FINANCE

The Challenge

• The average growth in health spending exceeded the growth of the economy as a whole by an average of 2.5%.
• Insurance premiums rose 87% between 2000 and 2006, more than four times the growth in wages.

Kaiser Family Foundation, August 2007

• Trying to get innovative products to market on time and with operational efficiency is becoming a nearly insurmountable challenge with the "lean and mean" work force that has permeated the industry. Doing more with less is risky-and costly. Executives have learned that despite an uncertain economic climate, shrinking budgets and staff cutbacks, they can't skimp on product development. Instead, they're reevaluating their options and are beginning to embrace a new trend: integrated project management.

The Opportunity

• Establish objectives, apply analytics, metrics and performance criteria to check efficacy of services and associated cost.
• Leverage in-house resources to get healthcare products and services to market faster, better and at the lowest possible cost.