Every journey starts with the right attitude, passion, and confidence.

Many people find networking to be challenging. Most people find a way to do the things they are passionate about. If you're not passionate about networking, it is possible that you simply do not see the wealth of value that comes from developing a healthy network.

I've interviewed over 1500 people in the last 23 years. Not just a surface interview, but an in-depth interview. I always ask the question, "Where did you find your current job?" In 70% to 80% of the cases regardless of level, people found their next opportunity through their network, a relationship built over years.

The Value of a Healthy Network:

• Competitive Edge: A large and deep network will give you information, you could never reach in isolation. Too many of us become trapped within the four walls we work in.
• Resources: Tap into subject matter experts, fill positions, and gain valuable Industry information from known, credible sources.
• Reputation Management: Being attacked on the internet can tarnish your reputation. A large and deep network that supports and believes in you can minimize that situation.
• our Next Opportunity: I can't tell you how many times an opportunity was offered to a particular person because they were known within their network and "believed it would be a good fit." You can secure your next opportunity and your career with little competition through networking.
• Time in transition: It has been proven that there is a direct correlation between the size and depth of your network as it relates to the time you are between jobs. The better your network is, the shorter your transition will be.

Now that you understand why it is important to have a solid network, it should be easy to get passionate about expanding it. If you are unsure about where to begin, below are a few ideas to get you started

Keys to Expanding Your Network:

• Be intentional: Dedicate yourself to at least two calls a week.
• Choose wisely: Reach out to both people you already know but are not in regular contact with and new people you would like to connect based on your next career step, resources, influence, and information.
• Plan your call: Do your homework- there is so much information out there that you shouldn't have any problem knowing with confidence your opening line or question.
• Be Reciprocal: Give your audience as much value as they give you.

Enjoy the Journey

Not everyone will want to join your network, and that is ok! Keep trying. Expanding your network is a learned skill that will improve with practice. Develop a system that will help you recall information from past interactions and keep you on track to follow up in the future. As long as you are moving relationships forward, YOUR EFFORTS WILL BE SUCCESSFUL.

If you would like more tips of how to add value to your network including in-depth training on what makes a great network call, then let me know. I am ready to share my secrets to success!

Jim

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

When interviewing, please keep in mind one simple rule- answer the question. An amazing number of people think that when they have the microphone (answering an interview question) they can talk as long as they want about whatever they want in an interview. This is understandable as candidates are excited and want to sell, however it’s a turn off to the interviewer.

Throw darts when interviewing- be concise, brief and use facts/numbers to support your answers. If they want more information, they will ask. Remember- the interviewer has a list of questions they want to get through. They can’t get through the interview if the candidate takes five minutes to answer every question. This is a major turnoff and it signals the candidate isn’t in tune with the employer’s needs.

To answer the question is to be a good listener. If someone asks you a yes/no question- answer with a yes or no answer. Listen intently to the words they are using and ask for clarification if need be. Don’t forget to mirror the interviewer- if s/he is a fast talker, then talk faster. If s/he is a slow talker, then slow down. The goal is to make a connection by listening and answering the question. Finally, only practice makes perfect when interviewing so practice with family, friends and colleagues and remember to throw darts, not hand grenades!

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

Do you know your numbers? (not just finance)

“It’s a nice day outside.” Does this mean it’s 65 degrees, 75, 82? It depends on who you ask. Unless you ascribe a numerical measure to something it will never be fully clear to an audience. So many executives I advise are not fully clear when talking about their career accomplishments- I’ve been guilty of this as well. “We grew revenue and patient satisfaction improved when I was at XYZ Health System” or “We set up this corporation, joint venture, committee, etc.” These are simply not clear statements when compared to, “We grew revenue by 35% and our patient satisfaction improved from the 12th percentile to the 67th percentile” or “We started a new joint venture that grew market share by 34% and grew net revenue by 40%”.

Many comparisons have been made between the airline industry and healthcare. The pilot knows where the plane is going by following specific numerical coordinates. Do you know your X-Y? What was the origin and destination of your last journey? This is communicated simply by knowing your X-Y’s in one or more of the following areas: service, patient safety, quality, growth, service line development, finance, community benefit, market share, cost containment, productivity, physician or employee engagement, turnover, etc. When X-Y’s are communicated well it sounds like this… “When I was at XYZ health system our HCAHPs went from the 23rd percentile to the 78th percentile over 4 years” or “During my tenure we reduced RN turnover from 35% to 16% in three years.

