Top of Mind #1 – Staff: Retention, Competition for and Development

Speaker 00:00:03 Today in health, it, we start down our list of the top five things that Speaker 00:00:06 are top of mind for healthcare CEOs. Speaker 00:00:09 And today. Speaker 00:00:10 The conversation is about labor. Speaker 00:00:12 It's about staff. Speaker 00:00:13 It's about the competition for staff. Speaker 00:00:14 That's what we're going to talk about. Speaker 00:00:16 My name is bill Russell. Speaker 00:00:17 I'm a former CIO for a 16 hospital system. Speaker 00:00:19 And creator this weekend. Speaker 00:00:20 It a channel dedicated to keeping health it staff current and engaged. Speaker 00:00:25 All right. Speaker 00:00:26 A couple of things I want to cover before we get to this topic. Speaker 00:00:29 If you're unaware, we have launched four channels for Speaker 00:00:31 2022 this week health academy. Speaker 00:00:34 This week health community, this week health conference Speaker 00:00:36 and this week health news. Speaker 00:00:39 All right, so we have four channels for next year. Speaker 00:00:42 Let me give you a little rundown of each one. Speaker 00:00:43 Here's what I want you to do. Speaker 00:00:44 I want you to hit the website. Speaker 00:00:46 Click on them and go ahead and subscribe to the new channels. Speaker 00:00:49 You can subscribe to all of them except for community and academy on iTunes. Speaker 00:00:54 We're still waiting for those to be approved for some reason, but hopefully Speaker 00:00:57 there'll be approved this week and you can subscribe to them there. Speaker 00:00:59 Let me tell you about each one. Speaker 00:01:01 News is about the news. Speaker 00:01:02 It's going to be the today show and the new stay show shows that have Speaker 00:01:05 been very successful on our channels. Speaker 00:01:07 And I look forward to you subscribing to that. Speaker 00:01:10 And keeping up to date on the news conference is, we want to develop a Speaker 00:01:15 channel that is a year long conference. Speaker 00:01:17 It's just keeps going. Speaker 00:01:19 And we're going to have a show called keynote, where we have keynote Speaker 00:01:21 speakers and we talked to them for. Speaker 00:01:23 You know, 45, 50 minutes here, what's going on in their world. Speaker 00:01:26 How they're impacting health. Speaker 00:01:27 It. Speaker 00:01:28 , this is going to be about the intersection of healthcare and Speaker 00:01:30 technology and how things are shaping up. Speaker 00:01:34 , we're also going to do solution showcases, which think about that as Speaker 00:01:36 the walk of the floor, to look at the different solutions that are available. Speaker 00:01:40 This week health community is a new channel for us. Speaker 00:01:43 Here for the first time we're going to have guest hosts and they are going to Speaker 00:01:46 bring their own guests onto the show. Speaker 00:01:49 So this is going to be. Speaker 00:01:50 , a channel that is community based and focus. Speaker 00:01:54 We want to go a little deeper in this show. Speaker 00:01:55 We want people to be talking to a frontline people who are Speaker 00:01:59 working with,, analytics, clinical informatics data, you name it. Speaker 00:02:03 , but this is the show. Speaker 00:02:04 We're going to be hearing that three times a week or twice a week. Speaker 00:02:06 Tuesday, Thursday is the community show and we have some guest hosts Speaker 00:02:10 already lined up and we have more invitations out there and you Speaker 00:02:14 can, can subscribe to that as well. Speaker 00:02:16 And this week health academy is where you go to get educated Speaker 00:02:19 on healthcare and healthcare. Speaker 00:02:20 It. Speaker 00:02:21 Our first show in there is going to be insights. Speaker 00:02:24 It's going to air on Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Speaker 00:02:26 What we heard from you is that you use our show to bring new people into the Speaker 00:02:30 industry up to speed quickly, and that it isn't a very effective way to do that. Speaker 00:02:34 Here's what we're going to do. Speaker 00:02:35 We're going to take excerpts from our first four and a half years of shows. Speaker 00:02:40 We're going to take the highlights and we're going to put them Speaker 00:02:41 into a show called insights. Speaker 00:02:43 It's going to air Monday, Wednesday, Friday. Speaker 00:02:45 How are, do you see that as people who are new to the industry, or if you're Speaker 00:02:48 mentoring, somebody have them listen to that show, listen along with them Speaker 00:02:51 and tell them, you know, what your thoughts are on it and bring them Speaker 00:02:55 up to speed on what you're doing. Speaker 00:02:56 You can subscribe to any of these shows, go to this week. Speaker 00:02:59 health.com. Speaker 00:03:00 And on the homepage, there's the four shows right there. Speaker 00:03:03 