Use your elevator speech’ for quick communication
One trick for being ready to discuss risk management with a C-suite executive is to have an "elevator speech" ready at all times, says Andrew A. Oppenberg, MPH, CPHRM, DFASHRM, director of risk management and patient safety officer at Dignity Health Glendale Memorial Hospital and Health Center in Glendale, CA. Oppenberg also is a former president of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM).
An elevator speech is a short but informative statement that you can use any time you run into an executive in the elevator, for example, and you have only a short time to make an impression or answer a question about how your work is going. With an elevator speech you can make the most of that brief encounter, and you also might pull it out during a formal meeting if an executive asks you a general question about your role or your goals. It also is useful in making introductions to anyone else within the organization.
This is how Oppenberg’s elevator speech begins: "Hi, I’m Andy Oppenberg, and I’m all about safe and trusted healthcare for our patients. I’m the risk manager you pay to prevent problems so you can sleep at night. How can I be of service to you?"
From there he might explain a project he is working on, time permitting. When speaking with clinicians on a unit, he introduces himself the same way, but with a smile he adds this statement: "The risk manager is your friend. Call me any time I can help you."
Knowing what is going on in the C-suite also helps you tailor your elevator speech for those chance encounters with reprsentatives of that area.
"If I know that the chief financial officer is responsible for renewals, I’ll ask if he needs more data for the application. That is far more useful and will make a better impression than just saying let me know if I can help with anything,’" Oppenberg explains.
