The following is an interview with Tim Darling, President of Laudio and author of the new book Leader Inspired Work: Insight and Tools for Healthcare Managers. This new book, which includes tools and strategies, is built on the insights, research, and experience gained from working with healthcare leaders across the United States.
What led you and the Laudio team to write this book for leaders?
At Laudio, our mission is to “elevate frontline leaders in healthcare.” Our platform streamlines workflows for frontline leaders and strengthens interpersonal connections, enhancing leader efficiency, employee engagement, and patient experience. Laudio Insights is Laudio’s analytics, research, and publications division.
As part of our work to support our mission, we developed a framework outlining 25 areas of Leader Standard Work. Our goal is to provide practical, actionable guidance for each area to save time, reduce administrative burden, clarify priorities, and help them succeed.
This is an especially challenging time for managers and a lot is at stake.
More than half of health system managers have less than five years of experience – and that group is growing over time. Many of these managers oversee teams of 50 or more employees, with high burdens of administrative work, 24/7 operations, and team members who are looking to them for personalized coaching and recognition. This is true for both nurse managers and support services managers.
Frontline managers are crucial to achieving healthcare organizations’ strategic goals. They are essentially CEOs of multi-million-dollar business streams, responsible for quality, safety, financial performance, patient experience, and employee engagement.
Who would you identify as the target audience for this book?
Any frontline manager in healthcare! We talked with clinical, support services, and administrative leaders in hospitals large and small to get ideas that we aim to be applicable to any leader.
We also believe executives and other senior leaders will find value in including this book in their toolkits to support their frontline leaders, closing the gap to better understanding the complexities of their day-to-day roles, ensuring their success, and greater organizational success.
How have you used your Laudio research to identify areas of need for leaders addressed in this book (give some examples)?
Our data and analysis from over 70 hospitals supported by the Laudio platform has shown the power of meaningful connections between managers and their employees. These connections drive employee engagement, reduce turnover, and improve operational efficiency and clinical outcomes. One meaningful interaction with each team member per month is associated with a 7 percentage point increase in retention. But for all of the reasons discussed above, finding the time and energy to do this is a constant uphill battle.
For example, the book offers a pragmatic approach to helping a leader develop their department’s vision and to reinforce that vision in daily huddles and leader rounding. All of this is presented in short, easy-to-read guidance that a manager can implement immediately.
Another observation from our speaking with hundreds of frontline leaders across the country is the isolation managers often feel in leading their departments. We present a “team of teams” approach that reflects the interprofessional nature of healthcare leadership and practical ways to create synergy and add value to inter-departmental relationships. There are also short personal stories from managers that share how others have attempted this with some specific approaches to getting started doing it.
How would you recommend I use this book if I am a new leader?
This book presents 25 areas of Leader Standard Work within two broad categories: relational and operational leadership. A manager can quickly reference any of these areas and find tips and tricks for “Quick Wins” that can be implemented immediately to save time or build efficiencies. These are followed by “Wins for the Future,” which are more detailed strategies from experienced leaders to build a lasting foundation.
While a leader can start with any area based on their greatest need, we believe relational leadership is where most managers should initially focus, as team member engagement is foundational to operational success. In short, start with the “Quick Wins” in the first few chapters. Those should start to help you save time, which will make the rest of the book more accessible.
One thing that I have learned in leadership development is how little time most leaders have to reflect on their leadership practice. This book has many excellent reflective exercises. What advice would you have for leaders to carve out time in their day to do this?
The book is available in print (on Amazon), as an e-book, as an audiobook (for listening during commutes), and as micro-learning videos. Any chapter can be listened to during a 15-minute commute, making it convenient for busy leaders. Setting a goal of one chapter a week, for example, allows the book to be completed over 6 months, with time to integrate the content into leadership practices. All content is available on laudio.com/insights.
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