Unseen Yet Highly Productive…Leading and Inspiring a Remote WorkforcePresented by Michelle Tompkins, MBA, RHIA, CCS, COC and

Lakeyshia Moore, MBA, RHIA, CHCO

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Acute care, short stay rehabilitation and transitional care HOSPITALS

OUTPATIENT FACILITIES

2016 FACTS

All About Texas Health

What will I get out of this?• The goal is to share with the attendees some best

practices and tips on leading, monitoring and motivating a remote team.

What does working ‘remote’ mean?• Working outside of a traditional office; • Working at a location away from your employer’s

headquarters;• Working from home;

� Locations can be within a defined service area (so many miles from the main location/headquarters), within the state, out of state or out of country

Best Practices:Onboarding and Training

• First 90 Days� Checklists – for both applications and coding processes� Policies/Procedures� Teleworker Agreement� Technical Requirements� Privacy Requirements

• Training� System Training� Operational Bootcamp Training (Coding, Data Integrity, CDI, etc. )

� Coding Bootcamp Training

Tools and Training Materials• Checklist Review and Sign-

off• Bootcamp Weekly Education

How do I communicate effectively?Communication techniques that work..

How to communicate effectively…..

• Monthly Department Meetings

• Weekly Team calls

• One on One Meetings

• Rounding

• Emails – lots of them J

• Webinars

• Annual onsite team meetings

• Instant messaging if available

• Video Conference if available

Communication techniques……

• Listen with impact

• Facilitate with intent

• Ask good questions

• Focus on facts, not personalities

• Know when to manage individuals vs. team

Leadership accountability – what should a remote worker expect from their leader?• Clear and concise instructions

• Timely responses

• Recognition

• Availability

• Motivation

• Regular progress reports of performance� At least quarterly performance indicators

Clear Expectations…..

Employee accountability – what should a leader expect from a remote worker?

• Timely responses to communication� This includes other team members

• Accurate and timely work completion

• Advanced notice of any variations of schedules or workflows

• Regular and consistent schedules

• Learn from your mistakes

• Ability to receive constructive feedback

Clear Expectations…..

Common misconceptions about remote workers….

• Less productive

• Not as skilled

• ‘Time-wasters’

• Lower quality of work output

• More distracted

• Not engaged

• Do not effectively communicate

• Not team players

Inspect what you expect…

• Monitor Productivity and Quality� Employee scorecard – at least quarterly� De-identified dashboard – see sample on the next slide� Team challenges – encourage some friendly competition – it can be for the week or

just a day – even for a few hours. This is a way to bring FUN into the mix.

Inspect what you expect…

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EDS Week ending 3/19/16

Inspect what you expect…

• Deal with Challenges of Technology� Connecting home equipment� Personal versus company issued equipment� Internet requirements

• Create a Solid Downtime Plan� Email alternative such as webmail/alternate email address� System downtime expectations� Internet downtime� Report to onsite location� Know when to clock out

Challenges with managing a remote workforce - a review…

• Keeping team and individuals motivated� Constant feedback� Routine recognition and reward

• Managing and maintaining accountability� Set clear expectations� Time management/tracking tools� Transparent environment

• Technology� Back up plans for downtime: i.e. internet or electrical failures

Motivation and Recognition -How to Inspire your Remote Team to do MORE.

• Build a personal rapport with each employee• Schedule and conduct one on one meetings• Use video conference if available• Reinforce good behavior and address opportunities immediately• Mail birthday cards• Quarterly mailers- Candy grams, etc. • Reward and recognize• Make yourself available

Motivation and Recognition -How to Inspire your Remote Team to do MORE…and MORE• Encourage goal setting

• Keep the target moving

• Recognize the successes – no matter how small

• Use key players to encourage others – use best practices from within the team to motivate their peers

Lessons Learned Along the Way• Ensuring all the tools the team will need are readily available – AND – they

know how to find them and use them.

• Conducting a short yet impactful meeting – this was a hard one

• Working on production along with quality – prior to the remote environment

• Understanding the need for feedback – even the errors, critical components

• Getting cell numbers

• Understanding that each person accepts and gives communication in a different way – one blanket process will not encompass the entire team in all situations

Questions?• Contact information:

• Michelle Tompkins, michelletompkins@texashealth.org 682-236-7211

• Lakeyshia Moore, lakeyshiamoore@texashealth.org 682-236-7197

• Thank you!