Radiology Management

; The Power of Engagement: Implementation of a Career Ladder Program

to be followed; however, if you are the first to introduce the concept, you will have to win both HR and budgetary support. As noted earlier, anticipated expenses were not calculated prior to initiation of the program; however, it is strongly recommended to project expenses and secure official funding in advance of implementation (possibly timing roll out with the regular budget cycle).

Management Team Buy-In and
Understanding of Role
If an engagement initiative is combined
with the career ladder development pro-
cess, managers will need to both under-
stand and be effective in adopting the
facilitator role. There also needs to be a
uniform approach among managers in
supporting and mentoring staff in order
to avoid the perception that it’s easier to
advance in some areas than in others.
We were still in a transition phase with
managers varying in the degree to which
they involved staff in decision making.
Even with the lattice in place, different
levels of success among departments
are being seen. This remains a work in
progress.
Staff Buy-In and Inclusion ( Working
through Perceptions)
Expect initial suspicion from some staff
development team members and be pa-
tient in allowing them to express frustra-
tion and in guiding them to productive
discussion. Expect criticism of managers
and staff team members from employ-
ees who may see nothing in the program
for them and who will express negativ-
ity (eg, that only the “favorites” were
promoted) rather than admit their own
shortcomings. Manage non-accepting
staff immediately. While the career
ladder has helped identify potential
leaders, it has also clearly identified staff
for whom there may be little hope of an
attitude adjustment. Appropriate mea-
sures will need to be implemented to
either improve the performance of this
group or help them move on to other
organizations.
Conclusion

The development and initiation of the career lattice has done much to support a positive work environment with increased morale and higher performance among significant numbers of staff at all levels across the department. Knowing that staff have an opportunity for promotion and increased compensation has increased their sense of professionalism as well as enhancing their contributions to workflow and quality initiatives. During the development process, new and often improved working relationships were formed among staff and between staff and management advisors. These improved relationships continue to provide benefits as managers continue to work with staff in a mentoring capacity and as “go to” resources.

Finally, the career ladder has been an excellent recruitment tool with new staff frequently indicating that they chose the organization because of the lattice program and the facility’s clear support for staff development and advancement. This program offers many benefits to the work-life balance and has contributed to significant improvements in performance among staff.