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Healthcare Food Service Directors
Adjust Their Management Style In Order To Win
Our Epiphany – Management Style Changing
Over the last two years while Nancy and I were helping Food Service Directors and their teams reach the 10-level in excellence, we had an epiphany. We realized that in order to achieve a 10 in excellence, FSD’s often need to adjust their management style and/or their daily work routine.
Back To Basics
In the day-to-day “hustle and bustle” of our very busy jobs, it is easy to lose sight of “the basics”. And, with customer satisfaction scores being closely monitored by administration, many FSD’s are frustrated in their attempts to improve their scores and be truly successful in the Food Service business in general. Why is this, and what can we do about it?
The “Hands Off” Style
As everyone knows, for years FSD’s have been moving away from the front lines with all of their non-food service activities such as meetings and committees outside the department, additional departments to manage. This has lead to a Hands-Off Management Style. A Director with a hands-off style is one that may be out of touch with what is going on in the foodservice department. The team members often say that they don’t see much of the director.
The “Hands On” Style
Many healthcare CEO’s are “raising the bar”. They want more, better, faster, cheaper. In short, they want what only a finely tuned, high performance team can deliver. In our opinion in order for a director to reach this higher level in excellence, a more engaged “hands on” approach is needed. Note - by hands on we do not mean washing the dishes and cooking the meatloaf. But, for example, directors should know exactly how the meatloaf tastes, what time it is prepared, and are the pots and pans really getting clean. If not, why not? And, what are we going to do to fix it by tomorrow?
Definition
Hands On Director With A Winning Style
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A Hands-On Director helps orchestrate the development of very specific standards and expectations and then insures that the standards are followed. We’re talking about more specific standards than we currently have. For example, an 8 ½ x 11 photo of a perfect patient tray is posted.
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A Hands-On Director walks through the department several times a day greeting team members by name and finding authentic, honest reasons to praise them. However, at the same time, carefully noticing whether or not the job is getting done according to standards.
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A Hands-On Director meets with the managers and/or supervisors as often as possible. Preferably they meet every day informally and at least weekly formally.
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A Hands-On Director insures that glitches are identified and then insures that they are corrected with a sense of urgency.
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A Hands-On Director insures that team members are held accountable, but does so in a constructive, inspirational manner.
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A Hands-On Director IS NOT a leader who bypasses the middle managers and supervisors and tells all the team members directly how to do their jobs all day long. This would be called a “micromanager”, which is considered a dysfunctional style by most experts.
Bottom Line & Summary
In summary, we have noticed that our most successful Destination 10 clients are modifying their daily routines and adjusting their management style. They are going “back to basics” and becoming more “engaged”. They are keeping their finger on the pulse of their departments better. The upshot is that their teams are becoming “high performance” teams generating higher customer satisfaction scores, higher sales, improved image, improved morale, reduced net cost per patient day, etc. The bottom line is that it becomes a whole new ballgame with a whole new ball team. All of this stems from going “back to basics” and adjusting one’s management style to whatever it takes to win. This is not a fantasy. There is a subtle management transformation going on all around the country in foodservice. One of the catalyst for this transformation is called Destination 10. It’s not “rocket science” but it works. Winners learn to go with what works.
The Big Question
How does one make time for the “hands on” fully engaged management style? Is it really necessary? Can FSD’s rely on their managers and supervisors to take care of all the details without having to coach and monitor them? Excellent questions.
Come prepared to discuss these thought provoking questions at the ASHFSA preconference on June 30th, 2002 in Orlando, Florida. Bring this e-mail with you to ponder on the plane if you’re flying. It’s all part of the process of getting to 10 (Destination 10). 
Come at 8 AM to have a cup of coffee and say hello.
See you then,
Don Miller, R.D., C.E.C.
Nancy Yezzi, R.D., L.D.
Bill Klein, C.I.C.
Success Coaches
Don Miller and Associates
346 Crestview Drive
Bonita, CA 91902
(619) 656-2100 PST
(619) 656-1321 fax
chefdon@cox.net
http://www.chefdon.com
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