We need a managers manager to manage the managers!

This month the group was discussing the 4 key asks from the Retirement Housing Matters Campaign, with a focus on the need for manager training and accreditation and how this could practically be implemented, regulated and enforced.

The group brainstormed different ideas such as a Cert IV in Retirement Housing management that would require people to be tested on and pass a trade standard.

The group thought the course could include training on: legislation such as the Retirement Villages Act and Residential Tenancies Act, skills in selling property and explaining contracts, having a community services skill set and a person centered point of view, mediation training, first aid training, and gerontological training.

Though this sounds helpful, members also troubleshooted some potential flaws in that system. Who would authorise it, and who would be required to do the training? The CEO? The caretakers? The middle management? Who would regulate it and enforce if people were untrained?

Members thought that a lot of the issues arise from the personality type of specific staff members. The village rules can be consistent, but a change in management can really change how they get implemented, and as one member said, “you can’t train someone to be a nice person“.

What do you think?