DHS Managers and Supervisors learning and practicing new leadership skills in the TOP program
Based on the premise that everyone at DHS is a catalyst for greatness, the DHS Management Development Program (MDP) is accepting applications for the TOP program in 2022 for managers and supervisors who want to help their teams to achieve greater levels of development, performance and healthcare excellence. The program is designed to help good managers become great, by transforming their own practice, their teams, and together, helping to transform our culture at DHS.
DHS Managers and Supervisors learning and practicing new leadership skills in the TOP program
According to TOP alumnus Leticia Rodriguez Avila, Capacity Director for Whole Person Care, the program “leads to culture change, and did a great job reminding us all to start or continue with our practices, because we are key to that culture change.”
Begun as an onboarding program for new managers in 2018, the Reaching for the TOP program (aka TOP), which stands for Transforming our Organization through People has gained popularity for providing a learning experience that is at once intensive, playful and fun, in which participants get exposure to mindsets and techniques related to leadership skills and the practice of emotional intelligence.
Beyond the in-person workshops, learners participate in building a strong alumni community and have access to on-going comprehensive support and resources, including exclusive MDP Alumni Reunions and Learning Symposiums, SPARK electronic facilitator kits to support teaching back skills from TOP with their teams, specially curated articles, videos, and self-directed activities, opportunities to connect with other alumni and leadership faculty, and more! As more people have participated in and heard about TOP, there have been countless requests to make such a program available to all managers and supervisors at DHS.
Back row, left to right: Lisa Bonner, Denise Barlet, Brandi Sankey. Front row: Michael Noone, Dino Luzuriaga.
TOP represents an exciting opportunity for DHS managers and supervisors to elevate their leadership skills from traditional to transformational! This DHS program is a blended learning experience of online and in-person courses providing DHS team leaders with a set of valuable evidence-based mindsets and tools essential to inspire others, build trust, create alignment, purpose and meaningful work, cultivate a culture of psychological safety and improved teamwork—the principles of a transformational leader!
To respond to this outpouring of interest and sustain the highest standards of program quality, the MDP is unveiling its new curriculum for TOP in 2022, which will now be open to ALL managers and supervisors, both new and experienced, based on an application process designed to ensure learner readiness.
“I’m so excited that TOP will now be available to experienced, as well as new managers,” said Rancho CEO and Interim DHS CNO Aries Limbaga, who serves as a member of the MDP Leadership Faculty. “Time and again, we heard that all managers needed this opportunity, and I’m thrilled that we can now offer it to all managers who want to develop as leaders, regardless of their level of experience.”
“My greatest take-away from TOP training is that supervising is a two-way process between staff and management. TOP support resources have supported my growth as a leader by providing me with a variety of practical tools, resources, and frames of references that I could use on a daily basis,” said Kunthy Zavala, Occupational Therapy Supervisor at OVMC.
All DHS supervisors and managers are invited to apply for the DHS Management Development Program’s (MDP) TOP program between now and October 15, 2021. For more details about the application process, and about other MDP programs and resources, please visit https://lacounty.sharepoint.com/sites/dhs-mdp (The Website is Accessible for Health Services Staff only).