Managing a franchise is just as difficult as managing any other operating sector within an organization. The key to prevailing in such a role is to comprehend the changing franchising industry and predict a profitable outcome for the franchisor. Approximately after three years of offering franchises, Home Care for the 21st Century required a decisive leader and public moderator for sales pitching the franchise; Lori McCauley was a perfect fit for the role. Lori has risen to prominence in the industry due to her impressive background in operations management and as an astute sales professional. Although at first, Lori was skeptical when she was offered the position of Vice President of Franchise Development for Home Care for the 21st Century; but her previous experiences in the field cleared the haze and served as the vertebral for her to be the spearhead in taking Home Care for the 21st Century franchise business to next level.
Initially, the organization started as a healthcare consulting firm called 21st Century HealthCare Consultants, which assisted over 5000 agencies across the country in opening their doors. The company’s goal was to provide multiple revenue streams for healthcare businesses, multiple payors, unlimited training, a breadth of support while offering unique platforms to differentiate their business in the marketplace. Being driven by innovation and passionate about quality care, the organization has presented continually researched concepts that are ahead of the healthcare curve. Lori says, “the company had been supporting independent agencies open their doors for several years and many agencies were looking for a way to continue the support once they were open.” When the company’s CEO/Owner, John Dapello, noticed that other franchisees attended the company’s boot camp training sessions and purchased additional support, the idea of offering a franchise seemed rational. “We were offering things others were not, so it just made sense,” she adds. Soon after, the company decided to take things a step further by offering an all-inclusive full continuum of care and a healthcare franchise model. “The first time to be offered in the marketplace,” Lori asserts. Going forward, the company began offering 7-8 home care business models under one umbrella. It includes Personal/Companion Care (non-medical), Skilled Private Duty, Medicare Home Health, Hospice, Durable Medical Equipment, Non-Emergency Medical Transportation, and Medical Staffing. During these years, Lori supervised all the offerings made to the franchisees including more support than most other healthcare franchisors encompassing aspects like “licensing, credentialing for all payors, accreditation and clinical quality support, recruitment, sales & marketing, business & accounting, day to day operations, policies and procedures, onsite clinical and operations visits and a billing solution,” she highlights. She adheres to the Home Care for the 21st Century’s philosophy of enabling someone to age comfortably in the comforts of their own home. Her ambition is to be able to provide all healthcare services in the home using the company’s model, supplemented by some additional support programs with its partners. Impressed with Lori’s undeniable personality, Gary Sanchez—the owner in Albuquerque, shares, “I was searching for a home care company for two years. When I met Lori, I knew this was a Franchise for us. There was no pressure. Lori explained the franchise very clearly and thoroughly. For the last few years, we feel she’s been a large part of the team. Any questions that our team has she’s there for us. Lori is educated in every aspect of the Home Care business. Thank you so much for being there for us.”
In her two years of tenure in Home Care for the 21st Century, Lori has updated the company’s model/products in response to technological advancements in the field. She has added telehealth and sensor monitoring programs to its platform which are far more in-depth than the traditional vital monitoring platform. “We use artificial technology to be our eyes and ears when we are not present in the home to monitor behavior changes that may indicate a healthcare need,” she mentions. “This type of technology will have us working smarter not harder and will help us identify issues before they become a crisis.”
“We are looking at technology to help create a Smart health environment in the home. We are also piloting a residential care community in Northern California to potentially add another arm to our franchise offering in our future.”
Seeking Fervent Franchisees
At $69,500, Lori seeks entrepreneurs who are currently in the healthcare industry, nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, therapists, and business individuals who have had a less than satisfying experience with in-home care and want to change how healthcare is delivered. Lastly, she looks for entrepreneurs that are looking to diversify their business portfolio in a recession-proof industry. She says, “All owners will need to be well networked within their community or know someone that is because this is a relationship-based industry and it is often on who you know not just what you know. Liquid Capital $200K to operate your business.” One of the ardent individuals was Mukesh Patel, the East Orlando Owner, who shares, “I recently decided to open a home healthcare business and after considering many options, decided to invest in a franchise from Home Care for the 21st Century. I have found HC21 to be a great partner and Lori was instrumental in convincing me that HC21 was the best decision. Lori is very professional, highly motivated, and has an energy that is contagious!”
Lori provides a tremendous amount of support licensing for all models and for all renewal, articles, NPI, EIN, credentialing for all 3rd party payors (insurance), mock surveys for accreditation, Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) – required by Medicare HH and Hospice and ongoing clinical quality support, recruitment strategy support and resources, sales training and ongoing oversite, production of all marketing materials, website, SEO, and social media support, business & accounting (QuickBooks and budget forecasting), day to day operations, policies and procedures for every model for both state and federal compliance annually, onsite clinical and operations visits and a 3rd party billing solution. Moreover, the company has unlimited lifetime training with franchise workshops and industry boot camps that are at no cost to the franchisee.
Sustaining in a Recessive Proof Industry
“Healthcare is one of the most recessive proof industries,” Lori emphasizes. The need for home care franchise services will continue to rise at an astonishing rate because the world’s older population continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. “The number of Americans ages 65 and older is projected to nearly double from 52 million in 2018 to 95 million by 2060, and the 65-and-older age group’s share of the total population will rise from 16 percent to 23 percent,” highlights Lori.
In many ways, 2018 was a coming of age for the home care industry, as it steadily became recognized as a key part of the overall continuum of care due to its ability to keep older adults safely at home and out of the hospital. To add momentum to the industry, the ‘aging-in-place’ movement is upon Lori and her team, and it is huge. “According to AARP, 90%+ seniors want to ‘age in Place’,” she mentions. Seniors want to stay in their home for the duration of care which requires more home care agency services to be available to support their wellbeing. Lori highlights by being a Home Care for the 21st Century franchise one would be buying into a business that they can be passionate about, secure a financial future, and attain unprecedented support that will guide to success. It will also help them to develop the potential to diversify their business by expanding the services and revenue streams with Home Care for the 21st Century’s model.
Lori is currently working on incorporating artificial intelligence into the platform. She reckons the company needs to work smarter not harder; “with the staffing crisis we need to find ways to be present without physically being present,” she asserts. At Home Care for the 21st Century, she and her team are creating a continuous care environment in the home that is more affordable than the typical one-on-one care model. The technology will be the conduit to bridge the gaps in care, and it will be used to create a better preventative care model as opposed to a reactionary care model. She shares, “We are looking at technology to help create a Smart health environment in the home. We are also piloting a residential care community in Northern California to potentially add another arm to our franchise offering in our future.” Home Care for the 21st Century was established with a mission is to be a visionary leader in the ever-evolving healthcare industry. The company’s future endeavours will be based on maintaining its current status by consistently exceeding expectations in service, delivery, and providing families with peace of mind at all costs. Lori is also collaborating with a number of other partners to provide unique offerings for the hearing impaired, people with osteo-replacements, and other services in the future.
“The world is our oyster on ideas it is just working through what makes the most sense ironing out the kinks and timing to launch,” says Lori.
