Pre-Implementation Planning

The key to a successful system implementation is comprehensive project planning. This effort is complex and time-consuming and requires focus, resources and the deep vendor and implementation knowledge many organizations do not have internally or have yet to fully develop. Partnering with Impact Advisors allows clients to capitalize on our knowledge and experience while developing a realistic and robust implementation approach.

Pre-Implementation Planning typically consists of the following activities

• Developing the Project Charter and supporting documentation.
• Developing comprehensive project plans spanning multiple years, applications and/or sites.
• Assessing organizational, infrastructure and end-user readiness.
• Engaging executives and key clinicians in owning and supporting the project from start to successful completion and through system optimization.
• Providing project management tools and techniques to facilitate governance, communication, risk and issue management and progress reporting.
• Estimating Total Cost of Ownership for capital and operational budgeting.
• Modeling and planning for project/system Benefits and Return On Investment (ROI).

Careful up-front planning inclusive of all of these factors establishes a solid foundation for successful implementation.  In particular, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) estimating and Benefits/ROI Modeling and Planning are so critical they are often done in advance of Pre-Implementation Planning and are offered as Strategic Advisory Services to clients.

Total Cost of Ownership Estimating

When undertaking a system selection or initiating pre-implementation planning, a full understanding of the implementation and operating costs is essential. Organization’s Advisors has extensive experience in developing these large and complex cost models, including the technology, staffing, training, and support costs as well as the myriad of other costs such as potential facility renovations, travel and staff backfill that, if overlooked, can lead to serious financial issues for the project and/or the organization. We work with IT and enterprise leadership to fully identify and robustly model a project or system’s capital and operating costs over a multi-year time frame to help guide decision making and forecasting.

Benefits/Return on Investment Planning and Modeling

Every major investment in advanced clinical and business systems offers hospitals and physicians opportunities for significant and sustained business value.  Despite this, many organizations focus on the implementation project itself, without identifying and planning for the benefits available. Ultimately, these organizations are disappointed in their Return On Investment (ROI) and even with the technology itself when in fact it was the process that failed.

Organization’s Advisors has developed a portfolio of Benefits and ROI services to help clients plan for and achieve significant benefits and ROI. These services can be provided ala carte or as a whole, depending on the unique needs of the each organization.

• Business Case Development – identifying and quantifying the clinical and financial benefit opportunities as a basis for a solid business case.
• Benefits Realization Planning – establishing the framework for attaining, measuring, and reporting the benefits and returns achieved from the investment.
• Benefits Realization Project Management – melding subject matter and project management expertise to ensure a successful benefits realization program and positive ROI.

Strategic Advisory Services

Organization’s  Advisors provides Strategic Advisory Services to clients as they address pressing business and clinical issues. Our Strategic Advisory Services include a broad range of assessment, analytic, planning and management offerings to help IT and enterprise leadership capitalize on healthcare and technology trends, align IT strategy with business strategy and goals, establish and manage against a pragmatic technology roadmap, and optimize staffing and daily operations of the IT department. In addition, our Strategic Advisory Services team  has deep subject expertise in project management capability development, system total cost of ownership and benefits/return on investment modeling, and preparing for EHR meaningful use as mandated by the 2009 HITECH Act.