Large Scale Management and Servant Leadership

An Interview with Justin Lowe, Senior Manager, Verifications with HMS by Tabitha Woods

Tabitha: Justin, if I were a stranger on the street and had never heard of HMS before, how would you describe what the company does?

Justin: Well, I would start with HMS’s mission, which is to help improve the effectiveness of the country’s healthcare system. A lot of folks might scratch their heads and say, “What does that mean?” Well, we provide a range of services that help government -sponsored healthcare programs, such as Medicaid and Medicare, to save dollars. As a result of our services, these programs can make healthcare coverage available to more people. So we have a direct impact on people’s lives.

Tabitha: So, tell me a little bit about your department.

Justin: The Verification Department at HMS authenticates commercial insurance policy information that is believed to exist (in overlap) with Medicaid coverage. In an average month, the department will verify in excess of half a million commercial insurance policies.

Tabitha: Your department is huge. How do you keep your employees motivated in their daily tasks?

Justin: To begin with, I think it’s important to share the company’s mission with them. I believe everyone has to find purpose in what they are doing. It’s very hard to come to work when you don’t understand where the organization is headed, and how you fit in. I have folks who work 12 hour shifts, three days a week. When people work that intensely, it’s important for them to know where and how they fit into the big picture.

I’ve always believed that you can lead somebody with a dollar only so far. If there’s nothing else, at some point they’re going to say, “You know, I don’t want to do this anymore.” So the carrot and stick aspect of motivation only goes so far. If I don’t also make someone feel like they’re an important part of why we are succeeding, they will walk away. Even people who make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year will walk away from a job if they’re miserable. So money, we know, isn’t the only answer.

I’ve always believed—in work and in life—that you have to grasp your purpose, whatever that is for you. It makes it a whole lot easier to understand what you are doing and why you’re doing it. And it gives you a reason to do it. The book The Purpose Driven Life has been an influence on me in that respect.

If you communicate the mission of what you’re doing—and HMS has a powerful mission—people will feel a lot better about their jobs. I want my teams to know that what they do every day is key to HMS’s success. In a down economy, and with healthcare reform on the scene, what they do is integral to the government programs that provide healthcare coverage to those who need it most. But then you have to continue to keep your teams engaged.

Tabitha: That was my next question…you’re brilliant!

As your employees come in day to day—to a high volume of telephone business—how do you keep them engaged throughout the day? How do they deal with intense calls?

Justin: We are in a very unique situation as a service center. Even though we are an outbound service center, we are not calling individuals and cold calling, or trying to sell. We are very much a “polling” type of organization. We are calling other businesses—insurance companies to be specific—and gathering information from them. It’s a business-to-business transaction. So, we don’t run into a lot of difficult telephone calls because it’s usually one professional talking to another.

The nature of the work we do in my department can be very challenging, since there is a fair amount of repetition. But we have so many folks who are self-motivated and have the drive to do their best, and that makes all the difference to them and to HMS.

I talk to my folks a lot about servant leadership and knowing the importance of their jobs as team leaders, supervisors, or managers. If you have people working for you, but don’t lead them, then you don’t really have a team.

Tabitha: Tell me about the support systems you have set up here. What’s the best way to build support in such a large group?

Justin: Because of the size of the department, I rely on team leaders and the individual units for that cohesiveness.

Tabitha: So you think that it filters from the top down?

Justin: Yes, but I would tell you that it’s an inverted pyramid. It filters from the top down, but the top level is that frontline staff. As a leader, I look at the fact that I have a job because I have 200 people first, I have 20 team leads second, I have 7 supervisors third. And then there’s me. I’ve got to always be thinking about those frontline folks. I am always thinking about those team leaders and supervisors, and try to be employee-centric. My philosophy is, whenever you can, err on the side of the employee. Do the thing that is right by the employee. There are always boundaries and limits within which you have to work. It’s not like we have a blank check to do whatever we want. But where you don’t have limits counts more—caring about staff, being visible to them, and going out of your way to recognize good performance.

Tabitha: Let’s talk about that. When they get feedback, do they get it directly from their team leads, or their supervisors…or you? How does that feedback come, and is it pretty specific?

Justin: There are a number of different ways that we provide feedback here. Team leaders and supervisors provide feedback and coaching during the training phase and during the formal evaluation process. We also produce written reports that are used to counsel and review performance with staff. I am a very strong believer in the importance of delivering both positive and constructive feedback. The positive feedback is very important because I believe that everybody is doing something right. It’s our job as leaders to serve employees by correcting any issues in their business practices, but also to serve them by building up their esteem, and praising them for what they are doing well. And that is extremely important to me.