“Huddles, not just another meeting;” I wrote that when we started our twice a week IT leadership huddle in April. How true! And as of three weeks ago, we have another leadership huddle experiment in progress – the daily hospital leadership huddle. It is part of our developing lean Daily Management System.

Our Acting CEO and COO for the University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers, Tony Denton, runs the daily huddle. As Tony said in his initial communication, “The purpose of the leadership huddle is for senior leaders to have daily awareness of issues that may impede our ability to provide service. The leadership huddle is the “top tier” of a daily management system designed to surface issues and problems, assign leads for pro-active problem-solving efforts, examine trends and track progress. It is a key aspect of developing a more effective Michigan Operating System. If successful, we expect to see continuous improvement in our safety, quality, timeliness and financial results, and enhanced ability to deliver ideal patient and family care experiences through the engagement of our people.”

The value of these leadership huddles was clear the first week. Continue reading →