DEVELOPING LEADERS

Apr

2021

Lessons on Developing Leaders From a Healthcare COO

If you read the first post I wrote on this conversation then you know Chad Dilley, COO of IU Health Saxony shared one of his top leadership principles was developing leaders. During our conversation he provided some great practices he utilizes with his team. Let’s take a peak into his toolbox.

Personal Drivers

In his experience between sports and healthcare leadership Chad found three general drivers exist that inspire people to do what they do.

Intrinsic drivers – these are what Simon Sinek would call the “why” of what they do. Inspired employees have a deeper motivation for what they do than just to collect a paycheck. When developing leaders, we must align their “why” with a match in the organization that will bring forth their strengths serving both them and the organization well.
Extrinsic motivation – If we are honest some people are motivated by things such as money, time off, recognition, etc. If that is what drives an individual use that to help him or her grow as a leader.
Stability – If an individual knows their leader can be relied on and is stable that individual will feel more confident and inspired to step up and serve at a higher level within the organization. We buy into the leader before the vision and the leader is the one who provides stability.

Crucial Conversations

This concept was popularized by authors Patterson, Grenny, McMillan, and Switzler in their book Crucial Conversations which is a great resource if this is a challenging skill for you. Specifically, Dilley discussed how these conversations develop people as leaders in two critical ways.

Impact of poor performance – At times we don’t know what we don’t know and as a leader helping develop other leaders who will have difficult conversations we must model this. Chad sees these conversations as critical for the individual’s development and also a testing ground for their emotional ability to lead.
Self-awareness – Through these critical conversations leaders help those they lead grow in self-awareness which, as I mentioned in the previous post, is one of Dilley’s key leadership principles.

Your Toolbox

Maybe you have a toolbox at home. Some of the tools you have are simple for you to use while others you may have to refer to the directions every time. Each individual we lead has a toolbox of skills they have developed up until now. Can they continue to develop new skills . . . absolutely. As a leader Dilley suggests we must discover “what is in your toolbox?”

These tools or skills will inform us where people can have the most success as leaders. If a person is not detail oriented and you want them to lead a detail intensive project . . . both of you will probably be frustrated. Find out your people’s skills, help them grow where they need to and position them so they can lead at the highest level possible.

Do you want to take a deeper dive into this subject? Leadership expert John Maxwell has written an entire book, Developing the Leaders Around You, about this subject which I facilitate mastermind trainings around with leaders. If you want to explore the possibility of bringing this to your team then contact me so we can discover if it makes sense for you. Lead well.

Nov

2020

Learning from A Healthcare COO

I was virtually sitting in his office as we were on ZOOM discussing leadership. Chad Dilley the COO of IU Health Saxony and I were discussing his top three leadership principles. Before diving into his principles he shared one of the major influences on his leadership . . . sports.

Since childhood, this Olivet Nazarene graduate spent years as a catcher. In this role he developed an intuitive understanding of what motivates different people. Sometimes as a catcher his job required him to give the pitcher either a little encouragement or a swift kick in the rear.

Sports were not his only influence, his father who was a firefighter modeled one of his primary values: serving people. That value influenced him to serve people through healthcare. During our conversation I learned three primary principles that drive his leadership.

Know Yourself to Drive Emotional Maturity

In his book Primal Leadership Daniel Goleman describes a resonant executive leader by saying:

“He was attuned to people’s feelings and moved them in a positive emotional direction.”

This is the type of leader Dilley described. Beginning in his sports activity and throughout his various leadership positions he realized he needs to know himself, so he understands what drives others. As leaders our lack of emotional self-awareness can prevent us from leading others from an emotionally healthy place.

Leaders set the tone and pace of the team and we have a responsibility to not only be self-aware, but also listen at a deep enough level that we understand our people’s needs. This combination of self-awareness and listening will drive the emotional maturity Dilley described.

Be There to Serve Others

I have never understood the leader who leads from an office or a remote place and is not listening to those he or she leads. Another defining principle Chad learned from his father is serving others. How does the leader do this? Most simply stated he said:

“Leaders remove barriers the front-line experience.”

In order to know these barriers, he must be among his team listening. Specifically, he seeks the answer to two key questions:

Where is the market going? Healthcare has had many changes in the past decade that has impacted everyone. He seeks to continually discover the answer to this question.
What does the team need? Considering the direction of the market, Chad serves his team by asking them what they need to successfully perform their job.

Two very practical questions all leaders can seek the answer to so they can serve their teams. This final principle I think is the most critical.

Develop Other Leaders

Leadership expert John Maxwell in his book Developing the Leaders Around You which I provide trainings on says:

“the difference between a good organization and a great one is leadership.”

Dilley’s principles demonstrate agreement with this statement. When he was in charge of leading the construction of a cancer center, he knew he needed an effective team. This team could only function at a high level if it had good leaders.

When everything must receive approval from the leader he or she slows down the progress and is developing followers. If the leader empowers others to lead then the team gets much more accomplished. Chad has some specific strategies to help him develop leaders, but you will have to look for a future post sharing these principles.

What about you? Which of these do you need to grow in? Set your action step and move toward it. Maybe you need an outside voice to help you see ways to grow your leadership. If that is you and you are interested in exploring a thirty-minute one on one coaching session then contact me. Lead well.