Leading with Purpose and Strategy

Robert Johnson:

Pathologists can learn new strategies to grow their influence during a free leadership workshop planned in Washington, DC this weekend, credibility, influence, and authority are on the agenda this weekend when pathologists meet in Washington, DC for the House of Delegates and Pathologists Leadership Summit, an annual event hosted by the College of American Pathologists. The workshop is open to any CAP member attending the summit. It'll run from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM this Saturday, April 26th. It offers six CME hours to those who attend. Dr. Carey August serves the college in many ways, among them as a faculty member for the CAP's Engaged Leadership Academy, having that experience. The question is, are you excited about the leadership workshop this Saturday?

Dr. Carey August:

Oh boy. A big resounding yes to this question. The idea of this program is to add another element of leadership to this year's Pathologists Leadership Summit. It's something new and it's something for which our members are very eager.

Robert Johnson:

When it comes to the ELA events, you are front and center at those. You're on the faculty. You're helping members get through the curriculum. They're very well attended, very popular. Some people who are thinking about this weekend may think this event is the same, but it really isn't. Can you tell us why?

Dr. Carey August:

Well, first I have to say that the ELA is one of my all-time favorite events of the year. Not just CAP events, but all-time favorite events of the year. We get pathologists at every stage of their careers who come to us to literally learn to find their voices, and it is so exciting to see the progress they make over the course of a single weekend. As a matter of fact, at last year's program on Sunday morning, I said to the pathologist in my group, "Who kidnapped my pathologist last night and replaced them with all of you?" Because you could just see these light bulbs go on and this huge progress. So the ELA is really wonderful and really helps our pathologist, but we've been asked for more and this program is designed to provide it. So at the ELA, our pathologists learn to communicate and advocate, but this new program takes it to the next level in leadership development. The goal of this program is to help pathologists learn to strategize, to learn how to use their leadership and political skills, and I don't just mean political in terms of talking to representatives and senators, I mean their general life political skills in advancing their departments, their institutions, our profession, and ultimately to find success in giving our patients the best possible care.

Robert Johnson:

For members who are signed up for HOD/PLS, but maybe not this event on Saturday, what can you tell them about it? What will they get from the experience?

Dr. Carey August:

Well, I don't want to give it all away. We have to have a little bit of mystery, but let's just say that with the guidance of a noted national consultant who actually teaches at several major institutions and the guidance of two of our pathologists, leaders, leaders, the people who participate in this program will be guided through a series of exercises. So it's not just sitting there being passive receptacles of information. There are actually exercises that you'll do. Not all of these exercises will be pathologist specific because not all of the skills are pathologist specific, but all of the exercises will illustrate skills that we all already have within us and help the participants develop them. It is going to be hard work, but it will be very worthwhile, and it will be lots of fun.

Robert Johnson:

Given all of that, then, what do you hope members who attend the event that is the workshop, what do you hope they'll take away from it?

Dr. Carey August:

There are challenges to our profession around every corner, especially these days, and we already know about some of them, but we need to also develop the ability to look ahead and foresee the unknown. We need to strategize even for things we don't know about as yet. Meeting the challenges to our profession entails influencing others, communicating effectively, building strategic relationships, identifying priorities, and figuring out how to make those priorities a reality. Our hope with this program is that the lucky members who participate will feel empowered to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow using all the skills they learn on April 26th.

Robert Johnson:

Before we go, tell people why they should get online right now and save their seat for this event on Saturday.

Dr. Carey August:

We all think we're managing just fine because we're keeping our departments and our profession afloat, but in order to really thrive as a specialty, we need to take it to the next level. Achieving this next level enable us to truly be in charge of our own future and ensure that no one else tries to take charge of it. That's why this program is so important to help our members take our profession to the next level.

Robert Johnson:

The Saturday leadership event is open to anyone attending the summit. All you need to do is make sure you've checked the event on your registration. For those who've already signed up for the summit, but not the Saturday session, you can modify your account. We have instructions for doing that in the show notes for the College of American Pathologists, this is Robert Johnson. Have a great day.