The Effects of Turnover on Interim LeadershipÂ
Turnover has been a problem in a variety of industries for quite a while. And it’s one that leaders and managers have been trying to solve for just as long. Of course, the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic and the way it spurred even more turnover only made things worse (we’ll learn more about that in a moment). If your employees are leaving in record numbers and you’re starting to see the impact of that on your business’s bottom line – you need to do something to stem the tide.
Workforce turnover in healthcare – from CNAs and RNs all the way to department managers and C-suite leaders – is something that needs to be addressed in many facilities, from large hospital networks to smaller clinics. One way to do that is through the power of interim leadership, and the lessons we can learn from the healthcare industry apply across the board to a wide swath of companies in multiple industries.
Let’s examine why turnover in the workforce is such a problem and how it affects companies of all shapes and sizes. We’ll also take a look at the way the pandemic made things worse, both in healthcare and other industries. Finally, we’ll discuss how interim leadership is a great way to reduce turnover and get things back on track.
The Negative Effects of Workforce Turnover
Employee turnover has a very real and direct effect on a company’s productivity and profitability. It’s about a lot more than just needing to fill open roles more frequently. When turnover becomes a problem for your organization, you will start to see impacts like:
Lower Quality of Service
When your workforce is comprised of inexperienced or inadequately trained employees due to more experienced and trained employees leaving frequently, the quality of your product or service starts to deteriorate. Plus, new employees won’t be as familiar with company policies and procedures, leaving the door open for more potential problems. Over time, satisfaction with your organization will drop – you could even start to develop a reputation as a company who doesn’t stack up with your competition, or a company to avoid entirely.
Lower Workplace Morale
When turnover rates are high, employees who do stick around start to get burnt out because of increased workloads and more responsibilities. Furthermore, new employees have a harder time getting up to speed because there are fewer experienced people around to serve as mentors. This means that both new and tenured employees are struggling – that’s a quick way for morale at your company to sink. This can be a vicious cycle resulting in an even higher turnover rate, which makes it ever more difficult to turn things around.
Reduced Revenue and ROI
Your products or services are drop in quality; your employees aren’t happy and therefor not giving it their all. This results in a lower return on investment and lower revenue figures overall, even when marketing and advertising expenses are maintained.
Clearly, turnover can be a real problem. Interim leadership is a great solution. Temporary leadership is often used when an organization is undergoing a shortage, especially if a manager or leader has been let go or if there is a planned absence such as family leave. So, why is this type of leadership so effective?
The Benefits of Using Interim Leadership
Organizations of all types can’t function properly without the right leadership. Whether it’s C-suite executives or department heads, the people who steer the ship are the ones whose responsibility it is to address issues like turnover.
Interim leaders assess problems quickly.
One superpower of an interim leader is their ability to assess an organization’s problems quickly and understand the breadth and scope of those problems. Interim leaders have years of experience at the highest levels, meaning they’re well-versed in the common problems organizations face – including rampant turnover.
Interim leaders keep operational objectives on track.
Once an organization’s needs have been assessed, interim leaders are experts at developing action plans to keep organizational goals on track. From the top down, these individuals are able to put actionable strategies in place quickly in order to keep teams, departments, and entire organizations on the right path.
Interim leaders improve staff morale.
Low staff morale is one of the major impacts of high turnover – and interim leaders are experienced in improving it. For one, simply having a leader in place is a great boost to morale. Secondly, interim leaders are experienced at turning around company cultures and office environments in order to help employees love their jobs again.
How COVID Furthered the Need for Interim Leadership in Healthcare
If you’ve paid attention to the news at all in the past few years, you know that turnover became an even bigger problem in healthcare thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to 2020, C-suite leaders were facing challenges like rising costs, patient safety, cybersecurity issues, data privacy concerns, and more. Those problems didn’t evaporate when the pandemic hit. They’re still around now – but high employee turnover is just adding to the list.
With increased levels of burnout due to off-the-chart patient volume, increased patient loss, and societal and cultural pressures, an incredibly high number of healthcare workers left the field in the pandemic years. Interim healthcare leadership served as a solution to maintain quality care teams and improve profit margins during a particularly difficult time – and it proved once and for all the great impact these individuals can have on an organization’s leadership structure.
We may be through the pandemic’s peak years – but that doesn’t mean its impacts aren’t still felt in the world of healthcare. Healthcare professionals including those in leadership roles are still leaving the field, and it’s safe to say that interim leadership will continue to serve as one of the best solution to the problem. But it’s not as simple as snapping your fingers and finding the right interim leader to solve your organization’s issues.
Another effect of high employee turnover rates and the pandemic on interim leadership in healthcare? Many professional interim leaders (those who focus solely on interim roles) have decided to settle with one facility, taking on long-term or permanent roles with healthcare networks and hospital organizations rather than continuing their career as an interim leader. This has further depleted the pool of qualified interim healthcare leaders, making it even harder for organizations to find the qualified leadership they need.
Reduce Employee Turnover Through Interim Leadership
Whether it’s a healthcare organization or any other type of company or business, having the right people in leadership roles is essential. Interim leaders are leadership experts with experience running large corporations at a high level – they’re just the kind of people you need in your corner when your organization is facing a turnover crisis.
Finding interim leaders in the world of healthcare and other industries is more difficult than ever before. And thanks to the effects of the pandemic, many who worked as interim leaders professionally have decided to take on more permanent roles, making it even harder. So, if you’re in need of an interim leader at your company, what are you supposed to do? That’s where the Merraine Group® comes in.
Trust Merraine Group® for Your Interim Healthcare Leadership Needs
Merraine Group® is a healthcare executive search firm that specializes in finding C-suite executives and other leadership and management professionals for your organization. When you need an interim leadership professional to reduce turnover and improve staff morale at your company, reach out to the executive search firm you can trust!
Our executive search recruiters are committed to delivering only the best healthcare leaders for your open roles. We use aggressive research and sophisticated profiling techniques – based on proven behavioral models and field-tested over the past decade – to find you the people you need, quickly and efficiently.
Ready to get started on your search for an interim leader? Get in touch with the team at Merraine Group® to learn more about what we can offer. We look forward to fulfilling your healthcare executive search needs.