2026 Annual Meeting & Leadership Forum
Sep 15-18, 2026, Grand View Lodge
Join us September 15-18 at the beautiful Grand View Lodge in Nisswa for LeadingAge Minnesota’s premier leadership event.
The LeadingAge Minnesota Annual Meeting & Leadership Forum is designed for executives, decision-makers, and organizational leaders. This event offers high-level education, national expertise, strategic insight, and candid conversations about the forces shaping the future of our field.
Session Schedule
Golf
No description available
Tuesday Sessions
Sponsored by Northland Securities and Procare HR
Open to all Annual Meeting participants
Open to all Annual Meeting participants
Wednesday Sessions
New to Annual Meeting? We invite you to join other newer members over breakfast for a casual conversation and overview of the Annual Meeting experience – the sessions, activities, and networking opportunities available throughout the week. No pre-registration needed, but you must be a registered guest at Grand View Lodge on Tuesday evening or pay onsite for your breakfast buffet.
The Purpose of Pursuit
In a time of rising stress, disengagement, and workplace fatigue, Amanda Brinkman challenges long-term care leaders to rethink purpose. With warmth, authenticity, and real-life stories, she shows that purpose is not a distant destination, but something found in everyday moments, shared values, and meaningful work. This inspiring keynote will help leaders strengthen morale, reconnect teams, and build cultures where people feel engaged, valued, and inspired.
- Identify your unique strengths or “superpowers” and connect them to your purpose.
- Describe how everyday actions, values, and moments of connection contribute to a stronger workplace community.
- Reflect on the legacy you want to leave with residents, families, and colleagues.
- Create a personal contribution list to clarify how you can show up with greater meaning, engagement, and purpose in your work.
In a time of rising stress, disengagement, and workplace fatigue, Amanda Brinkman challenges long-term care leaders to rethink purpose. With warmth, authenticity, and real-life stories, she shows that purpose is not a distant destination, but something found in everyday moments, shared values, and meaningful work. This inspiring keynote will help leaders strengthen morale, reconnect teams, and build cultures where people feel engaged, valued, and inspired.
- Identify your unique strengths or “superpowers” and connect them to your purpose.
- Describe how everyday actions, values, and moments of connection contribute to a stronger workplace community.
- Reflect on the legacy you want to leave with residents, families, and colleagues.
- Create a personal contribution list to clarify how you can show up with greater meaning, engagement, and purpose in your work.
Wednesday Concurrent Sessions 1 - 2p.m.
#1 – The Ripple Effect: Gratitude, Perspective, and Purpose in the Workplace
Sep 16, 1:00pm - 2:00pm
- Practice gratitude as a tool for strengthening connection, perspective, and resilience in long-term care workplaces.
- Reflect on the people and experiences that have shaped your personal and professional purpose.
- Identify ways to bring gratitude and intentional reflection back to your teams to create a positive ripple effect across your community.
- Reflect on the people and experiences that have shaped your personal and professional purpose.
- Identify ways to bring gratitude and intentional reflection back to your teams to create a positive ripple effect across your community.
- Identify the evolving expectations, preferences, and unmet needs of Minnesota's future older adult populations and what these shifts mean for service design and organizational strategy.
- Distinguish between near-term, practical AI, and automation applications that deliver results in senior care today versus longer-horizon technologies and apply a framework for prioritizing investments based on organizational readiness and impact.
- Describe what innovative, early-adopter senior care organizations are doing now in response to both consumer change and AI adoption, and what those models mean for long-term care communities.
- Distinguish between near-term, practical AI, and automation applications that deliver results in senior care today versus longer-horizon technologies and apply a framework for prioritizing investments based on organizational readiness and impact.
- Describe what innovative, early-adopter senior care organizations are doing now in response to both consumer change and AI adoption, and what those models mean for long-term care communities.
Afternoon Workshop
AFTERNOON WORKSHOP
- Describe the six key components of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) Model and how they can help long-term care leadership teams strengthen organizational alignment and performance.
