Behavior in the Workplace

1. Behavior in the Workplace Evidence-Based Leadership Practices for Creating a Positive Workplace Jo Manion PhD RN CNAA FAAN 1/8/07 NCSBN

2. “Never before have organizations paid more attention to talent … Keeping it. Stealing it. Developing it. Engaging it. Talent is no longer just a numbers game; it’s about survival.” Kaye & Jordan-Evans, 2002 --Bowles, 1991

3. The Plan • Cost of Turnover • What is Being Done • The Study Design • What Managers Actually Do • Ramifications for Individuals & Organizations

4. Cost of Turnover • $$$$

5. Gelinas & Bohlen, VHA Tomorrow’s Work Force, 2002 Economic Benefits of Retention

6. Cost of Turnover • $$$$ • Damages the Brand • Loss of Experience, Knowledge & Connections • Felt Rejection

7. “Resignation is not just a behavioral act; it is also a state of being.” Manion, Health Forum Journal, Sept., 2000

8. Recruitment is a key strategy for the current workforce shortages, but isn’t enough.It does no good to recruit and select the right people if you can’t keep ‘em. Manion, Health Forum Journal, Sept., 2000

9. What kept you?

10. Exciting work, challenge Career growth, learning & development Great people Fair pay & benefits Good boss Pride in organization, mission, product Great work environment, culture Recognition, valued, respect Meaningful work, making a contribution Autonomy, creativity,sense of control Flexibility: work hours, dress, etc. Security Location Diverse, changing work Fun Responsibility Being part of a team Work/life balance Loyalty & commitment Comfort on the job What Kept You?

11. Why do people work? 89% of all managers STILL believe it is about $$$$$ Kaye & Jordan-Evans, 2002

12. Intrinsic Motivation Meaningful Work Progress Positive Relationships Competence Choices

13. Strategies Inspire for Meaningful Work Cheerlead for Progress Build Healthy Relationships Coach for Competence Create Choices

14. How can we Create a culture of retention?

15. What does a culture of retention mean to you? • What characteristics do you think of when you think of a culture of retention?

16. The Key Question What do leaders do to create a culture of retention in their area of responsibility?

17. The Participants • Current managers with direct reports • Recommended by others as an individual who has successfully created a culture of retention • Combination of low turnover rates, waiting list of interested staff, positive patient or service outcomes, healthy employee relationships, high employee and physician satisfaction levels

18. The Study Design • Telephone & face-to-face interviews with 32 managers • Face-to-face interviews with 3 of the people to whom they report • 3 focus groups of their employees • Nurse managers, directors of pharmacy, imaging, PT, RT & Business Office

19. Analyzing the Data • Used a categorical-content analysis approach • Let the themes emerge from the participant’s stories & examples • Code the interviews to determine most common strategies or interventions

20. Defining a Culture of Retention • It’s creating an environment where people want to stay. • It means that people enjoy their work so much and the people they work with that they want to stick around and get involved. Everybody is trying to make it a great place to work. • It’s an environment that meets people’s needs.

21. Defining a Culture of Retention • It’s a culture where employees know they are valued. • When they come to work, they enjoy being here, they feel good about being here. They feel safe. They can trust each other that the job will be done and done well. • They wake up in the morning and want to come to work. They are interested and want to be here.

22. It’s more than a culture of retention, it’s a culture of engagement & contribution. Because that will lead to a culture of retention. It’s not enough that you stayed for 30 years. It’s what are you giving? How are you contributing?

23. What do you do to create a culture of retention?

24. Forge Strong Connections Partner with the Staff Put the Staff First Creating a Culture of Retention Coach for & Expect Competence Focus on Results

25. Put Staff First • “My staff comes first, not the patient comes first. Because if I make my staff feel valued and respected and good about what they do, then they’re going to give the best care in the world.” • “I know that if I’m looking out for them, they will look out for the department. They know when they need me I will be there for them.” • “If the staff is going to put service first, I have to put them first. They have to feel that you have their interests at heart. That they are important and not being used & abused.”

26. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people

27. Caring for Them • “It’s caring about people and not just their work.” • “I don’t allow staff to be dumped on. By anyone!” • “They know I love them. I have fallen in love with my staff.”

