Posted on October 28, 2014
Recently, I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at the Mayo Clinic’s Center for Innovation (CFI) Transform Conference. Booz Allen Hamilton’s Initiating Change workshop focused on initiating organizational change in the healthcare industry and I was one of three speakers who came together to share our personal stories. I focused my remarks on cultural challenges, and how to deliver improved results and modify behavior change depending on each organization’s unique culture.
Participants reflected on the stories presented and identified ways to collectively bring together ideas and insights around a particular topic area with their own stories and experiences using the Booz Allen Design Thinking methodology. Each group had self-selected topic areas of interest to them and worked with a facilitator to identify pain points and ideate around opportunities to bring change to light for their area.
Throughout the workshop I could feel the energy grow. I walked around to listen and gain insight on the conversations as they evolved around topic areas like work-life balance, caregiver support, EHR integration, wearables, and patient generated data. I noticed a shared, overarching concern around the need for better connected care across the ecosystem of health and healthcare at the organizational level. I also heard many groups discussing the need to broaden the conversation, improve transparency between doctors and patients and regarding costs. Groups discussed the desire to connect with other communities, bring people together with diverse backgrounds and capabilities, and use technology, people, and processes in ways we might not have thought of before.
What impressed me most about the Initiating Change workshop was the commitment. In very short order, complete strangers came together from different backgrounds, careers, and cultures to share their stories, ideate, and create roadmaps about initiating change. Change in the healthcare industry is at times slow moving, and complex at best. Understanding the programmatic environment and stakeholder motivations are critical to successfully implementing a change effort, but I would argue that truly understanding the nuances and effects of culture on your change effort is crucial.
