Harry McConnell

President & CEO
Cornwall Manor
Cornwall, PA
  • 111-H. The Benefits of Organic Farming in a Senior Living Community

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    111-H. The Benefits of Organic Farming in a Senior Living Community

    The well-being of older adults and the health of Pennsylvania soils received welcome boosts when Cornwall Manor Retirement Community established an organic farm on its campus in collaboration with the Rodale Institute, a nonprofit organization promoting organic farming. The 2.5-acre Trailside Organic Farm supports the dining needs of the life plan community and offers residents opportunities to help with farm tasks and purchase fresh produce at weekly farm markets. Presenters will explain the farm’s operations, detail Rodale’s investment, and describe the public relations and marketing benefits the farm brings to the Cornwall Manor. Don’t have room on your campus for a farm? Rodale Institute executives will tell you how to partner with local organic farms to engage residents in agriculture.

Bryan McCrea

Director of Software Development
Prelude Services
Mechanicsburg, PA
  • 91-D. How to Become a Data-Driven Organization

    • Monday, October 28, 2024

    8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

    91-D. How to Become a Data-Driven Organization

    Your senior living organization is collecting and generating more data than ever before. But are you making the best use of that data? This session will help you recognize the value of your organization’s raw data and how solid data aggregation and reporting strategies can lead to better resident care, improved business operations, and success for your whole team. Presenters will explain how to implement data aggregation and reporting strategies and offer tips for determining your objectives for leveraging data, identifying available data sources, applying data to your organization, and making data a part of its culture. The emerging role of artificial intelligence and machine learning will also be discussed.

Mario McKenzie

Partner
CLA
Charlotte, NC
  • 58-D. Affiliation: Last Resort or Best Path Forward?

    • Monday, October 28, 2024

    8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

    58-D. Affiliation: Last Resort or Best Path Forward?

    Affiliation is often seen as a last resort for a troubled senior living community. However, deciding to join with another entity can also represent an organization’s best path to achieving its strategic vision. This session will reframe the concept of affiliation by presenting the story of the Elder Care Alliance (ECA), which chose to pursue an affiliation after undergoing a robust strategic planning process. Presenters will offer a brief overview of the process ECA used to explore whether an affiliation would improve the odds of achieving its vision for success. Take home practical tools for identifying, pursuing, and evaluating potential affiliation partners. Explore key governance issues associated with one of the most significant decisions your board of directors may ever make.

William McMorran

Sr. Partner
Green Oak Consulting Group
Los Angeles, CA
  • 68-I. Building and Maintaining an Effective Planned Giving Pipeline

    • Tuesday, October 29, 2024

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    68-I. Building and Maintaining an Effective Planned Giving Pipeline

    The ability of retirement communities to achieve a healthy bottom line is directly tied to the effectiveness of their planned giving programs. Yet, too often, planned giving is left to chance and the good graces of self-identified donors. This session will examine how single-site and multisite senior living communities can build a pipeline of gifts over time. Presenters will share the giving strategies that resonate most with donors, including bequests, charitable trusts, and legacy societies. You’ll leave this session understanding the importance of developing solid relationships with donors and the need for your marketing professionals, financing executives, and board members to recognize planned giving’s impact on your organization’s bottom line.

Mary McMullin

Chief Strategy & Advancement Officer
Front Porch
Walnut Creek, CA
  • 52-A. Should You Transition Away from Skilled Nursing Care?

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

    52-A. Should You Transition Away from Skilled Nursing Care?

    The demand for skilled nursing home care has waned in recent years due to the improved health of older adults, reimbursement changes, and increases in care provided in non-skilled settings. This session will focus on three senior living communities that are transitioning from skilled nursing to alternate care models. Presenters will describe a renovation project that converted skilled nursing spaces to memory care, a campus expansion that closed an on-campus skilled nursing setting, and a ground-up life plan community development that offered comprehensive care without on-campus skilled nursing. Join colleagues to discuss how transitions in care delivery can impact financial performance and their implications for strategic planning, financial management, resident relations, and operations.

Debi McNeil

CEO/President
Canterbury Court
Atlanta, GA
  • 70-J. Repositioning the Single-Site Life Plan Community

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    8:00 – 9:00 a.m.

    70-J. Repositioning the Single-Site Life Plan Community

    Can single-site life plan communities thrive in the future, given the increasing complexity of senior living, continued workforce challenges, and the investments required to respond to changing consumer preferences? The answer is a resounding “yes,” according to leaders of Canterbury Court, a 60-year-old single-site community in Atlanta, GA. This session will examine how Canterbury Court has thrived since it updated its strategic plan and launched a 2016 expansion and repositioning project that added new wellness, healthcare, and memory care services to the campus and made targeted investments in facilities, technology, and human resources. You’ll be impressed by this story of a single-site organization that responded to changing consumer preferences and exceeded resident expectations.

