Tallgrass Creek Provides What Team Members Want

As a healthcare administrator, Carmen Smith valued some specific priorities when she started her job search. Like most people, she considered salary, benefits, and work-life balance. But she also looked closely at the work environment, interaction between team members, and overall friendliness and happiness.  

Tallgrass Creek, a continuing care retirement community managed by Erickson Senior Living in Overland Park, Kans., met all of her requirements and more. Smith joined the community earlier this year as memory care manager.

“I had three interviews. I could tell everyone I spoke to or met was smiling and happy. I heard that in every single phone call and saw it in every person’s face,” Smith recalls.

“The services we offer to more than 30,000 residents nationwide are only as good as the people providing them,” said Alan Butler, Chief Executive Officer of Erickson Senior Living. “This is why we take the hiring process very seriously in order to identify the best people. As a growth company with a bright future, we strive to be an employer of choice by providing an unparalleled workplace experience.”

As an Erickson Senior Living-managed community, Tallgrass Creek goes above and beyond typical benefits for team members. 

“One of the things that stood out to me at Tallgrass Creek is not only do we have vacation time that accrues very quickly for a brand-new employee, but also health and wellness days, holidays, and a bank of paid time off to use for long-term needs,” Smith said.

She also noted excellent health insurance benefits compared to other employers. “At my previous job, we had to go out to the marketplace for our health insurance,” she said. “I was very excited to see Tallgrass Creek’s health benefits as a healthcare provider itself.”

Erickson Senior Living offers unique perks such as annual well-being visits at Tallgrass Creek’s brand-new, on-site Employee Health and Well-Being Center. Here, a team of providers care specifically for community employees to help them optimize their health. In addition, team members have easy access to wellness workshops, fitness challenges, and health trackers via the Health Advocate app. 

The Wellness Fund for team members provides reimbursement of up to $260 for personal wellness expenses for team members enrolled in an Erickson Senior Living medical plan. This can help pay for gym memberships, running shoes, a Fitbit, well-being care such as massages, and more. 

For Smith, a mother of three boys who lost her first husband unexpectedly during the COVID pandemic, health, wellness, and work-life balance are just as important as salary. And Tallgrass Creek met her needs in all of those categories.

Smith says she’s been “full circle” in the field of medical administration, having started in medical billing as her first job out of high school, transitioned to office manager, admissions, volunteer manager, long-term care manger, and finally sales and marketing. 

Like many people, she said she historically changed jobs to reach the next step in her career. 

Now, at Tallgrass Creek, she feels secure in a position and with a company she wants to stay with until she retires. 

“Here, there’s so much to love,” Smith said. “I love the residents – visiting with them, making them smile, and listening to their stories. I have a great team of care associates who really care about the residents and what they do. I have an amazing manager who promotes work-life balance. And I have a great team of people from both a leadership and coworkers’ perspective. Everything’s been great!”

Interested in beginning a career at Tallgrass Creek Visit EricksonSeniorLivingCareers.com to search for available positions and apply online.