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The future of work

by Jennifer Radin, Wendy Gerhardt, Casey Korba, Jeff Schwartz
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4 minute read 07 March 2019

The future of work How can health systems and health plans prepare and transform their workforce?

4 minute read 07 March 2019
  • Jennifer Radin United States
  • Wendy Gerhardt United States
  • Casey Korba United States
  • Jeff Schwartz United States
  • Jeff Schwartz United States
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The health care industry should find ways to be dynamic yet steady as younger generations enter the workforce, open talent models change how and where work happens, and disruptive technologies transform processes and consumer demands.

The nature of work is changing across all industries and around the world. Emerging technologies and the entry of a new generation into the workforce are changing expectations and bringing demands for new work models. Consider some of the ways the workforce is expected to change:

  • It is estimated that in five years, 95 percent of customer interactions will be AI-driven.1
  • Nearly half (47 percent) of US jobs could be automated in the next 10 years.2 
  • Over the past five years, freelancers, gig workers, and contractors made up 94 percent of net new job growth.3
  • Millennials currently make up almost 50 percent of the work mix and are expected to account for nearly 75 percent of the overall US workforce by 2025.4
  • As baby boomers extend productive life through healthy practices, the notion of the “100 year life” has implications for careers extending from 30 years to 50 years.

Learn more

Read more about the future of work

Explore the Health care collection

Learn about technology and the workforce of the future

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The health care industry, too, is on the cusp of a major transformation. Health systems and health plans should prepare for a technology-driven future, changing consumer demands, narrower margins, an aging population that is expected to live longer with chronic diseases, and new market disrupters coming on the scene to help solve for these challenges. Besides, new generations of health care workers (millennials and Generation Z) typically have different expectations than previous generations, eschewing traditional career paths and calling for new work models—the gig economy and the rising frequency of virtual work are just two of the indicators of this shift.

But are health systems and health plans ready to transform their workforces and begin to move toward the future of work?

To explore these issues, the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions surveyed more than 100 chief operating officers (COOs) and chief administrative officers (CAOs) from health systems and health plans and conducted in-depth interviews with another 16. We focused on how health systems and health plans are preparing their nonclinical, business, and administrative workforces for the future of work. These repetitive functions are ripe for automation and could be considered near-term and low-risk opportunities, given they are not on the front line of patient care.

For an in-depth account of our findings and recommendations please read our complete report, The future of work: How can health systems and health plans prepare and transform their workforce? Here, we present an overview of our findings, what they mean for the future of work in health care, and some recommendations on how organizations can change these functions dynamically while remaining focused when it comes to day-to-day work.

Seventy-five percent of health systems and health plans that we surveyed have either invested in future of work initiatives or plan to do so in the next year or two. Not surprisingly, executives are motivated by the potential of these initiatives to contain costs, improve customer service, and engage employees. Many organizations told us that they are interested in, and are experimenting with, new technologies and talent models for their business and administrative functions. But they also recognize that there are broader benefits and goals tied to the future of work. Many of them said they intend to address employee engagement (76 percent) and existing staff shortages (73 percent) through the future of work. Over the long term, health systems and plans intend to use the future of work to improve customer satisfaction (75 percent).

Respondents identified a few nonclinical areas as most ripe for future of work transformation:

  • Finance and accounting for all health care organizations;
  • HR/talent (payroll/recruitment) for all health care organizations;
  • Revenue cycle for health systems; and
  • Customer service and claims processing for health plans.

Most admit, however, that they aren’t quite sure how to launch broader organizationwide future of work efforts. But standing on the sidelines is not an option. How does an organization move forward? Organizations should start by developing a strategic workforce plan focused on a three- to five-year time horizon. Other important steps include having strong leadership and managing change. The real opportunity presented by the future of work can be far greater than just cost savings. Health care organizations risk falling behind if they choose not to make and implement a strategic plan for the future of work. As health care organizations find their way toward the future of health, future of work strategies will be a critical enabler to this disruptive transformation.

For more on this issue, download the complete report, The future of work: How can health systems and health plans prepare and transform their workforce?
Acknowledgments

Project team: Bushra Naaz contributed greatly to this research and the scoping, survey development and design, analysis, secondary research, and writing aspects of the project. Erica Cischke helped scope the research, design the survey tool, and conduct interviews. Maureen Medlock, Colleen Bordeaux, and Nina Marcos helped shape the research through their expertise and guidance.

The authors would like to thank Nigel Ferguson, Eileen Radis, Julia Cooney, Randy Gordon, Sarah Thomas, Kelly Monahan, Julia Dashuta, Brad Gallaher, Sam Johnson, Lauren Wallace, Samantha Gordon, and the many others who contributed to the success of this project.

Cover image by: David Owens

Endnotes
    1. Finance Digest, “AI will power 95% of customer interactions by 2025,” March 10, 2017. View in article

    2. Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael A. Osborne, “The future of employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?”, Technological Forecasting and Social Change 114 (2013), DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2016.08.019. View in article

    3. Dan Kopf, “Almost all the US jobs created since 2005 are temporary,” Quartz, December 5, 2016. View in article

    4. Morley Winograd and Dr. Michael Hais, How millennials could upend Wall Street and corporate America, The Brookings Institution, May 2014. View in article

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Topics in this article

Life Sciences & Health Care , Health Plans & Payers , Center for Health Solutions

Future of Work

Learn more
Get in touch
Contact
  • Jennifer Radin
  • Principal, Chief innovation officer, Health Care
  • Deloitte Consulting LLP
  • jradin@deloitte.com
  • +1 212 618 4833

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Jennifer Radin

Jennifer Radin

National leader

JENNIFER RADIN, Deloitte Consulting LLP, is a principal and the chief innovation officer for Deloitte's Health Care practice. She also leads the Future of Work in Health Care signature issue. With more than 20 years of experience in life sciences and health care, Radin is a national speaker and key advisor to health care leaders, helping them transform their organizations to execute strategies for growth that improve clinical outcomes, enhance patient and family experiences, improve affordability and access, and increase caregiver engagement. She is based in New York.

  • jradin@deloitte.com
Wendy Gerhardt

Wendy Gerhardt

Health care research leader

Wendy Gerhardt, Deloitte Services LP, is a research leader with the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions. She is responsible for conducting research to inform health care system stakeholders about emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities. Prior to joining Deloitte, Gerhardt held multiple roles in strategy/planning for a health system and research for health care industry information solutions. She holds a BBA from the University of Michigan and an MA in health policy from Northwestern University. She is based in Detroit.

  • wgerhardt@deloitte.com
Casey Korba

Casey Korba

Health Policy Manager | Deloitte

Casey Korba, MS, is health policy manager for the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions (Deloitte Services LP), where she provides comprehensive regulatory, legislative, and policy analysis in areas including the transition to value-based care, emerging technology, and consumer engagement. She supports Deloitte’s Life Sciences and Health Care practice through research to inform health care system stakeholders about emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities.

  • ckorba@deloitte.com
  • +1 202 220 2652
Jeff Schwartz

Jeff Schwartz

Principal

Jeff Schwartz, a principal with Deloitte Consulting LLP, is the US leader for the Future of Work and author of Work Disrupted (Wiley, 2021). Schwartz is an adviser to senior business leaders at global companies, focusing on workforce and business transformation. He is the global editor of the Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends report, which he started in 2011.

  • jeffschwartz@deloitte.com

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