Home care providers face unique challenges every day, from operational hurdles to ensuring caregiver retention.

Our CEO, Navin Gupta, recently sat down with Patti Heid, Senior Director of Best Practice and Compliance for the Home Care Association of Florida for an episode of the Home Care Huddle to discuss how operational excellence can drive caregiver retention. Together, they explored industry trends, compliance complexities, and actionable strategies for home care agencies.

Patti Heid: Welcome, everyone. Thank you for joining the Home Care Association of Florida's Home Care Huddle, where we bring together the collective wisdom of home care providers within our community by sharing expertise and uplifting the standard of care. Get ready for an engaging conversation that goes beyond the surface as we unite to enhance the home care experience for providers and recipients alike.

So, let’s huddle up, everyone, and elevate home care together.

This is Patti Heid, and I am the Senior Director of Best Practices and Compliance for the Home Care Association of Florida.

Now, moving on to our guest for today: I have the pleasure of speaking with Navin Gupta, CEO of Viventium. Today, we’ll be chatting about home care and where operational excellence meets caregiver retention. So, welcome, Navin! Why don’t you take a moment to tell everyone a little bit about yourself and about Viventium?

Navin Gupta: Thank you, Patti. Thank you for having us, and thank you to Decision Health as well (sponsor of today’s program).

As you shared, I’m the CEO of Viventium. My background sits at the intersection of technology and health care – more specifically, senior care. I’m passionate about post-acute senior care, which means the areas we serve include home care, home health, hospice organizations, and facilities.

I’ve been involved with electronic health records, agency management software, and revenue cycle management. Viventium is a specialized, verticalized HR, payroll, and workforce management solution built for the segments that I’m personally passionate about.

We’ve been in the business for over 25 years and provide a full range of solutions – from applicant tracking to onboarding, payroll, core HR, benefits, and so on. I’m really excited to have this conversation with you, Patti.

Patti Heid: It sounds like providers are in for a treat today. I’m so thankful you’re here! Let’s jump into the nitty-gritty of this topic – home care operations and retention – because it’s something on the minds of all providers. To start, what are some of the operational challenges you find home care agencies are currently facing?

Navin Gupta: I think we need to start with the end in mind. When we talk about retention, the conversations have appropriately shifted to the idea that retention starts on day one – essentially, the first 100 days matter significantly.

From a challenges perspective, I’d group them into two broad buckets. First, the demand for home care services – like ADL (activities of daily living) care – far outpaces the number of caregivers available to provide this care. That puts a tremendous strain on agencies to find and retain caregivers.

Second, the workforce needs of this care staff are different. Many caregivers are hourly workers, often living paycheck to paycheck. They require convenience, flexibility, and software or technology that is multilingual.

Operationally, one of the most common issues we see is agencies using numerous applications – one for applicant tracking, another for onboarding, another for viewing pay stubs. Providing a single unified platform with seamless workflows is crucial. It’s not just about Viventium; it’s about everyone in the home care space working to provide tools and technology that speak the language of caregivers.

Patti Heid: That’s an excellent point. Today’s podcast title focuses on operational excellence. What role does that play in caregiver retention?

Navin Gupta: Operational excellence is critical. Let’s consider a hypothetical scenario: an agency administrator says, “I can’t run payroll today.” Payroll is often considered uneventful, but it’s labor-intensive. Weekly payroll can feel like Groundhog Day – repeating calculations, onboarding new employees, terminating others, managing schedules, and ensuring that day-to-day operations run smoothly.

Retention ties directly to this. According to an Activated Insights (formerly HCP) report, turnover in the industry is around 79%. Our own research, titled the Caregiver Onboarding Experience Report, found that 49% of caregivers did not feel welcomed when they joined an agency, and their questions weren’t answered adequately. Admins spend 50–70 hours on a single new hire. All these touchpoints with caregivers – from day one onward – impact their retention and satisfaction.

Patti Heid: That’s eye-opening. What would you recommend as the first steps an agency owner should take to strengthen operations and create a culture of high retention?

Navin Gupta: One of the best practices I’ve learned comes from the lean methodology, specifically the principle of Gemba, which encourages leaders to “walk the floor.” For agency owners, this means walking in the shoes of their caregivers – understanding their day-to-day experiences, identifying gaps, and addressing those gaps.

From our research, we identified eight practical steps for agency owners, such as providing technology that supports multilingual caregivers, streamlining onboarding with better tools, offering training, conducting surveys, and recognizing caregiver achievements. Culture, tools, and technology all play a role in delivering a positive experience that drives retention.

Patti Heid: As a compliance person myself, I know compliance is a significant aspect of home care. What makes compliance in this industry unique?

Navin Gupta: Compliance is inherently complex, whether it’s on the clinical side or in areas like labor law, where Viventium operates. Payroll compliance can be particularly challenging. Caregivers may work multiple jobs with different overtime rates, cross state lines, or fall under unique jurisdictional laws. Agencies need to ensure they’re meeting these requirements to avoid compliance issues.

At Viventium, we’ve built a dedicated compliance team to support agencies with questions about retroactive pay, split shifts, spread of hours, and more. It’s critical to partner with organizations that understand these complexities.

Patti Heid: That’s so true. What resources are available to help administrators struggling to stay in compliance?

Navin Gupta: Associations like yours, Patti, are invaluable for education and information sharing. However, I caution against relying on Google searches, as there’s a mix of good and bad information. Reliable sources like industry associations, trusted partners, and compliance-focused teams are crucial. At Viventium, we provide newsletters, blogs, and webinars to keep agencies informed.

Patti Heid: Great advice! As we near the end of our time together, what suggestions do you have for ensuring caregivers understand their paychecks and feel confident about their compensation?

Navin Gupta: Agencies must educate caregivers and provide pay transparency. Pay stubs should clearly show hours worked, rates applied, and deductions to build trust. Technology that supports multiple languages and offers transparency strengthens employer-employee relationships, fosters referrals, and improves retention.

Patti Heid: That’s excellent advice. Sadly, we’re out of time. Navin, thank you so much for joining us today and sharing such valuable insights.

Navin Gupta: Thank you, Patti. It’s been a pleasure.

This information is for educational purposes only, and not to provide specific legal advice. This may not reflect the most recent developments in the law and may not be applicable to a particular situation or jurisdiction.