ASHA 2024 Wrap Up: Miami Takeaways

Touching down in Miami for the 2024 ASHA conference, our team did not expect to encounter the kind of windy weather that greeted attendees. (Kayaking was canceled, alas.) 

But the blustery conditions did not put a damper on the much-anticipated event. FURTHER staff had a fantastic time with senior living professionals from around the country - learning, connecting, and trading insights.

Here's the rundown:

Atmosphere: Sunny. The mood in the room at the beautiful JW Marriott Miami Turnberry was a highlight, with industry optimism swirling around the hallway conversations. We were excited to see a nice number of fresh faces; a new generation embarking on senior living (ad)ventures, infusing the industry with innovation and native tech knowledge. We’re here for it!

Interactions: Warm. Catching up with FURTHER’s partners was a joy. In particular:

• Doug Schiffer, president at Allegro Senior Living and a FURTHER client, graciously gave us a tour of the org’s new Fort Lauderdale community.
• Ginni Ryan, vice president of operations at the Wolff Company, brought us up to speed on the amazing work done by this FURTHER partner.
• Christy Van Der Westhuizen, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Legend Senior Living, was ready as ever to chat about pushing forward new initiatives with FURTHER.
• Kim Rosengren and Daniel West of the marketing company Markentum, a standout FURTHER channel partner, sat down with us for dinner. The conversation was as engaging as the salmon was delicious.

Insights: Cool. The sessions gave us lots of ideas to bring home:

• Families have new ways of finding senior living solutions. Case in point: Where You Live Matters, a free online source created by ASHA to give families access to information about senior living options. And for communities, this represents a new way to showcase what they offer.
• Media attention can be leveraged. Senior living is in the spotlight. (As it should be, given demographic trends.) This presents new opportunities for the industry to share its great work. One way to capitalize: Inviting local officials into communities to show off the incredible efforts of senior living teams.
• Technology is showing cookie-cutter profiles the door. Gone are the days of templated resident profiles. AI is helping senior living communities take a more individualized approach to learning about residents. The result: personalized care to meet particular needs.

In closing, one dynamic remains (and this is especially true in uncertain economic environments) which is - partners, colleagues, teammates, friends and relationships remain paramount in today's senior living industry as we strive to deliver the best care and living options to our communities. Challenges surrounding occupancy, sales, recruitment, retention, and every other managed aspect of our operations drive home the importance of our most valuable asset and resource and that is the people we work and interact with on a daily basis.

Further is proud to be a member of the ASHA organization and we're already looking forward to collaborating and spending time together again at the next meeting. See you in Dana Point this June!