Day two of the ASHHRA 48th Annual Conference and Exposition started off an exciting and busy day with ASHHRA Executive Director Stephanie Drake, MBA, sharing about the new and exciting things taking place at this year’s convention. For the third year in a row, the ASHHRA conference is offering more credits for its attendees than the SHRM conference, and for the first time ever, its offering FACHE credits for those wanting to maximize their professional potential in health care management.

ASHHRA Board President Irma Babiak Pye, SPHR, thanked and honored those who have lead before us and recognized those who lead us today, whether by participating in a regional committee or on the national board. It is because of these leaders that we’re able to come together and learn and engage ourselves in our profession.

In concentrating on wellness initiatives in our own systems and pushing for our employees to live healthier lives, ASHHRA asked all of you to participate in the Fidelity Pedometer Challenge. By using the pedometer in your attendee bag and tracking steps from Sunday until today, if you believe you’re one of those with the most steps, bring your pedometer to the Center for Excellence on Monday afternoon for the chance to win a special prize. 

See you at today's Motivational CEO Panel/Breakfast where three leading hospital CEOs will examine the current and future dynamics reshaping the way they deliver care. Sponsored by Diversified. 

 

Takeaways from Tom Flick, Opening Ceremony Keynote Speaker

Opening Ceremony keynote speaker, Tom Flick (sponsored by Fidelity), inspired us all to be better leaders in our organizations and at home. His energizing and thought-provoking speech left some of the audience in tears as he spoke about his father’s dedication to give everyone all he had up until the very end of his life. 

He opened his segment with reminding us that the minute we stop learning, we’re losing, and that if we’re not getting better than the competition that we’re getting left behind.

Flick noted how we live in a management-driven society and how most organizations are over managed and under lead. Real leadership is knowing how to motivate others and challenge the idea of complacency.

At the center of his speech, Flick encouraged each of us to live by three things that ultimately allow our heads and hearts to serve as true leaders:

1. Push frontiers and chase big dreams
2. Exercise ethics and live your principles
3. Unleash energy and lead the way.

In closing his speech, Flick reminded us that leadership isn’t about credentials but it's about concern, and that winning is great but helping others to win is even greater. Flick’s mantra in both his personal and professional life, and something that he reminds himself of constantly every day: Go first and lead the way.

Plan on attending tomorrow’s Closing Ceremony Brunch in the Mile High Ballroom from 10 a.m. until 12 noon, featuring keynote speaker Carson Kressley.

 

Recap from Yesterday; What's on Tap Today

Sunday’s 16 afternoon learning sessions – many filled to capacity – provided human resource professionals a wide range of information for different learning tracks. Some highlights:

The Changing Executive and Physician Compensation Landscape, presented by Jim Rohan, VP and Managing Director, Sullivan, Cotter and Associates, Inc., and Michael D. Rosenbaum, Partner, Drinker Biddle and Reath, focused on how organizations are re-examining and realigning executive and physician compensation programs to reflect the new realities of the health care industry. "The current physician compensation regulatory environment is complex," Rosenbaum said. "If you want to increase the value in your organization, get involved in physician compensation," he said. Noting that we have more physicians than ever before and more payroll costs, he said that we should, therefore, have increased governance.

Retaining High Potential Leaders with Emotional Intelligence, presented by
James Kimberly, President, Sapphire Consulting, discussed nurturing your high potential leaders today so that they can be prepared to lead tomorrow. Kimberly emphasized creating a safe culture where everyone is important, because ultimately, if your future leaders don’t feel important, they’re going to leave your organization. He emphasized that if we don't know what motivates our employees the best thing we can do is to ask them. Being in touch and aware of ourselves and how we affect our work relationships is at the very center of emotional intelligence. 

What’s on tap today?

10:15-11:45 a.m. Learning Sessions

• Engaging and Retaining Your Top Talent
• A Roadmap to HR and Organizational Success – The Baldrige Journey
• Bending the Medical Trend Curve – The First Step Toward Accountable Care
• Team Based Performance Sharing Promotes Patient Satisfaction
• Overcoming the 'Work Experience' Barrier to Health IT Employment
• Monsters in the Closet – Spotting Recruitment Red Flags
• HR Survival Panel: Keys to Change 

2:00-3:30 p.m. Learning Sessions

• Before, During, and After – Preparing the HR function for M&A
• LGBT Workplace Concerns and How to Address Them
• Physician Leadership Institute – Development to Application
• Avoiding FLSA Liability Through Culture of Work-Life Balance
• Rhode Island Nurse Institute: America’s First Nursing Middle College
• Patient Satisfaction – How the "Best of the Best" Attain High Ratings
• Health Care HR Hot Topic Panel: Legislative and Regulatory Challenges

3:45-5:15 p.m. Learning Sessions

• Driving Change Through Creative Problem Solving – The Meridian Maze
• Orlando Health’s Healthy U Experience: Team Member Wellness
• Accountable Discipline – A Different Approach to Workplace Discipline
• The Storm (Continually) Brewing Out West
• Communications Strategies Before, During, and After Collective Bargaining
• Is Your Workforce Retirement Ready?
• Physician Engagement Panel: Effective Strategies for Attracting and Retaining Physicians

 

"I have been coming every year for a long time. The networking is a big part of why I come – people you meet, people you get to share stories with, insights, new ideas that they’ve tried out in their organizations. I usually try to come away from every conference with three really good ideas that I can take back to my organization."  —David Blackwell, Chief Human Resources Officer, Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, Waco, Texas

"This is my fourth ASHHRA conference, and it’s a conference that I look forward to. I put it in my budget to be able to attend and definitely plan for because of what I get out of it. The number one reason I attend the ASHHRA show, ultimately, is because of the networking – to have this many health care HR professionals in one setting is phenomenal. The sessions are always hands-down great. I’m always able to take something back and utilize it as far as putting it to use in my facility." —Traci L. Oswald, MBA, Vice President of Human Resources, Avita Health System, Galion, Ohio

"We’re new to the ASHHRA show; this is our first year exhibiting. We’re finding that a lot of attendees are looking for our service. The show’s been exciting – everyone has shown great interest." —Sandy McKee, Web Marketing Analyst, Survey Gizmo, Boulder, Colorado

"I wish I could go to every session because they're that good. I went home after last year's conference and was able to use nearly all of the information I learned in the sessions." —Bruce Cutright, MS SPHR, Vice President of People Strategy, Mary Lanning Healthcare, Hastings, Nebraska

 

Have a great time at MetLife's social event at the Wings Over the Rockies Museum Party last night? We hope that you had the opportunity to network with your peers, vendors and had a great time while doing it.