Becker's Hospital Review

16 CEO / STRATEGY Tufts Medicine CEO leads with active listening By Madeline Ashley I n a post-pandemic world, Boston-based Tufts Medicine CEO Michael Dandorph acknowledged that change is a hard, but important, part of growth. To Mr. Dandorph, growth means not only working to get the health system in a financially healthier spot, but to invest in Tufts employees through active listening and engagement. Becker's connected with Mr. Dandorph to learn more about his leadership style and lessons learned during his time in healthcare. Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length. Question: What is something about you and your working style that people should know if they were to work closely with you? Michael Dandorph: I try to be a very active listener. I don't pretend that I know it all. I really like to engage with the teams that are executing and hear from them. I try to spend most of my time really trying to listen and learn from the experts in the industry. We just have a great team. People are attracted to healthcare with a deep passion. That's probably my primary focus. Q: What personal standard do you hold yourself to, and how does it influence your daily decision-making and interactions with your team? MD: For me, it always comes back to "why are we here." A lot of organizations talk about being patient centric. I've shifted that nomenclature to we're really here to treat the consumer. We have the privilege of taking care of people during their most vulnerable times, but it's not just that individual. It's their family, it's the community that surrounds them. We can't ever lose sight of why we're here. It's what excites people. We underscore that at every moment we can. Q: Can you share a leadership lesson that you only truly understood after experiencing it firsthand? MD: The first thing that comes to mind is how hard change is for all of us. COVID showed that we can do things really quickly and break down bureaucracy, but post-COVID, change is hard. People carry a lot of things with them. While we're trying to make the organization and the ecosystem better, it does require a lot of change, and that requires a lot of communication. So I think probably the hardest lesson is how hard change really is, even when it's positive change. n 'Challenge the status quo': What CEOs want to pass down By Kristin Kuchno L eadership, confidence and accountability have been among the most prominent topics of advice from retiring and long- tenured CEOs. Here is what four healthcare CEOs want to pass down to future leaders. 1. "Have courage to look at what we have to do differently." Rod Hochman, MD, CEO of Renton, Wash.-based Providence will retire at the end of the year aer 45 years in healthcare and nearly 20 years with Providence. He also encouraged the next generation of leaders to "be bold enough to look at new things, challenge the status quo to change healthcare, and keep focused on the fact that we serve people and communities every day." 2. Find a mentor and believe in yourself. Christine Schuster, who has served as president and CEO of Concord, Mass.-based Emerson Health for 19 years, is the longest- serving healthcare leader in the state. For women striving to become healthcare CEOs, she told Becker's self-confidence is key. "You have to believe you can do it," she said. "You're going to hit a lot of obstacles on the way. Regroup, find a mentor and really work toward achieving your goals." 3. Leaders determine culture. omas Priselac, who has served as president and CEO of Cedars- Sinai Health System in Los Angeles for 30 years, will retire in October. "Always remember that the leaders of the organization play a critical role in determining the culture of the institution, and in that regard, it's critically important that the leaders of the organization focus on making sure the values of the institution come to life," he said. "And they do that by virtue of the decisions they make and the messages and messaging that the organization undertakes." 4. In a victim mindset? Do this instead. Rob Allen, president and CEO of Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Health, wrote in a July LinkedIn post that a victim mindset creates immobility for the leader and those who follow them. Mr. Allen served as CEO of two other hospitals earlier in his career and has led Intermountain since 2022. He said those who are tempted to feel like a victim should become problem solvers and focus on motivation instead of limitation. "Leading healthcare can be difficult," he wrote. "We continually face critical decisions. But the challenges don't need to negatively influence our mindset. As leaders, we can choose to rise above, take responsibility for our actions and the actions of others, and choose to lead." n

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