Eyeworld

OPHTHALMOLOGY BUSINESS 124 October 2017 by Corinne Wohl, MHSA, COE, and John B. Pinto How to optimize mid-level manager performance "Excellent firms don't believe in excel- lence—only in constant improvement and constant change" —Tom Peters "An employee's motivation is a direct result of the sum of interactions with his or her manager" —Bob Nelson T here are dozens of di- mensions in which an effective manager achieves excellence. No manager is equally strong in all of these areas. The wise manager criti- cally self-assesses his or her weakest points and pursues deliberate activi- ties to improve. Of all of these various dimen- sions, one that our clients often find to be the most difficult is human resource (HR) management. The ability to successfully man- age people in the practice (staff and doctors alike) is similar to having core strength as an athlete. The stronger your core, the further you can push yourself forward. The core of your practice consists of the own- er(s) and management team. Being a middle manager is exhausting, living at the center of complex, layered relationships, which develop over time. You have to both follow the leader (your administrator) and also lead those below you. Newer managers and working supervisors are especially focused on "doing the job" and many feel that they have little extra time to pursue personal leadership skills improvement. Practices that prioritize mid-level management skills development not only help each individual manager grow professionally, but also strengthen the practice. When you have an entire team of strong managers to depend on, you are less vulnerable when one strong manager departs— or even when the administrator departs. Administrators and practice owners can improve mid- level manager skills growth by implementing a skills development plan for each manager. It is a useful tool that can take a new or already strong manager to the next com- petency level or take a faltering manager and help identify areas for improvement. This kind of plan provides the structure to assess and nuture manager skills growth, and butress these with technical training, education, and mentorship. It also • Helps to build relationships prac- tice-wide • Benefits administration • Consistently and fairly applies policy adherence to all employees 2. Numeracy • Familiar with and able to evaluate departmental reports that assess performance • Track key performance indicators (KPIs) for your department and benchmark them against known norms 3. Problem-solving • Describe two problems that need to be solved and what steps you will take • Do you know how to look beyond the surface and avoid fixing the symptom of the problem rather than the real problem? 4. Communication skills • Written skills: Review samples of policies and procedures, perfor- mance appraisals and disciplinary documentation • Verbal skills: Do they express ideas clearly in conversation, along with being a good listener? • Clear about the expectations and setting specific ones for employees provides an additional level of accountability tracking by upper level management, to be regularly reviewing the progress and quality of work assignments that naturally fit into each skills development goal. If as a board and administrator you take this entire process more seriously, the result will be a more serious-minded middle management team. Create the plan Begin developing a plan by including each middle manager in the process. Together you can identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for growth. Here are 12 categories of goals to consider including with each mid-level manager's skills development plan. Add and delete categories to customize each plan to fit your setting. 1. Human resource management • Hires the right employees • Rearranges or removes employees not excelling in their position • Conflict identification and resolution • Sets the tone and a good example for staff to follow To the point: Simple practice tune-ups for complex times

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