Driving Health Care Innovation

Matthew Kinney

Growth and innovation leader, Optum

Key Insights from a Panel Discussion on Transformation and Modernization

I recently led a panel discussion with the ambitious title: Enabling growth through digital transformation and modernization. The market is shifting beneath our feet: consumer expectations are changing post-pandemic, legacy systems leave us open to new external threats and the lofty promises of new technology demand our absolute attention at this moment in the history of health care.

Our thesis was that most organizations treat these elements as separate imperatives, managed by separate teams, when they should be brought together into a holistic strategy. Our discussion was framed in the context of how investments in technology create value along three axes: consumer acquisition value, consumer retention value and operational simplification value. Our expert panel shared case examples of initiatives that delivered along those lines.

The panel discussion was energizing, but it was the follow up conversations I had with colleagues and clients after the panel that I've been thinking about ever since. There were three critical elements we never got to in our discussion about the importance of mission, focus and change leadership. Real transformation takes time. Real transformations require strategic clarity and organizational alignment over a much longer period than most organizations are willing to commit to.

So as you are thinking about taking on large scale transformations, I thought I'd offer a few things to focus on first:

1. Strategic clarity, intent and commitment

Too many organizations are starting their conversations in the wrong place, spending money on technology without the benefit of strategic clarity. Fundamental questions organizations should be asking themselves before first dollar investments include: Who are we to the market? And what is the competitive advantage we are striving for?

You cannot be all things to all customers. Look 10 years into the future. Make some choices. Say "no" to some things. Be different.

Be straight-forward and specific about your strategy. Back it up with a financial view of the market that gives you clarity on real opportunities and risk. Now and only now can you align your technology needs, build out a roadmap and prepare for significant investments.

Once you and your leadership have it, commit. Bake it into your long-range plan. Announce it to the board. Announce it to your team. Announce it to the market. Get your checkbook out.

2. Fanatical focus

Finding your future while also managing day-to-day needs of customers and teams can be difficult. Our focus is challenged in a thousand different ways every day and distractions come from every corner of our lives. So how do you maintain focus over the life cycle of a transformation?

If you've taken care of the first item, the way you maintain focus is by building adaptive cultures who live the mission. People want to make an impact. This is especially true in health care. They want purpose. Give them something to believe in and they will make this their life's work.

This should be supported with a simplified set of objectives and key results--two to three at the most. OKRs aren't the only measures you'll be tracking, but they are the only measures that matter to driving growth and transformation. You need to make it simple and protect that simplicity at all costs.

3. Follow-you-anywhere leadership

Leadership is the catalyst that brings everything together. I look for a servant leadership mindset and a never-say-die work ethic. I look for someone who understands the human nature of change in complex organizations. Someone who gets into the details to creatively and collaboratively solve problems with other teams and other leaders.

Frothy visions of the future alone can never replace the in-the-trenches credibility leaders gain when they are working directly with their teams.

Now that you've gotten these three things in order, you're ready to drive change at a pace that will surprise you. Because in the end, modernization and digital transformation isn't about technology at all. It's about engaging your people to unlock imagination and potential. It's about living with purpose and making an impact.