Call Center Specialist/Family Connection Specialist

POSITION TITLE:  Call Center Specialist / Family Connection Specialist

REPORTS TO:                    CEO

CLASSIFICATION:                Non-Exempt

REVISED:                               August 2026

Part time and Full time

Pay: $24/hr   (4- 10 hour days include a rotating weekend)

To serve people and serve them better than anywhere else.

The Call Center Specialist works with leadership, managers, and the business development team to achieve this by:

Leadership & Service:

•    Communicate, model, and carry out our organization's vision statement through every family, referral source, manager, and team interaction.
•    Create a warm, calm, and professional first impression for families and referral sources who are looking for senior living support.
•    Use care, patience, and good judgment when speaking with families who may be overwhelmed, emotional, rushed, or unsure of the next step.
•    Be a resource for managers and business development by gathering clear information, documenting thoroughly, and protecting the handoff process.
•    Represent the company with service excellence by helping callers feel heard, respected, and guided from the first contact.
•    Bring forward patterns, barriers, questions, and ideas that may help the company serve families better and improve the inquiry experience.

• Family Inquiry & Call Management:

•    Answer incoming calls from families, referral sources, online inquiries, and community contacts during scheduled call center hours.
•    Complete discovery by gathering caller name, contact information, resident name, relationship, care needs, urgency, location preference, payor source, timeline, referral source, and next-step details.
•    Use the approved inquiry script and discovery questions so each family receives a consistent experience and each manager receives the information needed for follow-up.
•    Move potential families toward the appropriate next step, including manager follow-up, tour scheduling, pricing discussion, availability review, or referral to another resource when needed.
•    Route clinical, urgent, pricing negotiation, or community-specific questions to the appropriate manager or leader while still documenting the interaction.
•    Follow up on missed calls, voicemails, online contact forms, website inquiries, and open leads in a timely manner.
•    Maintain professionalism and confidentiality with all caller, resident, family, and payer information.

• WelcomeHome / CRM Documentation:

•    Enter every inquiry, call note, voicemail, online inquiry, discovery conversation, and handoff note into WelcomeHome accurately and consistently.
•    Search for duplicate leads before creating a new inquiry and keep lead records clean, complete, and easy for managers to follow.
•    Document what the family asked, what was discussed, the building or area of interest, care concerns, payor source, urgency, and the expected next step.
•    Create and update WelcomeHome tasks so every active lead has a clear follow-up owner and no inquiry is left open-ended.
•    Review overdue WelcomeHome tasks when assigned and help clarify, assign, or close out next steps appropriately.
•    Protect the handoff process by making sure managers and business development staff can understand the caller's situation without having to start over.

• Building Knowledge & Tour Support:

•    Learn all Minnesota buildings, campuses, managers, assistant managers, building types, care focus, and general fit for assisted living, memory care, advanced memory care, men's memory care, and apartment-style assisted living.
•    Use the building cheat sheet to help guide families based on care need, location preference, payor source, urgency, room availability, and manager recommendation.
•    Understand basic talking points for each building, including general positioning, room type, shared bathroom notes when relevant, and when to route questions to the manager.
•    Participate in building tours and manager introductions as assigned so the call center can speak accurately and naturally about each location.
•    Avoid over-answering clinical fit, final pricing, special rate questions, admission approval, or complex care questions; route those to the appropriate leader.

• Business Development & Reporting Support:

•    Nurture open leads when call volume allows so older inquiries do not sit untouched or become missed opportunities.
•    Track recurring family questions, objections, service concerns, affordability concerns, lost-lead reasons, and tour barriers so leadership can identify trends.
•    Assist with 30-day referral send-outs for alternative placement options when a family or referral source needs a different care setting than White Pine/Gracewood can provide.
•    Assist with market analysis by gathering competitor pricing, service package information, and market positioning details when assigned.
•    Support rate negotiation preparation by organizing pricing information, referral details, care-level context, and follow-up notes for leadership review.
•    Help identify gaps in call scripts, discovery questions, WelcomeHome documentation, handoff communication, and family-facing information.

