Like many people, Janale Flores initially believed that Covid-19 would have a short-term impact on her work as Director of Human Resources and Regional Director of International Recruitment at Omni Hotels and Resorts in Broomfield, Colorado.
With closures across the country, however, Omni has lost business. She said the meeting was canceled and the employees fired, and Flores quickly realized that the fight against the pandemic would last a long time.
During this time, she received a message from Adam Kaplan, the founder, and CEO of Solera Senior Living. She was told that the operator in Denver had been searching for a new director of human resources for that company.
Kaplan graduated in 2004 from the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management at Cornell University. His career has been entirely focused on the lives of the elderly, combining hospitality and caring for the elderly. Since Solera was founded in 2016, he has been looking for talent outside the industry to fill jobs.
As the exchange between Flores and Kaplan continues, she realizes that she has the skills and experience that Kaplan was looking for. In April last year, she officially became the director of Solera’s performance and personnel business.
In the early days of the pandemic, Kaplan and other retired life leaders had predicted that massive layoffs in other departments could bring new workers into the lives of the elderly. Attracting new front-line workers has not been easy because of factors like high unemployment benefits. Still, operators have been very successful in recruiting talented new entrants to the industry, such as Flores, for management positions.
Employees with good experience in their previous careers have skills that can be transferred to housing for the elderly. They bring a unique experience that can help service providers operate from a new perspective. They can use their professional network to attract more talent.
During the pandemic, service providers have hired people for management positions with experience in hospitality, public relations, and sales communications.
Marketing Director Carlene Motto said Houston’s Belmont Village held a number of leadership roles during Covid-19, including significant sales and communications roles.
Transferable skills
Prior to taking up the role of Senior Vice President of Communications at Belmont Village in July, Katie Gray was Vice President of the Houston-based communications and marketing company Pennebaker, leading all marketing and communications for the agency’s strategy. She said a recruiter for the executive search firm Govig last spring contacted Gray for a job in the communications department at Belmont Village.
After learning more about job vacancies and responsibilities, Gray realized she had the skills and experience needed to fill the position and actively researched the industry to prepare for the interview.
Gray’s previous experience and skills enabled him to compete in Belmont Village. He has extensive experience in environments between companies and companies. In addition, he took up a new position with his previous health experience and worked in marketing and communications at the University of Texas MD Anderson Medical Center and another marketing company Texas Children’s Hospital. This experience enabled him to identify referrals, such as physicians and social workers and put them in touch with Belmont Village to attract potential residents and their families to the community.
Prior to taking up the role of Senior Vice President of Communications at Belmont Village in July, Katie Gray was Vice President of the Houston-based communications and marketing company Pennebaker, leading all marketing and communications for the agency’s strategy. She said a recruiter for the executive search firm Govig last spring contacted Gray for a job in the communications department at Belmont Village.
New Ideas
These new professional experiences enable them to solve common obstacles with new eyes and find innovative solutions.
By taking on Solera’s new position, Flores was responsible for recruiting talent for vacancies. For this purpose, she uses her market background and her social networks to showcase the operators’ work, understand their culture and showcase their expected work environment. This enables them to establish their relationships on how to translate their professional skills into the industry.
New Talent Pool
By leveraging these leaders’ professional networks and making them the best-selling tools for success, hiring leaders outside the industry will increase the opportunities to recruit more talent.
Lane said that RCM was very actively looking for new talent. Kimberly Varley, the operator’s HR manager, also has a hospitable background and provides an extensive network of chefs, servers, and sales managers looking for new opportunities.
To grow your business in the senior industry, Create a free profile on Senior GuidePost. The Industry’s premium resource for Senior communities to find Qualified vendors serving the Senior Industry
