Do you or your organization have a “strategic plan” that helps you to think about where you are today, where you want to be tomorrow and, most importantly, how you might go about getting there?
If the answer is no, then you must continue reading.
The term “strategic planning” conjures up a lot of different visions for managers, and they’re not always positive. Some see it as a lot of “complex” planning processes that will ensure that strategic consultants and business text authors will stay gainfully employed. In fact, a Google search for “strategic planning” will yield 71,800,000 references, many of which are trying to sell the next best system for operational greatness.
Others see strategic planning as a low-priority task that is best addressed at the end of the day, time permitting. This mindset may be more convenient, but it’s no longer a realistic approach.
You will soon find that long-term strategic planning is important enough to be at the core of every manager’s job. But what does strategic planning really mean and how can it potentially apply to the diverse EMS organizations across the country?
The answer to this question lies in the root of “strategy” itself. Strategy comes from the Greek word “strategos” or “art of the general.” Now this isn’t meant to be taken in its military sense, so don’t wander off and start quoting war tactics from Sun Tzu’s The Art of War (which was NOT the original Greek meaning). Rather, it refers to the non-specialized or non-specified term; a general idea.
This is a crucial distinction when thinking about true strategic planning. It must involve influences from all disciplines and be cross-functional to have the best chance at success. In fact, true strategic frameworks cannot be function-specific because our challenges and goals are rarely so narrow, and neither are the objectives and tactics we use to conquer them.
So, you are probably thinking, “We are a small organization and have neither the staff nor budget to accomplish strategic planning.”
But I would bet that you are already using one of the most basic forms of strategic planning: managing a budget. A budget essentially means monitoring the allocation of resources necessary to pursue a strategy. Some 50 to 60 years ago, businesses and organizations began relying on basic budget models to project expenses and revenues for the coming year based on internal and external market forces and their potential effects. Certainly this approach is short-term at best and with the advent of more sophisticated spreadsheets and tools, we began to also see even shorter term forecasting models pop up, especially in public companies that wanted to reduce their financial uncertainty.
The EMS field is especially subject to abrupt changes in the business environment. EMS managers have to re-forecast their strategies due to the unpredictable changes in Medicare fee schedules, payer changes, wildly vacillating fuel prices, and other factors. We should fully realize how things can change on a dime and the necessity of having a mitigation plan in place.
Short-term planning can be adequate and certainly necessary, but one true strategic planning should really focus on the long term, at least within a two- to five-year timeframe. But what type of long-term strategy is best suited to the EMS field? Let’s take a look at the history of long-term planning trends:
- In the 1970’s, the “hot tools” of strategic planning (it wasn’t called that then) were introduced, led primarily by the growth-market share matrix developed by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). This became all the rage as companies tried to peg the system by naming divisions or business units by one of four market combinations; Star (high growth-high share), Question Mark, (high growth, low share), Cash Cow (low growth-high share) or Dog (low growth-low share) and then identify where to invest their resources strategically around size and potential. The BCG growth-share matrix fell out of favor over time as others began to question the myopic view of market share without other important considerations. Anyone wanting more information can certainly check out Bruce Henderson’s excellent article for BCG, Perspectives on Strategy.
- The 1980’s brought the era of “competitive orientation” and an emphasis on broader industry structure and competition, and not just on internal company models. Almost anyone familiar with business has heard of Harvard guru and business author Michael Porter and his now famous “five forces of competition” model. But I will spend more time discussing this “us versus them” approach in my next column.
- The 1990’s brought us the era of “competency orientation,” which spawned a generation of MBA students spouting the now famous phrase, “Identify your core competencies.” Numerous strategy models began emerging on how to assess your organization and how to identify internal sources of specialized expertise. This is where those generic strategy terms regarding competency came from, such as product leadership (technology), operational excellence (low cost and efficiency), and customer intimacy (customer focus).
- As we entered the early 21st Century, a whole new shift occurred toward the concept of “full-on customer orientation,” bringing an emphasis on meeting the needs of current and future customer segments by providing solutions. Again, consultants everywhere rejoiced.
You can almost track the focus of business from the three decades as shifting from competition to competencies to customers. But regardless of the focus, you have to have a strategy to be able to identify your current situation, your desired state and a mechanism by which you can measure and close the gap.
Looking at the EMS profession, it is crucial to identify who the customer base is. Think about the customer as the patient, family member, hospital or municipality. Why do they choose you as a provider? Can you sell an EMS experience for a premium like Starbucks does with coffee? Do you evoke memories of comfort, safety and trust? And what does EMS truly sell? Is it products, services or solutions or some combination of all three?
A good strategic framework helps guide you to these answers and must involve aspects of competition, competency and customer focus. Today’s business environment for EMS is both tumultuous and dynamic. When you have limited resources to meet growing demand and increased expectations, you must have at least a plan that goes beyond just budget and blind hope. Remember the old adage, “Failing to plan means planning to fail.” If you think that strategic planning is only for big companies, think again. Every EMS organization and manager needs to be able to answer at least one of the following questions:
What do we do?
For whom do we do it?
How do we excel?
Strategic planning tools — such as frameworks, matrixes, root-cause analysis, and many others — are only techniques and do not constitute strategy itself. Only you, your team and your organization can do that – but recognizing and understanding the need is the first and most crucial step! Find out where you really are today by using internal/external customer feedback. Bring your team together to brainstorm and ask them and your stakeholders where they want to be in the future — if you can’t imagine it, then you will certainly never achieve it! Then roll up your sleeves and figure out specific objectives and tactics that will bring you closer to your goals. With discipline, you will learn the importance of tracking and trending your measurable data and how to adjust your plan to improve those results. There you have it, strategic planning 101 and no consultant required!
As a former skeptic of strategic planning who has come to appreciate the value of using disciplined planning to eke out consistent improvements, I am a true converted believer in the value of strategic planning. With this foundation, we will delve further next time into the emerging field of strategic alliances and how the different forms of it are used, formally and informally, in the world of EMS. Until then, plan on and thrive!