Organizations want results. If you clearly communicate that you achieve results, your chances for success improve when looking for your next job. Contact www.wiederholdassoc.com for more information on learning how to communicate your “X-Y’s” and taking the next step in developing your career.

How often in my conversation with executives do I hear the statement, "he/she is good at reading the tea leaves" or "he/she is not so good at reading the tea leaves"?

What does it mean?

To me, it indicates a sense of external awareness of what's being said around you. When the action and the talk don’t align – you’d better take notice. Unfortunately, a lot of executives get so caught up in their own internal world that they are unaware of what's going on around them.

There's lots of evidence to support this lack of external awareness. In working with executives in transition, I often hear the statement “I never saw it coming.” As I review the details of their last 60 to 90 days of employment and then we review it together, the next statement I often hear is –“I should've seen it coming. Obviously, that executive didn't do a good job of "reading the tea leaves."

Now most of us are aware of the concepts emotional intelligence and political intelligence.

• Emotional intelligence is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically.
• Political intelligence is a thorough understanding of the interpersonal and political dynamics that organizational structures create and to know how to make things happen within this context.

We define these concepts in terms of both nouns and verbs. As you know, a verb implies action, and both forms of intelligence must have an action to be of any benefit.

Both terms suggest a strong emphasis on the external environment as well as the internal environment. As mentioned, too many executives become overly focused on the internal environment. By practicing the art of emotional intelligence and political intelligence you will learn to pay attention to the external as well as the internal and increase your ability to read the tea leaves.

Happy Reading,

Jim

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

As one wise recruiter once told me, "You can have a B resume which may open the door but you must have an A interview to walk through it."

Let me share ten basic elements that consistently come up in our interview reviews that if addressed would make a world of improvement in your ability to interview and drive the right message:

1. Preparation: Know the five top critical elements of the opportunity and be able to address them with current experience and success. The five top criteria is the top five things they're looking for in their next candidate. Next understand the three other critical elements which are organization, position and location. Have specific information in each one as to your interest. The more specific the higher the impact.
2. Mirroring: A good interview is like a dance, both partners are in sync with each other. Mirror to match tempo, breathing, rate-of-speech, directness, etc. This makes each one comfortable with each other and sets the correct filter.
3. Listening to understand: We test this in every interview we do and the majority of people fail. We are so caught up in the world of listening to respond that we miss a vital part of the question.
4. Introduce yourself with confidence.
5. Take the lead: As you enter the interview, know exactly the statement you will make or the open-ended question you'll ask. Demonstrate your interpersonal skills and give yourself the greatest opportunity to connect with and engage your audience.
6. Put together an effective two-minute presentation which includes three key components to drive your message as well as connect with your audience. Those components are humanization, elevator, and differentiation/value statement.
7. Understand what a real achievement is and present that way.
8. Answer questions concisely, close information gaps and enhance the answer when it adds value to the original thought.
9. Always tell the truth but word it in a win-win presentation. This will provide consistency throughout the interview.
10. Brand yourself so that your message is consistent.

I've done a lot of interview coaching over the last 22 years. Historically, most people have a starting grade in their ability to interview probably somewhere around a B- to a C+ through no fault of their own. We just don't do well on things we don't practice consistently. But imagine if you took the time to develop a well-executed interview. What a significant way to separate yourself from the crowd in a very competitive market!

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

Landing Your Biggest Sale, Yourself!

Facilitating a successful job transition and search is a complex and intensive process. I have found most healthcare executives are trained and focused in their healthcare leadership roles, but are not experienced nor educated on how to conduct a successful job search and transition.

Frankly, most tend not to be very good at it.

Why is that? Most of us are good at things we do most of the time. None of us would be very good golfers if we golfed every two years. Job transitions are just like that. Executives don't have the opportunity to practice these skills often and there is real value in finding a coach or a partner who can accelerate the process.

