“It doesn’t really matter how smart you are. It’s what type of team you can build and what type of culture you can create.”
Not what one might expect to hear from the CIO of a world-renowned institution like Penn Medicine. But as Michael Restuccia has learned during his 17-plus years with the organization, success starts with attracting and retaining top talent, which they’ve been able to achieve. Despite being located in the competitive Philadelphia market, the organization boasted a retention rate of 97 percent last year, a stat that he considers to be “world-class.” In fact, the ability to keep teams in place is what he’s “most proud of.”
The question is, how has Penn Medicine been able to buck the trend?
Michael Restuccia, SVP & CIO, Penn Medicine
It’s one of many critical issues Restuccia addressed during a recent Keynote with Bill Russell, Founder of This Week Health. He also discussed his team’s strategies when it comes to fostering collaboration in a remote world, cautiously moving forward with AI, and finding the right pace for growth.
Retaining Top Talent
One of the most critical pieces in a solid retention strategy is ensuring the right people are in the right seats, noted Restuccia. At Penn Medicine, the focus is on identifying individuals who believe in the mission of “the betterment of mankind, health, and research.”
Again, how?
During the recruiting process, candidates are asked to reflect on their personal and professional lives and cite examples of situations in which they’ve exceeded expectations or gone above and beyond, and how they plan to achieve the same results at Penn Medicine.
“That's not a question that most candidates are prepared for,” he said. For those doing the hiring, however, it can shed light on what makes people tick and how they confront difficult tasks. “High performers want to be around other high performers so they can elevate and exceed expectations.”
Connecting in a Hybrid World
Once the right individuals come aboard, the next step is fostering collaboration in a mixed hybrid environment. Within departments it’s fairly straightforward, as leaders leverage daily huddles and one-on-ones to keep a pulse on their teams. But when the integration and application teams, for example, have to connect with software developers, it can get tricky, especially when people are meeting for the first time through Teams or Zoom discussions.
While there’s no blanket solution to the problem, there are ways to encourage camaraderie, whether it’s through social channels focused on non-IT topics (like hiking or Philadelphia sports teams, for example) or holiday parties.
The Right Implementation Strategy
When Restuccia first started with Penn Medicine, the environment was fragmented, to put it mildly. Not only were there more than a dozen EHR systems, but 95 percent of IT services were outsourced. And so, right off the bat, he faced a two-fold mission of insourcing and building a strong culture, while also setting the stage for an Epic migration.
The process, however, wasn’t going to be rushed. Although some prefer the big-band methodology, that was never the plan for Restuccia’s team. “We do things in phases here,” he said, likening the big-bang approach to ripping off a band-aid. While that may have some advantages in terms of speed, it also comes with added risk, which he isn’t willing to accept.
“If you get it wrong, you don’t really have a chance to learn from it. You have to fix it on the fly,” he noted. On the other hand, with incremental rollouts, “if the first phase has challenges, it’s contained to a smaller scale. We’re able to adjust.”
Cautiously Embracing AI
Given the enormous potential of artificial intelligence, particularly when it comes to automating processes, adopting a wait-and-see approach simply doesn’t make sense. “We recognize advancement. We recognize discovery, but again, there are risks associated with that,” said Restuccia. At this point, “there are quite a few unknowns about how much utilization of AI will be embedded in our systems and in our applications, and what that cost will be in the short term and long term.”
What they do know is that, when leveraged properly, AI can help clear up some of the biggest bottlenecks for physicians and nurses by assisting with documentation and chart summarization. “Patients come to us with a variety of different documents, basically showing up with a folder of their history,” he said. “Anything we can do to help from a preparation perspective and help with overall efficiency.”
Advice for CIOs
Finally, Restuccia drew from his 30 years of industry experience to share some advice for other leaders. His biggest takeaway? Realize that establishing and maintaining a solid culture is job number one. “That’s where you spend the majority of your time. Find really good direct reports who understand infrastructure, technology, software development and applications,” he said. Doing so enables leaders to stay focused on “tying it all together, building a culture, and making sure people want to spend their careers at your place.”
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