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Children’s Hospital Boston’s Finance Department is making a concerted effort to keep its team of more than 200 people feeling connected to one another and the hospital’s mission. And they’re doing it with creative flair, through a combination of communication and philanthropy.
Finance’s Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), David Kirshner, has long recognized that it would take a combination of efforts for his large group to feel like a team. Spurred by the most recent employee survey and inspired by the hospital’s Time to Be Bold campaign, his department formed the Finance Workplace of Choice (WOC) committee. It focused, in part, on finding ways for the department to feel in touch with Children’s mission. “The goal was to make it possible for the entire Finance team to feel like they’re part of the way we deliver care to the kids and the way our scientists are discovering cures,” says Kirshner. The committee’s first order of business was to address the need for better communication within the department. Thus, the idea for an e-newsletter was born, and the group put a plan in place to work out the logistics.
This summer, the committee proudly launched its first issue. Initially created as a way for team members to get to know each other through profiles and stories about individuals’ efforts, the e-newsletter has morphed into a vehicle to introduce the rest of the Children’s community to the members of the finance team, since it contains staff photos and videos, and is available on the intranet. “It’s an introduction to the Finance community,” says committee member Cheryl Coulombe, patient financial services manager and 26-year veteran of Children’s. “Finance isn’t just about ‘Where’s the invoice?” says Deborah Jenkins, HR generalist and committee co-facilitator. Future issues will spotlight exceptional employees and department activities.
Another way the department stays in touch is through monthly CFO breakfasts. In groups of 10, the team shares ideas on how the group can run more effectively, and voices concerns they may have. Kirshner sees it as a wonderful way to hear what’s on team members’ minds and for everyone to get to know each other. Issues raised at these meetings have ranged from the need for more effective staff mentoring to a desire for tours of the hospital. To date, he’s breakfasted with 80 percent of his staff. “Everybody agrees that we can’t communicate enough, and if we make it engaging and personal that really helps,” Kirshner says.
Not only is the Finance group eager to connect with each other and Kirshner, they also want to connect with people in need. So the WOC committee started a new project called “Finance Gives Back.” Recently, they ran a department-wide drive to benefit The Greater Boston Food Bank. Their enthusiasm was evidenced by the 25 boxes—more than 400 pounds—of food they collected for the charity. “It’s wonderful that people were so engaged in this,” says Jenkins, who helped to run the event. “People want to do it again!”
After the success of the food drive, the team was inspired to do more. They collaborated with Patient Care Services to prepare meals for the families staying at the Devon Nicole House and Yawkey Family Inn. On October 6, members from the two groups prepared a home-cooked meal for the families at Devon Nicole House. Patient Care Services and Finance plan to hold more such events in the future. And they hope that other areas of the hospital will be inspired to do similar volunteer work, since they’ve found it to be a great way to get to know each other and patient families. Kirshner has found that the partnership has fostered an appreciation for what the other department does.
He’s also found that the homegrown efforts have been paying off. “The greatest part that we’ve learned about workplace of choice is that the best ideas come from our staff,” he says.
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