Improving IT Performance

With Avery Cloud of Compuware

Avery Cloud has transformed the IT department at New Hanover Health Network into an incredibly productive system with better performance, high customer satisfaction and less political debacles. BM examines just how he did it.

“It’s pretty exciting that I now can interactively measure client satisfaction. Through Changepoint, I can discover how well my organization is performing.”
-Dr. Avery Cloud, VP and CIO of New Hanover Health Network

Challenge: Avery Cloud PhD is the Vice President and CIO of New Hanover Health Network, the ninth largest hospital organization in North Carolina. This public, nonprofit healthcare system encompasses three general hospitals: New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Cape Fear Hospital in Wilmington and Pender Memorial Hospital in Burgaw.

At the time Cloud joined New Hanover, the IT organization faced a multitude of constraints, resulting in resource conflicts, poor communication, difficulties in project planning and management as well as a number of other operational deficiencies. These problems stemmed from three hospitals using different techniques and different sets of IT process management tools, all from different vendors. "If we're going to affect the cost of healthcare, we have to automate. And if we're going to enjoy process improvement, we need to figure out different ways to move information that provide better service to our patients," states Cloud. What he planned was, "to automate IT to function as a business." That required the tools, reporting and controls to ensure IT functions in line with healthcare needs.

Solution: Cloud knew he could do one of two things: implement a separate solution to handle each deficiency or find one solution to fix them all. He and his team began reviewing several vendors and their tools, but only one solution fit the ideal model Cloud envisioned. "Changepoint stood alone in its ability to integrate all the various functions of an IT organization," he says. "With a product like that, we can achieve a whole lot more efficiency and effectiveness." Unlike other solutions, Changepoint combines the three key disciplines of portfolio and investment planning, project portfolio management and application portfolio management into one solution. This unique combination gave the IT team at New Hanover the insight they needed to eliminate deficiencies and support the overall goals of quality care and controlled costs. 

Since implementing Changepoint, New Hanover eliminated disparate systems and the time it took to generate reports. While Changepoint standardized the reporting functionality, workflow and survey management, Cloud and his team integrated critical processes and performance metrics, and established a more effective routing process of service tickets from end users to the appropriate IT group. "One of the greatest benefits of Changepoint is eliminating inefficient and ineffective ways of gathering, processing and delivering information," states Cloud. "It's pretty exciting that I now can interactively measure client satisfaction. Through Changepoint, I can discover how well my organization is performing."

Before New Hanover reorganized its IT department, it turned to Changepoint to evaluate projected projects, current projects and performance issues. "Changepoint helped us discover the skill sets we were lacking and what processes produced less rework," he says. "We made very intelligent decisions on how to reorganize our department and, in doing so, generate a much higher level of productivity, efficiency and effectiveness."

Results: Today, New Hanover's IT department starts its day with Changepoint at the helm. IT technicians have a single location to check their task lists, assess any service tickets and review client satisfaction surveys. Managers gain a central place to assign and manage projects, communicate with their project teams, review staffing needs and generate new ideas. For Cloud, Changepoint provides the means of making a positive impact on IT - and the business. He can clearly see where and how IT resources and dollars are used and what advantage or risks they bring to the business of New Hanover Health Network.

"To really measure the benefits of our investment in Changepoint, you have to measure the benefits of a changed process. We have more productivity from our staff.  We have staff with less stress. We have higher customer satisfaction. We have an environment where things don't fall through the cracks. We have better performance and less political debacles. And that all adds to my organization's credibility," he says. "I can't think of a CIO in the world who doesn't think those things are very important. We're very happy with Changepoint and the way it brings real data and true measurements of performance to the decision-making process."

To learn more, visit www.compuware.com/changepoint.