The Californer - National Lutheran Communities & Services (NLCS) Certified as a Great Place to Work®

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FREDERICK, Md. - Californer -- Great Place to Work Institute and its senior care partner Activated Insights have honored National Lutheran Communities & Services (NLCS) with certification as a Great Place to Work. The certification in 2023 marks the fifth year in a row NLCS has received this prized recognition.

The certification process involved surveying team members from across NLCS' entities and locations in Maryland and Virginia, evaluating more than 60 elements of their experience on the job. The surveys were anonymous and assessed elements encompassing team members' feelings of pride in NLCS' community impact, belief that their work makes a difference in the lives of others, feelings that their daily work has special meaning and other aspects of team members' daily experience. Rankings are based on team members' anonymous feedback, regardless of job title or area of responsibility.

NLCS President and Chief Executive Officer Cyndi Walters says she is ecstatic and humbled by the breadth and candor of team member participation in the Great Place to Work surveys. "We asked for candid and honest feedback in this anonymous survey, and that's exactly what we received – both affirmations of what we do well and areas where we can grow. Our leadership is committed to our We CARE culture and will continue to grow together," Walters says.

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According to Walters, ensuring NLCS remains an employer of choice has been a key strategic imperative for National Lutheran over the past several years. Walters cites several workforce initiatives that are ensuring team members feel valued, have the support and resources to be successful in their positions, and have opportunities to grow in their chosen career path. These include:

Connect Stay Repeat (or CoStar) Program which aligns new team members with an experienced buddy to coach them beyond their initial orientation and onboarding period. The CoStar program has resulted in a 24% increase in retention among those individuals paired with a CoStar.
Workforce Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) initiatives, including the formation of a DEIB program and DEIB council to continually foster a culture across all NLCS entities where all team members feel included and valued for their uniqueness.
Tuition reimbursement program and leadership training to enable team members to enhance their professional education, gain certifications and degrees that will enable them to advance, and participate in leadership development programs to expand their skills as leaders and managers.

"We applaud National Lutheran Communities & Services for seeking certification and publicly sharing its employees' feedback," said Dr. Jacquelyn Kung of great Place to Work's senior care partner, Activated Insights. "These ratings measure its capacity to earn its own employees' trust and create a great workplace for high performance."

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About National Lutheran Communities & Services

National Lutheran Communities & Services (NLCS) is a faith-based, not-for-profit ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America's (ELCA) Delaware-Maryland, Metropolitan Washington, D.C. and Virginia synods, serving people of all beliefs. NLCS partners with older adults and their families to provide solutions for successful aging through retirement
communities and in-home service options and awards grants to other organizations supporting underserved older adults. NLCS is reimagining aging as we serve the next generation of older adults.

Entities affiliated with NLCS include myPotential at Home in Rockville and Winchester, Virginia; The Village at Rockville in Rockville; The Village at Augsburg in Baltimore; The Legacy at North Augusta in Staunton, Virginia; The Village at Orchard Ridge in Winchester, Virginia; a grant-making organization Impact1890, and The Village at Providence Point, a new continuing care retirement community to open in Annapolis, Maryland. To learn more, visit: https://www.nationallutheran.org/.