Question

Hispanic Community Feels Excluded from Hiring Process

Southwest Regional Medical Center (SRMC) is location in a major metropolitan area. It is a large public institution with a 500-bed hospital, numerous clinics throughout the city and in many schools, and a renowned emergency medical service (EMS). It is designated a Level 1 trauma facility and is the hub for treatment of victims of accidents and violence. SRMC is the city’s safety net provider, serving almost 200,000 patients every year. They represent a diverse group that is approximately 50& Hispanic, 14% African American, and 30% white, with the remaining patient being Asian, Native American, or of unknown ethnicity.

            SRMC has typically had a white male physician executive as its CEO. Dr. Jones has held the position for nearly 20 years, after working at the institution in several capacities, first as an Emergency Room physician, and then also as the Emergency Department Director and the EMS Director. He is now planning his retirement, having fulfilled many goals and built SRMC into a leader and respected provider of high quality care in the community and region.

            The African American Board Chair asks his Vice Chair, Mr. Banquer, to chair the search committee for Dr. Jones’ replacement. He also asks four other Board members to serve on the committee, along with the Chief Operating Officer, the Chief Nursing Officer, and several physician leaders. The search committee includes no Hispanics and only one woman.

Work beings on the search with the development of the job description, which calls for a seasoned physician executive with CEO experience. Six months into the process the committee has narrowed the applicant pool to six finalists, with whom the committee will conduct interviews. None of the remaining applicants are Hispanic. Word of this is leaked to the press. The headline on the front page of the next morning’s Southwest Daily News reads “Medical Center Again Ignores the Hispanic Community.”

            The article points out several significant problems, including:

The lack of transparency in the search process;

The lack of Hispanic representation on the search committee;

The fact that several highly qualified Hispanic physicians with CEO experience had already been dropped from the applicant pool, while whites with similar backgrounds were still in the running;

SRMC’s historical hiring record shows that Dr. Jones and his team had not recruited any Hispanics into leadership positions for most of his tenure;

The appearance that the search process has been rigged for Dr. Jones’ “heir apparent,” DR. Shoein, who is the current Chief Medical Officer; and

The fact that Dr. Jones will be retained as a consultant to the transition team for six months.

It looks to the leaders of various local Hispanic organization that once again they and their constituents are being ignored. As has been the case with other leadership positions in the city, this position seems to be on track to be filled with yet another white male.

Mr. Banquer is shocked and appalled that this has become public knowledge. He’s not quite sure what to do next.

Discussion Questions

What would you recommend that Mr. Banquer do? Should the search committee be reconfigured? Should that candidate review process be revisited in order to increase the diversity of the pool of finalists?

As this is a personnel issue, how much transparency should there be in the search process?

Because this is a highly visible position, should the expectation be that the finalists will be completely and publically vetted? Explain the rationale for your position.

What conflicts of interest are apparent in this case? How would you recommend addressing them?

Despite having a minority member serving as its Chair, do you think the Board of Directors needs to increase its cultural competence? What would you recommend? Provide a rationale for your recommendation.

Does the senior leadership at SRMC also need to undergo diversity training and increase its cultural competence? What would you recommend? Provide a rationale for your recommendation.

Answer 1

What would you recommend that Mr Banquer do? Should the search committee be reconfigured? Should that candidate review process be revisited in order to increase the diversity of the pool of finalists?

Mr Banquer should be more open to the cultural diversities. The search committee should be more diverse and which must be a true representation of the community they serve. It must include the Hispanics and women representation must be ensured, in order to be a realistic representation of the community.

The search committee should be reconfigured by including the representatives of the community, without any barriers of race or ethnicity. The candidate review process must be transparent and impartial. The pool of finalists also needs to be reassessed to ensure the representation of the community. There must be a strategic planning to serve the cultural diversity of the community.

As this is a personnel issue, how much transparency should there be in the search process?

The search process for talent or leaders in a community organization should be transparent and must support egalitarianism. In the recruitment process, the discriminations on the basis of race/ethnicity must be avoided and there should be diversity in the recruitment and hiring of candidates.

Because this is a highly visible position, should the expectation be that the finalists will be completely and publically vetted? Explain the rationale for your position.

As the SRMC represents the diverse group of people as approximately 50% Hispanic, 14% African American, and 30% white, with the remaining patient being Asian, Native American, or of unknown ethnicity, the leadership positions must be free from any controversies. The leadership must be a true representation of the community it serve and it should support the best interests of the community. It is better to be vetted completely and publically to win the confidence of the community as there were issues with the previous leadership.

What conflicts of interest are apparent in this case? How would you recommend addressing them?

The main conflicts of interests are the authority of the SRMC and the interests of the community it serves. Reorganizing the search criteria and a committee for acquiring new talent will help in managing the situation.

Despite having a minority member serving as its Chair, do you think the Board of Directors needs to increase its cultural competence? What would you recommend? Provide a rationale for your recommendation.

By increasing the cultural competence of the Board of Directors the organization can win the confidence of the community it serves. The decision taken by the culturally competent committee will best serve the community needs. In order to preserve the interests of the community it serves, the board of directors should be a representation of the community.

Does the senior leadership at SRMC also need to undergo diversity training and increase its cultural competence? What would you recommend? Provide a rationale for your recommendation.

The senior leadership at SRMC may need to undergo diversity training and increase its cultural competence as the case study states that, there were problems in acquiring people from different ethnic and racial groups. The case also represents the lack of Hispanic representation on the search committee and many well qualified Hispanic physicians with CEO experience had been eliminated from the applicant pool and the whites with similar backgrounds were still under consideration. The historical hiring records of SRMC’s also proves that Dr Jones and his team had not hired any Hispanics into leadership positions for most of his tenure.

This points also represents the lack of cultural competence of the leadership. They need extensive training to be culturally competent.