Forecast or react? What healthcare taught us.

You‘re always on time

Services and businesses are pushed by challenges. Day after day companies deal with the unknown. Being able to take a leap of faith and reinvent itself is rare, mainly in well established sectors. Rigid control and regulation is a well known attrition factor in innovation, and healthcare services are a prime example of that.

Unforeseen circumstances like SARS-COV-2 bulldozed high walls of control and regulations. This was the defining moment for the healthcare industry as it became fully committed to its digital transformation. This delivered an unprecedented added value straight to their customers’ homes. Necessity led to innovation, but does it always have to be like that?

Key Performance Innovator

Motivated by end users, all types of industries have been experiencing massive changes. The healthcare sector is in the midst of a transformation that is unpredictable, therefore making it hard to see how the final outlook will be.

In-person services are unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels; privacy concerns have been raised; numerous mobile tracing apps have been developed with official government support; real-time data on vital signals and notification apps; remote consultations; Are good examples of services that boomed in this sector, as opposed to its timid evolution before the pandemic.

Two years ago, India’s COVID-19 tracking app became the world’s fastest growing application, beating Pokémon Go. This is a great example of how healthcare companies are eager to use technology in order to bring quality and reliability to their service. It’s debatable whether privacy should have been factored differently, but technology itself was in fact useful.

Software innovation in healthcare was for the best part based in data research, analysis and interpretation, but innovation comes from multiple angles: design, engagement and purpose. These are great aspects for human centered products, pivotal for remote interactions with applications and the key for business prosperity.

This shows that technology is more than analytical decisions based on data research; it’s an application that delivers a human experience to healthcare services.

Is healthcare the last or the latest case?

Given the momentum, the question is no longer if digitalization will proliferate, but rather how the market shakes out.

Healthcare and financial services are embracing technology in levels never seen before, and other industries can learn from it and speed up their transformation too.

The need is always the greatest motivation, but some of the most solid companies in the world are precisely so because they are able to forecast the needs and be one step ahead instead of just reacting.

How can a company become a sustained innovator? Here are some key considerations:

• Global access and reach, in an even more global world, needs to be a top priority.
• Daily data driven analysis not only to define innovative ideas but also to measure its success.
• Be human and create human centered applications. Care about your customer’s journey and promote intimacy! Focus on solving their problems.
• In this world, uniqueness, attention to detail and choice are more valued than ever. Being able to offer alternative solutions is on its own an excellent, go to market, feature. As opposed to being first to market which can feel a bit overrated. Don’t be afraid to bring your vision to a crowded market.

Having a strategy is important, but making sure the strategy is aligned with how the world is evolving is equally important. This will ensure that your company will thrive and be one step ahead of your competitors.

Innovation is shapeless

Considering these steps for digital transformation, healthcare was not only able to move towards innovation but thrive!

The need for change was obviously caused by an unpleasant scenario but there is a lesson to be learnt: every market has the potential to reinvent itself.

Consider accelerating your digital transformation not only to face the unpredictable but also to bring excellent results, just like the healthcare industry did.

Want to share some thoughts?

Here at craftable software we breathe, implement and iterate on innovation, it is in our DNA.

If you are looking for ideas on how to start your digital transformation, I can help you with the first steps!

Reach out to me here or on LinkedIn.

Forecast or react? What healthcare taught us. was originally published in craftable on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.