21 Sep Are you an AGILE Leader?
Every industry is experiencing change at the speed of light. Heads are spinning, regulations changing, customer expectations rising and competitors doing what we should have done years ago…successfully. Is this happening in your world too? To deal with this environment of constant change, uncertainty and turbulence you need to become and be surrounded by AGILE Leaders.
The AGILE concept started when software companies just could not put out products good enough or fast enough for their customers. A feeling many of us in healthcare can relate to. AGILE organizations welcome new opportunities, strive for innovation, cultivate great teams and strategic partnerships, run an efficient business, measure and monitor what really matters and exceed customers’ rising expectations before they ask you to.
This is not the approach most leaders take… especially in healthcare. We tend to get stuck in our ways. We make decisions based on old models and wonder why we aren’t getting better results. We stay in our comfort zones.
We must change… our survival depends on it.
Here are some suggestions for you and your management team to develop the AGILE Leader skills based on our AGILE Leader Matrix™ needed by everyone in your organization.
PROFESSIONAL: The greatest AGILE Leaders understand the realities of their industry and do what will be required of them to succeed. They will have to adapt again and again to constantly changing conditions in every area of their business. AGILE Leaders take an intentional, pro-active approach to change.
Action questions:
- What are the best organizations doing in your field? How can you do it better?
- What new developments are occurring in your specialty?
- How do you compare?
- What are you doing to shape your future and the future of your organization?
PARTNERSHIPS: What strategic partnerships do you need to forge, develop or strengthen for your department or organization to be the best? AGILE Leaders look for alignment with these strategic partners by asking who do I need agreement, buy in and commitment from in order to get the results we need? Then the AGILE Leader actively pursues it. Many leaders lower on the agility scale unfortunately believe they can get results on their own with sheer will power.
Action questions:
- Who is the person/people who have the power (official or unofficial) to give you the go ahead or stop you in your tracks?
- What specific steps will you take to get buy in from people who will be working with you or for you?
- How will you engage their hearts, as well as their minds, so you will get their firm commitment to move any initiative forward?
PROCESS: AGILE Leaders achieve outstanding outcomes by fostering an organizational culture of excellence. They are acutely aware of how the present plans, policies and procedures may not work in this complex, constantly changing and uncertain healthcare environment. They actively seek new information and answers to the ever present question “how can we do better, to dramatically improve our results?”, Because patient care is hands-on, the possibility for inconsistencies in practice may be larger than in other process-driven industries. Yet, it is the inconsistency from nurse to nurse, doctor to doctor, and department to department that your patients and their care-givers notice and complain about.
Action question:
- What one process can we target to change today…that if we do so successfully by standardizing, streamlining, eliminating, or innovating… our results will dramatically improve?
PROGRESS: The old saying “where you place your attention grows” is absolutely true in healthcare. Be sure to have a clear vision and concrete goals that you aggressively measure and track. Your staff will take your lead. Performance metrics are an AGILE Leader’s secret weapon when trying to improve and innovate. If the outcome of an initiative is important to you, your patients, your employees or your career…follow up …relentlessly.
Action question:
- What steps will you take to be a more AGILE Leader? How will you shape your own future?
Contact me to discuss the Agile Leadership in your organization.
Have ten minutes? Watch this YouTube video by Rosalinde Torres: “What it takes to be a great leader”