Engaging for Success
Nita Clarke OBE
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust
11 September 2015
WHERE WE STARTED
‘A workplace approach
designed to ensure that
employees are committed to
their organisation’s goals and
values, motivated to
contribute to organisational
success and able at the same
time to enhance their own
sense of wellbeing.’
Professor David Guest
‘It’s the people, stupid!’
with
apologies to James Carville
IT’S NOT…..
THE CASE FOR ENGAGEMENT
Linkages to Employee Engagement
THE BIGGER PICTURE
• No more business as usual; constant change the new norm
• Standardisation for efficiency wrong approach
• Neuroscience tells us command and control
doesn’t work – people are not widgets
“We wanted to hire ‘workers’ but
human beings turn up”
– Arkadi Kuhlmann, Founder ING Direct
USA
8
THE FOUR ENABLERS OF ENGAGEMENT
9
IN THE NHS….
A positive organisational
climate is associated with
low and declining levels of
patient mortality.
(Michael West)
• Patient satisfaction is highest in trusts that have clear
goals at every level; where communication between
patients and staff is good; where patients feel involved in
decisions about their care.
• Staff satisfaction and commitment levels predict patient
satisfaction. Supportiveness of immediate managers and
extent of positive feeling predicts patient satisfaction.
• Where staff report errors, near misses and incidents, the
quality of services improves
• A culture of learning rather than blame leads to service
improvement for patients
WHAT ENABLES STAFF ENGAGEMENT IN THE NHS?
Employees have:
• The information they need to do their jobs
well
• Learning opportunities
• Feedback which builds confidence
• Support and safety to innovate
• Leaders who value, respect and support
them
• Trust in their leaders
Disengaged employees…
• Undermine the effectiveness of new policies and
initiatives – active or passive non co-operation
• Will react negatively to new financial pressures –
consent and evade
• Will leave as soon as they get the opportunity
• Will not act as advocates of their service, and may
even join outside protests
PRESERVING ENGAGEMENT IN THE NHS IN
CHALLENGING TIMES
Engagement is under threat:
• Ongoing pay restraint
• Increasing work intensity
• Permanent organisational change
But it’s more important than ever:
•
Employee innovation
• Effective decision-making
• Buy-in to change
Staff: agents or victims?
• Staff need to be fully engaged in understanding,
designing and implementing change – to own it
• Principles of how change is going to happen need to be explicit
and developed with staff
• Vital that changes are put in context of improving services; staff
more likely to buy in if it is seen to have positive purpose and
outcomes
• Positive relations with trade unions need to underpin
engagement
• You need a survivors’ strategy
• You need to give people hope in the future
Nita.Clarke@ipa-involve.com
www.engageforsuccess.org