Name: Aaron Hoskins

Title: Manager of Digital Operations

Organisation: Sharp HealthCare

San Diego native and recovering journalist determined to create a satisfying work community for all who choose to be a part of it.

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Leadership!

I hope Aaron's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as a leader?

It's most challenging when an important decision confronts multiple leaders in the organization who have competing priorities, and the correct path forward is anything but certain. In those situations, as in most, I try and identify the probabilities for the range of outcomes as precisely as possible and advocate for the strategy that makes the most sense. I understand that I likely do not have the power to unilaterally determine the course of action, but I can make sure to thoughtfully consider and communicate the direction that I believe will provide the most surplus value.

2. How did you become a leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

I worked for a student-run newspaper in college and, as a 20-year-old, became editor-in-chief for an organization with more than 100 employees, a daily circulation of 50,000, and an annual budget of several million dollars. I didn't shine in the role, but it provided me invaluable experience for the rest of my working life.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

I try not to think of work until I am working and to stop thinking about work once the work-day completes. I have worked and lived with people who run their own companies and I appreciate this mindset is a luxury of being a middle manager for a large organization. Typically, I log on not long after I wake up and check all communication platforms.

I respond to emails that I had reviewed at a previous time and determined could wait for response. I review my calendar and make sure I am prepared for my day's schedule of calls/meetings. Then I take an hour break to walk with my dog, shower and breakfast, before returning to my desk around 8:15. I will recheck communications and manage email at the bottom of each hour (when possible).

I block out the noon hour for lunch each day, but things tend to bleed into that on both ends. I balance 1:1 check-in calls with teammates throughout the week, so I tend to have 2-3 of these calls each day. Four-days-a-week, I take 20 minutes to pick my son up from school. I end most days reviewing and preparing for my schedule for the subsequent days/week.

4. What's a recent leadership lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of?

A recent experience reminded me that placing limits on a person based on narrow exposure/evidence unfairly locks the individual into a likely incomplete or inaccurate understanding of their capabilities and potential.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson is a profound story about the power and value of UX design. I finished reading it determined to prove Steve Jobs wrong, that you can build a world-class organization and it's not only possible, but preferable (with better outcomes) to treat employees ethically and compassionately.

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young leader, what would you say to them?

Be open to change. Learn from everyone in your orbit. Explore outside your orbit to grow and improve.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a leader, so far?

A supervisor asked me to take on an underperforming employee, and said I might have to "manage the person out of the organization." I was not familiar with that phrase. This employee had bounced around multiple teams, mostly in anonymity. My first 1:1 with the individual revealed intelligence, dedication and, most importantly, curiosity about our work. That simple list of ingredients should make for a valuable employee.

We set out to enact an internal PR plan to burnish a new and positive reputation in the organization. This involved strategically touching base with key team members to help with their initiatives. With a little encouragement, the employee followed a path illuminated by curiosity to create and lead the best UX research operation in the healthcare industry, identifying scores of improvements to our digital products and providing our organization millions of dollars in surplus value.