During this pandemic, we have all reverted to more do-it-yourself projects. Being self-sufficient has long been considered an asset in our culture but, during the pandemic, such independence has sapped many healthcare workers of energy and resolve. If there is urgency to any aspect of our pandemic recovery plans, it is perhaps to pull back and ask for help.
Learning to Ask for Help
Just as we all relied more heavily on first responders and front-line workers for care during the last few years, the healthcare workforce—and our communities at large—are relying on healthcare leaders to guide us out of these difficult times. This will be no easy feat. According to ACHE’s annual survey of top issues confronting hospitals, hospital CEOs ranked personnel shortages as their No. 1 concern.
Workforce issues are not new; there has long been a nursing shortage and a Gallup poll published in 2016 found nearly two-thirds of U.S. employees are disengaged. That said, these issues have become even more critical today.
As we emerge from recent events, things have changed from a strategy perspective—now, the greatest challenge to the future of U.S. healthcare is not the pandemic or access to financial capital, it is access to and the retention of skilled talent.
Immediate concerns include engagement, burnout, compensation and benefits, recruitment and retention strategies, and the need to bring more balance to our staff (e.g., agile staffing). Leaders who are working on pandemic recovery efforts and strategic planning for the future may want to consider leaning on the knowledge and skills of a consultant or trusted advisor. Here are a few considerations for leaders to take into account as we move forward.
Trust Is Required
We can’t ignore the implications of the “Great Resignation,” especially in healthcare. The fact is healthcare leaders could use some help, but where to look? Consultants have historically teamed up with key executives for a wide variety of assignments. Some of the most successful executives in healthcare refer to “partnerships” they have enjoyed with consultants who excel at their craft and get proven results.
These partnerships don’t happen by chance; trust is crucial to both start and sustain long-term working relationships. There is no greater achievement for a consultant than to become a trusted advisor. Healthcare leaders who find a consultant they trust will gain not only a sympathetic ear during times of unusual stress, but greater perspective, useful insights, best practices and more.
Break Out of Routines
It may not feel like it yet, but we are soon approaching a time to break out from this disruptive period. As we do so, it is imperative that leaders give our workforce hope. One way to generate hope is to create opportunities that allow staff to focus on something new and break out of their COVID cycles and routines. While not a strategy per se, hope is a motivator that can be generated from cross-functional projects, starting small and building from there.
Recalibrate Priorities
The people we lead need to know that we have their backs, so prioritizing workforce issues is a must for leaders. But then what? Better to manage small, focused projects that will make a quick impact than more complicated, long-term projects. Focusing on what strategists call a “proximate objective” (something that can be achieved on fairly short order that makes a statement) can be useful when setting priorities. Business strategist Richard P. Rumelt wrote in his book Good Strategy Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters that “good proximate objective feasibility does wonders for organizational energy and focus.” Having a plan, even a 100-day plan, can be a comfort to our teams. Even if their area is not the initial priority, their turn will come.
Reassert Control
Politics have become an “invisible hand” in healthcare decision-making for many people, as I note in my upcoming book, Executive Turned Consultant: Transitioning from Experienced Executive to Trusted Advisor in Healthcare. Given current conditions, healthcare leaders must reassert control. Surely disruptions will continue in one form or another (e.g., supply chain), but being intentional about the future helps manage these disruptions by reinforcing the authentic belief that “this too will pass.”
One way to help prepare for and manage disruptions is to ask for help from consultant partners who are eager to share their expertise on issues confronting their clients. A key value proposition of the best consultants is that they have specific experience and resources to address challenging issues, whereas staff may have too much on their plates.
For leaders who don’t currently have an established consultant partnership and are looking to choose the right partner, nothing is more valuable than word-of-mouth recommendations. Other resources, such as ACHE’s Healthcare Consultants Forum Member Directory are helpful too. Conducting a few interviews with more than one firm is always a good idea. A hint regarding such interviews: see in the interview who does the most talking—if it is the consultant, you may want to try someone else. Those who excel at consulting listen more than talk in order to understand your needs.
Find a Trusted Advisor
Some consulting engagements are one-time affairs that conclude after the project at hand is completed. For the more consequential assignments, it can be a great comfort to have a trusted advisor who can be relied upon as future needs arise. The best consultants will always be clear about whether their skill set matches a need or not. Where other capabilities may be required, these same consultants tend to have an active network of experts to whom they can refer clients. Either way, healthcare leaders don’t need to go it alone. Especially as the field wrestles with workforce challenges, calling in a consultant or team of advisors can help healthcare organizations ease the burden, offer needed relief and position teams for success.
Editor’s Note: Learn more about how to mitigate workforce challenges by collaborating with highly skilled consultants during the 2022 Congress on Healthcare Leadership session “The Role of Consultants in Addressing Today’s Workforce Challenges.” Mason is also presenting the “Healthcare Consultants Boot Camp” on Sunday, March 27.
Scott A. Mason, DPA, FACHE, is the managing partner of SKM Advisors, a faculty of ACHE and the Chairman of ACHE’s Healthcare Consultants Forum Committee. His newest book with the Health Administration Press, Executive Turned Consultant: Transitioning from Experienced Executive to Trusted Advisor in Healthcare, is coming soon.