Corporate Health Group - experience. insight. impact.

June Issue | 2010

If only we could run our sales teams and achieve the financial success that the Oracle of Omaha has had. Buffett's quote implies that the time, energy and focus we invest today will reap rewards later—ultimately, building a lasting return.
  
Unfortunately, healthcare organizations aren’t following this advice as much as you may think. It’s still the minority who are reframing physician relations into accountability-driven models.

In our 2008 survey, demonstrating Return on Investment (ROI) continues to be challenging with many programs indicating an inability to have optimum ROI measures in place, especially with a new physician relations program. The number of respondents indicating they didn’t have a formula or procedure for reporting sales ROI to leadership grew to 83 percent.

While each system measures or values outcomes differently, physician relations can deliver results and should be a valued investment. With the right processes, ROI can be realized and support your team’s goals.   

In our last issue, we offered tips on implementing change internally, as well as executing a plan for both young and mature programs. In this issue, we offer tips for those of you who are searching for new ways to drive results and prove value today. From definitions to processes to tools, we define ROI and teach the surrounding principles of how to get the results you are seeking.

This month you’ll also see two new highlights. Our CHG Product Partners section will be written by one of our many clients or will share how a client tackled a specific challenge with positive results. Our Question and Answer forum will address issues from our clients—let us know what’s on your mind as it relates to a topic you see in our newsletter.
How Best to Achieve ROI
NEW - Product Partner Highlight:
In Seeking the Right Tracking Tool, Don’t Undercut Your Strategy: Three Important Steps to Take Before Developing A Physician Tracking Tool via CRM. 
By Suzanne R. Dewey, Forte Partners
Conducting a Sales Territory Analysis
Primary service area and target audiences are identified as part of the process
Maintaining the Momentum
How Best to Achieve ROI
Issue Resolution
Figure 1: Closed Loop Process for Sales ROI

From Data Collection to Results

When we ask sales leaders, “What keeps you awake at night?” the most frequent answers we hear relate to finding out how to integrate data to drive results and prove return on investment (ROI). 

Achieving desired results is crucial during this economy and despite organizations best efforts to capture referral data, ROI measures are not consistently defined and/or used to drive sales activity and simultaneously, prove the team’s value.

If ROI is the ultimate desire, let’s first define ROI:

Read the complete article >>
New - Product Partner Highlight: Forte Partners
The Three Legged Stool

by: Suzanne R. Dewey, Forte Partners

In Seeking the Right Tracking Tool, Don’t Undercut Your Strategy: Three Important Steps to Take Before Developing a Physician Tracking Tool Via CRM. 

Efficiency Isn’t Just About Technology
If you want to create a more efficient process to track your physicians, you may be focusing too much on the tool and not enough on your strategy.  In many hospitals and healthcare organizations, the push to create more efficient processes through technology is a familiar and even welcome pressure.  Marketing personnel especially are becoming familiar with a host of new technological and web-based tactics.  Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems provide one such tool that many organizations are employing.  Based on the national survey conducted by Corporate Health Group (CHG) in the autumn of 2006 in conjunction with Strategic Healthcare Communication, healthcare organizations are using a variety of CRM tools for physician and patient tracking but the results are mixed. 

Looking beyond healthcare, CRM tools abound.  And yet, the efficacy of the tool has much more to do with the strategy and foundational approach an organization takes to building customer relationships than the nuances particular to the action tool.  The key to success with developing your physician relations tracking program takes a reflective journey. 

Read the complete article >>
Forte Partners Website >>

Conducting a Sales Territory Analysis
Primary service area and target audiences are identified as part of the process
The Three Legged Stool

Physician relations sales managers and sales representatives who routinely conduct an annual territory analysis can achieve a more equal distribution of prospects and establish the foundation for a sales action plan based on appropriate performance objectives.

A territory analysis can be used by a sales manager to determine the appropriate methodology for dividing territories, the number of representatives needed to support the territories and to make reasonable projections for annual sales goals. Sales representatives who conduct further analysis within their assigned territory can use the information to create a blueprint for the development of a successful individual sales plan.

Before territories can be established, the sales manager should first:

Read the complete article >>

Maintaining the Momentum
Issue Resolution

We’re halfway through the year and with a tough economy, we want you to continue to maintain some momentum. Here are some tips for maintaining momentum for the sales effort:

  • Hold a strategy day in June/July/August. Revisit global objec­tives and strategies for the organization and sales team. Assess how you are doing. What needs to be revisited or changed?
  • Have the sales team tighten their territorial sales plans and tactics for accomplishing their sales goals. Constant review is crucial.
  • Use data to focus on the “profitable” targets — both prospects and customers. Spend your time efficiently and effectively

Read the complete article >>
Tips
Achieving ROI

  • Follow a sales strategy and incorporate a closed-loop approach
  • Budget for database software (CRM)
  • Measure everything
  • Respond to, DON’T react to data trends
  • Maintain momentum
  • Celebrate growth and market share wins!
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Question and AnswerQuestion and Answer Forum
How do I position results data internally to prove ROI?
  • Create a one page report that rolls up key ROI data
    • specific to top strategic initiatives of organization overall
    • top three issue management concerns and/or # resolved in x time or # outstanding and by what topic
    • new idea or product development
    • market intelligence to act upon or critical to know as it affects strategic decisions
  • Develop service line specific reports that show leadership the ROI for what you’ve done for them in this time frame – not organizationally overall but for their specific service line or top DRG/ICD 9’s
  • Prepare a message within hospital employee newsletter about ROI and how it helps the hospital succeed and compliment their role – use praise, specific stories or case studies that show how the employees helped to support this ROI
  • Prepare an ROI report for Leadership to use with Board members
We want to hear from you.  If you want us to answer your question about ROI, please submit your question here. All submittals are eligible for a quarterly drawing.
Looking Forward to Our Next Issue:
In August, we focus solely on cultivating your team’s skills through training:
  • Orientation and onboarding for new hires
  • Training your team the right way – sales process
  • Tips for ongoing team training

Looking for a training session or speaker for your hospital? CHG has a team of specialists for customer service and experience, sales and business development and organizational strategic thinking. Visit www.corporatehealthgroup.com or call 1-888-334-2500.

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Share your feedback with us. What do you want to know more about? What are some of the issues you're facing? Your comments will help us zone in on the physician topics of interest to you as we prepare our next issue.