Let’s start with something we’ve all seen.

A distribution tech finishes their shift. The carts are stocked. The supply closets are full. The task list is checked off. But if you were to ask them how their work affects the patient, reimbursements, the payor mix, or even the financial health of the hospital, the answer is usually a shrug.

Not because they don’t care.
Because no one ever told them.

This is not just a supply chain problem; it is systemic within organizations. You can ask these same questions in both clinical and non-clinical areas, and the answers will be similar.

Most front-line workers are hired into a tightly defined role, given a checklist of duties, and trained to execute with speed and accuracy. It’s a transactional relationship from the jump: you perform these tasks, we pay you this wage.

Over time, that framework becomes the lens through which all work is viewed. “I do what I’m told. I stay in my lane. I don’t ask questions.”

It’s not apathy. It’s design.

How We Got Here

In operational environments, especially in healthcare, there is tremendous pressure to move fast, reduce variation, and maintain reliability. So, we standardize, segment, and optimize individual tasks. But in doing so, we often strip the context out of the work.

Curiosity becomes a liability.
Asking “why” becomes a distraction. It is another thing that takes resources away (time) from the mounting levels of emails that need a response, or a back order that needs to be addressed.

Understanding the bigger picture becomes “not my job.” Don’t even consider discussing strategic vision, employee engagement, staff accountability, process improvement. There is not dedicated time for this.

And when that mindset gets baked in at the front line, it rarely changes on its own. It travels up the chain.

Technicians become supervisors.
Supervisors become managers.
Managers become directors.
But the lens stays transactional.
Just with a larger task list and a new email signature.

The Cost of Staying Small

When people only know their slice of the pie, their decision-making becomes reactive. Team members hoard resources because they don’t understand organizational tradeoffs. Managers overstaff because they’re trying to protect their corner of the world. Leaders avoid strategic conversations because they don’t feel equipped to have them.

Meanwhile, system-wide initiatives like hiring freezes, margin recovery, or patient
experience improvement fall flat—because the people executing the work never
understood the “why” to begin with.

This isn’t just a communication gap.
It’s a performance ceiling.

What We Can Do About It

When I led supply chain teams throughout my career in the military and now in the healthcare industry, I made it a point to teach beyond the task. We didn’t just talk about PAR levels and stockouts. We talked about how our work impacted the customer or patient experience, how payor mix influenced strategic decisions, and how even a simple act, like supporting nursing staff with urgency and respect, could ripple into HCAHPS scores and reimbursement rates.

One book I’ve leaned on heavily in the healthcare industry is The Patient Comes Second. It helped my teams connect the dots between operations and outcomes. Not everyone got it at first. But with consistent conversation and intentional reflection, something shifted. They started asking smarter questions. They challenged the status quo. They started to think bigger.

That’s the real unlock.

It’s not about getting front-line workers to “care more.”
It’s about equipping them to understand more.

The Leadership Imperative

If you’re in a leadership role, especially in a support function like supply chain,
environmental services, or facilities—ask yourself:

• Are we developing our teams to think strategically, or just execute tactically?
• Do our supervisors understand how their work connects to mission and margin?
• Have we made space for curiosity, or trained it out of the system?

The answers will tell you whether you’re reinforcing the Transactional Trap, or helping your people climb out of it.

Because in the end, transactional thinking might get the job done today. But
transformational thinking is what sustains an organization tomorrow.

Field Notes from the Author

This post comes from years of watching smart, capable people get trapped in narrow roles, simply because no one ever showed them the bigger picture. If you’re leading teams in healthcare (or anywhere, really), this is your reminder to teach beyond the task. The future of your organization may depend on it.