The Challenge
A hospital's academics and quality department was performing in the bottom quartile compared to peer organizations on budget performance. Financial pressures were mounting, and the organization needed to fundamentally rethink how the department was structured and resourced without compromising the quality of what it delivered.
Resources were fragmented across disconnected functions, spans of control were misaligned, and staffing models bore little resemblance to what comparable organizations had found effective.
The Approach
A full program evaluation and benchmarking study was undertaken across the entire portfolio:
- Peer hospitals were consulted to compare staffing ratios, roles, manager spans of control, geographic reach, community partnerships, and performance measures
- Site visits provided direct insight into structural challenges and models working effectively elsewhere
- The entire portfolio was redesigned based on findings, with job descriptions updated and staff placed into newly defined roles through internal competition
- Core functions including strategy execution, accreditation, policy management, continuous quality improvement, project management, and patient and family partnered care were consolidated into a single centralized office
- Six frontline employees were appointed as Value Leaders for 30-month terms to build transformation capability and strengthen succession planning
- Value Leader positions were not backfilled, generating additional manpower savings while building organizational resilience
The Outcome
The redesign reallocated 22 percent of manpower costs and aligned the department with benchmark staffing levels. The Value Leader appointments produced more than $550,000 in additional manpower savings.
The department emerged leaner, better integrated, and capable of delivering its mandate within a financially sustainable structure.