With four hospitals, more than 4,600 employees and a 38,000-square-mile service area, keeping employees engaged and connected is a special kind of challenge for St. Charles Health System in Central Oregon. But by pairing an already impactful in-house video program with a successful engagement platform, we were able to achieve 90% employee enrollment in the first eight months. St. Charles Sparks was born in October 2020, intentionally pushed forward in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic to give our caregivers a source of gratitude and inspiration during a very difficult season.
Through the Sparks program, employees gain points by watching and sharing videos. They also earn points for reaching milestone work anniversaries. Spark points are then cashed in for branded apparel and merchandise, much of it from local vendors! Employees are well-educated and inspired by the work that is happening and they go into the community wearing St. Charles gear and sharing our story. It's a win for all involved! In this session, we’ll share the ins and outs of St. Charles Sparks - what we learned before, during and after launching this hugely popular program.
SHSMD Connections 2021 Virtual runs October 19-21. Register today!
Selected Podcast
Spark Inspiration: How St. Charles Uses Videos for Next Level Employee Engagement
Featured Speaker:
Julie Vandersluis
Julie Vandersluis is a marketing professional with 15+ years experience working with both advertising agencies and in-house creative teams. She has a strong background in media planning, brand management and marketing strategy. At St. Charles Health System, Julie manages a stellar in-house creative team and is responsible for advertising and marketing for more than 40 service lines and clinics. Drawing on her understanding of human behavior and motivation, she also assists with strategizing internal campaigns to help engage the organization's almost 5000 caregivers. After earning her bachelor’s degree from Nebraska Wesleyan University in Lincoln, Julie moved west to Bend, Oregon to enjoy the great outdoors and begin her career. She is married with two young children and enjoys softball, snowboarding and riding her sweet old horse, Summer. Transcription:
Spark Inspiration: How St. Charles Uses Videos for Next Level Employee Engagement
Intro: The following SHSMD podcast is a production of DoctorPodcasting.com.
Bill Klaproth: This is a special podcast produced onsite at the SHSMD Connections 2021 Annual Conference in San Antonio as we talk with keynote speakers and session leaders direct from the show floor. And with me is Julie Vandersluis, Marketing and Creative Services Manager at St. Charles Health System. Her session is Spark Inspiration, How St. Charles Uses Videos for Next Level Employee Engagement, and that's very interesting. Julie, welcome to the podcast. Thank you for stopping by our podcast booth. We appreciate it. So you created the St. Charles Sparks Program to help with employee engagement. Tell us about that.
Julie Vandersluis: Well, we're in communications and marketing, so our job is to connect with our employees, who we call caregivers and we have all the normal channels, e-newsletters and, you know, different types of posters and announcements and forums, but we weren't seeing results. And we came up with the Sparks Program. We partnered with Viddler, an engagement platform to reach those employees, specifically frontline employees. They're doing their jobs. They're caring for patients. They're not checking their email. So we knew we needed to do something a little unique and different to kind of get their attention. So Sparks was born.
Bill Klaproth: And that's primarily a video program. That's what you thought, "This is how we're going to make this work," is video.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes, video. So the way the platform works is that we roll out our video messages. We do two to three a month. And employees watch the videos and get points for not only watching the videos, but also certain videos that we want to share externally. We give them points for sharing on their social networks and then they can in turn cash in those points to get St. Charles branded gear.
Bill Klaproth: Okay. And what do they do with the branded gear? What happens?
Julie Vandersluis: Well, they wear it. They use it.
Bill Klaproth: Okay.
Julie Vandersluis: We have all sorts of stuff. We make sure to add some high-end items that people can save for and be really proud to purchase, so to speak. We've got North Face jackets and handmade mugs. And people have been really, really excited about the things that we've chosen to put in the Sparks Store.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. So what are some of the messages that you include in these videos to keep them engaged and motivated and uplifted in a really difficult time?
Julie Vandersluis: You touched on it a difficult time. So a lot of what we've put out there is around COVID, around what's happening in our hospitals. Like I said, frontline employees get in this kind of microcosm of care. They're about their departments. They're about to patients. They aren't necessarily looking beyond what's going on right there and that's okay. But what Sparks does is we can reach them and help inform them and encourage. A lot of our videos, we have some thank you messages to our healthcare frontline and support teams. So we just use that to inform and engage them.
Bill Klaproth: So what have the results been? Have people felt more connected and has there been more gratitude and they feel like, you know, "Hey. The hospital appreciates me more"?
Julie Vandersluis: Yes. Yes. We've definitely seen that. So numbers results, we've had 90% engagement over the first eight months that we have had the program live. We've only been live for just under a year with it. And some of the anecdotal results, our videographer will go on a floor to shoot and before it was kind of convincing them like, "This is who I am. This is what I'm doing." And now, he shows up with a camera and they're like, "Is this first Sparks video?" We say yes and he's invited in. They instantly connect with him and it opens up better interviews as you probably -- you know, you're in that world. But more authentic, there's a connection there, whereas before he was trying to kind of pull things out of them.
