orientation Training.” 2008. The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC). Web. September 2014.

What Else is Aging at Your Community?

What Else is Aging at Your Community?

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This is a continuation of the top priorities for success in 2015 and beyond. Previously, we talked about increasing resident age and acuity levels. In this edition, we will explore the impact of age on the physical plant. Because there were a lot of communities built in the 1980s and 1990s this has led to quite a bit of older inventory still in use today. Some owners have done a great job keeping up and some … not so much.

The old saying is true. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Curb appeal can be inviting or may discourage prospects from stopping. The first step the prospect and their families take into your community will be the lasting image in their minds.

Can’t Judge a Book By it’s Cover … but we sometimes do

Even though I have been around the Senior Living Industry long enough to know that a building or the grounds are not always an indicator of the community, great care, or special features I might find inside, it still has an impact. It’s almost like starting at a deficit on the expectation scale and then having to rely on the tour, staff, and other factors to bring the community back into positive experience territory.

While this is not a great way to evaluate a community, it is human nature. I have been in some of the nicest communities built and have had poor experiences and on the converse, I have been in some marginal looking buildings that had the best atmosphere and service I have experienced. The difference is, I was visiting the community because of my job. Had it been for my mom or dad, we might not have stopped.

So you can only imagine how a prospect and/or their family members must feel. Sometimes the deficit can be too large to overcome, and that’s if they choose to stop and look. Unfortunately, sometime they keep driving to the next one on the list and don’t stop to give you the opportunity to prove how awesome your community is.

Update Ideas

Not only is the styling important, the need to look as modern as your nearest competitor, but sometimes you will also find operational inefficiencies, decreased ability to address the rising resident acuity, along with a decreased pricing flexibility to remain competitive.

Some ideas include updating the units themselves along with interior hallways. Depending upon the age and the need, this can run from $30,000 to $40,000 per unit. If you have a mixed-use community, such as Independent Living and Assisted Living or Assisted Living and Memory Care, you will want to consider existing unit mix and consider altering the mix going forward. Don’t forget the common areas and pay particularly close attention to entry areas. This should be warm, inviting, and make residents and visitors feel instantly at home.

It’s important to not only keep up with interior renovations and updates, but exterior, as well. If possible, ensure you have adequate and modern signage along with a well-manicured and landscaped entry way. Make sure exterior features are updated and maintained. Again, I feel the need to stress the importance of curb appeal and an inviting entrance to your community.

Plan Ahead

It’s important to remember that even if you have a new or newer building, the aging process has already begun. You must begin immediately to plan for the future … eventually your building will be the more mature property on the block. You can do this through a couple of means. One is a typical Cap X allotment of $300 – $500 per unit per year or an extensive and more formal annual Cap X plan.

These are also great opportunities to incorporate into your strategic planning for 2015 and beyond. MDS has a plethora of experience when evaluating the needs of your community to continue to remain successful. We can help you develop optimal unit mixes based on the market in which you operate. We can also help with the financial evaluation of the proposed changes to community to ensure a minimum impact for current and future residents. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you and your professional team to create a model for your continued success.

 

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.