If you’re going to get the right things out of employees, you
have to put the right ingredients in first.
It’s an idea that has become one of the main pillars of Maura
Walsh’s leadership philosophy as the president of HCA Gulf
Coast Division, a 12,000-employee branch of Hospital Corp. of
America.
Customer service, maximum efficiency, workplace safety or
whatever it is you want your employees to value and embrace,
you must first set the example at the top. Walsh says you do that
through communication — both speaking and listening — and
actively engaging your work force in person.
“It’s not just important but essential that leadership be visible
within the organization,” Walsh says. “Leaders need to get to
know their employees, and the best way to do that is to walk
around, talk to them and give the employees the sense that
you’re approachable. You cannot know what is going on in
your organization sitting behind a desk. You need to be out
talking to employees, asking their opinions, getting their feedback.”
Walking among your employees, asking them questions
about their jobs, even casually bantering with them about their
weekend plans, helps give employees a sense of confidence in
your leadership ability, that you want to be “in the know” and
actively engaged in what is happening on the front lines.
Walsh says it also helps tear down the walls that can exist
between management and employees. If you can overcome the
intimidation that can occur when an employee reaches out to
management, you can make strides toward unifying your company around common goals.
As the president of a hospital group, and former president of
a hospital, Walsh has learned a thing or two about rallying
diverse groups — everyone from doctors to nurses to office
staffers — around a single vision and a set of core values.
Walsh says it can be difficult to get different groups to read
from the same script, but it’s essential to a company’s long-term survival.