Lenbrook: Scalability and Score Improvement

Environmental Services, Laundry & Linen Services

Challenge

Lenbrook is a unique, full-service retirement community that features elegant high-rise towers, spacious apartment homes, multiple dining venues, and a complete fitness center and spa. Conceived by Atlanta businessman Jack Clark in the early 1980s, The Lenbrook Square Foundation, Inc. – a not-for-profit organization – continues to sponsor the venture. The luxury community opened to its first residents in 1983 and more than two decades later it is still the first and only Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) to earn national accreditation.

In 2008 Lenbrook went through a major expansion, renovating community areas and adding a new tower with 140 new residences, three healthcare floors, three restaurants, library, and lobby. Their objective was to enhance and improve quality and hospitality services for their residents while keeping a cost-efficient budget on target.

Because of the perfect storm of the economic and real estate downturn coupled with opening a $170M expansion, Lenbrook faced new and more difficult challenges. This presented an opportunity to transition from in-house hospitality, environmental, and laundry and linen services to a partnership with an experienced leader in support service management, ABM Healthcare Support Services.

Solution

As a full-service provider, ABM now expertly oversees Lenbrook’s environmental services and provides comprehensive services through an experienced management team and 30 trained, full-time hourly associates. As one of their first tasks, ABM immediately assessed staffing and management levels, identified operating efficiencies and strategies, and reviewed Lenbrook’s capital needs in all areas.

Next ABM initiated standardized, best practice environmental services policies, processes, and systems to better understand and meet customer service and financial challenges. To help Lenbrook improve the quality of service for residents, ABM also implemented new hospitality service programs and state-of-the-art equipment. Linens, soaps, guest rooms, hospitality uniforms and scripting, and microfiber mops were among the changes.

Over the years, ABM has remained committed to Lenbrook’s mission, values, and resident-centered philosophy and have served them in many capacities that extend beyond the environmental services scope of duties including programs and event coordination, call center management, total quality management, and vendor management for example.

Benefits

ABM leadership and staff have proven to be a trusted partner to Lenbrook and continue to deliver outstanding customer service that has gained the respect of Lenbrook’s residents, family members, and staff. The new strategic planning and environmental services programs, equipment, and techniques continue to move Lenbrook’s quality initiatives forward.

ABM highlights at Lenbrook include:

• Increased quality improvement scores – Environmental Services and Linen Department Head Survey Scores rank above 4+ on a scale of 1 to 5
• Led EVS and Laundry/Linen Services using innovative methods to help Lenbrook achieve Medicare certification
• Maintained Lenbrook’s CARF-CCAC accreditation standards without a single EVS-related deficiency
• Cost-efficiently assisted with new tower staffing, especially during tight economic times
• Increased Lenbrook efficiency targets

Testimonials

“ABM’s on-site leadership demonstrates commitment to our values and resident-centered philosophy. ABM has identified specific areas on which to focus, strategies to make improvements, and then delivered on the outcome of improving resident satisfaction scores. The collaborative work and leadership has improved residents’ understanding of the housekeeping scope and created housekeeping 'ambassadors' to continue to help improve communication among residents. In our community, relationships are everything. ABM partnered with key residents to create positive change.”  

- Felecia J. Sveda, Vice President Operations, Hospitality Services

“I’ve worked with ABM for several years. It has been a very good partnership over those years. ABM has always been easy to work with and has been pro-active in dealing with issues that arise. I’m proud to have ABM as part of the Lenbrook team.”  

- Mike McDaniel, VP of Community Services

“ABM has been a trusted business partner in our operations; however, what I appreciate about their team is that they have been a strong strategic partner. From working on our resident satisfaction initiative to sharing education and training tools with our associates, ABM has always been there for us.”  

- Chris Keysor, President & Chief Executive Officer