The Wright Stuff: Engagement survey = opportunity

A message to the WVU Medicine-WVU Hospitals family

I have always welcomed and valued feedback, whether it reaches me through an informal hallway conversation, at one of my “Breakfast with Albert” events, or in an email or other form of communication.

Listening to employees is an essential part of a strong organization, and I feel we do a good job of it at WVU Medicine.

That’s why I always strongly encourage every employee to participate in our engagement survey. The next one will debut Monday, July 9, and employees – system-wide – will have until Saturday, Aug. 4, to participate.

Your voices are heard – and we have the initiatives to prove it. Since the last survey two years ago, we have, because of your input:

• Started to develop a clinical advancement program, or “career ladder,” for nursing – This is vital because our nurses are such a big part of our employee pool. Developing their education and training is not only investment in them, but it’s an investment in our patients, who deserve the highest quality care. We are also in the process of integrating and aligning jobs and job titles across the system for consistency.
   
• Rolled out a Dependent Child Tuition Assistance Program – Certain eligible WVU Medicine employees will be reimbursed for the university tuition of their children who attend West Virginia University to obtain a four-year bachelor’s degree. We have also continued to encourage employees to take advantage of the reimbursements offered through the Employee Tuition Program. We’re always striving as individuals and an organization to get better, and education is a great path to improvement.
   
• Started an ongoing revamp of the Ruby Cafeteria – The space has a new look and feel, and we’ve made changes to the menu. By tweaking ingredients and purchasing new equipment, we can offer more nutritious meals. And we’re always keeping up with the latest trends and best practices.
   
• Addressed parking, one of the most discussed topics on our campus – We’re still in the planning stages of building two new employee parking garages, which should greatly alleviate the notoriously tight parking situation on campus. But we expect them to be completed by late 2019.
   
• Addressed the salary cap issue – To better reward our experienced employees, we addressed the salary cap issue. Employees who are paid at the maximum range in the market now receive an annual lump-sum bonus that is equal to the house-wide, across-the-board minimum pay increase.

And we’ve got an ongoing effort, through our Center for Education and Organizational Development, to develop and offer programs that enhance the skills and knowledge of our employees.

I enjoy hearing your opinions, whether they’re informally or formally expressed. But the survey is the best opportunity for leadership to hear your collective voice and gauge what is most important to the most employees. Your responses lead to action that only makes us better and stronger.