On October 10th, Kimberly will serve on the panel “Revenue Cycle, Payer Contracting and Data Analytics“ at Becker’s Annual Health IT + Revenue Cycle Conference. As part of an ongoing series, Becker’s is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place October 9-12, 2019 in Chicago.
To learn more about the conference and Kimberly’s session, click here.
Question: As a leader, how do you stay connected to the actual work that is being done – and not just by watching others execute, but by executing yourself? If so, how do you balance between leading and executing personally?
Kimberly Bell: My ability to connect with the people doing the work and understand details and the struggles within the work is done through Gemba, which means going to where the work is being done. We manage at the frontline level with visual management, the team will present their work on their visual management board on a weekly- monthly basis. They present their metrics and the projects that drive their success or areas needing to improve. I also on a quarterly / semiannually interview all segments of the organization. As it relates to my direct reports, we meet, set direction, report back weekly or monthly for a check in to make sure we are aligned in the direction of the work or a project. We have monthly business reviews and project governance committees to communicate challenges and successes with projects.
These processes allow me to have a handle on the business, drive innovation and execute, without doing the work myself. I can then focus on strategy and other organization concerns.
Q: What is one topic or issue you’ve been investing time in to better understand as of late?
KB: The most disruptive process at this time for our patients and physicians are authorizations and increasing out of network complicated by the narrow network markets being developed. We are working on this issue with payers and patients to ensure appropriate coverage and lessening the financial burden on our pts.
Q: What contributes to better conversations between a health system’s financial and clinical leaders?
KB: Partnering. This is my number one answer, no one separately has the right answer. The worst thing that can happen is working in silos. Decision making needs to happen together to get the best outcome for the patent and the organization. An example is contracting making decisions or arrangements with payers without knowing if the operations side can execute. On the clinical side they don’t take the time to understand the revenue cycle to help the organization be successful and decrease the financial burden of the pt.
At Becker's 4th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable, taking place November 2–5 in Chicago, more than 1,500 hospital and health system executives tackle decisions that determine whether organizations thrive or merely survive: protecting margins under cost pressure, choosing where to grow, renegotiating payer relationships, stabilizing the workforce and proving real ROI on technology. This is where leaders work through them together, face-to-face. Apply for complimentary registration now.
