BMA to Share Operational Expertise at Senior Living Conference

BMA staff to speak at the Leading Age Illinois 2015 Annual Meeting and Exhibition on life enrichment and wellness, management and operations, and sales and marketing.

By Rick Banas of BMA Management, Ltd.

BMA will be leading sessions on life enrichment and wellness, management and operations, and sales and marketing at the Leading Age Illinois 2015 Annual Meeting and Exhibition. The conference is being held from April 29 through May 1 in Rosemont, Illinois.

Leading Age Illinois (formerly Life Services Network) is the largest eldercare association in Illinois. The statewide association represents the leading providers of services for older adults, including senior housing, assisted living, supportive living and memory care communities.

LeadingAge Illinois Annual Conference & Exhibition Logo

Representatives of BMA and communities that the company manages will be leading the following sessions:

If You Can Measure It, You Can Manage It

Kim Ioerger, Vice President of Operations, and Amy Eubank, BMA Interim Administrator, will be talking about how leaders can empower directors and front line staff to think strategically and quantitatively and about how an organization can measure success through numbers without appearing to be all about the numbers.

The Stetson Club: Baby Boomer Gentlemen’s Recreation in Senior Living

Kristiann Ruderman, Regional Operations Director, and Danni Holman, Vice President of Marketing, Sales and Engagement, will be looking at what men of the Baby Boomers generation will desire in activities and life enrichment in senior housing and services. She will be presenting 25 great ideas for clubs, activities and other offerings for the masculine persuasion. She also will be presenting information on the 10 best low cost or no cost recreational pursuits for male older adults.

Ask for a Referral

Jo Ellen Bleavins, Senior Vice President of Operations, and Julie Simpkins, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development, will be leading a discussion with professional referral sources on what is important to them and the challenges they are facing. The session also will cover how to partner with professional referral sources in the new managed care environment and how to assist professional referral sources with the challenges they are facing.

Re-Inventing Me: Activities and Wellness Programs for Young Adults with Physical Disabilities

Christopher Dale, Administrator, and Julie Helm, Resident Services Director, at Deer Path of Huntley will be leading this session. Deer Path is an affordable assisted living community for adults 22 to 64 years of age with physical disabilities that is located in Huntley, Illinois. They will be talking about the link between activity programming and improved physical, emotional and cognitive functioning and utilizing leisure, recreational and educational health and wellness programs to produce positive outcomes.

Keynote Speakers

The keynote speakers for the conference will be Jeffrey Cufaude, President of Idea Architects, and Andrew Carle, President of Carle Consulting.

Jeff describes himself as an architect of ideas and idealist. In his presentation on “Thriving in the New Normal: How to Innovate in a World of Constant Change” he will be exploring the critical principles and practices required to build individual and organizational capacity, competence and confidence to thrive in the “new normal” in which we exist.

Andy is an internationally recognized expert in senior housing operations, marketing and technology and new models of care. In his presentation on “Innovations, Technology and the Future of Senior Housing,” he will be talking about the need for new models of housing to meet both the demographic and the psychographic needs of the seniors of today and tomorrow. He will be highlighting examples of current and future “Nana” (a term the he coined) technologies.

He also will be talking why the collapse of what he calls the Three-Legged Stool of Caregiving will drive growth of the senior housing industry and about what will drive government policy and consumer expectations in the years ahead.

For more information about the Leading Age Illinois annual conference and exhibition, click here.


All affordable assisted living communities managed by BMA Management, Ltd. are certified and surveyed by the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. All assisted living communities are licensed and surveyed by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

“BMA Management, Ltd. is the leading provider of assisted living in Illinois
and one of the 20 largest providers of assisted living in the United States.”

What are your thoughts? Leave a comment and let us know.

Like BMA Management on Facebook - Logo

Gardant Management Solutions has 20+ years of industry-acclaimed operational history in developing, managing and consulting for senior living, assisted living and memory care communities.