Central Columbia Hospital, Scenario C: Talent Development, and

Players

Janet Hillard, vice president of ancillary services

Frank Scott, HR manager

In Janet Hillard's Office

"I'm not sure what I will do if we lose her, Frank." Janet Hillard, vice president for ancillary services, was referring to Sylvia Winthrop, facilities manager, who has worked at the hospital for seven years after a successful career in management consulting. In fact, Winthrop's last client was Central Columbia before Hillard offered her the role she has today. Hillard continued, "I'm not planning on going anywhere anytime soon, and I know Sylvia has higher career aspirations. Also, her mother recently became ill, and she has talked with me about the possibility of moving closer to her."

This was part of a broader conversation Hillard was having with Frank Scott, HR manager. Each year, Scott held a one-on-one discussion with each division head of the hospital to discuss the current organizational structure, potential personnel changes and other HR challenges facing the division. Scott was asked to use this model by Anita Green, president and CEO, shortly after she joined the hospital. The HR director at the hospital where Green last worked facilitated these conversations, and she felt they forced each unit to take a deep look into its talent pool and address future staffing challenges. Green expressed concern shortly after her arrival that HR was not positioned effectively in the organization to appropriately address the human capital challenges. To her, having one-on-one meetings with each senior officer was an approach HR could use to elevate its position as a business partner at the hospital.

Hillard continued, "Besides Sylvia, we don't have anyone whom I would consider an 'A' player on my team. Sure, most are dedicated to the hospital, have performed admirably and can step up when asked to in the short term, but I'm also thinking about the division five years down the road. I think many of my direct reports have hit a ceiling as far as potential." Pausing for a moment, Hillard added, "The bench in my division is not strong. That said, if any of my direct reports leave, not just Sylvia, I see us having to look outside the hospital to replace. And you know, Frank, how difficult it can be to recruit talent for midlevel management positions in this area."

Scott listened intently and added, "I know we are always competing with the larger employers in the region with more resources at their disposal." Looking concerned after Hillard's assessment, Scott took a deep breath before asking, "Well, how can we help with developing your team? I guess I'm asking if they really have reached their full potential as you suggest." Hillard responded in an uncertain manner, "I wish I knew the answer. Your department does a nice job of offering basic supervisory training sessions like performance management and effective interviewing, Frank."

The HR department outsourced the majority of the training function. Scott wanted approval to hire a person for this role. Until then, he worked with outside consultants by offering supervisory training sessions, including employment law, effective interviewing, performance management and harassment prevention training. Leadership development was an area that had not been addressed at Central Columbia. Development has historically been the responsibility of each division. According to the hospital's annual culture survey, though, employees felt that opportunities for long-term growth were quite limited.

As Scott thought about the current state of Hillard's division, he added, "Maybe the ceiling is higher than we think for your team. I would like to explore options about how we can determine their true potential."

With an inquisitive look, Hillard replied anxiously, "What do you have in mind, Frank?"

Figure A. Ancillary Services Organizational Chart

answer the following questions:

1.Assess the talent management approach Scott employs with division leaders of the hospital. What are the strengths? What improvements would you recommend?

2. Based on the scenario, how could Scott obtain senior leadership support to address the importance of talent development in the hospital?

3. What data would you use to justify hiring a specialist?

4. From a leadership perspective, identify how coaching would work for the hospital, if at all, and the coaching styles and process you would recommend.

PLEASE MENTION SERIAL NUMBER IN YOUR ANSWER LIKE ANSWER 1 ANSWER 2