Healthcare organizations are not necessarily known for embracing innovation at the speed of light, but the relentless pace of technological and regulatory disruption bombarding the industry has started to require additional attention to the ability to embrace and adapt to change.
Developing a nimble, flexible, and responsible organizational strategy will be key to meeting the ever-changing requirements of the modern business environment, says a new cross-industry survey by Changepoint, especially when it comes to big data analytics in the healthcare world.
"The hard truth is, at any moment, your business is most likely disrupting or being disrupted," said Alan Shefveland, Director of Product Management, Strategy and Innovation at Changepoint. "The best way to thrive in the face of rapid change is rewriting your playbook to refocus on accelerating internal operations."
For providers large and small, that may mean investing in administrative, clinical, and financial analytics tools that can help organizations monitor internal activities, identify bottlenecks, reallocate resources appropriately, and maintain a high quality of clinical care and customer service.
While the majority of the 1257 project managers taking part in the survey agreed that an agile organizational culture is key to succeeding in any rapidly changing industry, just 10 percent of respondents said they are confident that they could pivot appropriately when required.
A lack of cohesive organizational culture, unclear organizational objectives, and a murky sense of business values make strategizing a difficult proposition for more than half of respondents, while poor communication between departments produces frustration for a similar number of participants.Â
More than a quarter of respondents said that they feel as if their organization is at a competitive disadvantage due to their inability to anticipate marketplace changes.
Few organizations have robust and insightful big data analytics systems in place to help them manage their business objectives, the survey added. Participants identified project management, portfolio management, and resource management as the three most important project portfolio management (PPM) capabilities, but 31 percent of organizations do not have the right big data tools to help them access real-time information for strategic decision-making.
Seventy-five percent of organizations still use basic spreadsheets to manage ongoing projects, the survey found. Many respondents stated that they are using a patchwork of technologies for monitoring and communication, including proprietary software, cloud-based solutions, and Software as a Service (SaaS) offerings.
For healthcare organizations, this fragmented project management and data governance landscape is nothing new.
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