FEATURE STORY
Kenneth R. Cohen

the case for evidence-based human capital management

There are financial benefits to evidence- based recruitment, select

development, and retention-underscoring the need for finance executives to become actively involved in initiatives to manage the organizations'talent. There are many things healthcare finance executives cannot contr the state of the economy to the actions of competitors-but one pr finance executives can help their organizations achieve better fina

comes is by employing evidence-based approaches to more efficie leverage their workforce.
AT A GLANCE

Roughly 60 percent of hospital and health system budgets are allo
Healthcare

finance leaders should adopt seven

strategies to leverage their organizations'

workforces

more efficiently:
> Commit to developing a formal workforce

planning

program.

> Incorporate requirements values in appraisals of staff work and competencies.

human capital, underscoring the need for good "people stewardsh these organizations. People stewardship refers to playing to an orga

strengths in human capital planning to best control costs and inve intelligently. Human capital planning should be approached like strategic planning and budgeting processes. Leaders should set th and priorities and maintain the standards for great performers.

> Appraise individual performance.

> Assess future work requirements.

The financial benefits of evidence- based recruitment, selection,

> Assess future potential.

ment, and retention strategies-including

> Close the developmental

oping and retaining the right people-are strong indicators of the finance executives to become involved in people stewardship.

gap.

> Evaluate the success of the program.

The Role of Finance in Workforce

the savings associated w

Retention

During HFMA's ANI: The Healthcare Finance Conference, held J in Orlando, leaders frequently commented on the need for health

organizations to improve value. Evidence-based strategies for rec selection, development, and retention are proven ways to enhance of workforce management in healthcare organizations.

Find sample strategies for creating a job profile at www.hfma.org/hfm.

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AUGUST 2011 healthcare financial management

tion to help guide people stewardship in their organizations. The analytical skills that healthcare finance executives possess make them ideal go-to experts for determining the root causes of turnover, variations in performance, and dips in employee satisfaction.
The financial impact of mismanaging an organization's labor pool can be significant:
> Hiring the wrong leader ultimately could cost the organization at least six to 10 times that individual's annual earnings (Proven Strategies for Successful Implementation

of Best Practices

Among Healthcare Presidents/CEOs, The Synergy
Organization, ~003).
> It costs less to develop and retain the right people. > Demographics reflect an increasingly limited

Interestingly, the highest-performing individual contributors often become poor managers. Why?
Because it's difficult for them to let go of work that they were trained to do and that they have done well. balanced view; too often, we expect that outsiders will come in as perfect fits. Then, we are surprised and disappointed when reality sets in.
How well does the organization track its average length of service? The longer an organization's average length of service, the harder it ",'ill be for out-

pool of qualified candidates for leadership positions, underscoring the need for organizations

siders to penetrate the organization. It is often helpful to track the average length of service by

to choose the right leaders and to retain their talent. department, because the outliers can supply invaluable clues about what's going on in the organization in regard to retention patterns.

In evaluating an organization's workforce hiring and promotion patterns, healthcare finance executives should consider several