You could also go to this week, health.com/shows and subscribe Speaker 00:03:07 there, or anywhere you listen to podcasts, you could do it there. Speaker 00:03:10 All right. Speaker 00:03:11 Let's get to today's topic. Speaker 00:03:12 The top of mind issues for health it execs. Speaker 00:03:16 And if you remember, we sorta laid them out. Speaker 00:03:18 There was labor was number one, cybersecurity. Speaker 00:03:19 Number two. Speaker 00:03:20 All things digital, number three, automation was number four and caravan Speaker 00:03:25 used to change and care vendors. Speaker 00:03:26 It's number five every day. Speaker 00:03:27 This week, I'm going to be touching on one of these and talking Speaker 00:03:30 about what I would do as a CIO. Speaker 00:03:32 Based on what I'm hearing from the CIS. Speaker 00:03:34 So let's talk about number one. Speaker 00:03:35 It is labor, and this is the competition for staff. Speaker 00:03:39 It's about retention. Speaker 00:03:40 It's about attracting new staff, all things having to do with staff. Speaker 00:03:43 There is a significant competition that's going on for staff right now. Speaker 00:03:48 Here's how I'm going to break this particular one down for you. Speaker 00:03:52 Number one, we're going to be looking at. Speaker 00:03:55 , retention, then we're going to be looking at attracting and finding new talent. Speaker 00:04:00 And then the final thing I want to talk about is developing staff. Speaker 00:04:04 Okay. Speaker 00:04:04 So let's talk about retention. Speaker 00:04:06 I think a 0% retention goal is a bad goal. Speaker 00:04:09 I've always thought it was a bad goal. Speaker 00:04:11 And I know some of the things I'm going to say here might ruffle some feathers, Speaker 00:04:14 but this is just the way I think about it. Speaker 00:04:16 Adapt it to how you think about it. Speaker 00:04:18 A 0% retention rate tells me you're not developing people. Speaker 00:04:21 If you're developing people, they should be in high demand Speaker 00:04:25 outside of your four walls. Speaker 00:04:27 And quite frankly, you're going to lose some of them. Speaker 00:04:30 You should lose some of them. Speaker 00:04:31 It's okay to lose some of them. Speaker 00:04:33 , the only way to get a 0% retention rate is to hire people , pay them well above Speaker 00:04:37 what they're worth or hire them well beyond what their capabilities are, or to Speaker 00:04:43 not develop any staff and not make them more valuable than the day they started. Speaker 00:04:47 With your organization. Speaker 00:04:48 So again, 0% retention rate is not a good retention rate. Speaker 00:04:51 So you're going to lose some people let's assume. Speaker 00:04:54 90% retention is a good retention number. Speaker 00:04:57 If you're going to lose 10% of your staff, you should know which staff. Speaker 00:05:00 You are going to struggle if you lose. Speaker 00:05:02 Right. Speaker 00:05:03 So I always, in my mind, Alyssa people that I could not afford Speaker 00:05:07 to lose as an organization. Speaker 00:05:08 And so I have talked to some people who have lost key staff recently, you know, Speaker 00:05:13 the person who, really knows the network inside and out, who knows all the routes, Speaker 00:05:17 who knows how all the,, the V LANs are set up and all that kind of stuff. Speaker 00:05:21 Not that you couldn't recreate that, but that is a, significant Speaker 00:05:24 role in some organizations. Speaker 00:05:25 You need to know who those people are, just do it once twos and threes. Speaker 00:05:29 If you lost them, ones are, if you lost them, you would struggle. Speaker 00:05:33 You'd have to pay a consultant to come in. Speaker 00:05:35 You would have to, uh, potentially pay a recruiter to find somebody. Speaker 00:05:39 If there are ones you need to make sure you're taking care of your ones Speaker 00:05:42 need to make sure they are connected to you, connected to the organization. Speaker 00:05:46 That they are being taken care of, that they are being paid. Speaker 00:05:49 Appropriately for the role that they're doing within your organization, Speaker 00:05:53 that they clearly understand. Speaker 00:05:55 The lines of communication that they clearly understand what's expected of Speaker 00:05:59 them, that they clearly understand what's next for them, with my ones, actually, Speaker 00:06:03 with everyone in my organization. Speaker 00:06:05 I want it to be able to ask them what's next in your career and Speaker 00:06:08 I wanted to get a very crisp answer from them. Speaker 00:06:11 Part of that was my job. Speaker 00:06:12 As the leader, I needed to make sure that the career tracks were very well Speaker 00:06:16 understood and I needed to make sure that the managers were having conversations Speaker 00:06:20 with each individual employee to make sure that they understood why or they Speaker 