Transforming an Organisation

TRANSFORMING AN ORGANISATION

The Company

An ex-university seed company, recently launched as an independent business that had developed a unique clinical pathway tool using evidence based best practice produced by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) to produce clinical pathway maps that demonstrate the optimum patient journey across primary and secondary care.

The Business Problem

As a recently launched company, the business operational procedures were not in place. Contracts had been signed with 3 of the 5 regions in the English NHS National programme but the back-to-back agreements had not been agreed. Basic operational processes such as HR, finance and commercial were not in place, with some staff working without employment contracts and no clear job descriptions or responsibilities within the organisation. As ex-university and medical professionals, the organisation did not possess the skills or experience to ensure that the commercial and operational processes were implemented.

The Solution

Xanthe Childs was appointed as Chief Operating Officer, with the responsibility of establishing business processes to support the day-to-day operation. The first activity was to define and establish the organisational structure required moving forward that would deliver the business strategy. Four departments were created focusing on Content production – the creation and publication of the pathways, Implementation – training clients in the use of the product and provided consultancy and support as required, Marketing – creating the necessary collateral to ensure future sales, and Business Management – the management information required to manage the business, including resourcing, financial models, resource utilisation and commercial agreements. Organisational as well as personal objectives were created for each department, using the Investors in People (IIP) standard as a framework for implementation. Each department manager was provided with a job description and objectives as well as training in how to set and review objectives for their staff. A management development programme was initiated. Xanthe defined the modules required, selecting and working with the training provider to define the organisational training content and plans to enable the business to effectively develop. Management information reporting (MIS) processes were defined and implemented enabling the business to track its development.

The Benefits

This assignment created the necessary infrastructure for the organisation to move forward. Key personnel were recruited and the training and development plans put in place to ensure the continued success of the business. The business objectives for each department were regularly reported on, provided the CEO with a picture of progress and the sales team with the confidence to approach other clients. The commercial agreements were reviewed, and where possible re-negotiated. Supplier agreements were put in place to support the commercial agreements and a process for the production of content was defined and signed off with the Department of Health.