Monday, August 17, 2009

Your Personal Effectiveness

A few months ago, I was in an interview with a candidate for our VP of Strategic Planning and Business Development. A few members of our executive team participated in the interview. Our Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) asked the candidate, "How do you evaluate or assess your personal effectiveness?"

Great question (those of us interviewing the candidate were glad we were not put on the spot for that question). Our CNO later shared with me that she views "personal effectiveness" as the value one brings to an organization along with the balance one values in their personal life.

Many of us look at our health as one of the key things we value and need to balance in our lives. We look toward healthcare providers as resources to help us. One of our employees shared the following email with our Radiology team (of course, her name has been left out for privacy).

Cheryl:
Just wanted to send a quick note……I had a mammogram this a.m. and your staff was fabulous!


1) Hannah asked for my driver's license and insurance card upon registration--even with my employee ID on. (Compliant with Red Flag Rules!)

2) They placed the ID Band on me, which I don't recall with prior visits, but could have happened before. (Compliant with ID Banding!)

3) Misty checked my name and birthdate prior to performing the exam. (Compliant-National Patient Safety Goals of two-IDs)

4) They were just delightful in personality, as well.

I know people are quick to complain when things go wrong, but I like to let others know when they have done a job well!

This really showed me the "personal effectiveness" that our team displayed toward their co-worker and patient. Thank you team.

Wondering about that interview? We hired the candidate and she has been a great addition to our team.

How would you evaluate or assess your personal effectiveness? I look forward to hearing from you.

2 comments:

  1. I would evaluate my personal effectiveness by looking at how I balance all aspects of my life--family, work, recreation, etc. I believe staying balanced in all of these aspects, and more, will ultimately lead to a better work product as well (since we all know that a question like that in an interview should be tied back to the position at hand).

    Out of curiosity, how did your interview handle that question?

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  2. Let's just say that her answer on personal effectiveness with not her ultimate 'selling point'. She absolutely answered the other questions in such a way that we knew she would be a great hire. Since we don't let her live that question down, (and she still gives our CNO a hard time for asking it) she has considered the question further and writes...

    "Assessing my personal effectiveness involves self-evaluation and introspection, as well as soliciting feedback from others including my family, friends and employer. While I certainly have my own perspective about how well I am balancing the spiritual, personal and professional aspects of my life, it is important that I compare those feelings with how well I am meeting the needs of others who are important to me. I think it is possible to get so caught up in any one area of life at times that I can lose sight and even connections with other vital parts that help me function most effectively. That is why it is important to ask for feedback from others to keep everything in check, as well as gain support even when I didn’t realize it was needed. While accepting that at times there are some areas that require more effort and attention than others, I believe that striving for an overall balance can lead to optimal personal effectiveness."

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