Four steps to align your contracting process and system
October 26, 2017
By Lisa Woodward
Client Solutions Advisor, MediTract
We've all experienced the urge to acquire the latest technology, such as a DVD player or the newest cellphone, only to have that shiny gadget become obsolete before we’ve extracted it from the packaging. Or maybe we have settled into a way of doing something — like receiving and paying bills by mail — only to be told that online billing and payment are the way to go. The common denominator in these examples is that even obviously positive changes can sometimes be difficult to cope with.
The same process of "evolution" can apply to your organization’s contract management practices as well. We can all count on technology to continue to make advancements in efficiency and automation, but have you considered the evolution of your organization’s strategic goals and/or regulatory changes that can affect your current contract management practices? How well are your organization’s internal processes and systems keeping up with these changes?
Health care providers need to be not just competitive, but compliant. If you want to successfully navigate the industry’s business and regulatory environment, it's critical you have a contract management program in place that includes effective processes for contract life cycle management, and a technology solution to execute those processes.
A contract program with the right foundation will enable you to easily navigate the dynamic environment of ever-changing health care processes and technology. This type of sustainability in a contract management program is built upon four basic elements.
Contract management program ownership
A contract management program benefits its organization when there is ownership of the process and designated technology solution. The contract management program owner may vary across organizations, but it can include individuals in areas such as legal, compliance, or corporate governance.
The individual in this role works with internal stakeholders to set standards and provide the consistency needed to ensure successful contract management practices. The program owner should have full understanding of the legal and business rules governing contract management, as well as awareness of the organization’s strategic business objectives. This individual should have the authority to ensure accountability and compliance and to align contract processes with the designated technology solution.
Document policies and procedures
Successful contract management programs include well-defined and documented policies and procedures that are regularly reviewed and updated. Undefined or undocumented contract management policies and procedures lead to inconsistencies and expose the organization to financial or legal risk. It's a best practice to store these documents in a centralized location for easy access to those involved in contract management. Creating a dedicated contract page on the organization’s intranet, for example, would be a great resource for users. Well-defined policies and procedures can also lead you to a contract management technology solution.
Ongoing training
Consistency and comprehension of the current process is key to successful contract management. How do you achieve consistency and comprehension? Ongoing training on policies, processes, systems, and associated regulatory requirements, if applicable, is necessary for continued success.
Often, health care organizations turn contract management technology support and training over to their IT department for their dedicated users. Although technology is IT’s specialty, they may not be as knowledgeable of your organization's contract management practices. It’s best to train those involved in contract management at your organization on process and system contemporaneously.
Partnering with your contract management technology solution provider for educational services is one way to design and deliver training focused on an improved process and associated system. Regularly scheduled training on processes and systems will encourage continued compliance with policy and regulatory requirements.
Dedicated system and administration
Implementing a contract life cycle management technology solution to execute your organization’s defined processes is a necessary step in contract management. Just as a contract management program requires ownership, so too does administration of the system. Management and oversight of the contract database ensures that the right controls are in place to successfully execute the defined contract management practices.
The individual dedicated to system administration should work closely with the contract program owner to maintain consistency and help identify ways to optimize the capabilities of the system. Organizations may engage the technology solution provider directly to provide a resource for long-term or short-term assignments as it relates to system administration or to assess and recommend improvements to optimize the use of the database.
How long has it been since your contracting policy or system utilization has been reviewed? Does your current process still meet the needs of the organization? How well does your process align with your system? A process improvement assessment focused on streamlining business processes and enhancing controls in your contracting practices should be considered as a precursor to implementing a new contract management technology solution, or as an effort to identify performance gaps, potential risk, and inefficiencies in your existing contract management program.
The effort required to align your organization's contract management processes with the right system will maximize the value of contract management to your organization.
About the author: Lisa Woodward is a client solutions advisor for the MediTract division of TractManager. Her experience in health care contract management and passion for process improvement through innovation and technology offers clients a partner in the design and implementation of compliant contracting processes that work seamlessly with the MediTract technology.
