HR Pulse - Winter 2007 - (Page 35) Assessment and Training Staffing shortages are a primary cause of plummeting employee morale in a hospital, as well as the lack of training available to new leaders. Since new leaders are typically high performers, most department managers hesitate to give the “OK” for those valuable employees to attend lengthy training sessions. To overcome this obstacle at CMC-Union, participants in the Foundations program must be nominated by their department manager. This early commitment from the department head includes signing expectations about the time needed to successfully finish the course. Participants are expected to attend one three-hour class per week for 12 weeks. Each class has prerequisite reading that is discussed and integrated into the lectures. Participants are allowed one absence; the second absence triggers a conversation with the department manager and the third results in removal from the program. Another important part of the program design is the participant project. Participants are expected to manage a project that has a measurable effect on one of our five strategic areas: people, service, quality, finance or growth. Those whose projects have the most strategic impact have a greater chance of being included in the program. These projects allow for transfer of training and demonstrate a return on investment to the hospital. Department managers see the project requirement as a “win” because they can delegate significant duties to these potential leaders with the knowledge that they will get additional guidance in completing their assignments. Nomination does not automatically mean a person will be included in the program. The vice presidents and CEO make the final decisions on who takes part in the small, eight-person class. This involvement at the executive level encourages buy-in at the top of the organization and provides recognition for those who are chosen to participate. From a training perspective, it also allows us to demonstrate the program’s value to the overall performance of the hospital. The Foundations program focuses on assessing the current needs of the rising leader and providing training on leadership basics. To assess innate leadership tendencies, we use multiple methods, including: • The Big Five Personality model is used to assess core personality traits that may work for or against a person’s leadership skills. • A leaderless group discussion is used to observe emergent leadership skills by giving the group a complex problem to solve and then observing influence styles, decision making, tenacity, etc. • Core Self-Evaluations (Judge, Erez, Bono & Thoresen, 2003) are used to measure selfesteem, locus of control, self-efficacy and neuroticism. This new construct has recently been shown to correlate strongly with job satisfaction and performance, and we believe it eventually will be found to correlate strongly with leadership as well. Currently, these measures are only used to enhance the developmental process. While we have not yet validated these measurements well enough to use them as a basis for selection decisions, we are gathering data that will allow us to accurately predict future leaders. The content of Foundations training is based in CMC-Union’s overall leadership competency model and customized for skills that are most important to a frontline operations manager. Every session includes time to discuss challenges that are specific to a new leader, such as delegating work to employees who were recently a new manager’s peers. One overarching concept that is integrated into the entire curriculum is change management. Change Management The rate of change in healthcare is staggering—new medical techniques, equipment, regulations and business demands constantly require healthcare professionals to revise the way they do their jobs. Managers must be able to lead their employees toward positive change that increases the quality and service hospitals provide. Those who simply rely on the authority of their positions to mandate change are neither effective nor efficient. According to a 2004 survey conducted by the American College of Healthcare Executives, only 8.3 percent of hospitals had a systematic approach for developing highpotential leaders. 35 HR Pulse Winter 2007 >> LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES Business of Healthcare Mgt. by Metrics Communication Employee Selection Goal Setting Delegating Personal Mastery Time Mgt. Employee Development Performance Feedback Planning Set the Stage Implement Manage the Mood Cement Behavior CHANGE MANAGEMENT STAGES
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