Let me share a case of an executive that had tried to go it alone in her job transition and learned that with the right coach, training and navigation she could be very successful in her transition. She had the wisdom to realize she needed guidance to be successful.

To give you some insight, the client was a very high-level executive in a large health system. She had been trying to find a position on her own for approximately two years without success. Her organization had merged with another system who had the stronger position in the merger. The position they had offered her was not at the level she had been at and she decided to move on. She began conducting her own search process and was not as successful as she wanted to be. Eventually, she reached out to me for transition coaching.

What did she learn:

• I didn't know what I didn't know.
• I was not familiar with the current market and how competitive it is.
• My approach to networking was limited and therefore I didn't have a deep or substantial network.

What were her outcomes:

• My perspective on networking changed; it's much bigger and deeper than I thought it was.
• My relationship building skills improved.
• My communication skills improved.
• Jim as a coach was always available to me. Especially at high anxiety points.
• I was shown how I could do things better in the process.
• My goals for the transition needed to be broadened. I was often coached to add another needed step.

Working with this executive was a very rewarding journey for me because she had been out so long and was concerned about her ability to make a successful transition. We quickly moved her forward with the appropriate skills and were successful in helping her land a very good position. She was an excellent partner.

Transition and search is a very specific sales process – the process of selling yourself! With the right coaching, education and practice you can have a very successful result.

Here's to your success,

Jim

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

Are you creating and executing a roadmap that will assist you in moving up within your organization?

The whole concept of internal transition or advancement for executives I find is often neglected. Like overall career planning, without a roadmap, executives have no rudder or direction in mind.

As a result of having no real advancement direction or plan, these are the most prevalent outcomes:

• Career growth in their current company is slow to nonexistent
• They leave the organization too early and possibly create a negative ongoing pattern predictable change

Neglected areas are often:

• No plan for growth within the organization
• No key stakeholder list
• Lack of appropriate self-promotion
• Poor outcomes alignment with immediate boss
• Weak political acumen
• Ineffective soft skills
• No clear vision and strategy
• Lack of developing a strong team

These are certainly not all of the issues but key ones I often see. Setting a roadmap, following the path and focusing on the key areas needed for your success will help you reach your end goal. That next stop on the career path may be within your existing organization or you will be well positioned for that next opportunity outside the organization.

What is that old saying?

What is that old saying? "If you don’t know where you are going you will never get there."

Enjoy the drive!

Jim

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

Are You Ready to Embrace the Possibilities?

Coaching comes in many forms but the goal is to help you become the very best version of yourself as a leader, executive, and whole person. Executive coaching is like a blend of therapy, strategic discussion, and athletic training.

The focus is on your advancement as you define it, a definition that usually evolves over time. It is important to find a coach with experience working within your industry and the vision to help you realize your evolving personal goals.

What does Executive Coaching aim to accomplish?

Coaches facilitate a process of change or development which enables individuals and organizations to realize their potential.

If you're considering coaching, here are several key benefits:

• Better Performance - greater productivity, career advancement, business results

• New insights - about yourself, how you're perceived, where you can improve
• Accelerated action - advancing faster and with greater precision
• A safe place to dialogue- talk through challenges and gain perspective
• Greater Awareness -of perspectives, beliefs, and attitudes that may be limiting your success
• Support and encouragement - it feels less lonely at the top
• Feedback that others won’t share
• Help with improving specific skills - communication, delegation, conflict management, team building, persuasion, etc

Effective coaching requires someone to have a desire to learn and grow.

If you're the type of person who wants to grow and improve, and is willing to trust someone to support you, I highly recommend working with a coach.

Ready to get started?

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

The first few weeks and months of an executive’s tenure are critical. Getting it right can dramatically accelerate the transformation of a new recruit or promotion into a fully functioning business leader. But getting it wrong can be very costly.

In fact, recent studies indicate that 30-50% of newly hired leaders fail and leave within 18 months. Failure to establish key relationships and failure to align with company culture are indicated as leading factors that derail new executives early in their leadership roles.

Organizations that spend thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars in efforts to recruit key talent, recognize the critical importance of ensuring cultural fit as part of the hiring process. But often, the rigor, focus and attention given to the recruiting process don’t seem to carry forward to a solid commitment to assimilate and positively onboard new executives.

