Becker's Hospital Review

26 CEO / STRATEGY Meet this Texas system's first dual CEO, physician By Madeline Ashley A s Bellaire, Texas-based Harris Health System's first dual physician, president and CEO in the organization's more than 60 years, Esmaeil Porsa, MD, has made it his mission over the last four years in his role to instill something that he says is the largest challenge currently facing the healthcare industry: trust. "ere is so much misinformation about what is real, about science, about the role of health care in our society and the role that the government should play in this dynamic," Dr. Porsa told Becker's. "e politicization of healthcare and science as a whole is a terrible thing to witness." To combat this challenge, Dr. Porsa began holding quarterly town hall sessions in the county that Harris Health serves around a year and a half ago, in an effort to provide the community with healthcare updates and to listen to any concerns they might have. "I conduct the town halls myself; I attend every one of the town halls," Dr. Porsa said. "We hear from [the community] about their hopes, their expectations, what matters to them, and how we can better serve in our community." Dr. Porsa also started an initiative he calls "leading with love" a few years ago to improve trust with employees. e initiative began with Dr. Porsa's direct reports and system leaders, but has since expanded to quarterly meetings wherein Dr. Porsa leads sessions for the health system's leaders to gather and talk about implementing love into the workplace. "I'm talking about love in terms of vulnerability, empowerment, inclusion, things of that nature," he said. "rough that, I'm hoping that we can expand the psychological safety and trust within the organization." Apart from the initiatives, Dr. Porsa's innate and dual understanding of what it means to be both an organizational leader and a practicing provider since 1993 has helped him connect with employees on a more personal level. It's also been useful when connecting with leaders at the two medical schools that Harris Health partners with, Houston-based Baylor College of Medicine and McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. "e conversations are just so much easier because they know that I understand what they are telling me, not just at the level of a hospital operator, but at the level of a physician," he said. When asked what three qualities a health system CEO should possess to be a strong leader, Dr. Porsa said humility, commitment to excellence and celebrating failures, and loving what you do and why you do it. "Empowering others to do what they have been entrusted to doing is of the utmost importance," he said. "Without this quality, a system may succeed for a time, but systems that are led by less than humble leaders will inevitably stumble when warnings are not articulated and ideas remain dormant when a leader sucks the air out of the room." n 5 big points of tension for CEOs By Molly Gamble C EOs are regularly faced with decisions that require the balancing of outcomes and managing trade-offs. These decision points typically center around one or more of five key dilemmas. McKinsey pinpointed the five central dilemmas from discussions with CEOs across industries and its assessment of leadership performance. Find the full article exploring each dilemma in greater depth here. The primary tensions, which leaders may encounter simultaneously, are: 1. Preserving the core v. innovating for the future. Preserving the core and future-proofing of companies can often feel like conflicting goals, with CEOs left to manage the balance between sustaining today and building for tomorrow and all of the results, consensus- building and prioritization that comes with it. 2. Delivering short-term results in the face of volatility v. investing in long-term performance. While CEOs strive to act in the company's long-term best interests, they frequently encounter conflicting opinions from the board and other stakeholders. They may feel pressured to boost short-term value in ways that could undermine long-term success. 3. Managing a team of individual stars v. maximizing a star team. Several CEOs mentioned struggling with managing individual star performers who, despite delivering strong results, did not collaborate effectively with the top team. Some CEOs also highlighted a related point of tension in finding the right balance between long-tenured, loyal employees and new hires who possess the skills needed for transformation but may not fully align with the company's values. 4. Empowering the team to make critical decisions v. maintaining sole control of outcomes. CEOs are ultimately responsible for company outcomes and may, therefore, be hesitant to relinquish control. McKinsey notes that deciding how and where to cede control can be an ongoing challenge for CEOs, even for those with longer tenures. 5. Immersing fully into the CEO role v. retaining personal identity and sense of purpose. Most leaders aim to perform at their highest level, which takes significant focus, commitment and resilience. However, CEOs also shared with McKinsey that balancing professional demands with a personal life is an ongoing challenge. Additionally, they face some tension in integrating their personal identity, values, and sense of purpose into their role rather than conforming to stereotypical expectations of a CEO. n

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