BUS-FPX3007-Leadership- Application Questionnaire- Assessment 1

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Apr 3, 2024

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1 Western Medical Enterprises Application Questionnaire- A Capella University

2 Leadership Experience During the beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic in the United States in 2020 I had an exceptional professional experience that will stick with me throughout my life. At the time, my employer had just been awarded contracts with multiple state unemployment agencies. The unprecedented number of unemployment cases that the state agencies were leveraging was causing some of the agency’s computers to crash due to inadequate servers. Quite simply they were using the old-style green screens with several commands in the system to complete the cases and suddenly had to do quadruple the number of cases daily. The states staff were also deluged with telephone calls from applicants, and this was an unexpected experience for the agencies because their previous systems, which had been in place for decades, had never fallen below wait times like they were experiencing at that time. There were not enough staff from other areas qualified in the unemployment insurance programs to process the flood of cases each day. When cases reached a system failure point, staff were able to manually batch some cases but most of the time they entered the cases manually. My employer put numerous specialized teams in place to process all the state’s contracts. The team that I worked on was a team dedicated to one specific state. I had never seen so many crashes from one group of clients. The outages with their datacenter of applications were simply out of control most days. In one instance, one of the state agency systems was down seven or eight times within an hour. The workload at the state agency had quadrupled overnight. All the team members who were dedicated and pulled up their sleeves to help the states navigate this crisis, but they needed assistance. I created an external team consisting of IT, project management, data entry, and IT crisis response professionals. I cross trained the team and went to great lengths to onboard them so that

3 they knew the infrastructure and Nuances of my selected state. Going forward we coordinated efforts and strategically began to create solutions to shorten system time, created efficient workflows, and addressed an increasing volume of work. I religiously communicated with the team using many communication platforms to ensure our progress was always maintained and our priorities and that we utilized the deadline driven work the govt is well known for. Through several online platforms - we leveraged both formal and informal communications to embark on this difficult and trying journey. I was also able to employ an aggressive mitigation plan – further enhancing proper workflow and built efficient components in the workflow to mirror the government's ULU. Following established Government principles, we created a sound monitoring method to ensure our team continually aligned to serve the priority initiatives. This group entered the Government's most significant crisis that required firsthand help, hands-on documentation, and the use of hands-on tools. The concept of an external team technically overseeing a function 450 miles away from the central office building is tangible proof of the true effectiveness to proper crisis management. I had to spearhead the formation of a centralized team for the state I was assigned to, that was responsible for not only efficiently managing these cases but also ensuring the emotional well- being of the applicants. The team, which consisted of customer support specialists, was fully trained, and equipped to oversee the complexities behind unemployment policies and do so with the empathy, understanding and support the applicants needed. Our strategic plan was well thought out for our client, but it had to be rolled out very quickly. We aimed to bring in external partners such as mental health professionals for collaboration, regular check ins and concentrate on employee’s well-being as well who had the job of taking call after call to take each case or

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4 deal with the emotional issues of the folks who never received their benefits. The objective was to create not just a case management approach but to go above and beyond, recognizing that unemployment creates an emotional toll and therefore it had to provide a full circle of support for the employee and their totality. It was equally important for me to manage my own emotions during such a trying time both professionally and personally, so that I could be that strong leader for my team and be there for them as it was an emotional project to say the least. I had to be strong for my team who were on the front lines while also providing the best solutions for our client dealing with a once in a lifetime situation, one that we will never forget. Leadership Approach When attempting to deal with the unemployment cases it was important that you also touch the psychological well- being of the person while overseeing the case. With that said, the following solutions was how I managed the approach of dealing with the cases and employees. In this case, I took the human resources strategic approac6h, also identified in the: Principles of Management book (Griffin, Ricky W., Ebert, Ronald J. 2018.) as the best style that should be employed in dealing with employment cases. The approach was composed of empathy, a strong collaborative nature and initiative-taking support. Leaders must be able to build teams that are diverse and complementary but carry out their work fully; when assembling your team, you must make sure they have the technical expertise to

