As the current generations of skilled leaders age out of the workforce, who will carry your organization onward?

(10/2/2018)

Becker’s Hospital Review reported in 2017 that developing the next generation of leaders who have the skills to remake the business is one of the leading concerns among 555 surveyed CEOs. The top worry? Their ability to retain and attract premier talent for the succession.

hiring-process-(1).jpgThis “human capital challenge” will require continued investment and training strategies to create leaders in both new and current employees. The labor gap is already felt in the healthcare industry, and proper succession planning needs to begin to instigate the leaders of tomorrow.
 
It’s a very real challenge: By 2030, 10,000 people per day will reach the average retirement age of 65, according to the Pew Research Center. Don’t think you have until then to feel the pain of a dwindling workforce, though. The labor and skills gap is already hurting healthcare facilities today. As Baby Boomers age out of the workforce, astute healthcare leaders are scrambling to figure out replacements with the same level of skills and knowledge as their predecessors.
 
And yet, we still find a tremendous lack of formal succession planning for trades in our industry, which means healthcare facilities are increasingly more dependent on external service contracts to plug the skills they lack in-house. This often comes at a hefty price tag which could’ve been avoided if the same capabilities were developed among current employees.
 
In working with hundreds of healthcare leaders, we’ve witnessed just what that survey uncovered: leaders losing sleep over attracting, retaining and growing leaders—particularly those with highly technical skills—who can steer the organization for years to come. At Medxcel, we’ve helped facilities stop relying on external service contracts to get the job done, instead training the next-generation millennial workforce by putting the right strategies in place to complete work in-house.
 
As we examine our data at Medxcel, we find we’ve placed nearly  2,200 associates in 156 hospitals. While a successful succession plan should include effective recruiting strategies and training of new and current employees, there is much more that needs to be done.  A plan should also (a) ensure successful knowledge transfer from aging workers to new ones; (b) communicate effectively across generations; and (c) include employee engagement and recognition strategies so workers will stick around for the long run, and not jump ship to another employer.
 
Don’t wait until the labor gap grows wider and wider. Your succession strategy should be preparing your facility employees today, not waiting until the last minute. Someone is going to attract and keep those workers. Will it be your organization, or your competitors?