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The Path To Leadership
We podcast about strong leaders, loyal employees, avoiding burnout, and raising profits building strong cultures. Everyone is a leader, but the path isn't always easy. Developing critical skills to build stronger, more successful and profitable organizations.
The Path To Leadership
Rising to Lead: Kristen Hoffman's Leadership Journey
From hourly employee to C-suite executive, Kristen Hoffman's leadership journey at Delta Dental of Kansas defies conventional career paths. As Chief Operating and Experience Officer, she oversees critical business functions while driving innovation that recently earned her "Innovator of the Year" recognition in Wichita.
What makes Kristen's approach to leadership truly remarkable isn't just what she's achieved, but how she's done it. By rejecting hierarchical structures where "we've always done it this way," she's fostered a culture where the best ideas win regardless of who suggests them. Her commitment to building personal connections with team members at every level has yielded engagement scores far exceeding national averages, proving that authentic leadership drives measurable results.
The conversation reveals surprising vulnerabilities beneath her success. Despite her impressive trajectory, Kristen admits she had to be talked into every promotion she received, often questioning whether advancing her career would compromise her ability to be present for her family. Through meticulous planning and strong support systems, she's demonstrated that professional growth and personal priorities can coexist without sacrifice.
Perhaps most valuable for listeners is Kristen's practical approach to building high-performing teams. By defining clear expectations, actively seeking input from all levels, and celebrating achievements meaningfully, she's created an environment where innovation thrives and employees stay for decades. Her insights offer a blueprint for transformational leadership that values people as much as performance.
Whether you're aspiring to leadership or already in a position of influence, this episode offers rare insight into how authentic connection, thoughtful mentorship, and a willingness to challenge convention can transform both careers and organizations. How might embracing vulnerability while pursuing excellence change your approach to leadership?
Connect with Kristen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristenlhoffman/
Follow Catalyst Development on LinkedIn @catalystdevelopment and @drkatieervin
www.cdleaders.com
Learn more about Supervisor 101 at www.cdleaders.com/supervisor101
Theme music by Emma Jo https://emmajo.rocks/
Hi everyone, welcome back to the Path to Leadership. I'm excited, as I always am. I have another member from my Leadership Kansas. Ooh, I have another member from my Leadership Kansas class. Hey, kristen, how are you?
Kristen Hoffman:Hi, I'm good. Katie, Thanks for having me.
Dr. Katie:Oh, I am so excited to have you and we have so much in common and it's been so fun to get to know you. But I'm excited to dig a little deeper on your leadership.
Kristen Hoffman:Well, thank you.
Dr. Katie:Yeah. So before we jump into everything, can you tell us a little bit about who you are, what you do all?
Kristen Hoffman:of that good stuff, absolutely so. I'm Kristen Hoffman, chief Operating and Experience Officer at Delta Dental of Kansas and our subsidiary company, shurency, where we offer vision, flex spending, cobra administration services and now 34 states across the country, and so that's an exciting and growing business. I graduated from K-State and I started my career in a communications role at a life insurance and annuities company while my husband was in law school, and then we moved cities and at that time I started my career with Delta Dental Insurance and I've been there about 15 years and during my time with the company I have held progressive leadership roles. I actually started in an hourly sales staff position and then grew to overseeing more than $300 million in existing business as vice president of client service and then now working as a member of the C-level executive team, developing and executing strategy and ensuring that we just deliver optimal operational production and best-in-class service.
Dr. Katie:That's amazing. Well, and it's funny because Delta Dental like I think everyone's heard of Delta Dental, but it was fun to have you in class and when you started class you were in Wichita and now you're in Kansas City, right?
Kristen Hoffman:That's correct, yeah, so a lot of changes for me this year and of course, we have a broad presence throughout the state and now nationally as well with our Sherncy brand, and so we of course have a headquarters there, but also sales office here in Leawood, and so that's been a seamless transition for me and I'm loving Kansas City.
Dr. Katie:Good, Well, that is perfect, and we talked beforehand. We're both avid golfers and you've jumped in. You have so many connections in Kansas City already, but getting in and getting going.
Kristen Hoffman:And I have to say it's been great with that Leadership Kansas experience and getting to know several people, such as yourself, and so I am not a stranger to the area. I come in with friends, so that feels good.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, yeah, it does. And that leads beautifully into the question about Leadership Kansas. I mean, it was such a amazing experience and we did so much and saw so much, so can you talk a little bit about your biggest takeaway from, from the year that we spent traveling the state?
