As senior living operators strive to boost resident well-being while managing operational efficiency, artificial intelligence (AI) solutions are increasingly considered for their potential to drive greater efficiency, improve accuracy, and enhance personalization.
Only 9% of operators currently use AI-aided technology today, but about one-third (34%) plan to adopt AI in the future. There clearly still remains a gap around familiarity and adoption of AI in senior living.
With these trends in mind, we wrote this article to clarify how operators can best adopt AI in their communities to achieve their business and community goals, and drive continuous value for residents, their family members, and staff.
Align AI with your business objectives
The purpose of technology is to create ease and drive more efficiency in processes that already exist in a senior living community. For instance, in earlier stages of technology adoption, a community may transition from printed activity calendars to an activity planning software program. AI is simply another step forward in that evolution—a natural progression in technology adoption and use.
With this in mind, operators should aim to seamlessly weave AI into their broader innovation strategy. What direction is your organization prioritizing growth, and how can AI enhance that growth? Consider your overarching objectives, and use that as a foundation for setting your vision for how AI will augment what your community is currently doing and what your community wants to be doing in the future.
By embedding AI into your business goals and objectives, you also help staff and residents see technology as a supportive tool rather than a disruption. This will make it easier to introduce new AI-driven solutions that are purpose-built to deliver better resident outcomes, personalized experiences, and greater community connectivity.
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Set and track measurable goals
With any investment in new technology comes the need for a cost-benefit analysis. Consider where AI could make the most immediate impact—whether it’s streamlining activity planning and calendar creation, supporting resident preference tracking, or automating other administrative tasks. Setting defined KPIs will allow you to evaluate success early and often.
One critical metric to include is return on investment (ROI). While AI solutions require upfront investment, they can lead to cost savings through more efficient operations and improved resident outcomes. By setting KPIs in each business area where AI is introduced, your leadership team can evaluate its effectiveness and determine additional opportunities for the inclusion of AI across your organization.
Encourage on-the-ground adoption
It’s common for staff members to be apprehensive about AI. Not only is it a relatively new and unfamiliar technology, but staff members may resist it because they fear it will replace their job.
AI is only powerful if people are using it. Ensuring your staff is comfortable with AI tools is essential for successful long-term adoption. When introducing AI into a senior living community, it’s critical to clearly communicate the goals, benefits, and vision for the technology. By leading with transparency, operators can help alleviate staff anxiety and help them make the most of the technology.
Moreover, identifying internal AI champions can ensure strong and sustained adoption. Who are the staff members who are excited by the possibilities of AI? Encourage AI evangelists to support staff members, take an active role in training, and proactively experiment with solutions to identify ways AI can help save time and drive efficiency where it’s needed most. Internal change agents, coupled with comprehensive training and support, can help staff members welcome AI into their day-to-day workflows and drive continuous value across your community.
Prioritize continuous value
AI should be a connector.
AI solutions should complement existing systems and connect multiple parts of the business. A holistic approach to AI adoption ensures that value is delivered and realized across your community, benefitting residents, staff, and families.
By contrast, adopting isolated AI solutions not only brings complexity to an operator’s tech stack by introducing another disparate system. A one-off AI solution fails to deliver a broad spectrum of value to your community, preventing the tangible benefits of connecting workflows for staff and streamlining monotonous and time-consuming tasks.
When evaluating AI solutions, it’s important to prioritize a partner who is thoughtfully weaving AI capabilities into solutions where it can offer the most impact. By amplifying efforts across all aspects of the community, an effective AI partnership can help your community seamlessly innovate without disrupting existing processes.
Creating a thoughtful AI strategy aligned with your business objectives and values, and deploying it alongside an aligned tech partner, can help you differentiate your communities and set yourself up for innovation that enhances resident experiences both today and into the future.
Future-proofing senior living with AI
Successfully integrating AI into your community requires a thoughtful, long-term strategy—one that aligns with your mission, delivers measurable results, and empowers your team. If you're ready to explore more innovation strategies, download our executive guide, Future-proofing senior living communities. It’s packed with insights on how AI and other emerging technologies can help you stay ahead in an evolving industry. Let’s future-proof your senior living community together.
