As described in an April 2013 Leadership article, Asheville, N.C.-based Mission Hospital recently revamped its service line planning approach to ensure it corresponded with the annual budgeting process. A critical step in the redesign process was creating a calendar (see below).
Because Mission’s fiscal year runs from October to September, the hospital’s planning cycle was reconfigured into four quarters, each with specific tasks and objectives. As part of the redesign, the team allowed more time for pre-planning tasks so the business plans could be completed in time for inclusion in the annual capital and operating budgets.
January-March: Pre-Planning
- Assign a planning liaison to each core service line to coordinate data collection and assist in the development of documents and presentations.
- Collect, format, and analyze quantitative data.
- Develop templates.
April-June: Kick-Off and Active Planning
- Establish core planning teams for each service line.
- Set the planning timeline for the next three months and schedule core team meetings.
- Gather and analyze qualitative data during stakeholder interviews.
- Host a planning retreat with participants identified by core planning team.
- Finalize strategic goals with measurable targets.
July-September: Budgeting & Communication
- Develop business cases and pro forma statements for inclusion in the budget.
- Distribute service line plans, which include a standardized executive summary and strategic goals.
October-December: Implementation & Tracking
- Establish sub-teams within the service lines to champion each strategic goal.
- Create/update the service line dashboard to reflect current strategic goals.
- Have the planning liaison routinely attend service line meetings to assist and facilitate as needed.
Source: Mission Hospital. Used with permission.
