Connecting the Dots: Senior Living Success with Matt Reiners

What does it take to build an organization that puts people before competition? In this episode, I sit down with Rob Liebreich , CEO & President of Goodwin Living , to discuss how purpose-driven leadership is reshaping aging services. Rob shares the personal story that brought him into senior living, why he believes organizations should freely share their best ideas, and how Goodwin Living is...

In this episode of Connecting the Dots , I sit down with Carsten Ellsworth , Director of Marketing at Avista Senior Living , to explore what it really means to become an AI-enabled marketer. Carsten shares how he “accidentally” found his way into senior living through an internship that turned into a nine-year career, and how his passion for marketing has evolved alongside the rise of AI. Rather t...

In this episode of What’s the Yap? , I welcome back Rachel Keller back to the senior living industry and dives into one of the most common questions surrounding AI today: Which AI tool should you actually be using? Rachel shares her experience using ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI tools in both her personal and professional life, discussing where each platform excels and how professionals can think...

Senior living occupancy is climbing, but the headline numbers only tell part of the story. In this episode, I sit down with Maggie Seybold , Vice President of Customer Insights at WelcomeHome, to explore what the latest data reveals about occupancy, sales performance, and resident retention across thousands of senior living communities. Drawing from WelcomeHome’s extensive benchmark data, Maggie e...

In this episode of Connecting the Dots , Matt sits down with Jill Vitale-Aussem , President and CEO of Christian Living Communities , to explore a powerful shift in senior living: moving from a hospitality-driven model to a citizenship model rooted in purpose, belonging, reciprocity, and shared ownership. Jill reflects on her early experiences in nursing homes, the moment she began questioning the...

In this episode of Connecting the Dots , I sit down with Dr. Nancy Swanger , Founding Director of the Granger Cobb Institute for the Business of Aging at Washington State University, to talk about what it takes to prepare the next generation of senior living leaders. Nancy shares the origin story of the Institute, which began through a collaboration between Washington State University and senior l...

In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Jess Kohn , HCM Consultant for Healthcare and Senior Living at Paycor, to talk about how senior living operators are rethinking their approach to workforce technology. Jess shares how she found her way into senior living through tech sales, what made her stay in the industry, and why relationships and trust matter so much when serving operators. The con...

In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Jerry Vinci , founder of CCR Growth and host of From Leads to Leases , to unpack why many senior living communities do not actually have a lead problem — they have a systems, follow-up, and accountability problem. Jerry shares how senior living operators can better connect marketing, sales, and operations to improve occupancy, reduce reliance on third-p...

In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Cory Fosco , author of The Question of When , to talk about one of the hardest decisions families face: knowing when it may be time to consider assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing, or additional support at home. Drawing from 34 years in long-term care, Cory shares why families often wait until a crisis forces the decision, how denial and guilt...

In this episode, Matt sits down with Sebastian Jimenez , Founder and CEO of Rilla , to explore how AI is changing the way senior living operators coach sales teams, improve tour performance, and increase occupancy. Sebastian breaks down why traditional mystery shopping falls short, what top-performing sales directors do differently, and how AI-powered conversation analysis can uncover the behavior...

In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Marissa Gardner , founder of Bloomsy , to unpack a problem many senior living operators know well: teams working hard but still missing the mark. Marissa shares why underperformance is often less about effort and more about misdiagnosis, how “more activity” can actually amplify the wrong strategy, and why people problems are often systems problems in di...

Jean Hartnett is the founder of Radical Sabbatical , an education and consulting company focused on trauma awareness for the senior living workforce and the people they care for. With a career in senior living that began in 1989 as a certified nursing assistant, Jean has served across frontline and executive leadership roles. Today, she helps organizations better understand trauma-informed care, b...

In this episode, Julie Boggess joins Matt Reiners to break down the CMP program in plain English. She explains where CMP funds come from, how nursing communities can access them, what those dollars can and cannot support, and what facilities should expect once a project is approved. The conversation also gets practical, covering implementation, reporting, sustainability, and the real-world outcome...

