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Looking Back At 2009 -- And Ahead
Now that the 2009 holiday season is upon us, we want to express our appreciation to our clients
-- and, especially, the six new clients who supported our mission of diversity and inclusion.
We are grateful to the Desir Team for fervently exemplifying our ideology, despite the economic challenges. Our consultants and support staff held unto our beliefs that we are in this business to make a difference in the lives of our clients, candidates, and colleagues. Even with reduced search activities, we were able to form new affiliations; strengthen our strategic partnerships; gain a better understanding of our clients' needs; and provide coaching, mentoring, and grooming to many healthcare executives as they endeavor to become more effective leaders.
 Undoubtedly, 2009 will go down in history as an unforgettable year for many reasons …
- Our country experienced unprecedented evolution with the inauguration of President Obama in January.
- The aftermath of the meltdown of Wall St. and other financial institutions had the greatest impact in 2009 as millions lost their homes and their jobs and thereby their health insurance.
- The healthcare industry responded to this dramatic and unpredictable change with a tightening of their belts through layoffs and cost-cutting measures while continuing to focus on exceptional patient care.
- The change in a payor mix to higher charity care, Medicaid, and underinsured patients led to staff and position realignments and cultures that advocate doing more with less.
- Despite these challenging economic conditions and high unemployment rate, the healthcare industry experienced some growth with the push towards Health Information Management and, overall, a more effective IT department.
The demands placed upon hospitals and health care systems to improve clinical quality, reduce costs, and continuously improve quality and patient safety through the efficient management of vast amounts of information is increasing by the year. For instance, under terms of the fiscal stimulus package, physician practices and health care systems must be able to fully implement Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) by 2015. Yet, according to a survey conducted by the American Hospital Association, less than 2% of acute care hospitals have a comprehensive EMR system and between 8-12% of hospitals only have a basic EMR in place today. This creates great career opportunities for healthcare professionals (see news story below). Other growing positions we have observed are Patient Safety Officer, Compliance Officer, Chief Diversity Officer, and Chief Learning/Development Officer.
 Additionally, say articles on the SHRM and ASHHRA Web sites, C-suite executives anticipate that, despite a continuation of the economic downturn, there will be a severe shortage of qualified talent -- especially in key leadership positions (see news story below). These shortages, the data summarizes, will have considerable, negative impact upon organizational growth, productivity, innovation, and customer satisfaction. Consequently, pressure is being placed upon the HR leaders to devise a comprehensive talent acquisition strategy and talent management program (recruitment, performance development, and succession planning) to ameliorate these talent shortages, as well as ensure that, once hired, these key execs stay with the organization over the long term.
The importance of having the right people, with the set of skills and leadership fortitude is critically important as hospitals and health systems must discern which of the myriad of projects must be accomplished within the context of their strategic goals and demonstrable ROI. It is with these important factors in mind that we, here at the Desir Group, are continuously preparing ourselves to be a vital strategic partner to our clients and candidates.
It is painful to see organizations make hiring mistakes in critical roles that could be avoided if only hiring executives would step outside of their comfort zone. In his book "Good To Great," Jim Collins stresses the importance of hiring the right people who are self-motivated to produce results and are ready to be a part of something great. "Executives who ignited transformation from good to great did not first figure out where to drive the bus and then get people to take it there," he says. "No, they first got the right people on the bus (and the wrong people off the bus) and then figured out where to drive it."
I believe there lies a bright future ahead for those who embrace change as a natural part of life and welcome all of its curves, twists, and turns. I'd like to give you our thoughts on and predictions for 2010 but now we're out of space … and so we'll save that for next issue. We'll also talk about some growth changes here at Desir Group.
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Preparing The Digital Health Workforce Of Tomorrow, Today
As we move toward broad adoption and use of electronic health records in medical practices, we will need more than 50,000 qualified and trained health IT professionals to support our modernized health system.
How do we get 50,000 workers ready to usher in the digital information age in health care? Complete story.
 Top Managers In Greater Demand As Organizations Look To The Future
Third-quarter data released by the Association of Executive Search Consultants indicates a rise in senior executive search mandates during July to September 2009 compared to the second quarter of this year.
While annual trends continue to reveal far lower levels of search activity in 2009 than in 2008, the short-term picture shows clear signs of recovery.
Complete story.
Eight Strategies For Stronger Fundraising At Hospitals
Donations for hospitals are lower than last year and the forecast is a slow, if any, increase, for next year.
However, there are strategies CFOs can employ at their facilities to see some changes in their fundraising divisions. Here are eight of them.
Complete story.
The Branding Of Diversity
Fifty-four million American adults identify themselves as having a disability, and another 23 million are parents of at least one child between the ages of five and 16 with special needs.
Some companies don't reach out to this population because they believe that the money isn't there. They need to think again.
Complete story.
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Desir Group is a retained executive search and consulting firm that partners with healthcare organizations to recruit and retain exceptional talent and develop high-performing teams.
Desir Group helps clients achieve a sustainable competitive advantage by offering a qualified, diverse slate of candidates for C-level, senior executive, physicians, and middle management positions. One
of Desir Group's strengths is its ability to dig deeper into the fabric of our society to find talent that represents the broad community our clients serve. |
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| Did You Know? |
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2009's Top 10 Economy-Related Searches
According to Yahoo, the "economy-related words" most frequently searched for were:
1. Coupons
2. Unemployment
3. Stimulus Plan
4. Cash For Clunkers
5. Student Loans
6. IRS Refund
7. Foreclosures
8. Government Jobs
9. Bernard Madoff
10. Health Care Bill
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| Quote Of The Month |
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"In determining 'the right people,' the good-to-great companies placed greater weight on character attributes than on specific educational background, practical skills, specialized knowledge, or work experience."
-- Jim Collins in "Good To Great: Why Some Companies
Make the Leap ...
And Others Don't"
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