5 move files, threading efficiently how to travel through it, but also the sensitive nature to understand what the client is going through and be able to have it in all dealings with the customer. First, the team configuration was purposeful and strategic. The human service providers had experience in case management, mental health, and customer service. Not only did having such a diverse skill set help draw different perspectives to the issue of the emotionally charged, and then recent jobless rate in the United States, but it also offered a team of capable folks addressing the many different facets the crisis had. Very importantly, counselors I handpicked for not only their skills but their personal empathy and connection to those who might feel uncomfortable to share. This was an extremely tasking situation both for the client, the applicants, but also my team of employees who were tasked with taking call after call and never knowing what each call would bring. It was important to provide them with the emotional support needed to manage this project. My leadership perspective was to focus on building a team that recognized the human side of a crisis, each case was different, and the emotional need of each case was different while still providing fast and effective solutions to our client who brought us in to assist during this unbelievable time in history. I had to make a quick observation of the issues and compile effective solutions quickly. My team and I had to go through a quick training on their current processes and their systems within a few days and be able to be up and running to start taking cases. In addition to

6 that, I had to compile a task force compiled of IT folks to deal with the system issues and the on- going system crashes that were increasing by the day. The amazing thing about this training is that it taps into a deep truth about humans: we deeply and markedly affect one another through our interaction’s day in and day out. By design, this project brought folks together, fostering a culture of empathy and support, with a strong understanding as a guiding principle in every interaction. On the other hand, while managing the personal impact of my team, my leadership approach also provided constant development of my team as the client continued to upgrade their system and processes to manage the crisis. I had to ensure each member of my team was well equipped to not only manage the complexities of the crisis but be able to manage technical on- going challenges and changes that were occurring. Another key aspect of my approach to the training was ensuring my team was aware of the sensitive nature of the information we had to manage in ensuring it was being managed correctly. I put together targeted training materials and procedures to ensure that this was being managed correctly. It’s important for Leadership to always acknowledge the importance of investing in the capability of the team and in the tools and information necessary to effectively support them. Clear instructions for case handling were established which emphasis that unemployment insurance cases should be managed in a consistent and efficient manner. I developed a standardized procedure that all of us could follow when interacting with potential applicants. Establishing channels of communication was the next part of effective procedures and project outline. I establish the following channels of communication to enable and achieve an

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7 open and transparency dialogue between the team and leadership: I created a specific Microsoft office teams’ channel where we all could ask questions, look up training materials, and get assistance very quickly if needed. I also paired someone up with another person, to have support, oversee any questions, and be able to navigate the project together. In sum, the leadership approach I took to construct and manage a team responsible for administering unemployment claims and addressing the emotional health of the filers was a comprehensive, compassionate approach that is one I will never forget. This leadership philosophy reflects the human nature of the crisis we were all facing in offering full and comprehensive support with much understanding. It was situations like this and teams behind the scenes, which kept everything flowing and going during the 2020 Pandemic. Leadership Collaboration My team was selected with the purpose of creating a team of diverse professionals with backgrounds in case management, mental health, and customer support to provide a well- rounded team that was able to respond to the crisis at hand. In selecting our team members, I looked for more than just technical competencies. I looked for empathic values, and the ability to connect with those facing emotional distress. The training and sensitization set out to collectively inform staff about the unemployment policies, introduce the case management protocols, and define effective communications strategies. Sensitization sessions were designed to explain the emotional challenges applicants might be experiencing and provided employees with knowledge,

