Key to staff retention? Be flexible when you can
'Find the good and shine it up'
Nine years ago, when Kristen Stiles became director of admissions at Maine Coast Memorial Hospital in Ellsworth, an access employee who stayed in the job for three months was considered long term.
Now most of her staff have been around for seven or eight years, Stiles says, and the most recently hired employee has been in the position for two and a half years. That person is actually a "repeat" employee, a former switchboard operator who returned to work in admitting after moving out of state for five years, she adds.
Stiles attributes the longevity of her staff in large part to her willingness to "be flexible on the things you can be flexible on."
Before she became director, she explains, "the people who worked here were like numbers. You plugged a number into the schedule, attached it to a person, and ran from there."
While the system was "very fair and equitable," Stiles notes, the end result of the rigidity was that people tended to leave the job sooner than they otherwise would have because of conflicts with other parts of their lives
In some cases, job performance was not up to par — also because of a mismatch with schedule or work assignment — and the person would be let go, she adds. "The ability to be as flexible as possible has made the greatest difference here."
To whatever extent she can, given the inherent demands of the position, Stiles says, "I make sure the personality is suited to the job they're doing."
Stiles has responsibility for admissions, preregistration, centralized registration, financial counseling, and the switchboard at the rural, 64-bed hospital, and oversees a staff of 13.
"Of the employees I have now, there are more people who came from other areas of the hospital," she notes. "There are only two who are direct hires."
Her staff "like the camaraderie of the area," she says. "It's still a job, and working with the sick public is very challenging, but at the end of the day, I think they like to work in this atmosphere."
"Word gets around" about the congenial work environment, Stiles adds, and she is often approached by people who ask to be contacted "when you have a space" or "when there is availability."
Many of the hires come from housekeeping and dietary services, but she also has gotten employees from the billing department and from physician offices, she notes. "Some are more lateral moves, some are a step up."
Her criteria for hiring, Stiles points out, are more about attitude than expertise
Only one person has joined the department who didn't need a lot of training, she says. "I hire more for personality. You can teach the knowledge, but they need to have the right temperament. They come with skills that can't be taught."
Stiles' secret for keeping employee morale up and staff turnover to a minimum?
"You just have to like people, find the good, and shine it up," she says. "When there are challenges, be supportive and downplay the bad."
(Editor's note: Kristen Stiles can be reached at [email protected].)
Nine years ago, when Kristen Stiles became director of admissions at Maine Coast Memorial Hospital in Ellsworth, an access employee who stayed in the job for three months was considered long term.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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