In this episode, Matt sits down with Rania Kfuri , Vice President of Philanthropy, Sales, and Marketing at Glenmeadow , to talk about what senior living really is, why authentic storytelling matters, and how nonprofit communities can better connect philanthropy, sales, and marketing under one mission. Rania shares how her background in fundraising and entrepreneurship shaped her approach, why educ...

In this episode, Matt sits down with Katherine Pack to explore what it really takes to sell into senior living today. Katherine explains why so many vendors miss the mark: they bring in aggressive, feature-first playbooks from other industries without taking the time to understand the culture, language, and emotional reality of senior living. Her core message is simple but powerful: this is an ind...

Matt Field owns and operates three Right at Home Home Care franchise locations serving Chicago’s surrounding suburbs . With a background in clergy work, he brings a values-driven, person-centered approach to supporting older adults, families navigating dementia, and the caregivers who make aging at home possible. He runs the business alongside his wife, Rachel, and focuses on dignity, communicatio...

Rebecca Barker is the VP of Business Development at the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners (NCCDP). She partners with senior living, home care, and healthcare organizations to strengthen dementia care through evidence-based training and workforce development. Her focus is helping teams move beyond mandated training to build confident staff, better culture, and measurable outcomes...

In this episode, Matt sits down with Greg Mehfoud , Head of Procurement at Twenty/20 Management , to unpack what really happens when you cross the line between operations and the vendor side in senior living. Greg shares what surprised him most about SaaS sales, what operators often misunderstand about vendors (and vice versa), and how procurement isn’t about being sold — it’s about stewardship. T...

In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Stacy Lademar to explore how leadership, not labor shortages, is often the root cause of staffing instability in senior living. Drawing from her experience at Five Star Senior Living , John Knox Village of Pompano , and beyond, Stacy shares practical, real-world strategies for reducing early turnover, identifying future leaders, and building confidence...

Dr. Sara Kyle is the founder of LE3 Solutions, where she helps senior living organizations reimagine customer experience and resident engagement. With a background in recreation therapy and a PhD in gerontology, she blends deep academic insight with real-world operational savvy. Her work focuses on simplifying engagement strategies so that every team member can play a part—and every resident feels...

What do families get wrong about senior living—and how can they get it right? David Hopkins, senior care advisor and former executive director, shares lessons learned from both sides of the table. David Hopkins is the owner of Assisted Living Locators in Central Florida and a longtime advocate for improving the senior care journey. With over a decade as an executive director in senior living commu...

As the first wave of baby boomers turns 80, the senior living industry faces a moment of truth—and opportunity. In this episode, Matt Reiners sits down with Bruce Lederman, CEO of Charles E. Smith Life Communities, for a wide-ranging conversation on how the “Me Generation” is transforming what it means to age. Bruce shares lessons from decades of leadership in senior care, explores the systemic cr...

Julie Bernhard, Corporate Director of Marketing at The Tradition , joins the podcast to unpack what truly drives marketing results in senior living. From cutting through the noise of bloated tech stacks to embracing storytelling and simplicity, Julie offers a clear, practical roadmap for marketing leaders who want to do more with less—and actually make it count. Julie's career spans agency, no...

Lola Rain is the founder of AGE-GENCY and the crusader behind WatchWhatYouSay.org , a movement dedicated to changing the language we use around aging and senior living. With a background in marketing, a master’s degree in aging services, and over 15 years in the senior living industry, Lola is a passionate advocate for disrupting ageist narratives and elevating the lived experiences of older adult...

Summary: In this episode of What’s the Yap? , Matt Reiners reunites with Rachel Keller to unpack Microsoft’s year-end report on 37.5 million Co-Pilot chats . From health and wellness searches to late-night existential questions, this data offers a compelling look into human behavior—and how senior living communities can meet people where they are. Rachel and Matt share actionable insights for oper...