Is there a Leadership Protocol?

In medicine, a protocol is a treatment plan — a clearly defined, evidence-based sequence of steps designed to diagnose and address a condition. Protocols bring order to urgency and clarity to complexity. They ensure nothing critical is overlooked, even amid crisis.

In short: protocols save lives.

But what about leadership? Can we apply the same level of structure and intentionality to the health of an organization as we do to the health of a patient?

Many assume leadership is more art than science — a mix of personality, experience, and instinct. And to some extent, that’s true. Leadership is relational and contextual. But does that mean we can’t be more intentional about how we diagnose and treat organizational health?

Think about it:

• In medicine, you wouldn’t treat a failing patient without a protocol.

• In aviation, you wouldn’t fly a plane without a checklist.

• So why do we approach leadership — with all its complexity, urgency, and impact — without a structured framework?

Some argue that leadership is too complex, too variable, to reduce to a protocol. It’s true that no single model can account for every internal and external factor affecting an organization. But that’s not the goal of a protocol.

In medicine, the purpose of a protocol isn’t to predict every variable. It’s to bring evidence-based practices to bear — to help the clinician prioritize symptoms, explore root causes, and create a treatment plan. Once implemented, the physician monitors progress and adjusts as needed.

The goal of a leadership protocol is the same: to apply a structured, evidence-based approach to identifying and addressing the core issues impacting organizational health. A good protocol doesn’t replace judgment — it amplifies it.

Some protocols in medicine are highly detailed (e.g., multiple protocols during heart surgery), while others are simple but powerful. For example, the CDC’s guidance to wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds — or the length of singing “Happy Birthday” twice — has saved millions of lives by reducing the spread of disease. Simple. Memorable. Effective.

That’s the idea behind the HEART Leadership Protocol introduced in the Vital Signs books — a structured yet flexible approach to diagnosing and treating the most critical systems within your organization.

Like the heart in the human body, the organizational HEART powers every function, system, and outcome. When it’s strong, the organization thrives. When it’s compromised, no amount of tactical problem-solving can restore long-term health.

The HEART Protocol for Organizational Health

The HEART Protocol identifies five key areas — each a vital component of a healthy organization:

H – Healthy Strategic Culture
A clear strategy and a culture aligned to it form the foundation for long-term success. Without alignment, even great strategies falter.

E – Engaged Workforce
Engagement means more than satisfaction. It’s about connection to purpose, clarity of mission, and motivation to contribute meaningfully every day.

A – Accountable Individuals
Accountability isn’t just about owning tasks — it’s about owning outcomes. In healthy organizations, individuals and teams hold themselves and each other to high standards.

R – Resilient Capability
Disruption is inevitable. The key is whether your organization can bounce forward. Resilient systems and people adapt, respond, and grow from adversity.

T – Team-Oriented Collaboration
True collaboration breaks down silos, builds trust, and drives performance across functions. A team-oriented culture isn’t optional — it’s essential.

From Symptoms to Systems

Organizations often treat surface-level symptoms — like turnover, disengagement, or stagnation — with short-term fixes. But these symptoms usually signal deeper dysfunction in one or more areas of the HEART.

Just as a clinician starts with vital signs — temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure — before diagnosing, leaders must first assess the vital signs of organizational health.

Too often, leaders jump to solutions without ever checking the pulse of the organization.

The HEART Protocol offers a priority pathway: not a rigid checklist, but a flexible, systemic framework for diagnosing and treating system health. It helps you move from reactive patchwork to proactive strategy.

Once you diagnose where the system is breaking down, the HEART framework provides evidence-based treatment options to address both the symptoms and the underlying causes.

What’s the Pulse of Your Organization?

If you’re a leader — especially in a high-stakes, high-stress field like health care — ask yourself:

Would you trust a physician who ignores protocol?
Then why would we lead without one?

In upcoming posts, I’ll unpack each element of the HEART Protocol, sharing tools and real-world examples to help you diagnose and treat your organization’s unique challenges — and to lead with clarity, courage, and compassion.

Just like in medicine, early detection, saves lives — and it starts with checking the organizational vital signs.

To learn more, visit vitalsigns-book.com to get started.