FSLA ENGAGE Summer 2023

A COMPASS IN THE HEADWINDS A MESSAGE from our Board Chair

Shelley Esden , President and CEO Sonata Senior Living

As CEO of a regional senior living operator, I am all too familiar with the art of balancing operational challenges with resident care and experience.

This year, a succession of underlying causes has made senior living operators world-class balancing act champions. Even the gold medalists among us have been scratching their heads wondering what can be done to assure value creation while trying to front-run the challenges that have multiplied in recent years.

If this sounds familiar, know at least that you are not alone. It is unsettling when we have so many things at once threatening to disrupt the delicate equilibrium in senior living. If pandemics and hurricanes weren’t enough, now we face rising interest rates, regulatory oversight, supply chain shortages, a workforce crisis, capital restructuring, increasing insurance and litigation, escalating costs and declining margins. That’s a few too many “threats” for my tastes.

I co-founded Sonata Senior Living 15 years ago for one reason: to affect change. Early on, I experienced first-hand the difference quality care can make to families in need (including my family) and set out to improve the way consumers experience senior living along the entire continuum. It’s been the driving force behind most every decision we’ve made as a company and kept us focused through good times and bad.

These days I must remind myself that the balancing act we perform is uncomfortable, not insurmountable. Much like walking a tightrope, we’ve learned to stay afloat, even if it means constantly adjusting budgets and resources and recalibrating business strategies to optimize cost structure.

But while it’s essential to be agile, operators also must be careful not to lose sight of their core values. When we race to leap over one obstacle, we risk losing balance and tumbling to the ground. Instead, we must straddle the line between agility and stability, adapting as circumstances demand while keeping our vision in view.

Over our 15 years, the need to remain focused on the “why” has only become more apparent. To move beyond a reactive state, it’s essential to identify what, exactly, the “why” is behind our daily actions. The answer to this question has not only guided us through difficult times, but grounded us, too.

Everyone’s “why” is different. At the heart of our communities is a genuine desire to improve the lives of older adults and help them live a more fulfilling life. Whether through innovation, care, or service excellence, our drive to improve resident experience is unwavering and foundational to our existence. It comes from the heart and helped us build a stronger, more resilient team that’s better equipped to face any challenge.

Caring for seniors is a precious responsibility, and one we must never take for granted. Remembering our “why” ensures we will always prioritize our residents’ needs above our own. It’s essential we remain true to them, even when it prolongs recovery.

Being resilient means having the ability to adapt to market turbulence, bounce back from setbacks, and pivot. It is a vitally important trait for any operator to weather the storms that are buffeting our marketplace. With the reason behind our “why” as a compass, we can keep our balance and walk upright directly into the strongest of headwinds.