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Data Visualization

August 30, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I remember when I graduated from business school one of my professors gave me a book on data visualization.  Given my architecture background, I always felt very strongly about this way of delivering information.

Guy Kawasaki mentioned a site in his blog which lays some of these visualization techniques out.  Here is the site.  There are some interesting examples which are well enabled by technology.  Here is one of my favorite.  I can easily image using this to map healthcare trends based on geography (for example).

Visualization

General Thoughts

Consumer Voices for Coverage

August 14, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has funded something called the Consumer Voices for Coverage which begins in 2008. 

The need from the project comes from the publication of Consumer Health Advocacy: A View from 16 States by Community Catalyst in October of 2006.  This calls for consumers to be active in protecting and expanding healthc are access.  In order to be effective, consumers need to organize into  state advocacy networks with the ability to:

  1. analyze complex legal and policy issues in order to develop achievable policy alternatives;
  2. build a strong grassroots base of support;
  3. design and implement communications strategies to build timely public and political support for reform;
  4. build and sustain strong broad-based coalitions and maintain strategic alliances with other stakeholders;
  5. develop and implement strategic health policy campaigns; and
  6. generate resources from diverse sources to build organizational infrastructure.

I must admit to never being much of an activist, but I certainly support the concept of people being active to support their cause.  And, of the many causes out there, access and care for people is a good one.  In a wealthy country like the US, it is a shame to see people dying and in pain for simple reasons like lack of access. 

Unfortunately, many Americans probably don’t realize how good we have it here.  Even those without have TVs and clothes.  Go to a 3rd world country and spend some time with the poor.  It will radically change your opinion. 

General Thoughts, Healthcare, Leadership

Comment and Consumerism

July 25, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

Yesterday, I got a comment from someone who was upset that I named the blog – The Patient Advocate. They don’t like the PBM system here in the US. And, they didn’t think this blog represented consumerism. I thought I would spend a minute responding publicly to him.

My perspective on naming the blog was simply that unless those of us within the healthcare system begin thinking about change from a patient perspective we won’t have much of a chance for change (radical or incremental). So, my hope here is to begin thinking about how patients can best receive information and be part of the process. But, yes, I am thinking about it from within the system. I am not here to take an ivory tower look at how to develop a new system.

Relative to defining consumerism, I could probably argue that all day long. My perspective is that consumerism in healthcare is largely about information and transparency. Information is easier in that there is lots of it. They question is how to get it to the patient in a timely and easily digestible manner. Transparency is harder but is happening. This requires change and helping patients to understand the rules and logic (clinical and business) behind healthcare and to get access to treatment and quality data. Both of these are necessary for people to make fact-based decisions about how and when to spend their healthcare dollars.

None of this is or will be easy. Moving responsibility for retirement funds from a defined plan to 401Ks where the responsibility is with the individual has been great for many, but not everyone has done well here. We will be in a transitionary period while this transformation happens. My hope is to be part of it and make it happen as well as possible.

Here are a few things on consumerism in healthcare:

  1. Aetna’s perspective
  2. Managed consumerism article
  3. Good blog and discussion on The Health Care Blog
  4. Forrester on healthcare consumerism
  5. Galen Institute study
Consumerism, General Thoughts, Healthcare

MOM = MCM + PM + CEM + DAM

June 27, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I read an article this morning by Chris Graham on Multichannel Marketing which I thought was a great framework for several marketing related items I have been thinking about.  He talks about the following:

If you don’t know what all these mean, it doesn’t surprise me, but I think MOM is the key.  Chris describes it as MCM in a box.  I think it is the key of how direct marketing processes operate.  You need to understand the customer.  You have to know what channel they respond to.  You have to know how to effect their behavior.  You need to have proven messaging (DAM) that you can pull from.  And, this needs to be part of a process so that it is not simply a one-time ping of that customer. 

From Chris’ article…”So let’s look at an MCM scenario: The customer makes an enquiry through his digital satellite TV remote in response to an advertisement; immediately an email is sent back to them, a personalized MMS confirms the dispatch of a personalized printed document specific to their geographical area, a call center flags a “to do” for seven days time, from which a personalized micro Web site is automatically generated with the latest product literature specifically for the products they want to look at.”

BPM / Process, General Thoughts

Is Marketing a Process?

June 18, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 1 Comment

Is marketing a process or really a bunch of sub-processes that are part of other end-to-end processes?  I was looking at how to automate the different marketing functions (new product development, product management, pricing, research, marketing communications, and voice of the customer) and realized that most of these are simply part of a bigger process.

The process that consumes most of these is the lifecycle from idea through sales through billing.

