Starting with Me (2006)

Starting with Me tells the true story of a faith-based long-term care organization in its struggle to evolve as a culture that is more open, fair and just. With a shift from hierarchical to a team-based management, executives hope to improve their atmosphere and efficiency. The challenges that accompany change become readily apparent when management begins to engage with staff who hold very different perspectives. The film captures the hopes, fears and concerns of both front-line staff and management throughout the ups and downs of a year-long cultural adjustment. Starting with Me explores these restructuring efforts from an insider's point of view. Staff speak out about the organization and their roles. They describe the division of labor, conflict management, award systems and the decision-making processes. Through their eyes, the audience enters a world in flux. Old hierarchical models, based on parent-child relationships, give way to adult-adult relationships. Top-down organization transforms into team-based decision-making and shared responsibility. Symptoms of organizational dysfunction, such tardiness and absenteeism, fade as staff and management alike confront deep-seated issues of race, class and respect. Ultimately, Starting with Me is the story of an organization finding its collective voice to articulate broader-based concerns and draw out solutions from within-including from those new to the policy-making table. The film documents, in the moment of crisis, ways to enhance performance through a different and more equitable organizational model. It is a story of courage and hope and new opportunity within the long term care workplace.