By Veronica Martin, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, South Region Chief Nurse for CommonSpirit Health

In health care, recruiting and retaining talented employees has never been more important. A key part of meeting both goals is demonstrating to prospective and current employees alike that they have pathways to move into leadership positions in your organization if they aspire to do so. In other words, you need to be able to identify and nurture the leaders of the future.

Standing Out From Your Competition

When team members join an organization, they want to have a partnership. From Day 1, they need to feel like they can learn, grow and develop in whatever way they choose within the organization. The top-performing, best-in-class hospitals and health systems around the country have pipeline development systems for team members, such as career pathing and mapping programs. These initiatives show team members their leaders are invested in them.

Now more than ever, investing in health care leaders is key. The competition for talent in health care is fierce as we move further beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic was a huge disruption to the health care workforce, causing people to join or leave it and make different decisions about what they wanted their career paths in the field to look like.

People who work in health care are driven by commitment, purpose and passion. They want to grow and develop. Consequently, not having a professional development pipeline can put organizations at a disadvantage in a competitive marketplace.

It’s incumbent on organizations to understand how each individual employee wants to learn, grow and develop—a task complicated by the multigenerational nature of the health care workforce. Each generation has unique needs. Employees in their 20s and 30s, for example, want options in how they work, and they want to use technology to maximize their capabilities. Health care leaders should use employee surveys, one-on-one conversations, and town halls and other open forums to understand the generational makeup of their teams and learn what employees need—and how they want to receive it—to develop into leaders. 

Leadership Material

I look for several qualities in a would-be health care leader. First and foremost, I want to see passion. I value employees who approach their roles with passion and commitment to the organization’s mission, vision or ministry. They don’t need to have every requisite technical skill so long as they believe in doing the right thing by people, lead from a place of purpose, and want to learn, grow and develop.

Secondly, I seek out employees who are willing to think outside the box and challenge the status quo. This means challenging me and the structures and processes we have in place. I believe in fostering an open-minded organizational culture where employees feel comfortable speaking up and bringing forth new ideas, regardless of their tenure or experience level.

The View From Both Sides

I wasn’t always a member of health care leadership, which helps me understand what team members just getting started in their careers who may aspire to become leaders need from their organizations to achieve their goals. Courses that support growth and development, tuition reimbursement or assistance, and opportunities to attend professional conferences and network with peers—these are the sorts of support for continued learning future leaders are looking for.

Leaders seeking to identify employees with leadership potential shouldn’t underestimate the value of one-on-one dialogue. Participate in leader rounding with employees and look for opportunities to engage them in unstructured conversations. “What’s the next thing you want to do?” “If you want to stay in your current department, how can we support you in being the best team member you can be?” These are the types of questions that build personal connections with staff and can help kickstart leadership journeys.

The Power of Two

For team members just embarking on their careers, having a seasoned mentor within the organization who can help them navigate their professional journey can be invaluable. This is why I’m excited about a mentorship program for new hires we’re developing at St. Luke’s Health.

Currently open to newly hired nurses, the mentorship program will allow those just entering the profession after graduation to acclimate to independent practice by learning from experienced colleagues. It’s one thing to master the technical components of nursing in school, but adjusting to the organizational culture and understanding how a team works together to accomplish a greater good is an altogether different challenge. The mentorship program can help new nurses understand not only how to be successful now but also what their career paths may look like. We intend to expand the mentorship program to additional team members over the next year.

Mentorship isn’t the only way SLH helps aspiring leaders achieve their goals. We also offer career coaching for new and existing employees, as well as professional ladder programs that recognize and reward employees who take on additional responsibilities within the organization or community.

Being a mentor to someone and growing the next generation of leaders in the workforce is a charge anyone in a leadership position should take seriously. Your organization is full of talent. When you see employees display a spirit of inquiry, volunteer for assignments or ask to serve on committees, and you engage them in how the organization works outside of their role, you’ll often find leaders will emerge.