Kristen Hoffman:Yeah, you know, as I look back on it, I have to say I surprised myself, as a lifelong Kansan, how much I had not been exposed to in my home state.
Kristen Hoffman:And so, of course, going to eight different regions they were all very diverse and really learning about each community and their businesses and their approach to economic development and what they're doing with education and the influence of our military installments, and then also how they're developing workforce in their area and what they're doing to support various community programs to solve the issues that they're dealing with.
Kristen Hoffman:As a leader, offers great perspective to really understand varied approaches to what different organizations and businesses are doing to both achieve success as well as just tackling challenges in both the private, public or civic sectors, and so that was certainly impactful I think it would be to anybody, and I think it's been a great experience. But as I think through really what the greatest takeaway for me was, you know the things that I value most are relationships and community, and so having that privilege to really be connected with such a dynamic cohort of individuals like you in every area of the state and just that's committed to really making their communities and their businesses the best that they can be was incredible, and I feel so grateful to not have those friendships, because it's also just a group that's really fun to be around and people who I look up to. So that's what I would say is just the greatest takeaway from the experience for me.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, yeah, I love that so much and I agree, I mean it was fun to travel the state and, like you, I knew regions. But I mean one of the biggest things I talk about all the time is I didn't realize how far Dodge City was from Kansas City.
Dr. Katie:I will never full appreciation for that. But yeah, even now, when I watch the news, it's like I get so excited when it's raining in western Kansas. I get so excited when it's raining in Western Kansas and people who you know live in their little silos of of you know, of Kansas or Missouri, don't realize the water shortage and it's. It's those kinds of things like that. It's like, oh my gosh, now I'm so focused on what everyone needs across the state.
Kristen Hoffman:Right, and as you're talking about how far Dodge city is, but also just the transportation issue and there's so much industry there but it's like a two-lane highway. I mean just things like that never would have considered, but it's important to know those issues for our state.
Dr. Katie:I got from the dairy farm was the milk trucks are the last ones off the highway. So in ice, storms and and things like that and and. So now it's like you know, it's really bad when you see no one on the road because the milk trucks have to get the milk to the you know to wherever it's going before it spoils, and it's just those little nuggets. It's like new appreciation for everything Absolutely. It's like new appreciation for everything Absolutely. Well, so you've had such an amazing career and done so much. Was there a particular moment when you realized that you wanted to lead at a higher level?
Kristen Hoffman:Like what has driven your ambition to keep growing in your career. You know, when I think about it, my ambition, honestly, is just to do a good job and to make things better, whether that's creating new processes or systems, helping or developing others or just really executing whatever task it is that's, in my purview, the best that I can to try to create value for my organization. That really motivates me. And as I look back to myself, you know, always growing up at a young age I had that natural tendency to just become that point person on team projects or cross-functional initiatives and I've always found it gratifying to really collaborate to organize ideas, develop action plans and really see them through.
Kristen Hoffman:And for me, I've been really fortunate at Delta Dental Insurance to have had leaders within my organization who saw that leadership ability in me, and so before I was even considering a larger role, it seems I was always stepping into one because they were offering me a new opportunity to put those skills to use.
Kristen Hoffman:And I would say now that I'm in this role as a C-level executive, my perspective is altered. So you know, I have the ability to really support my team in a different way to solve those complex issues and I have the authority to really help facilitate transformative changes to improve our processes or make their jobs easier or better. Our constituent experience and, most importantly, I have the ability to really set the tone and culture for my business area and so, for me, the ability to make my team feel valued and heard and supported and inspired and empowered. You know, that's what's most impactful and I felt that at other levels of leadership, but at this level it's different and that's what really, I feel like, inspires me now to continue to grow into different leaders of levels of leadership.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, well, and that's so powerful and, I think, so important. And when I think about you know you talk about making change and those kinds of things and you've led transformations that's really impacted performance, service and culture in the organization which you mentioned. What's been the most challenging part about leading through change and how did you overcome it?
Kristen Hoffman:So you know, I lead a large team overseeing all of our claims and customer service and system configuration functions of our business and when I took over in this role a little over a year ago, we also had to accomplish many significant milestones and make significant process changes to really successfully convert systems, enhance our performance and improve that end user experience. And we were able to successfully meet every one of those milestones and objectives. And I think that I was able to help our team accomplish this because of my hands-on approach and then the personal relationships that I've built with my team. And really getting to know each of my team members, regardless of position or experience, is a personal mission of mine and I've done that in a lot of ways. So I will make individual calls to team members, I'll take them to coffee or lunch just to learn about their lives, check in on their professional and personal well-being and then get their insights and feedback. And then also during those outings I've given personally curated gifts to just show my appreciation to those team members. I've written handwritten notes to acknowledge specific contributions to the business.
