Unity Health is equipping staff to become leaders. Here’s how
Emily Huang (right) with Manson Locke, Vice-President, People & Chief Human Resources Officer
When Emily Huang, who was an energy project manager at Unity Health, signed up for the Emerging Leaders Program last year, she wanted to grow in her career. A few months later, when an opportunity came up on her team, she was the successful candidate for a leadership role – and the program helped prepare her for the transition.
“I wanted to see how I could pave my path towards being a leader and so I signed up,” said Huang, who is now the Manager of Project Engineering.
She was one of 16 Unity Health staff to complete the inaugural Emerging Leaders Program in 2024. The program aims to facilitate equitable leadership career growth and advancement opportunities for all emerging leaders.
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Custom-made for Unity Health’s aspiring leaders by the Leadership and Organizational Development team, the curriculum fills needs identified by staff and leaders through engagement surveys. Clinical and corporate leaders across the organization were co-creators of the program, informing what skills and learnings are most important to lead in this organization.
“With the Emerging Leaders Program, we want to retain excellent staff members and help them grow and develop at Unity Health,” said Christopher Law, a Leadership and Organizational Development consultant who helped develop the program. “We created it to give staff the skills they need to grow as leaders, an opportunity to apply their knowledge to a project, and a way to build their relationships across the network.”
In addition to the structured learning, for Huang, getting to know staff members in other departments was an important benefit.
“Project Engineering plays a supportive role to help the buildings be in a good state for frontline staff and patients,” Huang said. “But I don’t always get to see where my colleagues work. When we did group work together, I got to see what they do day-to-day. It was quite inspiring and I saw that what we do behind the scenes makes a difference.”
The six-month curriculum offers courses for skills like coaching, handling crucial conversations, and delivering effective presentations. At the end of the program, participants present on a quality improvement project or a change project relevant to their work at Unity Health that they have been preparing throughout the coursework.
“Every project was amazing,” Huang said. “People presented in a way that was easy to understand, and everyone was making a positive change within the hospital.”
With skills developed from the courses and a deeper knowledge of the work her colleagues do, Huang said she feels more equipped as a new leader. She is now giving back to the program by participating on the working group that selects participants and offers insights on the curriculum.
“My new role is challenging and rewarding – I feel so appreciative to have had the opportunity to learn from the Emerging Leaders Program.”
By: Ana Gajic