Get Your Loving at Home; He’s No Hugger!
Filed under: Business Growth, Pittsburgh, Profitable Growth, Uncategorized
Have you ever wondered what would happen if you cut out all extra service and personal touches from your business? Would customers still come if you were excellent but detached? My recent shoulder surgery was an in-your-face experience of how this works.
After enduring shoulder pain for a year, an MRI confirmed that my rotator cuff was ripped apart. I found Pittsburgh’s best surgeon, and after a 15-minute consult, he booked me. 90 days later, I arrived for the surgery, and was quickly processed, IV’d, gurneyed and staged for the operation. No visit from the surgeon, little small talk from the nurses, and no remorse for their 2-hour delay in pre-op.
When I objected, they sedated me to ensure my compliance and placed me in the queue. The surgeon never visited before or after the procedure, and three hours after the operation, I was sent home to heal. A week later I had my ten-minute follow-up with the surgeon. Running out of time with more questions to ask, I tempted him with the only lure I had. I suggested that he operate on my other shoulder. At this, he gave me another ten minutes, satisfied all my concerns, and recommended scheduling the next one before the summer.
How did this make me feel? Am I a happy customer? What business lessons did I take away from this experience?
I am happy with my surgeon and the results to date. Yes, I felt deprived until I accepted that when it comes to surgery, I’d better get my loving at home. My surgeon and the procedure have my highest recommendation. If anyone needs a shoulder surgeon, call me at 412-973-2080, and I’ll put you in contact with the best one I know.
So what lessons can we learn on running our businesses in a cost-constrained marketplace where raising prices or offering more value is impossible? How do you provide your value when your market won’t pay you for it?
• If you offer a small part of the total package your customer is buying (surgery vs. a fully recovered shoulder), you must be efficient at delivering the only part you can.
• If you have to run a high-volume operation, focus all your resources on maintaining quality and efficiency at the highest volume possible and cut out any and all distractions.
• Spend your non-delivery time on generating more customers.
• Have faith that factors you can’t control — like physical therapy and patient commitment to rehabilitation — will make your work (surgery) speak for itself.
Many years ago, when I was a corporate manager, I sat in on an esprit de corps meeting during which a furious debate ensued over the impact of some corporate policy on how some employees might feel. After listening to this debate, my favorite executive stood up and said with exasperation, “For God’s sake, they can get their loving at home, we run a business here.”
Perhaps there’s a lesson for many of our businesses. Despite every efforts we make to cushion and enhance the experience we offer, sometimes it’s only about focusing on your best and highest use and letting your customers meet their other needs on their own.
Comments
2 Comments on Get Your Loving at Home; He’s No Hugger!
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Charles Burkett on
Mon, 19th Dec 2011 1:27 pm
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Andy Birol on
Mon, 19th Dec 2011 1:55 pm
I like when the person performing a procedure on me talks to me before and after. All too often medical errors occur because of the breakdown between the people who perform the procedures and the systems that make sure they are doing the right procedure for the right person. As a patient, talking the surgeon gives me peace of mind. I would argue that people who have peace of mind have better outcomes and heal better.
Occasionally, these human factors prevent errors, even among the most competent and trained professionals. I am reminded of several interviews I’ve heard with with Atul Gawande, the author of the Checklist Manefesto . He argues that medical procedures (among other activities) have become so complicated that checklists are a proven way to improve outcomes, even among the most experienced and competent people. Here is the website for his book: http://gawande.com/the-checklist-manifesto
Something as simple as the members of the surgical team introducing themselves resulted in a 35% reduction in deaths and complications. See the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist on the left side of the page.
The checklist does not include talking to the surgeon as one of those steps. As a patient, talking to the surgeon is your best hope of man knowing that the right person is doing the right procedure on the right body part and that you know what to expect afterward.
I’m happy that you had a good result. I just think that the human factors that you were intuitively looking for are still an important part of the patient experience.
I hope all is well. Best Wishes for a wonderful Holiday Season.
Charles
Charles,
Thanks for your insights and recommendation to Atul. I have heard great things about him. My results so far are great. May all our best human factors shine through this holiday season!
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