High-Maintenance Executives: Hold ’Em Or Fold ’Em? by Ralph Dipisa Partner, Phillips Dipisa

High-Maintenance Executives: Hold ’Em or Fold ’Em? By Ralph DiPisa Partner, Phillips DiPisa

hen the New England Patriots acquired What is a high-maintenance executive? controversial wide receiver Randy Moss The term “high maintenance” (HM) can mean in a 2007 trade with the Minnesota different things to different people and can play out Vikings,W many people (myself included) considered at all levels of an organization. Some people have this an extremely bad decision. a tendency to be disruptive; some create problems At the time, Moss was known as a loud, self- by the way they interact with peers; others require centered troublemaker who had more than his an unusually large amount of time and oversight by share of problems, both on and off the field. He their superiors. was unquestionably a gifted football player, and For the purposes of this article, however, we’ll be yet it was shocking to think that head coach Bill focusing on a particular flavor of HM employee – Belichick would risk disrupting his three-time the senior-level manager or executive who possesses Super Bowl winning formula by introducing the a much needed but hard to find skill or experience, “high maintenance” Moss into his roster. and yet whose work style and/or personality have Of course, we all know the potential to cause significant disruption in your what happened. Moss organization. The Randy Mosses of the world, if broke the NFL record you will. for most touchdown Consider the example of Paul, a bright, efficient, receptions in a single CFO at a mid-sized hospital. He was skilled in season (23), and the many areas and an absolute master at negotiating Patriots made it all the favorable contracts and collecting money – an way to the Super Bowl, area in which the hospital desperately needed going undefeated that improvement at the time of his hire. But he was year. As importantly, a human train wreck when it came to getting somewhere along the along with other people. It seems the same traits way, Randy Moss had that made him so good at collecting money – been transformed into demanding, single-minded, bottom-line oriented – a model player and sent his coworkers running for cover. teammate. Ralph DiPisa And that, in a nutshell, is the dilemma. These Which brings us to people have the skills and track record to produce today’s topic: High- the results you need, and it’s only because Maintenance Executives. More specifically… Are these traits are so hard to find in “less difficult” they worth hiring? How should you manage them? job candidates or existing members of your Can you “change” them?” Read on for our take on management team, that you’re willing to even the challenges…and the opportunities. consider hiring them.

