Changing Missions, Changing Lives: How A Change Agent Can Turn The Ship And Create Impact

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO CHANGE THE WORLD, OR AT LEAST THE PIECE OF IT YOU’RE STANDING ON? Over the past twenty years, we’ve seen a paradigmatic shift in the view of corporate engagement in social change. More corporations are looking beyond their core business to find ways to engage with consumers and stakeholders as change agents, whether it’s to promote economic development in historically underserved communities or to promote human rights and social justice. Every day, more individuals and corporations are stepping up to say, “Asking the questions isn’t enough; we need to be part of the answer.” Organizations across varied industries are choosing to engage with challenges presented in their communities, because consumers and communities have heightened expectations that businesses will lean in to fill gaps in societal needs that government and independent individual efforts either cannot or have not addressed. This book is for you, social change agents, forward-thinking institutions, and disruptors, no matter who you are or where you work. Yes, your organization can make a powerful difference—and in this book Barry Ostrowsky and Michellene Davis share the insights, successes and failures, and strategies that RWJBarnabas Health has adopted through its ongoing process of turning its corporate ship toward its expanded mission.

Table of Contents:
INTRODUCTION Identifying the Challenge Turning the Ship Launching a League of Leaders Outside In and Inside Up Getting Your Board on Board Everything Is Local Socializing Your Mandate CONCLUSION Into the Future APPENDIX ABOUT THE AUTHORS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

About the Author :
BARRY H. OSTROWSKY is the president and chief executive officer of RWJBarnabas Health, New Jersey’s largest, most comprehensive integrated healthcare delivery system, with a service area that includes more than five million residents. In 2016, NJBIZ named Mr. Ostrowsky the Executive of the Year in Business in New Jersey, and he has repeatedly been named to the NJBIZ Health Care Power 50 list of the most powerful people in New Jersey healthcare, and to the Power 100 list, which includes the state’s most influential people in business. He has also been named by Becker’s Hospital Review as one of “300 Hospital & Health System Leaders to Know.” MICHELLENE DAVIS is executive vice president and chief corporate affairs officer of RWJBarnabas Health, the first woman and first person of color to ascend to this position in the organization’s history. With a career built on excellence and punctuated by firsts, Michellene has been named one of the most influential and powerful leaders in healthcare by entities such as Modern Healthcare, Becker’s Hospital Review, and NJBIZ, among others. Michellene Davis oversees the following departments: social impact and community investment, policy development and governmental affairs, healthy living and community engagement, and global health.

Review :
“Our time demands intentional and focused leadership for transformative change. Efforts to address the social determinants of health are more effective and sustainable when we go beyond service creation or coordination as the main goals for impact. We must also, and perhaps primarily, address policy and systems change. This must be done by intentionally considering the intersection and interdependence between our policies and practices in areas like humane housing, meaningful jobs, equitable education, social and cultural connectedness, thriving and nourishing natural ecosystems, and more. Clinical strategies alone won’t lead to healthier outcomes. It is critically important to address the root causes of health problems and eliminate health inequities. Ostrowsky and Davis understand this intrinsically, morally, and practically. Their leadership at RWJBarnabas Health reflects a commitment to creating the pathways for a better tomorrow where all of our neighbors can thrive. We all might take heed and learn from the efforts, examples, and knowledge they share in this comprehensive book. When we embrace, share, and adopt these kinds of strategies, we can help to co-create a living legacy for generations to come.” —Brian Rahmer VP, Health & Housing, Enterprise Community Partners “Ostrowsky and Davis have delivered an honest, behind-the-scenes look at RWJBarnabas Health’s journey from an organization in the community to an organization of the community. Packed with insights, lessons learned, and practical advice from a host of leaders who have been in the trenches doing the hard work of transforming aspiration into action, Changing Missions, Changing Lives is a must-read for change agents looking for inspiration and real-world examples of how they too can create more just, equitable, and empowered communities.” —Jason Gromley Director of Government Relations and Advocacy, Share Our Strength “Davis and Ostrowsky have demonstrated how visionary healthcare leadership at health systems can address historical injustices such as structural racism and poverty by leveraging the economic engine of the hospital to provide economic revitalization in disinvested neighborhoods. Davis and Ostrowsky have brought many of the ideas built out of their efforts in Newark to the national Healthcare Anchor Network where they are recognized as national leaders of this growing movement.” —David A. Ansell, MD, MPH Senior Vice President for Community Health Equity,Rush University Medical Center Associate Provost for Community Affairs, Rush University