Protecting the public trust: The value of continuous improvement

Governing is a journey that embraces change to seek a better way.

The most common word in political discourse is change. The power of change is present during every election season. The winning U.S. presidential campaign slogans from 1948 to 2020 show change as the prevailing, successful theme. Even today, leading studies from the Pew Research Center reveal that the majority of constituents across 17 advanced economies believe that their political system needs major changes or a complete reformation, with more than two thirds of the electorate holding this view in the United States.

Given the importance of change in the public sector, it’s worth taking a step back to consider the phenomenon of change itself. In particular, what effect does change have on the mindsets of the individuals who are in the midst of it?

The prevailing visual depiction of change is the Kübler-Ross Change Curve. It’s a graph showing the rise and fall of emotion in response to changed circumstances over time. Researchers have identified a characteristic pattern of emotions that form in response to change. They point to an initial reaction of shock followed by the emotions of anger and annoyance as change sets in. These are unpleasant stages that can lead to decreased productivity, lack of motivation and forms of depression as the curve reaches its lowest point.

But then something special happens. The base of the Change Curve is called the inflection point. It points to the moment people begin to accept that change is happening, let go of what was and start to accept what can be.

It’s no wonder that change is a compelling story in election campaigns. In the public sector, constituents entrust elected and appointed officials to be the agents of change and to carry out the story of their administration. But every superior outcome depends on quality processes and exceptional service delivery along the way. This is particularly true when the story involves helping injured workers back to wellness.

It’s important to take a closer look at the value of change and the ways transitioning a claims program builds and protects the public trust by addressing a framework for change management in claims administration; sharing communication methods that respect and dampen the Change Curve for stakeholders; and demonstrating how claim triage fundamentally assesses the program’s health during change.

Empowering change management through dedicated resourcing
An effective program transition begins with a kick-off meeting featuring trained implementation managers and claim ambassadors who engage with the administration’s leadership to set bold, aspirational goals for the program. These goals become the “why” that will support the “what,” “how” and “when” of change management. And by setting these internal and external performance benchmarks, the two organizations begin to think as one as they move beyond the current state.

Next comes implementation, which is comprised of a balanced portfolio of pragmatic initiatives to carry out the shared program goals in order. This takes the form of detailed implementation playbooks, Gantt-style schedules and organized thinking to achieve the transition objectives. The process of implementation analyzes the steps necessary to achieve the change management goals and defines the timeframes and resources. These features, when followed, will lead to the pre-established outcomes.

We advocate that leaders from both the agency and the claims administrator set regular meetings to affirm performance. Best practices for these meetings include predictable scheduling, detailed agenda-setting, accurate capturing of open items and assignment of responsibility for deliverables. This level of discipline fosters the kind of accountability that drives change. What’s more, these meetings also allow the new claims administration to engage in conversations that go beyond the tactical agenda and, when needed, run through problems. To ensure quality improvement, the new claims team should employ a net promoter score and survey feedback loop with the public entity team to enable continuous improvement in the change management processes.

Communication flattens the change curve
Communication is most effective when it is audience-centric and resonates with the emotional state of its recipients. Ordinarily, it’s hard to predict the emotional state of a reader. But when it comes to communicating around change management, the Change Curve again provides a vital road map toward the mindsets of the individuals who are experiencing change. Communication experts point to the best way to move readers toward a successful new beginning is through William Bridge’s four Ps of change communications: purpose, picture, plan, part.  Using these concepts in a multichannel communications campaign coincides with stakeholders’ needs for information and respects their journey through the Change Curve.

The campaign consists of multiple forms of communications, such as flyers, posters, email blasts and intranet pages. The primary communication goal is to explain the purpose of the change by featuring the shared aspirational goals for the program. Next, the communication campaign paints a picture of the destination, including the look and feel of the shared goal.

Based on the milestones in our transition playbook, the next wave of communications describes the work plan that tells people how to get from point A to point B. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the campaign invites stakeholders to take part in the process to make the change a success.

Triage Leads the Way
Transitioning an open inventory of casualty claims requires a triage process that is like methods used in emergency rooms, where health care professionals receive patients by immediately reviewing vital signs, assessing the functionality of the patients’ systems and staging those cases most in need of urgent care.

Robust triage not only protects injured workers but also empowers the new claims adjusters to receive claims in a strategic, orderly manner. To support these initiatives, sophisticated claims operations employ a predictive model to score pending claims on their complexity and severity. This level of scientific triage applies an objective set of criteria to identify and validate the most pressing claims and stage their transition.

When done effectively, the triage process results in a full inspection of the claims inventory, including the attendant ancillary systems. This transparency allows for an invaluable health assessment and sets the course for the program’s new horizon.

Greg McKenna is the national practice leader for the public sector at Gallagher Bassett, the global provider of risk and claims management services. He holds a Juris Doctorate and has more than 20 years of experience in claims management, litigation, governmental affairs and public relations. McKenna is a frequent industry speaker and content contributor. You can connect with him on LinkedIn or find him on Twitter.