Daneen,

Thank you for your post on Activity 2 really appreciated how well written it was and how you had applied it specifically in your field of healthcare.

It seems like in so many professions, I am reading and hearing the same thing, which is that society is so rapidly changing that most industries, businesses and ministries are being forced to learn to adapt and change. This is such a key time for leadership and why building skills of leadership are so important! The Christian ministry I am a part of is undergoing significant changes in organizational culture and structure also due to facing a rapidly changing environment. I agree with what you said, when you stated, “without critical thinking skills embedded into leadership processes, organizations will fail to respond to those rapid changes and challenges effectively.”

I am not familiar with healthcare as a profession, but I can relate to your question in my field of work, Christian ministry and wanted to share my thoughts. You asked the group this question:

Keeping in mind the leadership is a process theme, would you be satisfied with a group where 70% of the staff bought into that leadership style? Or would you strive to ensure all staff members believed in the process?

I think there is not a clear cut answer to this, but my thoughts because of currently undergoing a lot of change and leading in that are the following:

  • I think 70% is a good amount of people bought in, so be encouraged, if that is the case in your field! However, 30% of people not being bought in will still be a “drag” on the process towards change. Personally, I would strive for everyone to believe in the process, because even though you have a good percentage, if the 30% are still stuck in the “old ways” and they are training up new people, than that number might grow to more than 30%.
  • I would consider (if it is not already being done) communicating frequently the urgency of the necessary changes and the need for unity in those. I am learning communicating urgency and “the why” to be key factor when it comes to applying changes.
  • Change is a process, so it will take time, but also it is good to have deadlines or goals where something is aimed for, so the staff are aware, that by this time things will be different and they can prepare themselves for that. E.g. We aim to have trained x amount of people in the new system by ________ (date).
  • Allowing staff space to process the changes is important. In a healthcare setting, I have no idea how this would work, but maybe staff getting to process the changes on an online feedback form would work? That way, it is possible to see where people are at in terms of grasping the changes and how “on board” they are. It give insight to what the next step(s) could be, to help them get to 100% buy-in.

Hope these thoughts are helpful, really great question!

Monica