In view of an uncertain future of elderly care funding, Sint Jacob – an organisation providing care for the elderly – decided to embark on a process of change supported by the consultancy Plexus. The initial assessment of current performance revealed disturbing results: on average, just 54% of the scheduled time was being spent in direct contact with the client. That needed to change; the new target was set at 70%.
Plexus put together a project team, consisting of its advisors and support staff, which organised workshops for groups of departments. Location managers, team leaders and care coordinators played a major part in identifying the solutions; the project team gave practical support and helped them to prioritise issues.
A year later, the intermediate target of 60% client contact had just about been reached, but the evaluation showed considerable differences between individual departments. A small minority had improved significantly; the rest had remained the same or even worsened. The root of the problem was identified to be an inconsistent approach to the necessary interventions. The Board of Directors therefore decided on a new course of action: a combination of tighter management and compulsory help.
The project team was replaced by an intervention team; the process was agreed on centrally and tightly managed. Action plans were scrutinised, all agreements had to be strictly adhered to, and location managers were visited on a weekly basis. Managers were expected to be more visible on the work floor and to keep a close eye on key focus points.
The new approach worked amazingly well. The change process resulted in a spectacular increase in contact with the client, from 54 to 74%. There is still some variance in the results across departments, but the lowest scores are at least higher than they were during the initial assessment.
The special intervention period has since come to an end, but the clear agreements about future objectives remain in place, and the results continue to be closely monitored too. Green, amber and red zones have been introduced for a number of crucial indicators. As long as the results are good, members of staff have a lot of freedom; if the results are disappointing, help is compulsory.