Movers & Shakers: Chris Hyatt, partner, investor and chief operating officer, New Perspective Senior Living

Hyatt, in the new role of partner, investor and chief operating officer, is working to help New Perspective serve 10,000 residents by 2025, up from 2,000-plus today.

The family-owned company, founded in 1998, develops and operates independent living, assisted living and memory care communities in Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Illinois. New Perspective CEO Todd Novaczyk and president and Chief Financial Officer Ryan Novaczyk continue in their roles.

In addition to organic growth in its existing communities, Hyatt said, New Perspective will grow through strategic acquisitions in the Upper Midwest and through new development.

Hyatt brings close to 20 years of experience from two of the country's largest senior living companies, most recently as executive vice president of operations support for Brookdale Senior Living. He previously was executive vice president and chief operating officer at Emeritus Senior Living.

Hyatt was 18 when he began working as a patient care attendant at the same South Carolina hospital system where his parents and two siblings worked. He went to nursing school before transitioning to senior housing and working in administrative roles in senior communities.

Q: What appealed to you about this opportunity with New Perspective?

A: Our mission here is pretty simple — it's residents first in everything we do. It's built on a foundational belief that all seniors deserve to live life on purpose and successfully age with dignity. I'm basically putting my money where my mouth is in the sense that I believe in the mission and I believe in the foundational belief of this company.

Q: What interested you in joining a smaller company?

A: It gave me an opportunity to reconnect more directly with the folks who are charged with making sure that we're meeting our mission. So I'm a lot closer to the people on the ground. That gets more difficult as a company gets bigger.

Q: What challenges could affect New Perspective's growth plans?

A: I can say with confidence that the challenge for all operators in senior housing or nursing homes is finding and retaining the best in class caregivers, nurses and people who have the passion for this type of work. It's the workforce challenge as it relates to caring for people. You have to have good recruiting, a value proposition that excites people to come to work for you. It's not always the money but is there a career path and how do they grow within the organization.

Todd Nelson