Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1526981
18 EXECUTIVE BRIEFING 1 EXECUTIVE BRIEFING F inancial pressures continue to mount for healthcare supply chain leaders as the industry transitions from the traditional fee- for-service payment model to new models driven by value-based care. To enhance the effi ciency, scalability and adaptability of their supply chains, many healthcare organizations are embracing cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, business process improvement and automation. To learn more about how healthcare supply chain leaders are navigating these trends, Becker's Healthcare recently spoke with Chris Luoma, chief strategy offi cer at GHX. Mr. Luoma shared insights from the new whitepaper "Maximizing your cloud ERP: Six critical considerations for supply chain optimization" from GHX, which highlights strategies for health systems to optimize their cloud ERP investment. Key takeaways are summarized below. To survive and thrive, hospitals + health systems need to make data- driven business decisions Supply chain leaders are striving to lower costs while increasing transparency in supplies used to deliver care. This can be diffi cult as care expands outside of the hospital into ambulatory settings and even into patients' homes. "Organizations need technology that allows them to push supply chain capabilities and best practices into new points of care," Mr. Luoma said. "At the same time, they also need strong data to support data-driven decision-making. Cloud as a technology enabler and cloud ERP systems are tools that supply chain teams can use to achieve those goals." Data governance and automation are key pathways to operational effectiveness Without a strong foundation of data across the entire organization, it's challenging to drive analytics and make decisions with confi dence. In supply chain management, data governance starts with the contract catalog. "As you think about the items you are using and where things sit on your shelves, you also need to think about how to automate processes," Mr. Luoma said. "Manual processing of orders, invoices, payments and inventory is not only ineffi cient, it also fails to capture data points that can feed into analytics and decision-making. Strong data governance and automation across all of your processes is critical to creating a virtuous cycle." Supply chain leaders should also consider how to create a directed buying experience that drives clinicians in different care settings to the right products at the right time. This helps organizations maximize the value of their contract portfolios, as well as the effi ciency of their logistics networks. Reshaping healthcare supply chains: How cloudƒERPƒlowers costs + empowers decisions