WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
Putting Senior Living on the Map for the Next Generation
By Sara Wildberger T
oday’s students have the passion to make a diff erence. But what they need is a path. That’s the solution to streaming more
talent into senior living positions, according to Scott Eckstein, the executive-in-residence at Washington State University’s (WSU) new senior living institute. The institute, to be named for former senior
living executive Granger Cobb, who passed away in 2015, is under the university’s Carson College of Business’s Hospitality Business Management School. It was formed when a group of senior living executives approached the school for a partnership, citing mutual benefits: The industry needs leaders, the school needs to serve students, and the hos- pitality program off ers synergies. The institute’s mission is to attract and
train the next generation of leaders for the growing industry. The biggest obstacle so far has been getting students to see that this industry is even there. That’s where provid- ing the path comes in. In introductory classes and events, Eck-
stein said, “I would ask: Did anyone come to WSU for senior living? And I would get stares and silence. It wasn’t part of their con- versations. But that has to change.”
“When they take the fi eld trip, everything changes.” The eye-openers come when executives in the industry visit the classes and when the students take fi eld trips to senior residences. Eckstein said students are literally hooked— they leap past the myths and misconceptions and it clicks into place: This is a productive career path. The intangible benefi ts of a career in senior living may be the strongest attractors with the next generation. Eckstein noted that “doing well by doing good” is a major motivator. “They see and hear the passion” when people from the industry address classes. “They see they can make a diff erence.” Work-life balance is another advantage students seek, particularly compared to the 24/7 intensity of the hotel and restaurant environments.
Introduce the career option early Path creation doesn’t have to wait for the university level. Eckstein said leaders can start partnering sooner. High schoolers can be encouraged to work in senior living dining rooms, for instance; middle schoolers can engage with community service.
Thought Leader Profi le
Scott Eckstein Clinical Assistant Professor & Senior Living Executive-In-Residence, Washington State University
Making learning fl exible through online
and on-demand certifi cate programs such as that off ered by WSU will be require- ments for training in this generation. And those in the industry can clear the path by changing some forms of ingrained behav- ior. Methods and career paths based on having to earn your stripes and pay your dues don’t apply so well to this generation. Let them advance quickly and skip steps of the ladder where it’s merited—or build a diff erent kind of ladder. “They’re a strong bunch, and they’ve got
strong opinions,” Eckstein said. “And just like the boomers, they’re going to change things.”
AN INSTITUTE WITH A VISION, AND A VISIONARY
WSU will be the home of the proposed Granger Cobb Institute for Senior Living, named for Lewis Granger Cobb, Emeritus Senior Living CEO who passed away in 2015. He was widely considered a visionary in senior living, advancing quality of life, and innovative methods while remaining dedicated to care. Cobb was among the group of executives who approached the WSU Hospitality program’s director, Dr. Nancy Swanger, with the idea that collaboration could help develop future managers and leaders in senior living.
“Granger not only understood what the future of the industry needed, he was the kind of person that made you feel like you were the only person in the room,” Eckstein said. “It is this kind of presence, understanding of talent, emotional intelligence, and the needs of the industry that inspired the institute. Dr. Swanger carried the senior living torch through the process.”
58 SENIOR LIVING EXECUTIVE MARCH/APRIL 2018
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