Here is a quick picture I came up with to describe the marketing function from a subprocess view.

Marketing_overviewPerhaps you wonder why this matters?  Architecturally, it matters if you are building a system and want to connect processes.

Technology-wise, it matters if you want to focus on a SOA (service oriented architecture) approach where you can re-use components.

Organizationally, it matters to understand how data and tasks flow and how to optimize your investment.

Process-wise, it matters to understand best practices.

As I have talked about several times, the fear with any improvement is sub-optimization which often happens when you focus on a subsection of the entire process.

Here is a article to read on sub-processes (a little technical for some of you)

http://www.bpmenterprise.com/content/c070212a.asp

BPM / Process, General Thoughts, Methodology

Blog Inspiration – CEO’s Secret Handbook

June 4, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I often get asked why I blog and how I make the time for it.  (Other than the obvious – person and corporate branding)

Blogging for me is a good outlet for thinking through ideas.  I put my thoughts here for numerous reasons.  Two particular things stick out to me as I think about getting inspired daily to put thoughts down.

  1. When I graduated business school, one of my teachers (Mahendra Gupta) who is now Dean of Washington University in St. Louis told me that I should try to put down my thoughts every day so that I could capture my lessons learned.  I have tried different mediums over the years, but they were difficult to maintain and impossible to search.
  2. The other thing is an article that Business 2.0 published about the CEO’s Secret Handbook in 2005.  I started pulling together all my key documents that I had amassed over the years.  I then started a book where I pasted things in there with some comments.  It has been a living document, but I am going to put everything here.  Again, it is easier to search…more dynamic…and accessible from anywhere.

The handbook is summarized below thanks to Career Communication’s Group –  Bill Swanson’s ’25 Unwritten Rules of Management’:

  1. Learn to say, “I don’t know.” If used when appropriate, it will be often.
  2. It is easier to get into something than it is to get out of it.
  3. If you are not criticized, you may not be doing much.
  4. Look for what is missing. Many know how to improve what’s there, but few can see what isn’t there.
  5. Viewgraph rule: When something appears on a viewgraph (an overhead transparency), assume the world knows about it, and deal with it accordingly.
  6. Work for a boss with whom you are comfortable telling it like it is. Remember that you can’t pick your relatives, but you can pick your boss.
  7. Constantly review developments to make sure that the actual benefits are what they are supposed to be. Avoid Newton’s Law.
  8. However menial and trivial your early assignments may appear, give them your best efforts.
  9. Persistence or tenacity is the disposition to persevere in spite of difficulties, discouragement, or indifference. Don’t be known as a good starter but a poor finisher.
  10. In completing a project, don’t wait for others; go after them, and make sure it gets done.
  11. Confirm your instructions and the commitments of others in writing. Don’t assume it will get done!
  12. Don’t be timid; speak up. Express yourself, and promote your ideas.
  13. Practice shows that those who speak the most knowingly and confidently often end up with the assignment to get it done.
  14. Strive for brevity and clarity in oral and written reports.
  15. Be extremely careful of the accuracy of your statements.
  16. Don’t overlook the fact that you are working for a boss.  Keep him or her informed. Avoid surprises!  Whatever the boss wants takes top priority.
  17. Promises, schedules, and estimates are important instruments in a well-ordered business.
  18. You must make promises. Don’t lean on the often-used phrase, “I can’t estimate it because it depends upon many uncertain factors.”
  19. Never direct a complaint to the top. A serious offense is to “cc” a person’s boss.
  20. When dealing with outsiders, remember that you represent the company. Be careful of your commitments.
  21. Cultivate the habit of “boiling matters down” to the simplest terms. An elevator speech is the best way.
  22. Don’t get excited in engineering emergencies. Keep your feet on the ground.
  23. Cultivate the habit of making quick, clean-cut decisions.
  24. When making decisions, the pros are much easier to deal with than the cons. Your boss wants to see the cons also.
  25. Don’t ever lose your sense of humor.
  26. Have fun at what you do. It will reflect in your work. No one likes a grump except another grump.
General Thoughts

BPR vs BPM: What’s Different?

June 4, 2007 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I had the opportunity last week to debrief Michelle Cantara (VP at Gartner) about Talisen. We had met at the Gartner BPM conference, and she was intrigued by our offerings around BPM which include several fixed fee projects. In talking with her about BPM and sharing with her our methodology and typical sales pitch, I was flattered when she saw the table below and suggested that she might re-use it.This shows the difference between BPR (Business Process Reengineering) and BPM (Business Process Management). Bpr_vs_bpm_2

BPM Overview, General Thoughts, Methodology
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