Introducing… an organizational development specialist
Kara Campea-Langdon is an organizational development specialist based in Hamilton Health Sciences’ (HHS) downtown Hamilton office at King West. She has been with HHS for over six years including two and a half years with the organizational development team.
What do you do?
Our team partners with leaders, other teams and the organization to lead transformational change and deliver on HHS’ mission and vision. I work directly with leaders and teams to provide one-on-one coaching, support strategic and program initiatives and help teams become more effective units.
I also lead and manage our own team’s projects, including most recently, the HHS leadership development program.
People are our organization’s greatest strength. By engaging them, building commitment and communicating effectively, I help our people reach their potential so they can serve our patients and families in the best way possible.
What’s one thing people would be surprised to learn about your role?
One thing people would be surprised to learn about organizational development is there is method to our team’s madness. Sometimes it is difficult for others to pin-point what we do because our skills include strategic and systems thinking, coach-approach questions and facilitating processes.
Organizational development is an ever-evolving discipline informed by best practice literature and applied behavioural science models and frameworks. It pulls knowledge from business strategy, industrial/organizational psychology and many other disciplines to best facilitate personal, team and organizational change.
People are our organization’s greatest strength.
What do you love most about your job?
What I love most about my job is the people I work with each day. My role allows me to connect with leaders, staff and physicians across HHS. Their dedication and compassion remind me why I am so proud to come to work each day.
My team is my work family. My colleagues come from a variety of backgrounds, such as nursing and allied health, behavioural science and business strategy, which allows us to build on each others’ strengths. Our team is a network of knowledge and we lean on and learn from one another. I am proud to work at HHS and even more proud to be part of such an amazing team.
What keeps you motivated at work?
Watching individuals grow and develop keeps me motivated. Through one-on-one leader support and the new leadership development program, I have the honour to work alongside leaders as they transform both personally and professionally.
Last September, I embarked on my own development journey: a two-year Master of Arts in Leadership at the University of Guelph. It’s rewarding to learn the study of leadership, including the vital role leaders play in organizations, and apply these concepts in my daily work.