So what does the landscape look like?
- Consumers are overwhelmed by the current demands …
- The consumerization of software (BYOD devices and apps) has created infinite demand and high expectations.
- It’s increasingly difficult to balance supply and demand for IT.
- Big change management projects in IT are hard on users …
- … the agenda of most IT departments has been co-opted by federal programs and the users are no longer willing to wait.
Cheery stuff, made even more disturbing since it comes from one of the most optimistic guys on the planet. Of course, John Halamka, MD, CIO at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, isn’t forlorn (I think that’s impossible), he’s merely describing the existing reality of CIO life. No matter how grim, he’ll chart the best course for his organization to move forward. “Things may be very tough, but here is what we need to do,” he might say.
As I read the column above, I remembered the tag line on Dave Miller’s emails (Former Vice Chancellor for IT/CIO at University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, now CIO at Optimum Healthcare IT). It read: “In tranquillo esse quisque gubernator potest.” (In a calm sea anyone can be the helmsman.) — Publilius Syrus
Well, today’s healthcare IT environment — and thus the world its CIOs must live in — represents no calm sea. But while we can lament the pain of the situation, a better approach is to appreciate (and take heart in the fact) that no one can distinguish themselves in a calm sea. No salty dogs sit around a hearth in their old age and reminisce about, “The time everything was tranquil and we didn’t see a cloud in the sky.” One cannot make one’s reputation in such weather. As Wilbur Wright observed, “No bird soars in a calm.”
So you are in the thick of it; the sea is stormy, you are working 12 hours a day, five days a week, not to mention checking email every 10 minutes almost around the clock. You have worked so hard to reach the CIO role and you don’t want to lose it, but the stress is eating you up and you’re not sure how much longer you can stand it.
While the tendency may be to work harder and longer, you know that the ROI on that plan gets worse and worse. Better to set yourself a realistic schedule with time to recover, rehydrate, eat and spend time with family. Better to realize you are in a marathon and act accordingly rather that pretend you’re in a sprint. When experienced folks run long distances, they pace themselves, take drinks along the way and do not go all out, all the time. Runners know such a plan would be foolishness.
First off, take care of thyself, then take care of thy others on the team, for if you are burning yourself out, there is a very good chance they are learning from your example. You, as the leader, must force them to take on the deliberate marathon runners’ pace, even if you cannot manage to slow that much yourself. Sarah Richardson gave a great example of this when she wrote about having “vacation planning sessions” where leaders can make sure their team is taking some time away.
I was so inspired by that message, I suggested Nancy turn a “working vacation” (as in, “I’ll check my emails”) to a bona fide “tuned out and unplugged one.” She needed it, and it was my job to make sure she took it.
So take solace in the fact that, as Halamka notes above, it is a storm you are in, but also appreciate that to survive you must take on the proper pacing — it is going to be a very long one. Then, as I’m sure he will do, strive not to make the perfect plan or accomplish everything, but instead, appreciate the finiteness of the resources at your disposal and within yourself. After that, take the helm with confidence, calmness and stoic indifference to best whatever comes your way.
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