Rose Montenegro, the current CEO Makati Med happens to be wife of Mr Joven Reyes, AdeMU College Class 1972 Class Valedictorian, BS Math Major, Harvard Graduate former Senior Manager in various multinational companies : J & J, Citibank, AIG. Rose and Joven worked together. Rose studied liberal arts in St. Theresa.
She was drawn out of retirement at ePLDT by Manny V Pangilinan who rescued Makati Med.
How did Rose, a non doctor turn around MakatiMed?
Her story of the turn around is like a critical case analysis: deceptively simple yet deep.
Situation analysis: There was no system and procedure on critical success factors: quality, customer service, logistics, IT, billing and accounting. The building was old and so with the hospital equipment; IT was topsy turvy. There was a culture of entitlement. The doctors who own the hospital were running the show: they were very good in being doctors ie doing the medical profession but did a poor job of running the hospital (it ran out of cash at the time MVP bought it). There was culture of entitlement: no procedure of logistics; hr was elementary.
It was in a tight competitive situation form SLMMC and TMC
On the positive side: it had nice location - CBD. The nursing services was superb. The doctors were the best in their specialty. It had a brand name.
Problem: It did not have financials too; was losing money (it had a union, maybe a feisty and demanding too
Her options: there was only one - to bring it shipshape; to turn it around. To make the hospital competitive and make money.
Her solution:
The first phase of her solution was to attack the hard issues: infrastructure, systems and procedures, operational efficiency. Her term was pick your battles where you can win and where you can make an impact on. She was a systems person and felt her task was cut for her being a six sigma practitioner. She brought with her IT, finance experts (15 in all) to bring Makati Med in order)
She reorganized Makati Med into matrix management: dividing work between medical and corporate. The task of running the hospital was divided into two: medical and corporate management - accounting, IT logistics, safety quality, building management. Some specifics:
l. Bought new equipment eg filmless radiology, automated diagnostic lab equipment, latest for oncology, chemotherapy.
2. Refurbished the building: new look, new paint, solar energy, scenic elevators
3. Streamlined purchasing, inventory (used bar codes), IT (one system) upgraded telephone and computer system; the cash collection and drugstore were outsourced (the drugstore to the cooperative - vat and income tax free) so that drugs are competitive with Mercury.
Results: Makati Med now looks beautiful; it makes money. It would have done more without the following constraints: senior citizen discounts, the free medical benefits to all the doctors and staff of MMC (provided for by CBA), the ER losses on treat first, without deposits requirement of the law. Just the two would account for hundred million pesos.
