Griswold Home Care Welcomes New Director of People & Culture Alexis Johnston

Meeting critical home care needs for seniors is the heart of Griswold Home Care, which is why the satisfaction and development of its caregivers and employees have been a top priority for the non-medical home care franchise since its inception 40 years ago. Now, to further emphasize that people-based culture, Griswold is welcoming Alexis Johnston to the leadership team as the new Director of People & Culture.

Before Griswold, Johnston came from a long career in human resources. She has worked in the HR field of several boutique industries, including women's health and ABA behavioral health. “My role has always been to build out HR procedures to help companies meet their growth goals,” she said. “I’ve always been very hands-on in building up HR departments from the ground up through manager and director roles.” 

When Johnston learned about the opportunity to join Griswold Home Care and spearhead the development of a new HR team, she knew she had the skills necessary to achieve success. “The leadership team was really ready to have HR become a part of the puzzle so they could further support those who support their clients,” she said. “I knew I could help build new programs that were bigger and better than what came before.”

Additionally, as someone who spends her career focused on the well-being of people first and foremost, Johnston says she immediately connected with the culture of Griswold Home Care. 

“Like founder Jean Griswold, my mother also suffers from M.S. and has for about 20 years,” said Johnston. “I could tell Griswold really cared about me personally and wanted me to grow in my career, but they were also very accommodating and flexible because they wanted to make sure I’d be able to still care for my mom if I took this job. That helped me realize that the care-based mission isn’t just on the walls for the clients to see. It is also a big part of working there as an employee.”

Johnston officially joined the Griswold Home Care team in May of 2022 and says her role is primarily about improving HR support across the entire system and prioritizing employee retention, development, and performance for both franchisees and company-owned offices.

“Home care has traditionally always been a high turnover industry, and we are trying to change that,” said Johnston. “I came from a company where I proudly got us to 92% employee retention, and I know the type of support employees need. In this role, I will help build out that support, whether that be through rewards and recognition programs, payroll optimization, employee benefits, etc. How do we reward our staff? How do we build a culture of inclusion? How do we make their voices heard? Griswold is a fantastic company and has done a great job, but there are always areas to improve. That is my role — focusing on the employees so that those employees can focus on the clients.” 

That focus is part of the reason why Griswold Home Care is increasingly being recognized as a leading workplace in the franchising industry. The brand was named one of The 2022 Philadelphia Inquirer Top Workplaces and was a finalist in  FBR’s Franchising@Work awards earlier this year. 

“Griswold received those nominations because of the meaningful work we’ve been doing around showing value to our employees,” said Johnston. “Over the past few years, the team has really listened to employee feedback and used that to build out support. The industry is starting to take notice because of the culture we’ve defined for all of our employees.” 

For Griswold franchise owners, Johnston says this culture helps them hire, retain and reward the staff they need to grow their business. “I’m going to be working with franchise owners on developing HR best practices, determining weaknesses, and implementing procedures that will allow them to better serve the employee population and grow their businesses,” she said. “Especially in today’s labor market, these issues are more relevant than ever.”

Looking ahead, Johnston says her main goal is to continue building out the Griswold company culture and establishing the brand as a top place for those in the care field to advance their careers. 

“It is really all about helping the employee out, and that fits within the Griswold culture,” said Johnston. “There hasn’t been this level of HR focus in the past, so Griswold employees are so eager to give someone their feedback. They have all these ideas about ways to improve the company, and it is so refreshing to bring those voices in and work together to make the Griswold of tomorrow even better.”

Mike Slupecki, CEO of Griswold Home Care, says Johnston has been an amazing addition to the team over the past few months, and he is excited to see her continue to thrive and pass on Griswoldness to all members of the company. 

“For 40 years, we’ve remained at the forefront of the home care industry and have been setting the industry standard for clients as we expand across the country,” said Slupecki. “Now, with Alexis joining us as the Director of People & Culture, we are excited to do the same for our employees as we continue to build out HR support and establish Griswold Home Care as a go-to choice for professionals in the non-medical home care space.”

Franchise opportunities range from $95,850 to $174,100 including a $49,500 franchise fee. For more information about franchising with Griswold, please visit https://www.griswoldhomecare.com/franchising/investment-info/.