MediTract is the market-leading provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) health care contract life cycle management and compliance solutions for hospitals and health care systems. A quarter of all U.S. hospitals are MediTract clients. MediTract is a division of TractManager, Inc.
Client Solutions Advisor, MediTract
We've all experienced the urge to acquire the latest technology, such as a DVD player or the newest cellphone, only to have that shiny gadget become obsolete before we’ve extracted it from the packaging. Or maybe we have settled into a way of doing something — like receiving and paying bills by mail — only to be told that online billing and payment are the way to go. The common denominator in these examples is that even obviously positive changes can sometimes be difficult to cope with.
The same process of "evolution" can apply to your organization’s contract management practices as well. We can all count on technology to continue to make advancements in efficiency and automation, but have you considered the evolution of your organization’s strategic goals and/or regulatory changes that can affect your current contract management practices? How well are your organization’s internal processes and systems keeping up with these changes?
Health care providers need to be not just competitive, but compliant. If you want to successfully navigate the industry’s business and regulatory environment, it's critical you have a contract management program in place that includes effective processes for contract life cycle management, and a technology solution to execute those processes.
A contract program with the right foundation will enable you to easily navigate the dynamic environment of ever-changing health care processes and technology. This type of sustainability in a contract management program is built upon four basic elements.
Contract management program ownership
A contract management program benefits its organization when there is ownership of the process and designated technology solution. The contract management program owner may vary across organizations, but it can include individuals in areas such as legal, compliance, or corporate governance.
The individual in this role works with internal stakeholders to set standards and provide the consistency needed to ensure successful contract management practices. The program owner should have full understanding of the legal and business rules governing contract management, as well as awareness of the organization’s strategic business objectives. This individual should have the authority to ensure accountability and compliance and to align contract processes with the designated technology solution.
Document policies and procedures
Successful contract management programs include well-defined and documented policies and procedures that are regularly reviewed and updated. Undefined or undocumented contract management policies and procedures lead to inconsistencies and expose the organization to financial or legal risk. It's a best practice to store these documents in a centralized location for easy access to those involved in contract management. Creating a dedicated contract page on the organization’s intranet, for example, would be a great resource for users. Well-defined policies and procedures can also lead you to a contract management technology solution.
Ongoing training
Consistency and comprehension of the current process is key to successful contract management. How do you achieve consistency and comprehension? Ongoing training on policies, processes, systems, and associated regulatory requirements, if applicable, is necessary for continued success.
Often, health care organizations turn contract management technology support and training over to their IT department for their dedicated users. Although technology is IT’s specialty, they may not be as knowledgeable of your organization's contract management practices. It’s best to train those involved in contract management at your organization on process and system contemporaneously.
Partnering with your contract management technology solution provider for educational services is one way to design and deliver training focused on an improved process and associated system. Regularly scheduled training on processes and systems will encourage continued compliance with policy and regulatory requirements.
Dedicated system and administration
Implementing a contract life cycle management technology solution to execute your organization’s defined processes is a necessary step in contract management. Just as a contract management program requires ownership, so too does administration of the system. Management and oversight of the contract database ensures that the right controls are in place to successfully execute the defined contract management practices.
The individual dedicated to system administration should work closely with the contract program owner to maintain consistency and help identify ways to optimize the capabilities of the system. Organizations may engage the technology solution provider directly to provide a resource for long-term or short-term assignments as it relates to system administration or to assess and recommend improvements to optimize the use of the database.
Lisa Woodward
The effort required to align your organization's contract management processes with the right system will maximize the value of contract management to your organization.
About the author: Lisa Woodward is a client solutions advisor for the MediTract division of TractManager. Her experience in health care contract management and passion for process improvement through innovation and technology offers clients a partner in the design and implementation of compliant contracting processes that work seamlessly with the MediTract technology.
MediTract is the market-leading provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) health care contract life cycle management and compliance solutions for hospitals and health care systems. A quarter of all U.S. hospitals are MediTract clients. MediTract is a division of TractManager, Inc.