- Apply selected EOS tools to common challenges in long-term care communities, including staffing, compliance, occupancy, communication, and accountability.
- Identify practical steps for implementing EOS concepts within a long-term care organization.
- Describe the six key components of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) Model and how they can help long-term care leadership teams strengthen organizational alignment and performance.
- Apply selected EOS tools to common challenges in long-term care communities, including staffing, compliance, occupancy, communication, and accountability.
- Identify practical steps for implementing EOS concepts within a long-term care organization.
Wednesday Concurrent Sessions 2:15 - 3:15 p.m.
- Explain how the Medicaid State Plan Amendment relates to nursing facility reimbursement and policy changes in Minnesota.
- Describe key components of Minnesota’s Nursing Home State Plan Amendment, including potential impacts on rates, workforce-related funding, and provider operations.
- Identify practical steps nursing home leaders can take to prepare for implementation, communicate changes to stakeholders, and monitor compliance expectations.
- Describe key components of Minnesota’s Nursing Home State Plan Amendment, including potential impacts on rates, workforce-related funding, and provider operations.
- Identify practical steps nursing home leaders can take to prepare for implementation, communicate changes to stakeholders, and monitor compliance expectations.
- Examine current and emerging information technology priorities shaping aging services, including innovation, data strategy, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and operational readiness.
- Evaluate how IT leaders align technology investments with organizational strategy, financial sustainability, workforce needs, and quality outcomes.
- Identify leadership opportunities to foster collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and innovation that strengthen IT’s role in advancing efficiency, resident experience, and long-term organizational success.
- Evaluate how IT leaders align technology investments with organizational strategy, financial sustainability, workforce needs, and quality outcomes.
- Identify leadership opportunities to foster collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and innovation that strengthen IT’s role in advancing efficiency, resident experience, and long-term organizational success.
Thursday Sessions
The Annual Business Meeting is an important function of the Association and membership. Please plan to attend for the election of officers and other important association business.
General Session - Change Makers in Conversation: Leadership for What’s Next
Sep 17, 9:15am - 10:15am
Join a thought-provoking panel discussion with leaders who are not just responding to change but helping shape it. In this dynamic session, experienced long-term care and aging services leaders will share how they are challenging assumptions, taking bold steps, and leading through complexity with courage and purpose.
Panelists will share practical strategies and standout innovations shaping the future of aging services, from workforce and financial sustainability to culture, technology, and new models of care. Expect candid dialogue, fresh perspectives, and actionable ideas from leaders reimagining what is possible.
Panelists will share practical strategies and standout innovations shaping the future of aging services, from workforce and financial sustainability to culture, technology, and new models of care. Expect candid dialogue, fresh perspectives, and actionable ideas from leaders reimagining what is possible.
No description available
Thursday Concurrent Sessions 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
- Identify key considerations for vetting AI-enabled technologies in long-term care.
- Discuss implementation and governance strategies that support responsible adoption, staff training, and ongoing monitoring of AI tools in admissions and care-related decision-making.
- Explore practical use cases for AI and admissions evaluation technologies in long-term care, including case studies of how providers are using these tools in their communities.
- Discuss implementation and governance strategies that support responsible adoption, staff training, and ongoing monitoring of AI tools in admissions and care-related decision-making.
- Explore practical use cases for AI and admissions evaluation technologies in long-term care, including case studies of how providers are using these tools in their communities.
#7 – Unlocking New Revenue Through Accountable Care Models in Long-term Care
Sep 17, 1:00pm - 2:00pm
- Explain why the current Medicare fee-for-service payment environment is creating urgency for aging services providers to move beyond delivering value to actively capturing it through new payment models.
- Describe how accountable care arrangements, including MSSP ACOs and emerging CMS payment models, create financial upside for senior care organizations, and why long-term care populations represent a disproportionate and largely untapped opportunity within these models.