00:06:25 wanted to go within the organization and that they were developing them, Speaker 00:06:28 that they were investing in them in ways that were going Speaker 00:06:30 to get them to the next level. Speaker 00:06:32 One of the biggest problems we have is that people always think it's about money. Speaker 00:06:35 It's not always about money. Speaker 00:06:37 Sometimes it's about the manager that they have. Speaker 00:06:38 Sometimes it's about the culture. Speaker 00:06:40 Sometimes it's about, they just don't know where what's next for them. Speaker 00:06:43 And so they start looking outside your organization. Speaker 00:06:46 If you don't make it clear, what's next for them within your organization, Speaker 00:06:49 they're going to find somewhere else to go outside your organization. Speaker 00:06:51 All right. Speaker 00:06:52 So retention, you have to be clear with them. Speaker 00:06:55 What's next? Speaker 00:06:56 You have to pay them accordingly and you have to create the right structure. Speaker 00:07:00 If they have a bad manager, that's on you. Speaker 00:07:02 You've got to do something about bad managers. Speaker 00:07:04 , we did, poll surveys on a regular basis. Speaker 00:07:07 And you could almost identify the bad managers within our department. Speaker 00:07:11 Now we had, 600 to 700, some odd people in the organization. Speaker 00:07:15 And you could just look at the responses and say, okay, Speaker 00:07:18 There's a group of people here that are really not happy. Speaker 00:07:21 Oh my gosh. Speaker 00:07:22 They report to two managers. Speaker 00:07:24 , so that is. Speaker 00:07:25 Generally an indicator. Speaker 00:07:27 All right, let's talk about the competition for staff. Speaker 00:07:29 We just did two great shows from the healthcare to healthcare event. Speaker 00:07:31 We did one with Doug king CIO of Northwestern medicine, and he Speaker 00:07:34 talked about what they are doing to. Speaker 00:07:38 , bring new talent into their organization. Speaker 00:07:40 If you haven't listened to that show, listen to it. Speaker 00:07:42 They've built a really good pipeline of people coming into their organization. Speaker 00:07:46 Young people, smart people, talented people. Speaker 00:07:49 , they're focused on diversity. Speaker 00:07:50 They're focused on, , Getting people early so that they don't, they're not inhibited Speaker 00:07:55 by what they have learned somewhere else. Speaker 00:07:57 So you get new thinking. Speaker 00:07:59 , new approaches. Speaker 00:08:00 They're tied into the universities and colleges and they're pulling people out. Speaker 00:08:04 Directly. Speaker 00:08:04 So, he shared a lot of things that they're doing it. Speaker 00:08:06 Northwestern medicine. Speaker 00:08:08 And I think it's valuable for any CIO to take a listen to that episode. Speaker 00:08:11 It's one of the today shows it was from November 15th. Speaker 00:08:16 All right. Speaker 00:08:17 The other one was November 10th. Speaker 00:08:18 It was also from the health care to health care event. Speaker 00:08:20 It was Stephanie Lahr with monument health, and she talks about culture. Speaker 00:08:24 Developing a good culture. Speaker 00:08:25 In a remote world. Speaker 00:08:27 And how important is to do that. Speaker 00:08:28 Not only to retain your existing staff, but to attract new staff into that. Speaker 00:08:33 , when people come into a vibrant culture and exciting culture, they Speaker 00:08:37 make connections very quickly. Speaker 00:08:39 They feel at home and it's a place that they want to stay Speaker 00:08:41 and you know, what else they do. Speaker 00:08:42 They tell other people about it. Speaker 00:08:44 , whenever I'm talking to people about. Speaker 00:08:46 Finding new talent, really attracting new talent. Speaker 00:08:49 If you like the people who work for you. Speaker 00:08:51 They are the best way to go about getting additional talent Speaker 00:08:55 within your organization. Speaker 00:08:57 Now, if they aren't saying good things about working in your organization, Speaker 00:08:59 you've got another set of problems, but generally speaking, if you Speaker 00:09:03 can get your staff excited about working where they are working today. Speaker 00:09:08 They will know people in the industry. Speaker 00:09:10 And if they don't know people in industry, you're doing a bad job, developing them. Speaker 00:09:13 You need to introduce them to other people in the industry. Speaker 00:09:16 But at this point when you're having a battle for staff, your Speaker 00:09:20 staff is your best ambassadors. Speaker 00:09:22 Your staff is the best. Speaker 00:09:24 I don't know a Sherlock out there. Speaker 00:09:26 They're going to be the ones who find a new talent to bring them in. Speaker 00:09:29 Plus the stuff that Doug talks about creating a pipeline. Speaker 00:09:33 Uh, all the