post 3.1

Response to Pierre’s Post 3.1 on Strategic Leadership Teams in Health Care

health and education, ldrs501, post 3.1
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The original post of HC1 Post 3.1 – Strategic Leadership Teams by Pierre Florendo can be read in its entirety at this link:  https://create.twu.ca/pierreflorendo/2018/10/16/strategic-leadership-teams-hc1/

Thank you for directing our attention to integrity at the beginning of your post, Pierre.  In so many interactions the past few years, I have observed people make in-the-moment decisions and responses that are incongruous with good practice.  When I have inquired about the reason for not remaining true to previous protocols or commonly agreed upon processes, the explanation centers on decisions in the moment or as an immediate contextual necessity.  The ensuing result creates confusion about direction, mistrust among colleagues, and inconsistent leadership.

Open Communication and Information Sharing

You mentioned fiscal responsibilities and the various ways a department would meet the requirements for spending, Pierre, which is similar to how budgets worked in schools.  “The mindset of spending, even if superfluous, chowed a lack of stewardship and by extension a lack of integrity” (Florendo, 2018, para. 2).  Although unspent money is not clawed back anymore in my immediate organization, there is very little accountability to the staff on the actual allocation of our budget.  The administrator informs us each month at staff meetings about money spent on certain things for our school, but we have little involvement in the real decisions nor do we ever see the budget data for a school year.  Lack of openness is creating mistrust and disengaged employee interactions which frustrates our administrator.  A strategic team’s foundation must be on of trust and transparency in all areas. “All teams must have access to the information they need to understand the competitive environment, and the information they use must be valid and timely (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 207).

Consistency in Words and Deed

Applying your influence as a team leader in your current role as Director of Care is a noble goal, Pierre: “I want a team that enjoys their work now and looks forward to making a positive impact” (Florendo, 2018, para. 6).  Investing in others extends your influence to more potential team leaders and engaged employees.  Lepsinger (2010) says that “if your employees can’t have a sense of ownership, nothing truly great can occur” (p. 14).  Your commitment to reverse the disillusionment of the suppression and disenfranchisement they have experienced under the leadership of other administrators will take time and consistent, vigilance of self-evaluation.  “No company should ever have two sets of values and expectations: one for the leader(s) and one for the employees” (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 17).

Empowering Others

I agree with your final statement that “empowering others will solve many of the struggles and challenges any team faces” (Florendo, 2018, para. 11).  Do you have a timeline in your plan to reach this goal?  Leaders who are successful in their current position often receive other promotions to lead in larger or more critical venues.  Employees will need to see your leadership as more than a stepping stone to another position.  How can you convince them to change their current approaches and investing in both short-term and long-term changes for improving the care facility?  What are two necessary changes (SMART goals) you will institute to create a climate of learning for your whole team (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 215)?

References

Florendo, P. (October 16, 2018). Strategic leadership teams – HC1 (post 3.1) (Health Care).  Retrieved from

Hughes, R., Beatty, K. & Dinwoodie, D. (2014). Becoming a strategic leader: Your role in your organization’s enduring success. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Lepsinger, R. (2010). Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results.  San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Response to Stella’s Strategic Leadership Teams Post 3.1 (ET2)

health and education, ldrs501, post 3.1
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Response to Stella’s ET2-Change Makers Post 3.1 – Strategic Leadership Teams whose original post can be read here: https://create.twu.ca/stellapetersldrs501/2018/10/15/49/

Thank you for providing a detailed look into the workings of the leadership team in your organization, Stella!  Your post is thorough and informative and aligned with many of the principles we have studied in Results-Based Leadership this past summer as well as the few weeks of Strategic Leadership in which we have been immersed.  It reminds me of the longing I had when I chose to study at TWU to be fed from this learning journey and not just put out energy and effort into another venue of work without return.

As I compare your work and leadership experience with my own, I am really wondering if strategic teams and effective systems thinking is even possible without a transformational servant leader mindset?  You mentioned that you were able to safely inquire about your AP’s questionable actions in a particular situation and the team was able to pull “out the policy to work through the issue and then to determine now not to repeat the action in question” (Peters, 2018, para. 10).   Your courage to inquire led your team to a shared understanding and fostered a new level of trust!  Investing in maintaining consistency in the mission, vision, and values of your organization will create opportunities of growth for everyone.  Lepsinger says, “No company should ever have two sets of values and expectations; one for leader(s) and one for the employees” (2010, p. 17).  Integrity.

You described the multi-faceted diversity of your leadership team.  While this can be a real strength and provide “passionate discussions that spur each other to learn from each other and make the best decisions for our staff and students” (Peters, 2018, para. 2).  While a strategic leadership team’s effectiveness is determined by its diverse strategic perspectives (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 213), our strengths can also be our weaknesses.  How does your team ensure that the inherent diversity will not be a stumbling block or bottleneck to maintaining high standards for your educational institution?  You obviously have a shared vision as a leadership team knowing you are not only educating students but instilling a faith-based spiritual foundation as well.  Have you all been able to work consistently in your new roles and avoid the easy comfortable patterns of communication you had in your previous roles?  How do your new roles and old relationships challenge your interactions, if at all?

