By Steve Moran
In a recent powerful post on LinkedIn, Melissa Wood talked about why she’s leaving the senior living industry after more than a decade of giving her all:
“After more than a decade in the senior living industry — driving census growth, training teams, helping with turning around communities, and walking families through some of the most emotional decisions of their lives — I’m finally saying it: I’m done.”
Her message wasn’t born from bitterness but from burnout, shattered boundaries, and bold clarity about impossible expectations placed on passionate caregivers and leaders:
“For years, I was expected to not only meet goals but exceed them — immediately.”
“But here’s what they don’t tell you when you get good at this work: the better you are, the more you’re asked to give. And the more you give, the more it costs you — personally, emotionally, and professionally.”
“Despite the humanity, the hustle, and the heart we pour into this work — corporate goals keep climbing, while resources keep shrinking.”
These are difficult words ….
“I’m done sacrificing for a seat at a table that refuses to hear the truth from those of us in the trenches.”
“… if you’re thinking of walking away, you’re not weak — you’re wise.”
The Heart of Senior Living
Those who work in senior living typically are not doing it with the goal of getting rich. They enter this field because they’ve discovered a profound gift — the ability to make meaningful differences in older adults’ lives. These team members create moments of deep human connection that forever change someone’s life journey.
These team members are not naive, they understand the business realities of senior living. They recognize that covering expenses and generating margins is essential for success and to create the best experiences for everyone. They have embraced the philosophy of “doing good while doing well”— a delicate and unique balance that characterizes the best of senior living.
The Investment Shift
Over time, the investment community discovered senior living, viewing it as a profit machine — a real estate-based investment that offers significantly higher returns than traditional real estate investments such as apartments and office buildings.
The aging demographic trends provided an additional incentive: a growing population needing the specialized care that senior living communities provide.
What’s most important?
It would be unfair to claim that all capital providers care only about returns, just as it would be unfair to say all operators care exclusively about residents. But too often, maybe most of the time, capital providers only care about the bottom line.
Increasingly, capital providers are “driving the bus,” demanding improved results quarter after quarter, with each period expected to outperform the previous one.
In too many organizations, profits have superseded people as the primary focus. In the short term — perhaps for several quarters — prioritizing profits above all else can create the illusion of exceptional returns and remarkable growth.
However, this approach invariably exacts a long-term price. The quality of the resident experience begins to deteriorate. The employee experience suffers in parallel, eventually leading to compressed margins.
The logical response would be to reorient toward enhancing the resident experience. Yet, counterintuitively, many organizations double down on cost-cutting and revenue-driving measures. The result? Good people either quit the industry entirely or remain physically while disengaging emotionally, doing only the minimum required.
The Path Forward
The senior living industry presents tremendous opportunities to simultaneously do good and do well. However, sustainable financial success (“doing well”) only materializes when serving residents exceptionally (“doing good”) remains the organizational North Star.
Losing dedicated professionals like Melissa Wood damages everyone — residents lose advocates, teams lose mentors, and our society loses those who could make aging more dignified and meaningful.
We need to recalibrate the balance between purpose and profit in senior living. By honoring the calling that brings people to this work while creating sustainable business models, we can build communities where both residents and caregivers thrive.
The future of senior living depends on our ability to remember why we’re here in the first place: to serve our elders with compassion, dignity, and excellence.
Amen! Amen! Amen!!!
Thanks. We have so much opportunity to get this right.
Sadly, I fully agree with this article. We have seen healthcare REITS purchasing many senior living communities. Typically, they have very few on their executive boards who are in senior living and have been in the trenches. The dividends paid to shareholders is the priority… The residence sadly or not. This is a very short term focus, and I truly believe that there will be better financial results if we return to focus, focusing on our residents, their families and our associates. When we take care of these most important people, our profits will flow naturally.
Paul all you say is true. The problem is that these investment vehicles work on a 6, 7 or 8 year recapitalization model. And bonuses, big bonuses are predicated on exceeding those promises.
It is like the old parable about a frog giving the scorpion a ride across the river. It is simply their nature.
Steve, your article highlights how financial demands in senior living drives staff burnout and eventually resident dissatisfaction. While financial pressures are real, I think the exhaustion stems from disconnecting passionate caregivers from their purpose: improving seniors’ lives. The solution? Align financial strategies better with the mission and empower staff through strong leadership.
I’d like to see financial leaders prioritizing long-term investments—competitive wages, training, and tech to streamline tasks—over short-term savings. High turnover costs thousands per employee, so retaining talent boosts both care quality and profitability. Operationally, managers can foster engagement by involving staff in resident programs, rekindling their passion. Management must unify this vision, communicating how decisions support the mission and valuing staff through recognition and mentorship. The financial directives are often necessary decisions that may need a little more patience, more buy-in and some day in the life for the investment professionals, this might help meet all stakeholder demands. Wishful thinking? Maybe…
This purpose-driven approach creates a cycle: fulfilled caregivers deliver exceptional care, improving resident satisfaction, occupancy, and financial stability. Let’s lead with heart to sustain senior living’s mission and attract the next generation of talent.
This is exactly the formula for long-term success which will of course also yield short cashflow. The ultimately problem as I see it, is that the owners actually don’t care one way or another about the long-term success of the community, which is to them, simply another asset on their balance sheet. Once they have turned the asset at the end of the holding period they don’t even think about what happens to the community, the people who live there, the individuals who work in the community or the families that depend on the business for their livelihood.
All they are focused on is profits.
There we have the distinction between legacy owners and investment asset owners, it lies in their original intentions, mission, and commitment to cultural integrity. Priorities often clash: culture versus revenue, mission versus profit, service standards versus efficiency. Balancing these is the challenge. Sales decisions stem from varied motives, and not all investment groups lack merit, nor are all original owners virtuous and good at what they are trying to do. Ultimately, we hope community teams prioritize residents’ best interests, with the resources to deliver exceptional, dignified care and service.