All too often, we see the performance of good employees suffer as their morale and motivation gets dragged down by others. If left unaddressed, these negative influencers can kill a practice culture. The high performing employees leave for better opportunities, while the remaining employees figure out that if bad behavior is tolerated, then why try harder?
I’ve long been an admirer of online retailer Zappos and what they accomplished to create a unique and vibrant culture for employees. When their leader and CEO Tony Hsieh passed away several months ago, I hadn’t given much thought to what his absence would mean for the future of the employee culture. In this blog post I take some insights from this company and its recent change in leadership, to question how medical practices can measure and strengthen their own internal culture.
With all the focus on improving the experience, here’s the truth: Behind every great customer experience is a team that is dedicated, resourced and rewarded to make it happen. No matter how much a doctor may want to improve the overall patient experience in the practice, he or she cannot do it alone or with the help of one person. It takes a team!