Your leadership team is making decisions for a wide range of clientele in a K-12 school as well as the many teaching staff who work at every level.  It seems like quite a complex task.  How do you provide the release time for your Professional Learning Communities in order to increase their capacity?  How do you ensure that time to work together is not simply one more thing you are asking of your staff when their schedules are already full?  In our District, we have after school collaboration time which requires us, should we choose to participate, commit to five two-hour after-school sessions on current school needs (i.e. reframing new reporting processes).  The pay-off is that we have two of our mandatory five professional development days off in lieu of time served.  Is there assistance for your staff to maintain a healthy work-life balance as your leadership team institutes changes that will bring your whole organization closer to the long-term goals (Hughes et al., 2014, p. 215).

References

Hughes, R., Beatty, K., and Dinwoodie, D. (2014). Becoming a strategic leader: Your role in your organization’s enduring success. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Lepsinger, R. (2010).  Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Peters, S. (October 15, 2018). “Strategic leadership teams” by Change Makers-ET2. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/stellapetersldrs501/2018/10/15/49/

Response to Kamal’s Systems Post

ET1-MSSL, health and education, ldrs501, post 3.1
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You can find Kamal’s original post here: https://create.twu.ca/ldrs501/2018/10/15/organization-and-systems-thinking-week-3-dq-post/

In your discussion of the managerial practices in Fraser Health, Kamal, you referred to the need for communication about performance to be done with consideration for how it will impact the employee.  “While this is necessary, I believe the manager has to be careful how it is communicated to the employee without coming across as minimizing their effort and belittling them.  Communication is one of the barriers at times and which leads to a negative outcome” (Badesha, 2018, para. 1).  Maintaining high standards is necessary for continued growth of any organization though it seems particularly vital in healthcare! Providing feedback in a manner that facilitates the understanding and subsequent changes in practice or behaviour can be a delicate matter even when people know it is part of good practice.  “The starting point of breaking the cycle of low expectations is to assume and listen for the positives” (Lepsinger, 2010, p. 57).  In the pressures of the work environment we can often be so focused on results that we fail to do what we know will increase productivity–build up the people!  The most powerful effect of behaviour modification is the change it will produce on the leader who is practicing the principles to create change in others.  If high expectations deliver higher performances, then leaders should focus on their own need to demonstrate the five leadership competencies mentioned in Lepsinger (2010, p. 59):

  1. Enhance the other person’s feelings of importance and self-worth.
  2.  Encouraging people to step out of their comfort zones.
  3.  Creating a supportive environment that is safe for risk taking.
  4.  Reinforcing positive behaviours and clarifying what ‘good looks like.’
  5.   Providing feedback that is balanced and constructive.

Even when working with recalcitrant children or children who are not progressing academically, our assessment always begins by listing their strengths.  This turns our focus on what they “can do” instead of the deficits.  Students perform better when there is something to work toward instead of a list of things to avoid; adults respond similarly, in my experience.  There are many times when a kind word, a positive interaction, and a brief respite can empower employees to continue striving for increased results.

Atha mentions the power of the tongue, as addressed in James 3:3-6, which “can introduce small changes to personal or organizational perspectives that can affect/effect the entire outcome of corporate or personal relations; positively or negatively” (Atha, 2018, p. 5).  With this kind of power comes great responsibility to use this little but mighty God-given tool for good.  Do you find that your positive interactions empower the people you manage, Kamal?  Can your comments and conversations send more powerful messages that override the less-than-complimentary conversations that some leaders in your organization have with the employees they are trying to bring to a higher standard?  I appreciate your focus on the words we so so often use flippantly, forgetting their long-lasting impact on others.  Organizational systems are so interrelated that when one part is negatively impacted, the other parts are also going to feel the effects (Zeeman, 2017, para. 13).  I Corinthians 12:12-27 speaks to the importance of all parts of the body working together even though each part has its own place and function.  “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.”  This is how systems should work.

References

Atha, D. (2018).  A systems thinking primer: Seeing organizations in action. [Course Notes]. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/ldrs501/unit-3-learning-activities/

Lepsinger, R. (2010).  Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Zeeman, A. (2017). Senge’s Five Disciplines of Learning Organizations. Retrieved [insert date] from ToolsHero: https://www.toolshero.com/management/five-disciplines-learning-organizations/

Badesha, K. (October 2018). Organization and systems thinking: Week 3 DQ post. Retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/ldrs501/2018/10/15/organization-and-systems-thinking-week-3-dq-post/