Chapter 15 - WARD SENIOR LIVING WITHOUT THE WARDS
The board proposed a name change.
At first I opposed.
Dad built Ward Senior Living.
Then an employee said:
“Residents don’t care what your father’s surname was.”
Right.
We changed less dramatically.
Company became HarborCare Living.
Not because harbor was Daniel’s project.
Different brand chosen after research.
Ward family shareholding remained temporarily.
Governance changed.
Independent chair.
Independent audit committee.
No family member could serve simultaneously as CEO and board chair.
Related-party vendors required full disclosure and outside approval.
Procurement analytics.
Random facility verification.
Whistleblower hotline reporting to board, not management.
Employee council.
Resident-family advisory group.
I returned after nine months.
Not CEO.
Chief operating adviser during transition.
Elaine remained CEO.
That bruised my ego.
Good.
I later decided not to seek the top role again.
Why?
Because I had spent years assuming stewardship meant being indispensable.
It did not.
I sold part of my shares into an employee ownership trust.
Not all.
Enough to reduce family concentration.
Daniel’s shares became subject to restitution and legal restrictions.
Evelyn’s too.
No revenge confiscation beyond law.
May you like
HarborCare survived.
Residents continued eating strawberries.
