Northwestern Memorial Hospital

“Nationwide, there are 126,000 nursing vacancies. It is a real problem, but there are always a few hospitals that have no vacancies. We want to be one of those hospitals – we want to be an Employer of Choice.” – Gary Mecklenburg, Former President and CEO

Rated by Chicago area consumers as the “most preferred” hospital in the region for the ninth year in a row, Northwestern Memorial Hospital boasts an ambitious commitment to: 1) provide the best patient experience; 2) recruit, develop, and retain the best people; and 3) develop the resources to achieve its mission and vision through exceptional financial performance.

In 2002, this 138-year-old teaching facility introduced a new addition to its already progressive workforce development strategy - the Learning Academy. The Academy’s comprehensive and strategic approach ensures that there are no redundancies in education offerings, that training policies and practices are standardized, and that all education programs are linked to support the organization’s mission and business strategy. The Academy’s online catalog and registration system for its education offerings is both comprehensive and user-friendly. Both internal and external experts contribute to the onsite delivery of over 200 courses ranging from project management and budgeting to a diverse set of health care specialties. Last year, a survey of the 21,000 NMH employees who received approximately 55,000 hours of training reported a 91% satisfaction rate. NMH’s also participates in School at Work, a national demonstration program that allows staff to attend classes one day a week that are designed to hone basic skills, expose them to a variety of health care occupations and receive career planning advice.

By creating external partnerships with community-based organizations, welfare-to-work programs, and secondary and post-secondary educational institutions, NMH recruits from the very communities in which it serves. According to Gary Mecklenburg, “It is about great people. Taking people who have dreamed of becoming a nurse and making it happen. To all our people we tell them you are not starting a job you are starting a career.”

Click here to view full case study.The information presented here was assembled in 2004. This does not necessarily represent the current status of NMH.