Disruption-proof your senior housing business by Chip Conley, MBA

At a time when the "silver tsunami" should be a huge boon for senior housing developers in the United States and beyond, occupancy rates have trended downward for the past 10 quarters. There are countless examples of industries, from railroads to retail real estate, that fell into a slump exactly when consumer demand was spiking. Why? Often, they were too product or process oriented, and not enough consumer oriented, while their core customers' needs evolved over time. How does this rationale apply to the senior housing industry? Beyond well-known operational challenges like labor expenses and construction costs, even some newer, more innovative models may not be addressing the critical larger question: What do today's older customers really want in a housing environment? ... Maybe it's time we reimagine the senior housing model by using the lens of a serial disruptor in the hospitality industry.