8 skills and understanding to improve the team dynamics around using empathy to help team members provide the support mandated. We allocated ample resources to ensure the team was equipped with technological support and management with the on-going challenges and changes as a result. We supplied each person with the training, forms and technology tools needed to manage cases, while providing the emotional well-being of each applicant. Case management protocols were developed with a view to assisting the team in dealing with unemployment cases in a timely and efficient manner and ensuring that each applicant received the same level of attention and care as the others. A particular benefit of the protocols was that they showed the team precisely what their role was in processing unemployment cases, during every point of interaction with the applicants. They helped by giving the team a procedural map that everyone could click into during any given point of the application process of a given applicant. these protocols showed us how to Identity and address emotional distress issues during the application process; this was proven to be one of our key strengths during the duration of the project for the unemployment office. To foster open and transparent communication between the team and applicants, several communication channels were established, briefings were held to give the team the opportunity to express any concerns, go over specific situations and how best to manage those situations. Channels that we opened for applicants included dedicated email and phone lines, where applicants could reach us, express any concerns they had, seek emotional support, or just simply be updated on their cases and in all instances, empathy was showed while dealing with their queries with prompt response, establishing that they mattered. Leadership recognized the fact

9 that effective communication was not just about disseminating the information but also providing platforms for applicants where they could share their experiences and emotions. Leadership collaboration with external mental health professionals was also key during this project. We engaged with Counseling Services and Help Lines to extend the emotional support resources available to applicants and employees. By engaging external expertise, as part of the Leadership team, we recognized the need to complement their own efforts with tailored support provided by experts in their fields to ensure applicants received the specialized support they needed to feel safe and supported. This approach was reflective of leadership’s culture in leveraging external resources to strengthen the overall experience and effectiveness of the entire support team. Regular, check-in meetings became part of our leadership approach since the health and wellbeing of successful employees were our primary concern for the support teams. The leadership team took steps to reach out to employees ahead of where they were in the process so they could better understand the unique stressors on each individual and provide human support whenever possible. Monitoring shifts in admission stress suggested that this level of care they were providing had led to an adaptive support strategy that truly accounted for the needs of the applicants during this time, which in turn indicated how much a strong emphasis on continual engagement and proactive care was truly important. Continuous improvement as a principle drove the team’s approach. Feedback mechanisms were set in place to capture the insights of the entire support team and the other internal team

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10 members as well. Regular evaluation was conducted to measure the impact of any implemented solution against the stringent crisis criteria and identify areas for continuing improvement. We in leadership acknowledged that the nature of the crisis was complex, and therefore acknowledged that this approach required adaptability and a continued learning path to complete this project effectively. By embracing continuing improvement, the team leadership created a culture within the team for innovation and a bias for action. Employee well-being was a core consideration in the leadership approach. The team was very aware of the potential emotional burden the work may have on team members, so measures were put in place to support their mental health and overall well-being. Counselling services were provided, and debriefing sessions were regular to ensure the team had the support structures they needed. One of the main assertions from our leadership approach was to look out for the well-being of the people on the front line of the work as a resilient and supported team is required to provide effective support to applicants. In conclusion my leadership collaboration approach was to assemble a team and lead a team to manage a crisis over unemployment cases and making sure they felt emotionally secure, doing so in a holistic and compassionate and proactive manner, addressed the human, and crisis aspects of the client based on the fact of where the client was and where the client would have liked to be in the future, it was client centered process and managing their culture. It emphasized empathy, collaboration, and continuous improvement. I went beyond being their client manager, I committed to them during this crisis to provide support to their entire agency and to the community.

11 References Principles of Management book (Griffin, Ricky W., Ebert, Ronald J. 2018.) Gallup, I. (2022, October 28). Leadership effectiveness: How to be a better leader. Gallup.com-Retrieved December 20, 2022, fromhttps://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths/en/356072/how-to-be-better- leader.aspx Perna12SourcesGoldsmith, M. (2010, May 26). Sharing Leadership to Maximize Talent. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved December 21, 2021, fromhttps://hbr.org/2010/05/sharing-leadership-to- maximize Dr. Jennifer Varney Sep 12, 2022, Dec 1, 2022, B., Nov 15, 2022, B., & Nov 14, 2022, B. (n.d.).10 qualities of a good leader. Southern New Hampshire University. Retrieved December20, 2022, from https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/business/qualities-of-a-good-leader

BUS-FPX3007-Leadership- Application Questionnaire- Assessment 1

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