by Stephen Tweed

What have we learned from the CEOs of the leading home care companies in America?

“They are always learning.”

In 2012, The Academy launched the $5 Million Mastermind Group.  Five companies who generate more than $5 million in revenue came together to share ideas, solve problems, and address industry issues.  Three of those owners sold their businesses for significant sums of money.  They were replaced by four new companies. The group meets twice a year in locations selected by the group.

In 2014 we launched the Private Pay in Home Health Mastermind Group.  These are private duty companies that are affiliated with a home health agency.  They range in size from $1 million to $30 million.  Yes … you read that right.  $30 million in private pay revenue from a single company with one location. This group will also meet twice a year.

What did we learn from these leaders? “They are always learning.”

This past year,  through The Academy for Private Duty Home Care, we have developed and presented 18 new programs to help you grow your business, find and keep top talent, and get ready for the future.  These learning programs that were presented as live web conferences, or “Webinars” have been recorded and are available free of charge to all Premium and Mastermind Members of The Academy.

The 2014 Learning Library

What a line-up of new programs!  Here is a list of the new titles we’ve added to the learning library this year:

January

• Techniques for Training Your Caregivers – Sharon Brothers and Diane West

February

• Hire with Ease – Tammy DeVille and Diane West
• Creating Competitive Advantage in Private Duty Home Care – Stephen Tweed

March

• Retaining top Caregivers – Stephen Tweed and Diane west
• Execution IS the Strategy – Laura Stack and Stephen Tweed

April

• Public Speaking as a Marketing Tool – Stephen Tweed and Jill Scott

May

• What You Need to Know about Liability Insurance and Workers Compensation – David Dickie
• How to use Literature Racks to marketing your home care business – Stephen Tweed

June

• Get More Caregivers – Stephen Tweed and Diane West
• Benchmarks and Best Practices in Private Duty Home Care – Aaron Marcum and Stephen Tweed

July

• Exhibiting at Trade Shows to get more referrals – Susan Friedmann and Stephen Tweed

August

• Stop the Complainers and Energy Drainers – Linda Swindling and Jill Scott
• Networking using Linked In – Jill Scott and Stephen Tweed

September

• Using Paid Sponsorships to Market Home Care – Stephen Tweed and Jill Scott

October

• Get the Best – Part I – Cathy Fyock and Diane West
• How to Differentiate your Agency by developing Specialty Programs – Gary Skole and Andrew Dubler

November

• Get the Best – Part II – Cathy Fyock and Diane West

December

• The Year in Review, and the Year to Come – Stephen Tweed, Diane West, and Jill Scott

This list represents eighteen hours of educational programming that you and your home care team can access to develop your knowledge, grow your skills, and refocus your attitudes on serving  your clients, generating new referrals, and finding high quality caregivers.

The home care industry is more competitive than ever before.  The Home Care Association of America announced in October that they have a list of more than 24,000 companies that are providing in-home care services.  Every referral source you call on, and every consumer that calls you, has seen and talked with at least one other home care company.  If you cannot clearly define what makes you different, and why they should buy from you, your company will not grow.

We have had more calls this fall from home care companies that have hit a plateau, and have not been able to grow their business.  Despite applying all of the techniques they have used to grow their business up to this point, the growth curve has slowed.

If you are serious about growing your business, then become a life-long learner.  Encourage your office staff and sales professionals to also become life-long learners.  And there is no easier way to get the ideas, information, strategies, and insights than through the online learning system at The Academy for Private Duty Home Care.

What’s Coming in 2015?

While we continue to conduct regular research into the top techniques and best practices in our industry, we learned that there are better ways to deliver this information.  Instead of using 60 minutes long live webinars, in 2015 we will be introducing a new series of programs that you and your team can use to grow your business.

The Monday Morning Marketing Meeting is a series of twelve monthly packets of information that will help you and your team meet every week to discuss how you can serve more clients and generate more hours of service.  The program is a combination of short videos, worksheets, action planners, and tracking tools.  You will have agendas for four weekly marketing meetings, links to two short videos, and a leader’s guide to help you use these tools to engage your team members in meaningful conversations about what you will do to grow your business.

Stay Tuned

Stay tuned to future editions of The Leading Home Care Report to get the latest information on the roll-out of the Monday Morning Marketing Meeting.  You’ll be amazed at what you can do, and almost no one else in your local marketplace will have access to this valuable information.

If you are not currently a Premium Member of The Academy, now’s the time to join.  A Premium Membership is only $499.00 per year.  That’s less than $10.00 per week.  Where else can you get the latest industry-specific learning materials for you and your team for less than the cost of two Starbucks per week?