Executive onboarding is far too important to leave to chance. The stakes are high for the individuals and the corporations involved. The impact on revenues, employee morale and the company’s corporate image when an executive fails in a newly-assigned role are felt by the organization long after the executive has departed.

Onboarding, not orientation.

Onboarding is not the same as orientation. Consider whether your organization’s internal process achieves the following:

• Identifies executives’ strengths and developmental areas, and ensures they have the key competencies for success
• Brings role clarity
• Accelerates integration with organizational culture, strategy, and leadership team
• Maps key relationships
• Delivers critically timed feedback from key stakeholders
• Offers counsel on goal identification
• Provides early warning indicators and hazard avoidance

The Solution for Success

Our Onboarding services pick up where the executive search process ends, and help organizations integrate new executives in a more structured and effective way. Focusing on the early stages of an executive’s tenure, we reduce the time it takes for new executives to start making a meaningful impact, and maximize the leader's personal engagement with the organization and culture. We believe in customizing our program to our clients needs and work with new hires and internal promotions.

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

Early in my 30 year career in executive recruitment and coaching, I was responsible for recruiting and training sales executives at NCH Corporation. I find my background in sales training to be extremely helpful as I work with executives in transition.

When I was in my sales position with NCH corporation, I learned several key things:

• We had clear plans and targets for sales and we didn’t go home until those were met. We had the tenacity to reach out and make contacts and have clear goals to achieve.
• People buy from people they like. The primary focus is to build relationships with clients as part of the sales cycle.
• Practice is essential and role playing is a key part of training.

Executives in transition are shifting from leading and operating organizations to selling a commodity, themselves. A successful transition, like a successful sale takes focus, energy, a clear plan, and intentional action. You have to know your product, have a clear brand, a value statement, know your market, identify your sales targets, and be confident in representing your product.

I find most executives have no formal background or training in sales and often feel very unprepared for the demands of a successful job transition and search. My role is to be a coach and guide, to help executives in transition find their rudder, set their course and make a successful journey.

Executives successful in transition are the ones who use the time in transition to learn more about themselves and their goals for the future. Creating the right attitude and exuding confidence is a key to mastering your transition and achieving your goals.

In my practice I primarily work with healthcare executives. So I know the market, the role demands, and the key tools required to be successful. I not only provide my clients the tools, I provide the coaching and support for clients to learn through their journey and find a successful path forward.

I’m proud of the many executives I have helped through my 30 years and find the wisdom and experience to be a valued commodity for my clients.

Here’s to your success!

Jim

Connect with us on LinkedIn and join our Active Network Program.

In a report released last month by the American Hospital Association, a survey of 1,100 healthcare executives revealed emerging “talent gaps” in hospital management. In the report, titled, “Building a Leadership Team for the Healthcare Organization of the Future,” the executives cited key gaps in their organization’s capabilities. Pinpointing the areas where more skills are needed:

54% said their management teams needed more experience leading nontraditional health partnerships, including strategic partnerships with payers and retailers

48% cited a need for greater talent in the areas of community and population health management

41% indicated a lack of experience in change management and transformational change

37% noted a deficit in advanced financial expertise

34% said their management staff lacked key skills in innovation and creativity

29% pointed to a shortfall in data analytics experience

In the AHA report (link below), healthcare organizations indicated they were actively working to close these talent gaps in a variety of ways. Many organizations said they planned to address these deficits “through the addition of new executive team positions to lead and galvanize support for initiatives in top strategic areas.” Evidence of this trend was noted in the report, which stated that “60 percent of survey respondents said the senior management team of their organization is larger today than it was three years ago.”

Other topics addressed in this informative report include:

Challenges to Achieving Strategic Priorities
New Leadership Roles, New Capabilities: The Emerging Health Care Organization
Traditional Roles Evolving
Broad Leadership Skills Needed
Overcoming Organizational Barriers
Building the Leadership Team for the Future Health Care Organization
Evaluating Board Composition

To learn more, the report can be accessed via the AHA website at: http://www.hpoe.org/Reports-HPOE/leadership-team-future-2014.pdf

I'd like to share a valuable article with you titled “Healthcare Executives in Job Transition.” The author, Dr. Laura Canter, is a Licensed Performance Psychologist. She has worked with professional and elite amateur athletes in a variety of sports, including in the NFL, MLB, tennis and other fields. After completing her graduate studies at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, Laura switched her focus to concentrate on the mental aspects of performance, sharing her philosophy with business executives, high performance athletes and other top performers. In the article, she addresses key questions such as:

1) What do executives in transition need to work on to be successful?