- Identify the three core components of a value-based payment platform and the range of ownership and partnership structures through which an aging services organization can bring them together.
- Describe how accountable care arrangements, including MSSP ACOs and emerging CMS payment models, create financial upside for senior care organizations, and why long-term care populations represent a disproportionate and largely untapped opportunity within these models.
- Identify the three core components of a value-based payment platform and the range of ownership and partnership structures through which an aging services organization can bring them together.
- Identify key workforce challenges and opportunities for rural long-term care organizations.
- Explore practical strategies and provider perspectives from rural Minnesota organizations working to meet changing community needs.
- Discuss policy, advocacy, and collaboration opportunities that can strengthen the future of rural long-term care in Minnesota.
- Explore practical strategies and provider perspectives from rural Minnesota organizations working to meet changing community needs.
- Discuss policy, advocacy, and collaboration opportunities that can strengthen the future of rural long-term care in Minnesota.
Thursday Concurrent Sessions 2:15 - 3:15 p.m.
- Explain key operational requirements of Minnesota Paid Leave and how they may affect staffing, scheduling, and coverage in long-term care settings.
- Identify common scheduling challenges created by protected leave, including intermittent absences, shift coverage gaps, communication workflows, and coordination across departments.
- Develop practical implementation strategies, policies, and best practices to support compliance, continuity of care, and workforce planning in Minnesota long-term care organizations.
- Identify common scheduling challenges created by protected leave, including intermittent absences, shift coverage gaps, communication workflows, and coordination across departments.
- Develop practical implementation strategies, policies, and best practices to support compliance, continuity of care, and workforce planning in Minnesota long-term care organizations.
- Describe how partnership models between for-profit and not-for-profit organizations are reshaping growth strategies in senior housing and care.
- Examine case study examples of innovative ownership and operating structures that support revenue growth, service line expansion, and mission advancement.
- Identify key strategic decision points across real estate, operations, and care delivery to assess whether partnership-driven growth aligns with an organization’s goals.
- Examine case study examples of innovative ownership and operating structures that support revenue growth, service line expansion, and mission advancement.
- Identify key strategic decision points across real estate, operations, and care delivery to assess whether partnership-driven growth aligns with an organization’s goals.
- Identify where conversion breakdowns commonly occur after the first inquiry, including handoffs, follow-up practices, and communication gaps between marketing, sales, admissions, and operations.
- Analyze how disconnected systems and inconsistent reporting can contribute to slow response times, lost visibility, and missed move-in opportunities.
- Develop strategies to improve lead management, cross-functional accountability, and follow-up processes that support stronger inquiry-to-move-in conversion.
- Analyze how disconnected systems and inconsistent reporting can contribute to slow response times, lost visibility, and missed move-in opportunities.
- Develop strategies to improve lead management, cross-functional accountability, and follow-up processes that support stronger inquiry-to-move-in conversion.
Friday Sessions
Join colleagues for an interactive World Café conversation focused on three of the most pressing issues shaping the future of aging services: technology/AI, workforce, and payment. Participants will rotate through small-group discussions designed to spark practical ideas, shared learning, and cross-sector problem solving.
Through guided questions and peer exchange, attendees will leave with fresh perspectives, practical strategies, and a better understanding of how leaders across the field are responding to these shared challenges.
- Discuss emerging challenges and opportunities in aging services related to technology/AI, workforce, and payment.
- Share practical strategies and peer-informed ideas for addressing common issues across aging services settings.
- Identify collaborative approaches leaders can use to respond to change and strengthen the future of aging services.
Through guided questions and peer exchange, attendees will leave with fresh perspectives, practical strategies, and a better understanding of how leaders across the field are responding to these shared challenges.
- Discuss emerging challenges and opportunities in aging services related to technology/AI, workforce, and payment.
- Share practical strategies and peer-informed ideas for addressing common issues across aging services settings.
- Identify collaborative approaches leaders can use to respond to change and strengthen the future of aging services.