Phillips DiPisa recruits leaders for healthcare organizations along the East Coast and throughout the Midwest. This article is part of a continuing series. Don’t tough economic times eliminate the need to bother with HM executives? With so many good candidates out there looking for work, shouldn’t we have more to choose from and, therefore, less need to even deal with these types of people? It’s a reasonable question, but in our experience, the answer is “no.” First of all, we’re talking about very specific sets of skills – e.g. implementing a new revenue maximization and contract negotiation initiative; identifying and eliminating emergency department inefficiencies; reducing staff and supply overhead. More people in the job Randy Moss, a high-maintenance recruit. market doesn’t necessarily create more experience specific reason: to get the support staff and know-how in these highly specific areas. operating efficiently again. At the time Secondly, when the economy is tight, the problems of her hire, the hospital was experiencing that these people are capable of fixing become that problems with productivity, waste, security, much more critical. In particular, issues relating and employee theft. Joan had a reputation to profitability, efficiency, staffing, and cost rise as a tough, “take no prisoners” manager who to the top when times are tough. Under these ran a tight ship – something we discussed circumstances, dealing with the negatives of an frankly with the hospital’s CEO. We knew HM executive may seem less important if he/she that in all likelihood she would step on can bring immediate change in a needed area. plenty of toes in the course of turning the support services ship around. “Each situation and individual Sure enough, she was everything we expected she would be – both good and bad. comes with a unique set of pros, Over the course of Joan’s five-year stint, the numbers got better, and the hospital was cons, and challenges.” able to steer clear of the financial precipice Are HM executives worth it, and if so, how do we it had been approaching. She did exactly manage the process? what was needed. On the question of whether or not hiring a Unfortunately, her toughness often crossed particular HM executive is worth it, the answer the line into nastiness and overt disrespect, is… it depends. Each situation and individual a problem that grew more pronounced over comes with a unique set of pros, cons, and time. Employee turnover began to rise challenges. Fortunately, there are intelligent and there was talk among support staff of ways to manage both the hire/don’t hire decision, unionization, two things which ultimately as well as the executive himself/herself once on led to her demise and senior management’s board. need to move her out. Here are four recommendations: Was the decision to hire Joan a good one? 1. Know what problem you’re trying to solve. We think so. She got the job done, and thanks to the CEO’s clear understanding When we brought Joan in as VP of Support of why she was there, she was never given Services at a large hospital, it was for one broader responsibilities within the hospital, a move which could have caused more she needs, you’re much more likely to get disruption more quickly. the results you’re looking for. 2. Become an active manager. 3. Keep your eye on the clock. Most of us are blind to our own weak Stephen was a high-profile, visionary spots, and HM executives are no cancer surgeon who literally travelled exception. Despite clear patterns over with an entourage. When our client the course of a career – patterns which brought him on as Chief of Cancer everyone who works with them can Services, it was for the express purpose usually see – it’s the rare HM individual of putting the oncology program on who’s consciously aware of his/her the map. However, despite his charm problem areas. and likability, Stephen was disruptive to the organization. He failed to show up for meetings, habitually overspent his “... the more you understand department’s budget, was often out ahead what drives them and the of the hospital’s planning, and spoke out on his own to the local press, just to offer clearer they are about what a few examples. So we knew from the beginning – as did you want (and what you won’t Stephen – that as circumstances changed (i.e., he produced the results the hospital tolerate), the more smoothly expected), it would be time for him to things will go for everyone.” move on to the next chapter of his high- flying career and for the hospital to take It’s imperative, therefore, to sit such a its gains and cut its losses. Consequently, person down at the very beginning of the the hospital built two things into the assignment and explain why they’re there, process from the beginning: what you expect from them, and how success will be measured. These people require more face time and feedback than most – especially at the beginning – and the more you understand what drives them and the clearer they are about what you want (and what you won’t tolerate), the more smoothly things will go for everyone. I have no doubt that Bill Belichick built a clear and tight box around Randy Moss during that first season. Finally, make sure to talk to the other members of your management team; they HM executives tend to operate outside the may very well question your decision mainstream culture of the organization. to hire someone who isn’t an easy fit. If the rest of your staff is on board with First, they established a “stop line.” In the necessity of the new HM hire and is other words, they set forth a clearly willing to give this person the support he/ defined list of objectives that when met would signify a time for a change. Without information. It’s not enough to know that “this this, Stephen’s winning personality and person can be difficult.” You need to know persuasiveness could have easily led to his when, why, and in exactly what way. That’s your overstaying his welcome – well beyond the only hope for making a rational and intelligent point where his disruptiveness outweighed the decision regarding whether or not, on balance, benefits of his stature. the HM hire is good for the organization. Second, and almost from the beginning, the Don’t be afraid to just walk away either. hospital began identifying and grooming Hospitals are extremely intertwined, team- Stephen’s successor. HM executives tend oriented institutions – more football team than to operate in their own world, outside the baseball. As sick as yours may be regarding a mainstream culture of the organization. As particular issue, you want to make sure the cure a result, they’re not typically good mentors; you bring on board isn’t worse than the disease. they don’t develop much of a bench behind them. By remaining proactive and Always a mixed bag. anticipating Stephen’s eventual departure, In the end, it’s important to keep in mind that the senior management ensured that when he left HM individual is not your typical “everybody feels he didn’t take with him all the knowledge, good” type of hire. The circumstances are usually dire relationships, and progress that had been (that’s usually why you’re even considering this type of realized. move), and in general, the greater the skills of a given HM executive, the more baggage they tend to carry 4. Hope for the best, but don’t expect a miracle. with them. High-maintenance people are always high The transformation of Randy Moss is already risk. the stuff of legend and an example of how All that said, it’s a mistake to simply dismiss these the right environment at the right time can people out of hand as not worth the trouble. Properly lead to greatness for everyone involved. But managed, with expectations clearly set and the lines for every Randy Moss, there are dozens of of communication kept open, HM executives may players like Ron Artest and Terrell Owens – bring solutions to your most critical and hard-to-fix HM players who don’t fit in for very long and problems. who always, eventually, outstay their welcome. There’s a reason these people are called high And who knows, with a little luck the two of you may maintenance. even end up at the Super Bowl. Before subjecting your staff and organization (To preserve confidentiality, the names in this article have been modified. In addition, some examples are composites of actual to an HM executive, therefore, you’ve got to individuals and experiences.) be extra diligent about beating the bushes for

As a partner of Phillips DiPisa, Ralph DiPisa conducts executive leadership searches for the firm’s healthcare clients. The former President and CEO of Quincy Medical Center, located in the Boston area, Mr. DiPisa possesses more than 20 years of management and leadership experience within healthcare settings. Phillips DiPisa 62 Derby Street, Hingham, MA 02043 Phone: 781-740-9699 Fax: 781-740-9064 PhillipsDiPisa.com