Argentum’s Los Angeles Workforce Symposium brings senior living employers, educators and workforce-development partners together to tackle recruitment, training and long-term career pathways.
As California’s population of older adults grows, one of the most consequential questions facing senior living is also one of the most practical: Who will provide the care, service, leadership and support residents will need in the years ahead?
The answer will require more than filling today’s vacancies.
It will require senior living providers to build stronger relationships with colleges, workforce agencies, training organizations, apprenticeship programs and other partners capable of introducing new people to the field, and helping them build lasting careers within it.
Those connections will be the focus of the Argentum Workforce Symposium—Los Angeles: Partnerships, Pathways and Possibilities, taking place Thursday, June 25, 2026, at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College. The experience will continue Friday, June 26, with the Los Angeles Job Corps Career Fair.
Hosted in collaboration with the California Assisted Living Association, Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, ACG Training, Management & Consulting, Job Corps and other regional partners, the symposium has been designed to move beyond a traditional conference format.
Instead of spending the day simply discussing the workforce shortage, participants will work together to design potential solutions.
“This is not a typical symposium,” said James Balda, president and CEO of Argentum. “It is designed as a working session focused on real workforce outcomes and next steps.”
Building the Workforce Ecosystem
Senior living employers know the roles they need to fill, the skills those positions require and the qualities that help team members thrive in community settings.
Colleges and training providers understand how to build educational pathways and prepare students for successful careers. Workforce boards and America’s Job Centers of California can connect job seekers to training, supportive services and employment opportunities. Job Corps can introduce motivated young people to career fields they may not have previously considered. Economic development leaders bring an understanding of regional labor markets, funding opportunities and the broader economic importance of a strong care workforce.
Each participant holds a different piece of the solution.
The Workforce Symposium is intended to bring those pieces together.
The program will explore how senior living employers and workforce partners can jointly identify talent gaps, align training with employer needs, introduce job seekers to senior living careers and create pathways that support entry, advancement and long-term retention.
For providers, the event offers direct access to organizations that may be able to help address immediate and future staffing needs. For educators and workforce professionals, it offers a deeper understanding of the scope of senior living careers, from caregiving, nursing and dining to maintenance, sales, technology, operations and executive leadership.
Most importantly, it gives both sides an opportunity to build solutions together rather than operating in parallel.
Defining the Demand and the Opportunity
The June 25 program will begin with breakfast and networking, followed by opening remarks from Los Angeles Trade-Technical College leadership.
Balda will then set the stage with an introduction to the senior living industry, followed by a discussion of California’s workforce challenge led by David Eskenazy, chair of the California Assisted Living Association Board of Directors and vice chair of the Cogir Management USA Board of Directors.
Lorene Bower, director of training and development for Oakmont Management Group, will help ground the conversation in the realities facing senior living providers, including hiring demand, talent gaps and the opportunities available across the profession.
A multidisciplinary panel, “Develop Your Talent Pipeline: What Actually Works. What Must Change?”, will bring together voices from senior living, higher education, workforce development and government.
Moderated by David London, president and CEO of ACG Training, Management & Consulting, the discussion will include:
- Dr. Mechelle Best of California State University, Northridge
- Jim Biggs, CEO of Momentum Senior Living
- Chris Cagle of the South Bay Workforce Investment Board
- Jessica Daugherty of Cause Impact
- Bryson Gauff, workforce representative for the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office
- Dr. Jim Lancaster of the Los Angeles Community College District
- Ruth Patterson, consultant to Argentum
The session will examine labor-market trends, demographic shifts, workforce shortages and the economic impact of senior living. Participants will work toward identifying priority roles, populations and workforce challenges that can serve as the focus of potential pilot programs.
The goal is not simply to validate the scope of the problem. It is to establish where meaningful opportunities exist, and what employers and their partners will need to do differently to capture them.
A Design Lab, Not Just a Discussion
The afternoon will shift from information sharing to solution building. Following a networking lunch, attendees will divide into working groups focused on four critical areas:
- Entry-level workforce challenges
- Apprenticeship solutions
- Employer engagement and workforce alignment
- Education and workforce partnerships
During the Breakout Design Labs, teams will develop pilot concepts, identify prospective partners, map preliminary timelines and explore potential funding resources.
