We recently sat down with Nancy Nagdeman, TeamHealth Vice President, Human Resources and champion of our Women in Leadership (WIL) program about the current state and future state of WIL.
TeamHealth: What is Women in Leadership?
Nagdeman: The Women in Leadership program was launched in 2016 to support the recruitment, development, and retention of women leaders within TeamHealth. Creating a mentorship program, providing networking and professional development opportunities and establishing metrics to monitor our effectiveness are just some of the goals of the program. Through the creation and development of WIL, TeamHealth helps promote a community of continuous learning, encouragement of female leaders and promotion of diversity in the workplace.
TeamHealth: Who can join?
Nagdeman: I think that is an important distinction in that we want to encourage anyone whether they’re currently in a leadership position or aspire to be in one, that they’re welcome to join. In addition, there is no restriction on gender, so we have males, in fact some of our executive male leaders that participate and attend some of our key events. We think this is great.
TeamHealth: Why should women, and men, who work for TeamHealth join the Women in Leadership program?
Nagdeman: Our intent is through our committee work, to focus on three key areas that anyone could benefit from, for example having timely, relevant topics related to career development. The second one is mentorship. We currently have a small formal mentoring program. Really, we want to promote organic mentorship by providing a framework where you can seek someone out to be a mentor and/or offer to be someone’s mentor. And then we also have a work/life balance committee, we know how timely that is from a standpoint of resiliency and avoiding burnout. We want to learn from each other and support one another with this issue.
TeamHealth: What can a clinician or non-clinical associate do to get involved?
Nagdeman: If you have interest, email us at womeninleadership@teamhealth.com or join our Zenith channel. Requesting to join our Zenith channel is the easiest way to get connected with the group. You will be able to connect and interact with others in TeamHealth as well as find ways to get involved.
On the topic of involvement, one of our goals for this next year is to have more regional activities. So, for example, employees at D&Y are starting their own Women in Leadership chapter. Local groups provide a chance for people to get together and network or connect on topics important to them.
TeamHealth: What are some exciting new opportunities or initiatives in the WIL program that we can look forward to seeing in 2019?
Nagdeman: We will continue to measure and monitor our progress in the recruitment and retention of female leaders. I do think that local involvement will be another key area as well as our expanded mentorship program. We want to create an opportunity for people to develop professional networks and share experiences in order to learn and support one another.
TeamHealth: Where would you like to see the WIL program in 10 years, and what steps will be taken to get there?
Nagdeman: WIL was our initial first step in a journey to evolve into a broader program focused on diversity. I think because the level of visibility we’re bringing to this topic, gender equality, diversity and inclusion are becoming more front-of-mind issues and we want to increase that awareness throughout the company.
For more information on TeamHealth’s Women in Leadership program, visit our Women in Leadership page for the latest updates, webinars, meetings, opportunities and more.