“We’re all competing for the same workforce, and the traditional talent pipeline isn’t enough,” Gladys Brignoni, PhD, vice president of learning and organizational development at Johns Hopkins, told Becker’s.
New pipelines
Johns Hopkins attracts new hires from a few avenues, including its high school education program, partnerships with community colleges and nonprofit organizations, and internships and apprenticeship programs. The health system alongside the school of medicine works closely with Johns Hopkins University to integrate workforce development efforts.
But it also has a few unusual paths:
1. The health system recently partnered with the Associated Builders and Contractors and Baltimore City Community College to create apprenticeships in mechanical, electrical and carpentry roles to teach these students healthcare facility management.
“This is something I don’t see many other healthcare systems doing, but it’s an important way to develop skilled trade professionals who can work in our hospitals long term,” Dr. Brignoni said.
2. The health system also has strong partnerships with organizations that focus on veterans transitioning to civilian careers and formerly incarcerated individuals reentering the workforce.
3. Johns Hopkins has also partnered with nonprofits such as Goodwill and the Baltimore Alliance for Careers in Healthcare to ensure that anyone who completes a healthcare training program and earns a certification gets priority consideration for jobs in its system.
Regardless of how a new hire enters Johns Hopkins, they all have an opportunity to work in foundational roles and advance. Many of these new hires start in entry-level roles such as nursing assistant and patient care technician. From there, they participate in internal training to help them step into higher roles.
Reskilled workers come with challenges different from those of traditional hires. Primarily, reskilled workers may need extra help in workplace literacy — basic math, reading skills, computer skills, understanding professional workplace expectations and being comfortable with technology. Johns Hopkins has built an internal workplace literacy program for current employees and uses career coaches to help them succeed.
The system also offers a paid English as a second language course for foreign-language speakers at its hospitals. The program allows workers to attend ESL class at a community college as part of their weekly shifts. They can get paid for up to 16 hours a week while in class.
Current employees can participate in a similar program where they are paid up to 16 hours a week to attend training in critical areas like surgical tech.
Existing staff
Once in the system, staff are provided with training programs to improve their skills and help them move up in their careers.
“One of our biggest initiatives has been organizing these resources into a centralized system,” she said. “We’re working on making this information easily accessible through a centralized one-stop-shop, so everyone across the health system knows about the opportunities available.”
Dr. Brignoni said creating an ecosystem that ensures staff want to stay and advance their careers is top of mind.
“We know we can’t compete on salary alone — tech companies will always offer more,” she said. “We’re always competing for talent, which is why we’re developing a comprehensive employee experience strategy to attract and retain workers. We work hard to make Hopkins the employer of choice so that people want to stay.”
This strategy includes focusing on a strong sense of mission, an environment where employees feel valued and want to stay, and support beyond their paychecks, Dr. Brignoni said. Johns Hopkins also invests in wellness programs, career development, and financial stability for its employees.