• Administration & Systems:

•    Maintain knowledge of the phone system, softphone or desk phone process, call queue, voicemail, call transfer process, hold process, and backup plan if phones or internet are not working.
•    Use company laptop, headset, email, WelcomeHome, Eldermark, shared tracking tools, and other assigned systems appropriately and professionally.
•    Pull the daily discharge report when assigned and compare discharge information against WelcomeHome so resident status remains accurate.
•    Confirm hospice agency information is listed correctly on occupancy tracking reports when hospice information is available or required for tracking.
•    Send requested reports, summaries, call themes, lead updates, and project information to leadership on a timely basis.
•    Maintain organized call notes, shared documents, and work product so the role remains consistent across all scheduled call center employees.

• Other Responsibilities:

•    Attend trainings, meetings, building tours, manager introductions, and call-center check-ins as assigned.
•    Maintain up-to-date knowledge of White Pine/Gracewood services, building differences, referral processes, payer basics, and common senior living questions.
•    Communicate with leadership when stuck, when a process is unclear, when a family needs urgent follow-up, or when a lead may be at risk of being missed.
•    Follow all privacy, confidentiality, customer-service, technology, and documentation expectations.
•    Perform other duties and assist with other company projects, as requested.

• I know I am winning in my role when...

•    Families and referral sources feel heard, respected, and guided after the first call.
•    Every inquiry is documented in WelcomeHome the same day with clear discovery notes and a clear next step.
•    Managers can quickly understand the family's situation, urgency, care needs, payer source, and follow-up expectation without starting from the beginning.
•    Online inquiries, voicemails, missed calls, and open leads are followed up on timely and consistently.
•    No lead is missed because of poor documentation, unclear ownership, duplicate records, or lack of follow-through.
•    The call center helps improve tours, admissions, occupancy, customer service, and the overall family experience.

• Best Practices:

•    Start each shift by checking phone access, voicemail, online inquiries, email, WelcomeHome tasks, and assigned reports.
•    Keep the building cheat sheet, inquiry script, payer cheat sheet, manager contact list, and call-center checklist available during each shift.
•    Document while the call is fresh and avoid vague notes such as “called about pricing” or “wants availability.”
•    Confirm the caller's best phone number, email, preferred communication method, and best follow-up time before ending the call.
•    Use calm, simple language with families and avoid making promises about admission, care approval, final pricing, or room availability without manager review.
•    Be a learner. Ask questions, listen to manager feedback, review call themes, and continue improving the family experience.

• Qualifications:

•    High School Diploma or equivalent.
•    Strong phone presence with the ability to sound warm, steady, professional, and helpful.
•    Customer-service experience preferred; senior living, healthcare, admissions, scheduling, or call center experience helpful.
•    Strong verbal and written communication ability, including accurate spelling, complete notes, and professional email communication.
•    Demonstrated organizational skills and attention to detail.
•    Ability to multitask between phone calls, online inquiries, documentation, follow-up tasks, and shared tracking tools.
•    Comfortable using computers, email, CRM systems, shared documents, and phone systems; experience with WelcomeHome and Eldermark preferred but not required.
•    Ability to ask discovery questions in a natural, respectful way without making families feel rushed or judged.
•    Ability to work independently while following a consistent process and communicating appropriately with leadership.
•    Must be able to carry out our Company Vision, which includes a positive attitude, integrity, strong follow-through, and being a good teammate.
•    Must pass criminal background check at the time of hire and as required thereafter.

• WORKING CONDITIONS:

•    Primary responsibilities will be conducted in a clean, well-lit, climate-controlled office or approved remote work setting.
•    The noise level is usually moderate.
•    Daily work requires frequent phone and computer use.
•    The position may include emotionally difficult conversations with families, referral sources, or others seeking urgent senior living support.
•    Travel to buildings, meetings, trainings, or tours may be required.

• PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

•    Must be able to sit, stand, and move intermittently throughout the workday.
•    Must be able to use a computer, headset, phone system, keyboard, and mouse for extended periods of time.
•    Must have the emotional stability needed to cope with the mental and emotional stress of the position.
•    Must be able to communicate clearly by phone, email, and in person.

• #sj