Bill Klaproth: So they were a lot more receptive to it.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes. Yes.
Bill Klaproth: Wow. This is really interesting. So you've done all these videos. You had to have learned what moves the needle when it comes to content. So can you share some tips on content building for us?
Julie Vandersluis: Yeah. So, we have an intern, but we have dedicated resources on our team. I think that's really, really important. We have invested in some pretty quality equipment and that makes a big difference. We would always advise people to do that. And then, the relationships. So not only with, you know, having a recognized program, he's also worked really hard at developing relationships with our caregivers. So that opens the door in many ways, too.
To commit to quality, a quality product, but also we say that on our team just to ship it sometimes. Sometimes you just have to get the content out. You know, there's a blurry picture or maybe the sound was off and there was, you know, something distracting, but you're going to reach way fewer people if you don't ship it on time than if you just get it out there. So don't be too much of a perfectionist.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. So in the podcast world, we always get questions. "What do you know what to talk about? How long should it be?" So how long our these videos generally?
Julie Vandersluis: Generally, we keep them to about a minute, minute and a half. They're pretty short to keep people's attention.
Bill Klaproth: So, easy to watch.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes.
Bill Klaproth: You're not asking a lot of them to watch a minute and a half video.
Julie Vandersluis: Right, right. Yeah.
Bill Klaproth: Okay. And what about content? How do you come up with topics or subjects? How do you do that?
Julie Vandersluis: I mean, like I said, COVID, it's kind of just come up on its own, unfortunately. But some of the other things we talk about, we really focus on stories because, you know, the Sparks Program has been popular and every department wants a video. And so the first thing we ask them is, "Do you have a story?" We are not going to make a training video or an informational type video without that story piece. So that's what we focus on.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. Okay. So this has been great, Julie. So anything else you'd like to add when it comes to employee engagement and what you've done there?
Julie Vandersluis: I would just say don't be afraid to have fun. Our caregivers, especially, you know, obviously in healthcare are dealing with some serious things every day. And they need to be able to unwind and it's just been so fun. It's been fun to hear their reactions and they get involved and they go into the store and they get fun stuff. And I mean, just don't be afraid to have a little levity. They love the game part of it, the gamification and getting points. And don't be too serious to try something fun to engage your employees.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. Well, it sounds like you've gotten a lot out of this too. It sounds like it's been very satisfying to you to put this program together and see the results and see them uplifted.
Julie Vandersluis: Yeah. Absolutely. And we launched, you know, in October of last year, so we were still kind of in the middle of the pandemic and we weren't sure if that was going to be well received or not. And it turns out it was one of the best things that we could do for our employees who were tired and and still tired.
Bill Klaproth: Right. And letting them know that they are appreciated really sounds like it has helped them a lot. Well, Julie, this has been great. Thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it.
Julie Vandersluis: Absolutely. Thank you.
Bill Klaproth: And sign up for the SHSMD Connections Virtual Conference, October 19th through the 21st 2021, which will feature two days of new sessions plus recordings from the in-person event. Go to shsmd.org/education/annualconference to learn more and to get registered. And please join us at next year's conference, SHSMD Connections 2022 September 11th through the 14th at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland outside of Washington, DC.
And if you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels. And to access our full podcast library for other topics of interest to you, visit shsmd.org/podcasts. I'm Bill Klaproth. As always, thanks for listening.
Spark Inspiration: How St. Charles Uses Videos for Next Level Employee Engagement
Intro: The following SHSMD podcast is a production of DoctorPodcasting.com.
Bill Klaproth: This is a special podcast produced onsite at the SHSMD Connections 2021 Annual Conference in San Antonio as we talk with keynote speakers and session leaders direct from the show floor. And with me is Julie Vandersluis, Marketing and Creative Services Manager at St. Charles Health System. Her session is Spark Inspiration, How St. Charles Uses Videos for Next Level Employee Engagement, and that's very interesting. Julie, welcome to the podcast. Thank you for stopping by our podcast booth. We appreciate it. So you created the St. Charles Sparks Program to help with employee engagement. Tell us about that.
Julie Vandersluis: Well, we're in communications and marketing, so our job is to connect with our employees, who we call caregivers and we have all the normal channels, e-newsletters and, you know, different types of posters and announcements and forums, but we weren't seeing results. And we came up with the Sparks Program. We partnered with Viddler, an engagement platform to reach those employees, specifically frontline employees. They're doing their jobs. They're caring for patients. They're not checking their email. So we knew we needed to do something a little unique and different to kind of get their attention. So Sparks was born.
Bill Klaproth: And that's primarily a video program. That's what you thought, "This is how we're going to make this work," is video.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes, video. So the way the platform works is that we roll out our video messages. We do two to three a month. And employees watch the videos and get points for not only watching the videos, but also certain videos that we want to share externally. We give them points for sharing on their social networks and then they can in turn cash in those points to get St. Charles branded gear.
Bill Klaproth: Okay. And what do they do with the branded gear? What happens?
