Leadership Programs

During the COVID-19 pandemic, employee engagement is more important than ever since it is a key driver of most of the important metrics you measure including patient satisfaction, quality and safety. Many leaders are feeling the crunch of uncertainty about the future of healthcare delivery, managing ongoing change, keeping employees engaged and finding a way to stay motivated themselves.

This sampling of leadership programs (offered virtually or in-person) is just the beginning of how I work with those in a leadership role to create a climate of engagement, no matter what is happening externally.

Popular Leadership Programs

Stress, Burnout & Trauma: Picking up the Pieces After a Pandemic
SURFing the Waves of Uncertainty & Change to Sustain Engagement
Shortcuts to Employee Engagement: Successfully Leading Your Team in Stormy & Uncertain Times
The Journey to Joy for Leaders: Shortcuts to Personal & Team Engagement

Stress, Burnout & Trauma: Picking Up the Pieces After a Pandemic

Healthcare leaders are struggling with employee engagement. Some employees are overworked and exhausted while others are feeling undervalued and neglected. Levels of stress and burnout are exceeding those we’ve seen in the past. The stakes are higher than ever as organizations grapple with financial challenges and fear. During this interactive, engaging program, healthcare leaders learn counterintuitive ideas for sustaining engagement.

A Certified Trauma Professional, author and nurse, Vicki Hess brings a fresh perspective to the management of stress, trauma and burnout. Using concepts from her new book, SHIFT to Professional Paradise in Stormy & Uncertain Times, she shares out-of-the-box ideas for leaders to use to help pick up the pieces and move forward. Participants walk away with practical, proven tools to support their team now and in the future.

At the end of this session, healthcare leaders are able to:

Define the differences between stress, burnout & trauma.
Tap into their own empathy to support others.
List new ways to communicate with staff to bridge the engagement gap.

SURFing the Waves of Uncertainty & Change to Sustain Engagement

Healthcare & HR leaders are reporting that they are worried about keeping engagement levels high with all the uncertainty and change in our world. What are your leaders doing every day to positively impact their own engagement and that of others?

At the end of the virtual or in-person program, leaders are able to:

Share 4 easy to implement, real-world strategies to sustain engagement.
Reconnect to important elements of influencing engagement through their actions.

Shortcuts to Employee Engagement: Successfully Leading Your Team in Stormy & Uncertain Times

Imagine a workforce full of empowered employees and motivated managers who deliver outstanding service to internal and external customers, and provide exceptional quality and safety results. Sound too good to be true in these topsy‐turvy times?

If you are looking for evidence‐based strategies for moving your team, department, division or entire organization toward full engagement, then join Vicki Hess for this practical, interactive, real‐world workshop.

At the end of the virtual or in-person program, leaders are able to:

Role model a state of high engagement – with several specific ideas for re‐energizing themselves.
Spread the engagement message to their team – with exercises to take back to staff.
Create a lasting culture of engagement – with an exercise that builds a broader view of organization‐wide beliefs and mindsets.

The Journey to Joy for Leaders: Shortcuts to Personal & Team Engagement

What are you and the members of your team doing to connect to joy at work? Does it feel more and more challenging with all that’s happening in healthcare today?

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) doesn’t think so. In 2017, the group wrote a white paper entitled IHI Framework for Improving Joy in Work. Unfortunately, finding joy in healthcare sounds like a lofty aspiration when you’re managing teams who are handling complex patients, complicated budgets or complaining stakeholders.

Here’s the great news. In 2008, Vicki Hess, RN, stood ahead of the curve when she wrote SHIFT to Professional Paradise: 5 Steps to Less Stress, More Energy & Remarkable Results at Work. In her programs, Vicki shares wisdom from her 3 books and provides proven tools for healthcare professionals to find their own joy and become more resilient.

Vicki has worked with thousands of healthcare leaders and staff across the country. She knows what joy in work looks like and what produces it. During her keynote, you’ll discover new beliefs and mindsets that promise to drive positive actions and joyful & resilient outcomes.

At the end of this virtual or in-person program, healthcare leaders are able to:

Describe how finding and connecting to what makes people satisfied, energized & productive at work leads to more joy.
Explain the shared elements of responsibility when it comes to finding & choosing joy.
Share 3 ideas for how to connect team members with their own joy.

“Vicki Hess’s employee engagement workshop was the most practical and usable LDI program we have ever had (and this was #48). Our leaders received so many tools to take away. They loved it. Everyone took lots of notes and they are already planning on implementing the ideas they learned.”

Kathy Hull, President/CEO, Illini Community Hospital

Battling Burnout: Healthcare Leadership Strategies for Today’s Stressed Workforce

Burnout in healthcare is real and is costing billions of dollars each year. And of course, there are the personal costs…illness, time away from work, stress & anxiety. At its core, burnout is caused by a complex set of circumstances and there’s no “magic pill” to make things better. But don’t despair!

Healthcare organizations, leaders and staff all have a role to play in battling burnout. In this program, Vicki Hess, Certified Trauma Professional, shares proven ideas and tools for getting to the root cause of this epidemic. She will share current trends and research as well as powerful strategies.

At the end of this virtual or in-person session, healthcare leaders are able to:

Identify signs and symptoms of burnout.
Discuss the role of organization, leaders & staff in minimizing burnout.
Describe strategies to manage and decrease stress and burnout.

Why Your Employee Engagement Scores Aren’t Improving and What You Can Do About It

Every day your goal as a healthcare leader is to lead an organization that delivers the highest quality, safest and most patient-and family‐centered care. And the reality is you can’t do that without highly engaged leaders and staff. Many organizations are trying to improve engagement; few are successful because of 3 obstacles.

During this interactive, thought-provoking program, Vicki shares proven ideas for overcoming these obstacles. Looking at engagement in a counterintuitive way creates powerful new opportunities for making long-term change.

At the end of the virtual or in-person session, healthcare leaders will be able to:

Identify unproductive beliefs and mindsets about engagement that are holding the organization back.
Create shared responsibility for engagement across all levels of staff.
Outline strategies to create positive connections with staff to promote engagement.

Click Here

“I wanted to let you know that I had my meeting with my staff yesterday using the tool you handed out at the meeting – it was terrific! The tool made it so easy to facilitate the dialogue. My team was really appreciative of the opportunity to talk about the survey and share information. The questions prompted great discussion. Thanks so much.”

Carolyn L. Candiello Vice President, Quality and Patient Safety, Greater Baltimore Medical Center