HR Pulse - Fall 2007 - (Page 24)

Think of your employees like a delicate flower you are trying to grow. You wouldn’t want to just measure its height and the fullness of its bloom. Culture of Engagement by Nurse Employment Status Culture of Engagement Index 68 67 66 65 64 63 62 61 Full-Time Nurse Part-Time Nurse Employment Status Casual/PRN 64.0 63.8 67.6 Improving Engagement The most relevant question for health care leaders about employee engagement should not be “how much do we have now?”, but rather, “how do we get more?” A national assessment of employee perspectives shows several top priorities for improving the Culture of Engagement in health care organizations. The data, again based on the perspectives of over 190,000 health care employees from across the country, identifies four specific areas on which hospital leaders should focus: • Improve employee perspectives about decision-making • Address perceived inequities in how promotions and performance reviews are handled • Improve employee perspectives about supervisor communication and how supervisors handle complaints/grievances • Improve the perceived responsiveness of senior leadership. While the culture of engagement varies from organization to organization, and improvement steps should be based on organization-specific assessments, all health care organizations can benefit from improving their employees’ opportunity to engage. The result is better staff performance, which can lead to better clinical outcomes—based on a connection with patients that becomes part of the healing process— and better financial results for the organization. The Power of Engagement Engagement cannot be demanded or coerced. It is not even consciously desired by your employees. If they think of it at all, they likely think of it in terms of job fulfillment and the degree to which their jobs meet the expectations they had when they chose their career in health care. Attempts to require, demand, coerce, or even reward the discretionary attitude may in fact backfire. Think of your employees like a delicate flower you are trying to grow. You wouldn’t want to just measure its height and the fullness of its bloom. You would check the soil to see if it has enough water. You would check whether it is getting enough light. You might see if it needs special plant food to thrive. In short, you would make certain that it had everything it needs to grow and bloom to its fullest. Your employees require the same sort of attentiveness to their environment in order for them to more fully engage in the performances of tasks at work. If you understand, measure, and improve these opportunities to engage, your organization will see the results. n More information about health care employee engagement can be found at www.pressganey.com/ leadership. Peter Lanser, MSA, CPHQ, FACHE; vice president, Employee and Physician Services Suzanne Coshow, Ph.D.; research associate, Press Ganey Associates, Inc. 24 Culture of Engagement by Year of Birth HR Pulse Fall 2007 Culture of Engagement Index 67 66.5 66 65.5 65 64.5 64 63.5 63 1945 or earlier 1946-1964 1965-1983 1984 or later Year of Birth 66.5 66.7 64.3 64.3 Culture of Engagement by Tenure 69 68 67 66 65 64 63 62 61 60 59 Culture of Engagement Index 67.9 62.5 62.6 64.0 less than 2 yrs 2 to 5 years 6 to 10 years more than 10 yrs How Long Worked at This Organization http://www.pressganey.com/leadership http://www.pressganey.com/leadership

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of HR Pulse - Fall 2007

Contents Executive Director’s Letter President’s Message HR Leader Profile: Lisa McDaniel Spotlight on Community Citizenship Culture of Engagement How Transparent Should Healthcare Compensation Be? The Value of Assessment Testing in the Recruitment Process Technology Dramatically Changes FMLA Compliance Creating a Magnetic Culture™ Taking It to the Hill: An Advocacy Update 401(k) / 403(b) Fee Lawsuits – Are You the Next Target? Compensation Offers – A Better Process Find It Again Pulse Points Who, Why and Where Conference Highlights Schedule at a Glance Keynote Speakers Social Events Conference Sponsors Exhibitors Index to Advertisers

HR Pulse - Fall 2007

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