5. Make time for facetime

5. Make time for facetime

When looking back at her more than 30 years as a medical practice manager, Marge McQuade, CMSCS, CMM, now-director of education at the Professional Association of Healthcare Coding Specialists in Florida, credits some of her success in motivating employees with a small-office approach.

"In a small office, if you see an employee struggling, you can be right there to support them," McQuade says. "And many times, a struggle in the office is not about something that's happening in the office. It could be something that's going on in their life," she says. Even with care to maintain professional boundaries, closer relationships can help cue managers into what they can do at the office to help make things easier for the employee, such as offering more flexible scheduling, she adds.

However, Paula Comm and Tina Smith, both experienced administrators of larger offices, say that even with a bigger group, there are still a number of ways to get to know employees and convey you are approachable and supportive.

For instance, Smith, now-president of consultancy Coding Sense LLC in Colorado, would occasionally take the time to walk around all of the departments in her 50-employee office to say good morning, check in, and see if anyone needed any of her help with anything.

"I probably didn't do it as often as I should have--because you do kind of get wrapped up in your own agenda for the day--but I know it meant a lot to my staff when I did that," Smith says. "It's just one of those little things that build relationships."

For Comm, administrator of a three-site practice near Chicago, the challenge isn't just for her to build rapport with her staff but also to make sure employees throughout the different offices develop relationships as well. To do so, she holds quarterly breakfasts with all of her receptionists one day (during which the cross-trained billers cover) and with the billers on another.

"I take the groups out to just have breakfast and talk about issues, and it allows for collaboration among all three offices, avoiding the danger of cliques within each of the offices," she says. "I work really hard to make sure I have these meetings with everybody together face-to-face so that any issues can be addressed in person."

Striving to overcommunicate with staff is critical to keeping morale up and conflicts at bay, Comm says. "It is more challenging when you have more staff and when you have more than one office. But you've got to put the work and the effort in with regards to communication to make it happen."