HR Strategies Key to Leader Success

Dr. Rita Fields

Copper Phoenix Consulting, LLC

Biography of Dr. Rita Fields

Dr. Fields has nearly two decades of experience in human resources management in information technology, research and education, consulting and healthcare. She is very active in the community, serving on five non-profit boards. She is also engaged in her profession through membership in professional societies.

Her career highlights include:• The developing and successfully implementing a $1 million comprehensive career center for

entry level employees. • Designing the human capital strategy for the pre-opening and operations of the award winning

Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital in West Bloomfield, MI.

Her formal education is as follows:Doctor of Management - Executive Leadership

Master of Arts – Human Resources Management

Bachelor of Arts – English

Bachelor of Arts – Psychology

AGENDA

What does it mean to be an effective leader? Why should you care about employee

engagement? How can corrective action help you as a

leader? What is NNLV? New Leader Checklist Open Forum / Sharing / Questions

Two Myths and Two Realities of Effective Leadership

• M1: People are either born leaders or they aren’t

• M2: Leadership is about power and entitlement

• R1: New leaders often feel lonely and ‘hoodwinked’

• R2: No one is perfect, but everyone can learn from mistakes

Evidence-Based Validation of Strong Nursing Leadership on Key Outcomes

• Staffing Adequacy• Employee Engagement & Employee

Satisfaction• Patient Safety Outcomes (e.g. reduced

mortality rates & readmissions)

OR Employee Perceptions of Their Leaders

• “Too Hands Off”• “Great People Skills but …”• Too Tolerant of Bad Behavior• The Pot Calling The Kettle Black

Importance of Corrective Action

• Benefits employees and employer• Allows employee improvement on areas

important for success• Helps managers document performance

issues• Meets staff expectations for managers to

resolve performance issues, improving culture and engagement

Direct

Detail Oriented

Documentation

DIRECT

• Address issues when they occur (timeliness is key)

• Be specific about the issue

• Consistently apply disciplinary action for all

• Openly acknowledge behavior that upholds your culture and values

DETAILS

• Align feedback with details in job description and policies

• Ask the employee to acknowledge receipt of feedback with a signature

• Get statements from witnesses

• Be mindful of probationary period!

DOCUMENTATION

• Document all conversations regarding the issue with time/date info

• Consult with HR on developing a performance plan ASAP and follow up

• Document concerns in performance evaluations and add 360s!

Nurse-to-Nurse Lateral Violence (NNLV)

• NNLV is delivered through gossiping, backbiting, blaming, jealousy and other negative behaviors from nurses who have more tenure either in rank, time at institution and even age.

• The most commonly exhibited signs of NNLV are: “nonverbal innuendo”, “verbal affront”, “undermining activities”, “withholding information”, “sabotage”, “infighting”, “scapegoating”, “broken confidences”, “backstabbing” and “failure to protect privacy” [15].

• NNLV can cause intense feelings of inferiority and rage in nurses who are on the receiving end.

The Prescription for Nursing Lateral Violence

• New leaders should emphasize and reward behavior that uplifts their employees and not knowingly or unwittingly endorse such behaviors.

• Most importantly, new leaders need to be committed to not personally indulge in NNLV behavior AND to speak candidly with colleagues if they suspect that they are indulging in or passively allowing this behavior.

• New leaders should inform their immediate supervisors if they feel that this situation may be occurring in their department

New Leader Checklist

Focus on You Find a Mentor “Reverse Mentors” Cut Yourself Slack Gratitude is Critical

References

[1]Heather, L. K., & Leiter, M. P. (2006). The impact of nursing work environments on patient safety outcomes: The mediating role of burnout on engagement. Journal of Nursing Administration, 36(5), 259-267.

[3]Larson, J. (2012, February 21). The connection between employee satisfaction and patient satisfaction. Www.amnhealthcare.com. Retrieved from http://www.amnhealthcare.com/latest-healthcare-news/459/1033/

[4]Peltier, J., Dahl, A., & Mulhern, F. (2009, April). The relationship between employee satisfaction and hospital patient experiences (Rep.). Retrieved http://www.info-now.com/typo3conf/ext/p2wlib/pi1/press2web/html/userimg/FORUM/Hospital%20Study%20-Relationship%20Btwn%20Emp.%20Satisfaction%20and%20Pt.%20Experiences.pdf

References[5]Engagement unlocks patient satisfaction potential (Rep.). (2003, June 17). Retrieved http://www.gallup.com/poll/8650/engagement-unlocks-patient-satisfaction-potential.aspx

[7]Pund, L. E., & Sklar, P. (2012). Linking quality assurance to human resources: Improving patient satisfaction by improving employee satisfaction [Scholarly project]. In Www.indiana.edu. Retrieved from http://www.indiana.edu/~spea/pubs/undergrad-honors/volumn-6/Pund,%20Lindsey%20-%20Linking%20Quality%20Assurance%20to%20Human%20Resources%20Improving%20Patient%20Satisfaction%20by%20Improving%20Employee%20Satisfaction%20-%20Faculty%20Pam%20Sklar.pdf

[15]Griffin, M. (n.d.). Teaching cognitive rehearsal as a shield for lateral violence: An intervention for newly licensed nurses. Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 35(6), 257-263.

THANK YOU!

Dr. Rita Fields

Copper Phoenix Consulting, LLC

www.copperphoenixconsulting.com