From strategy to delivery – how we innovate at Medibank
Jodie Granger speaking at S & I World Forum 2019
Imagine being able to move quickly from strategy to delivery without the obstacles that come with a big business. I believe it can be done - by taking small steps to gain momentum and shifting a company’s mindset.
These are some of the key themes I presented recently at the Strategy & Innovation World Forum in Sydney.
We heard a lot from other delegates – such as Facebook, Expedia, Unilever and NAB – about how innovation is customer driven. People want a better experience, correct information and quick and reliable technology. At Medibank, we have a customer obsessed culture – in our case, they want greater transparency in healthcare and better value.
I believe innovation happens by encouraging ideas from every corner of the company. We have established an Innovation Council which supports ideas and tests them in an accelerated way, using methodologies which put customers and providers of health services at the centre of our thinking.
Over the past few years we have improved our customer experience through our Health Concierge service, Care Complete program and Medibank at Home options. Our digital experience has been enhanced through our Find a Provider – enabling customers to locate a service, estimate out-of-pocket cost and book, all in one place.
Being strategic and innovative can often be stifled by cultural issues and the battle over limited resources. Senior leaders are often focussed on maintaining a budget, and as a result many great ideas never see the light of day.
For innovation to be successful the right environment needs to be created. This is where I believe innovation and design methodologies, often pioneered by digital teams, can be adopted throughout the organisation – breaking down strategic uncertainty and ambiguity constraining many companies.
Successfully innovating happens at a pace an organisation can tolerate and must be supported by the right culture and processes, guiding teams through the uncertainty that idea exploration often entails.
