Changemakers 2026: Wayne Sanner, Ceo And President, Silverado

As demand for senior living accelerates and the need for memory care grows, operators are facing pressure to expand capacity, address workforce challenges and meet higher expectations from older adults and their families.

For Wayne Sanner, CEO and President of Silverado, change begins with reimagining what is possible for people living with dementia. In this Changemakers interview, Sanner discusses the market forces reshaping senior living, the importance of earlier support for families, technology’s role in creating more time for human connection and why innovation must improve people’s lives.

What economic forces or market trends are currently changing the senior living industry?

We are entering a period when demand is accelerating much faster than supply. The first baby boomers are turning 80, occupancy is rising, and new development remains constrained by construction costs, interest rates, access to capital, and operating expenses. At the same time, families are facing real affordability concerns, while providers continue to experience wage pressure and workforce shortages.

These pressures are especially significant in memory care. As the number of people living with dementia grows, communities will serve residents with greater clinical complexity and behavioral expressions, while families will need guidance across a journey that often begins long before move-in.

We must expand capacity, but we cannot simply build more of the same. The industry needs more creative housing and service models, stronger partnerships across the healthcare continuum, earlier support for families, and innovations that help us deliver better outcomes and experiences.

Demand is accelerating, particularly in memory care, and simply building more of the same rooted in existing service models will not be enough.

In what ways do you think senior living operators need to change for the incoming generation of older adults?

The incoming generation will expect greater choice, autonomy, transparency, personalization, and connection to the broader community. They will not want their lives defined by a building, a diagnosis, or a predetermined schedule.

That is particularly important in memory care. A dementia diagnosis may change a person’s abilities, but it does not erase identity, relationships, purpose, or the capacity to experience joy. Operators must move beyond managing symptoms and safety to understanding the whole person—who they have been, what gives their life meaning, and what they can still experience and accomplish.

Technology will play a role, but the ultimate goal is not a more technological experience; it is a more personal one. The next generation will not want us to manage their aging. They will want us to help them keep living well.

A diagnosis may change someone’s abilities, but it should never be allowed to erase their identity.

In what ways can senior living companies change the public’s perception of the industry?

We change perception by changing the experience—and then allowing people to see it honestly.

Too many people still associate senior living, and memory care especially, with loss: loss of independence, identity, purpose, and connection. Our responsibility is to create communities where people continue to experience growth, joy, relationships, contribution, and meaningful moments.

We must also help society see dementia differently. We should never minimize the challenges of the disease, but we must reject the assumption that a diagnosis marks the end of a meaningful life. We must create experiences that others might assume are no longer possible and have the courage to ask, “Why not?” When families see people living with dementia creating, connecting, contributing, and experiencing genuine joy, their understanding begins to change.

That means inviting the public into our communities, developing intergenerational partnerships, sharing authentic stories, and empowering residents and families to speak for themselves. Ultimately, we will not change the perception of senior living with better advertising. We will change it by creating enriching experiences and showing that a dementia diagnosis changes a life, but it does not end the possibility of living meaningfully.

Tell us about some of your recent efforts to change the senior living industry for the better.

As Silverado’s new CEO, I have challenged everyone across our organization to Dream Big, Act Big, and Love Big.

To Dream Big is to imagine what memory care and end-of-life services could become—not simply accept what they have historically been. To Act Big is to have the courage to test new ideas, measure their impact, and turn possibility into meaningful action. And to Love Big is to ensure that everything we do remains grounded in dignity, compassion, and genuine human connection.

One example is our increased focus on earlier detection and predictive diagnostics. Too often, families do not receive guidance until they are already in crisis. Earlier identification gives people more time to understand their options, make decisions, access support, and potentially benefit from emerging treatments.

We are also piloting innovations such as Memory Air and measuring resident outcomes rather than adopting technology simply because it is new. Our test is whether an innovation improves quality of life, supports our associates, strengthens family confidence, or produces better clinical outcomes.

Just as importantly, we continue to challenge traditional assumptions about what people living with dementia can experience. Dreaming big means seeing possibility where others may see limitation. Acting big means having the courage to pursue it. Loving big means surrounding residents, families, and associates with love throughout the journey.

Innovation matters only when it makes someone’s life meaningfully better. For us, changemaking means having the courage to reimagine what is possible—and then leading and serving with love greater than fear.

What staffing changes does the larger senior living industry need to make to meet the staggering level of demand ahead from new residents?

We cannot recruit our way out of the workforce challenge. We must fundamentally improve the experience of working in senior living.

That begins with treating associates as professionals whose work requires skill, emotional intelligence, judgment, and compassion. This is particularly true in memory care, where associates must understand much more than the tasks of caregiving. They must learn how dementia affects communication and behavior, how to recognize an unmet need, and how to enter a resident’s reality with patience, respect, and love.

