PHP has embarked upon a bold three-year initiative with two basic goals:
- To strategically grow the company, and
- To remain an independent health insurance carrier option for our region
We believe being local and independent is of great benefit to our members and our community. PHP provides jobs, supports the local economy, and contributes to the community at large.
Hitting the ground running
Over the last six months, and with the help of an outside consulting firm, PHP has participated in benchmark studies, looked at peer data, completed a feasibility study, and expanded a target market to help set our priorities for the future.
Armed with this information, we have now defined how we will implement our vision, detailing the steps needed to improve our processes and deliver new products. The insights we’ve gathered in this planning process have been translated into measurable and actionable objectives. Our team has been tasked with specific workstreams with corresponding timelines as a three-year blueprint for action.
This extensive planning process with operational details and assignments will assure that we can hit the ground running and maintain momentum.
An inclusive process
To assure that the entire decision-making team and board of directors agreed on this plan, thoughtful consideration was given to the need for shared understanding of the larger strategic plan and that decision-makers and teams were aligned on the same goals. PHP’s new plan must evolve with new challenges and opportunities along the way. Good communication will be critical to ensuring we are all on the same page and stay aligned.
Five pillars of success
Focusing on five business pillars—core areas of our business, maximizes our chances for success. These five important components will deliver better allocation of resources, organizational design, and strategic tradeoffs for future growth.
- Optimizing PHP’s operational delivery – being the best at what we do.
- Delivering a differentiated, local, and superior experience for our clients and members that enables PHP to grow.
- Developing capabilities in advanced primary care that promotes positive outcomes for our members.
- Creating additional partnership opportunities in the Third Party Administration services segment of our business.
- Providing excellent and thorough communication at every level of our organization.
Approaching challenges one step at a time
To offer insight on the importance of perspective and attitude when embarking on a steep challenge, we invited former Marine, Josh Bleill, to share an inspirational life story with our team. Josh is a speaker and the author of “One Step at a Time: A Young Marine's Story of Courage, Hope, and a New Life in the NFL.”
Josh’s perspective on approaching challenges, especially his reference to “one bad day” we’ve all had was put in perspective through his devastating active duty story. During that extremely difficult physical and emotional transition, Josh learned that life often begins when we embrace our bad days, and dig deep to find the resilience and courage to keep going forward. His message inspired and charged our team to approach a new strategic plan with enthusiasm, humor, and reliance on each other.
We have a bomb in our lives that we will not see coming
When a bomb exploded under the Marine vehicle Josh was riding in fifteen years ago, “he woke up to the realization that he had lost two friends and both of his legs in the blast. He spent two years of extensive rehabilitation recovering at Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.”
When Josh’s vehicle was struck by a bomb, he most definitely did not see it coming. Many months of rehab later, Josh began to recognize that hardship can bring unexpected gifts if we’re open to gleaning lessons from them—it’s a matter of perspective and our response. While this isn’t automatic, anyone can find and learn to embrace positivity from hardship.
Four of the most important lessons Josh took away from his incredible experiences were:
- Compassion and sensitivity—struggling with adversity can open our eyes to the hardships that others face making us more sensitive to others’ needs.
- Self-Knowledge and perspective—hardships reveal our limitations, beliefs, and skills. This gives us an opportunity to make new choices and decisions.
- Limits of control—hardship is a powerful reminder of the limits of our own control.
- Flexibility—and willingness to move forward builds added strength to tackle new challenges and face future failures.
During Josh’s time with the PHP team, he recognized that the PHP team is comprised of really good people with plenty of positive energy to embrace change. And by embracing change, we are all helping to build something great that we can look back on and take pride in. We are a driver of better health and a stronger community.
Be the best you can
Josh has challenged PHP to become the best company it can be and has offered the four following insights aligned with his own experiences:
Do the right thing—whether you feel appreciated, or not.
The Marine Corps mission reflects every Marine's purpose—finding individual purpose in a collective cause—the protection of our nation and the advancement of its ideals. This mission and cause give meaning and purpose, oftentimes despite a lack of gratitude or thanks.
As a Marine, Josh didn’t expect to be thanked. He had enlisted for his principles and was supporting the fighting spirit of the Marines through his behavior. Josh pointed out that oftentimes employees may not be thanked; our customer service team may answer countless calls without a “thank you” from a client or member. And yet, daily effort is impactful to the core values of the company and helps protect PHP’s reputation and image as an organization that cares for its community and our members.
Be prepared. Be transparent. Communicate.
PHP’s strategic plan is about being prepared and nimble for the future. As a Marine, hours of preparation were necessary for what soldiers face on a daily basis. To prepare for a strategic corporate shift, it’s important that PHP assess our activities to ensure they are effective as they can be, identifying areas for improvement, and ultimately helping us realize our goals more efficiently. If we are open to adapting and being transparent in discussing change, we’ll be prepared for a better future.
It’s all about relationships.
Marines are trained to communicate. Josh and his team formed relationships with the Iraqi people and built trust in both of their best interests—for safety and better morale. PHP team members must rely on each other. The interaction of work teams will ensure our collective success and will be in all of our best interests in the long run.
Part of relationships is finding a strong support system. Josh suggests PHP employees approach the PHP workplace as a support team. Colleagues are here to support one another. Josh says, “Marines get upset, they get scared, they laugh and they cry together. They survive by sharing these emotions and experiences.” That’s how teams communicate and learn to trust one another.
He reminded PHP team members that “you are not the only one dealing with stress at work or at home.” PHP has a great, friendly climate, and team members must support and lift each other.
If you have an idea for change, speak up—or things will not get better.
Josh says perspective is a tricky thing. Just because someone doesn’t see things eye-to-eye with us, doesn’t mean that they don’t agree with us. If you see an opportunity for PHP to improve processes, service, communication, or something else—speak up. It might not make an immediate impact; however, it does give the leadership team feedback and a new perspective. If employees don’t speak up, many opportunities for improvements may go unnoticed.
At this day’s end may the world be a better place because we have lived.
“You make the world a better place by making yourself a better person”—essentially, this is the wisdom Josh’s grandpa shared with him and words that Josh lives by. Our world moves fast and keeping up and carrying on seems insurmountable, at times. The pandemic has left many people feeling insecure, bitter, and disconnected personally and professionally.
Josh encourages each one of us to choose to be happy from within, as positive attitudes affect other people’s attitudes, and together we can make the world a better place.
Our world, within the walls of PHP or within our Northeast Indiana community, might be small, but we each have the power to make the world better by simply being the best we can be every day.
PHP’s goal for the next three years, is to be the best company we can and to provide the best service we can—clearly demonstrating that PHP is different than our competitors. We intend to be here to serve our community today and tomorrow.
