CASE other companies for ideas
Throughout both her self-examination and the process of creating better systems for collaboration at FMC, Ubbing has come up with a philosophy regarding improvement systems: Take them wherever you can get them.
“There’s an expression, and I don’t know where I learned it, and you have to keep it in the legal, moral and ethical context, but it’s called CASE: copy and steal everything,” she says. “The point is, go to your colleagues if you’re hit with something and you don’t know what to do about it. You don’t have to invent solutions. Has anybody else done this? I’ve got networks that I can go with that and get that. Sometimes when you just talk to someone else about the problem you’re having, verbalizing it takes you back to a potential solution.”
Ubbing is constantly putting her problems into the context of other organizations and people. Internally, she often bounces ideas off her experienced CFO. She recently returned from a trip to Chicago and threw some things at him.
“I came back, and our CFO was in the office early and we were talking about it, and I said, ‘This is what I think we need to do,’” she says. “And I could see some hesitancy, so I said, ‘Let me tell you why I think we need to do that.’ And just talking through that led us to another point, and that really makes a difference, being able to have those conversations and have them calmly and agree to disagree. That’s something I’ve learned over time. There are days I’m not the best at it, but … I’m better at it more days than not.”
Getting better at that is part of her own career development, as she’s learned a simple mantra along the way that she’s happy to share with other leaders.
“Stop,” she says. “Not every problem can be solved in a minute. Look at what others are doing and listen for the needs of others. Look not only at what they are saying but also body language and other hints about what is really in their hearts and mind. You don’t have to answer every question on the spot.”
By doing that, she says you’ll be surprised how often the answer will come if you just float the problem out instead of insulating yourself to find a solution.
“Through our efforts in communication and making myself available to talk with stakeholders, sometimes somebody very distantly related to an issue in the thought process will show up and say, ‘Hey, did you ever think about this?’” Ubbing says.
You still have to look for opportunities for improvement wherever they’re available. FMC has had a few head-to-head turf disputes with Mount Carmel Health Systems over the years, but when the two collaborated on an emergency care center, Ubbing stumbled into a new training opportunity. Mount Carmel was fully trained in Six Sigma, so when it called looking for a way to get the organizations better acquainted, Ubbing had a way to break bread. She asked for help with Six Sigma, and Mount Carmel helped FMC build a relationship with the company that taught it the system to get them started with the program.
“Again, that was just gathering information and looking for opportunities,” Ubbing says.
By taking the time to improve systems of evaluation at every level, Ubbing has seen great strides in FMC’s overall culture. She says it’s not always a tangible thing, but it has created ways for nearly 2,000 people to collaborate.
“We’ve moved the culture of this organization to be more open and friendly and to work more collaboratively,” She says. “The cultural part is a little less tangible, but I’m pretty proud of that.”
How to reach: Fairfield Medical Center, (740) 687-8000 or www.fmchealth.org