Value Analysis Teams Need to be Designed to Be Effective and Productive
There has been enough empirical data and research generated by team performance practitioners to clearly recognize that high performance value analysis teams, or any teamwork for that matter, does not just happen. It must be designed into a team’s framework to be successful. It all starts with eight new rules for new work as follows:
Rule #1: Teams must have clear goals, clear rules, and a defined process. This starts with establishing annual goals and objectives (savings, quality, and outcomes) to guide your VA team(s), along with rules of engagement and a defined value analysis process (similar to our Value Analysis Funneling ™ process.)
Rule #2: Teams must have a charter to define their scope and boundaries. Although team charters can change depending on the VA project, they all describe the mission and objectives, roles and responsibilities, scope, and milestones.
Rule #3: Team members must be given the time necessary to complete assignments. If there is a conflict due to time restraints between a team member’s job and their teamwork, then your VA Steering Committee needs to provide the necessary resources to assist the team members to complete their assignment(s).
Rule #4: Timetables for completion of value analysis studies must be strictly adhered to. VA projects shouldn’t be open ended. They need to have a completion date. We recommend 90 days. Thereafter, if not completed on time, your VA Steering Committee will need to review the project and approve a 90-day extension.
Rule #5: Team performance must be evaluated holistically. If one member fails the team, this must reflect on his or her overall performance evaluation. If a team member becomes uncooperative, unresponsive, or indifferent, they should be retired from your VA team.
Rule #6: If there is a conflict (time, change in responsibilities, workload, etc.) with team leaders or members, they must be resolved quickly by your Value Analysis Steering Committee. Otherwise, these problems will fester and become obstacles to your team’s success.
Rule #7: 360-degree evaluation must be utilized to rate team performance. It isn’t good enough to just survey your customers on your VA team’s performance. You also need to have them rated by their peers, vendors, and supervisors.
Rule #8: Must reward, recognize, and compensate teams for their performance. One of the smartest things a healthcare organization can do is link recognition to team performance, since employees expect it, focus on it, and are motivated by it. The rule of thumb is to recognize efforts and activities that exceed expectations by giving non-cash awards. To get results, pay cash!
To summarize, it has been mistakenly believed that if management focuses their efforts on the human relations side of team dynamics or soft skills (cooperation, trust, conflict resolution etc.) this would lead to team success. It has now been carefully documented that these human relation issues will take care of themselves over time. You cannot force them on a team. They will develop over time as the team members work together. On the other hand, to truly have high-performance VA teams, management must quickly focus their efforts on performance elements, such as outlined above, which are measurable, recognizable, and manageable. Focusing on both human relations and performance elements will ensure that you are creating high-performance value analysis teams.
| About Robert T. Yokl, Founder & Chief Value Strategist for SVAH Solutions |
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| Robert T. Yokl is President and Chief Value Strategist at SVAH Solutions. He has four decades of experience as a healthcare supply chain manager and consultant, and also is the co-creator of the Clinitrack Value Analysis Software and Utilizer Clinical Utilization Management Dashboard that moves beyond price for even deeper and broader clinical supply utilization savings. Yokl is a member of Bellwether League’s Bellwether Class of 2018. https://www.SVAH-Solutions.com https://www.SavingsValidator.com |
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