Ten years ago, it was common to find senior care workers who have been with their current employer for the last 25 years, happily working their 40 hours and satisfied with their position. Sometimes these individuals not only stayed at the same organization through the course of their careers but often remained in the same role until retirement.
Now, fewer senior living facilities experience the luxury of a consistent core staff and frequent turnover is much more common. Facilities across the country are challenged with addressing shortages in key roles such as skilled nursing staff, and, as more millennials continue to enter the workforce, employers are also adjusting to working with this younger, mission-driven generation of employees.
Millennials are looking for more than just a paycheck
Regardless of the type of industry where they work, young adults entering the workforce who were born between 1982 and 2004 are looking to feel a sense of purpose in the work they do. To attract and retain this generation of workers, it’s important to help them understand the connection from the tasks they complete each day to the impact those tasks have on your residents, regardless of how big or little that impact appears to be. Money isn’t as large of a concern for this generation as they are more focused on their need to know how their work positively affects others.
Help staff find purpose in your mission
For millennials, having an impact on others is all about their desire to be part of a greater purpose. This is why it’s important for millennials to understand your brand and the heart of your organization: your mission. This generation wants to work for an organization that exists to make a difference and having a strong mission helps engage them.
Your senior living facility's mission doesn’t have to be complicated, it just needs to be a mission millennials and others on your team can believe in. By aligning your mission with achievable goals for the organization and for your staff, you can inspire your team and help them find purpose in the work they do.
Make it your mission to provide the highest level of comfort
As an industry, long-term care facilities exist to provide both medical and personal care services to people in the community who are unable to manage personal care on their own. As an individual facility, making comfort a priority as part of your mission promotes brand differentiation for both your prospective residents and prospective employees.
Senior care workers enter the industry to help the residents they care for and keeping residents comfortable is a purpose that matters to them. By ensuring resident are safe from infection or skin breakdown, their mattresses and pillows are soft, and their linens are clean and warm, your staff is engaged in ensuring resident comfort and quality of life which adds purpose to their day.
Encompass Group LLC can provide you with the tools and solutions your staff needs to fulfil their purpose. We have a rich history of assisting senior living facilities in delivering a higher standard of care. Every product we offer — from a durable yet soft and absorbent incontinent pad, to an ensemble of reusable and non-woven textiles and apparel products — helps your team keep residents comfortable, which keeps your team engaged.
Resident comfort and safety is a mission we believe in too. Message me on LinkedIn or call 1-800-245-4636 to discover how we can help you engage your staff in your mission.