2) What seems to be the most common challenge going into a transition period?

3) What characteristics mark the difference between those who seem to be most successful in transition versus those who seem to struggle with the journey?

People going through transition always seem to struggle with Controllable vs. Uncontrollables, and Dr. Canter has important advice to share with you on how to approach these factors. Key takeaways from the article include:

1) How to understand and be clear about what you can control and what you cannot control.

2) Internal motivation is critical – you have to discover what inspires you. What do you like about your job? Why do you do it?

3) With every job transition, there are “Seven Elements of Excellence,” which will help guide you throughout your transition.

After you read this informative article, please share it with others who may benefit. The article, “Healthcare Executives in Job Transition,” is available by copying the link below into your web browser:
http://www.wiederholdassoc.com/document-downloads/healthcare-executives-in-job-transition

Kyle and I just returned from an eight-day engagement with an organization that will probably be purchased by a for-profit system. This particular hospital is faith-based and has been part of this community for a very long time. I have had the privilege of working with their VP of HR over the last 5+ years with individuals who transitioned out from this organization. He had the foresight to bring us in to work with his executive team and key vice presidents and directors facing an uncertain future. Our focus was to give reassurance, provide new options and give them superior knowledge of the transition process both external and internal. This involved two days of group sessions and 17 individual video interviews with specific feedback for each individual. This not only required a great deal of hours during the workday as well as many hours afterward burning these DVDs and preparing for the next day.

Our takeaways:

• We made a difference. The journey may not always be what we want it to be, but knowing what will happen and how to prepare will make it that much easier. Going into this journey with a positive attitude makes it even better.
• If the way these individuals welcomed us and went out of their way to make our visit comfortable is the way they treat their patients, then the next time I have to be in a hospital as a patient, this is the place I want to be.
• Communication is the key on all levels. People can accept most anything when they are effectively communicated with in a timely manner, without information gaps, and with a focus on sending the right message.
• You would think that 17 people would all look the same after a while, but they all had a unique story worth our attention. Those differences made it easy for us to not become repetitive in our counsel, but to find something unique for every individual. That made the experience even more exhilarating.
• We all need to better understand the difference between what we can control and what we cannot. There are times that we have done all we can do and still the final outcome is not what we hoped. By not understanding this delicate balance we can do irreparable damage to ourselves and our careers.
• What I have always know, but was again reinforced, is there is no more powerful relationship builder than the face-to-face meeting. Other communication options pale in comparison.
• We can always continue to learn. Interviewing has always been the strongest part of my repertoire and doing these 17 interviews back-to-back I learned some things that will make me even more effective.
• The leader sets the tone for the organization. His/her personality is reflected in the leadership team. The leader here, in my estimation, set the right tone.
• These individuals and this organization have faced some serious challenges, much of which have been outside their control yet they have never given up. They have much to be proud of and I wish them the best and we will continue to help them in any way we can. With these individuals this is not the end, but a new beginning.

Both Kyle and I are returning home, feeling good about our efforts. We are hopeful that our newfound friends will end up exactly where they want to be.

I am not naïve enough to suggest that every process is perfect, but I am convinced that well-thought-out ones, when followed, produce outstanding results on a consistent basis. My question and challenge to you today is why do we ignore them and attempt to circumvent them only to ensure our own failure? I see this so much in career transition where I am focused. In my mind, I see three possible reasons. First one: I have not used this process before so I'm not convinced completely that really works. Second one: I am impatient and I want the results yesterday. Third one: I know everything and I can ignore or change this process and be more successful. Now keeping this in mind let me relate it to a real situation I'm currently involved in.

