Lynne Katzmann, Founder and CEO of Juniper Communities of Bloomfield, NJ, a privately held, long-term care company, has been President and CEO throughout its twenty-five years. Ranked #12 by Crain’s New York Business on its Top 50 listing of women-owned businesses for the New York tri-State area, Juniper is the only women-owned company among the largest 40 US assisted living companies, with revenues currently $65 million. There are 20 Juniper Village communities in four states: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida and Colorado. Katzmann launched the company with six years of business experience and a PHD in health economics from the London School of Economics, following receiving her BA from Tufts University.
Katzmann, then 32 years old, initially raised $440 thousand from investors and had a plan to build her company with a triple bottom line: a purpose-driven business, a socially responsible organization and a profitable company. Today, with these goals achieved, the company employs 1,200 people and during its first quarter century has worked with over 10,000 families in senior living including independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care.
Innovation has been a hallmark of Juniper’s leadership in the industry including the first LEED-certified assisted living facility and multiple Spirit of Innovation Awards. Lynne names her biggest award “the letters that come in every day, each one a detailed story from a family member of a Juniper resident, telling of remarkable personal care, beyond expectations.” Lynne cites her “wonderful values-driven employees at every level” as the key to Juniper’s success.
“Today’s society seeks longevity but fears old age, and is caught in a debilitating contradiction. Aging is not a disease in search of a cure; it is a stage, a normal life event in search of respect and understanding. The physical and mental limitations of the elderly should not be looked upon as failures to be fixed; but limitations and challenges to be faced and accommodated,“ says Katzmann.
Said Josh Mailman, President of Sirius Business Corporation, “I was Juniper’s first investor. I remember well Lynne’s passion to build a company that would provide the elderly with the highest quality long-term care. Twenty-five years later, Lynne has delivered double digit returns on the investment, while succeeding brilliantly with the standard of excellence that stayed true to her social mission.”
Katzmann serves on the boards of several for-profit and nonprofit organizations including Senior Care Centers LLC of Dallas, Naropa University, ArtsConnection and Social Venture Network; and is a member of the Committee of 200. She is a New Jersey native raised in Cedar Grove, where her mother, Laurie Katzmann still resides and where Lynne attended Memorial High School. She lives in Montclair with her partner Ed Goodell and is the mother of Andrew Katzmann, a college student.
