Precision Analytical Inc. provides an evidence-based, unique, and easy-to-collect process for medical analysis of human hormones. They offer patients a single collection to replace three different collections, offering unrivaled value for patients and providers alike.
Solutions Used
Multiple solutions and tools were used during this Process Improvement and Systems Selection project, they include:
Current State Process Mapping
Future State Process Mapping
Issues and Opportunities Log
Impact / Difficulty Analysis
Standard Operating Procedures
Core Team Tracker
System Selection Scorecard
Systems Requirements Gathering
System Research
Custom vs Out-of-the-Box Analysis
System Demonstrations
System Evaluation
Steering Committee Facilitation
Selection Recommendation Presentation
Introduction
Precision Analytical is a specialty lab providing hormone testing for doctors and patients. They doubled down on focusing on their core competencies during COVID, and as a result were experiencing unprecedented growth in the company. It was time to upgrade their internal processes and systems to get ahead of the forecast for continued expansion.
The Problem
Had never documented business processes.
“Their resources were honest about the things we needed to do differently.”
Will Fox – COO
Figuring Out the Solution
Though there were many areas of the business to review, the process for completing this scope was relatively straightforward. The goals below describe these steps in chronological order; and the Core Team and Steering Committee that we pulled together at Precision Analytical participated enthusiastically throughout the whole process.
Goal 1: Current State Process Mapping and SOP Documentation
At the beginning of the project, AJC worked with each business process function (Customer Service, Accounting, Sample intake, Shipping, Data review, etc.) to map their current state processes. Due to COVID, we quickly pivoted from anticipated in-person mapping to virtual mapping using MS Teams and Whiteboard. The technology made the process mapping easy to perform, though due to “screen fatigue” we spaced out sessions such that all team members could focus without feeling overwhelmed by the effort.
The Current State processes gave rise to Issues/Opportunities that served as Quick Wins to be incorporated into immediate improvements in the Standard Operating Procedures that we drafted and reviewed/revised with the client Subject Matter Experts, as well as provided a first-pass foundation for the future system requirements.
Goal 2: Future State Blue Sky Mapping
The full Leadership Team met over a virtual channel to completely “Blue Sky” their full Order to Cash operation and Procure to Pay operations. Bringing the high level team together and asking them to ignore the limitations of today’s limitations allowed them to think clearly about an ideal flow of information, materials, results, and finances that they would strive for in future systems and customizations. This process allowed everyone to explore the full breadth of the business and filled out the majority of the system requirements list.
Goal 3: System Requirements Finalization
Both the Current and Future State mapping sessions lists’ worth of system requirements were vetted with key managers and stakeholders in the business, and a System Selection Core Team adjudicated what requirements were “Need to Have” versus “Nice to Have.” AJC’s Project Manager organized these lists and helped the team prioritize what their new system should include, providing guidance to the next step of research.
Goal 4: System Research and Filter
AJC’s PM conducted systems research on behalf of Precision Analytical. One option was to expand and integrate their current tools, another to buy an off-the-shelf system, and a third to develop custom software. Each option had alternatives to consider, and concurrent with looking for new solutions in the market, comparisons were made for the custom costs of upgrading the existing software tools or creating a fully custom system that would be unique to Precision Analytical.
At the end of this process, a top three set of off-the-shelf systems were considered in detailed demonstrations, and the current systems’ upgrade and fully custom coding were deemed cost prohibitive.
Goal 5: Substantiated System Recommendation to Steering Committee
The Core Team, aided by the AJC PM, narrowed the new system selection recommendation to a Top Two and gathered critical information for each. This included: the level which each system met the Requirements list with no customizations, one time implementation costs, ongoing licensing and maintenance fees, and considerations for future integrations, customizations, and nuances on the ease of the relationship with the vendor. The Core Team presented to the Steering Committee who took the decision to the Leadership Team for a final decision, and the selection work concluded successfully!
“AJC helped us see inefficiencies in our system. They also showed us how to resolve those problems by going through different paths. On top of that, they identified quick wins that we could implement to reduce waste in our company. This service had a huge impact on our business and improved our results. To elaborate, instead of waiting for a year to integrate the changes into our system, we resolved efficiencies along the way. That helped us leverage some of the investments we’d made with them, and we achieved results a lot sooner than expected.”
Will Fox – COO
Conclusion
The team at Precision Analytical and AJC was able to meet an aggressive timeline to not only select a system that would take the company to the next level, but also thoroughly understand, improve, and document their current business processes. All of this was accomplished in less than one year, and Precision Analytical is now set up for success with their system implementation.
“The best part of working with Andrea Jones was their ability to listen to our needs and give solid recommendations and directions.”
– Will Fox, COO