I read a lot about digital transformation (especially in the twitter feed of @dchou117). It is an important topic. But, I believe it should be viewed as a means by which we achieve great customer experience. When we flex our digital transformation muscles without thinking through the ideal customer experience we end up with things like patient portals with single digit adoption rates.

Make no mistake, creating an ideal customer experience in any industry is difficult. It is especially difficult in large healthcare systems. Besides being incredibly complex, we have a legacy of applications, workflows and organizational culture that are significant barriers.

So, here is a suggestion for healthcare IT leaders…start with creating ideal customer experiences for your internal customers. Show your organization that IT has the vision and the chops to do this work and create a model for the external customer (patient) experience.

What is your organization’s customer experience when onboarding a new employee? Is it an all digital experience that is quick and well thought out? Does it collect only the minimal information required, without duplication? Are you using well designed front-ends and a database on the back end? Is it connected to the hiring process so nobody slips through the cracks or shows up to work without the ability to do their job?