Employee Engagement through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Initiatives
Carol Sinclair answered a series of questions written by marcus evans before the forthcoming 3rd Internal Branding & Employee Engagement Conference, April 30-May 2, 2012 in Toronto, Canada. All responses represent the view of Ms. Sinclair and not necessarily those of VON.
What are some of the remarkable programs VON is currently working on to drive the internal culture and engage employees?
CS: VON Canada business strategy has at its core a focus on being the best place to work and volunteer for our 5,000 staff and 900 volunteers. At the center of this is the commitment to provide a work environment for our staff that is as safe and secure as possible, that builds opportunities for staff learning, growth and development and reinforces staff involvement in decisions that have an effect on patient outcomes each and every time. We know that this approach builds employee engagement because our staff told us what they needed to feel engaged in work life at VON. In healthcare employee engagement is critical for client, patient, and staff safety and satisfaction. The theory is simple: when employees are engaged, better patient outcomes ensue.
In 2009, VON embarked on a talent management strategy that was framed by innovative best practices designed to increase our ability to attract, engage and retain frontline staff. We will share our steps to building an employee brand that is based on taking action on the things that matter most to employees. How this affects our culture can be seen in a recent Home Support Redesign Project that effectively reengineered how we are working in small high performance work teams to deliver service in a seamless way to our clients.
What are some of the desired brand/internal culture behaviors for VON employees and how does the organization drive them?
CS: Foremost on our mind is caring for our clients. If we create a culture that is built on exceptional client experiences then we will continue to be a number one community health care provider with a highly engaged and committed workforce who are making in a difference in the lives of their clients each and every day.
In addition, we are committed to creating a learning culture that is reinforced by employees who are working together in small work teams, building their capacity and capability to deliver service in a cost effective manner, and holding each other accountable for generating positive outcomes is a key focus today for us.
Are your employees able to understand that they are linked to VON’s success and the employee value proposition?
CS: We hope so, and work on this constantly. We understand from our engagement surveys what is important to employees at VON at all levels across the organization. We are finding ways to link key performance metrics and program outcomes to key behaviors and competencies and providing training and tools to employees so they can make impactful decisions that drive behaviors and provide the outcomes we are seeking and that our clients and customers want from us.
How are you measuring employee engagement and how are the results reported out to the business? Are managers/departments held accountable to them?
CS: We measure employee engagement via survey and report results regularly. All managers and directors are responsible for driving employee engagement, have site action plans, and work with learning specialists and engagement champions at every site. Our performance management program is built on the employee engagement imperative; our leadership and manager training programs are built to reinforce employee engagement; we provide online tools to all leaders, and finally our business strategy has identified certain key engagement metrics as key milestones in our strategy document.
Carol Sinclair M.A, BA (Hons), BEd. is currently the Senior Director Organization Development at VON Canada. She is responsible for building a great place to work that supports a world class human capital engagement strategy, and best in class recruiting /retention programs. Currently she and her team are challenging the boundaries and perceived limitations, by implementing technology, engagement and online collaborative tools to support organization transformation initiatives.
For more information please contact Michele Westergaard, Marketing/PR Coordinator, marcus evans at 312-540-3000 ext. 6625 or Michelew@marcusevansch.com.
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