Has there ever been a single management practice that has promised to solve more problems than rounding? Especially in the realm of patient experience improvement, leadership teams often turn to various interpretations of rounding — including “purposeful rounding” — as the silver bullet to turn around lagging CAHPS scores. More often than not, they are disappointed. So, is leadership rounding an ineffective strategy? Hardly. But like so many management principles, the magic is in the why and how we implement the practice. Rounding has been tagged with many different monikers, including LEAN’s “gemba walk” and Hewlett and Packard’s “management by walking around.” But more important than what we call the practice, all successful, purposeful leadership rounding approaches have one thing in common. They are about

“Another meeting?!” It’s a frustration we hear often, especially in health care provider organizations. And for good reason. Meetings are often held for the wrong reasons, are poorly planned and can be just plain boring. But when they are inclusive, open and well-planned, department staff meetings can be one of the most powerful places to cultivate teamwork and trust across and with a team. Like so many long-standing, accepted management practices, the magic and key to success is in the how and why we deploy them. First, if managers believe that the primary purpose of a team meeting is to share information, they will likely continue to be disappointed in the lukewarm reception they get from their staff. Too many department meetings consist of 55

When organizations think about “improving communication,” they often start with grand plans to revamp intranet sites, introduce new digital/print publications or expand social media strategies. But when you consider that employees’ preferred source of communication is their direct supervisor, doesn’t it make sense to start small and local? Regular team huddles help staff members support one another, stay connected to immediate priorities and problem-solve issues real-time. But they only work when they are structured in a way that accomplishes these specific goals. Following are five straightforward principles to help make huddles truly helpful to frontline staff. Short and Sweet One of the most common ways for huddles to go haywire is for them to become mini staff meetings. By keeping the huddle to 5-10 minutes

“Me, too!” It has become the battle cry for those harmed by harassment in the workplace. While the movement emerged primarily in response to sexual harassment, it should send a loud and clear signal to all companies that their employees will not tolerate the same level of inappropriate, unprofessional behavior that they have in the past. Beyond sexual harassment, health care provider organizations have made clear in policy that unprofessional behaviors harm a safe, highly reliable work environment. But even with more structured policies, do harmful, inappropriate behaviors persist in practice? Both the “Me, too!” movement and the findings of a new study led by a Vanderbilt University professor suggest that smart organizations dedicated to safe care should re-double efforts to reduce inappropriate, harmful behaviors.

“I am a teacher. It’s how I define myself. A good teacher isn’t someone who gives answers out … but is understanding of needs and challenges and gives tools to help other people succeed. That’s the way I see myself. So whatever it is that I will do eventually after politics, it’ll have a lot to do with teaching.” – Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada Strong managers are great teachers. And great teachers are constant learners. Organizations seldom describe the role of an effective manager as “teacher.” But indeed, the philosophy described by Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau captures the essence of what it means to lead a team in a way that nurtures staff engagement and maximizes results. That’s why the first and foundational

While the health care executives we work with universally agree on the benefits of leader rounding conversations with both patients and staff, theories vary widely on how to make these interactions most helpful and productive. Effectively choreographing these conversations depends much more on active listening to empathetically judge where to take the discussion than on inane scripts or lists of questions. A warm, sincere introduction and the right initial open-ended question can make or break the quality of the remainder of the encounter. One of the best initial questions I’ve ever heard came from a recent conversation with Peggy Frizzell, the director of patient experience for Mary Immaculate Hospital in Newport News, VA. Peggy said that to open the conversation and really get to know