The Silverline Blog
Industry insights, Salesforce news, and more
Industry insights, Salesforce news, and more
Reading time: 3 minutes
Meaningful use – it’s a huge buzz word, and rightfully so. Whether you agree or disagree with the manner in which it has been “implemented” (and the intricacies of the guidelines), it has been a driving factor in pushing healthcare organizations towards greater technology adoption. Money, especially in Healthcare, remains a rather significant momentum driver...
Reading time: 3 minutes
We all like to think big. There is often tremendous benefit in doing so. Seeking to transform Healthcare is a great strategic goal; tactically, not so much. You must focus less on a master solution to fix the “system” and instead figure out how to address niche problems within the system that will ultimately lead...
Reading time: 4 minutes
Last month before the Holidays, I unfortunately had to spend time in the hospital with a sick family member. The old adage “Nobody likes a hospital” is certainly true, however it has recently become quite insightful given the maturity of my career in the Healthcare industry.
When I enter a hospital now, outside of being concerned for the welfare of the person that is seeking clinical care, I often find myself analyzing the environment around me. Are there opportunities to improve? Is that medical device from a client of mine? Is the Doctor board certified? It is truly intriguing how knowledge breeds a new perspective.
Reading time: 3 minutes
Have you heard of the “DOD Excess Property Program”? If you haven’t, long story short is that as an output of our wars in the Middle East, the US has a bunch of excess military supplies, gear, and vehicles that are no longer needed. Therefore, communities are able to buy, and in many times receive for free, these items to use.
Reading time: 3 minutes
Yes, Salesforce continually rolls out new functionality and has a strategic business model that resulted in Forbes naming them the most innovative company four years in a row, but that is only part of the story. Salesforce also recognizes the value of branding, and this recent switch is strongly tied to its desire to move into additional industries.
This is why I am so excited.
Healthcare, like many industries, struggles to categorize Salesforce as anything more than a CRM system. The ability to get Healthcare organizations to buy into Salesforce requires a whole lot of convincing, such as why the Cloud, whether Salesforce is even a platform, and why Salesforce may be the right platform. If you are able to get through those obstacles, then you have the opportunity to explain the intricacies of a solution that could deliver on transforming Healthcare for a particular organization and reinforcing their vision.
A new brand was necessary to facilitate changing perceptions and to solidify Salesforce’s foothold in new markets.
Reading time: 2 minutes
The notion that Healthcare is a mature industry, but still requires a lot of education in the technology space, was reinforced after returning from one of the largest technology conferences in the country - Dreamforce. There has been an immense focus within the Healthcare and Life Sciences space on cloud technology, yet despite improved adoption, it appears major barriers still exist.
One of of the main reasons? Let’s call it semantics.
Reading time: 3 minutes
There has been a lot of dialogue lately regarding CMS’s potential expansion of a star rating system to providers. Not surprisingly, it is being rather heavily opposed. The difficulty with such a system whether a star, or any other indicator, is ensuring the rating actually measures what it is intended too. Further, does the rating actually add value to the audience, or audiences, in which it is intended to be consumed.
Reading time: < 1 minute
If you are an active member of the Salesforce community, or even passive in this case, you know about Dreamforce. The annual event in San Francisco in which more than 100,000 people come together to discuss, hack, share, present, develop all things Salesforce. There might also be that big concert that attracts a few people as well.
Reading time: 2 minutes
One of the many complexities of Healthcare is balancing priorities to achieve business goals. How to treat patients as patients, not customers? How to meet technical, business, and clinical needs all at the same time? How to achieve provider and patient engagement? How to deliver a higher quality of care at a lower cost? The list goes on.
Reading time: 2 minutes
$6.4 billion. That’s the amount of funding that VCs pumped into Healthcare in 2013 according to CB insights. Granted, 67% of that funding went to Medical Devices, Drug Development, and Biotech. Still, that leaves a lot of money for the other segments.
Investing in Healthcare is becoming extremely lucrative; so lucrative in fact, organizations that historically focused on delivering clinical care have developed their own VC arms. This is a unique business model shift - so what is the value of such investments?