Employee Engagement

Don’t Underestimate Recognition; It Keeps Your Culture’s “Well” Full

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“I receive recognition for performance” is a common question on employee engagement surveys. In building a culture of trust, it is a top–five item. This is an area I have spent a large amount of time thinking about, writing about, and presenting on. In college, I was introduced to the work of Marc Gold. During the late 1960s, he formulated a way to help people with significant disabilities learn complex tasks. He called it “Try…
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Patti Frank | The Healthcare Plus Podcast

Building a “Best Place to Work”: Tried & True Strategies For Success

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When Patti Frank became Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Operating Officer at CCM Health in Montevideo, Minnesota, she wondered if she could replicate the employee engagement success she had in a previous job at a different organization. The answer turned out to be yes. Under her leadership, CCM Health debuted at #66 on Modern Healthcare’s Best Places to Work list—and climbed to #9 this year. In a recent podcast interview with Dan Collard, Frank talks about how they achieved it–despite challenges with high turnover, a reliance on travel nurses,…
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Natasha Lee | The Healthcare Plus Podcast

Day One and Beyond: Helping Remote Hires Feel They Belong…From the Beginning.

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Belonging is a powerful force. When employees feel it, the whole organization thrives. Teams are stronger and more productive. People are more receptive to be coached. High performers become “ambassadors” who bring in other high performers. It makes sense to create belonging right away, which is why it’s a central tenet of our Emotional Onboarding™ system. But what if you’re hiring remote employees? How do you create belonging then? In a recent podcast with Dan Collard, Natasha Lee, the…
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The “Trust Trilogy”: Three Employee Engagement Survey Questions That Help Measure Trust

The “Trust Trilogy”: Three Employee Engagement Survey Questions That Help Measure Trust

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The Human Margin: Building the Foundations of Trust is a book written by Katherine A. Meese, PhD, and me. Why did we author this book? The research studied by Dr. Meese shows the significant impact trust has on organizational performance. When trust is high, there is better employee retention. Better employee retention leads to better results across the board. As Dr. Meese and I have presented on this topic, it is gratifying to show organizations that…
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Dr. Katherine Meese | The Healthcare Plus Podcast

Great Job Descriptions Set the Right Expectations from (Before) Day One.

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We all know finding and keeping great employees is one of the top priorities in healthcare. What we may not realize is the process starts the first time a candidate interacts with our organization: the minute they read the job description. That said, how much time and thought do you put into yours? Many organizations just use a template. They see the job description purpose as conveying the position’s main responsibilities, expectations, and qualifications. They figure We can…
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In Mature Workplaces, People Carry Their Own Messages

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What we permit, we promote. I learned this phrase from speaker and author Liz Jazwiec. If new ideas and challenges are permitted and celebrated, more of each will take place. On the less positive side, permitting can reinforce actions that are not good. For example: A person regularly shows up late, and nothing happens…a leader repeatedly misses goals, and nothing happens…a person gossips, and nothing happens. The results are lateness, missed goals, and increased gossip. This…
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The Sooner We Measure What May Be Wrong, the Sooner We Can Make It Right

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“We need to eat our own cooking.” This is a statement that resonates with me. I write and speak about customer service, employee engagement, creating cultures of high performance, and building foundations of trust. I feel it’s important to practice what I advise others to do. This includes measuring how we’re doing in these areas. When I was at Holy Cross Hospital in Chicago, we became well known for having excellent patient experience. I spoke at…
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Two Tactics to Improve the Timing and Accuracy of Your Messages

Two Tactics to Improve the Timing and Accuracy of Your Messages

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Why does a good decision or action end up not going well? Was it the decision itself or how the action was taken…or was it a communication issue? My experience is that leaders put a lot of time into making thoughtful decisions. The “miss” occurs due to how things are communicated during the rollout. Micromanagement can get a bad rap. Yes, there are certain actions in which it makes sense: making sure a recipe is correct,…
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How to Be the Public Relations Person for Those You Lead | Healthcare Plus Solutions Group

How to Be the Public Relations Person for Those You Lead

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“Be the change you want to see in the world.” This quote is most often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi. It comes up in conversations with groups to which I am presenting. In these conversations, I often share that research shows that when a person receives three compliments for every one criticism, they feel more positive about the sender. Two compliments per criticism creates a neutral feeling about the sender, and a one-to-one ratio creates a…
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Are You an Uplifter? | Healthcare Plus Solutions Group

Are You an Uplifter?

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We all know those people who uplift others. This past week, I was with a group and mentioned Norm Adams. If you have read my work over the years, this name will be familiar to you. If not, let me explain. Norm is no longer with us physically, but like many, his legacy lives on through others. I met Norm in July of 1996. I had just moved to the Pensacola area. While waiting to…
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