Page 34 - Mobility Management, January 2018

As an industry we have an obligation to be better than we are today.
Collectively we must actively raise the
bar and deliver a consistently positive customer experience.
I am honored to be part of this industry. No matter how you are involved in the Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) space — be it as clinician, payer, manufacturer or equipment provider — we all are in a unique and enviable position to have a positive impact not just on the individuals we serve, but also on society by improving the overall understanding, access and inclusion for people living with a disability.
While we are continuously working to improve how we serve those with disabilities in the moment, I also think daily about the future and this objective to push the industry even further forward. To that end, I offer five areas of opportunity to consider. If we, as an industry, can better collaborate and work together to improve in these areas, it will lead to significantly better outcomes and experiences for those we serve.
We work in a service industry for a constituency that requires as much optimization, communication and coordination as any. When we are not all performing at our best, the impact to the client/customer can range anywhere from a small annoyance to impacting their lives in a significant way. We have an obligation to drive consistency and higher quality, with speed and transparency across all types of interactions. From clinical evaluation, to funding coordination, to equipment fitting and delivery, to service and repair, there must be clear expectations and communication throughout the process.
I believe the CRT industry can benefit from some outside perspectives. We can look to other companies as examples of best practices for innovative models that have transformed their industry. Companies such as Amazon, Zappos, Chick-fil-A, Publix, Southwest Airlines and UPS are consistently rated at or near the top of all organizations for customer experience. They personify a customer-centric culture with processes and hiring practices that enable this. They are predictably consistent with a simplified flow of engagement to drive interactions that are both dependable and positive in nature to the consumer. They are responsive and empowered in resolving issues quickly and with little to no hassle. They are accessible and transparent by being easy to work with and communicating well at all steps of the customer interaction.
In our industry, the complete dedication and commitment
of the individuals who are working in it is where we shine brightest. Countless hours are spent working with clients to ensure their individual medical and functional needs are met and the right equipment is selected for them. There is no shortage of examples of deep personal relationships that have been developed with customers and there are many dedicated people behind the scenes processing orders and doing their best to get the equipment ready for delivery. The personal commitment
to advocacy efforts through activities such as walks, camps and awareness events, as well as ongoing local and national level outreach to policy makers, further demonstrates this “all- in” commitment to the mission of serving those living with a disability. However, the ecosystem within which we operate, along with the litany of handoffs and required interactions that consume the process, is getting in the way of individual dedication. We need to work together to overcome this.
Organizations that provide the best customer experience are continually looking to improve their processes and policies with new models and methods of operation and customer service. None of us set out to design complexity into our operations, but they accumulate and compound over time.
Many of these top organizations have applied principles from the disciplines known as Lean Management, Six Sigma or Total Quality Management (TQM) to attack waste and inefficiencies
1Transform with Innovative Models
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