Identifying an Engaged Employee

Last week we looked at some ideas from the book Patients Come Second: Leading Change by Changing the Way You Lead, by Paul Spiegelman and Britt Berrett. The theme of the book is that a leader’s focus is on employees, working to engage them in the mission of the organization. They contend that when leaders put employees first, even before the tasks of the department, the employees will be engaged, and provide the outstanding care that our patients and their families want and need.

With this in mind, the authors address how to identify engaged employees. They quote Steve Rector, CEO at Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point:

“I think leaders sometimes mistake someone who has a good attitude or personality for an engaged staff member. Be careful not to jump on that bandwagon. For me, it’s fairly easy to notice engaged staff. They are usually the ones who are coming up to you in the hallway, the cafeteria, your office – wherever! – and providing insight on how you can improve, grow, do things better for the patients. It’s not that they are smiling and happy all the time. In fact, sometimes they can be a little grumpy because they are so eager for improvement. But they always strive for improving the patient experience and challenge you as a leader to get engaged at every level to improve all things that touch the patient. I love these guys!”

This reflects the idea presented in Section One of the Called to Lead manual, which quotes Knox Singleton, CEO of Inova Health System: “What employees want…is a process where they have the opportunity to have a say, and make a difference in their environment. In other words, that what they do changes or impacts things. And, secondly, they want to do worthwhile work. They want to connect what they are doing to a purpose that’s worth pursuing – something bigger than themselves.”

Called to Care Action

Invite your employees to come to you once a week with a new idea, a better way of doing things in the department. Make it clear that not all ideas will be feasible or possible, but that all will be considered. As employees see one or two of their ideas put into practice, making a difference in the way things are done, their engagement will grow dramatically. Remember that many of your employees will not act on this at first, but those that do will change the engagement level of your whole team.