Developing an Evaluation Plan
Developing an Evaluation Plan
An evaluation plan of the proposed solution is important in the sense that it helps to evaluate the extent to which the proposed solution addresses the problems in question. In order to carry out this assessment, various methods and variables are taken into account, as long as they have a direct relationship with the proposed solution. They must be related directly to the outcomes of the project to make them relevant and effective as an instrument of assessing the success of the proposed solution. In this case, the proposed solution is the implementation of collaborative or participatory leadership in which all, the stakeholders have equal power and influence regarding the strategies and decisions made in the organization Wikström & Dellve, 2009).
Methods
The first method is to obtain the turnover rates of the identified stakeholder groups. These rates should be obtained and compared to the rate of turnover prior to the implementation of the proposed solution. For instance, healthcare leadership has a direct relationship with the manner level of employee motivation and their willingness to stay in the healthcare profession. As such, the nature of leadership had a certain impact on the employees, which encouraged them to leave or stay the profession. In a case where it was high, then it is highly likely that the leadership failed in this context Wikström & Dellve, 2009). As such, the proposed solution has to work in a way that it lowers the rate of stakeholder turnover, of which the employees are an important segment.
Other stakeholder groups include shareholders, board members, partners, medical suppliers, creditors, and facilitators. Comparing the rate of turnover gives a clear picture of the effectiveness of the proposed solution such that a reduction in turnover rates implies that collaborative leadership has changed the perception of the stakeholders. On the other hand, an increase or maintenance of the same rates of turnover means that the proposed change has not taken the desired effect and that the organization is in more or less the same position that it was.
Another method is to issue out questionnaires to different patients and assess their attitude or change in attitude following the implementation of the proposed solution. Initially, the nature of healthcare leadership and the challenges that came with it imply that there were a low-quality services rendered to the patient and they were not willing to be a part of the healthcare system. A majority of them is dissatisfied by the lack of attention and quality (Leigh, Rutherford, Wild, Cappleman, & Hynes, 2012). The questionnaires will assess the changes in the attitudes of the patients and the manner in which they perceive the healthcare system before and after the implementation of the proposed solution.
In the provision of healthcare services, the attitude of the patients and the comments they give regarding health organizations tells much about the nature of leadership and its effectiveness. Following the change, patients should be in a position to give a genuine positive opinion about the healthcare system without undue influence and coercion. In this light, the questionnaires will be sent to the sample respondents and their feedback assessed after the exercise. The essence of posting these questionnaires is to ensure that they are in a position to give their honest opinion without favor or fear that the interviewer may have other hidden motifs. These opinions will be compared with the opinion of the patients in the previous years before the change took place.
Variables
The first variables to be assessed in this context is the attitude of the stakeholders. Attitude and perception go hand in hand. Perception refers to the opinion they have on the organizational leadership following the implementation of the change. Attitude can be assessed and evaluated based on the willingness of the stakeholders to work with the healthcare leaders in light of the proposed solution (McMurray et al., 2012). For instance, the stakeholders were unwilling to attend the sessions they were invited to because they felt that the leaders did not take their interests and opinions into account. As such, they felt there was little need to take part in the organizational activities. However, the implementation of the proposed collaborative leadership should make them aware of the need for them to take part in leadership and the willingness of the leaders to institute the proposed changes. In a case where they are willing, the stakeholders have a positive perception of the leadership and they believe that it is ready to consider their interests.
On the other hand, it is also important to consider the perceptions of the leaders given that they are the ones instituting the change. The leaders should give an account of the changes they have made and the changes that they can identify after the adoption of a new style of leadership (Block & Manning, 2007). They should also cite any challenges that undermine the outcomes of the project, which make it difficult for the organization to function in light of the new systems. These achievements and challenges can be compared to the initial situation that led to the challenges in healthcare and assess the effectiveness of project outcomes in addressing these challenges.
References
Block, L. A., & Manning, L. J. (2007). A systemic approach to developing frontline leaders in healthcare. Leadership in Health Services. doi:10.1108/17511870710745420
Leigh, J. A., Rutherford, J., Wild, J., Cappleman, J., & Hynes, C. (0). Using the patchwork text assessment as a vehicle for evaluating students’ perceptions of their clinical leadership development. Nurse Education in Practice. doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2011.05.006
McMurray, A. M., Henly, D., Chaboyer, W., Clapton, J., Lizzio, A., & Teml, M. (2012). Leadership succession management in a university health faculty. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management. doi:10.1080/1360080X.2012.689198
Wikström, E., & Dellve, L. (2009). Contemporary leadership in healthcare organizations : Fragmented or concurrent leadership. Journal of Health Organisation and Management. doi:10.1108/14777260910979308
