From Our Latest White Paper: How Embracing Change Can Help You Manage Your Health Care Talent Crunch

Health care leaders have to deal with change every day. As they face the challenges posed by retiring providers, an aging population needing more care and more people with coverage accessing health insurance, they still need to prepare employees for next-level roles. Our latest white paper, “How Smart Health Care Leaders are Facing the Talent Crunch,” provides tips for health care leaders to use change-management principles as they build a strong system to hire, retain and develop employees effectively.Fortunately, health care organizations have a built-in advantage when facing these challenges, because their missions don’t change. They still focus on taking care of the patient; what’s changed is how they’ll get the people to do it. Here's how health care organizations can attract the talent they need to stay ahead of the game.

Double Down on Brand and Mission

Money doesn’t always talk, but your work culture does. Loudly. Patricia Johnson, senior vice president of patient care/NICU/respiratory therapy and chief nursing officer at Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, says her organization is always focused on its mission of helping women and infants, and that its brand attracts people who are interested in upholding that mission. “Our brand is women’s care, and people know that when they apply,” Johnson says.

Involve the Whole Team

During times of change you need all hands on deck. If you’re seeking to build a stronger, more effective health care organization, you should get everyone involved in making that happen from the very beginning. Current employees are your biggest brand ambassadors. If your staff members are happy, productive and engaged, they will want to recommend your hospital as a great place to work for their talented friends, family and former co-workers. At Woman’s, for example, part of the interview process includes staff interview panels who meet with job candidates for bedside nurse positions. “We’ve found that they’re able to best identify the people who will fit with the Woman’s culture,” Johnson says. “They’re more vested in making sure they succeed, because they’ve chosen them.”

Onboard Effectively

Ensure new employees understand the organization they are entering and how they fit into the bigger picture. Setting expectations at the beginning of their careers at your organization will help ensure they understand how their work supports the overall mission. Part of the onboarding process at Woman’s includes going over highlights of the organization’s strategic plan and its priorities, such as patient safety. “We start them off in the very first week,” Johnson says. “We try to have a lot of personal connection with employees.”For more tips on how to respond effectively to the talent crunch in health care, download the full white paper.Success Labs is a leadership development and management consulting firm in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. For more than 25 years, our expert team of consultants has worked with hundreds of companies to explore their business potential and improve their company and cultural performance. Contact us to get proactive about your people strategy.