Leading Through Crisis
By Joe Walsh, SMI Project Consultant, Clinical Integration Initiative; Supply Chain Sherpas
2020-Apr-06

Please join us for this week’s SMI Huddle Call where Joe Walsh will share his methodologies regarding Leading in Times of Crisis.  Joining Joe will be Donna Dummond, from Northwell Health, who has been on the front lines battling this crisis as the Logistics Section Chief for COVID-19 located in the epicenter of New York City's outbreak.  Donna will provide a look inside one of the hardest hit hospitals, sharing her stories in response to this crisis.  Listen to this Huddle Call | Download the notes 

“This is an unprecedented moment. It’s important that we approach it with a sense of calm and responsibility—because we have many people counting on us.”
—Google CEO Sundar Pichai

Our world, country, and daily lives changed dramatically in what feels like a blink of an eye.  Uncertainty, unpredictability, and complexity continue to accelerate as we each grieve the loss of yesterday's normalcy.  Our healthcare supply chain is in the midst of its defining moment.  This defining moment, albeit uninvited, will also forge our leadership legacies. 

We have little to no control over the circumstances of our external environment as we navigate this COVID-19 pandemic.  This crisis is a fire that grows faster than our efforts to extinguish, which nudges us towards even more urgency, intensity, and action.  We justifiably feel overwhelmed, fearful, and helpless as one day fades into the next.  

At this moment, how will we choose to lead?

We Inform:

• Explicitly communicate what you know, when you know it
• Transparently communicate what you don't know
• Lean into truth-telling, even when messages are difficult
• Own the narrative

We Connect:

• Connect with self and practice self-care
• Connect with your team
• Connect with your stakeholders
• Connect with your partners

We Guide the Work:

• Help people get unstuck; balance ask and tell
• Clarify priorities
• Embrace team huddles to keep everyone aligned
• Specify what to do and how to do it (also specify what not to do and how not to do it)
• Crowdsource and co-create solutions; no admiring the problems
• Implement adaptive and agile tactics
• Encourage speed over elegance

We Unite:

• Celebrate wins together
• Share stories; connect to purpose and mission
• Cultivate an environment of gratitude
• Model empathy and compassion
• Share your personal experience with vulnerability

Our patients, caregivers, and team members need the very best version of us at this unprecedented moment. My hope is we will pause, breathe, and lean into our full leadership potential. Let’s collaborate so we can accelerate our pathways to breakthrough solutions not otherwise possible if pursued in isolation. I also hope we each practice self-care so we can continue to sustainably give to others at extraordinary levels. Please remember to tap into the valuable and powerful network you have cultivated through SMI over the years - we can all be valuable resources to each other, especially now. And thank you for your leadership through this crisis.

As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions.

Source:  Adapted from RHR International, Leadership in Times of Uncertainty

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