Harbor Retirement Associates (HRA) has hired a former senior vice president of operations at Senior Lifestyle Corp., with the senior living veteran primary the company’s functions.

The Vero Seashore, Florida-based senior residing operator on Wednesday named Karin Batemen to the role of COO. The previous SLC executive began her new function with HRA last month. She succeeds prior COO Kim Lewis, who joined the organization in 2018.

In her new purpose, Batemen will oversee administration of the company’s 37 HarborChase communities in 14 states and extra on the way. And she is focused in the shorter-term on bettering and growing the company’s hospitality-focused operations with regard to dining and splendor salons.

“[We are] hunting at developing all those platforms, especially in light-weight of the services alterations that we’ve expert as an marketplace submit-Covid,” Batemen explained to Senior Housing Information.

Like nearly all other senior residing operations leaders in 2022, she is also focusing on recruiting and retaining personnel, which has “become much more of a challenge” this year.

HRA communities feature 4 distinctive dining venues, ranging from good-eating steakhouses to more casual bistros. But with this kind of a eager aim on foods good quality, the business is grappling with charge inflation in parts these kinds of as delivery and foodstuff. As this kind of, efficiency in functions is major of thoughts for Batemen.

“We’re regularly getting methods to repurpose numerous food stuff items,” she said. “But I also believe it’s fascinating for the reason that it’s tough us to feel out of the box.”

At SLC, Batemen concentrated on new developments and marked the openings of 25 communities in the past five a long time. And she will keep on that aim on expansion in her new job at HRA.

The enterprise now has two active builds underway for communities in Boynton Seashore, Florida, established to open up in December and Shaker Heights, Ohio, which is flagged to open in February of 2023, Batemen reported.

The enterprise also has a handful of other projects in its pipeline, however she pointed out that they “aren’t inked but.”

As the company grows, Batemen claimed it will look to only open up about two communities per…