way back to high school, they're bringing in a high Speaker 00:09:36 school kids and giving them a great experience at Northwestern medicine. Speaker 00:09:40 So that's, , you know, we talked about retention. Speaker 00:09:42 We talk about the competition for staff. Speaker 00:09:46 You've got to make your place a great place to work. Speaker 00:09:48 You've got to use your staff to find new staff. Speaker 00:09:50 And you've got to be working on great projects. Speaker 00:09:52 So you have to take the mundane tasks. Speaker 00:09:55 We've been talking about this for years. Speaker 00:09:57 For some reason we haven't made as much progress as we need to Speaker 00:09:59 make, which is we've got to take the mundane tasks and we've got Speaker 00:10:02 to automate the heck out of them. Speaker 00:10:04 And then we've got to take that off of people's plate. Speaker 00:10:06 We can't keep putting mundane stuff on them and then saying, come work here. Speaker 00:10:09 We're doing great stuff. Speaker 00:10:11 , we may be doing great stuff, but it's in that department over Speaker 00:10:13 there, or that department over there, it's not necessarily. Speaker 00:10:16 Here. Speaker 00:10:17 What you want is , you want to take that mundane stuff off the plate and say, look, Speaker 00:10:21 we are working on the next generation. Speaker 00:10:23 Of cloud for healthcare and it sort of looks like this. Speaker 00:10:26 You need, something that's going to, that's going to catch Speaker 00:10:29 people's eyes and bring them in. Speaker 00:10:32 Let's talk about developing staff. Speaker 00:10:33 You have to develop your staff. Speaker 00:10:35 And I've, I've talked about this a couple of times on the show, but you Speaker 00:10:39 can't send all of them to conferences. Speaker 00:10:40 You can send all of them to training. Speaker 00:10:42 So what are you going to do? Speaker 00:10:43 And the answer to that is you've got to figure out a way. Speaker 00:10:47 To invest in your staff and create a mentoring program. Speaker 00:10:52 Everybody in your organization who wants to be mentored should be mentored. Speaker 00:10:56 And you have to define what mentoring is and mentoring can be as simple as, Speaker 00:11:01 sharing your connections, sharing your experience, sharing your knowledge, Speaker 00:11:05 and creating an environment where they can take risks, where they Speaker 00:11:08 can go out and try the next thing. Speaker 00:11:10 And you can be there alongside of them To make sure that they don't fail and Speaker 00:11:14 to make sure that they are picking up and learning the right things. Speaker 00:11:18 You are going to help somebody to take the next step in their career. Speaker 00:11:21 Everyone should have that opportunity within your organization. Speaker 00:11:23 If you don't, you're just asking for trouble. Speaker 00:11:25 You're just asking for people to leave. Speaker 00:11:28 One of the reasons we developed this channel on this show. Speaker 00:11:31 Is because there are 700 people in my organization. Speaker 00:11:36 I couldn't send them all to classes. Speaker 00:11:37 I couldn't mentor them all. Speaker 00:11:39 And I wanted them to experience the conversations I was having at Speaker 00:11:42 the conferences with other CEOs. Speaker 00:11:45 And so I started to do these interviews so that they could Speaker 00:11:48 have access to these things. Speaker 00:11:49 Mentoring, somebody could be as simple as listening to the show with them Speaker 00:11:52 and having a conversation with them. Speaker 00:11:54 And you can pick the shows you want to have. Speaker 00:11:56 We've done 450 of them. Speaker 00:11:57 And you can pick the ones that are specific to data, clinical informatics, Speaker 00:12:01 cybersecurity, whatever topic you want, or the people you think might be interesting. Speaker 00:12:06 You might want to talk to them about what they're doing at Intermountain Speaker 00:12:09 or what they're doing at. Speaker 00:12:11 , NYU Lango and or what they're doing at, you know, fill in the blank. Speaker 00:12:14 We've talked to a lot of different health systems, a lot of different CEOs. Speaker 00:12:17 A lot of different perspectives and that's another way to mentor people and Speaker 00:12:20 you've got to be developing your people. Speaker 00:12:21 If you don't, you're just asking for trouble. Speaker 00:12:24 Well, that's all for today. Speaker 00:12:26 If you know of anyone that might benefit from our channel, like say Speaker 00:12:28 someone you're trying to mentor, they can subscribe on our website this week. Speaker 00:12:31 health.com. Speaker 00:12:33 We want to thank our channel sponsors who are investing in our mission to Speaker 00:12:36 develop the next generation of leaders. Speaker 00:12:38 VMware Hill-Rom Starbridge advisors, McAfee and Aruba networks. Speaker 00:12:43 Thanks for listening.