Successful CVO Managers Do These Seven Things

If you work in the Medical Staff Services (MSS) field, you’ve probably noticed the growing number of CVOs found in hospitals and health systems. This trend is only picking up speed, which means there are ample career opportunities for employees in the MSS field to participate in creating and managing a CVO within their organization. We recently sat down with Amanda Walker, CVO Manager at Legacy Health during our webinar, Evolving Careers: Learning from those who have focused in a specialty of Medical Staff Services (MSS), to better understand what it takes to manage a CVO. Read on for her valuable insight, guidance, and recommendations for success.

Have a Vision

Establish a goal, and stick to it. Pay close attention to what you’re doing and why, always making sure it’s in service of the overarching goal you've set. Managing a CVO has a lot of moving parts, so it’s important to make choices that most efficiently support the organization.

Plan & Prepare

Like most managerial roles, being a successful manager of a CVO entails a lot of planning, preparation, and determination. And of course, experience and adaptability. The more roles you take in the MSS field, the more knowledge you have to offer as a CVO manager; if something isn’t working, shift gears and try something new.

Accept Technology

If you have been resistant to technology, then we strongly encourage you to let that go. Bringing in technology will eliminate redundancies, improve efficiency, and allow team members to collaborate successfully. Having one centralized source of truth, like CredentialStream, can be all you need to bring your organization up to speed.

Volunteer

Whenever possible, volunteer for projects that are outside of your own scope of practice. Open your mind to learning things that don't necessarily apply to your job, because in the end, they will apply to your job in some fashion. When it comes to healthcare, everything is connected, so the more you know about what's going on in the industry, the better you’ll be able to see where you fit in. Don't be afraid—take a risk, it may lead you to your dream job.

Be Accountable

Whether you hold an entry-level position, or are managing a CVO, accountability is a must. You have to be able to hold people accountable for their work, but you also have to be accountable for the whole team. When something goes wrong, take responsibility and learn from that experience. It’s impossible to control when a mistake might occur, but we have full control over how we choose to deal with that error.

Practice Flexibility

You have to be incredibly flexible. Credentialing is not black and white, it’s complex; you’re dealing with people, organizations, and ever-fluctuating priorities. It’s important to be on your toes at all times so you can deal with change seamlessly. When it comes to managing a CVO, change management is key. You have to be resilient, but equally as important is the need to build that resilience throughout your team.

Embrace Your Humanity

Humility is the name of the game. Ask for help when you need it, and look to those around you to teach you something new. Even as a team leader you’re still part of the team, and you all grow together as a unit.