Case Study: Improving IT-ERP Implementation
Client Background
A prominent not-for-profit health care system in the Pacific Northwest with 10 hospitals, more than 160 multispecialty clinics, nine medical centers, and a medical group, providing comprehensive health care services to urban and rural communities.
The Situation
The health care system faced the daunting task of implementing an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system across the entire organization. The biggest risks were identified as staffing, recalls, and procurement.
Large-scale IT implementations like this one often bring significant changes in workflows, dictated by IT-centric, vendor-specific processes. These changes frequently introduce gaps that can adversely affect quality, safety, operations, and finance, and can cause significant upheaval, disruption, and staff frustration.
Recognizing these risks, the health care system sought expert assistance to align people, processes, and policies effectively before the ERP system went live.
The Solution & Results
The Moss Adams Lean Health Care Practice was brought on board to facilitate a smooth transition.
The team focused on four key workflows:
- Procurement
- Recalls
- Offboarding
- Talent acquisition
Through diagnostic flow mapping workshops, Moss Adams helped clarify current workflows and identify discrepancies with the new ERP-imposed workflows. Common issues such as missing information, unclear communication, and redundant steps were addressed.
Solutions ranged from immediate just-do-it fixes to comprehensive policy changes and redesigning workflows in collaboration with IT.
Over 50% of new processes were implemented before the ERP system went live as a result of this proactive approach, improving stability and optimization from day one.
The results were impactful:
- Procurement. Pending expenses reduced by $13 million, clearing capital for other uses, by streamlining the process and clearing a significant backlog of defects—invoiced-not-received and received-not-invoiced—down from 3 years to 30 days (excluding construction).
- Recalls. $407,000 saved annually in staff time by standardizing procurement recall management.
- Offboarding. HR workload reduced by 75% for voluntary terminations, saving four hours of HR time per day, over a thousand hours per year.
- EHR access. 2,600 hours saved annually of staff time by eliminating defects of erroneous terminations of access to the EHR.
- Salary penalties. $259,000 per year saved by reducing late penalties for employees not receiving their final check on time.
- Facilities. 1,000 hours saved annually with simplified badge management processes.
- Onboarding. 40 hours saved per month with standardized processes for onboarding physicians and new employees. This also enhanced the initial experience and relationship-building with the organization.
By addressing potential issues before the ERP system went live, the health care system avoided automating defects in existing processes that would have been costly and complex to resolve post-implementation. This strategic, forward-thinking approach not only saved time and money but also significantly improved operational efficiency and quality of service across the board.
We’re Here to Help
For more information on how lean methods can help your organization streamline and simplify implementation of IT systems, especially large or enterprise-wide implementations, please contact your Moss Adams professional.