We need competitive compensation, predictable scheduling, specialized dementia education, robust leadership development, clear career pathways, and technology that removes unnecessary administrative work. We should also broaden our talent pipeline through partnerships with schools, universities, workforce programs, and immigrant communities.

Most importantly, associates need to feel known, valued, supported, and connected to a purpose. Great memory care begins with associates who are skilled, supported, and deeply connected to that purpose. People may join an organization for an opportunity, but they remain when they experience belonging, growth, and great leadership.

Is the senior living industry moving quickly enough to change in the ways it needs to? Why or why not?

In some areas, yes—but collectively, no.

There are exceptional organizations and leaders advancing new care models, technology, workforce development, and resident engagement. But as an industry, we can still be too cautious, too fragmented, and too willing to accept long-standing practices simply because they are familiar.

Memory care illustrates both our progress and the opportunity ahead. We know much more today about relationship-centered care, engagement, environmental design, brain health, and how unmet needs can present as behavioral expressions. Yet practices focused primarily on limitation, risk, and disease management remain too common.

Some caution is appropriate because we are entrusted with people’s lives. But caution and complacency are not the same. We must test ideas thoughtfully, measure the results, learn quickly, and scale what works. We know too much about what great memory care can be to remain satisfied with what it has historically been.

Change is hard. Can you talk about a time when you tried to execute a change and things didn’t go according to plan? How did you pivot, and what did you learn as a leader?

One lesson I have learned is that a good idea can still fail if people do not understand it, believe in it, or feel included in shaping it.

Earlier in my leadership journey, I sometimes believed that if the rationale for a change was strong enough, people would naturally embrace it. I moved too quickly from identifying an answer to implementing it. What I underestimated was the importance of listening, building shared ownership, and helping people understand not only what was changing, but why it mattered to them.

I learned to pause, spend more time with the people closest to the work, and adjust the plan based on what they were experiencing. In some cases, that meant slowing implementation, simplifying the change, or acknowledging that our original approach was not right.

Those experiences made me a more inclusive leader. Leadership is not about proving that you have the right answer; it is about empowering others and helping people find the best answer together.

What’s the biggest change you ever made in your career or life? How did it go and what did you learn?

Stepping into the role of CEO and President of Silverado has been one of the most significant changes of my career. It has required me to honor an extraordinary legacy while accepting responsibility for helping lead the organization into its next chapter.

The transition has taught me that leadership is not about becoming a different person when your title changes. It is about becoming even more authentic and fully accountable for the leader you have always said you wanted to be.

I have also learned that courage does not mean eliminating uncertainty or fear. It means remaining firmly grounded in purpose, trusting and empowering the people around you, and continuing to lead and serve with love greater than fear. A new title should not change who you are; it should deepen your conviction and accountability for how you lead.

What senior living technology do you find most promising or interesting right now?

I am especially interested in early-detection and predictive technologies that can identify meaningful changes in memory before they become crises. That could include changes in cognition, mobility, sleep, behavior, fall risk, or overall brain health.

In memory care, what appears to be a behavioral issue can sometimes reflect pain, infection, medication effects, fear, or another unmet need. Technology may help associates recognize subtle changes sooner and respond more precisely and compassionately.

The promise is not simply collecting more data. It is transforming the right information into an earlier and more effective human response. I am also optimistic about responsible uses of AI that reduce documentation and administrative burdens, giving associates more time to engage with residents and support families.

The best technology does not replace human connection; it creates more room for it. In memory care, technology should help us understand the person more clearly—not reduce the person to data.

What advice do you have for other senior living companies implementing their own changemaking efforts?

Start with a meaningful human problem, not with a product or trend. Fall in love with the problem you are trying to solve—not the solution you are trying to sell.

Involve the people closest to the work from the beginning, particularly associates, residents, and families. Define what success will look like, test the idea on a manageable scale, measure with evidence-based outcomes, and remain willing to fail forward and change direction.

Leaders must also make it safe for an experiment to produce learning rather than immediate success. If every pilot must validate the original idea, it is not really a pilot.

Finally, do not pursue innovation simply to be perceived as innovative. Be clear about whom the change will help and how their life or work will be better because of it. The measure of changemaking is not how amazing the idea sounds; it is whether the change meaningfully improves people’s lives.

What is one thing people get wrong about senior living?

That moving in means life becomes smaller.

If you didn’t work in senior living, what would your career be?

A college professor, author, and professional coach of future leaders. I might also be the general manager of a Major League Baseball franchise .

Are you a coffee person, a tea person or something else?

A refreshing Coke Zero every afternoon hits the spot.

What’s your personal theme song?

“Love God, Love People” by Danny Gokey

It captures my belief that our ultimate purpose and calling in life and leadership is to love and serve others well.

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