Kristen Hoffman:I've done offsite engagement activities to celebrate those successes and milestones that we had and really, but just the ability to have fun together, and so I know these are small gestures, but they've allowed me to build camaraderie and trust with every person in my business area and that I value so much.
Kristen Hoffman:And it also helps me, as a leader, to recognize the individual skill sets that each team member possesses, so that I'm better able to identify opportunities that will help to further his or her professional development, and I've been able to elevate several team members within the organization accordingly.
Kristen Hoffman:And then, lastly, it's helped me to just better understand the challenges and roadblocks that my team members are facing and I. Lastly, it's helped me to just better understand the challenges and roadblocks that my team members are facing, and I love to solve problems, and so examining processes and identifying solutions and enacting new systems so that we can improve our approach to make their jobs easier and make our customer experience better, it's energizing for me, and so I'm certainly proud that we accomplished as much as we have and we have. I'm also proud of the fact that we've achieved an incredible employee engagement score, and that's something that we do measure regularly, and it's far above the national average, and I think that what it boils down to is that engaged employees perform better, and that's what's influenced our organization's ability to really achieve such outstanding results even in times of significant change?
Dr. Katie:Sure, Well, and what is so significant in that for me is you know, at your level, it is about the people underneath you, like they're the ones quote unquote doing the work. They're the front line and if they don't feel cared about and if they don't feel important, it's just a job and they're not going to be as engaged. So of course, the engagement scores are high because of the heart that you put into it.
Kristen Hoffman:Thank you and I agree with that and that's what's been a learning, I guess, maybe change, for me coming into this role. I think in my prior roles I had some level of I want to say, subject matter expertise, that kind of went, you know, into that role. But you know, at this level of leadership it really is different. It is empowering the team and you know how you do that is really by valuing them, engaging them.
Dr. Katie:You know, like we discussed, yeah, yeah, oh, that speaks to my heart so much, it's so cool. Well, and first off, congratulations. I mean you were just named Innovator of the Year in Wichita, which is pretty cool.
Kristen Hoffman:Yeah, thank you. I'm very excited about that honor. Actually, tomorrow will be a luncheon celebration, so I'm looking forward to being part of that.
Dr. Katie:That is fantastic, and so I'm just curious what does innovation really mean to you in the context of your leadership?
Kristen Hoffman:Sure, you know, when I think about that, first of all, I just feel very fortunate to work for an organization that really has a deeply seated culture for innovation and is just constantly looking for ways to improve. And when I think about what that means to me as a leader, it's really cultivating a growth mindset for my business area. And so first thing is just challenging the status quo. The excuse that we've always done it that way is literally like nails on a chalkboard to me, and so that is getting rid of that completely, and then just sharing ideas and collaborating.
Kristen Hoffman:I like to take, you know, an idea, whether it's big or small, and then just getting input, adding, you know, perspective, and then what are ideas from the team? What's the best approach to solve this, to make it better, to execute it, so that we can make our business and our customer experience better? And then I think, lastly, it's just being willing to take the risk and embrace the new idea. We as an organization and that follows through to every area within our organization we know not everything is going to always work as planned. It's never going to be perfect, and we accept that, and so the key is just being willing to try but fail fast and then be nimble enough to pivot when we determine okay, if that wasn't the best way, let's try again.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, when I think so many organizations and individuals are afraid to quote, unquote, fail, because in their failure and it's like no, sometimes that's where the biggest learning comes from is we tried, it didn't work, now let's move on.
Kristen Hoffman:Absolutely, absolutely.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, I, yeah, I. I think so often we we don't do enough of that kind of risk-taking and and not to like risk you know something detriment to the organization. But just just try it. Yeah, absolutely.
Kristen Hoffman:Couldn't agree more.
Dr. Katie:Yeah Well, and I'm always fascinated on teams and you've talked about how you nurture and care for your teams, but I am interested on you. Know how do you build the teams? How do you get the right people in the right places to be so high performing? You've earned awards. Your teams have earned different national and local awards, so how do you just even put the team together?