I am currently in Denver, Colorado, actually about 50 miles southwest of Denver Colorado at about 9000 feet. I am here training for a half marathon on May 19th in Denver. I have some wonderful friends that allow me to stay with them during this two-week period. This is my second year. Let me share with you what I experienced the first year. First, I accepted the fact that I'm not an expert in this area and I needed to seek out experts. Why did I need to seek out experts? I did because most of my running takes place in Houston and in Atlanta. The cities are at approximately 34 feet above sea level and 900 feet above sea level respectively. As you all know, Denver is the mile high city that puts it at approximately 5280 feet. This fact alone created much concern and apprehension on my part. So after talking with many experts I developed a process that would help me adjust and perform at this level respectably. I had never executed this process but I knew I had to stick to it. I had to be patient and have faith in it. Believe me, that was a challenge on many days. When I say many days I felt like I was coughing up a lung, most you would understand that. I didn't feel the process was working for me, but I said I'm going to stick with it because people who knew better said it would work. And in the end, when I ran the event, it was one of the best runs of my life. As I mentioned, I am now back in Colorado and using the same exact process. The major difference this year is that I know the process works. Last year, I had to do it on faith and by accepting my experts’ expertise. Having experienced the process with success also added to my confidence.

What is my point? We cannot be experts in everything, accept that, and find an expert to help you build the process. Now once you are done with the experts, create the process. Then comes the tough part. Adhere to the process without circumventing it or changing it and no matter how impatient you become or concerned over your progress, stick with it. Stay focused on incremental gains not huge ones. Accept that you will have minor setbacks and you will have your bad days but in the end you will have a successful journey. Proven processes are tools for success. Stick with them and you will improve your chances for both significant and consistent success greatly. When you become the expert in that area, then you can make those changes to the process, but not before.

Whether you're in transition or not, the concept of controllable versus non-controllable and desires versus goals is key to your success. When people are frustrated more than likely what they're doing is focusing on what's not controllable versus what's controllable. Here's a simple example; I can control the phone calls I make. The number of calls, the frequency of follow-up, the message I deliver, and the attitude I convey, but I can't control somebody calling me back, I can only influence them. If we would learn to focus this way, we would be much more successful and much less frustrated. I think we can all agree that frustration is a pretty useless emotion.

So the first thing we work on with our clients in transition is to start defining what controllable and uncontrollable is by the use of very definitive examples like making phone calls and receiving phone calls, asking somebody to expand your network and having them deliver a name. We need to stay focused on what we can control and not on what we can only influence. This applies to transition and everything else whether it’s business or personal.

Now let's add goals versus desires. When someone begins their transition we talk about goals that we can control versus desires, which we can only influence, and are not controllable. How does that translate into transition? We focus on four things which are controllable. First, the number of hours you dedicate each week to the search. Second, the number of calls you make each week which does not include those you receive. Third, asking for people to expand your network and not necessarily receiving a name, you can't control that and finally, getting out pieces of paper which translates into resumes and cover letters to recruiters and employers for specific openings. This also includes direct marketing letters to organizations you may have an interest in working with.

If something is a desire, it can always be broken down into specific controllable goals that will get you there. It can apply to anything business or personal. Try it on and see if it fits.

A client sent me this email:
"Jim, I had a great recent success story with LinkedIn. Several months ago, I mistakenly sent LinkedIn invites to all of my email contacts! Several responded and "linkedIn." I recently updated my LinkedIn profile with my new interim position, and to my surprise LinkedIn sent messages to all of my contacts of my new role, to which I have rec'd 50+ "Congratulations" responses - all from a mistake I made several months ago. What a neat way to stay in touch with my network!"

The strength of this message wasn't how much LinkedIn did for him but showed how much personal networking he has done to get this type of response. This client has a relationship with these 50+ people or they would not have taken the time to send their congratulations. That is networking in its truest form.

In the beginning of their transition, most of our clients have a neglected personal network and struggle to pick up the phone and call their colleagues or past business associates Fortunately we have a tremendous network of healthcare executives across the country to introduce them to, growing each of our "circles of influence." Not once in my almost twenty years of executive outplacement and coaching can I remember someone telling me "networking doesn't work," instead more often than not we are told, "It's much easier than I thought! The names you gave me were so helpful, I think I can do this!"

Try it, and tell me your success stories....