Verity Healthcare

Aligning the chief human sources officer and CEO


Personnel shortages and employees burnout are among the many most urgent workforce challenges hospital CEOs face, highlighting the necessity for alignment between human sources management and the CEO in shaping staff-related initiatives. 

Whereas the CEO sometimes makes the ultimate determination on strategic, systemwide initiatives, the chief folks officer or chief human sources officer performs a key function by offering information and insights throughout the analysis course of.

Working collaboratively, they’ll deal with HR-specific points, corresponding to recruitment, retention, well-being and worker engagement.  

Larry Antonucci, MD, president and CEO of Fort Myers, Fla.-based Lee Well being, and the group’s chief folks officer, Mike Wukitsch, PhD, spoke with Becker’s about how they guarantee alignment between them on key priorities.

Guaranteeing alignment on priorities

One step Drs. Antonucci and Wukitsch have taken in the previous couple of years is transferring their places of work to the identical hallway.

“You’ll be stunned what a distinction that makes within the capability to pop in when points come up or questions come up,” Dr. Antonucci mentioned. 

The executives additionally meet extra regularly exterior of their regular scheduled conferences, as wanted, have open-door insurance policies and textual content one another if there’s an pressing subject.

Moreover, Lee Well being has a chief govt management council. This group, which incorporates the president and CEO, COO, chief medical officer and chief nursing officer, amongst others, discusses organizational priorities and shares suggestions with one another. 

For instance, council members shared suggestions concerning Lee Well being’s determination to transform to a personal nonprofit well being system, Dr. Wukitsch mentioned. 

The Lee County Board of County Commissioners permitted the conversion Oct. 28, after Lee Well being’s board of administrators signed off on the settlement earlier that month. The system transformed to a personal nonprofit on Nov. 1 — a call the system tasks will understand $1 billion in extra web affected person income over the following decade.

Dr. Wukitsch mentioned that whereas Dr. Antonucci oversaw the method, others on the council had been in communication and took part within the decision-making course of repeatedly. 

Navigating totally different views

Drs. Wukitsch and Antonucci had been requested to share an instance of a time once they disagreed on a strategic initiative and the way they navigated that disagreement to reach at a decision.

There may be not a major disagreement between Drs. Antonucci and Wukitsch on key priorities on the group, in keeping with Dr. Wukitsch. Nonetheless, he acknowledged there are occasions they might disagree or have a unique perspective. 

“We adjudicate that by speaking it out and attempt to attain consensus if there’s a difficulty that we see that we have now a unique angle on,” mentioned Dr. Wukitsch. “I’ve to make use of persuasion. Larry sees the world from a unique angle than I do. So, generally, it is, ‘Let me share a unique perspective on what’s occurring right here.’ And we usually attain a reasonably good consensus on what we’re seeing and what we will do about it.” 

Dr. Antonucci expressed related sentiments.

“I do not see it disagreeing on main initiatives, however there are going to be areas the place we might even see issues otherwise, corresponding to if we had been bringing in a senior chief, and we’re speaking about what compensation we’re going to provide,” he mentioned.

“Mike might speak about what the market is and the place the fiftieth percentile is, as an example, however I could have a unique opinion based mostly on a selected talent set or a selected want of the group. We often will speak by means of that and work these points out. The bottom line is an open dialog and open communication and trusting one another that we’re at all times appearing in the very best curiosity of the group. However Mike might not see a number of the issues that I am seeing because it pertains to {the marketplace}, as an example, with a selected city.”

Utilizing information to drive choices

When requested how they use workforce information to information main choices and align priorities at Lee Well being, Dr. Wukitsch pointed to the group’s use of a dashboard to combination information and monitor metrics like turnover, worker engagement and different key indicators. 

Dr. Antonucci mentioned he makes use of worker engagement information primarily to establish areas for enchancment or alternatives. “Larry will present enter on the priorities to verify there’s alignment there by way of issues we wish to work on that we have recognized as alternatives,” Dr. Wukitsch mentioned.

Additionally they monitor the recruiting panorama. 

“We speak about that repeatedly by way of hires and what’s occurring there to make it possible for there is not something falling by means of the cracks,” Dr. Wukitsch mentioned. “It turns into particularly vital when filling positions for initiatives like our service traces and different issues. However we take a look at it extra longitudinally to say, ‘Here is what’s occurring over time, something irregular that we’re seeing, or any considerations which are on the market.'”

In the end, Dr. Wukitsch famous that his function is to interpret the information, share his view on it and reply any questions.

Dr. Antonucci additionally pointed to the importance of utilizing information to watch labor prices, which he mentioned is a matter addressed by means of collaboration amongst a number of executives.

“In case you take a look at labor prices, clearly it is our largest expense, so the function of the chief folks officer is crucial,” he mentioned. “And so we’re consistently our labor prices and the steadiness between our base employees, our additional time spend, our vacationers spend, and the way that impacts recruitment.”

Lee Well being carried out an initiative on that subject — a system labor administration council. Dr. Wukitsch leads the council, together with Lee Well being’s chief nursing officer, Jennifer Higgins, DNP, RN.

“Her points and considerations will escalate up [to Dr. Antonucci], or if not, there’s belief that we’re getting the job accomplished, that we’re actually watching these labor prices carefully, new hires, the place there is perhaps points and considerations,” Dr. Wukitsch mentioned.

Recommendation for different executives

Drs. Antonucci and Wukitsch shared their recommendation to different healthcare executives searching for to foster a powerful partnership between the CEO and chief folks officer or chief human sources officer.

“It is actually about engagement and being personally engaged together with your chief human useful resource skilled,” mentioned Dr. Antonucci. 

“You’ve got received to have the ability to have open, trustworthy conversations, and as a CEO, you wish to be open to listening to the nice, the dangerous and the ugly. And generally it is tough, however I feel empowering your group and empowering your chief officers to make daring strikes and to make choices at all times within the curiosity of the group, after which assist them once they make these strikes. That is how I see it from my perspective.”

Dr. Wukitsch emphasised the significance of “the folks aspect of healthcare” each by way of value and the dynamics in the way in which that care is delivered, the effectiveness of the care and the expertise that sufferers have by means of care.

“Recognizing that interrelationship of the monetary, the technical, the human aspect of healthcare, and aligning these issues, I feel, has been — continues to be a chance for healthcare to more and more perceive and leverage,” he mentioned. 

“I am lucky that Larry, as our president and CEO, will get that. And so frankly, it makes the job a better job. I am not having to exhibit the worth on a regular basis. He will get that. It is actually about making it occur and supporting the group and enterprise.”

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