Tell us the basics: Who are you, what’s your company’s name, and how long have you been at this company?

Lory Phillippo, CEO of Circle Center Adult Day Services. I’ve been at this Richmond non-profit for 31 years!

How did you wind up in this business?

I’ve been interested in working with older adults all of my life, probably because I was raised with four grandparents and four great grandparents all living within a mile of our family home.One of my grandmothers had a stroke when I was in high school just as I was about to pursue an undergrad degree in occupational therapy. I worked in hospitals as a therapist and department head for several years, then completed a masters in public health in health gerontology and moved to Richmond to teach at VCU. When the position at Circle Center became available, it seemed to pull together all of my interests: in helping older adults maintain as much independence as possible, in management and planning, and in working with health professions students. It’s been a perfect match !

As Americans live longer, do you see employers making more strides towards accommodating employees who need to balance care for a parent?

Quite a number of Richmond’s top executives and small business owners have cared for older relatives, and that is usually all it takes to see the challenges. More and more employers understand the impact of being a family caregiver on their employees, and on their business. The number of employees balancing work and caregiving for older relatives will only escalate in future decades, so finding solutions now is imperative. Providing support and access to resources for current workers is more cost effective than hiring and training replacements.

What are some best practices in that area you’d like to see all employers use?

First, a corporate culture that being a caregiver is a valued role deserving of accommodation, just like being a parent is for younger employees, is essential. Second, make it easy for employees to access information. Employee assistance programs are ramping up about eldercare. Lunch-time seminars help. There is no shortage of information and more resources in the community than most folks realize.

Third, the big challenge is sorting through and figuring out what applies to your situation. Many caregivers would benefit from help from a professional to do that, and having workplace access to local eldercare planning experts would be worth the investment. Of course I’d like employers to be sure every working caregiver knows about the adult day option.

What’s the biggest challenge in the adult-care business?

The main challenge is lack of community awareness that this is a valuable long-term care option that should be considered when a relative needs care. Research has demonstrated that caregivers who use adult day have extremely high satisfaction and significantly reduced stress.

What’s a lesson you’ve learned during the recession?

I think we’ve all learned to be more aware of price and value, need vs want. At Circle Center we’re happy to be providing an affordable long term care option. We’ve also experienced more donors stepping up to help families who can’t afford all of the care they need. Generosity is a beautiful thing.

Is there a secret to your personal success?

I suppose one aspect is always pushing the envelope, believing if you’re not moving forward you’re moving backward. I went into rehabilitation in the 1960’s when few knew what it was. Then I pursued gerontology in the early 1970’s before most people could spell it. Then adult day when there were only a few hundred centers nationwide, and there are now 5,000. What am I thinking about next? I’m hoping to do a bang-up job of retirement in a few more years! Exit strategy? I am percolating a few more good eldercare ideas right now.

What’s coming up in the next year for you and Circle Center? What about in the next five years?

Personally, I hope for more time with my twin daughters and four grandchildren, more time for travel. At the Center we’re a few months into an ambitious plan that takes us through 2014. With the older adult population doubling by 2030, there is much to be done to keep up with family and workplace needs. Couple that with a dwindling number of younger people to hire and train as caregivers — there won’t be enough folks for 1-to-1 care so centers like ours will be the cost-effective option we’ll all need.

What, at your business, is the most effective way to connect with customers?

At Circle Center we are thrilled that referrals from satisfied families we serve or have served is our most frequent source of referral. Caregiving is an intimate experience and endorsements from trusted peers who have been there means a lot. The second way many families learn is from their health care provider. We have a long list of physicians and a growing list of nurse practitioners who have the seen the impact of our programs and services and refer their patients. Next we hope to hear “my boss suggested that I call you.”

What’s the part of your job you dread the most?

Maybe dread is too heavy, but one thing that is hard is the pace never slows. Like for family caregivers, finding some down time is a challenge, but critically important.

What’s the part of your job that excites you the most, the thing that makes you want to hurry to work?

How did you know that I still hurry to work with a sense of anticipation even after 31 years here? It’s actually not one aspect of my job that does it for me. It’s the incredible variety of things that I deal with every day, keeping a dozen balls in the air at all times, knowing enough about a lot of things, taking multi-tasking to an art-form !!

The other source of satisfaction is the feedback we get from the older people and caregivers we serve. We have an incredibly experienced and compassionate staff and we bring quality of life and peace of mind back into peoples’ lives every day. It is a true Circle of Care.