Kristen Hoffman:A great question, and I actually will give credit to our CEO, dean Newton, because he's really set the standard as far as our recipe for success, as it relates to our culture and really building high-performing teams, and I think the good news is for all of your listeners is that it's not a secret. And so we do a handful of really important things. And so the first is that we define what success looks like. It is important that our employees, you know, know what our strategies and goals are and how they contribute to those strategies and goals. So you know for them. They need to know what they need to do to be successful, which makes us successful. And the second thing which I think is really important and, as we've talked about innovation, it really feeds into this is that we do not believe in positional authority. No matter what, the best idea always wins the day, and so there's really just no room for bureaucracy within our business, and again, that's really that stifles those ideas from floating up and having an opportunity to make our business better. And then the third thing is that we listen and communicate directly with our employees. So I shared a little bit about how I do that individually with my team, but just to give you some additional perspective.
Kristen Hoffman:You know we regularly are soliciting feedback from everyone within the organization. So we survey our employees weekly and our CEO actually bets and responds and comments to every single suggestion that is provided by an employee, every single one. That's impressive. So employees are heard and there's no idea that doesn't see the light of day Like. I get calls all the time, and as do all my counterparts, that hey, so-and-so suggested this. What are the? You know, is this something that we can consider? Can you give me more information? And then he provides response back.
Kristen Hoffman:So obviously we don't adopt every single suggestion that comes through, but we have a reason when we don't.
Kristen Hoffman:And people understand that and know it. You know we do the due diligence, we vet it and I think people value that our play base we've added and I think people value that our play base. And then you know, finally, it's important and we do it a lot, but we celebrate success and so we provide recognition where it's deserved and we also make a point to enjoy the fruits of our labor. It's important when we hit these milestones and goals. That you know we do, we celebrate it and we actually, within our organization, have a specific committee we call it the Culture Committee and they plan events throughout the year and celebrations throughout the year so that we as a team and organization can really enjoy those incredible performance results or awards or whatever it is that we want to celebrate. So I think that's been really important too, and it's really helped drive having a great team with a lot of longevity. People want to stay, which is great. I've been at the organization 15 years and there's many people that have been there much longer, so I think it speaks a lot.
Dr. Katie:Yeah Well, and I'm just sitting here thinking as a you know, a Delta Dental user it's through my husband's company. You can see why we never have service issues. You can see why, you know, when we tell the dentist like we have Delta Dental, they're like cool, okay, we got this Because the people that are doing the frontline work are satisfied and happy and taken care of. So I think that does say a lot about the importance of culture.
Kristen Hoffman:Well, thank you, and I really appreciate that feedback too. That's awesome to hear.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, yeah, well, and so kind of a I don't I didn't share this question with you, but we kind of talked about it before about kind of time management. When I think about the load that you carry I mean you did leadership Kansas last year, you're doing Centurions this year. You are a highly engaged leader at your organization, super proud mama of some amazing, amazing kids Like, how do you juggle it all to also take care of yourself and those around you?
Kristen Hoffman:Honestly, it takes a very high level of planning and execution is all I can really say, and I've always been strong with time management. But it's I get up early and you early and I'm doing all the things, get my kids to school, and it's kind of once I get to the office I'm hit the ground running. I'm really always trying to plan my day. I'm very much when I'm looking at deadlines, planning ahead what I need to do and just trying to do the most important thing, the prioritization piece. But also I just really keep my calendar really tight as far as I put everything on one calendar, all my personal as well as professional obligations. So that way when I, you know, do have soccer practice, like I did last night at 5pm, you know that's, I'm getting my kid there at the right time.
Kristen Hoffman:So it really it's just a high level of planning and execution, really working with my calendar. And then I also have to say just my husband is fantastic too, because you know there's so much we can do like for work and he's got a great career too. But the most important job that we have is being parents to our kids, and so that is number one priority. And I'll speak to just one thing to leadership is that I've always sometimes I've had trepidation Do I take the next step? Because am I going to be able to be the mom I want to be if I take this new role? But it really again, it just kind of comes back to the planning piece and like, yeah, you can, you can do it Without kind of anything I say, without my having to not be there for the practice or the game or whatever it is.
Dr. Katie:So yeah, yeah, and I think to the point like your husband's a part of this too. I think I always it. It hurts my heart a little bit when you know working moms are like I have mom guilt and you know we, we can do it all. We have to balance and we have to say no to things at times when it just doesn't fit in our life or our schedule. But it makes me sad when, when moms have that mom guilt and I had it early in my career I'm lucky now because I have a 21 and 23 year old, so I've seen that my kids came out of this fine at the end, even with the sacrifices that I had to make. But it's, it's definitely a juggle.