Julie Vandersluis: Well, they wear it. They use it.
Bill Klaproth: Okay.
Julie Vandersluis: We have all sorts of stuff. We make sure to add some high-end items that people can save for and be really proud to purchase, so to speak. We've got North Face jackets and handmade mugs. And people have been really, really excited about the things that we've chosen to put in the Sparks Store.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. So what are some of the messages that you include in these videos to keep them engaged and motivated and uplifted in a really difficult time?
Julie Vandersluis: You touched on it a difficult time. So a lot of what we've put out there is around COVID, around what's happening in our hospitals. Like I said, frontline employees get in this kind of microcosm of care. They're about their departments. They're about to patients. They aren't necessarily looking beyond what's going on right there and that's okay. But what Sparks does is we can reach them and help inform them and encourage. A lot of our videos, we have some thank you messages to our healthcare frontline and support teams. So we just use that to inform and engage them.
Bill Klaproth: So what have the results been? Have people felt more connected and has there been more gratitude and they feel like, you know, "Hey. The hospital appreciates me more"?
Julie Vandersluis: Yes. Yes. We've definitely seen that. So numbers results, we've had 90% engagement over the first eight months that we have had the program live. We've only been live for just under a year with it. And some of the anecdotal results, our videographer will go on a floor to shoot and before it was kind of convincing them like, "This is who I am. This is what I'm doing." And now, he shows up with a camera and they're like, "Is this first Sparks video?" We say yes and he's invited in. They instantly connect with him and it opens up better interviews as you probably -- you know, you're in that world. But more authentic, there's a connection there, whereas before he was trying to kind of pull things out of them.
Bill Klaproth: So they were a lot more receptive to it.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes. Yes.
Bill Klaproth: Wow. This is really interesting. So you've done all these videos. You had to have learned what moves the needle when it comes to content. So can you share some tips on content building for us?
Julie Vandersluis: Yeah. So, we have an intern, but we have dedicated resources on our team. I think that's really, really important. We have invested in some pretty quality equipment and that makes a big difference. We would always advise people to do that. And then, the relationships. So not only with, you know, having a recognized program, he's also worked really hard at developing relationships with our caregivers. So that opens the door in many ways, too.
To commit to quality, a quality product, but also we say that on our team just to ship it sometimes. Sometimes you just have to get the content out. You know, there's a blurry picture or maybe the sound was off and there was, you know, something distracting, but you're going to reach way fewer people if you don't ship it on time than if you just get it out there. So don't be too much of a perfectionist.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. So in the podcast world, we always get questions. "What do you know what to talk about? How long should it be?" So how long our these videos generally?
Julie Vandersluis: Generally, we keep them to about a minute, minute and a half. They're pretty short to keep people's attention.
Bill Klaproth: So, easy to watch.
Julie Vandersluis: Yes.
Bill Klaproth: You're not asking a lot of them to watch a minute and a half video.
Julie Vandersluis: Right, right. Yeah.
Bill Klaproth: Okay. And what about content? How do you come up with topics or subjects? How do you do that?
Julie Vandersluis: I mean, like I said, COVID, it's kind of just come up on its own, unfortunately. But some of the other things we talk about, we really focus on stories because, you know, the Sparks Program has been popular and every department wants a video. And so the first thing we ask them is, "Do you have a story?" We are not going to make a training video or an informational type video without that story piece. So that's what we focus on.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. Okay. So this has been great, Julie. So anything else you'd like to add when it comes to employee engagement and what you've done there?
Julie Vandersluis: I would just say don't be afraid to have fun. Our caregivers, especially, you know, obviously in healthcare are dealing with some serious things every day. And they need to be able to unwind and it's just been so fun. It's been fun to hear their reactions and they get involved and they go into the store and they get fun stuff. And I mean, just don't be afraid to have a little levity. They love the game part of it, the gamification and getting points. And don't be too serious to try something fun to engage your employees.
Bill Klaproth: Yeah. Well, it sounds like you've gotten a lot out of this too. It sounds like it's been very satisfying to you to put this program together and see the results and see them uplifted.
Julie Vandersluis: Yeah. Absolutely. And we launched, you know, in October of last year, so we were still kind of in the middle of the pandemic and we weren't sure if that was going to be well received or not. And it turns out it was one of the best things that we could do for our employees who were tired and and still tired.
Bill Klaproth: Right. And letting them know that they are appreciated really sounds like it has helped them a lot. Well, Julie, this has been great. Thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it.
Julie Vandersluis: Absolutely. Thank you.
Bill Klaproth: And sign up for the SHSMD Connections Virtual Conference, October 19th through the 21st 2021, which will feature two days of new sessions plus recordings from the in-person event. Go to shsmd.org/education/annualconference to learn more and to get registered. And please join us at next year's conference, SHSMD Connections 2022 September 11th through the 14th at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland outside of Washington, DC.
And if you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels. And to access our full podcast library for other topics of interest to you, visit shsmd.org/podcasts. I'm Bill Klaproth. As always, thanks for listening.