The IHI said sound leadership is essential to creating more workplace joy. The organization has developed four steps for leaders to follow to restore, foster and encourage joy:
Step 1: Ask staff members, “What matters to you?”
Instead of communicating information, leaders should commit to listening and learning from staff nurses to understand the following:
- What matters in your daily work?
- What makes a day good?
- What does a good day look like?
- What gets in the way of a good day?
The IHI white paper authors said nurse leaders should use their innate skills to help nurses.
“Ask the question, listen to the first response, and then allow for deeper reflection about initial comments. Be comfortable with silence; practice curiosity and inquiry to listen — not just to hear, but also to understand,” white paper authors said.
Step 2: Identify impediments to workplace satisfaction
While listening to nurses about what matters, healthcare leaders will also hear about the daily hindrances to satisfaction. Just like answers to the “What matters to you?” question will differ among individuals and departments, so will the impediments.
The white paper authors said everyone could benefit from the “what matters” conversation, even team members who complain but don’t work to find solutions. “What matters” leads to positive engagements, the authors found.
“Emphasizing a focus on what staff can do together to address the impediments using improvement-science methods and tools was vital for these teams. This led to previously negative members joining in as they developed hope that irritants in daily life would be addressed,” white paper authors wrote.
Step 3: Commit to making increased satisfaction a shared responsibility at all levels of the organization
Ultimately, workplace joy is the leaders’ responsibility. That means all leaders must dedicate time, attention, skills development and resources to improving workplace satisfaction.
“Improving joy in work is directly linked to the skills of leaders at all levels. Organizations cannot just delegate responsibility for joy in work to the Human Resources department; it is everyone’s job,” white paper authors said.
Step 4: Use scientific methods to test approaches to improved satisfaction
Using improvement science – a problem-solving approach that focuses on small measurable changes that address specific issues – leaders can determine if the changes are having the desired effect.
“The aim is to make the change process rewarding and effective. Using principles of improvement science, organizations can determine if the changes they test are leading to improvement; if they are effective in different programs, departments and clinics; and if they are sustainable,” paper authors wrote.