Kristen Hoffman:Right, and I think to your point. I think all moms have that working moms have that sense of guilt at some point or another. I think just having support is really what makes it work. So, um, my husband, you know it's a partnership and so that's what makes it work. But then we also we have other resources that we pull in. So we have an Amy that picks them up from school and you know those kinds of things that help, and so the kids ready for practice, and that saved me 30 minutes, for you know that evening that I didn't have to leave work early. So there's things like that and that coordination.
Kristen Hoffman:I will say my move from Wichita to Kansas City, that's been a little bit of a harder change, just for the fact my parents are in Wichita, I grew up there and so and they're highly involved, engaged throughout every single thing, and it didn't matter what it was at the drop of a hat they could be there to help. And so we're, that's something we're navigating. We've had great success so far and people are so helpful here. So we're, we're doing well, but it's that's one of the hardest changes that we're dealing with and it's just making sure to line up those resources, so you have them when you need them.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, it truly takes that village. And I think back, you know, early in my career when the kids were doing things, it was like you know, I had two of my best friends were like the third and fourth phone call from the school. So if you can't get the end, you start calling the village and someone will show up. That's right, Exactly. You start calling the village and someone will show up.
Dr. Katie:That's right, exactly, yeah. So well, I love your story, I love the path that you've taken. And so the final question I ask everybody because I think it's so important that we talk about you know, there's times where the path wasn't as straight and clean and clear as we wanted it to. So, to the level you're comfortable sharing, what's the biggest leadership or career misstep that you've taken?
Kristen Hoffman:You know, that's such a great question and as I reflect on that, I feel happy that I am looking back and I don't feel like I had a regret or a large misstep that I feel like has inhibited me in my career. However, I also feel like I could have easily stifled my growth and leadership influence so many times throughout my career and I mentioned earlier that I've been provided new opportunities before I even considered myself ready for them or to have been, would have been seeking them, and every promotion that I've received I have literally had to be talked into it, which I understand is a very unusual circumstance. But you know, I think two of my promotions came right after having a baby, so we talked about earlier. It's just always that you know, can I do it? Can I be a good mom and can I do this job? Will I be able to do it well and be successful? And it's really.
Kristen Hoffman:Fear is what it is and I will say like there are valid fears.
Kristen Hoffman:I know so many people have been in those positions and had those same concerns.
Kristen Hoffman:You know, can I be the person I want to be in my personal life while still, you know, providing the value that I want to in my professional life, and so, luckily, I've had incredible mentors, which I mentioned earlier, but I'll mention two of them, natalie Dainey and Dean Newton, and they knew that I could be successful in whatever that new role was without my personal life or relationships suffering, and so they really encouraged me and they really did talk me into taking those opportunities, and I'm so glad that they did, because I do not regret any promotion that I've taken. I think I would have severe regrets had I not taken those opportunities when they were provided, and so, when I reflect, it's like almost I could have taken the other choice, and if I left it to my own self, I probably I might have been too fearful to take the leap, but with that encouragement from excellent mentors that knew me and knew what I would be capable of it, and their confidence in me, it propelled me.
Dr. Katie:So yeah Well, and that's powerful, that voice in our head, that's, you know, our self-limiting voice that tells us like it's scary don't do it so thank goodness you had people that you know, knew you and from the organization that you're with, delta Dental like. They obviously invest so much in personal and professional growth that it helps.
Kristen Hoffman:Yes, absolutely. I feel very, very grateful and fortunate.
Dr. Katie:Yeah, that's amazing. Well, thank you so much for sharing your journey with us. I just I love these conversations because in Leadership Kansas, you know, we had all these conversations, but for me to be able to dig deep with you all it's such a gift. So, thank you so much.
Kristen Hoffman:Well, thank you so much for having me. This has been fun. My very first podcast, so it's kind of exciting.
Dr. Katie:Yay, that seems to be a theme with the classmates, so I'm loving doing that and it just it reflects that everyone has a leadership journey and a leadership story that is so valuable to share.
Kristen Hoffman:Yeah, Well, and thank you for taking the time to dig in and really have that venue or avenue where people can can listen and learn, because everyone's path is different. I think it's so valuable to kind of learn and understand how people got to where they were and you know advice that they have and can give based on their experiences, and that's really valuable for all of your listeners and happy to be part of it. So that is awesome.
Dr. Katie:Well, I listeners I'm happy to be part of it. So that is awesome. Well, I'm so thrilled for you to be in Kansas City. We're going to play a lot of golf, get to spend some time together, but I'm just, I'm happy to call your friend. Thank you so much. Thanks, katie, and thank you for joining me on the path to leadership. I'll talk to you next time. Bye, everyone.
