Six Ways Health Execs Can Jump-Start Their Leadership Team

1. Get the right people on your team by clearly defining the mission and values

“In my experience, I’ve found it critical to set the right tone for a leadership team by establishing a vision of what you want to achieve, then clearly defining a mission statement and a core set of values and expectations. Frustrations often occur when leaders don’t take the time to establish this framework and aren’t thoughtful about choosing talent that holds the same priorities. Ensuring every individual has the willingness to buy into the mission; the chemistry to work smoothly with the rest of the team; and the capability to do what needs to be done is vital to the success of the team and company as a whole.”

-Matt Hawkins, CEO, Waystar, a healthcare payments company

2. (Re)focus on the work to be done

“That's the platform for any high-performing team. Understanding the what when it comes to the work at hand will ultimately provide a clear picture of who you need, and drive why, when, and how possible.”   

-Caskie Lewis-Clapper, chief human resources officer, Magellan Health, Inc., a leader in managing complex population health, concentrating on all areas across healthcare and pharmaceutical management, headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona

3. Set crazy aggressive goals

“When we ask ourselves, ‘What would it take to get there?’ We mean ‘There’ with a capital T. A place we never dreamed possible. Not an incremental improvement on last year. 100% better. 200% better. Last year doesn’t matter. We look at where we want to be and where our customers and their patients need us to be. We ask ourselves if we would be proud failing even if we don’t quite arrive. That's when you know you've set a crazy aggressive goal that can serve to mobilize a team and a company. This method forces our executive team beyond its comfort zone and opens our collective mind to what is possible. Doing this can get any team unstuck.”

- Josh Weiner, president and COO of Solutionreach, a patient relationship management solutions company in Lehi, Utah

4. Collaborate and align

“In any organization, the CEO’s role is to set the vision and direction for the company. The senior leadership team is crucial because they’re responsible for bringing that vision and direction to life. Collaboration and alignment between the CEO and the leadership team is critical for continued success throughout the company.”

-Scott Beck, CEO, CHG Healthcare, a healthcare staffing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah

5. Make the leadership team a top priority 

“In many organizations, senior leaders see their membership on the leadership team as an afterthought. But it’s actually the most important group they’re a part of. Help them take it more seriously by making active participation and collaboration with the team a part of their bonus goals or compensation structure.”

-Kevin Ricklefs, chief culture officer, CHG Healthcare. CHG Healthcare is a healthcare staffing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah

6. Invest and build

“Leadership teams function at the highest level when they’re willing to invest in and build leaders around them. As a service-oriented business, we know the importance of leadership throughout the organization, and we all get energized by seeing the development process unfold and new leaders emerge. Precision Value & Health comprises industry-leading business units … representing a unique set of complementary services working in concert to help pharmaceutical and life sciences clients establish the clinical, economic, and humanistic value of innovative therapies to payers, healthcare professionals, and patients.”

-Dan Renick, president, Precision Value & Health, New York, New York