Each group will be asked to produce a draft pilot-program overview identifying the workforce problem it intends to address, the population it hopes to reach, the partners required and the steps needed to move the concept forward.
Teams will then report their ideas to the larger group. Proposed pilots will be scored and prioritized, with the strongest concepts moving toward further development as fundable workforce proposals.
The day will close with commitments from Argentum, CALA, Los Angeles Trade-Technical College and ACG Training, Management & Consulting, along with plans for 60-, 90- and 120-day follow-up.
That follow-through is an important distinction. Workforce conversations frequently generate enthusiasm but lose momentum once participants return to their organizations. The Los Angeles symposium is being built around defined outcomes, assigned next steps and continued collaboration so that promising ideas have an opportunity to become working programs.
Connecting Employers Directly With Talent
The experience will continue on Friday, June 26, at the Los Angeles Job Corps Center.
Job Corps leaders will provide employers with an overview of the program and its role in preparing young adults for careers. Participants will then meet directly with Job Corps students during a career fair, followed by lunch, interviews and optional tours of the center.
For senior living providers, the career fair is an opportunity to introduce prospective employees to a profession that many may not fully understand. While public perceptions of senior living often focus primarily on caregiving, communities rely on a wide range of professionals, including culinary teams, maintenance technicians, housekeepers, administrative employees, sales professionals, nurses, activity leaders and future executive directors.
The Job Corps Career Fair gives employers the chance to tell that broader story while meeting candidates who are actively preparing to enter the workforce. It also demonstrates what a stronger talent pipeline can look like in practice: career seekers receiving training and support, workforce organizations connecting them with employers, and senior living providers offering meaningful entry points into a growing profession.
More Than Recruitment
Building a sustainable senior living workforce is about much more than finding people to fill open positions. It begins with awareness. Students, young adults, career changers and job seekers must first understand that senior living offers meaningful work and a wide range of career possibilities.
It requires access. People need clear entry points, relevant training and support overcoming barriers that might otherwise prevent them from entering the field.
It requires advancement. Employees are more likely to build careers in senior living when they can see a pathway from an entry-level role to additional credentials, greater responsibility and leadership.
And it requires partnership. Employers cannot build those systems alone. Colleges, Job Corps centers, apprenticeship programs, workforce boards and training providers can help senior living organizations reach new talent populations and create stronger bridges between learning and employment. Employers, in turn, can help ensure that training reflects real workplace needs and leads to genuine career opportunities.
That is why the Workforce Symposium matters. It brings the full workforce ecosystem into the same room and gives participants the time and structure to turn shared concerns into shared action.
Who Should Attend
The symposium is designed for senior living owners, operators, human resources executives, workforce-development leaders and other professionals responsible for recruiting, developing and retaining talent.
Community-college representatives, education and training providers, state and regional workforce agencies, workforce boards, Job Corps leaders and economic development professionals are also encouraged to participate.
CEOs and senior executives should consider attending alongside members of their operations, human resources, community leadership or workforce-development teams. Their participation will help ensure that the needs of senior living providers are reflected as new workforce strategies, partnerships and pilot programs are developed.
For employers, the event is an opportunity to help shape solutions rather than simply react to workforce pressures. For education and workforce partners, it offers direct insight into the roles, skills and career pathways that exist throughout senior living.
Register Today
The Argentum Workforce Symposium will take place Thursday, June 25, at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, located at 400 W. Washington Blvd. in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles Job Corps Career Fair will follow Friday, June 26, at the Los Angeles Job Corps Center, located at 1020 S. Olive St.
The workforce challenge will not be solved by one employer, school, agency or program. It will be solved by building stronger connections among all of them. Join senior living leaders, educators and workforce partners in Los Angeles, and help turn today’s workforce challenges into tomorrow’s career pathways.
Space is limited and the symposium begins this week. Register today at argentum.org/workforcesymposium.