I was talking with Monecia Thomas, the director of the Management Academy for Public Health, about recruitment for the program. She and the program coordinator, Nancy Cripps, have been working hard contacting teams that have expressed interest and urging them to submit applications. All are due at the end of May, but because it is a competitive process, the earlier the better!
We know that funds are tight right now, but I’m going to lay out a few reasons this is actually the perfect time to come to the Management Academy.
1. The economy may get worse, and the skills you gain at the Management Academy will see you through the rough patches. It will help you manage your people and resources more efficiently and effectively; it will maximize your connection with the larger community of individuals and organizations interested in the public’s health; it will give you the means to bring money in to your organization that is not tied to political or grant makers’ priorities. The external evaluation of our pilot phase indicated that public health agencies had garnered $6 million in revenue from training that had cost $2 million to provide. And that was back in 1999-2002: we’ve had hundreds more students since then, all of whom have written, and many of whom have implemented successful business plans for revenue-generating public health projects. Imagine what the next large evaluation study may show!
2. The political environment is changing. All signs point to a greater willingness of the new administration to put federal monies towards health care and public health priorities in the coming years. Already Congress and President-Elect Obama are preparing to renew the bill that provides health insurance for low-income children. Also, insurance for legal immigrants under 21 may be added back into the bill, after having been cut more than a decade ago. As public health managers, you can be at the forefront of this new era. Expertise in building strategic partnerships, managing data to make the best case for your priorities, and managing money to support shifting emphases will all help you.
3. The workforce is changing. It has to: we must bring in new public health professionals and management to fill the void that will be created as today’s public health workforce retires. How better to groom that promising middle manager for a leadership role than to teach him or her strategies for managing money, people, and information? Do they know how to delegate tasks? Do they know how to read a budget? Do they know how best to communicate in written work or oral presentations?
Public Health Business Planning: A Practical Guide is about one small part of the Management Academy for Public Health. Call Nancy Cripps at (919) 966-2248 or Monecia Thomas at (919)843-8541 to learn more about the rest of the program.
-- Anne Menkens
Showing posts with label adult learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adult learning. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Succession Planning 2
One of the corollaries of Anne's last post on succession planning in government is this: there is lots of talent in your town or your region that would improve your organization. Where are you looking for your next manager hire?
The default thought might be to find a public health graduate program, of course. But the next person hired as a manager in local public health is probably not coming straight out of a school of public health.
I talk to health directors frequently, at trainings and at national meetings. Even if you are lucky enough to be located near a big school of public health (and most aren't) you will find it hard to recruit graduates of those programs to do community-level health work. Most of the MPH grad students I run into in Chapel Hill, for instance, are aiming for jobs in healthcare, or policy jobs in DC, or international work, or research, or teaching.
Luckily, public health has room for talented managers from all kinds of different educational backgrounds. Great, hard-working, public-spirited managers in your town may be waiting for your call. Certainly there are folks out there who could help you do some of the things you need to do: assess the community, assure quality and access, develop policies to create more. Local knowledge is kind of an important selling point, actually.
Our book is based on the idea that government and non-profit organizations are trying to learn best practices around planning and efficiency and quality from other sectors. Recruiting is a powerful way to help your organization learn. So I would argue that recruiting from outside is actually important-- not just something to settle for.
Yes, these new hires will need to be oriented to population health and trained in that perspective. Again, lots of adult education resources and programs are available to help you do that--including some that are entirely on-line.
The default thought might be to find a public health graduate program, of course. But the next person hired as a manager in local public health is probably not coming straight out of a school of public health.
I talk to health directors frequently, at trainings and at national meetings. Even if you are lucky enough to be located near a big school of public health (and most aren't) you will find it hard to recruit graduates of those programs to do community-level health work. Most of the MPH grad students I run into in Chapel Hill, for instance, are aiming for jobs in healthcare, or policy jobs in DC, or international work, or research, or teaching.
Luckily, public health has room for talented managers from all kinds of different educational backgrounds. Great, hard-working, public-spirited managers in your town may be waiting for your call. Certainly there are folks out there who could help you do some of the things you need to do: assess the community, assure quality and access, develop policies to create more. Local knowledge is kind of an important selling point, actually.
Our book is based on the idea that government and non-profit organizations are trying to learn best practices around planning and efficiency and quality from other sectors. Recruiting is a powerful way to help your organization learn. So I would argue that recruiting from outside is actually important-- not just something to settle for.
Yes, these new hires will need to be oriented to population health and trained in that perspective. Again, lots of adult education resources and programs are available to help you do that--including some that are entirely on-line.
--Steve Orton
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Adult Learning
Adult learners, I salute you...
The Dean of the School of Public Health, Barbara Rimer, recently blogged about adult learners. She was responding to a recent New York Times article about why some people continue to develop and others seem to stop.
Dean Rimer writes, "I’ve had to work really hard to develop my quantitative skills, but the more I’ve used these skills, the easier it becomes. Many of us, particularly those of a certain age (read: well over 50), grew up thinking that if we weren’t a natural at something, we just couldn’t or shouldn’t do that thing."
Many public health leaders and managers I've met feel that they don't have business skills, that they aren't good with money and budgets. They aren't "naturals" at it. Many of them started in public health because they cared about people, not money or math.
I'm in that category myself-- I never figured to be in public health, and I never figured to have "director" in my title. I've come to believe that, in order to accomplish the things I want to accomplish, I need to keep learning new skills.
Those who decide to work on it, learn it. Sustained effort trumps talent. I remember a study about success in music: the predictive factor wasn't talent, it was the amount of time spent practicing (duh).
The vast majority of the roughly 1,000 people who have enrolled in the Management Academy for Public Health have never written a business plan before-- but all of the graduates wind up writing one. And our graduation rate is 94%! Adults can learn. You may learn by reading, or studying a mentor, or taking a class. Many adults learn by setting themselves a challenge to try something new (especially if it is something that is really important and relevant to their job).
Writing a business plan can be that challenge for you. If so I hope the book, and this blog, help you stay on track!
The Dean of the School of Public Health, Barbara Rimer, recently blogged about adult learners. She was responding to a recent New York Times article about why some people continue to develop and others seem to stop.
Dean Rimer writes, "I’ve had to work really hard to develop my quantitative skills, but the more I’ve used these skills, the easier it becomes. Many of us, particularly those of a certain age (read: well over 50), grew up thinking that if we weren’t a natural at something, we just couldn’t or shouldn’t do that thing."
Many public health leaders and managers I've met feel that they don't have business skills, that they aren't good with money and budgets. They aren't "naturals" at it. Many of them started in public health because they cared about people, not money or math.
I'm in that category myself-- I never figured to be in public health, and I never figured to have "director" in my title. I've come to believe that, in order to accomplish the things I want to accomplish, I need to keep learning new skills.
Those who decide to work on it, learn it. Sustained effort trumps talent. I remember a study about success in music: the predictive factor wasn't talent, it was the amount of time spent practicing (duh).
The vast majority of the roughly 1,000 people who have enrolled in the Management Academy for Public Health have never written a business plan before-- but all of the graduates wind up writing one. And our graduation rate is 94%! Adults can learn. You may learn by reading, or studying a mentor, or taking a class. Many adults learn by setting themselves a challenge to try something new (especially if it is something that is really important and relevant to their job).
Writing a business plan can be that challenge for you. If so I hope the book, and this blog, help you stay on track!
--Steve Orton
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