For most healthcare executives, the new year is ushered in with well thought-out strategic direction, care delivery objectives and financial planning. 

By Mark Madden


 For most healthcare executives, the new year is ushered in with well
 thought-out strategic direction, care delivery objectives and financial
 planning. However, it may also be the perfect time to take stock of
 one&rsquo;s own career aspirations and set goals that will get you closer to
 achieving that next step in your career.



 Leadership Competencies Search Committees Are Looking For 



 Gleaned from my executive search experience with healthcare committees and
 boards of directors nationwide, following are the core competencies most
 healthcare organizations seek when filling a C-level position.


1) Champion of Change


 Despite new tools and capabilities, change is difficult to operationalize
 across a health organization. Behavioral patterns persist sometimes because
 people are protective of their jobs, are hesitant to share control, or are
 simply used to doing things the way they always have.



 Yet senior executives and healthcare boards are keenly aware of the need to
 change if their organizations are to thrive. Search committees look for
 leaders with demonstrated ability to adapt to change and lead innovation. This
 may include initiatives, such as:


<ul>
 <li>
 Creating greater access to care
 </li>
 <li>
 Leveraging technology for greater efficiency
 </li>
 <li>
 
 Spearheading a united approach to providing care and improving population
 health
 
 </li>
 <li>
 
 Developing effective strategies for the transition from volume-based to
 value-based reimbursements.
 
 </li>
</ul>


 Being able to point to a time in your career where you were instrumental in
 successfully managing change and positively impacting an outcome is critical
 for today&rsquo;s leadership positions.


2) Voice of the Industry


 Today&rsquo;s legislators on both sides of the aisle have difficulty meeting
 in the middle when it comes to healthcare. Health systems, especially large
 ones, are recognizing the need for a new generation of regulatory thought that
 must be driven by physicians and administrators. Therefore, healthcare leaders
 who have taken an active role in government or private-sector forums aimed at
 shaping the future of healthcare are viewed as an asset.


3) Collaboration at Work


 Collaboration has long been an imperative for improved health care delivery,
 whether it was the managed care philosophy of the 80s, the integrated care
 services of the 90s, or the population health models of today. The difference
 now is that the urgent need to lower costs while maintaining quality is
 necessitating collaboration of a much greater magnitude -- and outside of the
 organization, in addition to within it.



 Candidates for senior-level positions who can share previous examples of
 leading successful collaborations tend to fare well. For instance, partnering
 with providers in your area to share the costs of expensive equipment
 purchases or electronic health records (EHR) implementations. Or, working with
 community health services, such as skilled nursing homes, assisted living and
 mental health services, to coordinate improved care across providers.



 These are the types of collaborative initiatives that showcase a
 leader&rsquo;s ability to identify common goals, build rapport and work
 effectively with others to a successful end.


4) Directive and Agile


 The healthcare marketplace has two growing and challenging paradigms that
 leaders must be able to work within. They are the unprecedented amount of
 available data and the speed with which strategic direction must be set, and
 its success measured.


Today&rsquo;s leaders must be able to:

<ul>
 <li>
 Understand the broad implications of data analytics
 </li>
 <li>
 Have the courage to use them to take calculated business risks
 </li>
 <li>
 
 Stay close enough to the frontline to quickly determine whether
 initiatives are working, or not
 
 </li>
 <li>
 Be agile in their ability to adjust, pull back or redirect as needed
 </li>
</ul>


 Strategic directives -- in the past conceived, implemented and evaluated over
 the course of five years or more -- today have half that time to prove
 successful or warrant reevaluation. Many competing priorities for investment
 dollars and the speed of industry change are factors. This fast-paced,
 high-pressure environment, requires leaders who are able to act as observant,
 decisive and agile &ndash; all at the same time.



 For more advice from Mark Madden, a thought leader in the area of healthcare
 executive search, mentoring and success planning, follow him on
 <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-madden-5a891a28/">LinkedIn</a>.

Healthcare Leaders: Do You Have a Career Resolution for the New Year?