Corporate vision: long-term vision of a hospital

The management of the hospital, which was under growing competitive pressure, was concerned about the strategic focus dominated by the daily business and the jointly supported vision of the hospital despite solid economic numbers and good clinical results.

The existing strategy was out-of-date and urgently required a revision, also with respect to the funding body.

Influencing factors and trends inside and outside of the hospital were assessed together in leadership workshops in order to define the strategic scope of the municipal hospital.

Based on historic, positive experiences and adventures ("appreciative inquiry") the cornerstones of the future vision were crystallized, alternately with an imaginative and a fact-based approach and then viewed from different perspectives.

In two cross-hierarchical two-day workshops with the participation of all employee groups and organizational units, the vision and the derived strategic guidelines were discussed, calibrated and widely communicated. Thereby the interactive, focused and playful elements took turns.

Finally, a strategic master plan was adopted, which organized the selected agreed initiatives along a time axis and also prioritized and defined responsibilities.

The new corporate vision was widely communicated and firmly anchored at all levels.

• The motivation to engage in strategic initiatives was very high.
• The feedback of all participants was extremely positive, because the right balance between involvement and directive had been found.
• The supreme body of the hospital's funding institution adopted the vision without any modifications and fully supported the initiative without restrictions.

The entire process was published and was reported as best practice at a national human resources strategy congress.