We're Growing! How We Maintain Team Quality
You may have noticed a few new names and faces popping up on our social media feeds recently… The team is growing, as are our coverage areas! We are excited to be introducing two new staff to the New Zealand team, as well as expanding into a new coverage area - Hamilton!
But with the increasing number of staff comes the risk of losing the ‘boutique’ feel of a smaller company, where people know each other's names, pets, and hobbies. Who wants to feel like ‘just another cog’ in the machine? No thank you! And just as it is important from a work satisfaction standpoint, we know that being a well-bonded team helps with our service provision too.
Introducing new staff into an environment that operates remotely and expecting them to find their feet is no easy feat (pun intended). We don’t have a fixed office or clinic and we like it that way, as it means that we are able to travel to see clients at locations that suit them! The downside is that we don’t get the privilege of being together under one roof, and it requires a bit of extra effort to keep the team connected and cohesive.
Being dedicated to consistently high service provision, as we are, we go above and beyond to keep our collection of fantastic EP’s working as a closely knit team.
Communication is Key
Thanks to the wonders of technology, it is as easy to connect with our international team mates as it is with our neighbours! Sometimes we forget that we are oceans apart when we see each other's face on Zoom several times per week. We have fortnightly team meetings for the company, Aus and NZ combined, to keep everyone on the same page with changes in the business, to whiteboard new ideas, troubleshoot problems and to celebrate successes (personal as well as professional!).
Learning Together
We also have roundtable discussions once a fortnight. These were introduced purely for the purpose of professional development. Each person comes into the team with different experience and skills that can be shared within the team, so that we learn and grow off each other. This is where we can discuss clients that we are having difficulty with, brainstorm solutions as a team and help support each other. This time may also be used for someone to facilitate an inservice for the team on a particular topic that they have been learning about. Both the team meetings and the roundtable meetings count as billable time for our contractors because we know the value that they offer, and how important it is that everyone is involved.
To maintain the team's social connection, all staff are welcome to join in the informal ‘watercooler chat’ every Monday morning - it’s half an hour of banter, chatting about the highlights of the weekend and discussing the outcome of any big sports comps.
Our Onboarding Process
There is always a lot to learn when starting at a new company - new processes, new expectations, and sometimes a completely new role! Our onboarding process is highly structured, using a cloud based system (SweetProcess) to ensure that all new staff are provided with the exact same information to get them up to speed.
We have also created clinical frameworks that provide structure and information around best practices when dealing with particular clinical conditions. All new EP’s are encouraged to review this information and make sure that they are equipped with the right knowledge when those referrals start coming their way! Of course, the team is right behind them and happy to answer any questions that they have along the way - we use ‘Slack’ or Gmail ‘Spaces’ for easy messaging across the team.
Bigger Team, Same Quality of Care
We are very excited to be able to expand our coverage zones, making it possible for more people to benefit from the support of a Specialised Health EP. And we are equally as excited to welcome our new EP’s into the team so that we can all learn, share, and grow together!
To make a referral to one of our awesome EP's, fill out our referral form online, or contact our admin team for inquiries.
Author: Yolanda van Vugt Clinical Exercise Physiologist and Content Creator at Specialised HealthLet’s connect, find us:
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