Yesterday, a few of us from Belmont were treated to a first-rate tour of the national headquarters and on-site assisted-living community for a company that is continuously improving the post-retirement living experience for numerous U.S. seniors and their families.
Life Care Centers of Americahttp://www.lcca.com/index.cfm, was started in 1970 as a single-unit retirement home in Cleveland, Tennessee by Forrest L. Preston in his hometown of Cleveland, Tennessee. Since then, that initial concept has been continually refined and improved as the company has grown to more than 260 skilled nursing, assisting living, retirement, home care and Alzheimer's centers in 28 states. Their corporate culture is grounded in the Judeo-Christian ethic of treating people (which includes their residents, families, employee associates, and any stakeholders) with respect and dignity. As many of us already believe, that's a winning recipe for both the short- and long-term horizon.
The company's mission and values have been highly-defined from the outset, and everyone from the Owner and CEO all the way to the front-line "associates" (leadership views everyone in the company through that lens as an associate instead of the more traditional title of employee) know why they exist in that organization and how they add value through their service to all customers and company peers.
If you're in the market for an assisted-living community, I'd check them out. But if you're a business leader looking for a winning recipe for your organization, you also ought to take a look more closely at how this company operates. I'm convinced their recipe for success translates very well to any industry.