Harnessing the Potential of Middle Managers

INFOCUS | Governance and Leadership in Aged Care

A Key Strategy for Leading Aged Care Providers

In the ever-evolving landscape of aged care, both residential and home care providers are experiencing a significant influx of new entrant care managers. This trend presents a unique opportunity to reshape leadership strategies, particularly by leveraging the potential of middle managers—a group that McKinsey identifies as pivotal yet often overlooked.

The Crucial Role of Middle Managers

Middle managers serve as the linchpin between senior leadership and frontline staff. Their role is multifaceted: they translate strategic directives into actionable plans, ensure operational efficiency, and foster a supportive environment for caregivers and residents/consumers alike. Yet, despite their critical position, middle managers in aged care face an alarmingly high turnover rate.

According to McKinsey’s insights and Orchard Talent Alex McDonald , this high turnover can be attributed to several factors, including burnout, lack of career progression opportunities, excessive overtime expectations and inadequate support systems (including excessive paperwork). However, rather than viewing this as a challenge, leading providers can see it as an opportunity to harness what McKinsey calls “the greatest superpower”—the untapped potential within these middle management roles.

Strategies for Empowering Middle Managers

1. Comprehensive Onboarding Programs

New entrant care managers often come with fresh perspectives but may lack specific industry experience. Comprehensive onboarding programs that include mentorship from experienced leaders can bridge this gap. Tailored training sessions focusing on regulatory compliance, patient care standards, and leadership skills are essential. Industry based mentorship aligned with the first 100 days is a surefire way to really heat up your new start’s welcome and support.

2. Career Development Pathways

Establish clear career development pathways that offer middle managers opportunities for growth within the organisation. This could include advanced training programs, leadership workshops, or even partnerships with educational institutions for further studies in healthcare management. We know first hand how much new starts appreciate having evidence based best practice workplace leadership assessment programs (Our favorite- Team Management Systems Team Management Profile coupled with a 1-2-1 expert coaching session)

3. Supportive Work Environment

Creating a supportive work environment is pretty obvious in retaining talent. This involves not only providing adequate resources but also fostering a culture of open communication and continuous feedback. Regular check-ins / 1-2-1 with senior leaders can help address any concerns promptly and effectively but also really help build momentum for performance and 2-way communication. That supportive environment should (not surprisingly) also include transparent discussions about output and deliverables- which many new candidates are craving.

4. Recognition and Incentives

Recognising the hard work and dedication of middle managers through formal recognition programs or incentives can significantly boost morale. Whether it’s through awards for outstanding performance or financial bonuses tied to specific metrics like resident satisfaction or operational efficiency, acknowledging their contributions is vital. Oh! And don’t forget birthdays and remembering them!

5. Leveraging Technology

Integrating advanced technology solutions such as AI-driven analytics tools can aid middle managers in making data-informed decisions quickly and accurately. These tools can streamline administrative tasks, allowing them more time to focus on improving patient care quality. We are really enjoying the efficiencies that Generative AI is starting to yield.

Case Study: Successful Implementation

One notable example is a leading home care provider that recently revamped its approach to managing middle-level leaders by implementing these strategies:

– They introduced a robust onboarding program featuring shadowing opportunities with seasoned managers.

– Career development was prioritised through partnerships with local universities offering specialised courses.

– A culture of recognition was established where monthly performance reviews culminated in awards ceremonies celebrating top performers.

– Advanced software systems were deployed across all departments ensuring seamless coordination among teams while reducing administrative burden significantly.

As a result:

– Employee satisfaction scores improved dramatically.

– Turnover rates among middle management dropped by 30%.

– Overall operational efficiency saw marked improvements reflected directly in higher client satisfaction ratings.

Future Outlook

The aged care sector is at a pivotal point where proactive measures today will shape future success. This shift is driven by global demographic changes leading to an ageing population that requires more support services tailored to their specific needs, preferences, and expectations. The role of effective, empowered, and motivated care providers is becoming increasingly in demand. These professionals need to be resilient, adaptive, innovative, agile, knowledgeable, skilled, compassionate, empathetic, trustworthy, and ethical.

Aged care leaders, this is well within your reach, can focus on creating a supportive environment that fosters collaboration and efficiency while being sustainable and scalable. This involves leveraging technology and data-driven insights to enhance service delivery. The goal is to provide personalised and high-quality care that improves the well-being of the elderly.

Ultimately, the mission is to transform the aged care experience into one that is fulfilling and rewarding for both the recipients and line or middle managers. By achieving these objectives, aged care services can meet growing demands effectively while securing a safer and more sustainable compliance outcome that keeps everyone happy!

Reference

McKinsey and Company- Stop wasting your most precious resource: Middle Managers. March 2023. Field. E & Hancock. B.

About the Author

Cynthia Payne

Cynthia Payne has more than 30 years of executive leadership experience and over 20 years as a Director in both NFP and FP boards. Cynthia founded Anchor Excellence in 2018 and in 6 short years has impacted over 45% of the Australian aged care market via its programs, solutions and education including the home for SAGE Executive Study Tours

Passionate about leaders, supporting and enabling them, as defined by consumers’ lived experience, Cynthia and the twenty strong AE team together have a formidable level of expertise and commitment to the entire aged care ecosystem- residential, homecare, NDIS and retirement living.

Cynthia holds an MBA, Bachelor of Applied Science in Nursing, Cert IV qualified Yoga teacher (800HrRYT), Certified Practitioner of Balanced Scorecard, Certified Aged Care Board Advisory Chair and Certified Practitioner with Team Management Systems – TMP, Quotient and LLP.

She is Member of AICD, Fellow of the Governance Institute Australia and long term member of the Australian College of Nursing and Fellow of the Manager and Leaders Institute. She is current INED for listed entity Painchek (2022-Current),  Board Advisor to Total Construction (2019- current), Director of Commonwealth Study Conferences (Australia) and (Association of Commonwealth Leadership Conferences),  Director of the Mind Connections Foundation and past INED for the National Heart Foundation (2017-2021).

Cynthia also volunteers as an Independent Review Panel member for Business Excellence Australia.

cynthiapayne@anchorexcellence.com

www.anchorexcellence.com

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