Kristy Mellons

Project Manager
Abe’s Garden
Nashville, TN
  • 116-L. Engagement for the Full Continuum of Memory Challenges

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

    116-L. Engagement for the Full Continuum of Memory Challenges

    Are you looking for better ways to serve people with dementia who live outside of your memory care program but are not benefiting from traditional activity programs? Then this session is for you. Presenters will introduce you to an evidence-based model called the Continuum of Cognitive Health (CCH), which you can use to provide high levels of engagement and support to residents and clients in all service lines as their cognitive needs change. Let presenters educate you about the evidence base for adapting engagement experiences for the full continuum of memory challenges. Review case studies demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach from an operational, marketing, and quality-of-life perspective.

Melissa Messina

Principal
Miles & Stockbridge
Baltimore, MD
  • 71-K. Growing Pains: Avoiding Landmines as Your Organization Grows

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    9:30 – 10:30 a.m.

    71-K. Growing Pains: Avoiding Landmines as Your Organization Grows

    All senior living organizations strive for growth, but it’s not always easy. This session will explore the challenges and opportunities that various organizations have encountered while following a growth strategy. Senior leaders, board members, financing partners, an attorney, and an advisor of Goodwin Living in Alexandria, VA, will tell you how to gain buy-in for your growth plans from residents, employees, lenders, and the local community so your organization can achieve its mission. You’ll take home tips for ensuring your organizational growth reflects its corporate structure, governance, and nonprofit status. You’ll also learn how to identify long-term goals and make tough decisions if growth-related projects are not proceeding according to plan.

Anthony Milionta

HR Director
Parkshore
Seattle, WA
  • 152-L. How to Rally Your Team Around a Culture of Excellence

    • Wednesday, October 30, 2024

    11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

    152-L. How to Rally Your Team Around a Culture of Excellence

    “Organizational culture” can be an overused, theoretical term that is often misunderstood. During this session, aging services providers from Washington State will clarify your understanding of culture and increase your appreciation for its role in your organization. Representatives of Parkshore Senior Living in Seattle will share their formula for building a great employee experience by rallying team members around a Culture of Excellence. The vice president of people at Transforming Age in Bellevue will describe how senior leaders can influence that Culture of Excellence by promoting authenticity, transparency, mission orientation, communication, and trust. Gain practical tools for activating your Culture of Excellence through everyday business practices, including hiring, onboarding, and mentoring.

Christen Milstead

Vice President of Marketing
Ingleside
Rockville, MD
  • 57-C. Become a “Go-To” Resource for Prospective Residents

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    4:00 – 5:00 p.m.

    57-C. Become a “Go-To” Resource for Prospective Residents

    Is your life plan community looking to reach an untapped market of younger prospects and retain current wait-list depositors all while generating revenue? Consider following the example of Ingleside, a multisite organization in the nation’s capital. Ingleside partnered with a provider of concierge services to offer current and future residents of its life plan communities a variety of on-demand services from dog walking and grooming to help with downsizing and decluttering. This session will explore Ingleside’s choice to partner with an outside vendor rather than buying or building its concierge program from scratch. Presenters will show you how current and future residents shaped the service menu and how the concierge program helped Ingleside amplify its brand as the “go-to resource” for prospects and their families.

Patricia Morse

CEO/President
Connecticut Baptist Home
Brooklyn, CT
  • 43-D. How to Lead Your Organization Through Polarizing Situations

    • Monday, October 28, 2024

    8:15 – 9:15 a.m.

    43-D. How to Lead Your Organization Through Polarizing Situations

    Effective decision-makers in aging services recognize that diverse perspectives can help their organizations navigate the complex challenges they face. In this session, coaches from the LeadingAge Connecticut Leadership Academy will define contrasting yet interrelated viewpoints called polarities that leaders must recognize and manage so they can foster a resilient culture in their organizations. Presenters will show you how to lead your teams through polarizing situations by inviting opposing perspectives and outcomes. Learn how to use polarities to manage opposing forces, make effective decisions, and welcome diversity of thought. You’ll return home with a new appreciation for the inherent complexity of issues and the value of balancing multiple perspectives.

Betsy Mullen

COO
Legacy Lifecare
Chelsea, MA
  • 89-B. Accelerate Improvement through Collaborative Learning

    • Sunday, October 27, 2024

    2:30 – 3:30 p.m.

    89-B. Accelerate Improvement through Collaborative Learning

    Legacy Lifecare is a network of charitable, nonprofit senior care organizations with a common managerial infrastructure. Founded in 2018 by Chelsea Jewish Lifecare and JGS Lifecare, the network gives its nonprofit affiliates access to managerial resources usually available only to large, proprietary organizations. This session will explore how the Legacy Lifecare Management System takes a collaborative learning and continuous improvement approach to connecting each organization’s mission with its strategic direction. Presenters will offer guidance to help you analyze how your organization does its work, find new ways to collaborate internally and externally and adapt to a rapidly changing environment. Get an up-close view of how operational expertise and continuous improvement methodologies can help your organization address complex challenges.