Who sets the business agenda?

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Organizational Behavior
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Business planning is a critical function in modern healthcare organizations.
• It significantly impacts the daily operations of both managers and professionals.
• Recent shifts in healthcare sectors necessitate an examination of current business planning practices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze recent changes in business planning across various healthcare sectors.
• To identify and evaluate potential models (financial, marketing, needs, power) influencing the healthcare business agenda.
• To determine the factors that truly shape, and those that should shape, healthcare business agendas.

Main Methods:

• Examination of input, output, and process information related to business planning.
• Analysis of evidence to understand the drivers of the business agenda.
• Comparative assessment of different business agenda models.

Main Results:

• Financial and power-related factors are identified as overwhelmingly influential in agenda setting.
• The study highlights discrepancies between what influences the agenda and what ideally should.
• Evidence suggests current business planning models may not fully represent organizational needs.

Conclusions:

• The current healthcare business agenda is predominantly shaped by financial and power considerations.
• Shifting the agenda requires incorporating a wider range of participant perspectives.
• A new model for business planning, fostering information sharing and communication, is proposed to enhance healthcare management.