28. “We are re-focusing on the deep longings we have for community, meaning, dignity, purpose, and love in our organizational lives. We are beginning to look at the strong emotions of being human, rather than segmenting ourselves by believing that love doesn’t belong at work, or that feelings are irrelevant in the organization.” Margaret Wheatley, 1999 --Bowles, 1991

29. “The caring part of empathy, especially for the people with whom you work, is what inspires people to stay with a leader when the going gets rough. The mere fact that someone cares is more often than not rewarded with loyalty.” James Champy, 2003 --Bowles, 1991

30. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people • Treating others with respect

31. Treating Them with Respect • “They have the right to challenge me on any decision. I’m open to that. If I say something wrong, they will come and tell me.” • “I always respect their opinions and I don’t judge them. I listen to what they are telling me.” • “I treat them with respect in all situations. I never speak badly of anyone in front of others.” • “I am just in awe of what they do, I am just stunned by it. Their hearts are so big! They amaze me every day.” • “I trust that they are honorable people, if they tell me they need something, I believe it.”

32. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people • Treating others with respect • Using appreciation & recognition liberally

33. Appreciation & Recognition • Getting people’s accomplishments in a newsletter • Bulletin boards to share the thank yous • Recognition “tool kits” … give aways • Events during recognition weeks • Displaying evidence of accomplishments • Clinical advancement programs • Taking people’s pictures & posting them • Thank you notes & special occasion cards • Acknowledgement in front of others

34. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people • Treating others with respect • Using appreciation & recognition liberally • Meet their needs

35. “Getting involved in the everyday problems of your people may violate the HR rule-book, but it’s also the single best way to build an emotional bond with your employees.” Katzenbach, Why Pride Matters More Than Money, 2003 --Bowles, 1991

36. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people • Treating others with respect • Using appreciation & recognition liberally • Meet their needs • Listen & respond

37. Put Staff First Ask questions & listen to the answers: • What took too long today? • What is just plain silly? • What is holding you back from doing your best work? • What keeps you up at night?

38. Listen & Respond • “They are the ones with the gems. They will come to you with their problems. You’ll know what needs to be fixed, ‘cause they’ll tell you what’s broken.” • “I address issues they have brought up, it surprises them sometimes.” • “I may not have the answer right away because I like to go back and process things, but I always get back to people and they really appreciate that.” • “Listening is probably one of the most important things I do. I repeat what they said and then I get back to them on it.”

39. Put Staff First • Caring for them as people • Treating others with respect • Using appreciation & recognition liberally • Recognize & appreciate diversity • Meet their needs • Listen & respond • Support

40. Forge Strong Connections Put the Staff First Creating a Culture of Retention

41. Forge Strong Connections • Connect with people, as people • Get to know them

42. Get to Know Them • “It’s understanding what’s important to them outside the institution. That they’re human, that they have important lives and need to feel valued.” • “I know all of them. I know their names, their families, their dogs, what they like to do.” • “I don’t do it as a strategy. I do it from my heart, but I know it makes a huge impact on them. Because I remember.”

43. Forge Strong Connections • Connect with people, as people • Get to know them • Create a sense of community • Hire the right people

44. Hire the Right People • “I look for people who are passionate around their work.” • “I’m very selective. I know that if people want to learn the job, they will. I’m looking at attitudes and behaviors, enthusiasm.” • “We look for people that really have the energy and the sort of sense of humor that fits with our group.” • “I want someone who has the heart and the caring and this is of interest to them.” • “We want someone who is going to contribute, participate on committees, be a part of what’s going on.”

45. Forge Strong Connections • Connect with people, as people • Get to know them • Create a sense of community • Hire the right people • Have fun together

46. Have Fun Together • “We try to keep it lighthearted. I have a good sense of humor. They see that and it sets the tone for the department.” • “I use humor and fun to emphasize the things I think are important. For example, we always celebrate the end of orientation. I take the orientees out to breakfast … and the preceptors out to dinner.” • “We have so much fun at our parties, we started having these little cookouts every month or so. One of staff brings his grill & we’ll do hamburgers & hotdogs around 6 pm so oncoming and off going staff can have some. We invite everyone.”

47. Forge Strong Connections Put the Staff First Creating a Culture of Retention Coach for & Expect Competence

48. Coach for & Expect Competence • Sets high standards & expectations

49. Sets High Standards • “My leadership team and I actually look for and create new goals every year so that people are always feeling challenged. So we’re always on the cutting edge. You cannot be satisfied with what you did last year.” • “I have very high expectations, I expect them to participate in PI efforts, to attend the committee meetings that they are on, to practice their profession in a quality way.” • “I don’t expect anything of them I wouldn’t do myself.” • “I have high standards, but I’m a soft touch person. There are a core set of rules, like patient safety. We don’t bend rules there.”

50. Coach for & Expect Competence • Sets high standards & expectations • Coaches for development