World-class healthcare organizations are structured differently from the rest. They have a "high performance organizational design."
Traditional organizational designs don't allow employees to make nimble changes to the process of care delivery. Traditional designs don't allow staff to be as patient-focused as they need to be. And traditional designs don't permit the kind of rapid, successful deployment of excellent patient care that typifies world-class organizations.
A "high performance organizational design" is different from traditional hierarchical structures.
Traditional organizational designs don't allow employees to make nimble changes to the process of care delivery. Traditional designs don't allow staff to be as patient-focused as they need to be. And traditional designs don't permit the kind of rapid, successful deployment of excellent patient care that typifies world-class organizations.
A "high performance organizational design" is different from traditional hierarchical structures.
This chart illustrates how traditional organizational designs change to become high performance. The traditional structure in Stage 1 is a hierarchy. Obviously, top executives are at the top, workers at the bottom. A pyramid structure. Not much direct communication. Not much teamwork. Not much responsiveness to problems. Not much flexibility. Lots of rigid, formal structure. Plenty of work for producers of organization charts.
Stage 2 on the chart shows how the pyramid begins to flatten out on the top. Less distance between top management and the workers, fewer layers of management, more teamwork. Companies that aspire to become World-class are often in this phase.
Stage 3 illustrates a World-class structure. A team structure. There is no long chain of command. There are minimal layers of management. There are fewer structural barriers to communication.
The advantages of team-centered organizational designs are many. Communication is incredibly direct. All functions needed for a project are present on the team. New knowledge is created and integrated at a level far beyond what a traditional structure can achieve.
People and processes can be shifted to meet new innovations in patient care, and new requests from patients. There is much more flexibility and responsiveness. Responses are more focused and efficient.
Stage 2 on the chart shows how the pyramid begins to flatten out on the top. Less distance between top management and the workers, fewer layers of management, more teamwork. Companies that aspire to become World-class are often in this phase.
Stage 3 illustrates a World-class structure. A team structure. There is no long chain of command. There are minimal layers of management. There are fewer structural barriers to communication.
The advantages of team-centered organizational designs are many. Communication is incredibly direct. All functions needed for a project are present on the team. New knowledge is created and integrated at a level far beyond what a traditional structure can achieve.
People and processes can be shifted to meet new innovations in patient care, and new requests from patients. There is much more flexibility and responsiveness. Responses are more focused and efficient.
Perhaps the most dramatic advantage is that frontline staff are empowered and rewarded. They are no longer at the bottom of the pyramid following instructions. Processes established by managers are no longer far removed from the hospital floor and the patient. Processes get improved by the ones who know best how to make them better—the doctors, the front desk, the nurses, everyone who makes the hospital hum.
World-class Lean leaders know how to step back and restructure to capitalize on their human potential. Most importantly, world-class organizations aren’t afraid to re-organize until they get it right.
Be sure to check out my other posts on world-class organizations. And as always, feel free to reach out to me for more ideas about how to make the transformations in quality patient care that will set your organization apart.
World-class Lean leaders know how to step back and restructure to capitalize on their human potential. Most importantly, world-class organizations aren’t afraid to re-organize until they get it right.
Be sure to check out my other posts on world-class organizations. And as always, feel free to reach out to me for more ideas about how to make the transformations in quality patient care that will set your organization apart.
RSS Feed