Why Hospital Supply Chain Managers Need to Lead by Example!
A noted family counselor said recently, on a TV talk show, that the best example you can give your kids on how to have a good marriage, is to have a good marriage yourself. Well, as I see it, this advice also goes for hospital supply chain managers!
If you want to have employees that are dedicated, punctual, enthusiastic, hardworking and accurate in their work then you, too, need to display these attributes and characteristics in your day-to-day interaction with them. What they see in your behavior, will be easier for them to emulate since you taught them what the proper conduct looks like.
We all have had a lot of bosses in our work lives and I’m sure you can remember how they influenced your own behavior. If they were punctual for meetings, then you were punctual. If they were sticklers with grammar, then you did everything not to make grammatical mistakes when sending them a memo. And so on and so forth…
One boss of mine, a hospital administrator at a Children’s Hospital, was a retired English Colonel who had been stationed in India and he always lead by example. He was prim, proper, and extremely courteous and had a very heavy English accent. One time we both went to one of our nursing floors to measure for new shelving. When we got to the location he asked me for my tape measure, which I never carried with me. He then said in a disdainful voice “a supply chain manager without a tape measure, well I never heard of such a thing”. Well, you can imagine how embarrassed I was and from that day forward I never left home without my tape measure. I will never forget that lesson!
Albert Einstein, once said that “Example is another way to teach, it is the only way to teach”, since it shows the way things are done. It gives you a clear understanding of what is being asked of you since you see it exhibited in others’ behaviors. Therefore, don’t miss every opportunity to teach your employees by example, and then they will know what you expected of them and what it looks like when they actually meet your expectation. It’s the only way to teach and have it stick!
Filed Under: Change Management
