Kim Zimmerman works diligently every day to drive excellence. She is one of the most visible AVPs that I have ever had. Kim is extremely involved in the day-to-day patient flow and sometimes we even have to remind her to go handle the big stuff and we will handle the bedside part. It is who she is, and her availability has built trust in our division. She often knows details about patients before we do as the nurse managers.

Kim works to create spaces where all belong in our division. She learns your strengths and finds ways to keep you engaged and valued. As a non-traditional leader Kim allows me to think outside of the box to come up with ways to improve our quality initiatives and patients’ experiences. She also encourages the team to connect with each other and form foundations of trust to work better together. The teammates in the women’s division trust her leadership and openly engage her with concerns, recognitions, and questions.

Everyone knows if you tell Kim, she is going to jump in and handle it quickly. She has a passion for fixing things for sure. Kim is not your normal AVP, she doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, but she does want her team to shine. I can remember a specific instance where Kim definitely modeled empathy and demonstrated a caring attitude toward me. It was when I first met Kim and I was actually serving as interim in her position before she was hired. Once Kim started, she recognized that I was not functioning at my full potential and that “something was not right”. Kim called me one day as I sat in the parking deck in tears because I was experiencing one of the biggest professional setbacks in my career, and she said, “Hey, I know we don’t know each other well but this is not the same outgoing person that I met in my interview.” She then went on to tell me how she immediately recognized my leadership qualities, and she told me to go home and take some time to get it together so that I could return at my full potential in so many words. I wasn’t able to get an appointment with EAP immediately and she made a few calls and got me in that day. Though a tough story to share, it was because of her “fix it” mentality that I pulled myself together and “fixed it”! From that point on, I was committed to striving for excellence on my units and I totally trusted her commitment to our leadership team. For the first time in years, I felt safe, supported, and valued in my position. All leaders should know their team in this way. Kim truly helped me get my spark back so I could shine. Kim is 100% action-oriented and ready to tackle any situation every day.

She works to make sure the division’s efforts align with the system strategy and is not afraid to change plans if they are not in alignment. Kim knows how to use her resources and she has connections all over the facility even though she has only been there about 5 years. She will phone a friend in a heartbeat to help you get the resources that you need to handle an issue. Kim works together with her nurse managers, CNS, SLE, and unit teammates to make great things happen every day in the Women’s Division. We could not be successful leaders in our division without the support of our AVP. Kim is a true example of a silent, yet a compassionate leader.