UNH Today

The UNH College of Health and Human Services is welcoming the Relational Coordination Collaborative (RCC), formerly known as the Relational Coordination Research Collaborative at The Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, to the Institute for Excellence in Health and Social Systems (IEHSS). The RCC at UNH will focus on translating relational coordination (RC) research into practice in health and social systems. Lainie Loveless has transitioned to the University of New Hampshire as the Director of the RCC and joined the IEHSS leadership team.

IEHSS, founded and led by Marjorie Godfrey, is committed to enhancing and developing individual, student and team capabilities for research, practice, improvement and innovation in health and social systems to help people live a good life in a good place.

RCC, led by Lainie Loveless, fosters the development and application of RC theory, research, and practice to improve the lives of others by improving organizational performance.

Established in 2011 by Jody Hoffer Gittell at Brandeis University, the RCC is a global community of leaders, researchers, practitioners, and change agents sharing ideas and interventions to apply the transformational approach of RC in their work. Gittell, the founder of RC, will remain at Brandeis University as professor of management at The Heller School. She will continue teaching and leading innovative research extending the use and application of relational coordination at Brandeis and will provide content expertise on various UNH engagements.

"Relational coordination theory and applied practice has helped advance the principle of improvement in health care being more than the technical models and mechanical activities," says Godfrey, who is also a research professor in UNH's department of nursing. "Relational Coordination will support the continued engagement of populations to live a good life in a good place."

The RCC will accomplish its mission by:

• Community building, learning networks, and interprofessional partnerships
• Engagement of students at all educational levels across all UNH colleges, institutes, and programs
• Training and certification programs for relational coordination
• Connecting researchers and practitioners around the world to develop and test new models of change
• Exploring how change impacts critical performance outcomes including, quality, safety, efficiency, engagement, well-being, learning, and innovation
• Disseminating shared learning and knowledge products with policymakers and influencers
• Partnering with other centers, institutes, and departments across the College and University

Lainie Loveless brings over 20 years of experience leading teams through product and process development, process improvement, and projects impacting organizational effectiveness. She began her career as an engineer supporting the development of complex systems with electronics, automation, and communication technology. She applied this systems approach to the organization and progressed to management roles, leading teams through successful change and process improvement initiatives to improve quality, efficacy, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. Her interest in quantifying perception and change in outcomes and continuous improvement within organizations led her to relational coordination. Loveless has advanced training in program management, high performing teams, and Lean Six Sigma methodologies. She holds a BS in Industrial Engineering from Pennsylvania State University and an MBA from Boston College.