Senior Housing Leaders Focus on Staff Trust to Drive Retention

After years of pandemic recovery, senior housing operators are hitting performance highs—but their focus isn't just on occupancy rates or bottom lines. Leadership across the sector is zeroing in on one thing to sustain that momentum: treating employees better to keep them longer. That was the message from executives speaking at the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) spring conference in Nashville, where the talk turned from technology and growth to trust, culture, and connection.

Jon Ollmann, President and Chief Operating Officer at Hawthorn Senior Living, oversees 78 communities and about 10,000 units across 22 states. He said his company's success rests on what he calls "The Hawthorn Heart," which he defines as three things: its people, the quality of its product, and profitability.

"We can train on anything – we want to hire people who care about themselves and their job," he said. "We want to provide our product at a fair price for our customers and our investors."

To cultivate that culture, Hawthorn often hires live-in couples—whether spouses, friends, or siblings—to manage its communities. "The couple must like each other," Ollmann half-joked, "and have our core values. The [associates] must understand priorities. We are very touch-point oriented when caring for our residents."

Even with 10,000 units under management, Hawthorn has been slow to integrate technology into its caregiving model. "We didn't even have computers until 2019," Ollmann said. "I evaluate properties based on what I hear and feel when I visit them."

Recognition is also central to the company's retention efforts. Every year, Hawthorn invites its top-performing leaders to a high-end resort for an awards event—recently a week-long meeting trip in Maui, Hawaii. "The top performers get to spend an extra night there and receive room upgrades, such as suites," Ollmann said. "The trip is seven days, but there are only two days of meetings."

Hawthorn also introduced a new incentive plan this year, after Ollmann deliberately kept staff informed of its development. "Once your staff trusts you, they will stay," he said. "We told them that an incentive plan was coming, and it's been our job to keep that in front of them, so they understand."

At NHC, leadership takes a similarly personal approach. Stephen Flatt, Chief Executive Officer and Inside Director of the company, said he believes in situational leadership—adjusting to people and circumstances rather than enforcing a single management style.

"There's not one way to be a leader," he said. "You must look around and sense the emotions and intelligence of those around you, given the situation, and adjust to your followers [employees]."

Flatt cited inspiration from legendary football coach Lou Holtz: "Do what's right, do the best you can, and care for everyone – that's trust, commitment, and love."

That philosophy has helped NHC retain talent, particularly among its 263 foreign nurses, 68% of whom are still with the company. "Hire for who the person is more than what skills they bring to the table," Flatt said.

NHC's administrative staff stays for an average of 15 years—far longer than the national average of roughly 18 months—and the company maintains a 4% turnover rate. "We consider these jobs to be a career destination," Flatt said. "For our employees, pay is not a motivator; it's a satisfier. People want to believe that they're getting paid what they're worth for the job they do."

The company also emphasizes clear performance tracking, posting charts on office walls that show progress across its communities. Its biggest employee event, CNA Days, celebrates its certified nursing assistants with an overnight, dress-up gathering at a luxury venue.

One year, NHC's culture of enthusiasm even helped recruit a new member. "The company picks up attending employees via limousine," Flatt recalled. "A few years ago, one of the limousine drivers could sense how excited everyone was, and she became curious about working for the company. Eventually, she quit her job as a limousine driver, studied to become a CNA, was hired by NHC, and a couple of years later, was named CNA of the Year."