Everything you say here is true, Erie. But there is more that goes along with this. What I have discovered with hospitals is that often they spend a good deal of money educating the middle managers about new techniques for managing, but the upper management doesn’t take the courses! So, if those upper managers were hired due to technical expertise and not management skills, all the education does for the middle managers is make them frustrated because they are trying to implement the new skills with no real support of upper management and are met with skepticism by the people they supervise.
Also, the rapid technological advances we have faced during the past twenty years, and which are more rapidly advancing every day, also have left many managers “socially retarded.” They are used to texting, not talking.
I wrote about this in the book I will have coming out later this year. Here is what I say in it with regard to too much technology and not enough time.
“When I first started working at the hospital, I used a corded phone at work. I had access to reports off a mainframe computer and during my ten years there, I did finally get a DOS computer with a printer. However, it was only for reports and wasn’t located in my private office, but in the general department area outside.
Now, at work, I usually have a cellphone which is hooked up to an Intranet. I have two computer screens so I can have two different applications open simultaneously. I get my company email on my cell phone, usually comprised of a couple of hundred per day. I get texts all day from field staff and corporate employees. Did I mention that there also is instant messaging on my Intranet?
My superiors can reach me by phone, which they do, regardless of my schedule. They usually don’t consider the fact I may be in a meeting or unavailable because I had to go to an appointment, like the dentist. I have a short window in which to call them back. You’d think maybe I could rest at lunch, but no. Instead, I have to ask ‘what is lunch?’ I may get to go out to pick it up, but then I have to bring it back because otherwise I won’t finish the work that needs to be done that day. Most of the time, I end up eating at my desk while I multi-task.
These texts, emails, and phone calls don’t stop at five, but usually continue. Some higher-ranking employees in the company may be answering their email until midnight and then sending out directives.
We don’t have that many face-to-face meetings anymore. They are usually accomplished through conference calls or video-meeting formats. There may be weekly meetings for field staff, but other than that, the rest of the office communication is done at short intervals between tasks or for short impromptu meetings to ensure everyone is working on the same page. Then, everyone goes back to their work stations.
What is the result of all this information overload? I, and those like me, have more stress, less time to relax and recover and we aren’t as productive as we could be with fewer interruptions.
Additionally, since so much of the communication is in writing, through emails and texts, there is more of a chance of miscommunication and misunderstanding, which can then snowball into hurt feelings and office wars.”
I honestly think that all of management is asked to do too much and that erodes their ability to manage well and spend the necessary time they need to with the employees individually.

LikeLike

This is a very good read for anyone looking to improve their leadership skills.
It is specifically written for people in the healthcare field, but the concepts are universal and applicable to all leaders and aspiring leaders.
Thanks for sharing such much needed wisdom Erie Chapman!

LikeLike